Blinded (A Sequel to "Sight")

May I Have This Dance?

Rose stood in front of the mirror in the dressing room. She had tried on multiple dresses before this one, but this one really caught her eye. It was a plain white dress with a light brown belt wrapped around her middle. The sleeves were flowy, and the skirt part went just past her knees. She’d picked out some matching flats made of fake leather. Yup, this was the one.

    She took off the dress and put her regular clothes back on. Varian would get to see it at the dance itself.

    Varian was waiting in line at the cash registers, already having his outfit picked out. They quickly paid for the outfits, then went back to the abandoned building to change.

   

    Rose readied herself as she walked out of the room she had changed in. What would Varian think? Would he like the dress?

    Varian was still in his “dressing room” when she walked out. Rose wondered what could be taking him so long. Weren’t girls usually the slower ones?

    Eventually, the door opened, and Varian stepped out. Rose could feel her face redden. He was wearing a blue, button-up dress shirt with a gray vest overtop. He wore a black bow tie and khakis. He’d even changed his shoes to dark brown loafers.

    He looked up from adjusting his bow tie. “Woah.” His own face turned a bit red. “You look amazing.”

    “Thanks. And you look very handsome yourself,” Rose told him. He chuckled. 

    Together, they headed outside, where the sun was setting. The place where the dance was being held wasn’t too far away, and it only took them about ten minutes to get there.

    Inside, music could be heard. Of course, neither of them knew any of the songs, but they still sounded fun. Varian opened the door for Rose, and together they headed inside.

    Lots of people were inside, dancing along to the music. Nobody even looked up at them as they entered. The age group varied-- from about their age to maybe 30 year olds. Rose even spotted one older couple. The sight of them dancing together made her smile.

    Varian and Rose danced together for a few songs, having lots of fun. Rose had never actually danced before-- at least not from what she could remember. She just tried to go along with the music, and hoped she didn’t look like an idiot.

    Eventually, the music turned into a slow song. Couples started dancing in slow circles. Varian held out a hand to her. “May I have this dance?”

    Rose took it gratefully. “Of course.”

    Varian wrapped his arms around Rose’s waist as she held her hands around his neck. They slowly danced in circles, staring into each other’s eyes. They both smiled at each other.

    Suddenly, they both leaned forward and kissed. The music seemed to totally disappear, and all the troubles from earlier today vanished. All that mattered was that they were together.

                        . . .

After a little bit more of dancing, Varian and Rose headed back to the abandoned building, holding hands as they talked and laughed.

Rose wished that this moment would never end. But she knew that tomorrow they would be heading back to Corona, and they would have to deal with Rae once again. But Rose didn’t think too much about it-- she didn’t want to ruin the moment.

Eventually, they reached the abandoned building, and they headed inside, locking the door behind them. They had stopped at a store on their way to grab a few blankets and some pillows; they didn’t want to sleep on the hard ground. They had also found this thing called an “inflatable” mattress. Apparently all you had to do was pump it up, and it served as a real mattress.

After a little bit of work, they had finally got the mattress all filled up. Rose put the two pillows on it, then neatly set down the blankets they had bought. Rose was glad they were leaving tomorrow-- she was running out of coins to buy things. While it only took one coin to buy everything they needed at one stop, her pocket could only carry so many coins. She only had three left.

Rose plopped down on the mattress. She had changed back into her regular outfit; it would be more comfortable to sleep in. Today had been an exhausting day. First she had fought a giant beast, then Benton died, then she was kidnapped, then kidnapped again. She’d have no trouble sleeping at all.

Varian stood up, wiping the back of his hand against his forehead. “Done!” He set the screwdriver that was in his hand back in his tool box, then sat on the mattress next to Rose.

“You finished it all?” Rose sat up. 

“Yup. Now as soon as we wake up, we’ll be able to head straight back home.”

“I’d say I’m surprised… but it’s you,” Rose said with a small laugh. She wrapped her arms around his left arm, and set her head on his shoulder. “You’re amazing.”

    Varian kissed the top of her head. “I couldn’t have done it without your help.”

    “Pfft. Yeah right,” Rose said. She lifted her head up and smiled at Varian, who grinned back. 

    Rose stood up to turn off the lights. The only light visible was from the few light-up signs from the other stores, and the dim stars in the sky.

    Taking off her shoes, Rose crawled underneath the blankets and laced her fingers overtop of her stomach. Varian laid next to her.

    “Goodnight,” Rose said.

    “Goodnight.”

    As soon as Rose closed her eyes, she went out cold. She’d need all the sleep she could get. Tomorrow was going to be a big day. Tomorrow, they would face Rae once and for all.