Standard disclaimer: I own nothing, I wouldn't trust myself to do as well as the current owners. ;)

A/N: I wrote this almost two years ago on my phone. I texted it to myself. The writing style is a little different from what I've seen anywhere before and what little I have written. I will not be continuing this. I like the way it came out, but if someone else wants to continue it, be my guest. Just, if you would, let me no about it. I would love to read it. Reviews are welcome. ;)

Until One

"I finished my dress for tonight and even made you a matching tie." Complete silence followed from his end of the line. "I didn't ask you did I?" "Uh...no." "Well, this is awkward. Will you go with me? I mean are you going? And if you are would you take me? It's totally fine if you don't want to. Hehe." She laughs nervously. "Actually, I already have a date –" "Oh great. Well, I'll see you there then." "Wait! I –" "Bye."

She hangs up her cell phone and breaks down in tears, sobs racking her body. She was horrified at what she had done. He had turned her down and she was crushed. And, it was so much worse because she was in love with him.

He was heartbroken. He had just turned down the love of his life because his father didn't approve. His father wanted him to marry money. He couldn't have his prince of a son marrying 'street trash.' No matter how many times he tried to convince his father otherwise, his girl was always 'street trash' to his father. He would much rather swoop her up into his arms and run away into the sunset. Especially now that he knew she liked him too. Maybe not as much as he loved her, but he would, in time, get her to fall head over heels for him, not that she doesn't already fall over her tennis shoes all the time. And now she would hate him because he turned her down. So, he would never get to marry her and adopt four little children. Saying he was upset would have been an understatement. He wanted to call her now and say he loved her to Pluto and back and wanted nothing more than to go to the dance with her. But, he knew he couldn't. His father would disown him, not that he cared, and she wouldn't take a poor boy. His life sucked.

She was absolutely crushed. She didn't know if she wanted to go to the dance at all. But if she didn't go, it would make her look weak in front of him. And if she did go, she would have to face him. She didn't know what was worse, looking weak or being angry at him. She decided on the latter. She would make him regret turning her down. But she wasn't going to hurt him. No, she loved him too much. She was going to look so gorgeous he would beg for forgiveness and she wouldn't give it to him. She put on her dress made of red silk with a low back and black gloves that matched the black spots covering her dress. She then started on her hair after making sure her dress fit, even though she knew it fit perfectly. She put her hair up into a bun with a little curl of hair on either side framing her face. She applied light makeup, just enough to highlight her blue bell eyes and her natural features, but not too much to bury them. She grabbed her round red bag with black spots to match her dress and stepped outside to join her best friend who had just arrived.

He just sat there, staring out the back seat window of his driver's dark silver car. He had told his driver nothing, just that he didn't quite know where to go. Even though he knew where he wanted to go, he didn't know if he should go. He didn't want to show up at the dance and scare her off. He wanted to see her there having fun. He wanted to ask her to dance. He wanted to dance all night with her. He wanted to walk her home. He wanted to kiss her as he said goodbye at the door. He wanted to, he wanted to, he wanted to. He knew he couldn't do any of that because she hated him now; he knew it.

She saw him. She had just arrived with her best friend who was completely oblivious to what had happened between the two of them. She hadn't told her best friend anything because she was afraid of what her best friend would do. She had seen the poor souls who had crossed her best friend; they always looked beat up. She loved him too much to see him hurt. Even though she knew she should hate him, she had every right too, she couldn't bring herself to hate him. Anyway, he was just sitting at a table in the darkest corner of the huge room. He was giving off such an aura of despair and self forced loneliness she could see why not a single firl would go near him. Not even the fangirls or his best friend would approach him without turning away, sensing his despair. It was obvious he didn't want anyone near him. She absently wondered where his 'date' was at this moment. Maybe he had scared her off with his utter look of despair. Though she felt the strangest feeling. Even though everyone steered clear of him as if they were being held at bay by his will, she felt drawn to him. She felt as if he was drawing her to him. She shook her head and started to move.

