by Amber Heart
Leaving the dorm, she felt the breeze on her face, and she welcomed it. The coat covered her, but it really was too hot under it for the night. She took her time, walking slowly to the library. Not because she was having second thoughts, but because she didn’t want to rush there and end up being all sweaty and gross before she even got to the cotillion. She hid between the pillar and the corner of the building, still feeling a little silly for trusting this guy that she didn’t even really know. Twenty minutes of talking in a car on the way home from a party didn’t really qualify for the romance of the century. Rosalie’s head perked up as she saw headlights swinging her way. Her hands started to sweat, and her breathing grew rapid. Was this Eric? She drew back a little farther into the shadows, hiding, in case it was someone else. The car came and parked in front of the ornate steps that lead up to the front door. The car turned off, and someone got out. This was it. The moment of truth.
“Rosalie?” Eric’s voice reached into the darkness, like a tendril crawling towards her, wrapping her in its warmth. He passed under the light of the street lamp in front of the building, and she saw that he was dressed up as well. He wore a tuxedo, the creamy black material showing off the angles of his body to perfection. His bow tie was the same pink color as her dress, and it made her feel instantly better about the situation. She took a deep breath and walked out into the light.
Eric was nervous. He had no idea if she would really show up. He didn’t understand why he was so nervous, but he knew that the thought of her not going would upset him more than he cared to admit. The stairs of the library were empty, and he was starting to berate himself for hoping that she would be there. Ever since the first time he saw her, that day she was moving in, she’d been in his thoughts. Not very often, but lately, more and more. He heard a commotion up by the pillar, and he turned just in time to see her walk into the light from the street lamp. She was a vision. Her hair had been pulled up into a twist at the back of her head, not a single strand out of place, and the dress he’d bought her hugged her every curve. It looked like liquid rose gold flowing over her body. The light was weak, but he could see that she’d even put on some makeup. It wasn’t clumped on like a lot of girls seemed to do, no, it was a natural look that was just enough to highlight her natural beauty. His mouth fell open, and he didn’t even realize it.
Rosalie watched Eric’s reaction to her, and she couldn’t help it. She smiled. His mouth had dropped open when he’d seen her, and she took that as a good sign. She’d been worried that she wouldn’t look good enough to go to one of these fancy parties, and the way he’d looked at her reassured her.
“You look beautiful.” He’d finally closed his mouth and found his tongue.
“Thank you. You clean up pretty nice yourself.” She meant it to be teasing, since she’d only ever seen him in jeans and leather, and now it was his turn to blush a little.
“I don’t usually dress like this. I prefer not looking like a walking opportunity for a mugging.” She laughed. He seemed to be very pleasant tonight, without the usual put downs, or smart remarks, and she decided that she was going to enjoy the night. Even if it was the only nice time she would ever have with him. He bowed her into the car and she couldn’t wipe the smile off her face if she tried.
“So, I don’t know if you knew this, but I’ve never been to a cotillion, and I’m not even sure what it is.” Rosalie turned her head out the window, so she wouldn’t see the snigger that she was sure would be coming her way. She lived under a proverbial rock, and things were simple and good there.
“It’s boring really. It’s an old French tradition where the debutants were presented to society. Unfortunately, my mother likes to keep her social calendar full, and that means that we have these boring parties quite often. I usually can’t get out of them because she’s trying to play matchmaker with me and the daughters of every woman she knows. Some days I feel like she’s trying to pawn me off to someone else so she doesn’t have to deal with me.” At first, Rosalie thought that was a joke, but when she peeked at him from under her lashes, she saw that his jaw was clenched, and that it might be the truth after all. She’d read books of romantic stories from France, and she knew about debutants and everything that went with it, but she had no idea that those types of things still existed in the world. That fantasy world that she read about seemed romantic in the stories, but it couldn’t really be a way of life. She felt bad for him that his mother was trying to marry him off to some richer young woman. Her heart sank a little. That meant that she would never have a chance with him, even though she found herself liking him more and more, the longer she spent time with him.
