Author: DocPaul
Spoilers: Up to Heart of Mine.
Michael couldn’t stop laughing probably because Maria couldn’t. Instead of finding his inept attempts at dancing pathetic and laughable, Maria seemed to find them lovable and endearing. This dancing stuff wasn’t that bad if your partner didn’t mind the occasional stepping on feet and the lack of rhythm. Obviously his alien side had no rhythm and the Dupree side was just as tone-death. But Maria had enough for the two of them. After having him walk on her feet a few times she took off her shoes, put them in his pockets and wrapped her arms around his neck and spent the rest of the night dancing on his feet. It forced him to hold her real close. Yeah, this dancing stuff wasn’t that bad.
He had looked up earlier and watched Isabel and Alex dancing together. It was
hard not to smile when Isabel looked happy for the first time in months and Alex
was attentive and equally happy. The four of them ended up sharing a table when
the rest of the group mysteriously disappeared. Liz was gone, and no one knew
when she had left exactly. Maria was worried and called her house a few times,
but there was no answer. Finally Max and Tess left leaving Kyle behind chatting
up Chrissie Drake. Her date had snuck alcohol into the Prom and ended up
slightly trashed. Jim had called the Roswell PD to have a deputy come escort him
home along with a few more members of the basketball team that were passing the
bottle. After they were gone the party really started hopping, and the
chaperones of Amy DeLuca and Jim Valenti were surprisingly insistent on joining
the group of them at the table, but even they kept disappearing.
Kyle
talked Chrissie into a session in the eraser room. Michael couldn’t figure out
why. Sure the girl was a real looker, but all other areas were flat. It was hard
to imagine ever having to spend more than a few moments with her in
conversation. The shock of having her to try to string a few words together
would no doubt send insomniacs into deep comas. It took only one dance before
Kyle with Chrissie was back at the table.
“What happen? Thought you said
this was going to take some time?” Kyle looked around to make sure no one was
listening to the conversation. Michael was amused at Kyle’s hunted hangdog look.
Michael was almost on the edge of his seat for the scoop, but almost horrified
that Kyle might tell him details, like Chrissie was really a cross
dresser.
“Busted! Dad and Ms. DeLuca found us and sent us back.” Both
Isabel and Alex starting laughing at poor Kyle’s dilemma. Michael sighed a sense
of relief. He hadn’t realized that he had held his breath. The though of all the
information on the walls in the boy's bathroom that would have had to be change
if she was indeed a pump wearing he, was almost too mind boggling. Plus he had
sat whispering some of the juicier stuff to Maria over the course of the evening
making her giggles and expressed disbelief. He didn’t have the heart to tell her
that her name was up twice in the bathroom under the best and most kissable
lips, and the greatest set of legs. He should know. He put her name at the top
of the lists.
“Wow, embarrassing. So what are they trolling all the make
out places for teenagers trying to have a good time?” Maria was horrified. Her
and Kyle were never going to live this down.
“I know. This is just too
humiliating. We will forever be known for this humiliation, but no, it just
keeps getting better and better.” Kyle’s eyes suddenly lighted on something and
then he looks horrified. “They are back, and this is too much. Look at them,
just look at them.” Kyle put his head down and groaned. Maria and the others
followed Kyle’s gaze. It was the chaperones from hell, now on the dance floor
causing quite the ruckus. Maria joined Kyle in the groaning and she buried her
head against Michael’s arm. Alex and Isabel were laughing so hard that Maria
looked up to give them hate stares.
“Come on Isabel, let’s get a closer
look.” Alex stood up and led Isabel onto the dance floor again.
“Hate
you, Alex. Traitor.” Michael was actually surprised as a low growl came from
Maria when they heard Alex from the dance floor.
“Looking good, Ms.
DeLuca.”
“Don’t encourage her!” Maria squeaked looking ready to jump up
and strangle Alex on the dance floor.
Michael looked over to share the
amusement of Kyle and Maria’s embarrassment with Kyle’s new partner, Chrissie.
It was worthless. The girl was the latest in vapid. The lights were on, but no
one was obviously home. The girl was examining her fingernail polish. Obviously
her appeal to Kyle was not intellectual. Looking down at Maria, Michael reached
down to whisper in her ear. She looked up and nodded her consent. Standing up he
took her shoes out of his pocket and passed them to her watching as she put them
back on.
“We are going to go for a stroll away from the trainwreck.”
Maria smiled at Kyle in sympathy as Michael pulled her from the table and out of
the room. They slowly took a stroll around the school corridors enjoying a
peaceful silence. It wasn’t until their third time around that Michael motioned
towards the eraser room with a shifting of his eyes and small
smile.
