They swayed to the music taking slow steps. They had already danced through 5 songs now, with each one their rhythm and movements synchronized further. They hadn't really talked much, just listened to the melody and smiled at each other.
There was a long pause in the music, then a sudden change in tempo and timbre, the atmosphere lost it's serene quality as the musical changed from serenading classical music to upbeat pop. Jess blushed a bit, then her movements changed rapidly.
Jess led Luke to the new beat. The steps changed from carefully coordinated strokes of movement to a more spontaneous upbeat shangle. "I love classic music, but I love pop just as much," Lukehiem smiled and followed along doing his best to imitate her, "Relax, just listen to the beat. There's no one correct answer, just trust your body with the music."
Luke's nod was very serious, it made Jess giggle. He was taking this too seriously, the exact opposite of relaxing. He needed to ease himself into the rhythm. Perhaps the music itself was the issue, he might not particularly like this genre. She would ask and try something that worked for him.
"What's your favourite genre. Something you wouldn't mind listening to all day." His eyes turned distant, there was a lot of thought behind the answer. She wondered if he didn't have one, some people didn't listen to music at all. "It's alright if you can't answer. You can take your time exploring other genres."
"I do have a favourite genre. And you might not believe me when I say this. I love reggae." Jess' eyes widened at the unexpected answer. Reggae, that didn't fit his image but yet she could imagine Lukehiem sitting down in front of an old radio listening to guitar, xylophone and 80's Caribbean music. Odd answer... she loved it.
"You do?" She still asked although she heard him clearly the first time. "I do. It is very refreshing, very freeing. It's a movement, a tale of culture and a melody that transcends joy." His eyes turned clear for a moment, his smile turned warm and reminiscent. She didn't have any reggae in her mp3 but she knew how to quickly get some.
"Give me a moment." Jess paused the music and pulled out the memory card from the small speaker. Luke watched her insert the card into her phone and tinker with it. She didn't have to go out her way to find him some, but the effort was much appreciated. "Do you have a preferred song or artist?"
"I'm fine with anything," It would probably be too much work making her search for something. "Though I would not mind if you find something from John Holt, Peter Tosh, Delroy Wilson or U-Roy." She laughed at his poor attempt at a joke. Minutes later the memory card was back in the speaker and a new beat took hold.
This time it was Lukehiem that initiated the dance. Jess gladly let him pull her along and watched happily as he unraveled before her. They didn't hold each other this time, but they danced and played around each other. They clapped with the drums and vocalized with the guitar. They danced like two bodies bound by gravity.
"I love this genre of music because it stands for something other than myself. It challenges me. " Jess listened to him, this was their fourth song. A very slow one, it carried a comforting weight and they leaned into it.
"I'm glad you could tell me. It is fortunate we have things to share." I felt the same, initially I assumed that I would have nothing to bring to this friendship of ours, no interesting experience to entertain her with like she did for me. I was mistaken, I did have things to share, not particularly interesting to me but still thing that she found valuable.
We sat on the grass sipping on some tea letting the exhaustion meld away. Hot tea after a semi-intense exercise might have not have been the best choice. But the taste and flavours she chose made the light sweat on my face insignificant. And to add to the experience I used to veil to push on the air around us, creating a pleasant draft that refreshed us. "The ballet school you currently attend, do they host any shows or live performances."
Jess froze she she heard the question. She was hoping he wouldn't ask. How was she supposed to tell him that she never got picked for them. The shows were only performed by those with the best skills and synchrony. Her skills weren't bad, but they weren't spectacular either.
Her teacher was a strict, meticulous and biased person. He only invested his all into the most talented in the school, for the many others that didn't meet his expectations his lessons were less charismatic. He still gave good instructions and was gentle, so she didn't have any valid reason to leave. Not that she could find somewhere else to enroll.
"Umm Luke I might dance well, but it's not particularly outstanding. The performances we put out are the highlights of the school. Only the best of the best are chosen to perform. And unless I develop some groundbreaking talent overnight I won't be performing for some time." She confessed her truth in utter embarrassment.
How did she even find the confidence to invite him for a dance today. But it was true, she worked hard and she saw progress, but progress was slow. "That's fine, you might not have a grand stage to perform on for the time being. So until you do, I'll always be available to enjoy a private performance."
Luke sounded confident, like he was certain that gracing the stage was only a matter of time. And in truth it was, she always believed that it would only be a little while. Still hearing someone else assure her was refreshing. She laughed and in her excitement she pulled him in for a modest hug.
A slip on her part, she had forgotten that Luke wasn't like her other friends, he might not be as welcome to hugs. Fortunately he looked unfazed, surprise registered for a moment but it faded just as fast, like he was expecting she would do that.
"Lukehiem, wait do you prefer being called Luke or Lukehiem," "Either is fine." Spectacular, it was always better to have variety. To her misfortune her name was already very short so she wasn't privy to any fun nicknames growing up. "As I was saying let's play a little game. Let's each say something quirky we don't know about each other, like a fun fact. I'll go first, I'm absolutely infatuated with Easter European history. In fact I'm thinking majoring it in college... If my dad lets me." She whispered the last part and giggled to her own rant.
"I understand," Luke went through the long list of quirky traits he had and picked the most mundane. "I'm hypertensive. It's not too bad though my blood pressure never exceeds 180mmHg systolic." He had to add the second sentence because of the sudden frown on her face. 'Maybe that wasn't the most fun fact I could convey.'
"That's awful. Are you alright, do you feel okay? God I shouldn't have made you dance, especially for so long. Do you need more tea, maybe.." Luke made a gesture telling her to calm down.
"As i said it not harmful to me...yet. And it doesn't affect me at all. I've seen a doctor and I was put on medication. They didn't work, after some consultations we decided to just monitor it for now. Millions of people suffer from essential hypertension, most die without even being aware. So they is no cause for concern." She pondered his words for a bit and calmed down.
Luke pretended not to notice her sneakily grab his wrist to check his pulse to reassure her self. He didn't tell her that pulse had nothing to do with blood pressure, he would correct her at more convenient time.
"Let's try something else. I have a feeling that you'll only bring up morbid facts if we continue. Instead let's do this, we will each say something about each other that the other person doesn't seem to notice." So they would point out a fact about each other that they weren't aware of. In that case Lukehiem was confident in his ability to do well.
He had to pick just one trait unknown to her out of the plethora of observations he had made thus far. He could say something about the strange structure of her 10th rib or the the way she flexed her biceps anytime she laughed. But for now a more tame and mundane answer would suffice. Giving too much detail would do wonders for his image. "You might already be aware of this one. From my observation you rub your thumbs together anytime your are about to say something you're nervous about."
Jess stilled and stared dubiously at her thumbs. A gaze that blamed them of betrayal and possibly of exile. "That is certainly an interesting observation. M..moving on, this one is weird but you don't seem to be aware. I hope it's not rude," What could she possibly say about him that he would find rude.
"Do you know that you have really poor eyesight."