Fantasy Land

Chapter Eleven

I used to think "danced the night away" was just an expression, but that night it was as true as anything else. Hours passed by as quickly as if they were minutes. Or maybe that was just how it felt when I was with Matt. I could have danced with him forever, but before I knew it, Woody and Tim had found their way over to us. Which was fine, and I had been wondering where they had been anyway, it just meant no more slow-dancing.

Even Trevor eventually made his way back to the group, though he had left Zoey behind. I did my best not to look at Matt as I danced with my friends, mostly with Trevor and Woody since they were closest to me. Although I'd have rather been dancing with Matt, I didn't mind having all the guys around when "Hoedown Throwdown" started playing.

Trevor cheered, "Fuck yeah."

I laughed at his excitement. He probably knew the dance moves better than I did, since I had made him watch the Hannah Montana movie this summer, and no doubt his little sisters had made him watch it too. Tim and Woody seemed reluctant, but they followed their friend as he moved closer to the center of the dance floor. Matt stayed behind and was starting to turn around to leave, but I grabbed his hand and pulled him after his brother.

"I don't know the moves," Matt protested, but I shook my head. He wasn't getting out of this that easily.

"Just copy me," I replied. Part of my motivation was good, not wanting Matt to have to sit out all alone while all of his friends were having fun dancing, but another part of me just wanted an excuse for Matt's eyes to be on me. I let go of his hand and clapped along to the "boom boom clap" of the song.

Matt did his best to mimic my moves, struggling slightly with the zig zags and shuffling, but he looked so cute when he did it. His eyebrows were slightly furrowed with a mixture of confusion and concentration as he stared at my legs. It was quite the opposite of his brother, who was following the dance effortlessly. But as the song continued and the chorus repeated a few times, Matt had picked up the dance and was doing pretty well.

When the song ended, I turned to the older boy. "See, that wasn't so bad, was it?"

"No, it was pretty bad," he answered, making me roll my eyes and smile. After having known him for fifteen years, I could tell when he was joking, even when he looked completely serious, and I knew this was one of those moments.

"How were you so good at it?" he asked. At first I thought he might have been addressing Trevor, but he was looking right at me. I started to blush under his gaze and subtle compliment, not that dancing well to a Hannah Montana song was something to take much pride in.

"I'm a cheerleader," I shrugged. I was good at following routines. Honestly my favorite songs to dance to were the ones that had a routine with them, like "Cupid Shuffle" or "Cha Cha Slide." It was so much fun to see a whole group of people move as one.

"Dude, you killed it out there," Trevor teased his older brother with a smirk. He held his hand up for a high-five, which Matt complied with but then flipped Trevor the bird. Typical.

"Alright, people, it's time for the moment you've all been waiting for!" Jessica spoke into a mike at the front of the gym. She was the captain of the cheer team, so I knew her pretty well, especially since she was grooming me to take over for her next year after she would graduate. She also just so happened to be on the homecoming planning committee.

"It's time to get laid?" Trevor joked, making his band members laugh. I elbowed his side as I tried to hide my smirk.

"It's time to announce your homecoming king and queen," Jess continued as if she had heard Trevor's remark and was correcting him. "And without further ado," she began to open a small white envelope, "congratulations to... Justin Mallory and El Gale!"