The dance has been set up on the side lawn, a large open space surrounded by trees. A wide dance floor has been created in the middle of it, and a band is raised on a small stage made of plywood. Two trumpeters stand toward the back of the stage. A saxophone player and a clarinetist sit in front of them on wooden folding chairs. There’s a man holding a stand-up bass, while a blond woman in a tight dress sings into a microphone. She’s belting out a fast song, about bugle boys in Company B, and she twists her hips and hands as she sings.
“What is this song?” I ask.
Mary gives me a strange look. “‘Boogie Woogie Bugle Boy.’ Everyone knows that, Lyd.”
Wooden poles with hanging glass lanterns surround the dance floor. As we get closer, I realize that they’re actually large mason jars with candles inside. The makeshift lanterns swing from side to side in the breeze. More jars are scattered around the lawn, dangling from nearby trees or tucked into the grass.
We walk across the lawn. The dance floor is already packed with couples, some pressed close, oblivious to the music, most twisting and turning to the fast beat of the song, their legs kicking to the sides, their arms tight around each other. The men lead, twirling the women in circles, whipping them to the sides and then back, sometimes lifting them up in the air, so high their skirts fly in different directions. I pause, taking it all in. I’ve never seen anything like this, never been to a dance that didn’t have a DJ playing overproduced techno. This is different, strange … magical.
Mary sees me standing still, a little dazed, and she grabs my arm and yanks me to the edge of the dance floor, where wooden folding chairs have been set up on one side. She pulls off her jacket, throwing it onto a nearby chair. “Let’s get a drink first!” she shouts over the music. Susie nods and we follow Mary toward a refreshment table. Mary picks up a glass of pink punch, sipping it as she sways from side to side.
“Hi,” a boy shouts into her ear, smiling. He’s on the short side, with brownish hair and kind of a square head. He’s wearing a white navy uniform. “You’re a real blackout girl.” Mary giggles. “Let’s dance.” He grabs her hand and pulls her into the crowd. She has just enough time to shove her drink in my direction and give us a playful shrug before she’s swallowed up in the sea of dancers.
“Are you going to dance too?” I ask Susie as the song changes. It’s slower, but still swingy and loose.
“Of course she is,” a male voice says, his arm swooping in and pulling Susie forward. It’s Mick, her fiancé. Apparently he didn’t have to work tonight. He sweeps her out onto the floor.
“Hey, sugar, are you rationed?” A nearby sailor asks me.
“I don’t know.” I take a sip of the sugary punch. I’m pretty sure there’s rum in it. “What does it mean?”
I feel someone beside me, and I look up to see Lucas standing near my shoulder. He’s glaring at the soldier. “Scram,” he says.
“Looks like you are, honey.” The sailor winks at me and turns to join his buddies.
I face Lucas. He gives me an appraising look, taking in my slinky dress, my curls. His eyes linger on my dark red lips.
I fidget under his gaze. So much has happened since I last saw him: I discovered that Mary is his future bride. I started to realize my feelings for Wes. I’m not sure how to act around Lucas now.
“Do you want to dance?” he asks.
I look out at the couples, at the swingy steps they all seem to know by heart.
“I don’t really know how to dance like that.”
“The jitterbug?” He points to a couple moving their arms and legs in quick, bouncing steps.
“Or any of it.”
“Hmm.” He leans forward. “Some of that Lindy hopping might be a bit hard, but we can certainly teach you how to swing. You do know the triple step, right?”
I shake my head.
“It’s real easy.” He holds out a hand. I hesitate for a second, but then I take it. Lucas and I are friends, and he’s never given me any real indication that he wants more. We can certainly share a harmless dance. “Just follow my lead.”
He pulls me onto the dance floor. We’re surrounded by sweating, bouncing couples. Someone bumps into me and we’re pushed closer together. The music is loud, the woman’s voice high and staccato.
“Put your arm on my shoulder,” Lucas says. “And give me your other hand.” I close my fingers around his. “Step forward as I step back. Then back as I step forward.” We complete the short movements.
“Now to the side, and then in a circle.” He guides me with a hand on my back, and my body moves with his. We turn in a circle, not quite as fast as the other couples, but I’m not tripping over myself either. He steps me backward, then spins me around, catching me as I twirl into him.
“See? Easy.” He smiles, holding me against his chest.
“Easy,” I repeat, grinning back.
There’s a tap on my shoulder. It’s Mary, standing with her partner.
“Time to switch!”
Lucas opens his mouth to say something, then pauses, glancing from me to Mary. “Of course. Let’s dance, Mary.”
I step away from Lucas and take the square-headed soldier’s outstretched hand. He’s not much taller than I am, and his palms are slick. I almost trip as he twirls me, pulling me forward roughly. When the song comes to an end, I quickly escape back to the refreshment table.
I pick up my
