Page 82 of Something Rad
“She won’t be needing it,” Robbie says with a grin that could bring half this dance to their knees, dropping his hand to my waist and pulling me in tighter.
Jesse’s eyes follow Robbie’s action, his throat bobbing. “Fair enough,” he says, then turns to Denise, who is also staring a hole in me at the moment. “You want some more punch, sweetheart?”
Robbie’s hand tightens on my waist.
Sweetheart.
That’s what he’d always call Denise.
Jesus.
“Sounds perfect,” Denise says, leaning in to kiss Jesse’s cheek, the two of them turning away to head to the punch table only a few feet away.
Air feels like it reenters my lungs for the first time in five minutes the moment they step away, my shoulders relaxing.
It doesn’t last long, my body immediately tensing as Robbie leans down to whisper in my ear. “Do you want to stay here?” he asks, pointing to the floor where we’re standing.
“I would like to do absolutely anything other than stand in this circle for another second,” I reply through my teeth, smiling at him for the sake of any onlookers.
Robbie smiles back. “Great,” he says. “Let’s dance.”
I start to shake my head. “I don’t want to–”
“You saidabsolutely anything,” he insists, cutting me off.
My mouth snaps shut, knowing he’s right.Dammit.
“Three songs, and we can leave,” Robbie says, making me immediately perk up.
“Like, the whole dance?” I ask.
He nods. “I think we’ll have made a significant enough impression to sneak out by then.”
I eye him suspiciously. “One song,” I counter.
“Three.”
“Two,” I shoot back.
“Fine,two songs,” Robbie agrees. Our compromise in place, he starts leading us to the dance floor. I register the intro guitar and drums ofRock You Like a Hurricaneby Scorpions playing as Robbie strategically places us perfectly between the group we just left and the middle of the dance floor. Optimal exposure. The most eyes possible.
Great.
Robbie spins me once, then he begins to dance on the spot. I stand awkwardly in front of him, stepping side to side and not really sure what to do. Robbie eyes me as he makes the motion of a guitar, his head bobbing to the music. He leans in slightly, trying to talk to me over the song. “Cooper, if we’re only doing two songs, you’re gonna have to do better than that.”
“What do you mean?” I ask, holding out my arms.
“I led you to the water,” he says, motioning around us. “Now it’s time for you to drink.”
I just stare back at him, my mouth opening and closing.
“C’mon, Miss Valedictorian,” Robbie says, rolling his eyes. “It’s an analogy.”
“It’s actually ametaphor,” I correct him, earning me another eye roll. “And I know it.”
You can lead a horse to water, but you can’t make it drink.
“Then giddy up, horsey,” Robbie says, nodding in my direction.
