One Final Dance

            Richard sat there in the chair, looking over at his wife who was lying in the hospital bed, drifting in and out of consciousness. They had been married for close to sixty years, but now he was losing her to lung cancer. Looking over at her, a tear sprung to his eye seeing how frail she was. Where she was once a lively woman, she was now skin and bones.

            Looking at her now, his thoughts drifted back to when he first met her. He was only 19 and went out on the town with his buddies one night. It was a jazzy night club, where many of the adults went to dance their cares away. Richard was sitting at one of the booths chatting away with his friends, when he looked across the room and saw her.

            There was just something about her that drew her to him. The way her soft light brown curls fell around her face, or her baby blue eyes. Or perhaps her red ruby lips. He was drawn to her like a moth to a flame.

            Excusing himself from his friends, he decided that he wanted to get to know her. Slowly he made his way over to her table, devising a way to get her attention. Even though she was sitting alone, he needed a plan if he didn’t want to come across as some sort of stalker. Taking in a deep breath, he proceeded to where she was sitting.

            “Excuse me miss, but do you mind if I join you?” he asked while laying a hand on her shoulder.

            She looked up at him to see who was talking to her. When she did, time just froze. Now, Richard isn’t one to believe in love at first sight, but he knew at that moment when he looked her in the eyes that there was something about her.

            “Sure,” she whispered in a daze as he took the seat across from her.

            “My name is Richard Plotsky. Most of my friends call me Rick though,” he said while extending his hand.

            “It’s nice to meet you Rich. I’m Julie Stone,” she replied, reaching out her hand to meet his in a firm handshake.

            “That’s a beautiful name. It suits you well,” he grinned at her. Julie blushed and looked away, not really knowing how to handle this compliment.

            The conversation was light and fluffy, as the two got more acquainted with each other. At one point, the song, “Boogie Woogie Bugle Boy,” started to play and Richard stood up.

            “Would you please accompany to dance to this? It’s my favorite song,” he asked while holding out his hand for her.

            “I would love to,” she smiled as she took his hand. He helped her out of her seat and led her out to the dance floor. “Why do you like this song so much?” she asked as they started dancing.

            “Because my two older brothers are off at war, and this song reminds me of them. I was going to go into the army, but then I stayed home. I didn’t want my ma to lose all three of her sons to the war,” he replied as he dipped her backwards.

            “I hope your brothers make it through the war,” she said as she stood back up.

            “Me too,” he said melancholy.

            Richard and Julie danced the night away. They loved dancing with each other so much, that they lost track of time. Once in a while they took a break to help with their feet, but then they were right back on the floor again.

            Julie glanced at the time, and her face dropped. “I’m sorry Richard, but I must be leaving. I promised my mother that I would be home at a decent hour. It was nice to meet you,” she said as she started walking away.

            “Wait,” he called out and followed her. “Could I have just one final dance before you have to leave?” he asked, looking into her eyes.

            Julie bit her lip, weighing her decision. Shuffling her feet and looking down at the floor, she shyly murmured, “Yes.”

            With a happy heart, Richard led her out to the dance floor for one more dance. The song that was playing was “Some Enchanted Evening,” by Jo Stafford. He smiled, as this song was perfect, and summed up the entire evening. Richard even began to sing along with it. His smooth tenor voice crooned in her ears, making the whole song dream-like.

            The song ended, and they gave a polite applause. “Would you mind if I walked you to your car?” he whispered in her ear.

            “I would like that a lot,” she blushed as he followed her off the floor. After they stopped at the table to get her jacket and purse, he held out his arm for her, which she politely took and escorted her out to the car.

            “I had a wonderful time with you tonight Richard,” she said as she stood by her car.

            “Me too, Julie,” he said gazing down at her. “Do you think that I could see you again, sometime soon?” he asked as a hand caressed her cheek.

            “Oh, I hope so. I would really like that. How about next Friday, at 8:00, same place,” she asked, grabbing onto his hand.

            “It’s a date,” he grinned, looking down lovingly at her.

            “Until Friday,” she said as she placed a kiss on his cheek. Julie hopped into her car, while Richard put a hand up to his cheek. He waved with his other hand as Julie drove away. In a trance-like state, Richard walked back into the club and over to where his friends were sitting.

