A Rumba From Hell- Chapter One

Chapter One

“Anya! I need you to go dance with the fella’ in green over there. He’s new.”

It was another Friday night studio party. Another night of dancing with incompetent newbies with no rhythm. See, once I started getting good and people complimented the studio owner of my dancing, I became a trophy. Someone to show off, to teach some basic steps, and compliment them on how well they picked up on the steps.  9 times out of 10, they stepped on my feet and couldn’t snap to a rhythm even if it beat them over the head. But hey, it made them come back.  I made the studio money.

“ Hello! Would you like to dance?”

“Oh, I don’t know. I don’t know this dance.”

“That’s alright, I can show you the basics. You’ll get it fast.”

All with a smile of my face, as if I was truly interested in their dancing.

It was okay though, I could still show off a bit. Make them look like they were doing something, when I was actually the leader.

“See, you’re getting it. Perfect!”

Once that mundane 2 minutes of my life was over, I could find someone who could really move. I always stood on the side of the floor, it became routine. Stand there, smile, knowing a guy was going to come up and ask for a dance.  I didn’t even have to try. I was a bellflower, waiting for the bees to swarm me.

Then I saw him.

Out of the corner of my eye. Tall, built. Loose. Dressed in fitted black latin pants and a buttoned down maroon shirt.  He was searching the mass of bodies from behind the bar, and I studied him as he offered his hand to a woman twice my age, leading her to the floor for a waltz.

“Would you like to dance?” I slowly looked away from the man, to see an older gentleman with his hand extended.

“Oh, no thank you. I’m going to sit this one out, I need a breath.” I smiled back.  He nodded understandingly.

No, I didn’t want to miss this man gliding across the polished wood. See his gracefulness and passion burn on the floor.  I was entranced, drawn to him.  I couldn’t remember the last time I’d looked at somebody and wanted to submerge myself in them.  Where did he come from?  Will he dance with me?  What is his name?

The end of the song arrived, with a twirl he was smiling and bowing his thanks to the woman. He rose and looked directly at me.  As his blue eyes locked with mine, heat flared across my face.  Heart racing and lips parted, my mind went utterly vacant.  What was I supposed to do?  What do I say to him?  He started to stroll towards me, with that mischievious smirk on his face.

“Wonderful! Thank you all for coming tonight!  We’re so happy to have you all here with us,” light flashed on and he stopped in his tracks.

“We’ve got some exciting news for you all.  If all the teachers could come line up in the front by me, that would be great.” He turned away and strode to the front. Wait…

“As you all know we praise our teachers here for their wonderful talent and teaching.  We are happy to inform you all of a new addition to our team!” The blood pounding in my ears drowned out the applause as he directed his attention to the man.

“Andrei is going to be joining us here from Los Angeles!  He specializes in latin, but is well rounded in all the dances we teach here. Please give him a very warm welcome, and be sure to take him for a spin!”

Oh.

Regulars went straight to him to introduce themselves and make themselves known.  Women fluttered their lashes at him, as the men sized him up.  You couldn’t blame them really, he was uniquely handsome.  Dark hair, sleeked back into a barely there pony tail, strong facial features, and goodness was he tall.  There was something about him that made you drawn to him, like a moth to a flame.  Not just because of his physical appearance, but something that lingered there under the surface. Something almost dangerous..

He broke through the sea of people, again making his way towards me.  In an almost lethal way, like he was on a mission; his focus was solely on  me.

“Hello,” oh, his voice.

“Hi.”

“Would you care to dance?”

“Of course.” He took my hand into his, and guided me.

I felt silly standing there with him, like I was new to dancing and had no idea what I was doing.  His arm went around my waist, making warmth spread through my body and my heart pick up its pace double time.

“You know how to rumba?”

“Yes, a bit.” Why was I suddenly timid?  I could dance it in my sleep.

“Good,” he responded, with a smile.

I smile in return as we begin to move.  

Reviews

[James Whitefall]

Well now, it seems like I wrote my other review without looking at the first one. Your previous layout seemed like it was going to be a darker story. I was hoping for a grittier opening paragraph. Thanks for the read.