standard disclaimer applies:
'ts not mine, i'm not making any profit.
Chapter 2
Tracy didn't think she had ever been this happy in her life. Link's arms stayed around her for a moment longer as she just beamed up at him, unable to keep her glee even the tiniest bit contained. Fortunately, if his answering grin was anything to go by, he didn't mind her exuberance. He turned away suddenly to look behind him, where Corny was smiling down at the both of them.
"Sorry to interrupt, but one of the agents would like to talk to Link, here," he said, waggling his eyebrows in excitement at them.
Link's mouth dropped open, and he turned back to Tracy still looking a bit dazed.
"You did it, Link!" she said, hugging him tightly before looking back into his eyes, watching life return to his face. "I knew they'd love you!" She was so happy that he hadn't sacrificed his chances with the agents - who knows what might have happened if he'd come to the march last night? Would he have danced with Lil' Inez today? Tracy didn't know, but she did know that everything had worked out just as it should - better than it should have, really - and she couldn't ask for anything more than that. She quickly hugged him again then pushed him off to follow Corny, watching him nervously check his hair on his way towards the woman at the edge of the stage.
As she watched him quickly morph back into his calm, confident TV persona, she could hardly believe that not five minutes earlier, he'd been kissing her. She sighed happily, then turned to see if she could find Inez to congratulate her. She spotted her dancing by the side of the stage, showing off her moves for Darla and Tammy who were trying to imitate them, but still looking a bit stiff. She ran over to join them, jumping in with Inez and smiling big at the other girls, getting them to relax a bit more into the movements. The song ended and Tracy pulled Inez aside to pull her into a big hug.
"Congratulations Inez! I'm so happy for you! You danced so well!"
"Thanks, Tracy! So did you! We really showed them, didn't we?" She asked, readjusting her crown.
Tracy flipped her hair over her shoulder, "Yes we did. And about time!" She continued in a less saucy tone, "and now all of Baltimore will get to see you dance!"
Inez was about to respond when something caught her eye and she waved and pointed towards Link who was coming back across the stage towards them. 'That was certainly fast,' Tracy thought, rushing over to meet him, 'I hope everything went alright!'
He was smiling, but still playing it cool right before he waved about a creamy white business card. "Well, I'm not signed yet, but..."
"Oh my gosh, Link!" Tracy couldn't contain herself and snatched the card from him. It read: 'Anna Harrison, Agent' above a picture of a shiny gold star, with the words 'WDC Entertainment Agency' and a phone number. It was so official! "Are you going to be in commercials? In movies? On Broadway?" She couldn't believe it, it was so amazing! Everything she could have wanted - first Inez and now this! "This is just so incredibly wonderful!" Looking up at him then, she remembered that from the first time she had seen him on the Corny Collins show, she knew he was meant for big things. The way he danced, the way he sang, the way he shook his hips - and that amazing face and hair - there was no way he wasn't destined to be noticed.
Tracy was smiling up at him, still pondering for the gigantic future that lay ahead of him, that she was taken by surprise when he swooped down and kissed her suddenly. 'And this may be the most wonderful part of the whole night,' she thought, relishing in the feeling of his lips against hers before he spun her out and around to the music that had started up again. He grabbed his card back and spun around for her, shaking his hips with a cocky grin. She laughed and clapped her hands together - she'd never seen him look so happy. He bent down and grabbed her in his arms again, making her catch her breath.
"It really is, isn't it?" He smiled more seriously, "And you know what, she said she was as impressed by my courage to dance with Inez as she was by my dancing. AND, she said that Baltimore was lucky to have such a progressive, confident young woman dancing on this show!"
Tracy couldn't believe it - the agent had noticed her, too! She blushed and Link kissed her - again! 'A girl could really get used to this kissing thing, especially if Link Larkin is the one doing the kissing,' she thought, squealing with happiness on the inside as Link squeezed her a little harder and looked into her eyes.
"I really couldn't have done it without you, Trace," he went on and she cocked her head to the side - what on earth had she done? She wasn't the one who had danced with Inez or managed to look incredibly handsome in a tux! But Link went on, "I mean it, Trace. Me, Inez, Seaweed and Penny - none of this would have happened if it wasn't for you." He continued, praising her and talking about integration and doing the right thing, practically rambling as he tried to get his point across. Tracy could hardly believe the emotion shining in his eyes as he looked at her - it was like she was seeing all the way into his soul, as corny as that sounded - past the Link Larkin that everybody wanted on TV, past the amazing dancer and coolest guy in school - to the guy who had just realized that he could really make a difference and stand up for what was right in the world.
She had had that realization herself just a couple of nights before, and her own emotions got the better of her as she noticed she was crying - seeing her own determination and gratitude reflected in his eyes was just too much. Link finally cut himself off, thanking her one more time and hugging her hard. She wrapped her arms around him in return until he finally let her go, apologizing for his emotional outburst.
