"Good morning, students. You will notice that the seats are absent today as our topic is dancing," Henderson said. The seats were removed from the room leaving it quite empty. "With our end of term ball fast approaching, we need to review the steps for the waltz and the foxtrot as well as remind ourselves of what is an appropriate distance to keep between yourself and your partner. Before we begin our review, I would like to congratulate our founding pair on their excellent waltzing at their anniversary party as well as congratulate them on their first year."

The other society members politely and disinterestedly clapped.

Yor was lucky as everyone assumed her redness came from her coyness rather than the guilt of an elaborate lie. Loid was not afforded such a luxury and had to kiss her cheek to use her face and hair to hide himself.

"You will have to honor us with your waltz when we review the steps," Henderson said.

"Of course, sir. We would be delighted," Loid said.

Henderson began with a lengthy reminder about how keeping space between one's partner's chest and oneself was the height of polite and elegant behavior before reviewing the steps of the waltz. After reviewing, Loid and Yor demonstrated to The Garland Waltz from the Sleeping Beauty Suite which Henderson played on phonograph. They only danced about a quarter of the track, but that was plenty to see the grace with which his body moved and the natural ease with which hers followed. They were so smooth and in tune with each other that a person could easily be excused for thinking the pair had stepped onto a cloud platform and floated away, especially with the dreamy smiles they gave each other.

"Marvelous!" Henderson said as he turned to the rest of the society. "Now, boys offer the girls your hand, and follow Mr. Forger and Ms. Briar's elegant example." He walked through the dancers, correcting holds and spacing as he went. "Ms. Bronson, while we are exceedingly delighted that you and Mr. Ray have returned, do endeavor to let Mr. Ray lead."

Camilla rolled her eyes as Dominic leaned in to whisper, "Yes, Ms. Bronson, allow me to lead. If you keep this bad habit up, what are we going to do when our first dance comes?"

She blushed. "Dominic."

He smiled at her, "Relax, sweetie. That was loud enough for your ears only."

"Mr. Franklin, are you waiting for a written invitation from Ms. Castillo? It's quite ungentlemanly to make a lady wait. The time has come to take the lead," Henderson said moving past Camilla and Dominic.

Frankie would take the lead in the dance and in their rivalry. He offered her his hand.

Ludmila took it and allowed him to bring her into the hold. "I thought you'd never ask, mi querido. Are you sure you can keep up?"

"No, mi novia, that's not how this works. I lead, and you follow. Meaning that you keep up with me." He looked at her smugly.

For whatever reason, that was enough to take her breath away, but she would rather be flayed than show him that he affected her. She stuck her chin up and perfected her posture, "Then lead on."

"Very nice hold, Ms. Castillo and Mr. Franklin. Although I must remind you both that the waltz is a romantic dance. Perhaps you would be kind enough to save that intensity for the tango," Henderson said before he moved away.

The students finished the waltz after which Henderson reminded them of the foxtrot steps. "Our example pair will be Mr. Franklin and Ms. Castillo who won a ballroom competition for her foxtrot," Henderson announced.

Ludmila's eyes widened in terror.

"What's wrong, mi novia?" Frankie asked as he led her to the front of the society.

"Hijo de punta," she whispered. He knew exactly what was wrong.

"Don't make me blush." He offered her his hand as Henderson cued up the music.

"This is war, mi querido." She took his hand.

"I'm counting on it." He pulled her into the hold.

Henderson started Sinatra's 'The Way You Look Tonight' again on his phonograph.

They were off.

Ludmila really did her best. She was a good dancer. She could waltz, tango, salsa, and samba, but foxtrot was one of her weaknesses. She had been at a diplomatic dinner in Westalis a few years back where she had to dance with the son of the president, and the little punk had tripped her on purpose mid-dance. She already had a hard enough time keeping her feet untangled in this insipid dance, and now she had the added curse of paranoia that she was going to fall again every time she even thought about the foxtrot.

But her best wasn't enough to stave off the paranoia. They weren't an eighth through the track before Ludmila toppled. Frankie was kind enough to let go of her, so she would fall alone, spraining her ankle.

