Friends with Benefits | Joanne

22- I Know What I Said

"You know, I've dreamed of dancing in the Tower Ballroom since I was a kid."

Joe smiled across at Dianne as they sat together on the train up to Blackpool. "It's really special, isn't it?"

Dianne nodded. "Definitely. For you, too. I mean, your nan will be so excited."

Joe grinned. His nan had been thrilled from the moment they had booked her tickets. Now that he knew how good the routine would be, he couldn't wait to make her proud.

"It's going to be amazing."

Dianne leaned back in her seat and looked out of the train window. "Yeah, I think it's going to be pretty special."

The two of them had worked tirelessly on their routine. It was an old-school showstopper and was sure to impress the judges. There was an air of anticipation, of excited nerves, between them; it was the milestone they had been waiting for and the weekend was destined to be full of amazing things.

Joe's hand brushed against Dianne's as she looked out the window. Turning around at the sensation, she caught his eye and smiled.

"What?" she asked quietly.

Joe shook his head. "Nothing. Sorry. I... sorry."

He pulled his hand away, looking ahead, trying to ignore the urge to turn back around, grab Dianne's hand in his and never let go.

///

"Come in."

They had made their way to the hotel from the station and had headed straight to their rooms. Nobody was planning on socializing tonight, and it had not taken long before Dianne had got lonely.

"Hey". She stood at Joe's door, holding a bottle of wine. "I found this in my room. Thought we could share?"

Before Joe could say anything, she pushed her way into the room and sat on the bed. She was in a white robe and Joe couldn't tell if she had anything on underneath it.

"What are you doing?" Joe asked. "What's this about?"

Dianne rolled her eyes. "I'm trying to be a good friend. I thought you might want some emotional support after the whole Pip incident." She tried not to show her disdain as she mentioned the woman's name. "So I brought wine."

Joe sat down on the opposite side of the bed and held out a glass for Dianne to pour some of the wine into. He took a sip. "So you came in here dressed like this" he gestured to her robe, "purely for emotional support?"

Dianne rolled her eyes. "Well, you know I don't usually sleep in pyjamas. And I thought it would be inappropriate to come over here in just my underwear. You've just broken up with someone. You need a friend. Emotional support from a friend. That's all. So, let's talk about it."

Joe sat back, nodding along, but said nothing.

"Hey", she pushed his arm gently. "I'm trying to help you here. You've got emotional walls higher than bloody mountains, but you must be hurting. Why don't you just... let me in?"

"I don't know what to say. I... I don't talk about this stuff."

"Really? I can't say I've noticed" Dianne said in a sarcastic tone.

Joe pushed her back. "Shut up. Anyway, you can't talk."

"Me? I'm pretty sure you've seen me experience every emotion in the world. Sometimes all at once."

Joe smiled. "Actually, that's true. Anyway, I'm OK. I... I guess it just wasn't meant to be. I think the problem with being single for so long is that I put a lot of pressure on people I meet. Without meaning to."