‘Hi,’ I finally say.
‘Hello.’
My ears feel hot. Never have I fancied a man in a shimmering tracksuit more. I motion to our group to see if he fancies dancing but Zach mimes getting a drink and once we’ve picked up drinks he leads me to a booth in the corner. A booth for just the two of us. ARGH! I need people around me or I may not be trusted with this man.
‘So here we are at an eighties disco,’ he says as he fidgets with his outfit like a fish out of water.
‘Well deduced,’ I grin. ‘I had no idea you’d be able to pull off an acid green trackie so well. I’m kind of into it.’
You flirt, I think to myself. I need to calm down.
‘Hah. Thanks. Fancy dress is definitely not my thing but I wanted to make an effort for you.’
Zach, I realise, makes me feel good about myself in a very cute way.
‘Shall we dance?’ I ask, eyes flicking to the dancefloor.
Shyness flashes across Zach’s face. ‘I’m not big into dancing in public,’ he admits.
‘Ah, okay. Was this a bad date choice?’
‘Not at all! I’m enjoying the music a lot and your mates have some … interesting moves.’ He laughs as we watch Natalie and Eve attempt the running man together. ‘But confidence isn’t my forte. Besides, I wouldn’t mind spending the night wrapped up in your company.’
Butterflies! Or moths? No stop it.
‘Well, Zach Moretti, the good news is that I have plenty of possibly misplaced confidence and I am more than happy for us to spin around the dancefloor like a couple of dorks for the night.’
‘A couple of dorks, you say?’
I nod.
‘Come on, then.’ He takes my hand and our bodies tangle together as we move to ‘Papa Don’t Preach’. The glitter ball above sends shafts of light over us and I look up at Zach’s face, lit up like a diamond. He looks hot and I like him. There’s no need to panic about that, right? Repeat after me: We’re just having fun together. It’s chilled. No pressure. We’re just having fun together. It’s chilled. No pressure.
Later I’m striking a pose around my face in what I hope is a mini Madonna masterclass for Zach. ‘This is Vogueing. I can’t believe you’ve never heard of it!’
‘I know, what was I doing with my youth?’ He grins, quite adorably poking himself in the eye as he attempts to copy me.
‘I bet you were in a band.’ I’m suddenly struck with an image of him as a guitar-strumming teenager. ‘I can totally picture you writing love songs to your first girlfriend, heart bleeding all over the lyrics.’
Zach stops trying to mirror my dance moves and takes hold of my hands, inching me away from the middle of the dancefloor towards the less busy edges with a smile on his face.
‘Incorrect. There wasn’t much call for a piano-playing introvert in any of the bands at my school.’
‘You play the piano?’
‘Not for a long while, but yeah, when I was younger. Didn’t write any love songs though. I guess you could say I was a late bloomer in that department.’
Another song comes on and Natalie bounds past us on her way back from the loos. ‘What are you doing on the outskirts? Come on!’ She calls, waving us back into the middle. I’m itching to join them but I don’t want to be rude to Zach.
‘Come on then,’ he smiles. ‘I can see I’m going to have to work hard to keep up with you, Alice.’
Thrilled, I lead him back into the throng where Natalie’s unleashing the entire dance routine to ‘Thriller’.
‘I’ve been wondering about a career change,’ she says, hands still clawed in the air. ‘Serious question: Should I join a dance troupe?’
I snort. ‘It’s good to have goals.’
‘It’s this shell suit,’ she grins. ‘It’s making me feel like a queen. See that hot guy in the blazer over there? Just gave him my number. Why not, hey? Jake doesn’t get to piss on my parade any longer.’