“Come on.” Maria pulled him towards the door and he came up close
behind her wrapping his arms around her small waist. Then they opened the door
to the room, and it was like time stood still.
“Mom!” Michael and Maria
had walked in on Amy and Jim kissing in the eraser room. Michael’s eyebrow went
up. Actually it looked like a little more than just kissing.
“Maria!”
Amy’s voice broke as she quickly cleared her throat pulling a dress strap back
up since the back of her dress was unzipped and it kept falling down. “We were
just, um…wait what are you doing coming in here?” Amy looked the two of them up
and down, as Jim scratched his neck where a bite marked it and tried to not look
so amused and embarrassed.
“We were going to do what young people do! So
why don’t you go do what old people do, and go watch television or take a
geritol.”
“Maria, come on, let’s leave them alone. They were here
first.” Michael took Maria’s arm and led her away from the room; she looked at
him indignant, sputtering. Michael looked back and gave Jim a sort of stern
look. “It’s called a lock.” Michael pointed to the lock on the inside of the
door. They didn’t wait to see Amy and Jim’s reaction.
“I can’t believe
this. It’s like a nightmare. I think my mom is having a midlife crisis.” Michael
pulled Maria close under his arm in comfort. It really wasn’t that bad. Jim
Valenti was a nice man, and Amy DeLuca was still a young woman, actually she was
really nice looking from what he could see, which tonight was more than usual,
and more than he ever wanted to see again. Maria wasn’t going to be home
forever. Amy deserved a life. Now Maria just had to become convinced of that.
One good thing was if a girl turns into her mother as she ages, then Maria was
going to be one incredible beauty for a long, long time, because there were no
flies growing on Amy DeLuca.
“It’s going to be okay. Come on I’ll let you
walk on my feet a few more songs.”
“When did you get so
perfect?”
“Shush, it supposed to be a secret.” Maria laughed and let
Michael take her back to the dance.
It was almost one in the
morning when the Prom was ending. Kyle had taken off moment before with Chrissie
leaving Alex and Isabel huddled together on one side of the table and Michael
and Maria on the other. Looking up Michael saw the chaperones of Valenti and
DeLuca heading their way.
“Maria, did you bring the Jetta?” Maria looked
at Michael confused.
“No. I rode over with Max and Liz, both of which
seemed to have deserted me. Why?”
“Because, I rode over on my bike, and I
can’t take you home on it in that dress plus your mom is not going to let you
ride on my bike without a helmet.”
“Oh! Well what do you suggest?”
Michael looked at Alex. “Alex give us a lift to my place?”
“Sure, no
problem. Isabel and I were going to find something to eat after the Prom, um the
two of you could join us.” Alex tried to ignore Isabel’s expression over the
offer.
“Thanks for the offer. I think Maria and I will just pretend we
are accepting until you drop us at my place.”
“What?” Alex was confused
until Amy and Jim made it to the table.
“So, what are you kids doing
after the Prom?” The entire group froze at Amy’s question looking up at Amy and
Jim, except Michael who quickly got up and handed Maria’s shoes
again.
“Oh, Alex is driving us to my place, because I can't take Maria
home on the bike. We were talking about getting food after the Prom, probably
pizza. I will make sure Maria gets home safe.” Alex, Isabel and Maria looked at
Michael in amazement. He was getting really slick.
“That sound like fun.
Well just as long you kids don’t go to any after-Prom Rave or get on the road
and drink.” Maria stood up next to Michael to make a quick escape.
“Think
we will give them a big miss, mom. I am starving anyway.” With a quick look at
Isabel and Alex, they too got up quickly. And with a wave the group left the
dance.
“Thanks Alex.” Alex just smiled as he pulled up at Michael
apartment. “So, the two of you didn’t want to get something to eat, right?” He
actually laughed when both Michael and Maria quickly baled out of his car with a
resounding no.
Michael could feel Maria pushing up against his back as he
opened his door. Turning on the lights and pulling Maria in behind him, Michael
headed for the phone to call in a pizza order.
“Maria, you want your
usual?” Maria took off her shoes at the door, and wandered around the apartment
lighting candles.
“Double the mushroom.”
“Okay.” Michael turned to
order their food while Maria started clearing space on the coffee table for the
pizza, and then wandered over to look for music. Michael hung up the phone and
turned to watch Maria. She looked so beautiful tonight, a literal goddess.
Moving to sit on the sofa, he waited for her to come join him.
“How long
till the pizza arrives?”
“About half an hour, or so. What do you want to
do while we wait?” Michael asked with a sort of smirk. “I know how we can pass
the time.”