“Well, I’ve never been to one, or anything like that, so I’m excited. I hope that I don’t embarrass you.” When the words left her mouth, fear gripped Rosalie’s gut. She’d never even thought that she might embarrass him. She didn’t know how to act at one of these things, and she could just see herself making some kind of mistake that would get her kicked out. Her shoulders slumped, and she lapsed into silence.
“I want to apologize ahead of time for my mother. She’s a social butterfly with a screw loose. Scratch that, screw missing. If she starts to bother you just tell me and we’ll leave.” He cleared his throat, and now it was Eric who was nervous. “The cotillion is at my parents’ house, and it can be a little overwhelming. My mom likes to have the best of the best, and she likes to flaunt that we have money. If it makes you uncomfortable, we can leave.” That just plummeted Rosalie even farther into her downward spiral. She was going to be on display for his family and his real friends, and she wasn’t going to make the cut. A single tear slid from her eye, and she dabbed at it quickly to get rid of it without smearing her makeup. Why did she suddenly care if she wasn’t good enough? She didn’t really want to be with him, did she? Rosalie shoved that thought from her mind. That was something that would need a pros and cons list later and some perusal time in order to get an honest answer out of herself, and she couldn’t do that with him sitting beside her.
About a half an hour later, Eric pulled up to a hotel. No, it wasn’t a hotel, it was a house the size of a hotel. Now it was Rosalie’s turn to let her mouth hang open. She felt like she’d just been brought to a castle, and that this was the one night in her life that she got to be Cinderella. No matter what happened, she was going to remember tonight for the rest of her life. A man was waiting outside in a uniform, and it hit her suddenly that he was wearing livery. Like back in the medieval days. How much money did Eric’s family have? Social royalty might even be an understatement at this point. The man walked around to Eric’s side of the car.
“Good evening, sir. How are you tonight?” Eric unbuckled his seat belt and got out, leaving Rosalie to hurry up and follow his lead. The man got in, and drove the car away. Wow, valet. That was the first time she’d even seen an event that required one, much less been to one. Eric was standing in front of her, looking just like the prince in her dream, holding out a hand to her, and giving her a little half bow. She put her hand in his and felt his warm strength. It made her straighten her shoulders and raise her chin. She could handle this. It didn’t matter that she wasn’t what his mother wanted for him. It didn’t even matter if he really wanted her or not. He had invited her to this, and that meant, for tonight at least, that they were together, and they were going to have a good time. As soon as she turned towards the house, the music and sweet perfume of flowers and rich food met her nose. Garlands of fresh cut flowers were stretched along the hallway, a plush rug led the way to another room that was so brightly lit, that Rosalie went blind for a few seconds after the darkness of the night outside.
When her eyes finally adjusted, she thought she was in a movie or a book. The room was as large as the one used for the Great Hall in Harry Potter, and it was almost as beautiful as it had been for the Yule Ball. There was a string quartet on a raised platform in one corner, banquet tables covered in white silk lining the walls, and a large chandel
ier hung in the middle of the room. Rosalie made a mental note not to get under it at all tonight, because it was so large that she was afraid the ceiling wouldn’t hold it. There were about a dozen girls in beautiful white dresses, all looking like they were no more than sixteen. The rest of the guests were dressed as if they were at a wedding or a more glamorous version of a prom. She was glad that Eric had given her this dress with the accessories, because nothing she owned would even be remotely close to acceptable. He was still leading her, her hand in the crook of his elbow, and with him by her side, she felt like she could face everything in front of her tonight. Even, gulp, his mom…who was on her way over.
Chapter 11
“Eric! Darling! I didn’t know you were coming. Thank you for at least getting yourself cleaned up a little.” Her voice had some bitterness in it when she commented on his attire, but then she saw Rosalie and hitched a smile on her face. “Well, hello! And who is this charming young lady?” Her eyes swung over to Eric, waiting for an introduction. He stretched the silence out a little more before giving his mother more of a grimace of pain than a smile, and held a hand up to her like Vanna White did when she was flipping letters. Rosalie bit her lip to keep from laughing. It was like he was showing her off as some sort of a prize.
