Dancing was never her forte. She never had time to practice, and was genuinely disinterested in the art form. However, her patients would be the first to tell her that she was one of the greatest dancers they've ever seen. Always in a constant dance with death, she's always been one step ahead, knowing the next beat by heart, her body tirelessly going through the rhythms.
This metaphor placed upon her by her patients always made her laugh. Thinking nothing really of it, she always dismissed it as being overly grateful. She is a doctor, saving people is her job. However, she failed to realize the truth in the statement. She's saved countless individuals from the clutches of death.
Currently, death could best be used to describe her complexion. Run completely ragged from the day's continuous influx of patients. Be it bandaging a small laceration to performing life-saving surgery, Angela never had a chance to catch her breath, let alone take a break. That was until Jack came through the door.
Firing off questions as she swiftly made her way to Jack's side, she quickly looked him over for injuries. "Oh Jack! Are you hurt? Is there anything of ailment?"
Through all her scrutiny, she wasn't able to find any injury. That's when she felt Jack's gentle hand resting on her shoulder.
"Listen Angela…" He started to say, "I uh… I actually came down here to talk to you. I wanted to ask you something."
Looking at him quizzically, Angela tilted her head slightly as if to ask Jack to elaborate.
Rubbing the back of his neck, Jack looked down. "I came to see if you'd like to attend tomorrow's dance with me and…ANGELA!"
~thud~
Between her physical and mental exhaustion, now Jack practically gave her a heart attack with his "question". Poor Angela completely passed out in the hands of a dumbfounded Jack.
"Hell of a way to make first impressions… you really screwed this one up…" Jack thought to himself. Deciding that the least he could do was carry her to her room, he gently picked her up and set off to find her room. Anyone whom he passed along the way gave quite perplexed stares, often muttering some statement of confusion when he passed them. Finally, he arrived.
Gently laying Angela down on her bed, he couldn't help but stare at her beauty. Soft platinum blonde locks cascaded around her giving off the appearance of an angelic halo. Also, some color was returning to her face. No longer did she look as pale as a ghost.
Pulling a chair over to the side of her bed, Jack sat down. Intent on staying beside her should she wake and need anything. Afterall, it was he who caused Angela to faint, and now Jack felt morally obligated to stay and watch over her. As time passed, he felt his eyelids slowly growing heavier until he could resist the beckoning of sleep no more.
*BEEP… BEEP… BEEP… BEEP… BEE-WHACK…*
With a startle, Jack awoke to Angela's alarm going off, and inadvertently backhanded it in his sudden shock.
"Sssssshit…" Again Jack thought to himself. Not only did he cause her to faint, but he broke Angela's alarm clock. He looked down to his hand and noticed a nice red welt beginning to appear. "I'm gonna have to take her up on that check-up later…"
Looking back over Angela, he noticed that she started to wake up. Quickly composing himself, Jack reached over to her and gently grasped her arm.
"Hey Angela… It's me, Jack. Are you alright, from last night?"
What he got in return were mumbles.
"Hmmmmmm… mmmmmmm… wha… wher… Jack!?" Jolting quickly awake, Angela began hyperventilating.
"Hey, it's okay. You're okay." Jack said soothingly "You fainted last night and I brought you to your room."
Settling down a little, Angela was able to put together her thoughts together, "Oh, I'm terribly sorry for that. You shouldn't have to see me like this. How unprofessional of me. I'm sorry, I'm…
"Don't be sorry," Jack quickly interrupted, "you're beautiful, and have no reason to be sorry."
Blushing, Angela looked down trying to find something to say. And realizing what he said, Jack began to blush as well.
"I uh… I'm gonna go take a shower, then can we talk after?" Jack asked.
"Yes, I should get ready as well." Angela replied, "I'll see you soon."
Nodding, Jack got up and walked back to his room.
Closing his door, Jack let out a breath he didn't know he was holding. With a sigh he thought to himself, "Okay, you've got one more chance to get it right… and for the love of god, please don't screw this up…"
After freshening up for the day, Jack made his way back to Angela's room. On his walk over he began rehearsing what he'd say to Angela. Hopefully he'd persuade her to come.
"Hello Angela… No to formal. Hey, Ange… No, that's too casual. Uuh… Hi, Angela…"
"Unless there's a new recruit named Angela, I believe I'm the only one here with that name."
Unbeknownst to Jack, he'd been speaking aloud. Loud enough for Angela to hear his rehearsal through her door.
"You don't need to give a speech Jack, what is it that you wanted to talk about?"
"Oh, umm… Hi Angela… How long were you listening?"
"Long enough," she giggled, "I hope I'm not that unapproachable; where you need to make a speech to talk to me."
"No, no. I uh, well… Okay. I'll get to the point. I came to ask if you like to join me at tonight's gala. Would you like to accompany me?"
"Oh I'd love that! It's not often I get to take a break and get away from the med-bay." Her eyes sparkled with excitement. "Yes, I would love to accompany you."
"Wonderful! What time would you like for me to pick you up?"
"I'd say anytime around 7:00… oh uh 1900 hours."
Smiling, Jack replied, " 7:00 will do, I'll see you then."
As each went their separate ways, they smiled with anticipation for the nights coming activities. Not often does the United Nations throw parties, let alone on the Isles of Ilios. However, the formation of Overwatch was one such event that called for such extravagant festivities. Wasting no expenses, the nights coming party was sure to be a memorable one at that.
As 7:00 rolled around, Jack arrived back at Angela's room. Dressed in his finest attire, he could easily have been mistaken for a movie star. From the corsage he held in his hands for Angela, down to the pleated edges of his slacks, Jack looked every bit of movie star as he was a soldier.
Knocking on Angela's door, Jack took a step back, holding the corsage at the ready. Then Angela opened the door, and for Jack, time stood still.
