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Takes place after this prompt and this post.
Rory got to The Columns a little later than he'd planned, mostly due to his determined efforts to pack away anything of Pippa's left in his apartment. Maybe later tripping over traces of her would no longer feel so cutting, but right now he was still far too raw.
He also took a break in the middle of the day to pick up small gifts for the rest of Breaker Street. Nothing flashy, just small silver charms of various Chinese symbols, easy to dangle off chains, earrings or zipper pulls as the wearer chose. He chose symbols that in his mind represented each of his fellow band members, courage for Nil, happiness for Sascha, strength for Kreske, awesome for Junie, peace for Dave and intellect for Morrie. To each of these he added a symbol for success, a wish for the New Year. After a moment's thought, he bought another success charm for Peter along with the symbol for friendship. Then, remembering that Cait might show up if she could cut loose from her publisher's office party, he went back for a prayer box he thought she'd like.
But he was here now, with the one indisputable advantage of riding a motorcycle in the city: parking wasn't a problem even when late. Nor was gaining access to the already-crowded club, the guys on the door remembered him from the many times Breaker Street played here and waved him in with grins and the news that his band has already arrived. The Columns took up a large piece of a converted warehouse; he could feel the music throbbing through the cavernous airspace as he walked in. Sister Mystere had the stage tonight, and they'd pulled in a good crowd already.
"Ro-RY! Over here!" For such a slim little thing, Sascha had quite a set of lungs on her. Rory waved in answer and threaded his way over to the table where his friends were waiting. Jaye sitting next to Nil meant that the Camerons must have gotten lucky with a sitter, and Junie was on the arm of a man she introduced as Felipe, but Morrie, Dave, Sascha and Kreske were solo. Good, he wouldn't feel like the odd man out then.
"What are you having, Rory?" Dave asked as he waved over a waitress. "Fruit juice as usual?"
Fruit juice. Seven hells, did even something as mundane as a drink order have to call up memories of Pippa, smiling as she presented him with one of her juice concoctions at Last Call? Rory bit back a particularly vile Gaeilge curse and kept his smile on his face. He was determined to enjoy himself tonight no matter what. "I'll have a Guinness," he told the waitress. A púca like himself couldn't get drunk on New Years Eve, but what the hell. It would be symbolic, like the charms.
"Cait and Peter Webster might show up a bit later. You all remember Peter, right?" A chorus of affirmation from the band was followed by Sascha crowing, "Excellent! More people to dance with." His beer showed up, the waitress gave him a smile, and Rory started to relax. He could do this. No problem.
Rory got to The Columns a little later than he'd planned, mostly due to his determined efforts to pack away anything of Pippa's left in his apartment. Maybe later tripping over traces of her would no longer feel so cutting, but right now he was still far too raw.
He also took a break in the middle of the day to pick up small gifts for the rest of Breaker Street. Nothing flashy, just small silver charms of various Chinese symbols, easy to dangle off chains, earrings or zipper pulls as the wearer chose. He chose symbols that in his mind represented each of his fellow band members, courage for Nil, happiness for Sascha, strength for Kreske, awesome for Junie, peace for Dave and intellect for Morrie. To each of these he added a symbol for success, a wish for the New Year. After a moment's thought, he bought another success charm for Peter along with the symbol for friendship. Then, remembering that Cait might show up if she could cut loose from her publisher's office party, he went back for a prayer box he thought she'd like.
But he was here now, with the one indisputable advantage of riding a motorcycle in the city: parking wasn't a problem even when late. Nor was gaining access to the already-crowded club, the guys on the door remembered him from the many times Breaker Street played here and waved him in with grins and the news that his band has already arrived. The Columns took up a large piece of a converted warehouse; he could feel the music throbbing through the cavernous airspace as he walked in. Sister Mystere had the stage tonight, and they'd pulled in a good crowd already.
"Ro-RY! Over here!" For such a slim little thing, Sascha had quite a set of lungs on her. Rory waved in answer and threaded his way over to the table where his friends were waiting. Jaye sitting next to Nil meant that the Camerons must have gotten lucky with a sitter, and Junie was on the arm of a man she introduced as Felipe, but Morrie, Dave, Sascha and Kreske were solo. Good, he wouldn't feel like the odd man out then.