"Oh Link, you never, ever have to be sorry for that," she said, trying to wipe her eyes without messing up her makeup. She grinned and tried to recollect herself, but the momentum of the evening was still overwhelming as she tried to process it all. "I'm so glad you danced with Inez and I'm so glad the agent loved you!" She wasn't sure how to say 'and I'm so glad that you've really come around and I can see you for more than what you show everyone else' without sounding condescending, so she just finished with, "This is really just the best night ever!"
Link grabbed her hand once more, spinning her around to get her dancing again. Then her world shattered again as calmly suggested that they split a milkshake later. He was asking her out! Really asking her out! It wasn't just the heat of the moment, the cameras and the craziness of the night - Link Larkin was interested in Tracy Turnblad. Romantically Interested. A heady feeling flowed over her as she danced and she responded to his suggestion with an equally cool quip about needing to ask her Ma's permission, but probably being able to "come to some kind of arrangement, Mr. Larkin."
They kept dancing for at least another twenty minutes, trying out the new moves bursting out all around them - a result of white kids finally being able to dance the 'colored' dances that Velma would never let them try. As people slowly started to shuffle off the floor in exhaustion, Tracy ran off to find her mom. Edna and Wilbur were walking down from the stands, putting on their coats when Tracy reached them.
"Ready to go, hon?" Edna asked. "Its been quite the night!" She grinned sheepishly at her daughter as she pulled the khaki trench coat around her and began to tie on her kerchief, "I can't believe I've actually danced on live television! Me!"
"And, you were the best dancer out there! I've never seen moves like that," her dad cut in, hand dramatically clutched to his chest.
"Oh, Ma," Tracy said, "you were wonderful. I had so much fun dancing with you and Inez." She paused and put on her best 'I'm-a-wonderful-daughter' smile. "But I was wondering... if you would mind if I got a ride home with Link?"
"Oh that's right! I saw you smooching that crooner at the end of the show!" Edna put her hands on her hips and stared her daughter down in mock anger for a moment until she smiled and gathered her into her arms. "I told you he'd realize he was crazy about you. He even came to the house last night because he was worried about you."
"What!?!" Tracy exclaimed, pulling back to look up into Edna's face, "You didn't tell me that!"
"Well I'm sorry, hon, I was just a little distracted by the thought of my daughter being on the run from the police!"
The two women continued to glare in indignation at the other for a moment until Wilbur thought it prudent to intervene. "Hey now! Ladies! Ladies!" He gathered them both together, one on each arm, "It's all worked out! Everyone is safe and happy and," he winked at Tracy, and reached down to pat Edna's tush, making her squeak and swat him on the chest, "romantically satisfied." He just grinned saucily at his wife and put his arm back around her before turned back to Tracy. "Plus, that nice young man is still down there waiting for you."
Tracy turned to look at where Link was watching the interactions with a serene smile. "So I can go with him?"
"Well," Edna paused again, looking critically at Link. "He does seem to care an awful lot about you, so as long as you promise to be safe and make sure you're home by 10, I don't see why not." Wilbur smiled in approval and pecked his wife on the cheek, making her blush.
Tracy clasped her hands in front of her and jumped up and down twice, "Thanks, Ma! We'll be good, I promise - we're just going for a milkshake down the street, and then I'll be home." She turned and walked a few steps before spinning around and running to hug her Mom one last time. "And you really did dance great, Ma! We should make you try out for the Corny Collins Show next time!"
Edna tried to smile and look affronted at the same time as she watched her daughter run off to join the young man who had complimented her roasted pork so nicely the night before. She just hoped he was as polite towards Tracy, in every meaning of the word, or he would find out the hard way how unfortunate it was to be on the wrong side of Edna Marie Turnblad.
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Link's car was just as cool was he was. It was a Cadillac, just like Elvis had! Well, it wasn't quite the same, Link had informed her - going into a little tirade on what made the King's car so much better than his - but why this was all he could afford. It all went right over Tracy's head, but she did understand by the spark in Link's eyes when he talked about it that his car meant a lot to him, so she hung off of every word as if he were Elvis himself.
They took a corner booth inside of BJ's Shakes, and ordered a extra large chocolate malt with two straws. Tracy felt a little over-dressed for a malt-shop, but Link assured her it was cool since they were matching in their formal attire.
"Plus," he added, "you can never really be over-dressed. You can just be un-apologetically classier than everyone around you."
Tracy looked at him, waiting for him to crack a smile or laugh, but he didn't. The seriousness of his attitude at that moment sent Tracy into a fit of giggles. 'Un-apologetically classier?' she thought. 'Honestly!' But she knew that even if it was a bit egotistical, there was something immensely appealing about Link's self-confidence, and she couldn't help but find his narcissism a bit cute and endearing.
