Replay

"Sabs…?"

"Yeah?"

"We're moving."

Luke Bradford. He was and still is my best friend back in my world. I loved him—but I was never sure if he loved me back. He left—and I always took that as a sign he never did, and he never will. That he always just saw me as a friend. Just another girl. Not someone he loved—just someone who was there for him since he was around four years old. But that was Luke, and I've long gotten over that. But now…

"I… I… I'm leaving for the World Dance Competition."

I always thought I've had another shot at love with Luke's counterpart in this parallel dimension. Luciano Barbosa. Did they have to be so alike? Both Luke and Luciano never struck me as the type to break promises. Luciano was a perfectionist in every sense of the word, the man had really high standards, but since he said those words, they've been playing on a loop in my head. Why? Why now? Luciano… we promised we'd go together to the Ball in Saint Lyon. When he said that we were the perfect partners for each other, I believed him. When he said he was going to be with me until the end of all this, I believed him. So why did he break all those promises? I might never know. I don't intend to find out—the truth might be painful. That's one of the things I was afraid of most, the cold, harsh, and painful truth. I… I was in love with Luciano Barbosa since I first bumped into him—literally. Not that Luke ever promised me anything. Luciano did. The both of them have a lot of things in common, apparently. But now, they have one more thing in common. Both of them left me behind.

There was a knock on my door. I didn't want to open the door, but whoever it was, he or she didn't seem to get the message that I didn't even want to get up.

"Sabrina?"

That voice. I knew who owned it. But he wasn't anyone I wanted to see right now. Luciano Barbosa. His voice was almost like Luke's, if not, the same. Luciano… I both love and hate you right now. Why must you and your counterpart play with my heart so? I felt so… dumb for being so in love with both of them. Luciano AND Luke.

"Sabrina, please." He begged, as he stopped knocking. "Open the door."

Listening to his voice was heartbreaking. I limped to the door, and painstakingly opened it.

"What do you want?" I asked him, in this deadpan voice.

"Sabrina…" he said, I could almost see the worry in his eyes. Apparently, he noticed that my eyes were still puffy from crying. He extended his arms, but I drove them away.

"Please, I do not need your sympathy, Prince Luciano." I said, trying to be as cold to him as I could. Apparently though, I was failing. Miserably.

"Sabrina… please." He begged, but I just couldn't bring myself to forgive him for his decision. "You know I couldn't go against the order. It was directly from my father."

His explanation made me feel even worse. Couldn't he just… object? If he really wanted to be with me, couldn't he have done anything? But I couldn't blame his father—he made a good choice. Luciano was clearly the best dancer in the whole kingdom. Luciano was… Luciano was Luciano. Perfectionist, the guy with the worst sense of direction in this entire kingdom.

"Just do whatever you want." I said, tying to avoid his eyes.

"Dance with me." He said, "just once, please. Before I leave."

I wanted to cave in. I wanted to dance with him. One last time. I wasn't sure if he'd be back by the time the ball was over—and once the ball was over, I'd be going back to my own world. To my old life, the life where I was still stuck waiting desperately for Luke. Dear God, help me. Why must I love people who do nothing but leave?

"alright." I said, though I was sure this wasn't changing anything—I knew he was still going to leave. Luke was like that. Dead set on whatever the hell he was doing, I wouldn't be so surprised if Luciano was the same.

Luciano's features softened. He smiled a bit, and took me by the hand. I didn't mind where we were going, but I was pretty sure Luciano would bring me somewhere that had some significance to the both of us. I was sure he would bring me to Viennese Waltz Lake. He did as I predicted. The lake looked so beautiful, like it always did. Viennese Waltz Lake was unlike any other. The most quiet and most beautiful place in the entire kingdom. It was one of a kind. So like this dear prince in front of me.

He did not speak. He took my hand and began dancing to a very familiar dance—The Waltz of the Flowers. It was the first dance we did when we became partners. I tried to be as good as Luciano, but alas, I knew I was the one being led, and not the other way around. I tried to be perfect—Luciano was always one for perfection. I wasn't gonna lose to him. Not now.

We danced the day away, he took my hand and we sat by the lakeside. I rested my head on his shoulder, as he gently kissed my forehead.

"I'll come back." He said confidently, looking at me with this sad smile.

"Don't worry. You don't have to lie to make me feel better." I said, trying to stop my tears from falling.

"You'll be the first to know whatever happens during the competition," he said, not minding me. He turned to face me, his eyes locked on mine. "and I will come back… if you promise to wait for me."

I sighed. "the ball is in twelve days, are you sure about that?"

"Believe in me." He said, and I don't know what happened after that, but the last thing I knew was I was locked in a passionate kiss a little later.

---

The days passed. Still no sign of Luciano coming back to this Kingdom. I entered every contest with my dance mentor, Tony, in place of every other prince who offered his hand. I was also pretty tired of breaking Vince's heart—I was beginning to think it was too much for the kid. I really felt sorry for him, but… what can I say? I'm a sucker for brooding, egotistical perfectionists.

After the last dance competition—which, I entered with Tony by the way—I stayed in the Dance Hall, dancing, alone. There were no spectators, so I could dance in whatever way I wanted. After finishing the routine of Swan Lake, I retired to a nearby chair and tried to keep my mind off Luciano. I sighed. And after all this time, I'm still thinking about him. Wow.

"I thought I told you to not dance with anyone else."

That was his voice. Luciano. Was he back? I turned my head and saw him right there, behind me. He smirked.

"I told you I'd be back before the ball."

I slapped, pinched, and slapped myself again to see if I was really conscious and I wasn't dreaming.

"Hey, don't go hurting yourself now." He said, taking my hand and pulling me back into the dance floor.

"You're really back!" I exclaimed, hugging him tightly.

"I told you to believe in me, didn't I?" he said, smiling. Right now, I didn't care if it was smug—Luciano's back, that's all I cared about at the moment.

"Now, I'd like a repeat performance of your dance tonight," he said, wrapping his arm around my waist. "When the Saints Go Marching In?"

I nodded. I didn't care if there wasn't any music. The moment couldn't have been more perfect. He kept his promise. He's back, he's my partner again. And I knew, it was times like these you'd always want to replay.