Dancing On The Edge Of A Knife

22. Start

"Hey, where are you going?"

Ester heard and turned back to see Sierra look at her with a raised eyebrow. Their dinner went weird yesterday and she figured they'd take a break from having dinner together. After all, Sierra did not come back from the bathroom, leaving Martha and Ester in confusion for the rest of the night.

"I'm sorry, are you talking to me?" Despite the fact that Sierra's sudden change of mood was confusing, her stunt yesterday also made Ester upset. And when Ester tried calling her multiple times last night, Sierra always just hung up.

"What do you mean?" Sierra frowned, walking up to Ester. By now, the rest of the dance students were gone and Sierra finally acknowledged her friend.
"What I mean? I mean, what happened to you last night? You just left me and you mom." Ester said.

"Yes, I'm sorry. I wasn't feeling well last night. I had a lot to think about. I'm really sorry." Sierra did look apologetic and that was enough for Ester's features to soften.

"You know you can always talk to me. I'm here for you." Ester said, placing an assuring hand on her instructor's shoulder. Sierra nodded and opened her mouth to answer when all of a sudden, the doors to the ballroom opened and a bored looking Devon strolled in.

Ester's breath hitched. It felt like ages since she saw him. And when she remembered their last encounter, she quickly averted her eyes and looked at Sierra in question instead.
"What is he doing here?"

"What is she doing here?" Devon asked at the same time, sounding more curious than furious. Sierra looked between the two and then hid her smile by clearing her throat, making both sets of eyes look at her.

"Well, did you forget about mom's wedding? You ought to start practicing and you're lucky you have me as your instructor and choreographer." Sierra told them. Ester dared to glance at Devon through the mirrors in front of her and she caught him doing the same. They quickly looked away from each other again.

"Now, what are these long faces for? I'm sure it'll be great." Sierra looked right through the awkward tension between her brother and her friend. She had come to the conclusion that whatever happened between Ester and Devon was their business.

She had no right acting the way she did if clearly her brother was intrigued by Ester. And she couldn't even blame him. Her friend had that special fire in her and enough gut to stand up to him. It would actually be cute to see them together, as long as they didn't make out in front of Sierra.

Sierra shook her head away from those thoughts. She was here to actually work with them and they had to start soon. She knew she was going to be the one having to break the ice between them. Just like the very first time Ester arrived.

"Alright folks! Listen up. Here's what I came up with so far." Then Sierra managed to tell the pair her choreography and showed them on youtube what moves she intented to teach them.

"I'm so not doing that." Ester's eyes widened when she watched the youtube video Sierra opened.
"It's just ideas. You don't have to actually open and close your legs like that. But I personally think the lift is great." Sierra rolled her eyes.

"I don't know." Ester murmured, unsure of what to say. Sierra definitely thought way too high of Ester. She wasn't nearly as flexible as the girls in that video. She would never even be able to dance like that in a normal dress. And she was not about to show everybody her underwear during that lift.

"Why? What exactly is bothering you? We should talk about it before we finish the choreography." Sierra asked, tucking her phone back into her purse before standing in front of Ester.

"I mean, I like the idea of being able to dance like that. But I'm not flexible at all and I planned on wearing a dress that would reveal a lot if I did those moves." She voiced her thoughts and Sierra nodded before looking at her brother, who had yet to even tell her his opinion.

"What do you think? Is there anything that bothers you?" She asked Devon, who shrugged.
"Besides Ester's whining, not really." He answered, making Ester glare at him and cross her arms over her chest.

"Easy for you to say. You don't have to spread your legs in the air and swirl around." She scoffed, making Sierra bite her lip in order to refrain from giggling out loud. Devon on the other hand, smirked and had a mischievous spark in his eyes.

"You're exaggerating. It won't be that hard. Before you know it, you'll love spreading your legs for me." Devon said, temporarily forgetting about his sister being in the same room as them. Her mouth had by now fallen agape as she glanced at Ester to see her reaction.

"Jerk." Ester scoffed before kicking his shin. Devon doubled over and held his shin in pain. He should've seen that coming, she always went for his shin. And always the same fucking spot! Devon growled when he straightened his back again to glare down at her.

"What did I tell you about fucking kicking me?" He referred to the time he gave her a ride home and he menacingly told her to never kick him again. Ester blew out a breath before looking the opposite direction of him.

"You shouldn't have said that." She told him, still glancing away.
"It was a joke. But you wouldn't know. You obviously don't have any sense of humour." Devon snapped back at her.

"If they're funny, I do. But that was just- just inappropriate." Ester glared at him now and Sierra decided she'd call it quits before that little conversation escalated. She cleared her throat, earning an annoyed look from Ester and a clenched jaw from Devon.

"Well, let's not fight. We're here to practice. Ester doesn't want to spread her legs like that. I understand, we'll find something equally as interesting. But for now, get into position." Both frowned at her in confusion.

Devon thought his sister only needed help carrying something to her car. He thought it was suspicious that out of all people, she'd call him. Well, now he knew why.

"What are you waiting for? Hop hop." Sierra snapped her fingers and the two reluctantly turned towards each other. With a familiar grunt, Devon offered his hand and Ester took it just as enthusiastically as him.

"Closer." Sierra instructed, making them pull each other even closer as their breaths seemed to exchange at one point. "Good. Start with the basics, we'll add a few moves later. But for now, just concentrate on each other." Sierra smiled secretly when she saw her friend's flushed face.

She wondered why Devon never teased Ester about it and would soon know why when she glanced at him. His own cheeks were flushed and Sierra was proud she didn't pull them apart.

Because even when they act like they just want to slit each other's throats, neither of them can hide their obvious attraction towards the other.

A/N: Thoughts? Do you ship Ester and Devon? Or would you rather like to see Ester and her secret admirer together?

Xoxo.