“This is Rosalie. She’s a premed student, and she goes to school with me.” His mother looked at her like she was a horse being bought, and Rosalie decided that if the woman dared to come over and open her mouth to look at her teeth, she would bite her. Childish, yes, but there it was.
“And what ties to society do you have?” Both of them were silent for a moment, then she realized that Eric was leaving it up to her to say whatever she wanted. Smiling at her as sweetly as she could, she answered her.
“None at all. I can’t even afford a laptop.” The look on his mother’s face could have curdled milk. She turned to her son and jerked her head, indicating that he should follow her. He apologized and let go of Rosalie’s arm so he could talk to her. She didn’t quite know what to do now that she was alone. She didn’t know anyone else, and she couldn’t even try to congratulate his sister, because she didn’t know which one she was, and there were a dozen girls in white dresses, making it more difficult to narrow down. Rosalie sighed and went to stand against the wall. This wasn’t quite what she had in mind, but then again, she was here, so she was going to enjoy herself. She would have much rather been with Eric, even if she had no idea what the blossoming thoughts and feelings in her mind meant yet, but she would have enjoyed figuring them out together. Her gaze swept the room, and she watched as some couples were waltzing around the dance floor. She loved the music, and it had something to it that tore her soul apart and put it back together. Her eyes closed of their own accord, and she swayed a little against the wall. Then she took a step away from it and swayed freely. She had no idea how to waltz, but she’d always loved watching Dancing with the Stars, and she’d been jealous of the way those women could move and look like they were floating through the air. Something grabbed her hand, and her eyes flew open to see Eric’s smiling face.
“Care to dance? It looks like you were doing alright by yourself, now let’s see what you can do with a partner.” Rosalie froze. Eric was back, and the devilishly handsome smile that he was giving her was melting her knees.
“I, um, I have no idea how to dance like that. I just love the way that the music makes me feel.” He waved away her excuses, grabbing her hand and dragging her out onto the dance floor. Rosalie bit her lip, trying to think of a way out of looking completely and utterly stupid when he tried to dance with her and she proved that she couldn’t look graceful at all.
“It’s alright. Ballroom dancing was something that I had to add to my repertoire, and I’m sure that I could get you to stumble along with me.” He was being so sweet. She smiled at him. Ok, she could give it a shot. She nodded, and he took her hands. Taking a shaky breath, she smiled at him. Eric’s eyes locked on hers, and she felt like there was an intensity there that she’d never seen before. It touched her down to her very soul. His hands took hers, lifting them up almost to chin level. “Alright, this is your frame. I want your arms to be rigid. If they’re limp then it won’t look nice.” He tightened the muscles in his arms, and she couldn’t help but notice that it also pulled the ones in his chest tight. She quickly snapped her eyes up to his, copying what he’d done so her arms were in a tight frame. “Now keep your elbows up, about chin high, and your head back a little.” She did as she was told, wondering if this was what it was like for the celebrities on her favorite show. Granted, she thought that her instructor was a lot more attractive than most of the professional ones, though. “Try to follow my lead. I’m going to go slow at first until you get the steps right, then we’ll speed it up to match the music.” She nodded, looking down at his feet.
“I promise I’ll do my best.” He grinned impishly at her. His feet started to move, and she clumsily tried to copy him.
“Nice and slow. One, two, three. One, two, three.” She was starting to get the steps down, and she felt pretty proud of herself. “Ok, now we’re going to pick it up a little.” Fear sparked in her, and she looked up at him. He just smiled and started to pick up the pace a little. She followed, and before she knew it, they were sweeping along the floor like she’d always known how to do it.
“Wow! I’m dancing! I never thought that would happen.” Rosalie laughed, and it colored her cheeks a little, and gave a sparkle to her eyes. Eric saw it and it took his breath away for a second or two. When he recovered, he had to change the subject, or he’d be getting tongue tied again.
