AUTHORS NOTE: The game Dance Dance Revolution is by Konami, and all songs and lyrics are property of/licensed to Konami. Characters in this story are of my own invention, as is the plot. Some elements of this story are based on actuality, others are exaggerated. Names have been changed. Enjoy. (K)

Dancing Queen

I can recall the first time perfectly. It was late July, summer of 2000. We – my family and I – were spending our vacation just outside of Toronto, as we did every summer. It was raining outside.

We took refuge in an arcade just down the road from our hotel. I suppose I shouldn't just call it any arcade. It was Playdium. We had planned on spending a day there sometime during our vacation, it just wasn't that day. But the rain modified our agenda a little.

We charged up our game cards and followed a dark hallway, illuminated by green and blue neon lights. My brothers stepped quickly but carefully, taking note of each marking on the wall. I ran.

When we reached the end of the tunnel, my heart stopped for a moment. It was hardcore arcade atmosphere. Pinball machines, car racing games, and the classic arcade games, like Galaxian and PacMan. I was in my element.

My brothers ran off in search of a Nintendo system, or the like. I let myself wander aimlessly through aisles and aisles of games, watching everything. A small boy had won the jackpot on Cyclone and was screaming with delight as the machine spat out long runs of tickets. A girl about my age was yelling profusely at a tall man, and kicked at the bottom of the Skee Ball lane. There was a simulated karate match going on between a father and his son.

And that's when I saw it. Cornered off in a little cubicle of its own. Infectious house music emanated from the machine. A boy of around fourteen stood on a platform raised slightly above the ground. I could see arrows climbing up the screen – dozens of arrows, scrolling up faster and faster. The boy bounded around the platform, and lights lit up from under his feet. My arms folded over my pink tee shirt in fascination, and I couldn't tear my eyes away. I found myself rocking to the beat of the music.

The song ended, and the boy hopped off the platform, swinging his legs up as he gripped a sort of brace behind the platform. His eyes met mine.

"Do you play?" he shouted to me, over the noise of the rest of the arcade around us.

I frowned in confusion. "Huh?"

He came closer to me, and I could see his dark eyes shining, reflecting the haunting glow of the arcade. "DDR. Have you ever played before?"

I shook my head slowly, unblinking. "What's DDR?"

He pointed to the fluorescent green sign above the machine. "Dance Dance Revolution. DDR. It's a game."

"A game," I repeated. "Nope, never heard of it."

His smile was a bright white. "You'd be good at it. Here, I'll show you."

He took my hand in his, gently pulling me onto the platform. I saw there was a keypad of arrows.

"Oh, it's a control pad for your feet!" I exclaimed, thrilled. I stepped on a pink arrow. It lit up.

"More than just a control pad. It's a dancing game. You're a good dancer."

That caught me off-guard. I wasn't a good dancer. My friends laughed whenever I tried to dance. And this guy had never even seen me. I laughed, shaking my head. "No, I wouldn't say I'm that great of a dancer."

His eyes looked down on me, piercing mine. His fingers brushed mine lightly. "You are. You move with rhythm."

I laughed again, pulling away from him. "That's not what everyone else thinks."

"Everyone else? I'm someone, aren't I? I don't think so."

He puzzled me, this boy. "Well, yeah, but…People laugh when I dance. So I don't do it in public," I said carefully. "If this is a dancing game, I'm not sure I want to play."

His head lowered to meet my eyes. A curl of dark hair spilled down across his forehead. "By the time I'm through with you, people will be cheering when they see you dance."

I stared back into his eyes, studying them. "Who are you?" I said suddenly.

He didn't answer, just turned to the machine and swiped his card twice. His hands hit two green buttons below the screen. Then two yellow triangular buttons. The greens ones again. And again.

"Hit the arrows on the ground with your feet," he said after a while. "When the arrows on the screen -" He pointed to a bar at the top of my side of the screen. "- hit this spot right here. Make sure they match up, right foot right, left foot left, and front and back. It's not that hard."

I nodded and braced myself. The song started. I must have heard it before, because it seemed to be familiar to me. The word "Butterfly" flew up onto the screen. A swarm of arrows followed.

"Whoa!" I shrieked, struggling to follow the arrows.

The boy turned his head to me as his feet tapped and lights lit. "Only worry about the arrows that reach the top of the screen."

I was struggling, missing the arrows with each step. Violet words appeared on the screen, ridiculing me, screaming "BOO!" loudly.

I gave up on stepping and watched the boy as he leaped up and down beside me. His eyes were closed, and there was a look of pure happiness on his face. "PERFECT!" words in yellow flashed on his screen.

How does he do it? I thought, He makes it look so easy…

Something I never felt before swept over me. Determination, and…competition. I had never been competitive. But watching the boy dance lit up something I didn't know was there…a desire to…win.

I looked back to my screen and watched an arrow climb up towards the bar. I prepared my left foot, raising it slightly off the ground. I lowered it…and hit the arrow!

"GREAT!" a green word shouted.

I kept going. Green words flooded the screen. I was smiling, even laughing. This is just what it says…Great! I thought, giggling as I hit two arrows at once.

The song ended, and I was almost sad of it. Rows of numbers appeared on the screen, and letters scrolled up where the bar had been. "C" it said, in a bright, pulsating pink color. I glanced at the boy's side of the screen. His was a green "A".

"Oh," I said, a little disappointed, "it's a grade."

The boy nodded, smiling. "You got a C. That's great!"

My nose wrinkled. "C's are great?"

"Well, yeah," he said, still smiling. "It's a hard game. And it was your first time playing. Most people don't even pass on their first time. I didn't even finish the song when I first played."

"Oh!" I said in surprise, "Then there's hope for me after all, isn't there?"

The boy laughed. "More than that, I'd say. Great job!"

I smiled widely, like I never had before. "Thanks. You did good too." I paused for a moment, mind wild with thoughts. "Um…can we…play again?"

He laughed again. "Since we didn't fail that song, we get to keep going. There's two more."

I clenched my fists in excitement. "Alright! Let's go!"

We locked eyes, twin smiles on our faces. He reached out and patted my shoulder. "Of course. I'll dance with you anytime."