AN: Paco and Brenda are Jaime's best friends in the Blue Beetle comics. Blanca is an OC.

for context, hispanic culture is extremely prominent in El Paso. If you aren't familiar with the song 'payaso de rodeo,' it is basically the Mexican version of the cupid shuffle or cha cha slide, but it's fast. When I went to a Mexican-majority school (which I'm assuming Jaime does, too), the song got played at least once at every dance, just like the cupid shuffle would usually get played. Everyone, even non-hispanics, at the school knew the dance because it was just a part of the culture where we were. I'm most definitely projecting my life onto Jaime, sue me :p

If you are familiar with the dance, please let me know if I did it justice! :)

…

Jaime took a deep breath and grabbed Bart by the hand before leading him inside.

This wasn't so bad at all. He could do this.

...

The music was loud, and it already smelled like sweat. They got there late enough that it was pretty crowded by the time they walked in. Almost as soon as the doors opened, Jaime felt Bart squeeze his hand uncomfortably tight.

"You okay?" Jaime asked, as they made their way through the crowd.

"Uh, yeah. I guess I'm a little claustrophobic. It's crash, though."

Jaime squeezed Bart's hand back to comfort him. Then they spotted Jaime's friends in the corner. Luckily, there weren't as many people in that area. Hopefully that would make Bart feel a little bit better. Jaime led Bart over to them, and immediately noticed that Blanca and Tye were also holding hands. It was good that she found another date, it would probably make things less awkward.

"Hey, everyone, this is Bart. My, uh, my boyfriend." The words made his stomach twist, but not in a bad way. "Bart, this is Tye and Paco. You remember Brenda and Blanca right?"

Bart nodded and smiled meekly, suddenly more shy than usual.

"Mucho gusto. I'm Paco." Paco, a taller boy with short hair smiled and patted Bart on the shoulder.

"Well, that's new. Tye." Tye nodded in Bart's direction, curious as to how he'd never heard of him before. "How do you two know each other?"

Bart immediately perked up, whatever nerves he had about meeting Jaime's friends completely disappeared. "Oh! It's such a good story. Babe, can I tell it?"

Jaime laughed and shrugged. If Bart wanted to save Jaime the trouble of making up a ridiculous story for how they met, more power to him. "Sure, cariño."

"Okay, so I was at the mall when I saw Jaime for the first time. I wanted to talk to him, because, well, I mean look at him. He's a freaking angel, right?" Bart pulled his hand away from Jaime's so he could use both his arms to gesture dramatically in his direction. Jaime blushed. Bart and Jaime met eyes for a brief moment before Bart continued his story, and Jaime could have sworn he saw Bart blush, too. But being a speedster and all, the blood rushed out of his cheeks as quickly as it rushed into them, so Jaime couldn't really be sure.

"But anyways. Of course he didn't notice me, because he was working, so-"

"Hold on. Since when did you work at the mall, Jaime?" Tye interrupted, looking distrustfully at Bart.

Jaime froze up, not knowing how to answer. Luckily, Bart seemed to have the whole thing planned out, or maybe he was just a fast thinker. The latter would make sense, considering Bart's speedy skillset.

"He doesn't work at the mall. He was just working there that day." Bart started, and everyone gave puzzled looks.

"Wait, you don't know? Of course you don't know, Jaime, you're way too modest..."

"What don't we know?" Brenda asked, giving Jaime a skeptical look.

Jaime took that suspicious glance and sent it right back over to Bart, who smiled at Jaime way too big, then turned to everyone else.

"Jaime's a supermodel! A good one, too. They were having a Calvin Klein runway thing that day, and let me tell you, he-"

Bart was interrupted once again, this time with Jaime's hand playfully shooting over his mouth.

"Oookay, that's enough." Really, Bart? "He's joking. We, uh… we did meet at the mall, though." Jaime took his hand off Bart's mouth, and they both burst out laughing. After a moment of confusion, the rest of the group laughed with them.

"I like him. He's funny." Paco gestured towards Bart. "You had me there for a minute, Bart. First Jaime has a boyfriend, then he's a supermodel! What else are you hiding from us, hermano?" Paco joked.

Besides that we're both superheroes? "What can I say, I'm a complicated guy."

...

The group talked and joked around for a couple of songs. Bart liked them a lot, they were all so nice, and they seemed to like him, too.

Then the song changed and the auditorium fell still for a brief moment in anticipation. It seemed like none of them had paid any attention to the music until that moment. Bart seemed to be the only one in the entire auditorium who didn't know the song. It started out slow enough, but people were running to the dance floor from all corners of the gym for some reason, including their group. Bart found himself being pulled with them to the middle of the dance floor.

