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"Yes, we should dance"

"Charlie, I donʼt think--"

"Actually, the probleainstthe exact same path that Alex had touched earlier "Please, Scout? Please dance withwith my resolve

I followed Charlie to the dance floor,places Just as we settled on a spot of our own the thu bass ended and was replaced with faerʼs voice warbled through the speakers "I would have bet good money this clown never heard of Tom Waits"

Charlie beamed "He hadnʼt"

"What did you do?" I was acutely aware of his arms as they held me around the waist

"I explained that I had a proirl" The heels on the strappy shoes I wore put me at eye level with Charlie I was fascinated by the fact they were actually hter closer to his pupils "Then I showed hiuy is old He has to be at least thirty I donʼt think he had ever seen an iPod before"

"What promise?"

"I didnʼt think you remembered" Charlie looked extre Cinderella, and you begged me to take you to a Ball so that you could dance with a handsoed in the back of mywith you at proto have to slip you soet you out here"

"How on earth did you reo" He pulled me closer and I feltforward to this dance for a long time" He leaned forward and rested his lips by ht, Scout" I felt the familiar warmth of embarrassment in ical Seaainst irl inside it"

I couldnʼt think of a witty retort, so I just silently relaxed into his aret , but I declared his promise paid in full and returned to our table We stayed another hour, watching as Tinsley helped Jase out the door and sighing in relief when she called to inform Charlie that his cousin was officially the worst pro the after party on account of passing out in so ata date to her door left hihts just outside ht?"

"Yeah, I did" I was surprised to find I wasnʼt lying Sure, there had been so Jaer knew the Electric Slide "Thank you, Charlie"

"Hey, the night is still young Why donʼt you change into some pajamas and weʼll watch a few episodes of Glee? Iʼll even let you sing along"

"Teht craoing to takeand find the three hundred bobby pins Talley put in my hair"

"Here, letthe series of hooks that ran along ers brushed againstyou to wear this for the rest of your life or what?"

"I think itʼs Mrs Matthewsʼs own version of a chastity belt She figures that any guy would grow bored after the first ten hooks I really feel bad for James Talleyʼs dress had twice as many as mine"

Charlie let out a puff of air that tickled the hairs on rowled I felt a warmth deep in my abdoination or were his fingers tre?