07 | cindercora

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CHAPTER 7

Upon entering the club my first thought was that I should've just stayed at home.

People were dancing sensually to a rich voice that was oozing through the speakers and filling the room with sound.

The sultry mood was only serving to make me feel painfully single and as though I should have come here with a date, or not at all.

Lucy tapped on my shoulder and said something that I couldn't make out over the constant hum of noise.

"What?" I questioned in a voice far too loud for a conversation between two people, brows furrowed.

"I asked if you want a drink." She repeated, slightly muffled by laughter from somewhere near us.

"Sure." I replied, as we headed over to the bar.

A sleek mahogany worktop met plush purple chairs to frame an impressive selection of drinks and create a classy atmosphere.

"What can I get for ya?" The bartender asked as he flashed us a smile.

"The strongest thing you have." I said, knowing that I'd need it if I wanted to get through tonight in one piece.

"Coming right up darling," he responded with obvious humour in his voice, turning around to go fetch me a mystery drink.

Lucy launched into conversation about a particularly irritating customer she had served during her shift, but I found my attention drawn away from her.

I couldn't shake the feeling that I was being watched, and goosebumps were slowly rising all over my soft skin.

I spun round to be met with piercing blue eyes.

Those piercing blue eyes.

The same ones that rendered me unable to walk for an embarrassing amount of time in the middle of a street.

"Here you go." The bartender announced, shifting my gaze from the beautiful stranger and sliding a glass to me from across the counter.

"Thanks." I said, barely pausing before I downed my drink, desperate for anything that would distract me from him.

I tried my best to ignore the eyes that I could still feel blazing through my skin, but my resolution wavered and I found myself swivelling around yet again.

It was as if there was a magnetic pull between the both of us, and I was powerless to do anything but stand up and move with the current.

His eyes had been following me since I left the bar, almost as if he knew that I would end up coming to him.

Scratch that. He definitely knew if the smirk that he was sporting was anything to go by.

I stopped in front of him with the ghost of a smile on my face.

"Hey." He greeted, using those eyes of his to travel over my face. "You've been on my mind since the last time I saw you."

Hearing his deep voice wrap around the words that he had spoken combined with the way that he was looking at me, I felt a fire ignite.

It was burning away all of my reservations and leaving me with questionable judgement.

"Hey." I replied, letting the ghost of a smile develop into a full, dimple revealing one.

So much for playing it cool.

"Wanna dance?" I asked him in a way that I hoped concealed how shaken up I was.

"I don't dance." He said in that low, husky voice of his.

"That's cool. I'll find someone else." I said, already beginning to turn away from him.

I hid a grin as I felt him grab my wrist and call "Wait."

Those same blue eyes sparkled with mischief as he led me onto the dance floor.

The music had switched to something with a faster tempo and thumping bass, encouraging the liveliness to return.

His movements had too much rhythm for me to believe his claim that he didn't dance, and he matched my energy perfectly.

Our bodies weren't touching but the distance between them was minimal, and the heat that radiated off our skin could be felt by us both.

My hands ran through my hair, most likely a frizzy mess by now, and his eyes anchored on the motion.

The blue that surrounded his pupils darkened to a navy colour.

"Come with me." He leaned down to whisper into my ear.

I frowned. "How do I know you're not a kidnapper or something?"

He chuckled and his face stretched to accommodate it. The dimples that I hadn't noticed until now were taunting me as they hollowed into his cheeks.

"I'm being serious." I said as I met his eyes fiercely.

For some reason, this only seemed to further his amusement. "You're cute." He remarked, bringing back the smirk.

Choosing to trust in my judgement of his character, I ignored his teasing and whispered "Let's go."

He led me towards the exit with his hand on the small of my back, pausing for me to open my handbag and fish my phone out of it.

"I need to tell my friend I'm leaving." I explained.

After sending Lucy a message voicing that I wasn't at the club anymore and thanking her for getting me to come, we stepped into the crisp air.

His eyes met mine as he leaned against the grey bricked wall neighbouring the club.

"Tell me about yourself." he said into the night. "I know nothing about you except that you have a pretty face, listen to music with headphones on, and love to dance."

Hold on.

I took a second to process what he just said.

The part about my 'pretty face' had my cheeks heating, but what caught my attention is the fact that he remembered that I had headphones on the last time he saw me.

That meant he had to have been watching me like I was watching him.

I cast my eyes downwards.

My bubble had been popped by the realisation that it didn't really matter what he thought of me. Nothing could happen between us.

"There's nothing to tell." I replied, lifting my head to face him.

"And I have to go." I muttered, wincing.

His face fell as I began to walk away in search of a taxi.

I had expected him to just give up and walk back into the club, so I was shocked when he spoke again.

"Give me something to work with." He said in a tone that was close to pleading.

"What's your real name? Cause I can't keep calling you candyfloss in my head."

I almost cracked a smile at the ridiculousness of that nickname.

Freeing myself from the strange pull that there seemed to be between us, I found myself running away from him for the second time.