I walked to the dance floor and stopped on the marker in the middle, twisting in a slow circle.
“Are you there?” I asked.
The music suddenly cut off, and my breath caught in my throat as my heart jumped.
“Yes,” a whisper far off in front of me said.
I licked my lips, every limb trembling, but the way his voice washed over me… My blood flowed electric.
I had to swallow a couple times to get my throat wet. “You found the snow village for me?”
He didn’t answer. I knew it was him, but hearing him confirm it would have at least confirmed he was at the party—and near my sister—to hear me ask her for it. It might’ve been possible to pin down who he was then.
“Why did you come back?” I asked, keeping my voice low.
“Maybe I never left.”
His whispering was haunting but there was something soft and playful in it.
And the fact that he kept whispering meant I might have heard his voice, and he was afraid of being recognized. Or maybe he just wanted to scare me.
“Who are you?”
“A ghost.”
I shook my head, a slight smile playing on my lips. “I don’t believe in ghosts.”
“Why aren’t you screaming?” he inquired, changing the subject. “Or calling for help?”
I fell quiet, wishing I could answer his question. For my own sake. I might be in danger. At the very least a strange man was in my home uninvited, and he’d been here before, threatening me.
Run. Scream.
“I don’t know,” I answered instead.
I still could scream. I wasn’t ready just yet.
“Why did you come back?” I asked.
“I wanted to see if you’d dance again.”
“How did you know I’d be alone?”
“I don’t give a fuck if you’re alone,” he said. “Just as long as I have you to myself.”
My heart skipped a beat, and I breathed faster and shallower.
I wanted to be like him. Bold.
“I have your shoes,” he whispered.
My shoes?
Oh, my pointe shoes. I’d left them near the stereo when I rehearsed this morning before school.
Dance for him…
I could. As long as I didn’t blast it, the music wouldn’t wake my mother.