"You sure about this Rob?" Kon scratched the back of his neck. He stood across from the shorter teen. Both boys were still dressed in their superhero garb, as they had waited until the end of a team exercise to meet up. Once they had split off from the rest of the gang, they had traversed until they found a secluded rooftop.
"Of course I'm sure." The taanaged caped crusader pulled a small, portable radio out from a compartment on his utility belt. "It's not like Cass is about to teach you, or God forbid, Bart."
Kon scoffed at the thought. That hyperactive speedster was the exact opposite of… whatever this was.
Robin set up his little radio so that a local station played. Kon couldn't quite place the genre of music, but it sounded like some kind of classic oldies. He wasn't able to recognize the song at all, nevertheless, he could easily say he enjoyed the piano melody playing behind a slow, brass quartet.
To be completely honest, there was quite a bit about this situation that was rather uncomfortable. Not what the duo was up on this rooftop to do, but why they had to do it.
Kon was still adjusting to going to public school, and that meant that he needed to adjust to the social expectations as well. He was well practiced in the majority of affairs; the importance of school sports events, the dread of finals week, and the absolute mayhem that is class field trips. But for some reason, somebody, meaning everybody, decided not to inform him about the weird traditions his school had centered around the senior formal.
Yeah, he knew what prom was. He may have only been created a few years ago, but at least he wasn't born yesterday. Kon had thought he knew all he needed to know about it. It was just supposed to be a glorified homecoming that he didn't plan on going to. What no one told him though, was that for some ungodly reason, classmates can nominate people for "king" and "queen", and everyone who got nominated was obligated to go to this stupid event. The absolute worst part? Somehow Kon had gotten nominated. It was stupid. Beyond stupid. He wasn't even that close to anyone in his school. However, this was a Smallville high school we were talking about here. Not exactly a lot of fish in the see - or kernels on the corn cob if you were really Kansas about it.
The half-kryptonian's attention was drawn back to the matter at hand when he saw the sheet of black fabric being removed from Robin's shoulders.
"Why Rob!" Kon gasped unnecessarily loud. "You can't possibly be exposing yourself right now? The scandal! The indecency!"
"I'm going to smack you." The shorter crosse his arms in front of him. "Also, it's just you and me. You can use my actual name."
"You sure?"
"Robin doesn't know how to dance, but Tim Drake is well versed in many styles." Tim walked up to his friend and held out his hands. "Shall we?"
"This sucks." Kon didn't even bother to hide the glower on his face. Still, he stepped closer, holding out his own hands, and awaiting instructions.
"I know you don't really want to do this," Gloved hands took hold of Kon's leading one to the juncture just under his armpit, while the other remained so that their hands were clasped together. "But it's better than making a fool of yourself later."
See, that was the issue at hand. Kon had no idea how to dance. Sure, he could bounce around to a rhythm, and had many a line dance under his belt, but didn't know anything formal. The big risk here was that if fate decided to play a weird twist on him, and he somehow won this stupid prom king title, then he had to do a dance with whatever country gal won queen, and Kon was not about embarrassing himself in front of a large group of people like that.
"I'll be playing the roll of the female, so keep in mind that even though you're learning, you'll need to be able to lead." Tim started. "Normally for a simple waltz, you hand would be here," He gripped Kon's hand on his side again, but then lowered it down to the curve above his hip. "But since this is for a highschool dance, a lower hand it usually more comfortable. Just don't go touching anyone's butt."
"Well there goes my night plans." Kon rolled his eyes. That wasn't exactly a temptation he was worried about. He knew everyone in his school pretty well, and there was not a single person who tickled his fancy. Even though he tried to stay relaxed, his body betrayed him, immediately going stiff when Tim's free hand found its way to Kon's shoulder, cupping the curve of his leather jacket.
"You're a quick learner, so I don't think this will be too hard for you." Tim got the two of them in position. It wasn't uncomfortable exactly, but being this close to the younger lad was definitely different. While the pair were definitely best friends, an undeniable fact even among their ragtag Young Justice crew, neither of them were exactly heavy of physical affection. Sure, Kon might sling an arm over a shoulder every now and then, but that was about as far as he usually went. Tim was even worse than him though. The little birdy didn't even so much as high five on a normal day. So this was certainly a weird turn of events. "The key is to just move with the beat, and avoid stepping on your dance partner's toes."
"I think I can manage that." Kon mumbled, looking down, through the space between them, to his feet.
"The basics it to just imagine there's a box on the ground." Tim went through the explanation, and Kon honestly tried to pay attention to every word. The kryptonian got caught up in envisioning the stupid box at his feet, and if it weren't for the hand squeezing his own, he probably would have completely forgotten to pay attention to the actual instruction. "Like I said, you lead, so you'll step first. We'll count it off as four steps. Ready?"
"I'm gonna apologize in advance for this train wreck." The sheeping smile on his face betrayed whatever amount of confidence Kon usually had.
Tim only smiled back at him. "Start with your left foot, and step forward." Kon did as he was told, slowly moving forward, but keeping his eyes glued to his feet. He watched as Tim's left foot went back in time with the movement. "Then you're right foot comes up in a bit of a swing, so your feet are shoulder length apart."
"Right."
"Then your left foot slides to meet your right." Easy enough so far. "Then step back with your right." Ok, he could do that. "Slide your left foot back so your feet are shoulder length apart again." For some reason that was a little trickier to think about, but it seemed painless enough. "Then your right foot comes back together with your left."
Kon completed the motions, with his eyes still completely trained at his feet. "Is that it?"
"For now it is." That was a damned relief. "We'll just work on this for now, and once you get that motion down, we'll add the next bit."
