Pelican Town Gossip

Elliot grabbed your hand, leading you to the wide open grass to dance. People were pairing off now, ready to join. He led you to the very center. 

“Are you sure we shouldn’t go near the back? Where no one will see me dance?” You asked.

“You look breathtaking, Y/N. Allow me to show off my beautiful date.” He smiled.

It’s starting to feel less like we’re here as friends, You thought. 

The girls lined up beside you, with you in the very center, and the men lined up on the other side. The flower dance always started with a traditional dance to which Abby had taught you the steps for. After that, the couples would pair back up and have a proper dance. 

Abby was on your right, and Penny was on your left. Across from Abby was Sebastian, and across from Penny was Sam. Alex was with Haley, and Maru was dancing with Harvey. You turned your head, wondering where Shane was. You saw him in the corner, whispering aggressively with Emily. She was pulling his hand out into the dance, and he was refusing. You looked at Shane sympathetically, and accidentally caught his eye. He looked away coldly, and grabbed Emily’s hand, this time dragging her to the floor.

The music started. “Don’t worry, Y/N, you know the steps.” Abby whispered cheerfully. She was right. You had spent a long time with her on them. 

You grinned at Elliot across from you, and he smiled back, bowing deep in unison with the men lined up beside him. 

The dance went smoothly. You kept your eyes darting back and forth from Abby to Elliot, wanting to make sure your steps were right but also not wanting to ignore your dance partner. 

The end of that song rolled into the next one, and Elliot approached you. “May I?” He asked, stretching out his hand. 

“You may.” You smiled.

Elliot put one of his hands gently on your hip, and the other he used to grab one of your hands. You lifted your free hand to his tall shoulder, and started to dance, your bodies inches apart. 

You looked around and noticed other couples dancing this way, too. After all, it was the usual sequence of the flower dance. Abby and Sebastian were joking around as they swayed, and Penny looked up shyly at Sam who was babbling about a song he had just learned on guitar. For the first time since you’d arrived in Pelican Town, you felt jealous. Something was bubbling inside you. Even seeing Harvey and Maru sway gently, and seeing Shane and Emily dance was making your stomach churn. 

Without thinking, you pulled Elliot a little closer. He gave you an expression of shock that quickly smoothed into a gentle smile. “Say, have you ever been twirled around?”

“Can’t say I have.”

Elliot raised his arm, motioning for you to twirl under it. You did this a few times, circling around him, and then returned to him, putting your hand on his shoulder again. 

“Where’d you learn to do that?” You asked.

“I had to take lessons as a younger man.” He explained. 

Of course, Leah told me he’s rich. You thought. “Where did you grow up?” You asked, seeking answers to Elliot’s mysterious past. 

“New York.” He said. 

“Whereabouts?”

“Upper East Side.” Elliot smiled. His skin was tan and glowing, and his teeth were white and perfect. He radiated an aura of old money, but not in an unkind way. Elliot was probably one of the kindest people you’d ever met.

“Why did you leave?”

“I wanted to live the examined life.” Elliot said.

“Meaning?”

“Socrates said once that the unexamined life is not worth living. He meant we should examine the things that matter, like philosophy, and dive as deep as we can, otherwise our lives are worthless.” Elliot said, while keeping up his dance steps. He moves so quickly, you thought, and hustled your feet to match his pace. “Essentially, I could’ve become a businessman and wasted my life doing things that don’t matter.” 

You studied his face for a moment. His long dark eyelashes. The calmness that seemed to leak from his skin. How happy he looked surrounded by the open forest in Pelican Town. “I bet you would have had the prettiest little stepford wife.”

Elliot laughed a happy little chuckle. “I can’t think of a less desirable fate.” 

“You don’t ever want to get married?” You asked, tensing your body a little. 

“I would love to be married to a free-thinker.” Elliot clarified. “Not someone who only loves me because I could provide her a certain standard of living.” 

You considered his words, letting your bodies move to the pace of the music. The silence between the two of you was comfortable. You noticed a little speck of dirt on his suit, and you quickly brushed it off affectionately. This didn’t go unnoticed by Elliot, who smiled at you gratefully. 

“The way you did that, it reminded me of my mother. She was a lovely woman.” Elliot said. 

“Was?” 

“Long deceased.” Elliot explained. 

