/u/Cupcakes_Please laughed, high-fiving the drunk man that was giving him the tired and cliché "this guy right here" verbal diarrhea routine. The sentiment of what this obscenely loud man was saying, though it should have been amplified by the fact that /u/Cupcakes_Please had never met him before, was in fact lessened by how strong the smell of alcohol was on his breath as it was shot forcefully into /u/Cupcakes_Please's face. But, /u/Cupcakes_Please was the center of attention now, which wasn't necessarily a bad thing…
He'd just graduated from college a few months ago and had been job-hopping all across the state. From Dallas all the way to Clarksville in Red River, ultimately to where he was now outside of Fort Worth, /u/Cupcakes_Please had done everything from landscaping to bussing tables. This was the first opportunity he'd had to take a minute or two and unwind. His downstairs neighbor asked him if he'd wanted to come out to a local club to get acquainted with his new neighborhood and, without a good excuse, /u/Cupcakes_Please couldn't say no.
So now here /u/Cupcakes_Please was, drink number two in one hand, a new drunk friend in the other, and his mind on one thing completely different; the smile he'd caught a glimpse of when he'd first walked in. He'd scanned the room quickly to check the place out, and found his eyes held by a girl barely visible in the middle of the driving dance floor. Their eyes had met for only a split second, but it was enough time for her to beam him a coy, pearl-white grin before his view was obstructed by his downstairs neighbor shoving a cup of something into his face. Now the only thing /u/Cupcakes_Please wanted was to see that girl again. He'd been looking all through the sweaty, boozed mass of bodies to try and catch another glimpse.
"Hey, guy," came the stinky voice of the drunk hanging off /u/Cupcakes_Please's shoulder, "lemme buy you a beer! You're, like, the guy I want to -hic- buy a beer tonight because you're like so the best."
/u/Cupcakes_Please laughed. "No thanks, man," he said, "I'm alright on drinks for now." He held up his cup, knowing it wouldn't make much of a difference. "Thanks, though."
The drunk slapped /u/Cupcakes_Please heavily on the back. "All right, buddy," he shouted, "I'll get you -hic- next time!" The drunk waddled away, shouting things about who the "nicest guy in the place" was, leaving /u/Cupcakes_Please breathing gratefully without the smell of alcohol in his face. The air was now just the stink of dancing humans, but it was better than booze. And one of those dancing humans had gotten his attention. He downed the rest of his cup and put it down on a nearby table, stepping bravely towards the enormous mosh that was the dance floor.
It was loud, to say the least; that may have even been an understatement. There were thousands upon hundreds of thousands of obstacles being thrown /u/Cupcakes_Please's way; flailing limbs, waterfalls of beer, empty cups flying through the air. Hips were being swung in enormous arcs to the beat of the grating, electronic music, most of which ended up slamming into /u/Cupcakes_Please's rear, sending the hapless young man careening into a multitude of various people; burly men who were unhappy with their personal space being violated, and inebriated girls who immediately drew the attention of their burly boyfriends, the latter being unhappy with their girl's personal space being violated. /u/Cupcakes_Please spent a lot of time trying to very quickly find the nearest clear space and avoid bumping into anyone else, when he suddenly found himself on the front line of a clear circle of the dance floor. A number of dancers had formed a ring around a single person, and were hooting and hollering as the star of their makeshift recital danced their heart out.
/u/Cupcakes_Please couldn't believe what he saw.
She was whipping her hair around, two long braided ponytails flying wildly like a tornado of auburn flower petals. Her slender waist rocked back and forth, swinging her hips in a swooping circle to match the bassline. She was wearing a simple, tan-green spaghetti strap tank top that let show the freckles splattered along her shoulders and upper back. Her long, slender legs were wrapped in jeans so fitted they could have very well been painted on. She spun around quickly, revealing sequined roses on the back pockets of her pants. /u/Cupcakes_Please felt his fingers twitch involuntarily. Her freckled face was calm, poised, and wholly invested in keeping time with the music. As her eyes flashed up for a split second, /u/Cupcakes_Please could make out the passion and whole-hearted joy that burned behind those teal lenses.
