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It was nice, to be able to drop the facade, even if only for a few short hours.
As the gentle sound of music surrounded him, a lady with a smooth voice singing a song with lyrics about love that Paul was absently listening to as he sprawled back into his chair, a lady beside the singer accompanying her on the piano with a wide smile and adoration present in her eyes as she gazed at the vocalist over her sheet music. They had matching flowers tucked into their hair, and it looked like a matching pair of lockets dangled around their necks.
Paul smiled at their simple display of affection and love towards each other, before casting his gaze to the rest of the bustling crowd that was gathered in the hall.
All around the dance hall, people mingled, couples danced and groups chatted with drinks in hand. Men danced with men, women danced with women, and not a single judgemental look was thrown towards them. Some who presented and lived as men outside the hall dressed in the feminine fashion with beautiful dresses and skirts adorning their forms, and some who presented and lived as women dressed in the masculine fashion with crisp suits and neatly done ties wrapped around their collars.
They were all the bohème, the people who lived unconventionally, the people who lived unrestrained by the expectations of their society and the laws that governed them. Outside of the safety of these halls and clubs where they indulged in their true selves, they mostly hid their true natures. Outside of the safety of these halls and clubs, their sexualities and identities were forced to be secrets confided only to the most trusted of friends and family, but here... here they were safe to just be.
Instead of having to hide, here they could love with pride.
Paul sighed, letting the stresses of his outside life melt away as he allowed himself to be himself.
"Paul!"
Paul turned as his name was called, his lips curving into a warm smile as he saw his beloved Kurt bounding up to him, the man's cheeks blushed from the chill air that had settled as night had fallen outside and his hair tousled from the wind. Kurt was dressed in a nice suit - probably the nicest he had, outside of his concert attire, similar to Paul's own outfit.
"Kurt," Paul greeted, rising from his seat to pull Kurt into a hug, pressing a gentle kiss to his chilled cheek before pulling away, "I was just about to come look for you. Did you get here alright?"
Kurt beamed up at Paul, his smile causing butterflies to flutter around the man's stomach no matter how many times he saw it.
"Yes, yes," Kurt nodded, "It sure is cold out there," he accentuated his words with a shiver, rubbing his hands along his arms.
"Would you like to get a drink?" Paul asked, reaching out for Kurt's hand, noting that his lover's fingers were still cold from his walk to the hall, which Paul promptly set to warming. He nodded over to the bar that many couples were gathered at as he intertwined his fingers with Kurt's colder ones, "I hear the bartender has more options now, if you're feeling adventurous."
Kurt paused, before shaking his head.
"Maybe later," Kurt decided, "but first... do you want to dance?"
"Dance?" Paul asked, his eyes widening. They hadn't danced before, not even in the privacy of his own home. Paul knew how to dance, his upbringing in an influential family had given him a handful of formal dancing lessons, but it had been a long time since those days, "I'm not sure if..."
Paul was already risking so much just being here, hand in hand with Kurt. The kiss on the cheek earlier had been more daring than he usually was, even in the relative safety of the dance halls and clubs that people of his inclinations gathered. If someone saw him, dancing in a queer hall with another man...
"Come on," Kurt begged, lightly tugging on Paul's hand, "you're already here! It's not like anyone we know is going to see us, and if they do..." Kurt winked, "well, what were they doing at the devil's sacrament?"
Paul huffed a laugh at that, rolling his eyes as Kurt went back to pleading with him.
"Please?" Kurt was using his best impression of a pleading puppy dog, his eyes wide and begging, "just one?"
Paul deliberated for a moment, but he knew that he was hopeless when it came to resisting Kurt's pleading gaze.
"Oh, alright," Paul sighed with a smile, "one dance."
Kurt grinned, dragging Paul close by his hand and into a brief kiss before whirling around and dragging Paul to the edge of the dance floor, where countless groups and couples swayed to the singing.
As Paul reached to place his hand upon Kurt's waist, his other remaining intertwined with Kurt's, the singer began a new song, her talented voice now being joined with the lower but likewise stunning voice of her companion at the piano.
Paul hummed as he recognized the song, his lips lifting into a smile as the two began a beautiful duet.
"What song is this?" Kurt asked, his eyes gently shut as he swayed to the music, the younger man falling into a simple set of steps with Paul as they slowly moved together, "it's very nice."
"O Soave Fanciulla" Paul answered, the italian catching slightly on his tounge, "from an opera called La Bohème."
Paul admired the music from La Bohème and the composer himself, Giacomo Puccini, and he found himself practicing his violin and piano by playing to his music often.
"I like it. What's it mean?" Kurt asked, leaning in to rest against Paul's shoulder, his nose digging into Paul's neck as he relaxed. The women singing were doing so beautifully, skillfully translating their love for each other through the duet.
"O Gentle Maiden, It's a song about love," Paul answered with a smile, "about realizing you've fallen in love and wanting to be beside each other forever."
Kurt hummed, his hand tightening its grip upon Paul's, continuing to sway to the music as they quietly enjoyed each other's presence.
"I'd like to do this, one day, in a wedding suit," Kurt murmured, his cheek resting against Paul's shoulder as they slowly swayed, "to dance, with you."
Paul didn't say anything for a moment, just smiling down at Kurt as he rested his chin in Kurt's messy hair, a soft sigh escaping his lips as he left his eyes gently slip shut, humming in agreement.
"I would love that, Kurt," Paul said, before pressing a kiss to Kurt's head, "I love you."
"And I love you," Kurt replied, twisting his head to press a soft kiss over Paul's heart.
For the time being, Paul and Kurt let themselves pretend, imagining a peaceful wedding where they danced the night away, intertwined so closely together as they moved to the music that it was impossible to see where one ended and the other began, soft smiles on their faces and visible looks of love in their bright eyes as they held each other and enjoyed being able to just be.