"What are you having, Rory?" Dave asked as he waved over a waitress. "Fruit juice as usual?"
Fruit juice. Seven hells, did even something as mundane as a drink order have to call up memories of Pippa, smiling as she presented him with one of her juice concoctions at Last Call? Rory bit back a particularly vile Gaeilge curse and kept his smile on his face. He was determined to enjoy himself tonight no matter what. "I'll have a Guinness," he told the waitress. A púca like himself couldn't get drunk on New Years Eve, but what the hell. It would be symbolic, like the charms.
"Cait and Peter Webster might show up a bit later. You all remember Peter, right?" A chorus of affirmation from the band was followed by Sascha crowing, "Excellent! More people to dance with." His beer showed up, the waitress gave him a smile, and Rory started to relax. He could do this. No problem.
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Date: 2009-01-01 05:15 am (UTC)Unlike Rory, he did have to consider parking, decided it wasn't worth the hassle and left his Jeep in the hospital's staff lot. He took the subway and then went on foot for the last couple of blocks. Of course, he'd also had the sense to change into something more scene appropriate than his work attire and he wasn't above flirting a bit to get a place at the front of the line for the entrance.
Once inside and after giving the little blonde he'd been making insincere eyes at the slip, Peter wondered how in the world he was going to find Rory and his band in the crowd. Phone. Oh, wow...he was brilliant. Idiot. He flipped open his cell and dialed the Irishman's number.
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Date: 2009-01-01 06:17 am (UTC)Pulling it out, he spotted a number he recognized. "Peter!" he said cheerfully, then raised his voice to compensate for the noise. "Where are you at, a chara?"
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Date: 2009-01-01 06:24 am (UTC)Despite this, he sounded as upbeat as he could while yelling into his phone.
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Date: 2009-01-01 07:02 am (UTC)With that, Rory rises and steps up onto his chair. The added elevation to his six-three height means he has no problem spotting the glittery bar denizen and the young med student nearby. "There you are. I'm at about ten o'clock from your position."
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Date: 2009-01-01 07:09 am (UTC)He hung up the phone then and gave Rory a nod before making his way across the bar and in Breaker Street's general direction. General since there was no way he was going to make it to the table in a straight line. Circumnavigating around the dance floor and a few of the more boisterous partiers, Peter finally placed a hand on the back of the singer's chair. "Hey..."
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Date: 2009-01-01 08:51 am (UTC)The rest of the band also offered their hellos, and Rory took a moment to introduce Peter to Jaye and Felipe. "Can I get you a drink? One nice thing about visiting a club where we've played: we get good service." Indeed, their waitress had already spotted the new arrival and was headed over.
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Date: 2009-01-01 09:09 am (UTC)He scanned the table to see what everyone else was drinking and arched an eyebrow at Rory's glass of dark beer. So much for not drinking--then again Peter had seen Pippa's latest blogging efforts and couldn't fault the man sitting on his right.
"Ah...sure. An Old Fashioned. Don't put the fruit in it." He didn't like beer, was more of a wine drinker, and decided this was a comprise taking the mixed drink route. With his order given, Peter let himself slouch in his chair a bit before leaning forward and resting his elbows on the table, one hand cupping his chin as he looked at Rory. "So, in other words, half the clubs in Manhattan...right?"
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Date: 2009-01-01 10:00 am (UTC)"Oh, at least," he laughed in response to Peter's question. His smile shaded to something a little more wistful as he went on. "I've been missing the gigs a bit. Studio work is intense, but it's just not the same as a live audience."
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Date: 2009-01-01 10:11 am (UTC)This was quite possibly the first time that Peter realized how much he and Rory had in common, and that for all he was a fan of the band and the man sitting next to him, he was just another guy. Friend, not fantasy. Peter sat back in his chair, a far sight more comfortable than he had been with the initial idea of hanging out with a group of performers on the verge of becoming something larger than they currently were.
"You think you're going to miss playing places like this?"
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Date: 2009-01-01 11:01 am (UTC)"You're jumping a little ahead, Dave," Rory chuckled. "We're not playing Madison Square Garden just yet. No doubt we'll be starting in smaller venues, and as an opening act at that, before we can work our way up to those face-blurring crowds." His eyes were tranquil, but with a glint of determination behind them.