“We’re going to try a spin now, ok?” Panic flooded her face, but he laughed it off. Just remember the steps, and I’ll do the rest.” She was nervous, but she trusted him. He’d done nothing but tell the truth so far, so he warranted it. He did the steps, then pulled her under one arm and twisted her around. She stumbled a little, but she kept doing her steps, and to be honest, Rosalie was surprised that she wound up back in his arms where she’d started. He’d been right. His smile was so warm and genuine, that it melted a little spot in her chest. She didn’t want to think that it was her heart, because she barely knew him, and she wasn’t sure if she wanted to get that attached to him if he was just going to dump her after tonight. Not that they were even going out, though, so how could he dump her? These thoughts chased each other around in her head, but she had to forcibly shove the thoughts away. They were unpleasant to her, and she wanted to enjoy the night with him. Hours passed, and she started to yawn. “Are you getting tired?” Was that disappointment in his voice? Was it relief? Did he want to get rid of her already? “I wouldn’t blame you, it is after midnight.” She froze.
“After midnight?!? Oh my god I have class in a few hours!” He frowned. Eric didn’t want the night to be over with yet, but he wasn’t going to try to pull her away from her studies. The degree that she was going for was her choice, and he wasn’t going to stand in the way of her dream. Besides, this was just a dance. It didn’t really mean anything, right? She was just a distraction to keep himself entertained. And, of course she believed him now. It felt good to have a confidant. Originally, he’d never wanted to tell anyone the truth, but right now, it felt like a huge weight had been taken off his shoulders, and he liked it.
“I should get you back home, huh?” She looked up at him, sadness and regret in her eyes. He could tell that what she should do was warring with what she wanted to do, and he couldn’t blame her. He had class tomorrow, too, but he didn’t care. He would rather spend the next six hours dancing with her than sleeping.
“I’m sorry, but yes. I need to get a little bit of sleep at least before I go to class.” He knew better than to push, so he took her hand and led her off the dance floor. The room was almost completely empty at this point, and she knew that some of these couples would stay up for hours yet, enjoying the ethereal surroundings and the pleasant company of their partners. She wished that s
he could join them. Eric led her back out the front doors, where the valet was still standing, and nodded for his car to be brought around. They stood in silence until the man drove up, and then he opened the door to let her in before heading over to the driver’s side. The whole ride home was silent, and Rosalie kept wishing that he would say something about the night. Something. Anything. Just to give her a hint as to what was going through his mind, and what exactly they might be to each other. Was this a date? Had it just been to prove a point? She didn’t want to push the issue, but she was dying to know what exactly was going on between them. Instead of bringing her to the library, he took her straight to the dorm. This time, he didn’t get out to get the door for her, and Rosalie’s heart sank. The evening was over, and with it the image of the prince that she’d liked so much.
“I’ll, um, bring the dress and everything back to you in class.” She was about to slam the door, when he finally spoke.
“No, it’s fine. You can keep them.” She waited for him to say something else, but when the silence stretched on, she finally closed the door and started for the dorm. She wanted to look back, just to see his handsome face in the guise of the prince one last time, but she knew better. She wasn’t going to try to force anything between them. She kept her back firmly to him until she got into the building with the door firmly shut behind her. That’s when her shoulders slumped, and tears started in her eyes. Her vision was blurry when she took off the dress and slid into bed, but it didn’t take long for her to fall asleep.
Eric, meanwhile, was watching her go. He felt like a colossal ass, but he didn’t know what to do about it. She’d done something tonight that made him want to spend more time with her, and it was her pure joy and innocence that caught him. She wasn’t one of those girls that he could bribe to get what he wanted, or one that threw herself at him in the hopes of getting some kind of monetary reward out of it. This was a girl that he could really be honest with, one that could handle his mother, and yet still be herself without being catty or petty. It intrigued him, and that made him want to get to know her better. He wasn’t so great with words, however, because he’d never had to try before, and that was why he hadn’t said a word the whole ride home. He hadn’t known what to say. Watching her walk away in the moonlight tugged at something in his chest that he never thought he’d feel. He shook his head. He couldn’t drive home with visions dancing in front of his eyes.