It was at another one of their lunches where Jack proposed something that made Aqua's heart stop in her chest. Thankfully, she had finished her meal of broiled chicken and buttered peas. Jack dabbed at his mouth with a napkin. His halibut in hollandaise sauce was completely devoured, though she noticed he hadn't touched his stewed tomatoes. Though, as she looked at them, she probably wouldn't have touched them either. They looked dreadful.

"Excuse me, could you repeat that?" she croaked.

"I want to take you dancing," he replied evenly.

"I… I don't dance," she stammered.

She hadn't been to a dance hall since Elsa started working at a speakeasy. She hated the work and sang for all sorts of folks for meager tips and the wage the owner of the establishment gave her. Singers were a dime a dozen. Aqua also didn't have anything to wear to such an event. She didn't exactly have gentleman callers coming to her door to take her out, so she had never invested in fancy dresses or make up.

But the thought of going out with Jack made her seize up. She actually wanted to go dancing. With Jack. The whole 'with Jack' aspect was terrifying. It meant she was starting to like him and she knew she shouldn't. Their dates hadn't changed the fact he was a dangerous mobster who could have her killed if she irked him. She wanted to buy a dress and try to make herself look pretty. The mere thought of buying a new dress for herself filled her with such dread.

"Not even if I ask nicely?" Jack asked.

Was it possible to spontaneously combust? She certainly felt that it was because her face was far too hot. He leaned in with that infuriating smirk on his lips. Like the cat that got the canary and was about to start a course of cream. She squirmed in her seat before him.

"I've never danced before, Jack," she confessed.

"Not even once?"

She shook her head. He had to know that he was the first person to ever express any interest in her before. People didn't go out of their way to notice her and she had watched her coworkers all fall in love one by one. She knew she wasn't in love with Jack. But she had to admit she was dropping her guard around him more and more. She even (secretly) started to look forward to seeing him and it wasn't because he took her out to eat or to places she wouldn't have gone herself. She didn't mind spending time around him.

The worst thing was, the more she spent time around him, the easier it was to forget his line of work. He was more of a person now than he was when they first met. She knew that she shouldn't let her guard down around him. He was after something but she didn't know what, not yet and he hadn't even hinted aside from the clear dates. The idea that Jack couldn't get a date was laughable, because despite his arrogance, he was devilishly good looking. The fact he was spending his time with her had to scream ulterior motive, right?

"No," she said softly. "My dad was teaching me before he passed away."

"I'm sorry," Jack said. "We don't have to. I only wanted to shake things up a bit. You'd get bored of me if all we do is eat out."

She wanted to protest that she wouldn't get bored of him, but that sounded dangerously too close to admitting at least tolerance of him. She bit her lip and looked away. She knew for a fact she didn't have an acceptable night out dress. She mostly had her work uniforms and a few extremely worn dresses. She made enough to at least make dresses. Perhaps… it was time to splurge and make a new one?

"Give me a week?" she asked.

A week should have been plenty of time to get fabric and make a dress, right? She could sew pretty well and fairly quickly. She would have to go immediately after work to the fabric shop to pick something up. She certainly couldn't be picky about the material. Though she had nowhere near enough for the sequins and beading that the other dresses had. She would have to make due with what was in her coin purse.

As she agreed, a smile lit Jack's face. Like he couldn't believe his luck that she was agreeing. She squirmed slightly in her seat. Aqua shouldn't feel as if butterflies danced through her veins because of a smile. Especially not from someone like Jack. And yet, the feeling was there, unwelcome and unwanted.

"Really?" he asked eagerly.

She gave a shy nod.

"Great, next week then! Is Friday night okay? You have off that evening, right?"

He knew her schedule. Not because he had forced it out of someone, but because he had gotten used to her situation with work and her home life. He knew because he listened and paid attention. The only other people in her life who knew her routine were Ventus and Elsa. No one else was that thoughtful or considerate.

"Friday would be great."

She ran to the fabric store, almost completely out of breath when she got there. But they were thankfully still open, if slightly annoyed she was there before closing. As much as she wanted a dress made of silk, it was a full dollar a yard versus it's cheaper alternative of rayon at 22 cents a yard. So she grabbed three yards of rayon fabric. The pretty silk would have been so comfortable and so much nicer, like the things Jack wore, but she just couldn't afford it. Not when she had to budget in a new 'going out' outfit.

Thankfully, she still had t-strap shoes or that would have set her back a full two dollars. Stockings were cheap and she needed them regularly for work. She ran over what else she might need as she carried the fabric home. She couldn't afford jewelry and had none of her own. Those had been sold a long time ago to help pay protection fees before her deal with Jack. The only thing she had left were her mother and father's wedding bands as she had been unable to bring herself to part with those.