"I do see your point, though. There's something special about playing in an environment where you can actually--" He raised his glass in Peter's direction. "--meet and talk to your fans."
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Date: 2009-01-01 11:09 am (UTC)At the looks from the others gathered around the table, Peter continued, "Rory's saving my sanity by driving my Jeep down from Westchester because I'd sooner sell my pretty set of wheels than let my little sister make that trek. And--" His face took on an entirely impish expression, "did you and Jean-Paul ever come to an agreement about whether or not you were doing the heavy lifting in some state of undress?"
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Date: 2009-01-01 10:50 pm (UTC)Laughing along with everyone else, Rory wadded up a napkin and pegged Morrie with it before responding. "Jean-Paul is another friend of Peter's who volunteered to help him move ... or to supervise, I'm not sure which. He just likes looking at shirtless men in general, not me specifically."
After another swallow of his Guinness, he turned back to Peter. "Seriously, I'm happy to help out. For friendship, for the support you've given us, and of course--" His eyes sparkled impishly. "--for that breakfast you promised me."
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Date: 2009-01-01 11:13 pm (UTC)And...was he serious? That sparkle in Rory's eye didn't go unnoticed by Peter and the younger man couldn't help but smile, putting his dimples to good use. "If I had known that the offer of sausage and hot cakes was all it took to get you up to Westchester..." Peter let the thought trail off, aware of the fact that he had a very interested audience watching them. "No, really, Rainy's an amazing cook and she'll probably make enough food to feed a small army. She usually does. Plus hey, I think Caroline is in love with you by proxy for getting Ashleigh to sleep the other night."
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Date: 2009-01-02 02:41 am (UTC)For a moment Peter's dimples brought Anraí to mind, but the likeness quickly submerged under the weight of of the differences. Different voice, accent, scent, eyes, attitude, energy ... not difficult at all to distinguish the two, especially with a púca's keen senses. And thank God they also made it easy to separate Peter from someone else with similar features ...
But he refused to think about that someone else tonight. One more thing to add to the pile, hm? Instead he kept smiling and answered the inquiring looks triggered by his friend's last comment. "Peter has a very new niece with a very powerful set of lungs. I was able to quiet her down with a lullaby some nights ago."
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Date: 2009-01-02 06:32 am (UTC)"My hero..." Peter gave Rory a wink and another dimpled smile, this one bordering on impish smirk.
A change of song managed to drag Peter's attention away from Rory and he settled that devistating grin on Sascha instead. "Are you going to dance with me or not, Ms. Fab-ulous?" If she wasn't, he'd drag someone else onto the floor with him.
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Date: 2009-01-02 08:21 am (UTC)She was nowhere near drunk herself, but she'd had enough by now to be a few sips beyond a happy glow. Just buzzed enough to be mildly bummed by the fact that her adorably dimpled dance partner was not of the orientation to be coaxed into a little necking with her at some point in the evening, but nowhere near sloshed enough to actually say so. Not that Peter had ever told her he was gay, but the looks she caught him giving Rory now and again told the story eloquently enough.
Still, he was a damn hot dance partner. Sascha was in a mood to see and be seen and had dressed accordingly, in something lissome and lacy (http://web2.revolveclothing.com/images/VELVET-WS1000_V2-BIG.jpg) over midnight-blue velvet leggings. She certainly had no problems being seen with Mr. Sexy-Grin Webster.
Though there were limits. At one point she caught Peter's shoulders in her hands and leaned in to make herself heard over the crowd. "Peter, babe, would you have any idea why I'm getting dagger-eyes from a cute little blonde in neon blue?" She nodded in the direction of the stage and the blonde in question.
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Date: 2009-01-02 08:44 am (UTC)He didn't answer her right away, instead taking Sascha by the hips and turning her around, effectively spooning them together as they continued to move to the music. Without following his partner's gaze, Peter thought he knew exactly who she was referring to. Great. "Ah, well..." He dipped at the knees and keeping an arm around her waist, brought Sascha with him, "I think she thinks you are poaching on her territory."