It was the girl that had smiled at him before. There was only one thought went through /u/Cupcakes_Please's mind:
She can't leave until I have her number.
There was something about her that he couldn't quite put his finger on. She was alluring, she was mysterious, and she gave off an energy that was almost magnetic. Despite all his uncertainty about her, though, /u/Cupcakes_Please was sure that if he tried to search for an image of "love at first sight," a photo of this moment would be the first thing he'd find.
The song transitioned into something impossibly fast, and the girl spun to a stop, pausing to drink in the applause and cheering from the rest of the mosh. /u/Cupcakes_Please was clapping as well, too stunned to realize how stupid it was to clap in a club as loud as this one. "Betcha she's a heartbreaker," he heard a guy say behind him. No kidding… The girl curtseyed and disappeared between two masses of bodies that parted to let her through as the circle collapsed violently. /u/Cupcakes_Please pushed his way through the torrent of limbs in an attempt to follow her until finally, after expending great effort and being thoroughly groped, he burst out of the dance mosh and back into the bar area of the club.
Quickly, /u/Cupcakes_Please scanned for where the girl had gone, and pinpointed her red hair by the bar counter. She was talking the bartender; telling the smaller, black-haired girl what she wanted to drink, no doubt. His brain went blank. This was his chance to talk to her, to ask for her number, to do something. But /u/Cupcakes_Please had nothing that came to mind. It was like his head was spinning, like vertigo or that feeling you get when you've just spun around in a swivel chair with your eyes closed. The bartender slid away to fetch something, and the girl swiveled her head around and checked her surroundings. When her gaze fell on /u/Cupcakes_Please, she smirked, and she lifted a finger and beckoned him to come over. /u/Cupcakes_Please couldn't believe his eyes.
In a complete dream state, /u/Cupcakes_Please floated over to the bar counter where the girl was standing. Up close, he could see how perfectly ivory white her skin was, and how her dark freckles painted her cheeks and neck. He fought his instincts with all his might, trying to avoid letting his gaze follow her freckles down past her collarbones. Don't do it, man. This sort of thing doesn't happen every day. Once he was sufficiently close, the girl opened her mouth to speak. "Seeing one another three times in one night must mean something, right?"
She sounded foreign, like she was from eastern Europe somewhere. /u/Cupcakes_Please's jaw flapped noiselessly for a millisecond before he found his voice. "Y-yea, I guess it probably does." He paused as the bartender returned with the girl's drink. He put a hand down on the counter. "Let me, um...let me get that for you." He reached into his pocket quickly and pulled out a wad of bills.
The girl raised an eyebrow. "Oh, so chivalrous. Is buying a drink your go-to? Or are you just starting simple?"
/u/Cupcakes_Please smiled and laughed breathlessly, handing some money to the bartender. "I, ah, don't really do this often."
"Drink? Or go clubbing?"
"Talk to pretty girls, like you."
The girl smiled behind the rim of her glass. "What's your name?"
"/u/Cupcakes_Please."
She raised her eyebrow again. "Unique," she said, "much more unique than mine." She lowered her drink. "My name is Anna."
"Anna…" /u/Cupcakes_Please tasted the flavor of her name on his tongue, letting it linger and deepen as he savored it. It was sweet and woody, like hickory smoked barbecue, and it had a full-bodied aftertaste like caramel.
Anna chuckled gently. "Wow, I've never known anyone who could say my name with such passion." She sipped her drink. "I like it."
Holy crap, is this really happening? /u/Cupcakes_Please leaned on the counter as smoothly as he could; it undoubtedly looked clunky and unnatural, if the amount of sweat on his palms was any indicator of how nervous he was. "So," he began, convinced his pulse was causing his voice to vibrate, "what brings you to Fort Worth? Are you going to A&M?"
Anna shook her head. "I'm only visiting. I just finished university in Oslo."
"Oslo? You're from Norway?"
