Aerial

The Fifth Chapter

"Higher!"

There are a couple mysteries that you still have yet to uncover from the two and a half weeks that you've been diligently training and practicing for the circus. One – any and everything about Harry, including what lies below his hardened exterior, what his personal life looks like outside of this theatre, why he's yet to accept the reality of a closeness outside of your working relationship and why there is such a stark contrast between his treatment of you versus his treatment of every other person.

Two – where the phantom breeze is coming from in your dressing room that extinguishes your favorite juicy, cherry-scented candles. Typically you light them before taking a shower because you enjoy entering into a sweet smelling room after bathing, but the flame is always choked by the time you step out of the bathroom. Not only does it happen when you're not looking, but you swear the fire has blotted out right in front of your eyes on more than one occasion and you've actually considered asking around to see if anyone else is having ghostly experiences.

At first you were worried about creating connections with your coworkers considering how difficult it's been with Harry, but it seems to have come pretty easily for you so long as you avoid Harry's quite extensive circle of friends. Luckily you've made acquaintances with some ballet dancers, choosing to do gentle warm-ups and partake in enjoyable conversation with them each morning before having to face your trapeze partner. He's militant and unrelenting in his training methods, demanding at least an hour of calisthenics before moving on to anything circus, gymnastics or dance-related; push ups, sit ups, pull ups, leg lifts, jumping jacks, jumping rope, weight lifting and jogging in place just to name a few.

No matter what the exercise is, Harry can do twice as many repetitions as you can in about half the time. At first you had thought that maybe he was showing off, but the more you get the know him, the more it seems as though he is pushing himself to beat his own record each day. He is seemingly in constant competition with himself to prove something; to prove that he is in control and constantly developing, that he is a better version of himself than he was yesterday. That if he keeps moving forward and striving for greatness, he could never possibly be bored or lonely. That if he always has a goal that he is striving for, he could never be considered a failure.

Three days ago, he finally deemed you ready for practicing on trapeze. On day one, you started off with simple trust falls on the ground. Since then you've been doing about a dozen trust falls each day to remind the both of you that you are capable, you are reliable, you are strong. You are working partners and the proof is in the fall and the catch. You had been worried about the level of required professional, physical intimacy that comes along with this line of work, but Harry has proved himself to be nothing sort of virtuous. His values are in place and he's shockingly competent and honorable, if only he could loosen up a bit and crack a smile when he's within fifty feet of your presence.

On day two, you began by swinging side-by-side first, before quickly moving on to swinging alone. Harry strapped you into a harness and followed behind you as you climbed the rope ladder high up into the air, noticing the tremble in your hands when you looked down and saw just how far up you were. You'd had a substantial amount of practice in the few aerial courses you took in college, but nothing was quite this elevated or grand. He ignored the fear that you struggled to hide, gripping the fly bar and encouraging you to join him before counting down from three and pushing off of the platform with your hips, legs and arms pressed up against one another.

The initial feeling of soaring through the air was exquisite. You'd always loved the notion of playground swings and carnival rides as a child, but the sensation of being this alpine and liberated was unmatched and incomparable. Your stomach flipped and flipped as you moved forward and backward, pumping your legs to propel the motion into an even more exaggerated swing. With swinging comes falling, so right away Harry wanted you to get used to the innervation of letting go and dropping into the safety net. He did it along with you each time, helping to solidify the faith that you had in him as a reliable partner as well as building an alliance around any apprehension you may have had regarding physical safety. Once you both felt comfortable in your expertise, he pushed you to do it on your own and ever since your first solo swing and drop, you've become an addict for the air and each firework that comes along with it.