The Dance Class – Part 2: The Showcase
Gay Stories·EN·2 min read·Published 2026-11-07, updated 2026-11-07·Part 2 of 2
The end-of-term showcase was at seven o'clock on a Friday.
Frau Weiss had transformed the studio with candles and paper lanterns. Parents and friends filled the folding chairs. Twelve couples stood in two shy rows, dressed in their best. Jan wore a borrowed jacket. Felix wore a waistcoat that made him look like a very small, very handsome butler.
"I'm going to be sick," said Jan.
"You're going to be wonderful."
"I've never danced for an audience."
"Neither have I. We'll look at each other."
The music began, a slow Viennese waltz. Jan put his hand on Felix's back, and Felix put his hand on Jan's shoulder, and the world narrowed to the frame between them. They stepped. They turned. They glided across the polished floor, light as leaves.
The room fell silent. Every eye followed them. Jan forgot to count. Felix forgot to be nervous. They danced as if they had done it all their lives, easy and unhurried, their faces inches apart, the candlelight moving over their skin.
When the last chord faded, they stood motionless, holding the final pose. Neither moved to let go.
"That was perfect," said Felix, almost inaudibly.
"We forgot to breathe."
The applause was thunderous. Frau Weiss, in the front row, dabbed her eyes with a handkerchief.
Afterwards, they slipped out onto the studio's back step, into the cool night. A street lamp glowed. A tram clanked past.
"Can I ask you something?" said Jan.
"Yes."
"May I kiss you?"
"Yes," said Felix, with a soft laugh. "And if you say stop, you must sign up for the tango class."
"That is a terrifying punishment."
"I'll hold you up."
Jan kissed him, gently, one hand rising to Felix's cheek. Felix kissed him back, warm and unhurried, his hands settling in the frame at Jan's waist. The night was silent but for a distant violin. The lamp buzzed softly overhead.
When they parted, both of them were smiling.
"Green?" asked Felix.
"Green," said Jan. "Very green."
They signed up for the tango class. Frau Weiss said she had never seen two men so frightened of a rose.
More gay romance stories: Morning Run · Night Telescope · The Tailor's Apprentice
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