The thing about this so-called masquerade, he thinks, is that even though one is only inches away from collapsing from nervousness, it could be concealed by the mask. The amount of people is overwhelming and it's needless to say anything about the loud voices -- basically, nothing helps the fact Hibiya is incredibly distraught. He tries to force the sensation down his own throat nonetheless, because there is no point in running away now (after all, he isn't insane enough to dare to disappoint Hiyori).
Be a man, be a freaking man. These words run across the young boy's mind, who tries to force his way through the crowd without causing any major embarassing moments. She is standing at a point not so far away, probably wondering why he's late. The most beautiful, radiant girl in the place, no matter what she wears or what mask she uses. It's incredible how she can catch his attention so easily.
Thinking about his Christmas gifts (yeah, the invitation counts as one) gives him the necessary strength to move forward and swallow all of his fears. Hibiya tries to muster a confident expression, which ends up looking even more pathetic in his current state, and with a rather shaky voice he forces out, "Hiyori-chan! S-sorry, I'm late!"
(She accepted his invitation. No, that's not right -- she invited him. So why is he so nervous?)
"Would you l-like to dance?!"
