First of all, listen to this song (it appears later on in the chapter):

Carson

I took a steadying breath at the front door of Melody's house, trying to hide my nerves. I had already met Margot, but the thought of meeting Melody's dad was intimidating. Margot was horrible to Melody, so her opinion didn't matter much to me, but her father was one half of her. Though she didn't say it, I felt like she wanted him to notice her and be proud of her.

I knocked on the door and it quickly opened, revealing Melody in a floor length dress. It was champagne coloured and had a low neckline. It was tasteful yet flirty enough to make my eyes almost fall out of my head.

The chilly breeze that blew towards the house ruffled the loose material of the skirt part of her dress. Her hair, done in big waves, framed her face nicely. Melody's perfect skin seemed to glow as her green eyes watched me. They looked darker somehow, as they seemed to hold me into place. I only managed to find my voice when she whispered a greeting.

"You are breathtaking," I told her, watching pink colour her cheeks.

"I-I – thank you," Melody mumbled, looking away. I knew she didn't believe me, but it was true, and I wanted her to hear it anyway. "You look handsome," she added.

"Are you going to invite him in? Or let us all freeze with the door open?" Mia called, making Melody frown, which made me smile. Mia was a little annoying, but Melody's pouty face was cute. I stepped inside as Melody introduced me to her stepfamily once again and then to her father, Robert. I saw a little bit of a resemblance with him and Melody. She had his nose and his chin, but from the picture I saw of her mother in her room, everything else was from her mom. I wondered how much that bothered Margot.

"Nice to finally meet you sir," I said with an outstretched hand.

"Likewise," Robert replied, shaking my hand firmly.

After thanking the family for including me in their evening, we went outside to the limo where I helped Melody in after her family.

***

The banquet hall was spacious and well prepared for the large amount of people that Margot and her friends Grace and Amelia had planned for. After an uncomfortable conversation with them and watching Margot subtly try to pull the spotlight away from Melody, we went to get some drinks from the open bar. A soda for me and iced water for her, we stood by the table we would be sitting at observing people as they entered the ballroom.

"So, what's the whole purpose of hosting this banquet?" I asked quietly.

"Margot, Amelia and Grace do it every year to raise money for books and school supplies for underprivileged schools. It's all Grace's idea – she's the only one with a bit of a conscience – but the rich people in this town play along because it looks good," Melody said.

"Ahh, and it's a tax write off," I added making her laugh.

"You're almost as salty as I am," Melody cooed with a smirk.

"We're meant for each other," I laughed. I felt my cheeks heat slightly and I quickly took a sip of my soda. "Looking forward to the holiday break?" I asked before Melody could confirm or deny that offhanded statement that was way more loaded than I had meant it to be.

"I guess so... no school," Melody said looking away. "What about you?"

"I'm excited. You and I are going to do lots of fun winter things this break," I smiled, taking her hand in mine.

"We are?" she asked, a small smile resting on her lips as she squeezed my hand softly.

"Of course, Mellie! I have a couple days planned," I said, making her smile grow a little wider.

"Okay," she murmured as an emcee made his way up onto stage in a tuxedo. He straightened his bowtie and then cleared his throat.

"If everyone could take their seats," he said. "I'm Rick and I'm going to be your emcee for the night..."

I didn't really listen as he spoke, introducing the night and reiterating the charitable cause to the people who didn't already know about it. Margot and her two friends along with a couple others went up to make short speeches as the first course of the evening was served. Vegetable soup.

There was a live band playing music in the background while people dined. While I tried not to be obvious about it, I did observe Melody and her family as we all sat around the table. Margot chatted with Mia and Amelia who sat at our table with her husband and daughter. Robert spoke to Amelia's husband and everyone seemed to ignore Melody. She stirred the soup as if she was really interested in it, but I knew that she simply had no interest in being here or eating the soup. Still, she forced a little into her mouth, by taking a big spoonful and only sipping a little of it.

When the soup bowls were taken away, another speech took place on stage by a representative of the charity being donated to. I took Melody's hand under the table and gave it a soft squeeze as a salad was placed in front of each of us. She let go of my hand and picked up her fork delicately and pushed the salad around a little. I had a couple bites before Robert turned to me.

"So, Carson, how are you enjoying the night?" he asked.

"It's really nice so far, thank you sir," I replied.

"Good to hear. Are you doing well in school?" he asked.

"Of course, sir," I said with a smile.

"Carson's on the basketball team, Dad," Melody said quietly.

"Captain?" Robert asked, and I nodded, which made him smile.