"Oh, yes," she finally managed to say after collecting herself a bit, smiling at his blushing face, "that's right. We're just about the two classiest, hippest teenagers in all of Baltimore, I'd imagine." She blinked her eyelashes at him repeatedly and stuck her nose up in the air, then continued in snooty voice, "Where is our chocolate confection? Honestly, the service here is positively plebeian sometimes!"
"I said 'classy,' Trace, not 'snobby'." He smiled, still a little embarrassed, and then stuck his own chin up and out. "There is a difference, you know," he finished, mocking her own silly voice.
They were interrupted at this point by the arrival of said chocolate confection, complete with two straws, whip cream, and a cherry on top. Link demanded that she take the cherry, and their playful squabble resulted in whip cream on arms and cheeks and noses that then had to be licked off amidst quite a bit of blushing. Tracy had always thought watching Link lick his hand to slick back his hair was strangely sexy, and watching him lick his wrist was similarly satisfying - it was such an odd thing to watch someone do. She finally sucked the last vestiges of whip cream off her finger, and popped the cherry into her mouth, chewing happily while looking smugly at him.
"So, Link," she said, narrowing her eyes knowingly as she reached for her straw, "I hear you were at my house last night." She folded her hands on the table in front of her and took a loooong draw out of the malt, giving him plenty of time to respond, looking at him with raised eyebrows.
Link cleared his throat. "Uh-huh, yeah, about that ..." he looked down and to the side, fidgeting with the buttons of his sleeves. "I just, you know, wanted to make sure you were okay, and I felt really bad about what went down earlier." He looked so adorably uncomfortable that Tracy was completely smitten all over again. She knew she should stop him since he was obviously a bit embarrassed, but he was just too cute to stop, so she let him continue.
"And I just had to do somethin' - but I didn't know where you'd gone to, so I figured your parents might know, but then your ma pulled me inside and insisted on feeding me... and then I was in your room and it was just so adorable and it smelled like you and -"
"Wait, wait - you were in my room?!?" Now it was Tracy's turn to be embarrassed. Oh god - that meant he had seen all those pictures of himself plastered everywhere. She could feel her cheeks heating up.
"Yeah, doll, I just couldn't help it! I needed to see something of yours, to be near you in some way to reassure myself that you were going to be okay - but thats not the point! I need to say something to you, Trace." Now she was worried and confused. What was he talking about?
"What, Link?"
"Look, I-" he looked down, then quickly slid around the edge of the table to sit in the booth next to her, so close she could smell his cologne and see his long eyelashes framing his own eyes as they bore into hers. "Tracy, I'm so sorry I wasn't there for you. I shoulda been, and it was a totally square and cowardly thing for me not to go. And what I said about it being too big a thing - well, you've gotta know, darlin', that I wouldn't ever say anything like - like that. I would never do anything to hurt you, Trace, I mean it." His hand had reached up to push some hair out of her face and was his fingers were still touching it softly, almost reverently, while he waited for a response.
Tracy felt a bit short of breath. How could he make her go from feeling so confident and sassy one moment to completely bewildered and humbled and in love with him in the next? She didn't think she was completely gone yet over him in a serious sense, but she was certainly in love him in this moment. "I -" she started, then paused, unsure of what to say, "Thank you, Link. That means a lot."
They looked at each other for a moment longer, then Link pulled away from her a bit. "I guess I should stay on my side of the booth, me being a perfect gentleman and all, and this being only our first date."
He started to return to his side of the table when Tracy exclaimed, "No!" He stopped and looked at her, and her cheeks flushed again. "I mean, you can stay here." She paused, searching for a plausible explanation for wanting him close to her without making her sound fast. "It'll be easier for you to reach the straw from over here, anyway, right?"
"Why, you're absolutely right," he said, winking at Tracy and scootching back in the seat next to her, taking her hand in his before looking at her in alarm. "You're freezing!" he said, as he pulled her hand up and then noticed she was wearing a sleeveless dress in an ice cream parlor. Then, further proving that he was, in fact, a perfect gentleman, he removed his tux jacket and draped it around her, despite her feeble protests.
"Thanks, Link." He had kept his arm around her, and Tracy was relishing in the contact. She really wasn't cold in the slightest anymore. A long silence threatened to descend, so Tracy focused on their forgotten drink. "Our poor malt is melting!" She pulled it towards them and pulled from her own straw, and Link copied her, their faces practically brushing. Once they started, both seemed to realize they were quite hungry after a night full of dancing, and didn't come up again for air until the malt was almost done.
Link pulled back and sighed a full, happy sigh, tilting his head back against the booth. Tracy copied him, settling back onto his arm and leaning into him.
"Chocolate malts are almost my favorite flavor in the whole world," Link said.
