Chapter Text
The lights dimmed, and all eyes turned to the front as Grace Vanderwaal took to the stage.
Cole saw his chance. He weaved in and out of the crowd, looking for Lili. They had arrived separately, wishing to avoid any fallout from the Hawaii photos that had been released only days before. The Art of Elysium was an annual gala that raised money for an incredibly worthy cause, and they both hated the idea of attracting any undue attention from the main purpose of the evening.
Finally, he spotted her - a vision in her dress, her green eyes lit up by the reflection of the stage. He smiled softly to himself, and idly indulged the idea of seeing her again in white, perhaps one spring day, not too far off…
Ah, but these flights of fancy were nothing to the girl who now stood before him in the flesh. He stood a little way behind her, and saw her chin tilt slightly to the right, acknowledging his presence. They had both developed the uncanny ability of sensing each other in a room, like a compass point trained to the other’s north.
He stepped forward, clearing his throat and gently taking her hand.
“Hey,” he whispered.
She smiled slightly before squeezing his hand back and interlacing her fingers with his.
“Hey, yourself,” she whispered back.
They stayed like that for a while, holding hands in the dark as the soft strains of music floated out over the crowd. The song ended, and as the applause rose, he reluctantly let go of her hand, but then thought better of it. Boldly, he stepped in right behind her, his body nearly flush against hers, close enough to sense her pulse, to smell her skin, to kiss her, even, if he wanted to.
But perhaps he would save that for later tonight. For now, he just wanted to say one thing to her, before melting back into the crowd.
“You look beautiful tonight, Lils.”