            “It’s nice of you to finally come back. Did you have fun with that dame?” one of his friends laughed.

            “Don’t laugh. I think that I’m in love,” Richard replied, as he started thinking about the beauty named Julie who had stolen his heart.

            The next Friday, Richard and Julie met once again at that same club. The two had so much fun together, that they planned to meet there every Friday night. After their second meeting, they both decided that they would go on dates during the week as well. They were like two peas in a pod, they went everywhere together.

            Exactly a year later from that night they first met, Richard took her back there for a very special occasion. While leading her out to the dance floor, he nodded to the owner, and the song “Some Enchanted Evening” started playing.

            “Did you know that it was a year ago today that we first met?” Richard whispered into her ear as they slow danced. He held her close against him, never wanting to let her go.

            “I did. I’m happy that you actually remembered it,” she teased.

            “I could never forget the night that I first met you. It was one of the best nights of my life,” he said pulling back to gaze into her eyes.

            “Richard, I don’t know where I’d be if I hadn’t met you,” she said gazing back.

            “I feel the same way,” he said as he pulled away. It was nearing the end of the song, and he got down on one knee.

            “Richard,” Julie said, her voice uncertain and shaky.

            “Julie, since I met you a year ago tonight, my life has changed for the better. I can’t see my life without you. Since that night, I have discovered that I am in love with you, and am falling even more in love with you every day.” He paused to fumble around in his pocket, and shakily took a box out. “Julie Eliza Stone, will you do me the honor of becoming my wife?”

            “Yes, I will,” she cried.

            Richard happily stood up, the picked up Julie in an embrace and swung her around. Setting her down, he gave her a passionate kiss, which she returned with all her heart. The other people at the club let out whistles and calls of congratulations.

            They got married after a yearlong engagement, and held the reception party at that same club. Every year on their anniversary, they would go back and visit the club where it all began until it was eventually torn down and made into a store.

            Julie was never able to have any kids. Every time that they tried, she would either have a miscarriage, or it wouldn’t take. But as long as the two had each other for company, it didn’t matter if they could have children or not.

            A tear slid down Richard’s eye remembering the old days. It was hard to survive, but with each other’s love and support, they made it through. He jumped when he heard rustling come from the bed. Looking over, he saw that Julie was now awake.

            “Hello dear,” he said standing up and walking over to her.

            “Hello, my love,” she breathed out slowly. “You have a tear on your cheek. What has made you so sad?” she asked as she reached out for him.

            “I was just remembering the night that we first met,” he replied, reaching out and grabbing her hand.

            “Darling, could you please turn the radio on?” she asked, looking over to the small radio that Richard had brought with him.

            Nodding, he let go of her hand and went to turn the radio on. There was a soft pause, and then “Some Enchanted Evening” started to play.

            “Do you think, that we could have one final dance?” Julie asked softly.

            “Anything for you my dear,” Richard said walking over to her bedside. Gently, he helped her out of her bed, careful of the IV in her arm. He held her close, for their one final dance.

            They swayed from side to side. Closing their eyes, they made believe that they were back that one night where they had first met. It was if they were teenagers again, just strolling around the dance floor without a care in the world.

            The song was ending, and Richard’s smooth tenor voice filled her ears. “Once you have found her, never let her go. Once you have found her, never, let her go,” he sang softly in her ears. They stopped dancing, and he gently laid her down in the bed.

            “I love you, my love,” she whispered as she fell asleep.

            “I love you too, my darling,” he whispered as a tear fell down his cheek. Tired, he lay down next to her, wrapping her in his arms.

            The monitor’s started beeping like crazy, signaling that Julie’s heart had stopped. The nurses and medical staff rushed in the room to try and revive her, but it was no use. As they tried to wake Richard to let him know she had passed, they found him stiff as a board. Both Richard and Julie had a smile on their face, happy that they were able to share one final dance.

I had tears forming in my eyes as I wrote this. If I read it, i probably would have cried. How sweet, to die in the arms of the one you love? and sharing one final dance... how sweet I hope that you liked it! I <3 making short stories!