The square shimmered beneath the lantern stones, the music pulsing like a living thing through the cobblestones.
The music throbbed through the ground, deep and rhythmic, pulsing like a living thing through the cobblestones. The drums echoed in my chest, the lilting flutes wove around me like invisible ribbons.
I tried to retreat to the edge of the square, my skirts brushing against unfamiliar faces, my shoulder bumping into a laughing woman who spun past me.
But the crowd had already tightened, closing in around me like the current of a river pulling me deeper into its flow.
There was no space, no pause. Only movement.
Hands brushed my arms as dancers turned, skirts swirled in a blur of color and light. My heartbeat quickened, my breath catching as I stumbled one step too far—and then someone's hand caught mine.
His grip was firm but not forceful, his palm warm against mine.
