Ice Cream in Winter

Chapter 2

xXx

'One, two, cha-cha-cha, one, two... No, wait. Screw it!'

Eren wanted to scream.

Fifteen minutes into the lesson and he'd had enough. When Levi and Petra showed the basic cha-cha step, it seemed okay. Kind of. But when his own feet had to move, Eren felt hopeless. By the time he put his left foot forward, he already had to move it and he would be late on 'cha-cha-cha' every single time. So he rushed it. And again it didn't work because he'd step into the first 'cha' too soon. It was frustrating.

They were still trying it out – every person for themselves – so at least he wasn't stomping on Annie's feet. She seemed to get it, though. Mikasa as well. Jean too; he was struggling, but he kept up. Dammit.

Eren was now certain that there was no one worse than him in that dancing class. Or anywhere.

And while thinking it was at least okay to be in the farthest corner and remain practically invisible, he didn't manage to escape his instructor's gaze.

Leaving Petra to lead the group by doing the steps in front of them so everyone could see, Levi walked over to Eren, looking down at his feet curiously.

"There's no need to rush it, kid."

Oh, great. That's what he needed; this man picking on him after the almost-fiasco at the Starbucks.

"I'm sorry, okay? I didn't know you were..."

"Hm, what, an adult?"

Eren's mouth worked but no sound came out. He huffed and stopped following the group's motions.

"Jeez, calm down," Levi rolled his eyes. "It's not like I've heard it for the first time in my life." He smirked.

It seemed he wasn't that bad, after all.

"So... Uh, what's your name?"

"Eren."

"Eren. Okay, why are you so nervous?" Levi asked before stepping next to him, turning so they both faced the same direction.

"Because I suck."

"It's your first class. What, did you think you'd be Fred Astaire after ten minutes?"

"Who?"

An eyebrow arched at him again and then Levi pinched the bridge of his nose. "You did not just ask that."

"Okay, never mind. Look, I'm not here by choice," Eren admitted, somewhat ashamed. "My girlfriend and my sister kinda made me."

"Oh, you're one of those guys... I'm so sorry," Levi faked compassion. He flicked Eren's shoulder and gestured down at their feet. "Forget the beat for a moment. Let's just count. Do what I do."

Eren stared down while Levi counted and went over the steps. By the second time Levi started counting, he tried to follow and it actually worked.

"You're still not doing it right."

Okay, so it still didn't work.

"Don't take a full step," Levi explained. "Just put your foot out front and shift your weight. Don't stomp."

Wonderful, now he was stomping.

"It looks so easy when you do it," Eren complained, still concentrating on his feet.

"Maybe that's because I've been doing it for twenty years now."

"What," Eren nearly tripped over himself. "How old are you?!"

"Twenty-seven." He waved it off. "Forget that now, pay attention. One – shift your weight, put some hip action in it too. You don't wanna look like you have something lodged up your ass, right?"

Eren didn't have the time to respond to that.

"Two, shift your weight back, cha-cha-cha. From the beginning."

Sweat started to collect at his temples and it tickled him. But he was doing his best to follow Levi's moves, which were two times slower than the group and it still made him feel like a loser. To hell with it, no one was looking at him anyway.

"Hey, you did it," Levi suddenly informed him.

"Did what?"

"You did it right, airhead," the man smirked. "What caused it?"

"I stopped caring?"

"Finally," Levi sounded as if he was expecting that exact answer. "Let's try catching the beat now."

xXx

In the end, Eren had stepped on Annie's foot only once, so he was actually satisfied with the outcome. They did stop more often than the other pairs because of him, and he knew it annoyed her, but she didn't say anything.

"Would you show us some real dancing?" Someone asked the instructors when the class was finished.

The group scattered and people moved closer to the walls of the room, some leaning back, some sitting on the floor, leaving enough space for Levi and Petra to show them what it looked like after two decades of practicing.

Levi looked at Petra and quietly said something to her. She nodded and went to stand in the center of the room, while he walked over to the stereo and changed CD's.

Only the bass started and Eren couldn't even tell what was the song and if it was the cha-cha rhythm.

