Dare to Dance

Chapter 7

Chapter 7

The week was going so well. The island was gorgeous, the people were wonderful to us, and there was so much to do. When we weren’t spending all day tucked away in the condo, we were playing in the crystal clear water on the white sand beach or hiking through the beautiful luscious forest surrounding us. There were so many brightly colored plants and birds, it was like a whole other world. Like something you would see in a movie, never in real life. There was never a dull moment, even if we just hung out inside all day. We watched countless movies, spent hours talking, just being together and it was probably the best part of the whole trip. That incredible feeling of being wrapped in each others’ arms, laughing over nothing and just being close, being together never ceased to amaze or surprise me. I never expected it to last this long, but I was so thankful it had. The distance had just made us stronger and for that I was eternally grateful. Then, at the end of the fifth day in this paradise, everything was turned upside down.

We were down at the beach, the sun setting over the horizon cast an orange glow throughout the water and created the perfect temperature in the waves and on the sand. Niall had been chasing me around, tossing me over his shoulder and threatening to throw me in the water. I would kick and screen, willingly free of his grip and running away only for the cycle to repeat itself. Everything was perfect, until I decided to be an idiot.

“Hey Ni!” I shouted when I saw the overturned boat hidden amongst some drift wood. It had a white bottom, but that was all I could tell. It appeared to be just some discarded fishing boat, nothing of interest unless you happened to be me. “Do you remember when I did the flip off the table for I Want?”

He caught wind of what I was getting at before I could even explain and immediately started shaking his head. “Kora, please don’t. I don’t think that’s a good idea. You know what happened last time…” His voice was cautious, reminding me off the fall.

Flashbacks coursed through my head: launching myself off the edge of the table, landing at just the right angle to tear my Achilles. Niall had carried me off the stage and stayed with me the entire time I was in the hospital. My injury canceled a whole One Direction concert; I still felt guilt from that. They never did tell me if they resolved that issue. I hoped those girls got another concert, they deserved it for my idiocy.

Yet here I was wanting to attempt it again.

I gave Niall my biggest grin as I hopped onto the upside down boat. “That was a once in a lifetime occurrence, Niall. It won’t happen again. Plus, this sand is so soft it probably couldn’t hurt me.

His eyes were reserved, blocking any emotion from appearing in them. Usually they were literal mirrors to his thoughts, but with this lack of expression I wasn’t sure of anything. I didn’t know if I could persuade him. “Red, I really don’t…”

I reached out toward him. “Trust me, okay? If it’ll make you feel better, hold my hand. I can do a test run.”

He seemed doubtful but stepped forward to take my hand. “One thing goes wrong and no more, got it?”

I rolled my eyes at his concern. “What are you, my dad? Gee, Niall. It’s fine.”

“Kora, I’m serious.” His mouth was set in a stern line, an unusual difference from his usual smile.

“I get that, but trust me. I’m a professional. Just hold my hand for the first go, alright?”

He gritted his teeth, his jaw clenched tight, but nodded once.

I grinned at him, before taking a deep breath and focusing on my task at hand. I focused on the end of the boat and squeezed Niall’s hand, then I did it. I ran two steps then propelled my body forward, my legs pitching over my head as I flipped and I landed perfectly: knees bent, feet in line beneath me. Nothing bad happened at all.

I spun around and beamed at Niall. “See! Did you see that!”

He was shaking his head again, but this time he had a smirk plastered on his face. He laughed at my enthusiasm when I threw my arms around his neck. “I saw, I saw! Yes, you did it. I was wrong, I know.”

“I have to try it by myself now!” Before Niall could stop me, I was hopping back up on the boat and running to do my ariel again. This time I ran to the complete opposite end of the boat to get a better start.

With Niall cheering me on, I took off running and leapt into the air. But this time didn’t go as well.

A second before I landed, I realized it was going to be wrong. My leg wasn’t under me correctly, I was leaning too far to the left. The bone chilling snap the radiated through my body when my foot made contact with a patch of compact sand was enough in itself to make me cry out. The pain that followed had me clutching my ankle and rolling around on the sand, beating my fist against the grains.

“Kora!” Niall was yelling. I hadn’t noticed him rush to my side. “Kora! What happened? What do you need?”

Between the gasps of pain and the hot, angry tears rushing down my cheeks I managed to choke out that it was my bad foot and something snapped. Niall scooped me into his arms instantly, cradling me to his chest as he took off running down the beach. He kept saying he was going to get me help and I was going to be okay.

Something was different this time, though. I could feel it. It was worse. I knew it in my heart: it was worse and I had done something more serious to my foot. I wanted to punch myself. How could I be so stupid, so careless? Ariels are dangerous enough on solid surfaces, much less loose sand with an already weak ankle. I could have ruined my career.

Oh God.

What if I did?

Hello, Seashells!

First off: I'm sorry this is a really short chapter! I had a really long author's note I wanted to include, so I figured it kinda evened out, ya know? But then I kinda forgot everything I wanted to say, so yeah...

Question time: What is your current favorite tv show? Mine is American Horror Story. I started it Wednesday and finished season one today and am already two episodes into season two. I LOVE IT SO FREAKING MUCH IT HURTS OKAY

Let me know what you think of the chapter below!

xx Shel

Dedicated to InkPotFaery because her idea inspired this chapter! :)