"Ja, jeg er norsk," she said. /u/Cupcakes_Please blinked as the meaning of her words whizzed right over his head. Anna grinned, flashing her perfectly aligned teeth. "I'm from an old little village outside of Oslo. It used to be a pretty big city, but as the years went by, it became sleepy and small." She took another sip of her drink. /u/Cupcakes_Please now just realized that it wasn't alcoholic, but simple pink lemonade. "My sister graduated three years ago, and now that I'm done, we're going on a world tour and seeing all the sights we can."
"You have an older sister?" Anna nodded. "How much older?"
"Three years," she replied. "She's my best friend in the world."
"That's awesome," /u/Cupcakes_Please said, nodding his head. "And you went to the same university?"
"Yes, we did."
"What did you study?"
"Partying, with a concentration in dancing." Anna laughed at /u/Cupcakes_Please's confused expression. "I'm joking," she said. "I studied social work, I want to be a family counselor."
/u/Cupcakes_Please nodded again. "You have a thing for keeping marriages intact?"
"Oh, no," Anna said, waving her hand dismissively, "I couldn't do marital counseling. I would like to treat young children—siblings—who are having difficulty expressing themselves."
/u/Cupcakes_Please raised his eyebrows. "That's an interesting—and specific—thing to want to do!"
Anna moved her head from side to side. "I suppose so; it has no real standards yet, but I think it's an important time of life to have a good experience with." She tucked a loose strand of hair behind her ear. "And what brings you here tonight, if I may ask?"
"I'm...doing some soul searching," /u/Cupcakes_Please replied, scratching the back of his neck. "Working here and there as I can. I just got a new place a couple blocks away, and my neighbor is showing me the town."
Anna looked around the club. "The 'town' is certainly here," she said.
/u/Cupcakes_Please scoffed. "Tell me about it." He stole a quick glance at her. "You were right, though...this whole club scene really isn't my thing."
Anna quickly dropped her glass from her face and swallowed the drink in her mouth. "Oh, you and my sister would be great friends." She waved her hands exasperatedly. "She was not at all happy with the idea of coming here. So she is being a sour puss and staying in the hotel while I'm here having some fun." She flicked her eye up and down /u/Cupcakes_Please in a flash. "Yes, having fun."
/u/Cupcakes_Please cleared his throat. "Well, I never said I didn't like fun, I just said I don't like clubs. I'm not sure your sister would be a great fit for me."
Anna laughed. "Oh, /u/Cupcakes_Please, calm down! I'm making a joke!" She laid a hand softly on his forearm. "My sister is great, and she does know how to have fun. It was just a joke." She smiled wide.
/u/Cupcakes_Please smiled too, nervously. "Oh, right, of course."
Anna giggled. "You're such a sweet-heart, /u/Cupcakes_Please." A genuine, confident smile took over his face. Anna put her drink down on a napkin on the counter. "Come here," she said, grabbing him by the wrist, "I'm ready to dance some more!"
/u/Cupcakes_Please stammered for a second. "I-I don't really, uh." Are you really about to turn her down? Go dance, you nerd!
"What was that?"
/u/Cupcakes_Please shook his head. "Nothing," he said, "lead the way, Anna."
"Try and keep up!" She slipped into the crowd on the dance floor, and /u/Cupcakes_Please felt himself get pulled in behind her like toothpaste being forced out of a tube. She dragged him through bodies and spilling beer to a spot where she turned to face him and started dancing. Unsure of what to do with his hands, /u/Cupcakes_Please began awkwardly shuffling in time with the beat, his mind flashing back to all the times he'd seen club dancing on TV and in movies and wondering why he wasn't just doing that.
"/u/Cupcakes_Please?!" Anna's shout dragged his attention back to the now. She was very close to him now, and he was finding it hard not to get lost in the metronome of her swaying hips. "Are you going to dance with me, or are you going to stand there like a big baby?"
