On the dance floor
A blast of air conditioning hit me as I was reluctantly let in by the burly bouncer. Immediately, I felt drawn toward the dance floor. I could taste the raw energy drawing me in, the scent of citrusy alcohol and musty cigarettes enveloping me as I blended into the throng of people grinding against one another.
The hall itself was huge, with the LED glass dance floor sectioned into multicoloured neon squares that lit up depending on the intensity with which one danced on them. The lights continually flashed in different colours, in sync with the symphony now floating across the room.
A purple hue washed over the crowd as the floor vibrated with the intensity of the music blasting from the speakers. People moved in time with the pulsating beats, their heads bobbing aggressively, eyes shut as if in a collective trance. I felt the music inside me as the DJ sped up the music, building to a crescendo, before letting the beats run wild. The crowd cheered and started bouncing in time with the new pattern. I caught brief glimpses of the crowd as the neon lights randomly illuminated bits of the room. A girl in a shimmery dress that rode up her thighs swayed with her friend in an equally flattering sequined jumpsuit.
My ribs reverberated with the weight of the beats, and yet I felt as if I was made of air, the movements came naturally and soon I was synchronized with the rest of the people around me. I felt a multitude of sensations all at once, skin slick with sweat, rubbing up against my upraised arms, the silky touch of luscious silk dresses and the slight abrasion of cheap synthetic suits. I spotted a man a few feet away from me, by the bar, dancing like nobody was watching, but of course, everyone in his proximity was. He moved effortlessly, with a serenity and grace I could only dream of.
I made a beeline for the bar and reached just in time to watch the bartender light a row of tequila shots on fire. Blue fire. The group that the tequila was meant for shrieked their approval, throwing their heads back and swallowing the shot in one go as the fire magically disappeared before the glasses reached their lips. I looked around and spotted a couple in the middle of the dance floor, lost in the throes of passion, unabashedly kissing while moving to the beats of the music. A metre away, a girl danced in a circle of friends swaying her hips side to side while bending back lower and lower, her arms linked with the friend opposite her, their knees touching as she mirrored her motions. She laughed in exhilaration as she stood upright again and her friends cheered and applauded her performance.
The actual floor was barely visible under the people packed wall to wall, and yet somehow more kept joining in, easily melting into the mass. Their Skin glistened with sweat, not entirely their own and glitter clung on like skin to bones. Bones that no one seemed to have that night as their bodies surrendered to the rhythm of the music, liquified by the hypnotic beats, Their dancing fluid and smooth- adapting to accommodate the countless bodies.
