34. "C'mon, let's dance!"

Song mentioned in this fic: "All About Us" by He is We feat. Owl City

Even when he had been alive, Magnus hadn't been much for dances. He rarely went to any of the school ones, and at the few he did attend he usually stood close to the refreshments table and stuffed his face full of sweets. After becoming homeless and then dying, he didn't expect to end up at another dance. Yet there he was, in the middle of the feast hall, sitting at his usual bench while the rest of Hotel Valhalla partied around him.

He took a swig of mead as a couple whirled behind him, upbeat Midgardian music playing in the background. The thanes had decided that instead of a theme on Thursday this week, they were going to have a huge party, and all of the einherjar were required to attend it. They were obviously trying to get everyone's minds off of Loki's escape and the impending threat of Ragnarok. Magnus would say that it had worked, but he could see dancers throwing each other worried glances and speaking in hushed whispers covered up by the music. Even now, everyone was on-guard.

"Hey, man!" T.J. walked over to him, face flushed. He was dressed up in a brilliant army uniform, making Magnus feel underdressed in his polo shirt and slacks. "Aren't you gonna join the party?"

"I already told you, I'm not a big fan of dancing. I'm fine here, thanks."

"Come on, Magnus. This is the first party we've had here in a hundred years! You should join us."

"Later."

A giggling teenage boy stepped out of the crowd and pulled insistently at T.J.'s sleeve. "Aww, don't leave me all alone!" he pouted. "We were having so much fun dancing together!"

"I know, but I'm trying to get my friend here to-"

Magnus shooed T.J. away. "Go get some, T.J."

"Magnus!" But T.J. didn't fight back against the other boy any longer, and disappeared into the crowd. Magnus took another sip of mead, staring out at the crowd of dancers.

"Hi."

He nearly choked on his drink. "Jesus Christ, Alex, don't do that!"

Alex merely laughed at him, sitting down and swinging her legs up onto the bench. She had dressed up for the party as well, wearing a green dress patterned with butterflies and bright pink leggings with black flats. Magnus had to remind himself to breathe as he took her in. "Did I scare you?"

"Yes, obviously. I nearly had a heart attack!"

"But you're already dead." Alex tilted her head to the side. "So having a heart attack wouldn't matter that much, hmm?"

"It's still not a nice thing to do."

"Sure, but it's funny as hell, especially when I do it to you." On the last word, she tapped him gently on the shoulder. Magnus sipped his drink, trying to control the sudden heat threatening to flood his cheeks. He'd been doing his best to squash the crush that he had started to develop on Alex, but every time he saw her it doubled in size.

They sat there in silence for a few minutes, with music and laughter being the only noise, until Alex broke it. "Not a big party person, huh?"

"Not really. At my school dances I just hovered at the edges and ate the food they had out on the tables."

"Relatable."

Magnus raised a brow. "You don't seem like that kinda person. I would've pegged you as the girl that dominates the dance floor."

"It's kinda hard to dominate the dance floor when all the other dancers think you're weird."

"Oh." Magnus didn't know how to respond, and his throat felt dry. "I'm sorry."

Alex waved off his apologies. "It's fine, I never really cared about what they thought. And I still had some fun. Our middle school dances were pretty great."

"Where'd you go?"

"Edwards Middle."

"Oh, man, I heard that their school dances were good."

"Mmhmm." The song playing in the background faded out, and a new one with an upbeat tempo began to play. Alex grinned. "Oh, hell yeah! I love this song." She stood up and held a hand out to Magnus. "You coming, Maggie?"

Magnus stared at her outstretched hand. "Excuse me?"

"C'mon, let's dance!"

"Didn't I just say that I don't like to dance?"

"Oh, for the love of-Just get up!" Alex grabbed Magnus's arm and yanked him up, causing him to yelp in surprise. She continued to pull him, until they were in the middle of the crowd of dancers, who were all partnering up. "You know how to lead?"

"No."

"Of course not. Just follow my moves." Alex grabbed Magnus's other arm and slid it onto her shoulder, then wrapped her arm around his waist, pulling him close. He sent out a prayer to whatever gods were listening that his face wasn't red. "You got it?"

"Uh, yeah. I think I got it."

"Good. Just follow my movements."

The song continued to play. "Take my hand, I'll teach you to dance. I'll spin you around, won't let you fall down," a girl's voice crooned. Alex's cheeks were dusted a light pink. Was she wearing blush? Usually she just wore bright lipstick or nail polish. Maybe it was the lightning. Or overexertion.

Alex stepped forward, then back, pulling Magnus with her. He stepped too far and landed on her foot. "Fuck, sorry."

"Dammit, Magnus." Alex rolled her eyes, but something about her expression almost seemed…fond.