Peter briefly debated his options then lifted his head from the crook of Sascha's neck--it was easier to murmur in her ear that way--to look at the angry blonde in question. "Oh, noooo...um, she goes to my church." Oh. No. It wasn't the girl Peter'd flirted with to get inside the club. It was Adele Congreve. The look on her face made it perfectly clear that Mr. Spectacular was still on her hit list. "She hates me."
He turned them around on the dance floor and after a bit of a step-ball-change shuffle of his feet, spun the petite girl in his arms so that she was facing him again. "A lot. We sort of dated for a while."
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Date: 2009-01-02 09:05 am (UTC)Sascha Brockmann had been accused by more than one person of having an overdeveloped sense of mischief. Right then and there she could not have denied it. That sense impelled her to grasp Peter's shoulders again, lean in with a wicked grin and ask, "So you're saying she'd have an issue if I planted one on you right now?"
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Date: 2009-01-02 09:21 am (UTC)"Um...haha." Nervous laughter was all he could muster now that he was effectively caught between a rock and something much harder.
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Date: 2009-01-02 09:19 pm (UTC)She too had spotted the ... ex? Wannabe? Whatever she was, she was on a collision course and approaching fast, threading her way through the other dancers with definite intent. "Oh ouch, I'm sorry. Anything I can do to help? Throwing myself on the unexploded bomb or something?"
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Date: 2009-01-02 09:31 pm (UTC)He hoped.
"Peter Webster." Blonde, thin and otherwise pretty, Adele Congreve was wearing an expression that would frighten most people. She only gave Sascha the briefest of glances. "You're sick. You know that don't you? You manipulative creep. Lying, manipulative creep. Sick, lying, manipul--"
"Adele, have you met my friend Sascha?" Peter interrupted the tirade before it picked up any more steam. "Adele and I go to the same church. Her aunt's a Bishop. So's my grandfather."
The look Peter gave Adele made it clear that if she didn't shut up, he'd drag her own dirty laundry out into the open. Adele wisely changed her tune. Slightly. "I hope you don't have any brothers Sascha. Don't let them meet Peter."
With that, she turned on her heel and flounced off the dance floor.
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Date: 2009-01-03 02:50 am (UTC)Circumspect enough, anyway, to avoid asking if Adele's closing shot about brothers and Peter meant what it sounded like. She'd been right; the story was a doozy. Maybe she'd ask later, after Pete had a few more drinks in him.
For now she turned to her partner with a sunny smile. "We both seem to have come through the bombardment unscathed, sir. You up for some more moves, or could you use a break?"
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Date: 2009-01-03 02:54 am (UTC)Peter not so gently ushered her from the floor and back to the table, hoping his horror wasn't written on his face. "I am so sorry. Really. She's...Adele's aggressive. And likes to hold a grudge."
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Date: 2009-01-03 06:31 am (UTC)Peter's expression didn't register as horror with Sascha, but he was obviously unsettled. Her brow creased in concern as she accompanied him back to the table. "I'm okay," she said, followed by a sudden huff of irritation. "It's just so ridiculous that she should get her panties in a wad when all we were doing was dancing! I don't suppose she'd listen if I tried to set her straight?"
***
Sascha and Peter's migration to the dance floor had been the cue for both Junie and Jaye to urge their respective dates in that direction as well. When Morrie migrated toward the stage to have a chat with Sister Mystere's sound tech, Rory took the opportunity of a mostly-empty table to set his small gifts at each place. In a fortuitous last-minute rearrangement, the prayer box went to Jaye's spot. He could pick up another later for Cait.
While Kreske chuckled over Dave's attempts to suspend his peace charm from his nasal septum, Rory stretched out in his chair and smiled. He felt good, far better than he was expecting to. He finished his beer and asked for an iced tea to replace it.
The crowd gave off mostly upbeat energy, contributing to his easy mood. There was something relaxing about being able to ride the emotions and responses of the audience without being their focus. And Sister Mystere had a good sound to match, the throbbing techno beats blending well with lead singer Dacia's husky, lush vocals.
Rory was jolted out of his preoccupation with the music when he felt a sudden sting of roiling upset from a familiar source. Glancing up he saw Peter and Sascha approaching the table, looking something less than pleased. "Hey," he said, trying not to broadcast too much concern too quickly. "How's the floor?"