Something inside his chest ignited. He took a deep breath and smirked. "You want me to dance? I'll show you dancing!" He let the weight of his pride fall from his shoulders, and he started dancing. Within moments, he and Anna were in perfect synchronization: She would sway one way, and he would sway the other; she would step forward, he would step back; she would spin around, and he would guide her safely back to her feet. Anna turned around and grabbed /u/Cupcakes_Please's hands, placing them on the waist of her jeans and continuing her almost mechanical sway. The music, his senses, and his heartbeat all melded into one; it was unbelievable, it was perfect. /u/Cupcakes_Please closed his eyes and reveled in the moment that he had stumbled into.
"Hey!" His eyes opened. Anna was holding her phone in her hand, the screen glowing in the dim light of the dance floor. "My phone is ringing and I need to answer it; come with me for a minute?"
"Sure," /u/Cupcakes_Please said. Anna slid away towards the bathrooms, and /u/Cupcakes_Please followed behind her at a respectful distance.
She disappeared into the restroom for a couple minutes before re-emerging and pocketing her phone. She walked up to /u/Cupcakes_Please and sighed. "Okay," she said, "my sister says I've left my hotel key on my bed, so I need to leave now if I want a place to sleep tonight." She massaged the palm of her left hand between her right thumb and forefinger. "I'm sorry to cut the night so short on you."
/u/Cupcakes_Please's brain immediately fired everything it had left in the armory. "Well," he said slowly, "if you want to stay and dance some more, you'd be more than welcome to—"
Anna put a finger on his lips, laughing. "Slow down there, Buffalo Bill," she said, the laugh in her voice more beautiful than anything /u/Cupcakes_Please had ever heard before. She took her hand away. "I did say I like having fun, but I think that may be a little bit different." She bit her lip. "Although, I am flattered."
/u/Cupcakes_Please shook his head slowly, rubbing his forehead. "Sorry, if that was too forward," he said, "I'm just...well…"
Anna took her phone back out of her pocket. "Here," she said, unlocking the screen and opening up an application, "why don't you do this; put your number in here and I'll send you an SMS so you can have mine."
"SMS? Do you mean a text?"
"Yes, right, a text message." She handed the phone to /u/Cupcakes_Please. "Go ahead, put it in there. Make sure you spell it right, or I'll have to punish you, somehow; everyone in my contacts has their name spelled perfectly." /u/Cupcakes_Please took the phone and typed in his name and number before handing it back to Anna. She looked it over and smiled. "Great," she said, "I have to get going. My sister and I will be in town for the next week or so, we should go do something together."
/u/Cupcakes_Please nodded stupidly. "Yea, totally," he said, "coffee or something."
Anna smiled, wrinkling her nose. "I prefer ice cream," she said. And with that, she turned her back to /u/Cupcakes_Please and strutted out of the club, waving a hand lazily over her shoulder until the door closed shut behind her.
/u/Cupcakes_Please took a deep breath, letting everything that had just occurred wash over him in a massive, tsunami wave. He checked his phone as quickly as he could; there was every possibility she had already texted him back. Nothing, save the clock telling him it was very very early in the morning. I should probably head home, too, he thought. Not only am I getting tired, but I don't think there's anything better that could possibly happen to me tonight. Chatting up and dancing with the prettiest girl he had ever seen, for hours, getting her number, and undoubtedly knowing that she was just as interested in him as he was in her had to be the pinnacle of /u/Cupcakes_Please's post-graduation life so far.
/u/Cupcakes_Please found his neighbor and let him know that he was headed back for the night. The street outside was a ghost town compared to the club, and cold too. He got warmer, though, when his phone buzzed in his pocket. Quickly, anxiously, he retrieved it and read the message on the glowing screen. He smiled.
There weren't many texts sent between the time he first checked his phone and when /u/Cupcakes_Please finally flopped into his bed and closed his eyes for the night, but the ones that did end up on his phone couldn't have been more satisfying. The little speech bubbles were burned into his mind as he drifted off into dreamland.
[Imgur album /a/dyDXG]
'Cupcake...' What a lucky guy I am.
Love you, /u/cupcakes_please! :D I hope you liked what I wrote special for you!
The song that inspired it all: YouTube /watch?v=gq2ZJ418ad8