dance with the devil

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Everything is different, but everything is good. @legrandmatt @evmyers

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"Okay, stop…" she murmured, inching closer to him as he lifted his finger from the remote.

Matt placed the remote on the bedside and settled back against the pillows, turning his head toward Anslee to kiss her softly on top of her head as he continued slowly combing his fingers through her hair. They were making progress and it was both exciting and terrifying at once. He didn't need to have sex with her to feel fulfilled - which was a new and somewhat pleasing sensation - but he would've had a hard time denying his desire for closeness and physical contact. Just her presence could calm him, but their contact practically gave him a high similar to effects of nitrous oxide on a dental patient; a pleasant and calming numbness that thankfully, he was conscious for the duration of.

"Thanks for joining me tonight," he whispered into her hair. "I hope you had as great a time as I did.

The evening was effervescent, gleaning more genuine smiles from her than her beloved cake vodka. Illuminated by the soft amber glow that flooded the restaurant, Anslee dipped a finger into the remnants of what had been the melt-in-your mouth frosting atop the warm desserts that were placed before the trio nearly an hour ago. She considered the possibility of anyone on Earth having a better night than she was, but quickly dismissed it at the sight of a smile playing on his lips for the millionth time that evening. She felt silly, like a sixteen-year-old having her first crush, but all she could think was, please. Do that again.

The night was delicious, enveloping her in a sense of serenity that had been quite foreign to her as of late. The February air tasted sweet on her lips as Matt, Evie, and she floated back to the car in a seemingly dream-like trance, a smile never falling from any of their mouths. Anslee couldn’t help but decide there was nowhere safer in the world than wrapped up in his jacket and held to his chest, and all she could think was, please. Do that again.

Later, she pinched the top of her dress and unzipped the back, sliding the chiffon fabric down her stomach and over her hips before letting the garment flutter to the floor. She leaned toward the mirror above her sink, tucking a loose strand of hair to its place behind her ear, laying her fingertips upon the rose dusting along her cheeks. She then pressed her fingers back through her hair, sweeping her fussed-with locks into a neat bun before tugging on a t-shirt and her prized duck pajamas. And even then, all she could think was, please. Can we do all of that again?

”We should watch a movie,” she mused, padding from the bathroom toward her bed once she was fully clothed. “I’m not really tired yet,” she added, eyeing him closely with a smile as though to warn him against making a joke about how she was “always sleepy”. She perched herself on top of her comforter, handing him the remote with a tilt of her head.

Back in the sanctity of Anslee's bedroom once again after dropping Evie off, Matt was sure there was no better way to end the evening than snuggled up with Anslee in their nest of blankets. He was thrown off, however, when she exited the bathroom and immediately took a seat on her bed. He stared up at her with eyebrows raised before following her lead and climbing onto the bed next to her. He relaxed almost instantly when she handed him the remote, deciding that her playful tones and expressions were her way of letting him know he was allowed to be on the bed with her.

Turning his head to look at her, Matt found himself - for the nth time that night - unable to tear his eyes away. He studied her face as though he might focus his gaze elsewhere and forget what she looked like. It was surprisingly easy for him to be patient with her, but as his eyes fell to her mouth, noting the way her lips curved as she smiled, he couldn't help but hope that they might get to kiss again soon.

Finally able to tear his eyes away from her, he began flipping through the list of movies with one hand while his other mindlessly tangled itself in Anslee's hair. "Do you have a preference on genre here, or should we just pick at random?" he asked, his eyes still trained on the screen.

"And you…you clean up well," she murmured, her face turned toward his neck as her her breath brushed along his skin. 

It left her suddenly, all the fears that had plagued her only moments ago. As she clutched onto his arm and they approached the car, she couldn’t help but feel at peace. 

She turned her face to look at him again, staring silently.

He stood there, mesmerized for a moment before he finally pulled his hand away. He bit his lip as he continued to stare back at her, finally able to break her gaze long enough to open the passenger door for her. Once she was seated, he crossed in front of the car and entered the driver's seat, turning back to Ev and giving her a small nod as he turned the key in the ignition.

A fine, vanilla scented mist settled lazily about the room, cloaking Anslee in a delicate shroud of  light fragrance. After setting the faceted glass bottle back on the shelf that housed it, her shaking fingers fell upon her shoulder, tracing the line there to the tip of her collarbone. 

Her hair was perfect, the dress was perfect, her makeup was perfect; she should’ve felt anything but the worry that was gnawing away at her insides. 

Will he like my outfit? Will he notice my perfume? 

It was the premiere appearance of such fears. Living such a sheltered life meant that she was experiencing nearly all of the first “date” jitters for the first time. Of course, she’d been with Kota, but their first experience together was one she’d rather forget.

He’d presented the concept of the outing in a casual way, which she was well aware was an attempt to keep from frightening her, but she secretly hoped it was as big a deal to him as it was to her. 

She lifted her gaze to the reflection of her own eyes in the mirror at the sound of the doorbell, a surge of panic washing over her, if only for a moment. 

Act natural, she reminded herself, descending the Kappa staircase and watching the the door swing open.

It was strange to think of himself as being 'in love'. He wasn't entirely sure what it meant or what constituted being in such a state, but, for the first time, he'd begun to consider that maybe this wasn't just a simple infatuation. He refused to think, however, that his feelings were the cause of his actions, but rather a side effect. Anslee had given Matt no real reason to hate her and he was sure that the feeling of love had not come until after he started hanging around her more. Though, due to a lack of experience in the subject, he couldn't be entirely sure.

Having showered and dressed and made sure he was ready for the night, Matt had left the room for Ans to have her privacy while he met up with Ev at the park they often frequented after their bar crawls. They talked, caught up with each other, and reminisced for an hour or so before deciding to head back to the Kappa house to pick up Anslee.

Arriving at the house, Matt rang the doorbell before entering to announce his presence per an agreement made with Anslee beforehand. He didn't see her at first, his eyes trained on the handle of the door as he pushed it open, but the moment his gaze made its way upward his jaw dropped at the sight of his date.

He closed his mouth quickly, smiling as she approached. "Wow," he remarked, "You look... amazing." His smile turned bashful as his cheeks reddened a bit. He turned away for a moment before offering her his arm. "You're ready, yeah? We should, uh-- we should get going. Ev's waiting in the car."