“Yeah, I’ve seen that trick before.” Maria moved to sit right
next to him running her hand up his shirt and untied his tie and unbuttoned the
first few buttons of the shirt. “You looked real nice tonight, actually better
than nice. You didn’t just happen to have this on hand did you?”
“No. I
picked it up a few days ago, before Juanita declared me a lost cause.” Michael
eyes narrowed. “So you were going to tell me how you really learned about
Juanita?”
Maria just shrugged. “So what made you decide to come to the
Prom?”
Michael looked at Maria suspiciously. It was obvious that she was
avoiding the question. “You said you followed me to my “love pod.” But, what
made you think that there was a reason to follow me?” Michael watched a slight
blush move over Maria’s face.
“Michael, do we need to talk about
this?”
“If you tell me, I will tell you.” Maria sighed.
“It was
your being busy after I made the comment about finding someone else to take me
to the Prom. Suddenly you were busy, and I thought that you decided to date
someone else. So I, um, well I sort of investigated, because I had to
know.”
“You spied on me? How?” Michael thought about it for a second his
eyes narrowing and Maria was ignoring his eyes. “If I thought you were tripping
out me with another guy, I would probably start by searching your room and
locker, and then I would follow you with any information I found.”
The
sudden increase in redness on Maria’s cheeks clued Michael to the fact that he
was on the right track. She did a breaking and entering of his apartment. It was
hard to resist smiling. That’s his girl; he taught her everything she knew about
B&E. Maria tried once again to change the subject away from her.
“So
you didn’t tell me why you came to the Prom.”
“Well I was worried that
you were going to go with someone else, because I wouldn’t take you. If Juanita
could have taught me to dance I was going to take you, but that was a bust. But
when you showed up to the pre-party stag, I knew you weren’t going to be very
happy all alone.”
“So you went and changed and came to find me at the
dance?” Maria picked at his shirt lapels and smoothed her hands up his chest
appreciating the color black on him.
“Yeah, I guessed you would be
miserable either way with me stepping all over you or alone. I just didn’t want
you to be alone.” Maria stopped looking at his body for a second to look up at
him when he said that.
Maria had to smile, as if she cared whether he
could dance or not. “I am glad you came. I didn’t care about the actually
dancing. I just wanted to be with you.”
“Maria, why didn’t you get
another date? I can’t imagine that you couldn’t find someone to take you. You’re
beautiful.” Maria moved in and wrapped her arm around his neck leaning in close
to him.
“Well, I know I said that I should consider it, but truthfully?”
Maria moved in and kissed him gently. “There was only one person I wanted to
take me to the Prom and he refused. Why settle for someone I didn’t want just
because the one I wanted was unavailable? I would rather be
alone.”
Michael was shocked. No one that he could ever remember had ever
placed him first or as the most important person. Maria refused to settle for
less, and it was a strange concept to realize that she saw him as more. “Most
days I don’t think I deserve you,” he whispered on her lips.
“And days
like today? I wonder if I deserve you either.” Michael kissed Maria, touching
his mouth to her gently, slowly savoring the fullness and shape of her lips, and
as her mouth opened the touch of her tongue started an ache deep inside. But
before he could deepen the kiss, the pizza arrived.
Maria sat eating her
half of the pizza paying careful attention to Michael and his generous spreading
of Tabasco sauce on his side of the pizza. Last time he not only covered his
side, but a good portion of hers, and she got a shocking surprise in one large
bite of mushroom and black olive pizza. I just didn’t make any sense. He ordered
Canadian bacon, pineapple and hot peppers on his half and then he coated it in
Tabasco. It just seemed like over kill.
“So, I didn’t think you danced
that bad.” Michael snorted and contemplated how many slices of Maria’s half he
was going to be able to talk her out of. Last time “accidentally” hitting a few
with pepper sauce made them his, but this time she was paying too close
attention.
“Tell that to your feet, Maria. It seems like I bob when
everyone else is weaving. I am totally out of sync.”
“That’s not true. I
know you have some sense of rhythm. You like music too much. I think it is that
you are just too self conscious of other people and trying to do it right.”
Maria put down her half eaten slice of pizza and went to change the music to a
song that was slower with a deeper tempo and beat. Pulling Michael up she told
him to lose the shoes. His tie was already gone so Maria unbuttoned his black
formal wear shirt. Under he was wearing a black sleeveless tee.
Michael
was grounded to the floor as Maria reached behind her and unzipped her dress.
