The Innkeeper

Chapter 1811: Dancing in the hills

Silence hung in the air as not everyone had recovered from the display they had seen, but as the group finally rose up from their bow, the crowd burst into a thunderous applause. Lex, too, stood up from his seat and gave his heartfelt applause, even though he already knew what the performance was going to include.

Knowing beforehand, and actually experiencing were two entirely different things. Without any bias or favoritism, Lex could genuinely say that he enjoyed their performance tremendously.

That wasn’t to say that the Salsa Boys had performed poorly. Its reinvigorating effects were genuine, and genuinely impressive as well. But if Lex had to sum it up, he’d say it was a simple ’feel good’ performance. There was nothing wrong with that – it was a classic, and people always loved it. But the performance of the Inn was something special – it touched upon something that, no doubt, many people would be able to understand and resonate with.

It had a deeper meaning, and was more of an artistic expression. It was a bit of a risk, but that was a part of the plan as well. Compared to the couples dance, as well as the solo, for both of which they had managed to get some unexpected participants, the group dance was more to test out the waters and see what kind of voting feedback that everyone got.

Now that both performances were over, and took a total of one hour, the next session would take place in three to four hours.

“Good luck with the vote, guys. I’m going to go practice for my upcoming round,” said Lex as he got up.

Z, who was walking off stage, could not help but secretly roll his eyes. Yes, practice. He was sure that Lex was some kind of secret dance prodigy as well. There existed nothing he wasn’t great at, so why should this be any different?

Lex glanced at the chameleon who was standing on the side, observing everything without a word, and then just left.

When he entered his practice room, he found that his partner was already in there, choreographing their performance.

“You know, I never would have guessed you would be so passionate about dancing?” Lex said as he took off his coat and rolled up his sleeves.

His partner raised a single eyebrow, as if he had said the most ridiculous thing ever.

“I am the Inns dedicated wedding planner, and I regularly deal with wedding, prewedding and postwedding parties. It never occurred to you that I might have an affinity for dancing?” she asked curiously.

“You know, I just never thought about it,” said Lex as he removed his tie and got into position. “But, it’s good to know that I’m working with an expert. So, where do we begin?”

His partner shook her head.

“Well, I’ll judge the final sequence based on how well you perform in practice, but I don’t have high expectations. So what you mainly need to focus on is supporting my performance and using your expertise to enhance the effects of the dance. I’ve constantly been told you’re very powerful so now’s your chance to prove it. The bigger the better, there’s no such thing as overdoing it when it comes to dancing.”

Lex smiled weakly.

“I hope so…” he murmured underneath his breath, and then began the practice session.

The hours slipped by like a fat man going down a waterslide – meaning to say, it went by too fast and the splash was a lot bigger than they were prepared for.

“You… are not such a bad dancer yourself,” his partner said to him when he finished his last rehearsal.

“Thanks,” said Lex.

The duo got changed and prepared for their performance. The results for the group round were already out, and the Salsa Boys won with 55% of the votes!

It was a disappointing, and quite frankly a controversial result, but there was no helping it. The Salsa Boys did a good job, and they had starpower to make up for any gaps in their performance.

Millions of loyal fans who voted in loyalty gave the Salsa Boys an unfair advantage, but then again all was fair in love and war, and dance off could be called a bit of both.

Still, despite the unfavorable result, Lex was not pressured. While they were practicing, the Cold Brood Empire had already done their duo performance, once again with a couple of celebrities. They also performed very well. The thing, though, was that they weren’t the only ones with starpower.

While he wouldn’t go to the extent of calling himself a celebrity, Lex himself had somewhat of a following. Whether it was from everyone who had gone after his bounty, the ones who saw him on Love Island, the ones who saw his performance during the war, the ones who saw him in the Champions tourney, or the ones who knew him as a worker at the Inn, it all boiled down to the fact that he too had some presence.

Lex changed his attire, putting dark pants, a light pink shirt, a red tie and a waistcoat that matched his pants. At the same time, he also had a red rose held between his teeth by the stem. It was a bit much, in his opinion. Unfortunately, this was the kind of stuff that people liked, and to win… they had to give the people what they wanted.

The curtain opened and a soft yet sensational music started, tingling the senses of all those who heard it, making them want to stand and move. Two spotlights shone on the stage, one on Lex who was walking confidently, and with eager eyes, from one end of the stage. The rose in his mouth, the music, and the excited energy radiating off his body gave off a powerfully enchanting aura, lighting the fires of countless women who saw him – and some men.

Opposite to him, Ash, also known as Ashwariya, the dedicated wedding planner for the Midnight Inn, sat shyly on stage in a Lehenga Choli, her eyes just barely rising to meet Lex.

SleeplessInASpaceship: OHMYGOD I WANT BOTH THEIR BABIES!!!

AddictedToLove: Oh my word! Is this an announcement? Are they declaring their relationship! I KNEW SOMETHING WAS UP!

AShipShippingOtherShips: Wow, what a way to announce your relationships! I’ll give 50 points to Griffindalace if he proposes to her on stage!

IsMashedPotatoCurry?: What kind of fusion dance is this?

The excitement and hype that prevailed across the Inn was not just because everyone was seeing Lex do something extremely out of character. No, it was as a result of the primary reason Lex was chosen for the couple dance anyway!

Although he did not use such abilities often, Lex boasted exceptional command over spiritual attacks that basically affected the opponents mind. Well, in the dance, he was using his power to the utmost not to attack anyone, but to create a spiritual field so that anyone and everyone who saw him dance had their passions ignited! The red tie and red rose were both triggers, fanning the fires of excitement and anticipation!

But even then, all of that excitement was the mere prologue – the appetizer for what they had in store. After all, if there was one thing Ash had plenty of experience in, it was in stoking the fires of love and imagination! After all, what else was a marriage if not a preamble for the life that lay ahead, and oftentimes a stage where feelings could shine and dance!

Lex finally reached Ash, and the moment he took her hand, helping her to stand, everything changed.

That was not just true for the immense emotions every viewer was feeling – everything literally changed! They were no longer on a stage, surrounded by an audience. No, the whole world, the whole setting changed.

They were on a hill covered in flowers, their vibrant colors truly a vibrant declaration of spring. Lex was dressed in simple clothes, and Ash was in a white sundress with light blue floral patterns. It was just them in the world, and they had nothing else – but they also didn’t need anything else!

The duo moved, their bodies perfectly in sync. They did not press up against one another, or do anything inappropriate. They simply danced like two kids, each move a celebration of life and love and nature.

The cold wind blew, pushing the flower in waves, making even them dance to the rhythm of the couples moves.

They had sunshine, and the wind, they had colors and the open sky, they had the promise of tomorrow, and the pleasure of today. They were kids in love, not just with each other, but with life itself, and as they danced and laughed in joy, the world seemed to laugh with them.

Lex’s moves were not nearly as intricate as Ash’s, but no one seemed to mind because they were filled with purity and sincerity.

Or, at least, that’s what the viewers felt. Lex’s entire role in the dance was to display his power on full, using Domination and his Supremacy, and the full scope of all the power he could wield to capture the feeling of what it was like to be young and in love, and then project that towards the viewers.

Ash, meanwhile, was the one who actually put on a performance.

If the Salsa Boys used the power of a simple ’feel good’ performance, then the two of them were taking that to a whole other level.

For some unknown, inexplicable feeling, a lot of girlfriends became mad with their boyfriends that day, saying something about how they were never taken dancing out in the hills. The poor boyfriends, completely unaware of what had happened and what it even meant to go dancing in the hills, anxiously tried to find the dance hall called ’The Hills’.