He sat alone. He was so despondent everybody knew to steer clear of him. Even the mob of fangirls. He had arrived just a little while ago. He had finally told his driver to take him to the school dance. The only reason he went was to get out of the house. He couldn't look at his father without getting angry and he couldn't look at the painting of his mother without getting sad. So he left. He should have gone anywhere but his school. He knew she would be there. But, she was the only bright spot in his miserable life. He felt drawn to her, drawn to her like a moth to a flame. He was so caught up in his own misery, he didn't see her until she was at the bar in front of him. He wondered why she chose to sit there. There were hundreds of seats throughout the dining area and two separate bars, one on the other side of the room. Also, she was alone. He knew for a fact that her friend had come here with her. Why had she chosen to sit almost directly in front of him without her friend? Was she taunting him? Was she trying to say that his rebuff hadn't affected her as much as her voice had over the phone? Was she inviting him to sit with her? All these questions and more went through his head in a millisecond, but a millisecond too late. Then, as he watched, he missed his chance.

She chose the one seat that was closest to him without getting too close. She sat at the bar right in front of him. She was no more than six or seven feet away. He could make it to her side in less than four strides. Stop it, she told herself. She knew in her head that he didn't love her, but her heart stubbornly refused to let that ting shred of hope remain. Though she had no reason to hope, she did. Oh, how she wished she had let him continue when she had interrupted him during their phone call. While she was lost in lala land, someone approached her. They said hello as they pulled up a chair. She turned, hoping against hope that the man's voice now sitting next to her belonged to the same one she saw in the seat no more than seven feet away. She was sorely disappointed. It was only the silly little kid who always tried to win her affection. He had the biggest crush on her, as if she was the image of perfection, which she was most certainly not. He asked her to a dance but she was so worried about how the boy she loved would look at it, she turned this silly boy down. She explained why she couldn't, made up some excuse about how her ankle hurt too much but she had taken some Advil so, later, it wouldn't hurt. He said he would come back later and scampered off in his silly little tow steps then hop kind of way.

He was so relieved, he almost passed out. As he watched their conversation intently, he contemplated waltzing up there and removing that kid from his girl's sight. But, he knew she would only hate him more. So he watched their conversation that felt hours long but was really just a few short minutes. He saw her shake her head, say a few more words, then the boy got up and walked away. He was so happy that he didn't know what to do at first. He then decided to make his move before anyone else realized how beautiful she was tonight. He stood up and walked her way. It took him less than four strides with his long, powerful legs to cross the distance between the two and arrive by her side. He sat down at the bar with only one empty seat between them. He saw her look at him from the corner of his eye. Her eyes were suspicious, but glad.

She looked at him. She was not sure why he had chosen to sit there. He had looked so depressed and wanting to be alone at his little table in the corner. But, then again, why had she chosen to sit right in front of him? She wondered if he felt as drawn to her as she felt drawn to him. She quickly dismissed this ridiculous thought because she knew a boy of his beauty and wealth would never even so much as look at a girl as low on the 'food chain' as she was. She pondered deeper into his reasonings. She wondered if he had come over here to rub it in, to remind her that she was beneath him and never would be his same level. Then, as she was thinking about all his possible motives, he moved. He scooted over a seat. Not away from her as she would have bet. No, he scooted over to her. She was now the closest she had ever been to him. She suddenly felt her phone chime. She reached into her bag, which, thank whoever was watching back up there, was on the opposite side from him. She looked at the display, which showed a text from her best friend. She read the text and thanked her guardian angel again that he couldn't read it. Her friend had noticed that he was sitting next to her. She turned away from her phone, trying not to blush too hard, and order a water for a distraction.

