Rose was in her element here, her heart beat in time with the throbbing music. Her over-anxious mind was soothed by the full sound in her ears and the warm alcohol in her veins. She let the music take over, her body moved on its own to the hypnotic music. The awkward, self-conscious feeling that usually plagued her when she moved just melted away. Everything felt natural when the music was pounding in her ears. Under the club's soft purple lights, Rose felt free.
As the song wound down, Rose opened her eyes and took a deep breath. The dancers all around her slowed, and she pushed through the crowd. Rose cast a jealous glance over her shoulder at the crowd as the next song started and they were kicked back into motion. She smiled.
The bar was empty when she reached it; the bartender slid over to her right away. Rose ordered a Moscow Mule and bent her neck to look back at the dance floor. Even from here, the buzzing music buzzing and the dancers tossing themselves around tried to lure her back.
Her eyes wandered the dark room as she waited for her drink. They landed on a woman deep in the crowd. Her outfit caught the light like nothing Rose had ever seen. Through the darkness and the writhing bodies, Rose couldn't see anything except the purple lights sparkling off her. The girl glowed as she danced. Rose watched every movement she could catch, mesmerized.
The drink was set down in front of her, and Rose reluctantly turned back to the bar. The ginger burned the back of her tongue as she swallowed it, contented. Perfect. A smile spread across her face as she sipped it. It wasn't her first of the night, but it was by far the best.
With her thirst briefly quenched, Rose turned her gaze back at the dance floor. She'd hoped to catch another glimpse of the glowing girl, and she got more than she'd to hope for. The woman, with two other figures, made her way out of the crowd and headed for the bar.
Rose tried not to stare as they got closer. The three of them clustered around the corner of the bar and waited. Rose looked absently at the fancy bottles of liquor as the bartender passed her to serve them.
Another few sips filled her with the confidence to look over at them. The glowing girl and her friends were laughing. In the relative brightness of the bar, Rose could finally see her. She was stunning. The glowing girl wore a holographic two-piece set. The tiny top shimmered in a rainbow of colors. Her dark eyes were framed by a matching arc of glittering silver eye shadow. Rhinestones were carefully arranged on her soft, black skin. Rose's eyes drifted down, past the glowing girl's mini skirt, and to her striking thigh high boots. She gleamed like some celestial figure. Like an angel.
Rose had to force herself to look away to pick up her drink. When she looked back, she found the glowing girl's dreamy eyes resting on her. She immediately blushed, but try as she might, Rose couldn't bring herself to look away. She basked in the moment of connection.
The glowing girl's attention was pulled away by the return of the bartender with her group's drinks. Rose turned away and stared down at her drink, although her thoughts were still on the glowing girl. Rose thought about her dark eyes, tinged purple by the lights, looking at her. Hope and anxiety about what the glowing girl was thinking shot through Rose.
Her racing train of thought was interrupted as the bartender suddenly placed something down next to her hand. Rose glanced at it, then up at the bartender, confused. He'd given her a shot.
"From the woman over there," the bartender jerked his head toward the group of three. Rose's eyes flashed over to them. The other two were whispering two each other, and the glowing girl was looking right at her. Her cocktail was resting on the bar beside her, and a matching shot was in her hand. She winked at Rose.
Rose only broke their eye contact momentarily as her hand fumbled for the shot, and then their eyes were back together. They raised their glasses. Rose tried to smile confidently, and then she threw her head back and downed it. The cheap vodka, sharp and strong, seared through her mouth. Rose slammed it down and took a deep breath. When she looked back, the glowing girl was smiling at her.
Rose couldn't do anything but look back. They gazed at each other; eyes locked. She hoped the glowing girl would come over and spare Rose the embarrassment of approaching her with her friends. Their eye contact was interrupted as the glowing girl's attention was pulled away. One of her friends grabbed the glowing girl's arm and burst out laughing. The girl's eyes flicked back to her companions, and soon she was laughing too.
In the next few minutes, the glowing girl cast a few spare glances over to Rose, but her focus was always pulled away quickly. Rose emptied her drink and, waiting for one more look from the glowing girl's beautiful eyes, she got up.
The glowing girl watched her go, and Rose flashed her a smile and an invitation with her eyes as she headed back to the dance floor. Rose's time at the bar was always short-lived. She couldn't take just sitting there while the music played. Inevitably, she'd get antsy. She'd start fidgeting. And the dance floor sang to her. It always tempted her back.
A throbbing, electronic beat welcomed her back. Rose was immediately swallowed into the crowd. They all moved as one, all animated by the same sound. The music was in her bones. Her body and the song melted together. The only thing she could feel was the rhythm. It was divine.
A feint, almost dissociated burn spread through Rose's body as she danced. The movement, the alcohol, and the bodies all around filled her with heat, but Rose barely felt it. She was in her own world. By the time the song was over, Rose had almost forgotten about the glowing girl.
Excitement built in her as she recognized the first few notes of the next track. Rose tossed back her short black hair and swayed easily to the slow start. The anticipation of the beat drop charged the room.
As she let music wash over her, there was a flash in the corner of her eye. The familiar rainbow blur slipped effortlessly through the crowd. Like a shooting star. Rose tried to focus her slow eyes, but the glowing girl was moving too fast.
Then the glowing girl spotted Rose too. She stopped. And, just like that, their eyes were all over each other again. They drifted closer, each pulled in by the other's gravity. Then the beat dropped.
Before she had a chance to think, Rose's body was thrown into motion. The song and her instincts were in control now. But even as Rose bounced to the tune for the thousandth time, she was still caught in the glowing girl's orbit.