“I’m sorry.”

“Have you ever been dipped, Y/N?”

“No.” You said.

“First time for everything.” Elliot said, wrapping you up in his arms, and lowering you to the ground. His muscles didn’t tense one bit, and you realized how strong he must be. He held you there, your head lowered for a few moments, a smile bursting out on your face as he picked you back up. 

“That was fun!” You exclaimed. 

“You make it fun.” Elliot corrected. 

The music faded out, and Mayor Lewis came over the microphone. “Can we get a round of applause for all of our young dancers?” He asked.

The townsfolk who hadn’t been dancing let out a few cheers. You scanned the crowd, looking for Gus, and finally spotted him by the food table. You waved at him happily, and he waved back, his mustache curling as he smiled. 

“Now, the judges will deliberate on who is crowned King and Queen of the flower dance. In the meantime, everyone is free to get on the dance floor!” Lewis cheered while turning the music back on.

Robin grabbed Demetrius’s hand and led him to the floor. Marnie followed, dancing on her own. Soon, it seemed almost everyone in town was on the floor, except for Gus. 

“Want to get some punch, Elliot?” You asked.

“Are you sure, Y/N? Doesn’t that bring back bad memories from the egg festival?”

“I’ll manage. I have a pretty cool guardian today.” You teased him.

“Then I shall honor my duties. Punch it is.” Elliot said. He held his arm, and you instinctively grabbed on, happily being led to the punch bowl. 

~

Elliot and you stood chatting to Gus for a few minutes before the microphone got turned on once again. 

“Time to announce the results!” Lewis said from the very front of the open clearing. 

“It’s always Haley and Alex.” Gus whispered to you.

“Let them have their moment, then.” You whispered back. 

“Tonight’s Flower Queen and King are…” Lewis said into the microphone. He waved his hands, trying to get a drumroll from the audience going. Gus slapped the table in unison with many dancers tapping their hands against their thighs. 

“Y/N and Elliot! Please, come collect your crowns.”

“Oh God.” You said in shock. “This is so embarrassing.”

“Well I’ll be, Y/N. Must’ve made an impression on Lewis.” Gus said, slapping you on the back.

“While this is juvenile, I’m sure it’ll be bearable if we stick together.” Elliot said. 

You reluctantly latched on to Elliot’s arm, being led to the front. You scanned the audience as you walked up. Shane was looking moodily at the grass. Haley looked absolutely venomous. Abby was beaming at you, and Penny and Maru were cheering. Sebastian had pulled Sam to the side, and they were whispering unhappily. 

“Make a speech!” Lewis said, shoving the microphone into your hand.

“Um… Thank you?” You said, the mic screeching with feedback, causing everyone’s hands to fly to their ears. Lewis brought out a golden tiara  and placed it on your head, on top of your flower crown. For Elliot, he brought out a golden crown, and placed it on. 

You handed the mic back to Lewis, who happily chortled. “Congratulations to this beautiful pair! That concludes the judging. Now, everyone, keep dancing! The night is young!” He said, and blared the music once again. 

“Now what?” You whispered to Elliot. 

“Well, we didn’t get any food yet.” He suggested. 

You and Elliot walked to the food table, feeling everyone’s eyes on your back. People were flowing on and off the dance floor, and it was starting to feel like a real party, except for the heavy crown. 

You were headed back to Gus, who was rearranging dwindling piles of food. He smiled at you as you approached. 

“What am I even supposed to do with this?” You asked Elliot and Gus, patting the crown on your head.

“Use it as a keepsake.” Elliot said.

“Which means put it on your dresser and never look at it again.” Gus laughed.

“He called us a ‘beautiful pair’.” You sighed. 

“You do make one.” Gus said. 

“We are here simply as friends, Gus. I offered that to Y/N, and I am keen to keep my promise to a beautiful woman.” Elliot said. 

You smiled gratefully, although hearing him confirm you were just friends made your heart sink in your chest, even though it was your idea. “You want to go sit down, El?” You asked.

“Sure.” He smiled, and you both wandered off to the side of the festival, where a few benches had been set up. “I must admit, it’s the first time I've heard you call me a nickname, and I like the feeling.” 

You smiled, sitting down next to him on the birch bench. “Hey, if you weren’t with me tonight, who would you have asked?”

