Page 25 of Pictures in Blue
Every once in a while though, those moments are filled with the look on Hudson’s face from this morning. He completely zoned out and I have a feeling I know where his mind went, considering he kept fidgeting with his jeans. I wonder what had him so frazzled. I remember licking the powdered sugar from my lips and he seemed to disappear on the spot.
Do I really affect him that much? A simple flick of the tongue and he’s speechless? And then my mind wanders to his tongue and what it would feel like on my skin as it travels from my mouth down to my stomach, lower, lower until—
I jump at the sound of my phone resting in my lap. A text lights up the screen and I feel my heart start to pick up speed.
We’ve had a total of three conversations, two of which I don’t think we can count as conversations. They were more like run-ins. One at the cafe and the other at the inn. The only true conversation we have had was over text, the both of us hiding behind two screens and apparently that’s how we are going to continue this friendship.
Hudson
Sorry about earlier.
Two apologies in one day? I’m a lucky girl.
Hudson
Consider yourself so, because it doesn’t happen often.
Mmm, for some reason, I find that hard to believe.
A few minutesgoes by with no response, so I ask a question, hoping he comes back to give me an answer.
So about this town hangout tomorrow night. What can I expect?
Hudson
Lots of loud meddling people drinking way too much beer, it’s all they can do to keep their balance while dancing.
There’s dancing?
I picture Fran and Cordie forcing Hudson to dance with them, Sky cheering them on from a table nearby, laughing into her drink.
Hudson
Too much.
I’m assuming you don’t join in on that particular activity?
Hudson
No.
I roll my eyes at his answer. I have a feeling he answered that way to annoy me on purpose, but I think this time, it’s done to pester me in a good way. I don’t know, but this feels more natural. At least more natural than this morning, which was stilted and awkward. It’s easier for us to hide behind our screens where we can think of what we want to say without the heavy silence hanging in the air like a booby trap waiting to be tripped, the deathly arrows shooting at us as we try to navigate the tension.
I didn’t think so.
Hudson
Do you?
Do I what?
Hudson
Like to dance?
Depends on who I’m dancing with.
I’m taunting him,challenging him and I wonder if he’s going to take the bait or if he’s going to ignore it. He doesn’t seem like the type to back down from a challenge, but he also doesn’t strike me as the type to go out to a bar when he knows it’s going to be crowded with people. In a crowd, he’d be close enough for me to reach out my fingers and softly brush my knuckles against his before entwining our fingers, pulling him over to dance in a secluded corner, away from everyone else. His hand would be firm and strong against my lower back as he holds me in place, his other hand encompassing mine as he leads us in slow circles. I would lay my head on his chest and breathe in the scent of him as he rests his cheek on the top of my head, the nearness creating a different sort of tension between us.
