Dancing The Edge // ptv /aldc fic ///

F I F F T E E N : Sleep is For Cowards

FLORIENITY

Leaving the studio on the night of the sleepover, I was super glad that Jaime volunteered to take me and Danielle to dance that day because we ended up bringing back GiaNina, Sarah, Savannah, and Lily so their moms didn't have to figure out how to get there.

The car ride was full of buzzing about how fun this was going to be and then Jaime reminded us Brady was the only boy coming so we couldn't just braid each others hair and talk about boys the whole time.

However he worded it super weird and well laughed at our attempts to realise what he said.

"and here we are, sweet home home."

"hime, no. It's home sweet home. You don't even live here ya weirdo."

The other girls laughed and we made our way inside. I gave them a mini tour of the house while we waited for the others to show up (the kitchen, bathrooms, my room, the little dance studio that was finished a few weeks ago, the basement game room, and the backyard/pool area).

After everyone else arrived I gave a grand tour, ending with where we would probably spend a majority of the night, the basement movie room.

"woah, this is cool. I'm jealous, Flora!" Pressley pouted and I laughed.

I remembered when I first saw the completed rooms about 2 weeks ago.

[2 weeks prior]

As I stepped into the basement, I tried not to trip, seeing as Vic had blindfolded me so he could surprise me.

We finally reached the bottoms steps and I could see again. Y eyes widened as I saw what was in front of me.

A full mini dance studio space

A rec/game room

And a movie room

I quickly hugged both of them thanking them a million times.

[present]

"Soooo what do you guys wanna do first?"

I asked and got various replies of getting to know each games so we all decided to write quite stone on a piece of paper.

I texted Tony to bring down a hat or bowl as we tore the paper into little pieces with the questions or dares on them. We all then sat in a circle and decided to start with me and go left.

Tony entered the downstairs with a cowboy hat and placed it on my head before he went back upstairs.

We put the paper in the hat and I shuffled it, holding it above my head a grabbing a paper.

"Celebrity crush, easy, Johnny Depp"

"what!? Isn't he like 50?" Pressley laughed but I just stuck my tongue out at her.

"55 but he's still hot!" we all burst into giggles, except Brady who just smiled as I passed the hat to Lily.

"awe man, I got a dare!"

Lily read out the dare, which was to silently do the macerena until her next turn.

We all continued to play for an hour until I got the last paper in the bowl which was the dare to be pushed into the pool fully clothed.

We all hurried outside, avoiding the question of where we were going.

"I hate this, I hate this I hate this I hate this I hate this oH My god!" I screamed as I was pushed into the pool by Hannah and Brady.

I heard them all laughing as I came back up and I smirked to myself when I got out and chased Lily, Brady, Sarah, and Hannah.

We went back inside and we all changed into swimsuits and went back out and swam in the pool until dinner, which was delicious.

We spent about an hour practicing our group dance and then Lily, Sarah, and Savannah all got ready for bed because they were tired.

Around 11:30 everyone was asleep but I couldn't.

I was looking at old pictures of my mom and sitting in the basement studio.

The light was on and I was softly playing music in order to not wake anyone up, seeing as we were all sleeping in the movie room where a giant pillow mattress thing was set up.

I scrolled to a video my mom had recorded in secret on my phone, that I didn't know I still had and I almost cried as I watched her face pop on screen.

"there's my flora! You're gonna look back on this and tell me I was embarrassing"

I giggled a little at her statement.

I watched the video, cringing a little as 9 year old me fell out her turns but smiling as my mom quietly commented that this was her favorite dance and song.

Without realizing it, the song came on my playlist.

"Youth" by Daughter began to play and I wordlessly got up, starting to do the solo from the video, improving in areas I couldn't remember what steps were what or in moves that were a little babyish.

As soon as I got in my ending pose I heard a muffled sound of applause, causing me to quickly whip my head around to see Brady standing in the doorway, with his phone in his hand.

I glared at him as I stood up, grabbing my water bottle and phone off the floor as I made my way over to him.

"did you just record that whole thing?"

Brady pretended to stare up at the light and I rolled eyes.

"I don't really care, just asked. Why are you up anyways?"

"I could ask you the same thing" Brady accused and i laughed with a shrug.

"can't sleep."

Brady nodded and ventured more into the little studio. I decided to unpause my music, not up for conversation at the moment.

"do you mind if I ask who that was about?"

Confused, I stared at Brady with furrowed brows.

"huh? Who says it was about someone?" I didn't mean to come off as defensive, it was just how it happened.

"I don't know, the way you moved with so much emotion kind of gives me the idea it's about someone"

I sighed but remained looking at the floor. I lightly ran my thumb across my chin like my mom use to always do before I went on stage.

"..it was my first lyrical. my mom always loved it. She used to show it to her coworkers all the time. Though I guess I just kind of updated it a little."

I started tearing up and felt a pair arms, who I assumed were Brady's, around me as I felt my body grow heavy with sleep.

The next morning when we all got on the bus I ended up immediately crashing in exhaustion on June's shoulder. I slept all the way to the hotel and through a majority of that night.

Sleep is for cowards anyways, and I am- the biggest - coward.