Page 20 of Fauxmance

"Like I said, I'm being careful," I repeated.

"Why are you doing this again?"

I held up a finger. "One, I read somewhere that sitting is the new smoking. It's very unhealthy. You've got to get up and move around." I added another finger. "Two, we're stuck in here, and if I don't do something, I'll go crazy." A third finger. "And three, I'm dancingcarefullybecause I don't want to tempt fate. The elevator's cables have held so far, but you never know. Tragedy could strike at any moment."

"So, you're slow-motion dancing to The Smiths?" he said.

I shrugged, lifting one leg then the other, careful not to put them down too heavily. It probably looked like tip-toeing to Hayden. The smooth sweeps of my arms above my head had to look odd. But to be honest, I didn't care. Dancing was one of my favorite things.

"Okay, I'm in."

It surprised me when Hayden stood and started his own dance. His was more of a gentle sway with snaps thrown in. The two of us never touched. We moved in our own little bubbles. But the synergy was palpable. As we danced toThere Is A Light That Never Goes Out, I couldn't help but smile. Hayden grinned back.

"This song is so morbid," he said.

"Are you kidding?" I replied. "It's crazy romantic."

He gave me a look, and I conceded.

"Okay, and a little morbid."

"I love it. There's grit and angst and romance like you said."

"It's timeless," I said.

Hayden nodded. "We should start covering this at our shows. My band, I mean."

I bit my lip on a smile. "That would be awesome. I love 80s music."

"Doesn't everyone?"

"Not Sean," I said. "He thinks The Smiths are whiny and immature. But he wasn't a big fan of music in general."

"That should've been your first clue, Maggie. Anyone who doesn't like music is either soulless or a tool. Sounds like your guy was a bit of both."

We kept dancing, but Hayden wasn't done.

"I can't believe you pretended to like golf for that guy," he said.

"I was trying to be supportive," I said.

"What a boring sport."

I couldn't disagree.

"You should've told him you hated it."

I shook my head. "I never would've done that, not when we were together."

"Why not?"

"Everyone does things they hate for the people they love."

Hayden scoffed, but I was totally serious.

"Like watchingTitanic," I said. "It's my mom's favorite movie. Rose and Jack make her happy—even if it doesn't end well—and I've never had the heart to tell her the story brings me down."

"Which is why she makes you re-watch it over and over, even on holidays," he pointed out.

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