First and Last School Dance

During the 7th grade I continued to live in an air force base.  I came to know two girls in the neighborhood who were friends for several years and counting.  The mother of one of them always shopped at JCPenney for her daughter and received an automatic 20% discount.

They convinced me to show up for the school dance since you didn't need a partner to enter.  It was held in the late afternoon in the cafeteria, and upon arrival I saw an area to the side with games and went straight there.  There were several projections on the wall, and I think it was running on the PS2.  I don't care much for realistic-looking racing games, but that's what they had so I played solo.  It wasn't bad at all, really.  They served pizza, but I only bought a drink and continued playing.  Club music was running.

This doesn't last more than half an hour.  Getting up to depart early I cut through the crowded dance floor and make a beeline for one of the two exits.  Suddenly, someone grabs my arm and I turn to face him.  There were two boys with one girl in the middle.  I can't recall if either of the boys were dressed, but the girl was.  Wearing black, maybe shimmering a little.  Straight, dark brown hair falling slightly below the shoulders.  She was thin and an inch, probably two inches shorter than me.  Or more.  Caucasian.  Her face was cute; thin, but not gaunt.  Maybe even calling it thin is too excessive.  I don't know anything about facial structures.  I just know her cheeks weren't puffed or that she had a round complexion or anything.  I'm probably making it worse.

The expression she held...well, I'm a guy so there's only so much I can understand.  That and I'm not looking into people's faces most of the time.  No experience reading them.  She looked like an introvert.  That's all I can say with confidence.

"Hey, do you want to dance with her?"  The person who initially grabbed my arm asked the question.  The other boy looked on.  The girl just stood there looking up to me from three to four feet away.  Nothing on her face told me whether or not...well, who knows.  She looked timid (using that word again).  The boy probably pulled me over because I was walking through without a partner.

I certainly didn't arrive with the intent to dance, and I wasn't prepared to suddenly change my mind about leaving so I shake my head and say somewhat loudly, "No thanks."  I had to say it twice because he was still asking, "Do you want to dance?" so I probably wasn't heard the first time over all the noise.  I should have accepted.  Looking back on it I feel sorry for her; maybe she was supposed to go with someone and he never showed up.

I wonder how she's faring.  I wonder how people from childhood are faring.