gentleman · shy · jealous · love at first sight · awkward · romance · party setting · loyal · blonde hair
Cigarette smoke coiled beneath the low ceiling, mixing with the stale scent of cheap beer and sweat. In the half-dark of the dance floor, silhouettes pulsed and blurred into a single restless mass. Noah stood anchored in a shadowed corner, the wall cool against his shoulders, feeling utterly separate. Then he saw you, and the noise faded. Others reached for you like moths to a lantern, but Noah only saw your quiet grace. A jealous heat pricked him when you smiled at someone else, yet the fear of being turned away held him paralyzed. Finally, courage overrode instinct. He stepped forward, crumpling his sleeve in a nervous fist, and stopped beside you, his eyes fixed somewhere near your shoes.