Hard to Escape

Chapter 28

Two weeks later, I wearily climbed back up from the floor like always. I was about to pack up and leave when Wu Ke stopped me and handed over a box.

"You can now wear pointe shoes." In a rare move, she nodded at me in apparent approval. "Consider it my gift to you."

In my surprise, I felt a bit emotional as I opened the box. But inside weren't the gorgeous satin shoes that I had imagined, but a pair of plain, unadorned cloth shoes.

"Cloth pointe shoes have greater friction, which makes it easier to stand with. It's more suitable for beginners. Try it on."

It was a wonderful moment. Under Wu Ke's guidance, I held the handrail for support as I went on my tiptoes. I could feel the shoe's hard bottoms against my toes. En pointe, I grew a good deal taller. It was as if by standing on tiptoe, I drew closer to my dreams. I turned my head and caught a glance of myself in the mirror.

However, I didn't even have the leisure to get excited. I immediately began to sense a piercing pain in my toes, and my ankles started to ache. When standing totally vertically like this, my toes didn't have any cushion. The weight of my whole body and the pressure of every movement I made channeled down to my toes. I could even feel my toes being molded from the pressure and my toenails splitting apart.

This sort of excruciating pain dug itself deep into my body, into the muscles of my legs, its bones, ligaments, and the nerves in my feet.

I wanted to stop, however Wu Ke didn't let me.

"Stand a bit longer. Then take off your shoes and see which toe has abrasions or has been pressured harder. In the future, you can use toe tape to wrap them. You can also apply spacers, gel, or bandages based on the condition of your toes. Only after being injured will you know your weak points and how to cover for them."

When I went home that day, my toes had blisters. A nail had also split, and fresh blood was flowing out.

And ever since I had started practicing going en pointe, my injuries increased.

Yet pleasant surprises continued to happen one after the other. I was slow when it came to the basics of ballet. However, after I finally had a breakthrough with the basics, my progress startled everyone.

My stiff body as broken in by the continuous training, as if engine oil had been added. And after experiencing a slow start, the engine was now turning at an unstoppable speed.

My movements were more accurate than anyone else's. As if they were precisely calculated.

Performing each movement perfectly from start to finish is the essence of ballet. Every dance step needs to be delicate and meticulous. Ballet is an interpretation of grace, and grace needs time and detachment.

"You've defied the laws of the universe." Wu Ke looked at me in disbelief. "It seems like you don't even need the nurture of time. It's as if those movements are a innate gift, and that you're just slowly gaining the feeling back again." This was the first time she had acknowledged my abilities. "In half a month, the advanced class will be holding its seasonal recital. If you want, you can join the corps de ballet. Starting from tomorrow, you can practice the dance with them. If you'd like, you can invite friends and family to the recital. You learn so fast, I'm sure they'll be proud of you."

I smiled and gazed after Wu Ke as she left. Performances would definitely require a costume. It'd be another hefty expense. And where could I even find relatives and friends to invite?

I danced only for myself. Furthermore, I seemed to be under an illusion that I made me feel like had been dancing alone for a whole century. No matter if it was the past, the present, or the future. I would always dance alone.