Henderson was quick to stop the music, "Are you all right, child?"

Ludmila gritted her teeth as she removed her heels and got to her feet without any help. "I'm great, Housemaster. I'll see myself to the infirmary."

"Mr. Franklin, see that she makes it there safely."

"No need, sir. I can take care of myself. I always have."

"I insist," Henderson said watching the poor girl wobble along the wall toward the door.

Frankie was biting his grin down as he followed her.

Once they were out of the door, she said, "You can go."

"I don't know that I can."

She could feel the prickle of tears from the pain and embarrassment. She really did not want to give him the pleasure of seeing her cry. "Go. Now. I don't need you." She limped using the wall for support.

She did need him. He reached to take her arm.

"Don't."

"I get it. You're woman; hear you roar and all that. But we will both be here until the end of the school day if you don't let me help you." He realized that implied that either of them would get in trouble in that case. And they both knew that wasn't true. She was in too much pain to analyze why he would offer his help when it didn't benefit him.

He was right, and limping to the infirmary in pain was the cherry on top of the shit sundae that he had made her day into. She ground her teeth and reached her arm out in the direction of his shoulders.

He placed her arm around his shoulders and put one of his around her waist. "Lean on me fully. I can't carry you the whole way, but I can support you until you get there."

She hadn't been so thoroughly humiliated since the foxtrot incident in Westalis. She had to focus on limping to the other side of campus which kept her from slinging insults at him or plotting his impending demise. She slipped and nearly fell again on the injured ankle.

He gripped her waist to keep her up. "I've got you."

'And that's the problem.'

They got to the other side of campus with the help of a facilities golf cart that Frankie "found" the keys for since he couldn't carry Ludmila. He stayed with her until after the nurse gave her the all clear to return to class.

From her perch atop the examination bed, she pointed to him with her palm up and curled her finger in toward her palm.

He approached her, and she grasped his tie to yank his face close to hers. "I'm going to eat your heart out, mi querido. You have no idea what you've done."

"Ah, Mila. I can't wait to see you try. You forget that I'm still the king of this school."

"Not for long." She glowered at him.

He smiled. How could he help it when she looked like an angry kitten? "We'll see." He stole a peck on her cheek which caused her to release his tie and bring her other hand to her cheek.

"So, how are you feeling, Ludmila?" Yor asked once the girls were cozy in their pajamas in Camilla's family's home theater.

"Don't beat around the bush, Yor. What the hell are you and Franklin doing?" Camilla said.

"It started as a game of cat and mouse, but now it's war," Ludmila said.

Yor blinked slowly. "What do you mean war? I thought you liked Frankie."

"He doesn't get to treat me like that and get away with it. I'm expecting a call any minute letting me know that my formal declaration was received." She patted the telephone next to her.

"What's the angle, Ludmila? Are you dating him to get into the Society? You could've picked someone much better for that," Camilla said, watching the younger girl from her peripheral vision while pretending to focus on her nails.

"That's more of a secondary objective. And there's nothing wrong with Frankie. I don't understand why he's so unpopular. He's clever and resourceful and intimidating and handsome."

Yor squealed. "I knew it! You do have a crush on Frankie."

Ludmila blushed. "I never said I didn't," she whispered.

Yor gave Ludmila a hug. "Oh that's great!"

"How quickly do you want him to be head over heels?" Camilla asked.

"Oh, he'll get there soon enough," Ludmila said. The phone rang. "Speak of the devil."

The boys had made plans to get a bite and see a movie tonight since their girlfriends were all busy. They quickly ordered at the diner because they all had something they wanted to ask.

"Dude, what was that at ELS?" Dominic said to Frankie.

"Yeah, it was pretty cruel to set your girlfriend up to fail and let her fall like that," Loid said.

"You don't understand. She ambushed me. She showed up here and didn't give me a choice. I can't let her beat me," Frankie said.

"I don't know. Competitiveness doesn't sound like a good reason to be a dick to your girlfriend," Dominic said.

