Title: 'Neath the Pale Moonlight
Timeline: Late season 3
Author's Notes: This was written for xie_xie_xie and inspired by THIS post in qaf_music.
Thanks for your beta skills, Xie. I hope it's what you were after!



* * *

The loft is lit only by candles and the moon shining in through the big windows.

It's quiet in here, no sounds of television, or music, just of us. It's actually pretty romantic.

Of course, there's a blackout and the power's out in the whole street, so it's not like on-purpose romantic, but still.

The only thing wrong is...

“I'm bored.” I nudge Brian's leg with my foot.

He nudges back “What do you want me to do about it?”

We have a half-hearted game of footsies, but I'm feeling too lethargic to put much effort in.

“Entertain me.”

He leers. “Did a pretty good job of that already.”

“I know. I don't want to fuck again.”

He looks stricken. “Not right now, later,” I amend. “I'm going crazy just sitting here.”

“We can play another game of Scrabble.”

“No thanks.”. Pissed that Brian beat me three times already. He laughs, reading my mind. Asshole.

“Come on, let's dance.” I jump up.

He shoots me a look. “There's no power. There's no music, remember.”

“We'll use your iPod. Come on, I'm sick of sitting. Please?”

He mutters under his breath but ambles off to find his iPod. I love it when Brian doesn't bother arguing with me and just admits that I can make him do anything I want.

“What are you laughing at?” he asks from behind me.

“Jesus! Brian, don't sneak up on me. Fuck.”

“I already offered but you wanted to dance. Remember?”

I put a bud in my ear and Brian takes the other one. We have to stand really close to make this work, but that works for me. I put it on shuffle mode, pocket it and wrap my arms around Brian.

A club song starts and we start to move. Brian's really not much of a dancer. He does his thing, which is basically humping me as music plays, and I do mine – try to hold on for the ride.

We dance to a few songs, a strange mix of techno, 80s rock and jazz, but it doesn't really matter what's playing, Brian can't follow a rhythm anyway. We keep up our swaying/rocking/humping dance hybrid. It feels good, being in his arms like this. Every so often he brings his hand up and touches my hair, sort of petting it. It feels nice.

I sigh. I'm not really thinking about anything, just letting my mind wander while I enjoy the feeling of Brian's arms, his solid chest, and so it takes me a second to notice that he's stopped moving, that he's tensed up.

“Brian?” I look up at him. His face is kind of frozen. “What's wrong?”

He meets my eyes. Swallows visibly. “This song...” he trails off. I suddenly realize what's playing in my ear. It's that song, from the prom.

Shit, I didn't recognize it for a second. I haven't heard it in a long time. I wonder why he's got it on his iPod, how often he listens to it. What he thinks about when he does. I sort of shiver, remembering how messed up Brian was back then. I mean, I was a fucking mess, and I was too busy trying to get myself better to worry too much about Brian, but I know it wasn't easy for him either. Just thinking about that scarf I found around his neck makes me shiver again.

I run my hands up and down his back. Trying to rub the stiffness out of his frame. “Come on,” I whisper. “Keep dancing.”

We start to sway again as the voice in my ear voice warbles on about love and moonlight and dancing. It's actually a really pretty song. I sniff, memories I'd long since suppressed coming back up. I wish I could remember that dance. It's seems almost impossible in hindsight, that Brian would show up at my prom after all. That we'd dance together, in front of everyone. I feel ripped off, for the millionth time, thinking about all that Hobbs took from me.

I sigh again. Thinking. “Fuck all Brian knows about romance.” Yeah, right.

I squeeze him tight, thankful that we’re back together.

He smiles at me, a sort of sad smile, and we keep dancing. I realize he's actually keeping pretty good rhythm. He spins us around and dips me a little. I laugh, delighted. He smiles again. A happy one this time. We must have been something on that dance floor after all, I think, but that doesn't matter right now.

Not right now, tight in Brian's arms as we sway together in the loft and the music plays on.