Elsa was getting ready when she spotted Aqua coming in. Ven was passed out asleep on the bed. It was rather late and Aqua knew she shouldn't have been out after dark. Elsa looked at Aqua and then at the bag in her hands.

"Another gift from Frost?" Elsa sneered.

Elsa wasn't angry with Aqua. They both knew that, but she disliked the whole 'being given things' from a mobster thing. Taking Jack's charity after living in fear because of the Guardians and gangs like them left a sour taste in their mouths. Especially after how much they lost due to gang violence and just the general presence of the mafia in the town.

"No, I bought some fabric to make a dress," Aqua said.

"What for?"

"Jack… wants to go dancing."

Elsa opened her mouth. Aqua wondered if she had been about to offer one of her old dresses but then the blonde shook her head. She folded her arms across the chest, looking very stern. Aqua grimaced. This meant Elsa wasn't about to let it go.

"You don't dance."

"That's right," Aqua said.

Aqua considered Elsa. She was everything that Aqua was not. Fair, dainty, pretty beyond compare. Aqua often felt like she couldn't match Elsa in the looks department. Her hair was too short to do the popular wave look. It only did that when it was long, like Elsa's. Aqua was helpless when it came to style and heaven forbid she have to do makeup. Elsa knew just how much blush to use and she always looked lovely when she applied just a touch of red lipstick.

"Do you want to do this?" Elsa asked.

Aqua had been asking herself that all day. She supposed she committed to it by buying the fabric. If she told Jack she changed her mind… She was certain he would be disappointed but he wouldn't take it out on her. However, Elsa would be disappointed in her if she went. Because willingly spending time with Jack was different from being forced into it.

"I'm trying to make the best of a bad situation," Aqua said.

"Aqua…"

"I can't stop living life just because things aren't going the way I want them to," she argued.

Elsa placed a hand on Aqua's arm. Immediately, Aqua's train of thought derailed. Elsa looked like she was about ready to cry. Clearly this deal of hers had a bigger effect on Elsa than she thought. She realized that she would probably be upset if the situation was reversed. Not because Elsa would be spending time with Jack, but because she was helpless to keep Elsa away from someone so dangerous.

"If I could get you out of this, I would," Elsa said softly.

"Hey," Aqua said gently. "None of that, okay? You have to get ready to go to work. You can't ruin your makeup for me."

Aqua removed a handkerchief (threadbare and worn) from her pocket before gently dabbing at the corners of her eyes. She hated not recognizing this hurt on Elsa before now. She resolved to spend more time with her on her next day off. She would just have to let Jack now she needed a momentary break. He was practically stopping at her work two to three times a week anyways. He would understand, right?

"Yeah… Yeah I know," Elsa sniffled before taking a deep breath. "I just worry so much about you."

"We worry about you too… I really wish you didn't have to go work so late," Aqua said.

Elsa sighed and looked away. She still looked upset and distracted as she looked out the window. The reason Elsa worked nights was so Ven wasn't left alone during the days by himself in case he had another breathing episode. On the few days he had the energy to leave the house, he could go out and about on his own.

"It's when the speakeasies open. You know I don't have any other choice," Elsa sighed.

Aqua nodded. She knew. They were both stuck in the same situation. Aqua couldn't get out of her deal with Jack. And Elsa was stuck working at the bars singing. It was a shame really. Elsa had such a lovely singing voice and it had been so long since Aqua heard her sing because she was happy to sing. She wondered if it was because singing had lost the magic it once held for her when they were younger.

Or because she was tired of singing for a living. Elsa worked so hard at the bar and often dealt with a lot of mean patrons. Thugs who thought that Elsa was there to be more than just eye candy. Elsa promised to look for more work, but with things the way they were, jobs in a safer part of town were hard to come by.

"Sorry. I shouldn't have said anything."

"When did everything become so complicated?" Elsa asked softly.

"We grew up, El. Things just… couldn't stay the same," Aqua tried to reason.

It was a bad reasoning for how things were, but the deaths of their parents had made them grow up faster. They couldn't rely on their parents for protection anymore. They only had themselves. It was them against the world. That's how it had been since the death of Aqua's father. He had taken them all in to protect them. Up until he was short on protection fees. He paid for them and not himself. Then he died. Aqua found out later from the slack jawed mafioso who used to run their area before the Guardians came in.

When the Guardians moved into the area that man had died. Aqua hated herself for being glad about it, but her father had gotten vengeance. Not like Aqua could have pulled it off herself. She had no way to get her hands on a gun and was far too chicken to pull the trigger. She didn't have it in her to take lives. That's why she was a nurse. So she could save them.

"Yeah well it's awful. That's what it is."

Aqua couldn't disagree with her.