Dancing on heartbreak

Dancing on Heartbreak - 2

*** If you see any typos or incorrect grammar, feel free to point out my mistakes ;) ***

Five years earlier

 "He's looking at you again." Lizzy jabs me in the ribs and points with her pinkie toward the group of guys. "The blond one."

I wrinkle my nose. "I don't care. Let him watch."

"Suit yourself. He's mighty fine, though." She focuses on the group of guys and, as if they need any more encouragement, gives them a little wave.

It's all I can do to not grab her by the arm and push her waving hand to the ground. "Don't do that! How can you wave at them, after what just happened?"

Alas, my luck remains shitty this evening, because two guys leave the group and wander in our direction. They're different as night and day. One blond, one dark. Blue eyes looking in my direction, brown eyes follow suit.

"Hi," the blond starts when he reaches our table, "I'm Sam..."

"I'm not interested."

His friend with the brown eyes belts out a laugh and puts the charm on Lizzy. He's far more successful than his buddy, who now has the audacity to pull out a chair and sit himself next to me. I raise an eyebrow.

"Or was this seat taken?"

"Yeah, Rudolph's just getting us a refill," I deadpan and wave my hand toward the cardboard reindeer with the famous red nose that's perched up on the bar. "I think he'll be back any minute now and then there's gonna be a throw down."

The blond starts laughing. It's a great laugh, genuine and melodic. Too bad. He's also quite good looking. Built, but that's no surprise, it's almost mandatory around here, it seems. His uniform hugs his broad shoulders. And he's tall. That's a big pro, because I'm no petite princess myself.

I've seen them before. Or guys just like him. The kind that live around the corner. We're on their ground, Lizzy and me being the outsiders. In any other place in town, it's the other way around. Not in here. In here, we are the enemy.

"I'm thinking I can take him... That Rudolph of yours." The bravado in his voice doesn't go unnoticed.

"Well, well, we're pretty sure of our self, are we now? Don't underestimate my Rudolph." I take a sip of wine, trying to look bored and not so out of place. Everywhere I look, I see the same thing. The same uniform.

"I'm Samuel," he tries again. "And that clown who's trying to charm the panties of your friend. That's Bryan."

"Let me guess," I sneak a peek and find blue eyes intently focused on me. "He's the charmer and you're the strong and silent type?"

Sam doesn't waiver. "Dunno. Yeah, I guess you can say I'm the strong type. What about you? Are you the silent type or more of a screamer?" He cocks an eyebrow, as if testing if I get the meaning behind his words.

"Sure, I'll bite," I counter with a smile, watching the interest in his blue eyes spike. "Not much of a screamer, though."

That gets me another one of those amazing laughs. The sound pulls me in. It's warm and wonderful and pushes the loneliness of this evening aside. "I'll dance with you, if you promise not to bite me... yet."

I almost choke on the wine. "Are you kidding me?"

"Nope." He stands to his full height. I need to tilt my head to keep looking in to those telling blue eyes. "So? May I have this dance?"

"Nope!" I shake my head for good measure, but mostly to not get lost in those eyes and do something stupid like dance with this G.I.

"Why not?" He doesn't sound angry, nor disappointed. Just... amused.

"I don't do..." I twirl my finger before pointing at him.

"Don't do what?" His confusion looks sincere and, just for a moment, his gaze drops – checking me out. Seeing my t-shirt and what's splattered across my chest, the tie dye peace symbol is hard to miss, his expression changes and a second passes in which I'm afraid he's going to get angry and doesn't want to continue whatever the hell it is we're doing. Flirting! But I'm not about to point that out, not to him and no way am I going to acknowledge this feeling of anticipation that makes my heart beat just a bit faster. Nope. Not gonna happen. But he doesn't get angry. He just smiles and calls out to his friend. 'Yo, Bry, just our luck, man. Christmas Eve and we're stuck on base with these two. Make peace but not love, I'm guessing..."

Bryan dismisses him with a wave and puts his arm around Lizzy's shoulders. The traitor at least has the decency to shrug apologetically before she focuses on her new best friend. 'Cause she needs one, as that position is vacant as of now. Lizzy's principals are always to a certain point. And that point's usually in the shape of a hot guy.

"But, Ghandi-Barbie, how did it go? With the protest and all? Did you chain yourself to something yet, or is there a chance that that's gonna happen later tonight?" His smile grows bigger and he wiggles his eyebrows. He's having too much fun with this and the teasing makes his whole face light up, making him look beautiful. Gorgeous. And... young. Not so much soldier, but just a regular guy having a laugh at a bar, trying to charm a girl. He looks... normal.

I give up trying to fight the obvious attraction that's between us, give up on trying to argue against my heart that skips a beat with every smile he so easily gives me, and I so willingly accept. I slouch back in my chair and Sam takes his seat next to me again. He must understand by now that I'm not going to take him up on his offer to go dancing. 'Actually, it didn't go that well... They escorted us off the premises, thank you very much."

Sam shakes his head. 'Amazing that you got that far in the first place. I can assure you, not every protester makes it that far.'

He's right about that. We needed a bolt cutter and had to wiggle through the chain-link fence. The ground was freezing but thank god there wasn't any snow yet. I shift my gaze and look out the bar window, where a thick white blanket covers the earth. Now there is.

"So, how about that dance?" He jabs his thumb over his shoulder at the very small, and very deserted dance floor at the back of the bar. The old jukebox spits out Christmas songs like an elf on steroids, Mariah Carey singing about all she wants for Christmas and Justin B. is going on and on about a Mistletoe.

I don't know what's gotten in to me, maybe it's the disappointment about the failed protest and I'm sick of feeling that way; or maybe it's those blue eyes of his that make my heart skip a beat when he looks at me, I absolutely don't know, but when he stands and sticks out his arm, I'm putting my hand in his and letting him pull me to my feet. He doesn't have a problem getting me out of my chair and leading me toward the dance floor, where he takes me in his arms, hands landing on my hips, my arms awkwardly draping around his neck. He pulls me close and I let my body melt to his.

Sam guides me and soon I forget anything and everything. I forget about all that's wrong in the world, forget about wars and the fact that the base is expanding and eating up one of the most beautiful forests in my hometown.

That Christmas Eve we just danced and I forgot that I had to get back home, that just that next morning, my grandparents would come over and that I had to explain to my dad why he received a letter from some official agency stating that I had broken into a military installation and had tried to put up a banner with the text: "G.I.NO! Tree GO!". Come to think of it, it didn't even have good grammar on the it... It probably was the lamest chant anyone has ever made up... Another notch on my bedpost of shame, I guess. I also forgot that I needed to go explain why I was a little bit tipsy when I got home, 'cause I tried to rid myself of shame with a glass too many of wine, in the local G.I. bar of all places.

Sam holds me tight and kisses me softly, as voices in the background sing about a reindeer named Rudolph, who had this funny red nose. That night, he took me home and asked me if I liked to go dancing with him again some time. Things between Lizzy and Bryan didn't work out, but that next year, on New Year's Eve, I married my blue-eyed G.I. His best friend was there to witness him saying "I do", just like he witnessed all the important moments of his life, as only best friends do.