After several more dances, Sam found himself handed off and locking arms with someone else.
The second he locked arms, Sam felt an electric thrill run through his body, and he did not need to look up to see who it was. Every pore in his body told him.
Polly.
Sam was almost nervous to look up and meet her eyes. He did slowly, and saw the most beautiful pair of blue eyes smiling back at him.
They spun around and around, first in one direction, then another, the music louder and louder.
But instead of letting go, and switching to a new partner, as he had done every few seconds throughout the day, he held onto her. He found that she held onto him, too. Despite all the people trying to cut in, neither of them changed partners, for several minutes, until the song finally ended.
There was a lull in the music, and as the crowd cheered, the two of them stood there, staring at each other. Sam found his eyes locked with hers, and neither of them seemed willing to look away.
Slowly, their smiles dropped, as their looks became more serious.
Sam felt he couldn’t let her drift off into the crowd and dance with someone else. He needed to be with her. To talk to her. He wasn’t sure exactly what he would say, but he did know that he didn’t want to be without her at his side.
As she stood there, looking at him, Sam fumbled for words. He knew that he wanted to take her away from here, from this boisterous crowd. To be alone with her. But he didn’t quite know what to say. He found himself nervous to ask her. What if she said no?
“Um…” Sam began, “do you think—do you—I mean—want to—I mean…” Sam looked down, embarrassed. Finally, he summoned the courage and looked back up.
Polly was looking at him with a confused expression, waiting.
“Would you like to take a walk with me?” Sam asked, feeling his cheeks blushing.
Polly slowly smiled, raising an eyebrow.
“Do you mean just the two of us? Alone?” she asked, playfully.
Sam felt his heart pounding. It was strange, but he felt as if he were meeting Polly for the first time. And he didn’t understand her hesitation. Was she just being playful? Or was she not interested?
“I mean—um—only if you want—I don’t want to—um—interrupt you or anything—” Polly smiled.
“Of course, I would love to,” she said.
Sam broke into a smile, incredibly relieved. He held out an arm, and as she linked arms with him, the two of them walked off, through the crowd. The music was starting up again, and the others were beginning a new dance.
But Sam barely heard the music, and he clutched her tightly as they walked through the crowd and into the open field, he hoped that nothing would get between them again.
*
Sam was awestruck at the landscape as he walked with Polly, holding hands, into the sunset. He saw the horizon aglow in shades of red and purple, and he thought once again that this island was the most beautiful place he’d ever been. Before him stretched a vista of mountains, valleys, hills, and in the far distance, he could see the great open expanse that was the ocean. The hills were covered in a rich, vibrant green moss, and as they walked in the soft grass, they passed a roaring creek, and a small waterfall. He felt as if he were standing in the very place where Earth was created.
The two of them strolled at a casual pace, and while many minutes had passed since they’d left the party, neither of them had spoken a word. It was partly because the scene was breathtaking, but also, Sam realized, because he found himself nervous, tongue-tied. And he could sense that Polly was, too.
He wasn’t sure exactly what it was he wanted to say to her. He just wanted to be with her, to spend time with her, to be alone with her. He guessed that what he had to say, to express, was non-verbal.
Sam didn’t quite understand the strong feelings that were taking over him for Polly. He hadn’t felt this way about her when they’d first met, and he’d never felt this way for any other girl before.
He’d been attracted to other girls before, but with Polly, it was different: it was deeper than mere attraction. He didn’t quite understand what was happening to him, or how it all happened so quickly.
It seemed like only yesterday that he didn’t think he was interested in Polly at all, and that he was convinced that she wasn’t interested in him, either.
But since landing back in this time and place, he finally realized how much she meant to him.
Still, he didn’t quite know how to express it. He didn’t want to scare her away, and he was nervous to say anything, in case she didn’t feel the same way about him.
“Sorry to take you away from the party,” Sam said, not knowing what else to say.
Polly gave him a funny look, and he immediately regretted his choice of words. It was not at all what he’d meant to say.
“Why are you sorry?” Polly asked. “I’m not sorry.”
“Um…I mean…” Sam began, “…I mean, like, I didn’t mean to interrupt things.”
“So then why did you invite me out?” Polly asked.
“No reason,” Sam said quickly, and regretted it again.
He didn’t seem able to stop himself from saying the wrong thing, and his momentum seemed to carry him. “Just to get some fresh air, I guess.”
Polly gave him another funny look, and he regretted it even more. Why couldn’t he just come out and say what was on his mind? He knew that vampires could read minds, and in this case, he really wished that Polly would just read his, and make it easier on him. But it seemed that she wasn’t trying to, or didn’t want to.
“Oh,” Polly said. “I thought that, maybe, it was something more than that.”
“Like what?” Sam asked.
Now he was really kicking himself. You are such an idiot, he thought to himself. He had wanted to say: yes, it was something else. I brought you here to tell you how I feel about you. But he didn’t seem to be able to summon the courage.
Polly, looking disappointed, shrugged, and the two of them continued to walk, up and down the mossy hills, in silence.
Having messed it up so much, Sam now really had no idea what to say to break the silence. He was furious with himself for not having the courage to express what was on his mind.
Thankfully, the terrain changed. They walked up a small hill, and suddenly, before them, was the most breathtaking view he’d ever seen: down below, hundreds of feet, was the ocean, lit up in every shade of red and orange and purple he could imagine. They stood at the edge of a cliff, and from where they were, it seemed as if they were looking out at the entire universe.