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Micki

“Whoa, what are you doing? That’s cool!”

“Since when is that your style?” Nika is looking at me questioningly.

“It’s not, but the choreography is gorgeous with that song.” And I absolutely mean that.

After nearly every practice Nika and Philipp do their modern dance thing and even though I have a classical dance education too, it’s not my favorite style. But I have eyes, and I like what I see. “Is this for a new video?”

The two are very popular on Instagram and YouTube for their modern dance improvisations and choreos, although if you ask me the improvisations are way more impressive. Nika and Philipp have been dancing as a couple for seven years, but they are just friends. Nevertheless, the question keeps coming up and they both laugh it off because they’ve been in committed relationships with their partners for a long time. They’re super close friends, but that’s it. Philipp and I are friends too, but Nika is his undisputed number one. I’m number two in his friends ranking, and I’m okay with that.

“It’s for the wedding. I’d like to dance for élias and this is what we came up with so far.” Nika and her boyfriend élias are getting married in two months. I’m so happy I’m invited—it’s going to be great. Nika and élias are a perfect couple.

I don’t mind being single. I’ve had relationships, in the end they just never worked out. And that’s seriously okay. But when I see these two together with their men ...

“So élias and Adrien are sitting on the chairs and you’re dancing?”

“Yeah, exactly. They aren’t the greatest dancers, but they should be able to handle sitting.” When Nika wants, she has a cutting sense of humor, which I really appreciate. Philipp laughs. Adrien, his husband, is hot as hell, but he’s completely hopeless when it comes to dancing. You don’t want to see that.

“Do you need a third person?”

The two of them look at me as if I’ve just grown a second head. “You want to join in?”

“I’m invited anyway, so I might as well support you.”

“Yeah cool, I love that idea! But who do you want to dance with? As far as I know, you don’t have a plus one.” Philipp is frighteningly well informed.

“I don’t know, I’ll find someone. Any single men at the wedding?”

Nika thinks about it. “Well, the only one attending solo is Mathéo.”

“Why is he solo?” I don’t mean to sound superficial, but I want to dance with someone who I at least don’t think is really ugly. Nika just shrugs her shoulders.

“To be honest, I have no idea. At eighteen, the girls were lying at his feet and he picked up a new one every night, but he was quite an asshole.”

“In what way?”

“When we first met, he wanted me too and the way he treated élias because of that wasn’t okay.”

“And now?”

“Now I don’t see him much anymore. But élias says he’s still as arrogant as he always was. He gets every girl he wants, but doesn’t keep any of them.”

“Maybe he just hasn’t found the one who can take him on yet.” I can’t help but grin. This could be fun. “Do you think he’d dance with me?”

“What are you wearing?”

“A dark green jumpsuit.”

“Heels?”

I raise my eyebrows. “Are you trying to insult me?”

Nika and Philipp laugh. “I withdraw the question. I think you have a good chance of him joining in.”

“Should I play with him a little? Get him hot and then drop the truth bomb? Or are we not that nasty?"

Nika seriously thinks about it. She may not have forgiven Mathéo yet for being an ass, but I was sure she’d never even consider doing something mean like that. She never gives away much of herself though. Nika hardly lets anyone get close to her, except élias and Philipp.

I’m not like that. I wear my heart on my sleeve, everyone knows immediately where they stand with me. But that’s how I grew up, I never had to hide, I could always be whoever and however I wanted to be. My parents love me and so do my sisters, so I always had my safe haven if something didn’t go well. And to be honest, I needed them a lot, as being me wasn’t always easy, especially when I was in my teens. I have a lot of acquaintances, but my close circle of friends is small, only a few stuck over the years.

Philipp is one of them as is Nika; they put up with me and laugh when I’m over the top, when I talk too much and too loudly. They calm me down when I’m a nervous wreck before our gigs and drive everyone crazy. I feel fast and I feel a lot, which is too much for most people... sometimes even for myself.

I get on well with Adrien and élias too, but admittedly, sometimes it’s difficult to see them all so in love. Finding men isn’t my problem, but they never stay. I fall in love quickly, but no one ever falls in love with me and it’s always over after two months at the longest. Sometimes it feels like my heart breaks a little more each time, but I don’t show it.

“We are that nasty. A little bump in the road here and there won’t bruise his ego.”

“If he always has a new girl on each arm, it won’t hurt him too much anyway.”

Philipp raises his eyebrows in amusement. “I think so too. We’re not causing him any long-lasting damage, just clipping his wings a bit. And if I’m reading this right, you’re exactly his type.”

I smile along with him. Yes, I can certainly be exactly his type on the face of it, but nothing more. I can play with him, I just can’t fall for him, that would be stupid. Because I’m sure I’m not what Mathéo is looking for. But honestly, if he’s as much of an ass as everyone says he is, there’s probably not that much danger for my heart anyway. At least I hope so.

***

He takes over the room without really trying. His presence is overwhelming, I can’t look away, he catches my eye, and I’m lost. He is the male counterpart to Nika, only she doesn’t want the attention. He is above that. Literally.

He’s somewhere around 6’5” or 6’6”. His gaze wanders over the other wedding guests, but he doesn’t look directly at anyone. I can’t look away; he pulls me in like a magnet. Mathéo Gaillard is an exceptionally attractive man. His short black curls and dark stubble form a fascinating contrast to his pale skin and piercing blue eyes. Fuck!

When his eyes land on me, my first impulse is to look away, but I can’t. Mathéo’s gaze holds mine and I am trapped in the endless depths of his sky blues. A strange feeling washes over me and I try to push it away, but it gets stronger the longer we look into each other’s eyes. What I thought was arrogance two minutes ago is not gone, but... it doesn’t feel like arrogance anymore. More like... no, that’s bullshit, it can’t be... but it feels like curiosity. With a hint of uncertainty. He drops his gaze for just a moment, then looks back at me. Briefly he raises his glass and when I toast him back, he disappears into the crowd. I stand still, mostly confused, but one thing is crystal clear. I have to dance with him. I have to.