Dancing with the Bad Boy | ✓

twelve | parents

It has been a week since my encounter with Evans and a week since all the standard classes of education before we had our own competition to win which was held in a month. A month of hardcore blood, sweat and tears put into our training. A month of trying to put each other down to make it to the all-stars finals.

"Hey, Luce, can you drop this to Coach Ryder, please?" my dance teacher questioned with a pleading smile as she perked her glasses on her nose.

I nodded and took the folder into my hands before saluting her then began to make my way across the school. Placing my headphones on my ears, I blasted some music as I walked -practically ran- towards the other side of the school and entered the academy's state of the art swimming pool.

The pool was split into two, one for the males and one for the females as people dived into the pool one by one, coaches yelling from across the other side. There were swimmers stretching in groups as they talked about how they had been practicing everyday and had been waiting for this moment to arrive.

My eyes quickly scanned for Coach Ryder, hoping to find him as soon as possible because the more time I was wasting here, the more time I had to make up for with Chloé.

"Hey, Raelyn, who are you looking for?" One of the guys from my English class asked.

"Coach Ryder."

He nodded, pointing towards the other end of the pool. "Over there."

I gave him a thankful smile. "Thank you."

Walking towards the other end of the pool, Coach Ryder was standing there with a whistle in his mouth as his eyes focused on the swimmer that was beating all of the others with such ease and elegance. I frowned, tilting my head to the side at how familiar the swimmer's back looked seeing as he was doing a butterfly but I flinched when Coach Ryder blew the whistle the moment the swimmer tapped on the edge.

"Lockhart, you're getting better by the minute," Coach Ryder praised as the swimmer lifted his head from the water with a navy blue cap on and black goggles. "Do another lap and you can take a break."

"Coach," I said, swallowing my saliva as Coach Ryder turned to me with a kind smile. "Mrs Ryder wants to give you this."

Coach Ryder chuckled, shaking his head in amusement. "Thank my wife, would you?"

I nodded as he walked past me with a chuckle as he flicked through its contents, praising a few of his students as he walked past them. I was about to turn and walk away when I felt a splash of water hit my legs as I let out a yelp.

"Not even a greeting?" I heard Sora ask as he took off his cap and his goggles before slipping out of the water, revealing a very toned and muscular body which also consisted of six pack abs. He was in a pair of tight briefs, revealing his junk.

I frowned. "Hi."

Sora chuckled. "Hey."

It was awkward and silent for a minute before I decided to turn on my heel and walk away, my cheeks pink. As I walked past the guys who had been staring at the way Sora and I conversed, they began to whistle, forcing me to walk even faster.

"Drown in the water, boys!" Was the last thing I heard Sora yell before I shut the doors behind me.

-

Truly exhausted, I felt my bones ache with every movement as I slumped in the foyer with a groan. I laid my head back on the wall and breathed a heavy sigh before taking a bottle of water from my backpack and chugged it down.

"Oh my goodness, it's nine p.m, Lucinda!" a woman yelled, sounding horrified as I heard the heels of her expensive shoes clicked on the glossy floor. I slowly lifted my head up to find my mother in her satin pink robe, eyes wide. "Honey, are you okay?"

I raised at her brow at her foreign concern. "I've been practicing, that's all."

Surprisingly, my mother helped me up and told Kai to bring me dinner before guiding me towards the dining room, seating me in a chair as she seated herself in the other. Kai brought a pack of frozen peas and placed it on my thighs before handing me orange juice and a plate of spaghetti.

"What do you want, mom?" I asked with a hiss the moment I adjusted my leg to fit comfortably on the chair. I knew my mother didn't care for anything I did so the moment she showed some interested and had helped me was already a sign that she wanted something.

I watched my mother bite her lip as I sipped on the orange juice. She sighed and took my hands into her own, giving me what Adam would've called a 'adorable' look. "It's bring your child to work day and-"

"You don't work, mom," I cut in, almost choking on my orange juice when I imagined my mother actually working a nine to five job.

My mother rolled her eyes but the moment she realised what she had just did, she gave me a fake, sweet smile. "It's Adam's and I was hoping you'd go with him."

I choked on my juice as Kai winced in my peripheral vision. It must've been hard to watch us converse since it was such a rare thing for my mother and I to do. "No."

My mother pouted. "Please."

I rolled my eyes, annoyed. "Adam and I don't get along."

She bit her lip before sighing heavily. "If you don't go, we'll pull you out of your extracurricular activities and yes, that includes that dance studio you always go to."

My eyes widened in shock at how my mother had the audacity to threaten me now. "Excuse me?" She wasn't a mother figure until now.

My mother opened her mouth to speak but a knock sounded from the hallway as I snapped my head up to see Adam leaning against the wall. "Lucinda, I would like you to come with me to work tomorrow."

I frowned at him, slightly beginning to get pissed. "I have practice."

Adam clenched his jaw as he shot daggers at me. Oh, if looks could actually kill. "Lucinda, I'm not asking you again. Dress appropriately." And with that, he walked away.

I shot a look at my mother who only shrugged, placing a hand on my shoulder which I had instinctively shaken away. "I tried to do it the easy way."

As I watched her walk away, a lump rose in my throat at the frustration of having a mother who thought she could control without acting like a mother and a step father who thought he was invincible. I slumped back in my seat, numb to the pain before robotically eating the spaghetti but the second I remembered I had to be on a strict diet, I moved the plate to the side. I didn't flinch when the plate dropped to the floor, shattering into a million pieces.

"I'm sorry, Miss Raelyn," I heard Kai speak softly behind me, forcing me to clench my fists as I felt myself fighting the tears that were threatening to escape.

"Whatever," I muttered in response before storming out of the dining room.