His eyes followed the dress as it slid to the ground catching all the places in
between. But mysteriously his eyes never made it to the ground since once the
dress cleared Maria’s breast he realized that she wasn’t wearing a bra. He
couldn’t take his eyes off of her beautiful body and didn’t really register that
she was pulling his black shirt from his body leaving him barefoot, in black
formal trousers and a black tee. Michael watched as Maria put his black shirt on
and buttoned up a few buttons.
“There now I won’t trip on my dress and
neither will you.” Maria smiled and held out her arms. “Come here. I will teach
you how to dance.” Michael willingly gathered her up in his arms and reaching
down whispered in her ear. “I thought you already tried to do that.”
“I
did. But this will be better, because we control the music. And,” she said with
a smile. “You can follow my movement better now then with a room filled with
people watching.
Maria moved in real close and wrapped her right arm
around his neck. Michael was so tall even without his shoes on that he had to
lean down a little for her. And with her other hand she let it rest on his
chest. “Put your hands on my hips and pull me in as close as you can.” Michael
did. “The thing you have to remember about dancing and music is to feel the beat
in your head, heart, blood and soul. It is a rhythm that takes control like when
you listen to your favorite artist. You feel the beat of their music, the
melody, and that is what attracts you to it. So dancing is that. It is tuning
into that beat and allowing it to sway you, move you.”
“I tried that
Maria. Really I did. But is like the rhythm I hear and respond to is different
from what other people hear and dance to.”
“No, no it is not. The
difference is that you are only use to doing it alone, by yourself. You never
had to try to coordinate the rhythm to a partner. And so what you need to do is
to refocus the music from your own ear, to the combined ear of you and a
partner.”
“Okay, how?”
“It’s like kissing. You figured that out
immediately. Dancing is like kissing. It’s a movement between individuals that
accommodate. I move my tongue into your mouth,” Maria leaned in and demonstrated
in a kiss with lots of tongue. “And you make room. You bite my lip and I suck
yours into my mouth. But it is a combination of actions and counteractions that
move in tandem.”
“I don’t know….” Michael pulled her even closer. “Maybe
you should demonstrate again. I can be slow at times.”
“There is no
grading, no failure. Look we have already been dancing.” Michael looked down and
sure enough where Maria was resting against his body, with his hands on her hips
they had slowly been moving. As her hip moved into his he stepped back to
balance the added pressure, and then moved his other hip to accommodate the
shift. “Now if you add kissing to it, it gets better.”
Michael felt his
heart stutter in his chest when she added her lips to his. He could feel the
moving rhythm, but he became so caught up in the kiss that he forgot to open his
eyes and watch his feet. He just followed the movements of Maria’s body as if it
were second nature. Suddenly it hit him that dancing was more than likely just
like sex.
“Sex.”
“What?”
“It's like sex. Dancing is like
sex.” Maria smiled into his chest. It looked like she might find herself dancing
with Michael a lot in the future. Since he thought sex was great with what
little they had experimented with, then dancing suddenly had a lot to recommend
it.
“Yeah, it does. Like when you kiss me here,” Maria opened Michael’s
shirt and directed him to her breast closing her eyes as his mouth quickly found
her nipple. He was getting really, really good at that. “And my hands naturally
go up your back applying a little bite from my nails,” Michael groaned in his
throat at the small prick of her nails on his back. “I can’t help but move
harder into you, feeling a need to rub up against you.”
The kiss became
so much more as he moved up her throat and stopped on that special point that he
liked to suck, where he could feel her moan vibrate. Moving behind her right ear
he found that special hollow that was so sensitive, and then moved down the
corded muscles of her neck to finally find her mouth again. All the while he
noticed what she was talking about. She was right. For every move his body,
mouth or hands made, she made a counter move. And together they were slowly
finding their way to the floor in front of the sofa, with her removing his tee
and opening his pants, and him completely opening up his shirt and removing her
panties.
She looked so beautiful, smelled absolutely great, and the sound
of her was driving him to distraction. The sound coming from her throat had its
own special rhythm that seemed to speak to his body. But it was the feel that
fascinated. Her skin was like raw silk. The length of her legs seemed endless
and he pulled one up to his waist as his mouth explored the taste of the skin
between her breasts. It was her fingers pushing firmly on his stomach slowly
following the line of hair downward until she gathered him in her hand and held
him tight. God he loved it when she touched him like that. He followed the path
downward as she did until his mouth found his own fingers already deep in her,
stroking. Taste, that was the sensation he was missing, and without a thought he
took care of that by adding his mouth to his fingers.
“Oh god.” Maria’s
silky thigh moved against him and her one hand pushed him harder into her as she
lifted herself upward to give his more of her. “Michael.”
