Sera had successfully avoided any encounter between her and Ms. Mills for three weeks now. Every time they were alone in a hallway together or about to run into another, Sera would abruptly turn and walk away. The first dew days she could tell Ms. Mills wanted to call her back, but after that she gave Seraphina the space she desired. Sera had been going to the dance studio four days a week, and she loved every minute of performing again. The only downside was that Olivia seemed to cling on to her much more than a girl in a relationship should. Whenever there was a quiet moment, Olivia was hanging off of Sera. She would laugh at almost everything Sera said and twirl her hair between her fingers. Sera just ignored the advances and tried to stay near Jamie at all times, and thankfully Jamie was still not used to being around the new dancers so she clung to Sera as well.
The studio had a performance coming up in a week, and Sera couldn't wait. They were going to be back up dancers for a band, and the steps were very hard to do, but Sera got the hang of it quickly. They had just finished practice and Sera was standing over her bag drinking some water when the bell above the door chimed. Sera paid no mind to it until she heard the familiar voice ask where Olivia is. Penelope, one of the dancers, told Ms. Mills she was in the bathroom, then they all turned and continued the conversation they were having. Jamie was with them, leaving Sera all alone, which is something she did not want at the moment. She barely heard Ms. Mills footsteps coming up to her until she was right behind her.
"Can we talk for a moment?" Sera looked at Ms. Mills, and could see the pleading look on her face. She was going to say yes when she noticed Olivia walking out of the bathroom on the other side of the studio.
"Now's not a good time." Sera responded whilst staring in Olivia's direction. Regina followed her eye line and realized what she meant.
"How about I call you down to my office tomorrow? Is that a good time?" Sera simply nodded, unable to respond now that Olivia was nearing them.
"Hey guys, what are you two talking about?" The two looked at each other, and Regina decided to respond.
"Oh I was just asking Sera how she's liking being at the studio." Olivia looked at Sera with a smile on her face, believing the lie.
"So how do you like it?"
"It's amazing, I'm so glad to be back in a dance group." Sera couldn't help the smile that slipped onto her face. Dancing was one of Sera's greatest passions.
"You danced in a studio before?" Regina asked, genuinely curious. She hadn't been able to watch a practice yet but from what Olivia told her Sera caught on fast; which Regina just assumed she did with everything she tried.
"Jamie and I danced in a studio for four years together, that's how we became friends. But I had to quit in fifth grade." Regina noticed Sera's eyes darken when saying she quit, so she asked why. Sera didn't want to say her mother refused to take her, so she made up the excuse that she wanted to focus on her studies.
When the conversation died down the three realized they were the only ones left in the studio, so they decided to head home. Sera grabbed her bag and started walking when Olivia called her back. She turned to look at the couple confused, and noticed Ms. Mills had a similar expression.
"Regina could give you a ride if you want, it's incredibly late for you to be walking home now." Sera started to reject their offer but Olivia cut her off. Turning to Regina she asked, "As long as it's okay with you?" Sera looked at Ms. Mills, unsure of what she wanted her to say. Regina was stuck, she knew it would be awkward as all-hell, but the thought of Sera walking home alone this late at night worried her immensely. She didn't want the girl to be on her own, so she swallowed her pride and smiled at the two awaiting women.