Jaime, Brenda, Blanca, and Paco all immediately started doing the moves in sync with each other. It looked easy enough, one foot stepping to the front, then to the back, then to the front and so on. Tye wasn't quite as enthusiastic, but he did it anyways. The dance was contagious.

Jaime put a hand on Bart's shoulder. "You know what a line dance is, right?"

Bart shook his head.

"This one's called Payaso de Rodeo. Just follow my lead. This will be fun." Jaime had a mischievous smirk on his lips, and that made Bart a little nervous. He followed the steps anyways. It was easy. Bart didn't understand what the big deal was. They pretty much only moved the one foot.

Then the music slowed even more, a guitar signalled the start of a new beat, and… chaos.

With no warning, the room collectively galloped sideways, almost knocking Bart over. They changed directions after only two gallops, and Bart almost fell again trying to figure out the steps. Luckily, Bart's mind was just as fast as his body, so he figured out the pattern pretty quickly. Skip to the right, then left, forwards, backwards, then pivot and do it again. The group was doing it at a slight angle, which made the steps a little more confusing to pick up.

Brenda added her own little steps with the skipping, quickly kicking her leading foot in and out before changing directions. She was basically a pro. Blanca and Tye both casually galloped along, like it was the easiest thing in the world. Tye did lose his footing a couple of times, but recovered quickly. Paco and Jaime both had one hand on their belt and the other in the air while they skipped along. Bart laughed joyfully at how much fun Jaime was obviously having. He thought they looked kind of like cowboys. Just when Bart started to get the hang of the steps, someone crashed into him. A whole group of kids were going in a different direction!

After recovering from the collision, they all kept skipping, trying to avoid bumping into the other dancers. It got even more wild as the song went on. Some people were taking wide strides, while others barely covered any ground. Plenty of people messed up the direction after a while. Knowing the steps and doing them were two completely different struggles. It was really confusing. The longer it went on, the less sure everyone seemed of which way they were supposed to be going in. That didn't stop anyone from blindly skipping along, though. When one person messed up the direction, it started a ripple effect, and everyone started going in different directions, all sure they were doing it right.

It was a long song, too. Bart suspected the DJ might have had it on a loop. Exhaustion made plenty of people's movements messier, which just made more people stumble over themselves or run into each other. The dance floor started to thin out as some dancers began to give up. Tye and Blanca were in one of the first waves to retire. Then an exhausted Paco eventually gave up, along with plenty of other wheezing dancers. They all went to the side to watch, still clapping along with the music. It almost started to feel like a competition. Who could last the longest?

As superheroes, Jaime and Bart were both in excellent shape, so they weren't as tired as everyone else. And apparently Brenda was some kind of professional line dancer, because she was still doing the extra little kicks and skipping along like it was nothing.

At one point, Bart crashed into Jaime. Apparently, Bart was going the wrong way. Jaime didn't fall, though. He just grabbed Bart's hand and pulled him along, guiding him back and forth with more grace than any galloping cowboy should have. With Jaime leading, the dance felt much easier. The two of them effortlessly weaved in and out, somehow avoiding all the stragglers who were colliding into each other around them.

When the song finally ended, those remaining on the floor cheered in victory. Jaime, Bart and Brenda all high fived each other. Paco, Tye and Blanca joined them back on the dance floor by the time the next song started playing.

The group formed their own little circle on the floor, and they kept dancing. Bart didn't know the song, but everyone else did. There was apparently a dance to this song, too.

Now watch me whip

Watch me nay nay

For the next few songs, they all danced together. Jaime and his friends took the time to teach Bart any popular dances that he didn't know. Bart learned the nay nay, the running man- both old school and new school versions,- the dougie, gangnam style, and the entire soulja boy dance. Bart was a fast learner (he was fast at everything), but he danced like a dork. He danced like a dork who didn't have a care in the world, and Jaime loved it.

Soon enough, Bart and Jaime left the floor for some water. They leaned against a wall to drink and catch their breaths. Bart noticed a few couples grinding on each other to the more raunchy songs.

"Hey, Jaime." Bart pointed as nonchalantly as he could at a couple somewhat near them. One was backed up against the other and they were grinding their hips against each other like there was no tomorrow.

"Is that another one of those 'couple' things?" Bart asked quietly enough for only Jaime to hear, and Jaime's ears got hot. Bart looked way too eager.

"Um. Yeah, some couples I guess…"

"Oh!" Bart jumped excitedly. "Jaime, let's do that! Can I rub my butt on you, por favor?"

Jaime choked on his water at the blunt and somehow innocent way Bart had asked to grind on him. Then Bart attacked Jaime with his puppy eyes again, which Jaime had no defence for.

"I… um.." Jaime stumbled on his words. It wasn't that he didn't actually want Bart to 'rub his butt on him.' But he was sure neither of them would even know what to do. Well, not that Bart cared, but Jaime definitely didn't know what to do.