"You should probably apologize," Loid said.

"Why? I was only giving her back what she dealt to me, coming here and letting everyone think we're dating." Frankie said.

"I don't get it. Are you dating or rivals?" Loid said. He did get it. It was clearly an arrangement like his and Yor's, but he couldn't say that without betraying Yor.

Frankie grit his teeth. "Both."

"You've got to apologize then. No one wants to keep dating someone who publicly humiliates them on purpose," Dominic said.

"What if I don't want to keep dating her?"

Loid and Dominic shared a confused look. "Why wouldn't you want to? You clearly like her," Loid said.

"I hate her."

Dominic laughed. "Haven't you heard? Fine line between hate and love."

"It's not like that!"

"Okay, fine. If you don't want to date her, then be overly lovey with her. Commit hard. She'll get scared and leave you."

Loid looked at Dominic with a raised eyebrow. That wouldn't work at all especially with someone as smitten as Ludmila.

Dominic winked at Loid.

"And that works?" Frankie said.

"Even you couldn't mess it up," Loid said.

The waiter behind the counter called Frankie over for a call. He walked over to get it and learned from his mother that a diplomat from Suraguay had just met with Frankie's father to arrange a marriage between Frankie and the diplomat's daughter. "Tell me you said no, please," Frankie begged.

"Why would we do that? This is a great opportunity for you and the family," his mother said.

After he hung up with his mother, he called over to Dominic, "What's Camilla's number?"

She picked up, "Mi querido, to what do I owe the pleasure of your call?"

Camilla and Yor leaned in to hear his response.

"I can't believe you got my parents to sell me off! That was too far, Mila!" Frankie yelled.

The other two girls leaned away from Ludmila who held the receiver a little ways from her ear.

"Now, now, mi querido, all that yelling is no good for your blood pressure. Besides, you're being a touch dramatic, aren't you? All I did was inform my parents that you're my preferred partner. It's not my fault they chose to arrange our future marriage. Congratulations, mi prometido," Ludmila said.

"You're going to pay for his."

"I already did today with a sprained ankle."

"About that. I'm sorry, Mila."

"You mean it?" Her eyebrows raised.

"Yeah, I didn't like seeing you hurt. But that doesn't mean that I'm going to roll over and let you win."

Ludmila released the breath she was holding. "I would expect nothing less, mi querido. And thank you for saying that. I guess you're not quite the monster I thought."

"Have fun tonight, mi novia. And try to keep that ankle up. I don't want to have to steal a golf cart again on Monday."

She blushed thinking back to the golf cart and holding his tie and his peck on her cheek. "I don't know; it seems worth it if it gets me another kiss."

He blushed. "That never happened."

"Oh, it definitely happened," Ludmila said as Yor and Camilla giggled.

"Damn it, Yor and Camilla are listening to this whole conversation, aren't they?"

"Yep," she popped her 'p.' "Be safe. I want you in one piece on tomorrow. Buenas noches, mi querido."

He blushed again. "Buenas noches, mi novia."

Dominic clapped him on the back when Frankie told them the news. "Congrats, buddy," Dominic said.

"This is the worst day of my life," Frankie moaned.

"I don't see what the problem is. You spent years complaining about being single and now your perfect match is making sure you never have to be single again. I'm happy for you, Frankie," Loid said, knowing full well that his friend was definitely ambushed into this arrangement.

"I can't talk about this anymore. So Dominic, are you and Camilla back together yet?"

"You were at ELS together this morning which would imply that," Loid said.

Dominic laughed uncomfortable with the attention turned on him. "I can't say."

"Hm. You sure looked back together when I saw you exiting the newsroom with Camilla's lipstick on your neck yesterday," Frankie said.

Dominic shushed him. "Okay, yes. We're back together, but we're not really broadcasting it. Camilla didn't want that with all the pressure she's getting," he said quietly.

Loid smiled. "Confidentially, congratulations. I thought you seemed happier."

Frankie nodded in agreement, happy to have the conversation away from his issues.

