His Tiny Dancer [COMPLETED]

XVI

~Monday January 10th~

Like every other school morning, I wake up at six in a room that's still dark because even the sun isn't awake yet, internally groaning as I turn off the standard ringtone blaring from my phone's alarm. I once tried setting a song that I liked as my alarm, but after just a week of waking up to it I learned to hate the sound of that song starting, so I switched it back. I unplug my phone and pull it towards me in my warm bundle of blankets. As I fight to keep my drooping eyelids open, I distract my sleeping brain by checking through my notifications. Among the usual snapchats from the early-risers of my friend group, I am surprised to find a text message from the one and only, the infamous, despicable, notorious, and - most importantly - unpredictable, Noah Thompson, whose contact name I have yet to change from That-hot-guy-who-got-you-a-detention.

"When can you tutor me next?" It's simple, casual, informal - yet mysterious. Why? Because he sent it at freaking two o'clock in the morning. What kind of person would willingly stay up until two in the morning when they would have to get up again just four hours later? Don't get me wrong, I've pulled an all-nighter or two myself - being a night owl - but definitely not on a school night. The latest I've stayed up on a weeknight is probably half past midnight, and even that was only because I was doing school work. Something tells me Noah was not doing homework at two in the morning, but god knows what he was doing.

"How about Wednesday before Melody's class?" As I send my response, I realize this is the first time either of us have acknowledged the fact that I assist Melody's class, or even that she goes to the same studio as me. I'm quite surprised that I was the one to bring it up first, considering how embarrassing I find the whole situation. It's been replaying in my head, haunting me as I try to fall asleep every night. It's safe to say that leotards don't leave anything to the imagination.

After a solid two minutes of drifting in and out of consciousness while staring at my phone screen, I realize that the "delivered" icon isn't going to change to "read." I'm sure he's still asleep, I know I would be too if I had stayed up that late the night before.

Well, it's now or never, I think. While "never" is quite tempting, I put my phone down and rip the cozy and warm covers off of my body and stand up. I stretch and yawn, feeling the joints in my back and neck cracking with the movement, the tenseness from laying still all night fading with the sounds. I begin my morning routine by walking to my bathroom and immediately splashing cold water on my face. Truly the most fun part of my day, but it ensures that when I walk back to my room I won't be as tempted to give in and go back to sleep.

When I do return to my room minutes later I turn on the light, squinting as my still-sleepy eyes adjust to the brightness. I pick out my outfit for the day - a simple purple knit sweater and dark blue skinny jeans. Though it's not my favorite color, I read somewhere that wearing purple is supposed to bring out green eyes, and I trust the internet more than my own sense at choosing outfits that accentuate my features. However, instead of changing now, I decide to stay in my warm pajamas for as long as possible. Instead, I plait my long dark hair in a french braid down the center of my head. When I finish, I move on to makeup. I don't wear a ton, I don't really believe in needing makeup to feel good about myself. So I don't rely on it, but I do enjoy it most of the time. However this morning I will admit that I rely on my concealer to make my face look presentable. Otherwise I would look like an actual zombie, my dark circles standing out against my fair complexion. Even though I got a full eight hours of sleep last night, I still look like I haven't slept in years. This probably also has to do with needing to drink more water, but what's easier - drinking more water and sleeping more, or just blending some concealer under my eyes?

Definitely the concealer.

After that, I begrudgingly change out of my pajamas. Grabbing my backpack and brushing my teeth on the way, I head downstairs to grab a quick breakfast before I drive to school on this chilly Monday morning.