Michael could
barely hear anything. He was so caught up in the rhythm they created between
them, their own special dance. It was the tightening of her hand on him that
made him look down to where one hand was gripping him. He watched almost
fascinated as her thumb ran over the head collecting some of his wetness. And
then in an almost endless slow motion he watched her raise her hand to lick him
from her fingers.
“Damn.” With a deep groan, Michael pushed Maria back
flat on the floor and went back to tasting her all over. Her soft laughter
quickly turned to moaning. He ignored her until later. He was really, really
busy trying to get this dancing stuff right.
“Michael?” Maria
pushed on his heavy body that was sprawled across her boneless and resting.
“Michael.”
“Hmm?”
“This floor is getting really hard.” Michael
raised his head to look at her and slowly sat up. He pulled her up with him
burying his face in her neck to kiss her. “I say next time we put you on
bottom.”
“Next time?” Michael’s eyebrow went upward. “What time is it?”
Maria looked over his shoulder at a clock. “Just after
three.”
Michael smiled devilishly. “Good we have plenty of time.” He
started to push Maria back down on the floor, but she quickly scooted out from
under him and pushed him down instead.
“No way, it’s your turn to be on
bottom.” Keeping her hands on his shoulder and watching him through half closed
eyes she moved her mouth to his nipple, first touching it gently with her tongue
and then sucking it hard into her mouth. Michael just laid back and watched her
until she sucked harder and bit him, then his hand found her head and he closed
his eyes and enjoyed the sensation as his body arched into her mouth. God she
had to have the most beautiful mouth ever devised.
They didn’t finally
leave his apartment to get her home until just after four-thirty. He liked the
gentle quiet night, the soft breeze, and the feel of Maria tight at his side
under his arm. She seemed so small with her walking barefooted and him carrying
her shoes. When they got to her house, he was reluctant to let her
go.
“You want me to come in and check the house? Do you think your mom is
home?”
“I’ll be fine. Spaceboy.” She used that special tone that she
seemed to save for him.
“Okay, but meet me at your window so I can be
sure.”
“Okay.” She kissed him passionately and deeply before going in.
Michael watched her close and lock the door before he went around the back to
Maria’s window. She opened the window without turning on any lights. Michael
smiled when she leaned out the window.
“Everything okay?”
“Yeah,
fine. Michael?” He watched her eyes darken and a gentle smile come across her
face. “Thank you for tonight, for coming for me at the Prom.” Michael reached up
to grip the window ledge and pulled himself up to kiss her one last time before
leaving. It never ceased to amaze him that Maria seemed to value the small
gestures, the little presents, more than anything. Maria pushed her fingers in
his hair and the kiss seemed to last forever. Michael pulled away once, but
quickly went back to kiss her again.
Maria moaned softly. “I can still
taste you in my mouth.”
Michael swore quietly and lifted himself even
more to reach her even better for yet another kiss. Neither seemed to want the
night to end, but finally Michael’s arms were getting tired of supporting him,
so with one last long kiss, he finally dropped back down to the
ground.
“Goodnight, Rapunzel.”
Maria laughed as she started to
close the window and whispered back. “Goodnight, Prince Charming.” She watched
him for a second, and then humming softly went to her vanity table to turn on
the light. Looking in the mirror she was startled at the happy smiling
reflection. It was such a change from the heartbroken one from earlier in the
evening. Grabbing a favorite color ink pen she took the memory card from the
Prom out of her bag and made a few corrections and filled in the blank spots. It
wasn't like she was going to ever forget this night either way.
With a
smirk Michael walked away and headed for the school to pick up his bike. He
never noticed that he was actually whistling a happy tune, or the two adults
lying together in the hammock in the backyard of the DeLuca house. Amy turned
and looked at Jim in horror. When exactly did her daughter grow up enough to
have a very real boyfriend? The shock of seeing them together without them even
knowing anyone was watching hit her hard. They didn’t act like young teenagers
caught up in their first crush, but rather young adults maturing towards a
future together. It wasn’t just the kisses. It was the other small things they
probably didn't even realize they did. The movement of her fingers in his hair
smoothing it over his collar, the way she gently stroked his cheek while kissing
him, or the way the both of them paused to rest their heads together with eyes
closed, and the way Michael reached up a hand to gently cup her cheek rubbing
his thumb over her cheekbone as she turned her head and kissed his palm. She
could have sworn it was only yesterday that Maria was only seven wanting to wash
her hair in Barbie shampoo and thought boys were smelly like dogs. Where did
time go? And how the heck did we get from that point in time to here so fast?