Telling Camilla and Yor everything that had happened that day only solidified in their minds what they had suspected: Frankie returned Ludmila's feelings. But Ludmila wasn't hearing any of it. "Enough about me. What about you, Camilla?" she said.

"What about me?" Camilla crossed her arms.

"I saw Rogue Dior Color 999 in the velvet finish on Dominic's neck yesterday."

"That's weird. Isn't that the same one you wear?" Yor said.

"What a strange coincidence. Right, Camilla?" Ludmila said.

Camilla got up and pressed a button to call a servant. "I'm getting peckish. Would anyone else like a snack?"

"Are you avoiding the question?" Yor said.

"No, I'm just suddenly really hungry. I guess I must have missed lunch," Camilla said.

"Why? Did you spend lunch necking Dominic, too?" Ludmila asked.

Camilla stared at Ludmila. "How—we made sure no one noticed us leaving."

"It's my business to know everything at this school," Ludmila said.

"Wait a minute. If you're making out again, does that mean you're back together?" Yor said.

"Yes and no," Camilla said.

"What do you mean, 'yes and no'?"

The servant chose that moment to enter with the popcorn and other movie snacks. Camilla took them and thanked the servant before they left. She set the snacks on the table in front of her friends. "Yes as in we are back together but no as in we're not public about it."

"But you went to ELS. Wouldn't that signal to everyone that you're back together?" Ludmila said.

"It wouldn't if a certain someone and her nosy boyfriend would keep that information to themselves," Camilla said.

Ludmila sighed. "Fine. I'll take care of it."

"Why wouldn't you want it to be public?" Yor asked.

"Just because you and Forger want to be seen kissing on the front page of the Herald doesn't mean the rest of us are vying for our relationships to be so viewed. There's a lot going on in my life with recovery and all of the negative press I've gotten from that. I'm tired of being talked about," Camilla said.

"And you don't want to bring Dominic's reputation down to your level. You really love him," Ludmila said.

"I do. But let's go back to that kiss on the front page because I did not think that was your style, Yor."

"What do you mean my style? Why would it be my style?" Yor said.

"You've been on the front page kissing your boyfriend twice. It's happened too often for it to just be a coincidence."

"No, you've got it all wrong. We didn't know anyone else was in the gardens that night. Who took that photo?" Yor said.

"Frankie," Ludmila said. "Which is uninteresting and unsurprising. What I want to know is why you two couldn't speak in full sentences after you saw it. And why did you apologize to each other?"

Yor knew that she was toast. She wasn't a good liar, and, even if she were, Ludmila had seen enough to infer the truth. "I—do you both promise that what I tell you stays between us? Especially you Ludmila."

Camilla drew closer before assenting and Ludmila whined about how these were her least favorite kind of promises before agreeing.

Yor told them everything from the beginning: the fated hospital visit that solidified the rumor that spurred Henderson into creating the ELS and all the hand holding, cheek kissing, deep conversations, near kisses, and the one actual kiss that happened as a result.

"No way. There is no way in hell that you two aren't can't-sleep-can't-eat in love with each other," Camilla said. "I mean have you seen the way he looks at you? Because I have. You two couldn't be more obvious if you were trying."

"We're not in love."

"Don't lie, Yor. It's not ladylike," Ludmila said.

"I'm not—I maybe love him a little bit," Yor said.

"That's almost not a lie."

"Okay, fine! I love him a lot. I spend every minute we're not together wishing that the next day of school would come faster so I can see him again. And I stay up thinking about all the questions I want to ask him. And everything reminds me of him."

"Finally," Camilla said. "Now we can actually get somewhere." She sat down. "So, you're in love with your boyfriend who adores you. I fail to see the problem here."

"It sounds to me like you need to tell him what you just told us and then kiss him," Ludmila agreed.

"I can't just—that kiss at the party was a mistake," Yor said.

"By who? You both looked pretty into it," Ludmila said pulling out the picture from her pocket.

"Why do you have that in there?" Yor said and covered her eyes.

