After the incident at George's house, you decided to just walk yourself home. It would allow you some time to think over what happened and what to do next, but you were still so distraught they you ended up almost crying the whole way there. You tried to calm yourself down as you walked into your house and into your bedroom, but you collapsed and started sobbing into your pillow.
After some healthy crying, you suddenly sat up from your bed. Why are you crying over some man? You're stronger than this! You shouldn't be crying over some man rejecting you, you can get any man you wanted if you really tried.
You glanced over at the clock and saw that it barely past 5 o'clock, which means the party hasn't even started yet. You flung yourself off the bed and wiped your tears as you looked through your closet.
"I'm not going to let some man dictate if I want to go to a part or not, no matter even if he's the General." You grumbled to yourself as you rummaged through your dresses, looking for your favorite dress*.
"Aha!" You exclaimed as you twirled it around the room.
You slipped off the dress you were wearing and quickly changed. You ran into the bathroom and touched up your makeup and redid your hair. You had no idea how long you were in the bathroom but as you stepped out to check the time, you saw it was five minutes past 6, meaning that you were late for the dance. You rushed and grabbed your purse before running out the door. Luckily, the ball was at the Schuylers' and you only lived a few minutes away, so you walked the whole way there.
You knew you would draw some attention since you would be arriving at the ball late, but you didn't expect almost all the guests to turn and gape at you. You blushed but held your head highly as you walked in, trying not to dwell too much as you practically stopped the ball by just your presence. You were praying to every God hoping it was because you looked nice, not because you looked like a mess. You waked gracefully down the stairs and discreetly tried to fix your hair in case there were any loose strands.
"I assure you, Miss, that you look absolutely radiant tonight and there is no need for you to fix your appearance." You heard a voice behind you say.
You turned and saw a handsome man in a uniform grinning brightly at you. You blushed and curtsied as you introduced yourself.
"Hello Sir, I'm (Y/N)-"
He quickly interrupted, "(Y/N) (L/N)." Your eyes widened when he knew your name and he laughed, "No need to be alarmed Miss (L/N), everyone in the Continental Army knows your name. You are quite close with the General and most men are afraid to approach because of your rumored relationship, but I decided to take the chance and so far it has been well worth the risk." He whispered the last part against your skin as he kissed your hand.
Your face turned red, "And who might you be, Sir?"
His smile grew when he noticed your pinkish cheeks, "The name is John André, Miss (L/N). May I have the honor of a dance?" He offered his hand.
You gleefully accepted as he led you into the middle of the dance floor. He gracefully led you in a face paced dance while you tried to keep up. You were glad George taught you before you came to the dance, but you were trying to forget about him for the time being.
John made small talk with you the entire time and even flirted with you. Although you were having an amazing time with him, you still would rather have George's arms wrapped around you. You hadn't seen him the entire time you were here and you were starting to think he didn't show up because of more important issues, you thought bitterly.
"Excuse me, André." You heard a voice from behind you interrupt. "But may I borrow Miss (L/N) for a moment."
You were tried to communicate with John to not trade you off since you were having such a nice time dancing with him, but then you noticed the fear in his eyes and his pale face. He looked at you with wide eyes before nodding to whoever was behind you. A hand grabbed you and spun you around and you were face to face with the General.