“I danced with Leah last year. As friends, of course.” He said.

“So you’re not, like, interested in anyone here?”

“My, my, Y/N. You sure are interested in whether or not I want to marry, and who I am interested in.” He teased. 

“Okay, nevermind then.”

“Well what about you? If I hadn't asked, who would you dance with?”

You scanned the festival, considering everyone. Harvey would’ve been a good date. You would’ve had fun with Sam or Abby. “It honestly doesn’t matter. I’m having a great time with you.” You said honestly. Elliot made you feel safe and comfortable, which was a nice change from the nervousness you frequently experienced.

“I appreciate that, Y/N.” He said. 

You took another look at the dancing crowd. You saw Sam, who was now swinging around a hysterically laughing Abby. Haley and Alex were gyrating to the music. Penny, Maru and Harvey were jumping up and down in a small circle. 

Leah was dancing on her own. She was dancing wildly to the music, taking sips of the punch every few seconds. How much has she had to drink? You thought. 

You kept scanning. Sebastian wasn’t dancing anymore. You locked eyes with him from across the festival grounds, and he started heading your way. 

You swallowed the lump in your throat as you pretended not to notice Sebastian getting closer and closer to you and Elliot. 

“Did you see Pierre’s shop?” You said quickly, trying to make conversation to avoid Sebastian. 

“You two look cozy.” Sebastian said in a monotone voice. 

“Well, it’s a lovely day, and we’re having a lovely time.” Elliot smiled politely, putting his hand on your knee protectively. Your heart lurched, and darted from Elliot’s hand to Sebastian’s face. Sebastian was staring at Elliot’s hand blankly. He flicked his dark eyes back into yours. 

“I was surprised you didn’t come with Sam, you know.” Sebastian said. “You know how much he wanted to ask you, right?” 

“Stop it.” You said in a hushed voice. He’s just trying to psyche out Elliot, you thought. He’s as manipulative as ever. 

“I just think it’s interesting. I wouldn’t want Sam to think you’re leading him on…” 

“This hardly seems like an appropriate conversation for this moment.” Elliot interrupted him in a firm voice. 

Sebastian stared blankly at Elliot, and then rolled his eyes. “Whatever. By the way, your friend is super drunk.” 

“Who?” Elliot asked. 

Sebastian gestured over to Leah, who was still dancing wildly. “She probably needs someone to take her home.” 

“Elliot, come on, let’s go help her.” You said, standing up and taking Elliot’s hand. 

“Nonsense, Y/N. You stay and enjoy the festival. I’ll be back as soon as I can, okay?” 

“No, I’ll come.” You said. 

“Really, Y/N. Leah can be a lot when she’s like this. Allow me to be chivalrous for you, okay?” 

You sighed. If only Elliot wasn’t so nice. “Okay.” You said. 

Elliot trodded off towards Leah, gently coaxing her to the side of the grounds. You and Sebastian stood in awkward silence for a moment.  

“Seriously, Sebastian?” You asked. 

“Now that you’re free… do you want to dance with me?” He said. 

You scoffed. 

“Leah really did need help there.” Sebastian said. “Your date isn’t here, and I doubt he would mind.” 

“You’re unbelievable.” 

“Come on. Just one dance.” Sebastian said, stretching his hand out to you. 

You didn’t know why you agreed. Maybe it was because Elliot was already out of sight. Maybe it was because the way Sebastian was looking at you made your heart pound. But you reluctantly grabbed his hand, and he led you onto the dance floor. 

He wrapped one arm around your waist. You put one hand on his shoulder, keeping a good distance between the two of you. As you danced, the sun was setting behind the distant mountain. Sebastian used his arm around your waist as leverage, and pushed you closer to him. 

As you danced, you looked around. Jodi, Caroline, and Robin were looking at you and Sebastian and whispering furiously. 

Sam was off to the side with Abby,  and you noticed Sam looking in your direction and tapping Abby on the shoulder to look. 

Maru was gazing at you evenly, and she leaned over to Penny to whisper something in her ear. 

It was non stop. Everyone you looked at seemed to be whispering, except Gus and Harvey, who were chatting amiably. 

“Hey.” Sebastian said, putting his hand on the side of your face and directing it back to look at him. “Don’t worry about anyone else.” 

