The dance
602 Words
Two weeks.
Damien had survived two whole weeks.
Ethan found that deeply irritating.
The man should have quit by now.
Any sane person would've quit.
Instead, Damien woke up every morning, complained about everything, argued with everyone, and somehow kept going.
It made absolutely no sense.
"You're staring."
Ethan looked away immediately.
Damien smirked.
"You were."
"I wasn't."
"You absolutely were."
Ethan grabbed a feed sack.
"I was wondering when you'd finally fall into a ditch."
Damien looked offended.
"That's rude."
"Life is hard."
"You make it harder."
"Good."
Damien rolled his eyes.
Ethan pretended not to notice the smile threatening to appear.
That evening the town was hosting a community festival.
Apparently everyone within fifty miles planned to attend.
Damien had no intention of going.
Then the ranch hands found out.
And refused to accept that answer.
"You have to come."
"No."
"Yes."
"No."
"Yes."
The argument lasted ten minutes.
Eventually Damien lost.
Mostly because six grown ranch hands physically pushed him toward a truck.
Traitors.
All of them.
The town square was packed.
Music played from speakers.
Children ran between booths.
Families laughed together.
The entire place felt warm and alive.
Damien hated how much he liked it.
Ethan hated it too.
Not the festival.
The attention.
People kept stopping him.
Talking to him.
Asking questions.
And every third person seemed curious about Damien.
"Who's your friend?"
"He isn't my friend."
The answer came instantly.
Every single time.
Damien found it unnecessarily rude.
A few hours later, live music started.
People gathered near a dance floor.
Couples moved together beneath strings of lights.
The atmosphere shifted.
Softer.
More relaxed.
Ethan planned to stay far away from it.
Unfortunately fate hated him.
A little girl grabbed his hand.
"Mr. Hayes!"
Ethan looked down.
The eight-year-old smiled brightly.
"What?"
"Dance."
"No."
The answer came immediately.
The girl frowned.
Then pointed at Damien.
"What about him?"
Both men froze.
"No."
Ethan answered.
"No."
Damien answered.
The little girl looked disappointed.
Then suspicious.
"You two argue like married people."
Silence.
Absolute silence.
The ranch hands nearby immediately burst out laughing.
Ethan wanted to disappear.
Immediately.
The little girl eventually left.
Still unconvinced.
Damien was laughing now.
Actually laughing.
The jerk.
"You look traumatized."
Ethan glared.
"Don't."
"I'm going to remember this forever."
"I hate you."
"So I've heard."
Later that night, the festival began winding down.
People started leaving.
The ranch hands gathered near the trucks.
Everyone was preparing to head home.
Then someone made a terrible suggestion.
A truly terrible suggestion.
"Damien should enter the riding competition next year."
The entire group laughed.
Except Damien.
Who looked horrified.
And Ethan.
Who found himself unexpectedly defending him.
"He can ride."
The words slipped out before he could stop them.
Everyone went quiet.
Including Damien.
Ethan immediately regretted speaking.
The city boy blinked.
"You think I can ride?"
The question sounded far too pleased.
Ethan looked away.
"Barely."
Damien grinned anyway.
Which was annoying.
Because for some reason Ethan liked seeing that grin.
A realization he immediately ignored.
The drive back to the ranch was quiet.
Most people were tired.
The stars filled the sky.
And for once nobody argued.
Not because they were getting along.
Not exactly.
But because something was changing.
Slowly.
Uncomfortably.
The hatred wasn't disappearing.
Not yet.
The tension was still there.
The arguments were still there.
The stubbornness was definitely still there.
But beneath all of it...
Something else was beginning to grow.
Something neither man was ready to face.
And judging by the way Ethan avoided looking at Damien for the rest of the night...
The cowboy knew it.
- Writer