"Yeah, everyone at Alcott is obsessed with him," Mia chimed in.

"That's pretty neat," Oliver, Amelia's husband added. "What position?"

"Power forward," I replied.

"That's impressive," Oliver said.

"Yes, you know Oliver played Centre in college," Amelia joined in. The couple then began telling stories of their college days. While I was intrigued by Oliver's basketball life, I wondered if Robert was going to jump in and ask me more questions. I didn't love being put on the spot, but I wanted Melody's father to get to know me, and he couldn't do that if Margot's friends spent the night talking about themselves.

They served the third course next, a plate of penne pasta, and Melody's hand shook slightly as she picked up her fork. I noticed throughout the courses that, occasionally, Margot would send a pointed look towards Melody, who would then take another bite of whatever was in front of her, even if she was at her limit. Robert and Oliver went to get another drink as the waiting staff removed the pasta from the tables.

"She likes to waste food huh?" Amelia whispered to Margot loudly, noticing Melody's half eaten plate being taking away. It wasn't loud enough for people around us to hear but it wasn't her place to say anything.

"It's quite impolite, I tell her all the time to take small bites and not look like a pig, but she still has to finish it. We can't have people thinking the food isn't good," Margot sighed.

I glanced at Melody, who was staring at the band. Her jaw was clenched, and she drummed her fingers against the table to the rhythm they were playing. While it seemed like fairly normal behaviour, I could see her eyes glistening with unshed tears. She blinked them away quickly and sipped her glass of water.

The last course came, a plate of grilled chicken, steamed vegetables, and mashed potatoes. I watched as Melody's small shoulders dropped slightly, as she saw the amount of food in her plate and the defeated look that crossed her face before she sat up straight and placed a pleasant expression on her face.

"So, you said your sister was coming home for the holidays?" Melody asked quietly, a small smile forced onto her lips as poked a steamed carrot. I cut into my chicken and nodded.

"Yeah, Chloe's last exam is tomorrow morning and then she'll come home," I replied. Hoping to distract her further, I added, "She's a lot like my mom in some ways... I think you two will get along really well."

"I hope so," Melody said, shovelling a piece of chicken and some mashed potatoes onto her fork. She glanced over at Margot who nodded slightly, and Melody sighed before pushing the food into her mouth.

Robert and Oliver came back, and they were pulled into a conversation with their wives as they ate their meals. Robert asked me a couple more random questions before the floor was opened up for everyone to dance on. A few people made their way onto the dance floor, but some people stayed to get some of the dessert being served.

I turned to Melody. "Let's dance."

"What?" Her eyes widened.

"Let's dance," I repeated. I wanted to make her forget about dinner and enjoy some of this banquet.

"Okay," she whispered.

We stood up and I took her hand in mine as we walked over to the dance floor. The band began playing an instrumental version of a Bon Iver song called Flume. I put a hand on her waist and started moving to the rhythm of the music.

"By the way, you're leading because I can't dance," Melody mumbled.

"Well, thank God for those secret ballroom lessons," I grinned as we swayed.

"Carson White!" Melody chuckled. "I never would have known."

"Blame your pal Harper," I laughed, dipping her. She giggled as her curls almost met the floor before she was upright once again.

"Fancy," she teased.

"You haven't seen fancy yet," I smirked as we danced to the soft music a little more. I spun her and smiled as Melody's dress glittered in the light that pointed towards the dance floor. The light hit her cheeks making her skin glow ever so slightly and she smiled softly at me as she rested a hand on my shoulder. She looked ethereal, too beautiful for this planet.

The song ended and applause erupted around the room. Melody and I looked around and realized that everyone was watching us, despite the open invitation to the dance floor. I also noticed Melody's family. Her father smiled but Margot's eyes were narrow as she watched Melody soak up the attention.

"They were all watching us?" Melody whispered.

"They were all watching you. You look beautiful," I told her as we left the dance floor. Melody smiled genuinely but didn't reply to the compliment. As we made our way to the table, Margot mumbled quietly to Melody as we passed her.

Melody's smile faded and it made me sad the way Margot constantly crushed Melody's spirits. However, she didn't respond. She simply stood up taller as a lady approached us, and I hoped that Margot wouldn't completely dim the light in her. 

_______________

Author's Note: Yay! Carson's point of view! And a long chapter! I'm shocked that it reached 1830 words but I had fun writing it! I hope you enjoyed reading it!  Let me know what you think by commenting! Thank you all for 34K + reads! And special shout out to emelylora13 for voting and commenting!

Don't forget to vote and let me know what you think might happen next! ;)