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Date: 2009-01-03 06:39 am (UTC)He didn't notice the gift from Rory. Or pay any attention to Dave's antics. Peter did look up at Sascha with a smirk though. "No offense but women are crazy."
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Date: 2009-01-03 10:09 pm (UTC)Peter's comment about women brought his attention back to the table in time to see Sascha stick out her tongue and smirk. "Be nice, Peter, or I'll be forced to give you chapter and verse on all the insane men I've dated -- ooo!"
She'd spotted the box next to her drink. After checking the gift tag, she gave Rory a smile and an "Aw, thank you, o intrepid leader!" Once she got the box open to reveal the contents, she immediately set about removing the silver hoops in her ears so she could dangle a charm from each one, reading the cards that described the meaning of each symbol as she did so.
Rory smiled at her reaction. Twinges or no, tonight was a party. "Just think of them as wishes for the New Year."
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Date: 2009-01-03 10:21 pm (UTC)His graduate adviser, Chris, had wished him much the same the other day which is the only reason Peter was able to get the pronunciation correct. The symbol, he recognized easily enough. "Maybe you'll get lucky and it'll carry over into your social life. Meet someone sane."
Once he stopped playing with the pretty bits of jewelry hanging from Sascha's ears, Peter noticed his own gift sitting on the table. He gave Rory a questioning look and then a small smile as he opened the box. "Friendship...thanks man, you really didn't have to."
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Date: 2009-01-04 02:48 am (UTC)The Camerons made their retreat from the dance floor just then, with Nil waving the waitress over for a fresh round of drink orders. More gift opening, more thank-yous and Rory felt his twinges receding once more, eased by the camaraderie of friends in an environment he knew well.
"So how's your project going?" he asked Peter.
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Date: 2009-01-04 03:00 am (UTC)More dimpled smiling as he nodded that yes, a second drink would be appreciated as the waitress made her rounds, then he cleared his throat to answer the singer's question. "Good. Well, depending on which project you're talking about and what we are going to qualify as 'good' while talking about one ugly, vicious disease."
Peter loved his work, his research and even the patients that were part of his case studies but he rarely considered the subject matter party conversation. Either he took a far too academic bent to avoid the emotional or he was honest and depressed a lot of people. "We're starting clinical trials to see how well some tumor reactive T cells we created react to certain targeted proteins in patients with lymphoid leukemias. Basically, I've been screening prospective patients for the study."
He stopped there before anyone got that glazed and confused look.
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Date: 2009-01-04 07:41 am (UTC)He actually followed Peter's description of his work reasonably well. Medical jargon wasn't his forte of course, but you couldn't heal from the inside like he and his family did without understanding how the body's immune system and self-repair mechanisms worked.
Rory had just opened his mouth for further comment when another surge of irritated and familiar emotion hit him. He looked up to see Junie stalking toward them, outwardly composed and inwardly seething, looking rather like a panther in her black beaded dress. She stopped between him and Nil and said calmly, "Well, we now have a seat for Cait when she shows up."
"Oh, man," Kreske winced. "I take it Felipe didn't just head to the men's room?"
Junie exhaled through flared nostrils. "Felipe decided to pick a fight about my earlier appreciative comment on how Rory looks shirtless. To make a short story even shorter, he was a dick, I let fly with the temper I inherited from both halves of my heritage, and I will now be drafting the rest of you gentlemen as dance partners for the evening." She bent to give him a hug. "Sorry, hon."
"Don't be, Junie." He slid an arm around her waist to return the embrace. "I was just thinking about getting some dancing in, so you save one for me, hm?"
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Date: 2009-01-04 07:47 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2009-01-04 09:15 am (UTC)Junie ruffled Rory's hair before retreating to her seat at the other end of the table. "Honestly, the comment wasn't really the problem. He was already annoyed that we weren't spending enough time together." She spread her hands. "What can I do? It's not like our free time is going to magically improve, especially with the release coming up. So I can understand some frustration, but the insinuations he just made ... dating me for a month doesn't give a guy the right to get all territorial."
She sighed and offered Rory a wry, sympathetic smile. "And here I thought getting into show biz was supposed to improve your social life."
Rory's return smile was equally wry. "You up for that dance then?"
Junie drained her bellini before saluting him with the glass. "You know, I think I am."
