Ethan's heart skipped a beat upon hearing her words; she wanted to dance, not with others but with him. He looked at her, his heart pounding faster than usual, feeling as if it would burst if he didn't calm himself. Ava's gaze was still downcast with shyness. Ethan looked at her, many thoughts were lingering in his mind: "Does she really want to dance with me? She's a celebrity! Why does she want to dance with me?"
He thought hard; this was the first time he felt a strange emotion. His stomach fluttered with unique sensations. He was acutely aware of the warmth spreading through his veins. Despite this whirlwind of feelings, he maintained his composure and stammered, his cheeks flushed with redness,
"S – Sure, it's my pleasure to dance with you" [He said this knowing it was an opportunity most men would want, yet he had this chance without any hard work.]
Ava slightly met his gaze; her pink blush never faded the entire time. But when she heard Ethan's word, her face lit up with emotions that she never knew she had. As the music grew louder, the tension between them also increased.
Ethan had never danced with a celebrity before, especially not with the goddess of beauty, Ava Stanford. It was natural for him to feel a strange nervousness. He maintained his composure, adjusted his collar one more time, and with a quick sigh, stood up and extended his hand to her with a warm smile.
Ava looked at him, her heart racing. She smiled back, accepting his hand for the dance. When their hands touched, both felt a unique warmth radiating between them. Ava's soft, gentle hand in Ethan's felt like a spark igniting something deep within him. As she stood up, they walked together towards the crowd where the dancing continued.
Ava was blushing slightly; this was the first time in her life that she felt so close to someone. Her heart was racing with each passing moment, and felt a mix of excitement and nervousness.
As they both reached the centre, Ava held Ethan's hand, and they both started dancing like a couples. At first, Ethan felt awkward putting his hand on her waist, but Ava, with a warm gesture, guided his hand to her waist as the dance continued. When his hand touched her waist, a soft gasp escaped her lips.
She began to breathe heavily. Ethan noticed her flustered state and asked,
"Are you alright?" [His voice was calm and gentle, giving warmth. He was also trembling but still maintained his posture.] "If you don't want to dance, we can retreat."
As he said these warm words, many thoughts started to swirl in her mind, she adjusted herself and maintained her posture, with a deep sigh, she said,
"I – I'm sorry, but this is my first time dancing with someone this close," [She stopped for a moment, then added] "To… close." [Her face still had that pink blush, that made her look even more beautiful.]
Ethan noticed her blush; her beauty and cute expression made his heart beat faster. But her admission surprised him, so he eventually asked,
"I thought you had experience dancing with someone because of your career… but you're a newbie?" [He said with a chuckle, his tone filled with teasing.]
Hearing his teasing word, Ava glanced at him, there gaze lock as they continued to dance, she said,
"I danced with many people, mostly because of my career, and I have a lot of experience." [She said with a pout.] "But… today, it – it feels unique and different with… you" [She broke their gaze and looked in another direction so he couldn't notice her blush.]
Ethan's heart skipped a beat as he heard her correctly; it was bursting with different emotions he had never felt before. When Ava looked at him again, she gently placed her hand on his chest as the dance moved. As her hand touched his chest, she felt his heartbeat racing rapidly, and she couldn't help but chuckle.
As they continued dancing, they found themselves comfortable in their embrace. After some moment, they shared laughter and conversation. The world around them faded away., though others were watching; they didn't even realize they were dancing perfectly, rhythm to rhythm, their steps matched flawlessly.
All the other couples and fellow dancers began to follow their lead, dancing like them.
As the dance continued and time passed, Lily, Sara, Emily, and Clara entered the ballroom, happily chatting with each other. Upon entering, Sara noticed the dance pattern of the people and found it intriguing because she recognized the dance pattern perfectly.
As she glanced around the room, her gaze suddenly fell on the best pair: Ava and Ethan. Her mouth dropped open as she saw her brother and Ava dancing so closely, hand in hand, radiating a unique aura.
They were dancing perfectly, which is why she recognized the dance pattern; her brother had taught her that. A smile appeared on her face but fade immediately as her gaze shifted towards Emily…
Emily, stood there silently with tears in her eyes. She wanted to dance with Ethan but was too late. Her eyes sparkled with tears and emotions, and she quickly blinked her eyes to wipe away the tears. Meanwhile, Lily, Sara and Clara stood there with wide eyes, glancing at each other…
They stood there in silence without saying anything, watching Ava and Ethan dance together and laugh.
"You're really good at dancing, Ethan. I thought you would step on me…" [Ava said with a light chuckle, teasing him.]
