Love is Always Write Anthology Volume 8

hand tightly.
    Peter quirked an eyebrow at his room-mate as he asked the question burning a hole in his mind.
    "What in the world does 'Brah' mean?"
    Marcus grinned. "Why don't we all go get some dinner, and I'll begin your education over some ribs, yeah?" Peter's stomach growled, answering the question before anyone else could get a word in edge-wise. Mr. and Mrs. Jenkins chimed in, agreeing dinner sounded like a fine idea, and within a few minutes, they were all packed into Marcus's bright blue Saturn Vue. Peter relaxed in the back seat, enjoying the sound of his pa and his roommate discussing the merits of a good rack of ribs, and listening to his ma's quiet interjections. His eyes closed and he let the tide of conversation wash around him. Marcus turned the radio on, and a song started to play, the song . John Mayer started singing about his lover and the shape she made crawling across their bed… and Peter remembered the last time he'd seen his Butterfly.
    ****
    "Come on, Hinata, dance one slow song with me. Just one and I'll leave you alone to drool over Peter Jenkins for the rest of the night." Rachelle leaned in close, whispering in his ear. "No one is going to believe we really hooked up tonight if you don't start putting a little acting into this gig."
    Hinata leaned back enough to meet Rachelle's eyes. She wore a deadly earnest expression on her elfin face. "What?"
    Rachelle flipped her bangs out of her eyes. "I knew you weren't listening. C’mon. I love this song, and nobody else is gonna dance with me after we made such a big deal about how in lurve we are." The second the word lurve left her lips, they both cracked up. Hinata smiled down at her, grateful she'd decided to wear flats so that he could be a whole half inch taller than her.
    "Okay, Rachelle. I like this song too… but— can we dance my way?" Hinata placed his hand to her cheek, stroking his thumb along the fragile skin under her luminous golden eyes. She really was a beauty.
    "Okay, but don't let me look dumb. You know I don't know how—"
    Hinata cut her off. "I know, Rachelle. Just trust me. I'll make you look like Cinderella at the ball." Rachelle giggled, as he'd intended.
    The song Rachelle wanted to dance to faded, and the opening strains of John Mayer's hit, Your Body Is a Wonderland started up. Hinata shivered, a frisson of joy rolling up his spine. He loved this song. He scooped Rachelle in close, swaying provocatively back and forth before he spun her out to the length of his arm. Rachelle gasped just as the song hit a quiet spot, and the other dancers around them all stopped to stare, and then moved back to the edge of the floor. Hinata stalked forward, wrapping one arm around his best friend's neck and bending her over his arm. He pulled her back upright with a snap, and then began to push her backwards in a gliding half-walk, half-tango that was his own invention. He'd danced this silly non-dance with Rachelle dozens of times at different Posse get-togethers, and she knew the steps in her sleep. He kept her feet moving in the same pattern she was familiar with while he danced in circles around her. He caught her in his arms and threw her nearly to the floor before catching her and standing her back upright by sliding his hands up along her body. An adult monitor stepped forward, and Hinata spun toward him, wagging his finger in the classic un-uh gesture without ever releasing the grip of his other hand from Rachelle's waist. He spun back, guiding his friend in to a shimmy step that was only a slight variation on their original step. Rachelle stumbled, and Hinata leapt around her, catching her and making it look as though they'd planned to end the song that way. His hair fell around their faces, hiding them for a moment. Hinata leaned in until he could whisper right against Rachelle's lips. "Told you I wouldn't let you look bad."
    Right then Mr. Carter broke them apart, and they were descended upon by their giggling Posse. Hinata caught sight of Peter Jenkins standing at the edge of the dance floor, clapping madly, as though he were at a performance of the Fresno Ballet, or better yet the San Francisco Ballet, where the dancers had outdone themselves. Peter met his eyes, and mouthed the word 'beautiful', and then Caroline pushed in closer and Hinata could not see him anymore. When everyone calmed enough to let him and Rachelle both breathe again, Peter was gone. Hinata did not see him again in the few short weeks before