He was sitting next to the girl of his dream. He was so excited he could barely contain himself. His sheer nerve racked brain didn't4 help either. He was so nervous she would get up and walk away or tell him to leave her alone. Suddenly her phone chimed and almost sent sprawling out of his chair. Thankfully, she didn't notice. Though, when she turned away from her phone and ordered a glass of water, he could see her blush scarlet. He guessed her friend had noticed him sitting with her. He knew by now that she hadn't told her friend about the phone call. If she had, he would be begging for mercy from her best friend. He was utterly terrified of what that girl was capable of when one of her loved ones was at stake. He had already ordered a glass of black tea and was stirring it thoughtfully. He glanced at her from the corner of his eye and saw her stirring her water and staring at the little swirls that she made with her straw.

She could see him out of the corner of her eye looking at her, though without turning his head. She just sat contentedly watching the swirls in her glass until she lost all sense of time, at least long enough that her ice melted and the condensation evaporated from her glass. All the while, she kept noticing him stealing glances at her though she had done nothing new since he had moved over a seat. So, together they sat, saying nothing, doing nothing. Then the DJ, his best friend, called out a couple's dance. She was certain the DJ had seen the two of them from his eagle's perch at the far end of the room. If he hadn't, her BFF had certainly tipped him off. As she sat there, utterly mortified at the idea that the DJ was trying to set them up, she heard the love of her life cough. When she looked at him from the corner of her eye, she could see the look pure mortification spread across his face. Then his look of dread turned to one of unadulterated anger as he glared at the DJ's booth, regardless of whether his best friend could actually make out his face. As she looked though, a look of mischief spread across his face with a matching grin the Cheshire cat would be proud of.

He looked at her and could tell she had watched his many facial expressions, including the Cheshire grin. He then shifted as close as he could to her without falling out of his seat and put an arm around her chair, praying she wouldn't shove him off for overstepping some boundary. She tensed for a moment, unsure of his intentions, before relaxing and continuing to stir her drink. They sat like this for a while longer, until her worked up the courage to go a little further. He picked up his hand and placed it mid way up her back. He did so hesitantly, as to not startle her, which he didn't surprisingly. It was almost as if she had been waiting for him to make his move. Then, he started rubbing his thumb back and forth on her back, making tiny circles. As he did this, he could fell her strong muscles, pulsing with taught anxious energy, begin to relax. Her breathing became more relaxed and she shifted ever so slightly towards him, swaying with the music.

She was enjoying herself immensely. This was more than she had ever dared hoped for. Here she was swaying to the music, while the boy she loved with all heart rubbed tiny circles on her back. She could almost forget the heart break of only a few hours before. Then, to her great disappointment, he took his hand off her back and placed it simply on the back of her chair. She was so confused, thinking what she possibly could have done wrong to make him reconsider, she was completely taken by surprise when he brushed her ear with his lips. He spoke. Words that at first made no sense to her. Then the words became sentences and sentences became clear. He was asking her to dance with him. He was saying that after the couple's dance was over, he wanted to dance with her if it was alright. She was so happy, she couldn't form intelligible words.

He was worried she might say no, but when she started to speak, she kept stuttering. Not just the average stutter, but the kind where a person cannot possibly carry on a conversation. It was so cute he wanted to kiss her soft pink lips. He managed to get some what of a yes from her. Then, satisfied with her answer, he resumed rubbing tiny circles on her back, which calmed her considerably. Finally, after what seemed like hours, the couple's song was over. Together they rose, as if they were one, and without a word to one another, they walked hand-in-hand to the dance floor.

They danced. They were loving every second. They had walked on to the dance floor as two people holding hands, but as they danced, they became one. One mind, one soul. Neither one regretted anything. Neither one had a single doubt about the other's affections. They loved each other and that was all that mattered. All night they danced, and all night they were happy. Several times they ignored the whistles and catcalls, and several times they ignored the group dances in favour of the other. Once or twice some guy would ask to dance with her, but they would just glide in another direction, ignoring the outside world once again.