The World is Ugly, but You are Beautiful to Me

chapter 22

"Alright guys and girls, grab somebody before they're taken because it's time to slow things down!" the DJ announces. He changed the song to a much slower and relaxed tune.

Chelsea and Zach begin to slow dance, leaving me and Peter staring at each other. He holds his hand out, offering to dance with me. I smile and wrap my arms around his neck while still distancing myself from him. I don't want to start anything but I still want to dance with him. Peter's hands rest on my hips and we rock back and forth like everyone else in the room.

I look at our feet so that I don't step on his. I had two more drinks since the first with Peter, which is more than I should've. I feel like I could easily trip at any moment.

"Look at me," Peter says, causing my eyes to snap up. A smile forms on his lips as soon as I do. "Tell me about yourself," he commands in a friendly tone.

"Um, I don't know. I'm not very interesting," I shrug.

"I doubt that. What about your family? Tell me about them. Tell me about your hobbies. Tell me about anything."

Family. Family. The word swims through my head.

"Well, my dad was dead but now he's not. Or maybe he is and someone is pretending to be him. I haven't really thought about it yet," I tell him without hesitation. Peter gives me a skeptical look and I soon realize what I had just told him.

I'm such an idiot. I can't tell anyone that, and here I am telling a boy whom I barely know one of my biggest secrets. This alcohol is messing with my brain.

"Shit, did I just say that out loud?" I ask, but I already know the answer. "I don't know what I'm talking about. My dad is dead. That's true. Sometimes I just miss him so much that I pretend he's alive," I quickly add. I have to make it seem like I wasn't serious about him coming "back to life."

"I'm sorry," Peter says sympathetically, pulling my body closer to his.

"Anyways, I like to draw. That's it, really. I'm horrible at sports. What about you?" I quickly change the subject.

Peter tells me that he plays football and has one younger sister. I'm glad that we're having a normal conversation.

The last slow song comes to an end. I step away from Peter and suggest that we sit down somewhere. I'm exhausted, we must've been dancing for hours. He agrees and we find a table off to the side of the room. I check my phone, seeing that it's already midnight.

"Wow, it's late," I say. I'm surprised that so many people are still here.

Peter and I chat about nothing in particular. A while later, Chelsea and Zach appear. They're both sweating and their faces are bright red. They've obviously been drinking and dancing too much.

"Aww, look who made friends!" Chelsea giggles at Peter and I.

I blush, even though I shouldn't be embarrassed. We're just friends, right? I'm probably never going to see him again anyways. Well, maybe.

As weird as it is, I've enjoyed the night. I had been ready to leave once I got here but I ended up having a lot of fun.

"When are we leaving?" I ask Chelsea.

"What, you're bored? I thought we were having fun!"

"No, I am having fun. I was just wondering."

"Once we're both sober," she says while finishing off another drink.

~

I'm watching the large group of people dance endlessly. It seems like they're never going to stop. I'm sitting next to Peter in a booth, with Chelsea and Zach across from us. We're all sipping on coffees, trying to sober up. It's almost two a.m.

Everyone on the dance floor is attempting at doing the Cha Cha Slide. It's very humorous, considering that half of them have no idea what they're doing. I'm in the middle of laughing at them when I catch a glimpse of someone's face. I swear I know them, but I have no idea who they are since they're so far away. 

I stand up from our table and walk back out to the dance floor, desperate to figure out whose familiar face I had seen. Peter stands up beside me and walks with me.

"Where are you going?" 

"I swear, I know that person," I explain, pointing towards the male towards the front right of the room.

I navigate towards him, finally reaching a very familiar face. He notices me at the same time I do him.

"Katherine?" he asks, clearly surprised.

"Logan?"