Friends with Benefits | Joanne

15- Let's Get Physical

"Hey... what time is it?"

Joe's phone had pulled him from his dream. He had gone to hang up but then had realised it was Dianne calling.

"It's time you got up, you lazy git. I'm on my way to the studio."

"Really? It's... it's early." Joe slowly pulled himself up in his bed, propping his back against a pillow. He could hear Dianne walking as he held the phone to his ear. "Where even are you?"

"I am being a good dance partner" Dianne said. "I've finished my yoga class, I've showered and changed and I'm about to get on the tube. I was just calling to offer to buy you a coffee. Dirty Chai Latte?"

Joe smiled. "Yes please. I'll tell you what, I'll meet you at the coffee shop. I'll get ready now."

"Perfect. Right, I'm at the station so my signal's going to go. I'll see you in a bit."

Joe put his phone down on his bed and stretched. He wasn't sure which part of their physical activities was doing the most damage, but his body was feeling the effects.

He wandered over to his wardrobe and quickly selected some clean clothes. Over the last few weeks, he had been living in a rotation of about four outfits and he had quickly developed some favourites. He skipped the shower, rationalizing that it was a waste of time and water since he'd be sweating all day and would need another as soon as he got back home. Pulling on a pair of grey trousers and a green t-shirt, he located a clean pair of socks and a comfy hoodie.

"Comfort is the enemy of fashion" he muttered to himself as he checked his appearance in the mirror. "Vivienne Westwood definitely wasn't wrong about that."

Once he was ready, Joe quickly packed his bag and left his apartment. The production team had scheduled most of their training sessions in a studio around the corner from his flat, which he was grateful for because it meant he could sleep in a little. Across the road, there was a coffee shop which had quickly become part of their morning routine. Whoever got their first (usually Dianne since she had to travel further and was much more of a morning person) would get the drinks in and they would walk from there to the studio together.

///

I arrived at the coffee shop first, as usual. The staff knew our order by now and, as soon as I walked through the door, the barista had begun pouring our drinks.

This week's routine was stressing me out. Joe had struggled to get back into the swing of Latin movement after our American Smooth and I had been trying really hard to get him to focus on the small steps.

Usually, I shied away from using analogies and things when I taught dance. People generally found my way of explaining things confusing, or they would think I was joking and start laughing. Joe was taking me seriously, which I really liked, and he was listening. I hoped it would pay off; he just needed to put his feet in the right places at the right time.

"Hey"

Joe tapped me on the shoulder.

"Morning, sleepyhead. Are you ready?"

Joe ran his hand back through his hair. It was a habit I'd noticed early on. At first, I thought it was a nervous thing but, over time, I'd realised he had no idea he was doing it most of the time.

"Yeah" he said, smiling at me. "I will be once I've got some caffeine in my system."

I picked up the two cups and handed one to Joe. "Coffee makes the world go around" I half-sang.

Joe laughed. "Well, you would say that. I reckon your blood is about 90% coffee".

"What's the other 10%?" I asked, curious as to what he would say.