Bart started laughing. "Es broh-ma! Sorry, I had to! Anyways, vamos! Let's go bailar!"

Jaime's face flushed. Of course Bart was joking. Also, how the hell did he learn so much spanish so quick? Before Jaime could answer, Bart grabbed his arm and pulled him back to the dance floor. Jaime brushed the thought aside, and laughed as Bart continued to dance haphazardly as if no one could see him. Jaime admired his 'boyfriend' for a few moments before shrugging and joining in. Bart was the only person Jaime felt comfortable just being silly with, so he let loose, and the two of them danced like they were the only two people in the world. Their movements were messy and random and wild, but they moved together, and they moved free. It was the most fun Jaime had had since he could remember.

Then the vibe of the music changed, switching from upbeat dance music to a slower, more romantic song. They could see their friends from across the floor. Paco and Brenda took turns jokingly spinning each other around slowly like ballerinas and laughing. Tye and Blanca were pressed up against each other, and they swayed back and forth with the music, completely ignoring everyone else.

"Um. Is that another one of the couple things people do here?" Bart asked again, looking at Blanca and Tye, and then at all the other couples who were also slow dancing. There was a hopeful gleam in Bart's eyes that he couldn't hide from Jaime.

"Yeah, it is. That, we can do." Jaime said softly, and another huge smile took over Bart's entire face.

Jaime returned the smile, put his hands on Bart's hips, and gently pulled him in closer.

Bart's cheeks turned red again, and this time, they stayed that way. He looked up at Jaime and wrapped his arms around the taller boy's neck, then leaned in even closer so their chests were touching, just like he saw some of the other couples doing. They leaned into each other and let the music move them back and forth a few times.

"I'm really glad you came, cariño." Jaime knew Bart was the only one who could hear him, but for some reason, it just felt right to keep up the 'act' with the pet names. He was sure Bart didn't know what it meant, anyways.

Bart blushed. Maybe he did know. Okay, seriously, how did he know so much spanish all of a sudden?

"Me too, Jaime. This is, like… incredibly crash. You have no idea."

Jaime laughed sweetly. "I think I have a little bit of an idea, no?"

Bart looked up at Jaime again. There was something almost sad behind his eyes.

"I mean, yeah... but this is normal for you. I know this sounds super moded, but, this is probably the most fun I've had. Ever. Dancing is so crash. And music is so crash. And your friends are crash. And 'dating' is crash. And you. Especially you, Jaime…"

Had Bart really never danced before? Did they really not have music in the future?

Jaime had always had a hunch that Bart didn't really come from some utopian future like he always said. He wanted to ask Bart about it, but he was sure it would ruin the moment, so he tabled the questions for later.

"Dating is pretty crash, huh?" Jaime smiled.

"Yeah. It is."

Jaime could actually feel the breath of Bart's words against his neck as he spoke them, that's how close they were. Jaime found himself staring down at Bart's lips for the second time that day. He reminded himself that they had both already agreed that kissing was okay. After taking a moment to build up the courage, Jaime slowly moved one hand from Bart's waist, gently brushing his fingertips along his back until his hand rested behind Bart's neck. He could feel goosebumps rise and then settle on the back of Bart's neck under Jaime's fingers. Then he leaned his head down so that their foreheads were touching. The music started to fade.

"Bart? Can I… kiss-"

"Yes!" Bart interrupted, maybe a little too enthusiastically. Jaime realized then that no other songs were coming on. The dance was over. Already? Paco, Brenda, Blanca, and Tye were already heading over to them.

Jaime felt like all eyes were on them. Wasn't that the point, though? The kissing was supposed to have just been for show anyways, right? Still, Jaime panicked, and he kissed Bart on the cheek instead of the lips. He braced himself for Bart's big green puppy eyes begging for a real kiss, but Bart looked just as happy for a cheek kiss as he would be for any other. His face was red and he was smiling that cheesy smile that Jaime loved so much. Bart wasn't at all trying to hide the fact that he was doting over Jaime. That only made Jaime want to kiss him more, but the moment had passed.

At least the night was young. They still had a whole dinner to spend as a fake couple, and Jaime was determined to make the most of it.

.

.

.

.

.

.

Mucho gusto- nice to meet you

Cariño- darling

Por favor- please

Es broh-mah (es broma)- just kidding

Vamos- come on

Bailar- dance

An: this was supposed to just be a two-shot but it's not even done yet. It'll probably just be one more chapter though. Probably. I can't make any promises :)

Special thanks to PrettyKitty Luvs U, kitzykat, BellaBoo1492, i-am-my-own-queen, and all the guest accounts for the lovely reviews!

*cough* reviews make me really really happy *cough*