"Oh? And what is your favorite?"
He sat forward and looked at her, "Well, at the moment, I would have to say.... You!" He grinned and raised his eyebrow expectantly, but Tracy just smacked his chest lightly.
"You are just full of cheesy lines, aren't you Mr. Larkin?" But she did turn to him, shifting a bit - because if he really did want to kiss her, she wasn't really going to stop him.
"Baby, I think you mean to say that I am full of wondrously romantic lines that come straight from my heart, and in that case, why yes! I am!" His sarcasm mixed perfectly with his narcissism and Tracy couldn't quite tell how much he was joking before made it a moot point anyway. "So, are you going to let me indulge in my new favorite flavor?"
Tracy smiled up at him, unable to stop the warm feeling in her chest from creeping up into her cheeks. He leant down and softly captured her lips, pressing their mouths together sweetly before slowly kissing her upper and lower lips individually. She felt him smile against her mouth and his hand started to run slowly through her hair, sending little shivers down her back to accompany the ones running from her lips into her heart. The she felt a tentative tongue on her lips and she gasped a bit, allowing him to sneak his tongue just inside her mouth. It took her a moment to wrap her head around the idea that she was actually being french kissed by Link Larkin, but after a second or two she boldly reciprocated, and touched her tongue to his. She felt a little shock of "Oh! Thats nice!" before losing herself in the moment and letting herself be swept away by Link's lips and tongue on her own and his hand pulling softly through her hair. Link pulled away again after a minute, and looked into her eyes, smiling gently.
"Yup, definitely my favorite flavor."
They spent a little longer talking and finishing up their malt, before realizing they'd better head out if they wanted to get Tracy home before her curfew. So Link paid the check and took her hand to escort her back to the car. The drive was calm and relaxed, with both of them singing along with the radio and holding hands. He parked on the street outside of her door, then got out to open the door for her, which Tracy thought was sweet. This was just about the best first date she could have hoped for with any guy, let alone a guy she'd been gone over for almost three years now.
Link escorted her to her doorstep, and checked to make sure her parents weren't lurking at the door or peering out any windows before tilting her head up for a kiss. Tracy smiled into the kiss, letting it deepen for just a moment before pulling back and taking off Link's jacket. "Thanks," she said, handing it back to him. "I had a really nice time, just now, with you. And everything before that was just totally wild, too!"
"Yeah, it was." Link looked down and shuffled his feet a bit. She couldn't believe he was actually nervous around her, that was just unbelievable, and it almost made her nervous. But then he looked back up with her and sheepishly continued. "So..... Can I give you a lift into school Monday mornin'?"
Tracy stopped short. School. She hadn't even thought about what Monday morning was going to be like. Things would be different, for sure, she just wasn't sure all of what would change. She just hoped Link would be willing to stand beside her, no matter what changes the outcome of the pageant had brought about. Tracy was biting her lip, still lost in thought when she realized she had left Link standing there without an answer. "Oh! Yes! I mean, I would like that, thank you." Link seemed to breathe a sigh of relief.
"Wow, way to string a guy along, doll! Had me worried there for a minute!" Link leaned down to kiss her one more time quickly, then descended one step. "I'll see you Monday mornin', bright and early, okay?"
"Okay." Tracy smiled at him, and waved him away, watching his cut figure walk back to his car. 'He really is just all kinds of perfect,' she thought, and she had so much fun spending time with him - despite all the blushing and silliness. She sighed happily and walked inside, very much ready to collapse on her bed and spend the night collecting energy so she could get up the next morning and just squeal in happiness, because she didn't have the energy right now to process how amazing the last 12 hours had been, but she was sure she'd remember them for the rest of her life.
(Gone - cool, groovy, neat, neato; or a term for crushing on someone, i.e. "Cindy is totally gone over him!")
AN: I'm pretty sure i've watched Hairspray about 8 times all together this week. I just leave it playing while i'm writing. I'm constantly going back to check what the characters do and say - how they act and what their reactions to everyone else are. (I literally have 3-4 pages of notes now.) If i can't justify them doing/saying it in my head, then i can't write it. Anyway, I'm pretty sure by the time this story is finished, i'll know every line, every note, and every piece of furniture in the Turnblad's house .... its kind of ridiculous. Also, i'm trying to use correct time-era lingo, so if it looks weird, check down here to see if there are definitions i think you should know before writing me off as a wack job.
Also, i swear this story will stop being so overly fluffy very soon.
Next promised update: Sunday, 10/4. This one is early, but I'm going to keep my deadlines at one week from my original start date. If I get them done early, though, I'll probably throw them up.
And thankyou thankyou thankyou to Amanda and Penny L. Pingleton for your lovely reviews, they were much appreciated, and i'm so glad you think it sounds believable, and that you liked it so far. ^__^