There stood Angela, and she looked absolutely stunning. Her usual messy ponytail was no more, it was replaced by a long ombre. Her mascara was done perfectly down to the last eyelash. And she wore a long white dress with a v-neck and flared skirt. She looked like a goddess. Elegant, flawless, absolutely lovely.
Quickly recovering from his stupor, Jack could do nothing but compliment Angela on her appearance.
"I don't think there are any words to describe how beautiful you look. You look… astonishing, ravishing, absolutely gorgeous."
Blushing, Angela had a hard time trying to reply, "O-oh, danke. You look wonderful too."
"Oh nonsense," Jack said waving his hand in disagreement, "You'll be the star of tonight's party with how good you look. Here, I brought you this."
Holding out the corsage, Jack gently slipped it onto Angela's left wrist.
"Now c'mon, let's get to the party." Whisking her away, Jack walked arm-in-arm with Angela to the event. It was a short walk, the operations base was located only a half mile from the event. However, upon exiting the base, the music and festivities from the event could be heard with crystal clear clarity.
Upon their arrival, the event was just on the brink of full swing. Food was just about to be served. The refreshments and beverages already flowed forth like that of a swift river. Music and dancing could be heard and seen in all directions. It was an ocean of people. Their movements to the rhythm of the music was similar to the tides of the sea. Back and forth, up and down, the dancers joyously pirouetted, twirled, and swayed under the light of the decorations hung, and that of the sunset.
Bathing all it touched in an ethereal glow, the sunset painted the sky in such vibrant and beautiful colors. Swaths of pink and orange along the horizon above the sea. A soft golden light radiated out from the setting sun, mixing with the pale blue sky; it made for a breathtaking masterpiece.
Immersing themselves in the event, Jack and Angela quickly found themselves enraptured with the festivities and people that the party held. Be it seeing faces that seemed to lost to time, to innocent games for charity; side-by-side they made their way through the event partaking in all it had to offer, and enjoying every moment of it.
Was it the entire mood of the event? Or was it the copious amount of alcohol he consumed? Or was it a little bit of both? Either way, Jack was having the time of his life, but wanted to ask Angela one last question, and he wouldn't take no for an answer.
Getting up from the table at which they sat, Jack walked around to Angela and held out his hand, "I have one more question for you," smiling and looking Angela in the eyes, "would you allow me the privilege to dance with you?"
Looking up at Jack, a worried frown crossed Angela's face, "I'd love to, but I'm a terrible dancer. I'd make a fool of myself if I went out there."
Without skipping a beat Jack replied, "Well you know what they say, there's no time like the present!"
Grabbing Angela by the wrist, Jack ushered her along to the other dancers. Amidst her protests, Jack was already planning how he'd begin dancing.
Upon arriving at the other dancers, Jack quickly spun around, grasping Angela's other wrist and pulled her close.
Incredulously, Angela sputtered,"Jack Morrison! Just what do you think you're doing?!"
"You said you didn't know how to dance right? We'll I'm going to teach you how to dance!"
"I don't see how that will be neces…"
"Shhh, just relax. Let the rhythms of the music take you."
Step by step, they danced around the other partygoers. Angela was true to her word, her dancing skills were essentially nonexistent. However, there had to something said for Jack's enthusiasm to try and teach Angela how to dance. Over and over, he coached her through the steps, instructing her on where to release, telling her where to spin, and showing her how to move, until finally, Angela got it. Albeit was from perfect, she finally was able to dance of her own accord.
"Jack I'm doing it! I'm dancing!"
"Wonderful! You're doing excellent!"
"Oh thank you Jack! I'm sorry for getting flustered with you. It's just… I never thought I'd be able to dance."
"Nonsense, everyone can dance. All they have to do is try. Now back to my question."
Inquisitively, Angela cocked her head.
With one hand tucked behind his back, Jack extended his other, palm open to Angela, " Would you allow me the privilege to have this dance?"
Tears of joy welling in her eyes, Angela accepted wholeheartedly. "Yes! I'd love that!"
And with those final words they were off. To and fro they waltzed, spinning, and swaying to the music. They carried on for hours, lost in each other's eyes, they spoke a thousand words without even uttering a sound. Finally the party was starting to wind down. Guests began to leave, issuing their thanks to the hosts as they passed.
Slowing their dancing to a stop, they ended in an embrace. Looking her up and down, Jack was the first to break their silence. "Thank you Angela. This meant a lot to me."
"No Jack, thank you. If it weren't for you, I'd be stuck back my room, buried in my research. Not to mention you taught me how to dance."
"Don't mention it, it was nothing really. You should have seen yourself though! You looked magnificent dancing."
Blushing, Angela averted her gaze to the side. They let silence fall over them once more. However, it was short-lived. Angela felt a soft caress across the side of her face. Bringing her gaze back up, she was met with the azure eyes of Jack smiling back at her.
"I love you, Angela Ziegler…"
"I love you too, Jack Morrison."
That was all each of them needed to hear. Those simple words conveying so much. Pulling her once more into a loving embrace, Jack kissed Angela on the lips, and accepting his gesture, Angela did the same.
~fin~
Hello everyone! Sorry this took so long to write _ I've got a lot going on with uni and family so I've had little time to write. So to get started, I'm not going to be writing a story for valentines day (to my knowledge), so sorry about that. Secondly, I hope this one makes up for the darkness of my other ones. I like writing these stories especially ones with happy endings, it just seems that darker stories come to me easier :P. Anywho, Ill prolly need some inspiration for the next few stories I write (kinda have writers-block). So if you have any ideas youd like me see, just drop by my tumblr page and or my google drive thingy (hopefully ill get an ideas page up soon) and hit me with it.
Thanks for being awesome :)
-IOSirus