Suddenly, Petra started walking about, hands on her slowly swaying hips. She made a few figures in between the steps, smiling widely. It was a complete transformation from a sweet, quiet instructor into a foxy lady. And since she was wearing gym leggings and over them a flimsy skirt-like cloth, her movements were perfectly accentuated by the flowing fabric.

Eren couldn't help but stare, even as he felt Annie's glare on him.

Petra walked about a bit more while the initial beat lasted and it became clear that it was a rehearsed routine she and Levi were probably working on, or have worked on in the past.

Finally Levi moved from his spot by the stereo and went towards her, smirking a bit. Petra looked positively mischievous while strutting in his direction, when she suddenly stopped in place.

Levi made a quick turn and appeared in front of her as the music began for real. Eren immediately recognized it as "Unchain my heart" modified into cha-cha-cha, which was so cool.

As they began to dance, everyone stared. Eren's eyes darted from Petra to Levi, unable to decide who was the bigger thrill to look at. They were perfect. And their moves didn't resemble the beginners' cha-cha in any way. It was just... Flawless. And they were in sync as if they shared the same mind.

It was normal for a girl to know how to dance like that, but Levi was a surprise on his own. Yeah, he had to be good to be an instructor, but it was beyond Eren's expectations. To be honest, he didn't know what he expected in the first place. It was raw confidence in Levi. He owned the floor, he twirled Petra around like she didn't weigh an ounce. And when he held her close, it was sensual.

But when Petra slowly slid down his body and put her small hand on Levi's ass, Eren felt like he shouldn't be seeing that and shyly averted his eyes. That gave him the chance to gaze around and find the look of complete awe on everyone's faces.

Wanting to learn to dance or not, he knew that he should be grateful to have Petra and Levi as instructors.

The music ended too soon and applause boomed through the studio, a few people cheering out loud. Levi looked content, pressing a quick kiss to Petra's temple, while she was positively radiant. Dancing seemed to awaken her, and it was a beautiful sight.

Speaking of beautiful, Eren remembered his girlfriend.

His girlfriend, who was giving him an evil smirk.

"Enjoyed the show?" She asked before he could even open his mouth.

"Uh, sure?"

"Mmhm..." She nodded and smacked the back of his head.

"Ow! The hell?!"

"For staring," she replied sweetly. He could tell she wasn't angry, but only wanted him to know that he was obvious about it.

"We were supposed to stare! And don't tell me you didn't have a nice long look at Levi's ass. The way he shook it, I'm surprised his sweats didn't slide off."

"Wow, I'd be so embarrassed if that happened," Levi's smooth voice suddenly appeared behind his back.

Eren wanted the ground to open up and swallow him whole. Seriously. What was it with the luck he had with this guy?! Annie started to giggle loudly and it sure didn't help.

"You must be Eren's girlfriend," Levi shook Annie's hand.

"Yeah. I'm Annie. That was quite a show, wow."

"Thanks," he smiled and glanced over at Eren. "Next time I catch you calling me a kid or talking about my ass behind my back, you're buying me drinks."

"Yeah, sure, whatever," Eren grumbled, completely and utterly mortified.

Levi chuckled and walked over to Petra. He came up behind her and pinched her butt, making her jump and swat at him, laughing all the while.

"They must be together," Annie commented. "How close they are, and the chemistry between them when they dance..."

They both saw Levi putting an arm around her and steering her towards the studio entrance, where another guy was standing. Seeing the man, Petra waved happily and hurried towards him. They embraced and he kissed her on the mouth, leaving no doubt that they were a couple.

"I guess I was wrong," Annie shrugged.

"Yeah but," Eren began.

"But what?"

"Why is that guy so comfortable with Levi dancing like that with his girlfriend and pinching her ass? I mean, if he touched you like that..." He frowned at the thought.

"Who knows? Whatever. It's not our business."

"Yeah, you're right."

Eren had to admit – the dancing... It wasn't so bad after all, even though he sucked at it. Maybe it was worth trying, if it would make Annie glow with happiness like it obviously did to Petra.

xXx

To be continued...