[Ethan smiled and replied] "Well, I've got some serious moves in dance. After all, my dance classes didn't fail me, and I don't want to ruin this perfect moment… After all, many men want this opportunity, but here I'm, hand in hand with you"
[Ava's cheeks flushed pink, she brushed it aside and said with a smirk] "Considered yourself lucky Mr."
As they danced perfectly and comfortably, the music seemed to slow down gradually and eventually stopped.
[As the music finally stopped, Ava murmured to herself] "Why did music stop, ruining my moments with him?" [She felt frustrated]
"Did you say something?"
"Oh… nothing." [She startled by Ethan's question and a deep pink blush appeared on her cheeks again.]
Ethan looked around the room for some moment and suddenly his gaze fell on Sara. A smile appeared on his face, and he gestured for Ava to follow him. Once they reached the group, Ava said,
"Your brother really has some dance moves, Sara…" [She said with a warm smile, nudging Ethan's arm.]
Ethan found himself smiling at her comment. His heartbeat was steady now. He knew Ava perfectly when she opened up during their dance. They shared a beautiful moment together, smiling and laughing. Seeing them together, Emily felt a pang of jealousy toward Ava, and a different emotion flowed through her… anger.
As Sara was about to say something, a loud voice echoed through the hall, a voice crying for… help. They all exchanged glances and run towards hall to see what had happened. But the sight they encountered sent shivers down their spine.
It was a sight they never expected in their lives. Ethan was trembling with fear, and so was the crowd.
"I – It's impossible." [Ethan said, his voice is filled with a raw fear.] "Ho – How did he end up here. He only existed in that n – novel. It's impossible."
As he finished speaking, the group felt shivers run down their spine. They all understood what he was talking about: the monster from the novel he usually read.
As they stood there in silence, the monster had already attacked someone, killing him in an instant and beginning to eat his flesh. Seeing this, the crowd started running in every direction to protect their lives. Upon seeing the food running in front of the monster, it began killing them with its writhing multiple tentacles that could stretch up to several meters.
The atmosphere around them changed suddenly, no one could have imagined that a birthday party could turn into a pool of blood and dead bodies. Ethan somehow maintained his composure and told the group behind him to run for their lives and they started running towards the exit. They all started running in the opposite direction where another exit was located.
As they ran towards the exit in fear, hoping to escape, Ava's gaze met the monster's for some moment. Time seemed to freeze as fear washed over her and she suddenly fell on the ground, completely helpless, her face turned pale with nervousness and fear. She cried for help. The group stopped and looked back, seeing her on the floor.
Emily ignored her and continued running towards the exit, leaving Sara, Ethan, Lily, and Clara behind. Ethan immediately ran towards Ava and grab her arm to lift her up.
"D – Don't stop if you want to live!" [He shouted; his voice still filled with fear.]
"I – I can't: m – my legs…" [She cried.]
Ethan quickly looked at her legs, which were trembling in fear. It was clear that, due to intense fear and the sight of the monster, her legs had given out. Without hesitation, he immediately wrapped his arms around her shoulders and lifted her up from the ground, starting to run little by little. Sara and Clara also helped him…
As they ran again toward the exit, Ethan glanced around the room, which had been filled with laughter and chatter but was now filled with the sounds of fear, roar, running footsteps, and, most importantly, blood and dead bodies. As they ran, they witnessed a dreadful sight that made their hearts skipped a beat.
They all saw Emily lying on the floor, lifeless. Sara screamed, her voice breaking the silence. Emily's face was a haunting sight; it was marred with scratches, one hand broken, and, more importantly, the flesh from her stomach was missing. Blood flowed continuously around her. This was a sight they never expected. The marks of the tentacles that had jabbed her repeatedly left them speechless and filled with fear.
[Ethan Breathed heavily and said,] "I – It's not time to cry out… We – We need to get out of this building immediately. Clara the – the exit you mentioned first, I'm pretty sure the monster is already there and has seen Emily and…" [He stopped and glanced towards Emily's lifeless body with sadness and tears in his eyes, but he maintained his composure. He then looked towards the stairs leading to the second floor of the building.] "Come on, fast! Follow me." [He urged them, his voice firm despite the fear coursing through him]
Ethan took a one last glance at Emily's lifeless body; the blood flowing from her continuously made tears well up in his eyes. They climbed the stairs and reached the second floor. The atmosphere was thick with tension. They still hear the low growl of the monster from the downstairs
Ava was still clinging on Ethan and Sara. The girls were crying uncontrollably, tears streaming down their faces.
As they were moving with cautious, a hushed voice from behind called out.