“They’re all whispering. I should just go sit back down…” you said, your eyes drifting towards the grass. You felt a bubble of shame rise up in your chest. “I came here with Elliot.”

“But it wasn’t a date.” Sebastian said, gripping your waist a little tighter. “Now, if it was me you had gone with, I would be clear about my intentions.” 

“Yeah? And what are those?” You asked, looking into his deep brown eyes. 

Sebastian leaned forward so his lips were just hovering over your ear. You took in a deep breath of his scented cologne, and grew nervous as you could feel him breathing into your ear before he whispered  “I would tell you you’re an amazing girl, and that I wanted you all to myself. ” He leaned back, staring at you with a smirk.

“Sebastian.” Sam’s firm voice came from behind you, making you jump. 

“Sam.” Sebastian responded, clearly sounding proud. 

You let go of Sebastian, and looked up at Sam. His fists were balled beside him, making the veins in his hands pop out. Underneath his white shirt, you could see his thick muscles tensing. Even his usually jovial facial expression was gone, instead replaced with a hardened jaw and hard blue eyes. 

“Are you okay?” You asked. 

“Y/N, can you give Sebastian and I a minute?” Sam said. 

“Sure…” You quickly walked away, and scanned the crowd to find a friend. Anyone. You spotted a cloud of purple, and made a beeline for that direction. “Abby…” you called, grabbing onto her arm. 

“Sam’s mad, Y/N. Not at you, but at Sebastian.” Abby said, wrapping her arm around your shoulders. 

You turned back to look at the wide open grass. Sam and Sebastian were standing in the middle of it, clearly fighting. Sam was whispering angrily to Sebastian, and Sebastian threw his hands up in exasperation. 

At this point, everyone was openly staring. Everyone was off the dance floor, and they weren’t trying to hide their interest in the growing conflict. Even Lewis was watching, eyes wide open, arms crossed. 

On the other side of them, you saw Maru bravely walk up to them and say something. Sebastian raised his hand and gestured for her to leave. She walked away, dejected.

Adding to the growing conflict, Elliot wandered back into the festival ground. You saw him scan the crowd worriedly, and when he located you he rushed over. 

“What’s going on, Y/N?!” He asked. 

“Sebastian asked me for one dance, and Sam got angry.” 

“Oh.” Elliot said, hardening his face. “A friendly dance?” 

“Yes.” You lied. 

“Perhaps I should try and help…”

“I think that’s a horrible idea.” Abby said. 

“They are acting like children, and upsetting my date. I will go speak with them.” Elliot decided. He walked off briskly towards them. You nervously turned to the whispering group of women, who seemed delighted and shocked that Elliot was getting involved. 

Elliot walked towards them, palms up, identifying himself as an agent of peace. 

“Fuck off!” You heard Sebastian scream. 

Elliot said something in response, but he was too far away for you to hear. 

Sam gestured at Elliot and then at Sam, speaking frantically. Elliot said something else, gesturing around, and Sebastian paused and took a scan of the crowd, his brown eyes lingering on you. He sighed, and walked away. 

As he huffed off to the archway, Sam clapped Elliot on the back as thanks, and Elliot just nodded politely. 

Pretty quickly, people lost interest, and started chatting amongst their groups again. Elliot sauntered back over to you and smiled. “No issue anymore.” He explained. 

“You’re amazing.” You sighed. 

“Not compared to you.”

Elliot and you had more fun in the evening, chatting and laughing with Gus. Eventually, the sun set, and most of the older townspeople were packing up to go. Elliot stifled a yawn. 

“Are you tired?” You asked. 

“A little, but I have no problem staying as long as you wish.”

You looked over to Abby, Sam, Penny, and Maru, who were all chatting and laughing happily. On the other side of the field was Shane with Gus, who were eating the remnants of the food.  “I’ll be okay.”

“Are you sure? I at least want to make sure you make it home.”

“That’s okay. Abby can walk me.. You’ve done so much for me today, why don’t you get some rest?” 

“If you insist.” Elliot said, yawning again. “Well, thank you for an incredible evening.” Elliot said, raising your hand to his lips and giving it a quick kiss. “Until next time.” 

“Night, Elliot.” You giggled.  

As soon as he left, you wandered over to your friends.