Awkward Dancing in the Dark

The professor and student stared each other down. Charlotte’s jaw dropped.

“Hill-sensei?” she asked. She looked between the two men. No way… The other man looked at his students.

“Well…” he said. “What is this?” Izzie glanced over at the trio.

“Do you all know each other?” she asked.

“No!” they shouted together. The night queen gave them a rather strange look.

“Right…” she mumbled. The trio struggled to say something. A bar tender happened to be watching the whole revelation play out as he pushed forward three tall glasses of beer.

“Need a drink?” he asked. Tony picked up his and downed it.

“It’s on me,” the bartender whispered. The younger man nodded as if in a daze.

“You are welcome,” the bartender muttered before getting back to the other patrons.

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Charlotte, Sam, and Tony all sat at the bar silent. It felt as if they all dared each other to speak first. The dancer looked at her two favorite men. What should I do? Tony finished his second beer.

“How did it come down to this?” he asked. The other two stared at the bottles on the wall. The younger man shrugged his shoulders. “Uh-huh…”

“Well, a colleague told me about this place,” Sam confessed. His former students looked up at him. The professor drew his mouth closed. Okay then…

“I just don’t get it,” Charlotte said.

“What do you mean?” both men asked. She clutched her glass in a vain attempt to keep herself sane. The dancer whipped around to her former professor.

“I can’t believe you,” she said. “Why would you come to a place like this?”

“I love Izzie,” he said without a single thought. His voice sounded so sincere. Charlotte didn’t know whether to laugh or pity him.

“But she won’t love you back,” she told him in a quiet voice.

“Don’t you think I know that?” Sam looked down at his drink. “I know a relationship won’t be possible for us, but I still love her anyway.”

“Sensei, if this is about your wife…”

“It’s not about her!”

His former students nearly fell off their stools from his shouting. Sam sighed and shook his head.

“I’m tired of feeling dead without my wife all of the time,” he complained. “I just want to feel alive again.” Tony tried to speak, but Sam cut him off.

“Please don’t,” he said. “I don’t want to hear it. I just want to feel alive with my Izzie.”

“But she’ll never be yours,” Charlotte said.

“I don’t care!” Sam said.

“But…”

“Just let me be happy even if it’s for a little while.” Sam tipped the bartender and headed back over to Izzie. Tony suddenly got up and walked off.

“Tony?” Charlotte asked. She got up and followed after him. She ended up outside in the cool spring night. He didn’t turn around to look at her. Charlotte raced to keep up with him.

“Tony?” she asked. “What’s the matter? Come back inside.” Tony froze in his tracks.

“Tony?” his old friend asked again. She caught him mumbling something under his breath.

“What did you say?” the dancer asked.

“I love you, Charlotte!” Tony shouted. He whipped around with tears in his eyes. “Don’t you get it?! I can’t stand to see you on stage like that night after night.” He grabbed her by the waist. “Please!”

Charlotte looked so confused. “Tony?”

“Come away to Tokyo with me! I love you!” The desperation in his eyes forced her unable to speak. Charlotte looked at him with big eyes. What should I do?