"Would you let me lead? You can step on my feet. Give it a try, it'll be alright. The room's hush-hush and now is our moment. Take it in, feel it all, and hold it. Eyes on you, eyes on me-we're doin' this right."

"You're not half bad," Alex mused. "Maybe you got some potential."

"Just wait until I step on your feet again."

"'Cause lovers dance when they're feelin' in love. Spotlight's shinin'-it's all about us. It's all about us. And every heart in the room will melt. This is a feeling I've never felt but it's all about us."

As they continued to dance, Magnus caught on quickly to Alex's movements. Soon they were both stepping in time with the song, Alex even spinning Magnus from time to time. The rest of the crowd seemed to melt away, leaving only them left.

"'Cause lovers dance when they're feelin' in love. Spotlight's shinin'-it's all about us. It's all about us. Every heart in the room will melt. This is a feeling I've never felt but it's all-it's all about us."

As the song drew to a close, both demigods stopped dancing. Magnus's pulse quickened as he met Alex's mismatched gaze. Her cheeks were now flushed an even darker pink, and her breathing had picked up. Her eyes darted down to his lips before looking back up at him, and he was sure his blush was rivaling hers.

This was it. They were teetering on the edge of friendship and something more, something grand. Something inside of Magnus screamed at him to lean in and kiss her, sounding suspiciously like Jack. Unconsciously, he started to lean in. Alex did the same, her eyes fluttering closed. Magnus puckered his lips-

"Oh, excuse me-"

Someone collided into Magnus and knocked him to the ground, breaking whatever spell he and Alex had been under. The person in question had been Halfborn, who offered Magnus a sheepish grin.

"Sorry, I went to get drinks for Mal and I, but it's tough navigating this crowd. Need any help?"

"No, I got it," Magnus grunted, pushing himself up. A new song had started to play, but he didn't listen. The crowd danced around him, but he didn't see any green or pink anywhere. Alex had disappeared. "Did you see where Alex went?"

Halfborn frowned. "No, sorry. Why, did I scare off your girlfriend?"

Magnus's cheeks lit up as Halfborn laughed. "Shut up!" He shoved the other boy, but Halfborn kept laughing. Magnus threw his hands up in the air. "Forget it. I've had enough dancing for tonight." He turned around and weaved through the crowd of einherjar. Once he reached the elevators, he pressed the button for Floor 19. He glanced back at the crowd, as if Alex had appeared when he wasn't looking, but he still couldn't see her. Sighing, he stepped inside the elevator. Once the doors closed, Magnus starting banging his head against the wall.

"Shit, I'm so stupid," he moaned. For all Magnus knew, Alex had been leaning in for an entirely different reason that didn't involve kissing. And he had assumed that she was going to kiss him. She had probably made a run for it when Halfborn had knocked Magnus over and was plotting how to murder him in creative ways using her garrote.

"Well, if you keep knocking your brain cells loose, you're just gonna get even stupider."

For the second time that evening, Magnus nearly jumped out of his skin. He whirled around, wide-eyed. "Alex?!"

"Hi." Alex leaned against the wall, hands shoved in her pockets. Magnus was pretty sure that the elevator had been empty when he stepped on. "Missed me?"

"Where did you go?"

Alex shrugged. "I didn't go anywhere."

"You disappeared after Halfborn showed up, though."

"Oh, yeah. He startled me, so I kinda turned into a mosquito."

"Dear gods." Magnus started examining every inch of his exposed skin. "Please tell me you didn't bite me."

Alex scoffed. "Relax, Maggie. I just saw you going on the elevator, so I zipped over to join you. I didn't land anywhere on you."

"Good."

"Why'd you leave?"

I thought you did. "I was getting tired of the party."

"Wise decision."

The elevator dinged, and the doors slid open to reveal their floor. They walked out to their rooms in silence, save for Alex whistling a cheery tune. Magnus fought with himself internally on whether he should say anything. What was he even supposed to say? Hey, I liked dancing with you? So I had a great time, and I'd like to do it again? I have a big honking crush on you? He shot them all down.

All too soon, they reached their rooms. "Night, Maggie," Alex said as Magnus opened his door.

"Good night, Alex," Magnus replied. Alex didn't move. "Uh, what's up?"

"It's a Pixar movie."

"Never mind." He closed the door, waited a second, and then opened it again. Alex still stood there. "Are you going to your room?"

"Yeah, but…" Alex made a face. "Alright, fuck it." She leaned forward and placed a kiss on Magnus's cheek, then raced down to her room. "Night!" The door slammed shut.

Magnus brought a hand up to his cheek, tentatively touching where Alex had kissed him. "Oh." Alex had wanted to kiss him. Man, he really was stupid.

Prompt request from garnetly on Tumblr.

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