Camilla rolled her eyes. This was too much. "Let me see if I'm understanding you correctly. You love Loid."

Yor nodded.

"And you want to date him."

Yor nodded.

"Which you are, but that doesn't count."

Yor nodded.

"And you're choosing to pretend that Loid, who put me in rehab as revenge for hurting your feelings, doesn't love you back."

"I'm not pretending…" Yor began.

"You two are the biggest imbeciles I've ever met." Camilla could feel a headache coming on. "And by you two I do mean you and Loid because, knowing that boy, I'm certain he's feeling the same 'they don't love me like I love them' that you're feeling."

"That's an easy fix. I'll just call Frankie and get him to tell you what he knows about Loid's three-year-long crush on you," Ludmila said.

"No, he doesn't and didn't feel that way about me," Yor said. She vaguely remembered his mom saying something about him having had a crush on her, but she assumed that was just him covering his tracks.

Camilla rubbed between her eyebrows and eyelids. "I can't do this all night. I'm going to say my peace on this, and you're going to listen to me because I'm the only one in this room who's been in an actual relationship that isn't part of some scheme, and then we are not talking about this again for the rest of the night."

Yor and Ludmila both had to flush at that.

"If it were all a scheme to stay in the society, why would he have put me in rehab over your running out of the room crying? Why would he have gone to comfort you afterwards? Why would he have invited you to stay for dinner? Why would he have met your family? And why on earth would he have kissed you when according to your own account you both thought no one was there to see it happen? When you think about it, I'm sure you'll see the logical conclusion here, and you'll realize that I'm right. When you do, I want you to go up to him, in no uncertain terms tell him how you feel, and follow it up with affection."

Yor sat stunned. Ludmila was lost in a scheme.

"Before you ask, I don't know if it would work on Frankie, but why not?" Camilla signaled to the projector operator to start the film while muttering to herself about imbeciles and obstacles.

The boys ate their food and talked about the film they were going to watch. Loid smiled to himself. 'Thankfully, they've forgotten to ask about Yor.'

Dominic wiped some burger run-off off his face with a napkin. "So, Loid, what did you think about the latest Herald?"

"I think their journalistic standards have gone down. The piece on the lunchmeat was clearly copied from another paper. We have top chefs not supermarket packaged bologna," Loid said.

"Oh, come on. Didn't you think something was strange about this week's edition?"

"I did find it strange that someone who claims to be my friend would've submitted that picture for publication."

"Whoa. I didn't take that photo. I was busy with Camilla then."

Both Loid and Frankie gave Dominic a look that showed their displeasure with his thin euphemism for making out.

"We weren't—we were talking!" Dominic said.

"Fine. You're on the paper though. Who did take the photo?" Loid said.

"I don't know. Only the editor can trace the anonymous submissions."

"I took it and submitted it so you'd stop being a dumbass and date Yor for real," Frankie said.

"I'm going to strangle you," Loid said and reached for Frankie who ducked out of his seat and behind Dominic.

"Wait, what do you mean? He's dating Yor," Dominic said.

Frankie explained what he knew of the arrangement between the two.

"Wow. Frankie's right. You are being a dumbass."

"You two are conveniently forgetting that she doesn't like me like that," Loid said.

The other two laughed at him for a good while.

"Oh shit, you're not joking. You actually think that," Frankie said. "Of course she does. She couldn't look you in the eyes for three years from the nerves, carried you when you fell while volunteering, ran away crying when someone else kissed you, she said she wants to know all of you even after you sent Camilla to rehab out of spite, she asked about your dad and stayed to comfort you while you fell apart, and she was the one who kissed you when you thought no one was looking."

If Loid considered it logically, then yes, those did all point to Yor feeling the same way, but Loid had never been logical when it came to her. "I don't think so."

Frankie sighed. He was going to have to ask for help on this one from Camilla and Ludmila. Camilla would go along with it out of a desire to see Yor happy, but Ludmila would need payment. He feared asking what she wanted.

AN: mi prometido = my fiance/betrothed/promised person/etc

Buenas noches = good night

xo Lolly