Originally published in July 2016, with some minor edits made.
The lights in the ballroom were dazzling. Although the music was loud, it was being drained by people's voices, infinite conversations between couples dancing.
Nozomi didn't fancy social conventions. As soon as a chance showed up, her parents would try to hook her up with some rich nobleman from some distant country. While her mother's friends' daughters dreamed of having such a marriage, she never could picture herself in a wedding gown, walking down a church's aisle, to be given away to an unknown man. She couldn't imagine what kind of expression she would be wearing, or how her husband would be like. Since marriage was going to happen sooner or later, she should get used to the idea, but... It wouldn't enter her mind. Though that night, her family was attending a masquerade, so arranging a potential groom was probably not going to happen...
Or so she hoped, since there was her father, talking to a tall, blonde, obviously foreign man. Next to him, a girl who looked around Nozomi's age observed the courteous exchanges happening on the dancehall, a couple meters away. Her eyes looked distant behind her mask. Of a icy blue tone, they were slightly blurry, maybe because of the nearly blinding lights surrounding them. They were of a beautiful color that matched well her gorgeous hair, yellow locks coming down her shoulder. The red mask was a bit dissonant, but it didn't looked ugly on her. Rather, it was charming. Overall, she was beautiful.
"Nozomi." Her father called, drawing her attention while introducing the blonde girl. "This is Eli. Would you mind staying with her for a few minutes? I need to talk with her father about some business."
"Yes, father." She quickly bowed her head to the elder men, then redirected her eyes to the foreign girl once again.
"Nice to meet you, Nozomi." Her voice was soft and gentle, a faint accent could be heard. Upon hearing the sound of her name coming from Eli, her heart slightly tightened, just a bit. Just enough to make it pound a bit faster.
"Nice to meet you too." She replied, a bit more anxious sounding than she intended to. "Do you, uh, would like to sit and watch the dance, or perhaps drinking something..."
Eli's laughter was beautiful as her appearance.
"I'm not very interested, to be honest. Rather, I'd like to breathe some fresh air. There is a garden outside, if I'm not mistaken?" Nozomi nodded in agreement. "Then, can we go over there? I want to see the flowers. Besides, the moon should be beautiful tonight."
The foreign girl had such an aura around her. Mature and refreshing. A calm smile wouldn't leave her lips, and Nozomi couldn't help but gaze. Actually, she couldn't stop herself. It was like getting intoxicated, but on a person.
Adjusting their dresses properly, they sat on a bench near the flowerbeds. As Eli predicted, the moon was beautiful indeed. Round and painted with the purest white, it shined intensively, making the stars pale in comparision. But of course, in Nozomi's eyes, her new friend was the one who shined the most at that moment. They exchanged quick words without any deep conotations, things like their countries of origin, their ages, compliments about clothing and masks. But even only simple words were making Nozomi's palms sweaty, since Eli was so close to her. She has such a good smell, the girl thought. While time flowed mindlessy between the both of them, there was a change in the melody coming from the inner hall.
"Nozomi, do you know how to dance?"
"Only the essentials. I'm not very much appropriate for this..."
"Really? That's bad. You would look wonderful dancing waltz."
Of course she had to blush at such words, which earned a playful smile from the other girl.
"... Would you like to dance?"
"Sorry?" That surely wasn't a expected invitation.
"I'll guide you, so don't worry." She winked. "I just feel like I want to dance a bit and I need a partner."
Standing up, Eli held out her hand.
Nozomi's heart was thumping loudly as she hoped that Eli wouldn't notice how badly her fingers were trembling.
She wasn't good with slow music, but in exchange, her partner seemed extremely skilled, or at least good enough to cover her flaws. At first, they only stepped back and forth, making quick spins. Nozomi couldn't bring herself to look up, to meet Eli's eyes as the grip on her hand became stronger. It was a good strenght, though, a kind one, that reassured her that it was fine to make mistakes and that they only were doing that for fun. Still, she couldn't relax as Eli was just too close. The proximity of their bodies was making Nozomi confused, as she never had experienced feelings like those. Her heart was bursting, she could feel the heat of her face, her legs wouldn't stay still. She had already danced with a couple men before, so why that was happening now?! It wasn't like she hadn't ever danced before.
Her train of thoughts was interrupted as the song's rhythm picked up pace, making their steps accelerate. Eli guided Nozomi with mastery, a serene expression on her face, but her icy blue eyes glinted with a force unknown to the less skilled dancer. Their fingers slowly interlaced, Eli's hand pulling Nozomi closer by the waist. She could feel her breath against her skin, only helping to rise the fever inside her. Why was her heart hurting so much? She hoped that the waltz never ended, even if that meant that Eli would look at her forever, just like she was doing right now. Actually, that thought felt pleasant to Nozomi, although she still couldn't understand what was going on in her mind.
The climax of the melody was approaching, as the instrumental sounded more and more urgent, echoing loudly even outside of the party. Nozomi's hand already had drifted from Eli's shoulder to her neck, holding tight as they looked into each other's eyes (she finally gave in to the urge of looking at the beautiful foreigner). Her skin felt so smooth. Nozomi's mind was already out of the dance, her body only followed instinctively, as if their bodies were merging inside of the coreography. With a particularly dramatic spin, the world went silent.
She could hear wedding bells inside her head.
The one walking down the church's aisle was Eli, as she standed by the altar, waiting for her.
She could feel the smile on her own face, maybe some tears streaming down.
And just like in the night where they met, Eli was beautiful.
When she came back to Earth, her friend was also a mess, red cheeks highlighting her breathless gasps.
"You... actually know how to dance very well."
"Thank you. But if I must say, you're amazing, Eli." Nozomi was falling back into her normal self slowly. "You're much better than I will ever be."
Her reply was a wholehearted giggle. "It's all I've been doing my whole life, after all."
Their breathing was stabilizing as silence fell between them. Not of the weird variable, but a comfortable silence, the one where words simply aren't needed. Nozomi's lovestuck eyes and Eli's uncontrollable smile were enough communication.
"I think we should go back in." The foreigner commented, a hint of sadness in her voice. "It's getting cold and our fathers must be looking for us."
"Yes, yes. It was so much fun here that I forgot about time."
Eli tightened her grip on Nozomi's hand as her answer.