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Date: 2009-01-04 09:27 am (UTC)Yeah, he knew he was a total dog in the situation with the Congreves. He wasn't proud of it.
The other conversation going on had Peter giving Rory a sidelong glance. Was time the reason his girlfriend left him?
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Date: 2009-01-05 12:19 am (UTC)As Junie rounded the table to take Rory's arm, Sasch bounced up and took a grip on Peter's. "C'mon then, sugar-toots, let's get out there with the old folks and show 'em how it's done!"
Rory glanced back with a laugh and a grin for the both of them. Junie had a welcoming smile on her face too, so clearly neither of them minded. Sascha bounced a little on her toes, waiting for Peter to stand up.
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Date: 2009-01-05 12:28 am (UTC)Letting the girl drag him back out into the crowd, he laughed, "They won't be able to keep up with us."
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Date: 2009-01-05 03:38 am (UTC)"You'll be begging for mercy," Junie tossed cheerfully over her shoulder as she led the way back onto the floor. The four of them wound up packed together a little snugly by the crowd, Junie across from him, Peter beside him and even Sascha on the opposite corner, but Rory didn't mind. The contact heightened his awareness, his thrumming connection with the emotions of people who wanted to tune in to good music and have a good time.
And it was good music. Dacia and her crew were changing up their usual playlist by throwing in a few rock standards. Spotting Rory's tall self on the floor, she tossed him a cheerful salute before launching into a duet version of Bad Case of Loving You with her bass player.
Listening to her husky voice belt out the Robert Palmer lyrics, Rory let himself go into the rhythm. Movement, sound, the heat and scent of the bodies around him, they all touched him at a primal level, deep at the core of who he was.
What he was.
Angling a bit toward Peter, Rory found himself moving with all three of his friends, not Junie alone. It felt good. It felt right.
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Date: 2009-01-05 03:48 am (UTC)He also wasn't paying much attention to just which body he was rocking against and swaying with until he placed his hand against the small of Rory's back to keep his balance. Peter and his friends might know how to dance in a crowd, but there were plenty of folks around them with two left feet and no idea that you were supposed to move with the beat.
Realizing that he should put some space between himself and his taller dance partner, Peter turned around and reached for one of Sascha's hands, giving her a playful look as he pulled her in close and sang along with the song. Anyone casually watching the group might think he did indeed have it bad for the girl.
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Date: 2009-01-05 05:15 am (UTC)Right about then Peter's excellent singing voice must have finally gotten through to the girls, because they both suddenly wore smiles of surprised delight. Rory had heard his friend sing, even if only through an online recording, but apparently they had not.
One shared glance between the three bandmates was all it took before they all started singing along. Every member of Breaker Street could sing and sing well, so three voices soon harmonized sweetly with Peter's tenor. No pill's gonna cure my ill, I got a bad case of looooooving yoooouuu ...
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Date: 2009-01-05 05:25 am (UTC)People dancing near them soon picked up on the fact that there were four showboaters in their midst and cleared a space around them accordingly, just enjoying the floor show. Peter almost immediately took advantage of having more room to move, swinging Sascha out in a controlled spin before pulling her back again.
"Hey, Rory...switch?" Peter didn't bother to check with the women, he only wanted to make sure he and the other man were on the same page before trading Sascha for Junie in a bit of a rhythmic shuffle.
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Date: 2009-01-05 07:13 am (UTC)Not to be outdone, Junie struck a sultry pose as she faced Peter, dark eyes sparkling with mischievous challenge. Okay, sweetie. Show me what you've got. Tossing her dark curls, she matched his steps with a swivel-hipped, stiletto-heeled strut as she kept singing. I know you like it, you like it on top. Tell me sugar, are you gonna stop?
On that last word she reached up to run her fingers through Peter's dark hair, leaning forward as he leaned back, smile blazing. What do you plan to do about it, sugar-toots? her laughing eyes asked.
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Date: 2009-01-05 07:23 am (UTC)Peter's hands ran up Junie's back, finger's fanned possessively until they reached her shoulders. He gripped her firmly, turned her one way and then the other,laughing as she ducked under his arm--they were doing a modified salsa as they moved together, their steps measured and tight, their bodies held smartly. Precision even as they played, more for the effect it had on the audience than anything else.