"I cannot believe I'm doing this still." Kon readjusted is hand above Tim's hip. The other teen's waist was so small. Of course, he already knew that. He wasn't blind. But it was weird feeling the thin frame in his hand.
"Practice makes perfect."
The song on the radio changed, and the rooftop was filled with the tones of some jazz piece. Seriously, what station was this? Biting the edge of his lower lip, Kon took another step forward. He was still really slow, thinking over each moment carefully before he took it. It was almost amazing how easily Robin matched his patchy movements. There was no way he was following any kind of real rhythm right now.
The two continued with this blocky movement for five total "boxes" before Tim stopped them. "Try to be more relaxed."
"Easy for you to say little bird."
"Being stiff isn't going to help you." Tim's hand left Kon's shoulder, and tipped underneath the other male's chin, forcing eye contact between the two. Kon was one of the few people who knew that there was a pair of blue eyes behind that mask. Funny. "Try looking at me, not your feet, and just let your body move."
"You're going to get stepped on." Kon deadpanned. No point in trying to deny the inevitable.
Tim only shrugged. "Steel toed boots. I'll be fine. Here. I'll count the steps."
Kon instinctually tightened his hold on Tim's hand. Not significantly so. It was more so a nervous response. He stepped in time with Tim's counting, or, at least, he tried to. Even though the counting started off slow, some of his steps still lagged behind. The side steps were for some reason the most confusing. There were several points where he felt the toe of his boot catch on the back of his heel, or he caught himself before just barely knocking his foot into Tim's. He didn't understand how, but this Boy Wonder was being extremely patient with him.
It wasn't hard to miss when Tim's counting started getting faster. With a couple occasional glances down, and a few beats missed all together, the pair eventually made it so they were at least moving in time with the song. If he paid attention to anything else, Kon would have been able to recognize the Dean Martin song playing on the radio. But right now, he was just proud of himself for finally getting the hang of it.
"Try to relax a little more." There was a simple smile on the Robin's face. It was a smile Kon had seen many times. Tim wasn't particularly happy, he wasn't necessarily proud of Kon's progress either. It was more of a neutral smile that would slip out when the other teen didn't know what other expression to have on his face. It was the same one that would show if he were in front of members of the press.
"I don't really know how to relax." Kon admitted. There was a slight chuckle in the back of his throat.
"Just let your body move. Don't think about it too much."
"Easier said than done." Kon didn't need to be able to see Tim's eyes in order to know that those blue eyes had narrowed behind the white shielding of his mask. "Right. Relax. Got it." He stretched out his neck, and straightened his back. His back cracking was audible when his shoulder blades flexed, before Kon let the muscles in his back lossen. A deep breath released through his nose, triggering him to relax his posture. The presence of his hands of Tim's body softened. Their joint hands lowered a little. The hand Kon kept so forcefully on Tim's waist fell just enough that the palm of Kon's hand cupped the curve of Tim's hip. It was odd, but releasing that tension definitely made the planned movements much easier. The half-kryptonian's feet began to carry him on their own, having memorized the pattern by now.
"See? Now you're getting the hang of it." Was that a real smile, or were Kon's eyes playing a trick on him? "Want to try a twirl?"
"A what now?"
That might actually be a real smile. Huh. Interesting. When I say lift, stand still, and hold both of our hands up."
Kon only nodded, not really knowing how else to respond.
"One, two, three, four. One, two, three, and lift."
Kon followed the instructions exactly. He stood in his place, his feet together, and raised their joint hands high above both their heads. Without hesitation, Tim slipped away from Kon's hold on his side, and dipped below both of their arms. He seemed to spin on his toes, turning effortlessly until he was back to their starting position. Yeah. That was definitely a smile on Tim's face.
"See? You can do this."
It took a few moments for Kon to realize that he had stopped moving. Of course, he had to respond with his normal sarcasm. What kind of person would he be if he didn't? "You sure about that? I'm pretty sure my feet are just as good as cement bricks."
"Uh-huh. Sure. Says the boy who can fly."
"Oh yeah, this would totally be easier if we were flying." Without warning, because there was clearly no logical reason to give any, Kon was lifting the pair of them up using his tactile telekinesis. They floated no more than a foot off the ground, but Kon still adjusted his hold on his dancing partner. His arm slid across Tim's torso until his forearm was supporting the other hero by cradling into his lower back. The presence of the TTK pushed up at the bottom of their feet. While there was technically nothing underneath them, it was like their were standing on air.
Tim was clearly surprised by this sudden change. The grip on Kon's shoulder tightened. The set of the other teen's jaw went rigid. Chances were none of his previous dance partners had ever danced with him while flying before. But Tim had flown with Kon before, so it didn't take more than a couple Mississippi's before he adapted to the situation.
"You're ridiculous."
"Am I?" Kon started repeating the steps he had learned. The lack of solid ground made movements a little easier. Kon could manipulate their movements better while they were in the air.
Rather than the conversation continuing, Tim simply adjusted how he held onto Kon, and trusted his teammate to carry his weight. They followed the same movements as before. Tim's counting faded into a whisper as they moved, then ultimately stopped all together when they attempted a second twirl.
"You're definitely getting good at this?" There was no question about it now. The grin on Tim's face was very present. "But you might want to stay on the ground during your school dance."
"Now where's the fun in that?" Kon frowned.
The current song on the radio faded out, and Kon decided that was as good a time as any to lower the both of them so that their feet connected with actual solid matter. Kon was the first to slip out of their position, although he would never admit that he already missed the warmth Tim's body provided.
"Um…" The half-kryptonian scratched at the back of his neck.
"Same time tomorrow?" Tim asked.
"Yeah." Kon let the smile pull itself onto his features. "Yeah. Same time tomorrow."
