Unpredictable (A Dance Story)

Chapter 34

I sipped quietly at my raspberry tea and pressed the button on my phone, seeing it light up. Still no messages, no notifications. It was close to 5:30. They couldn't back out now.

"Still waiting?" The waitress asked, coming up beside me.

I scrunched up my nose. "Yeah. They should be here any minute, though. I think I'll put in for that appetizer now."
She smiled. "I'll be right over with that."

I looked up at the door again, seeing that trademark golden-blonde hair. With a smile, I waved Abbie, Tristan, and Holden over.

"Damn, it's been a while since we've done this," Abbie remarked.

"Language," I shushed her, "This is a family restaurant."

Holden slid into the booth beside me, looking dazed, while Abbie and Tristan settled into the other side. Tristan had had a hand on her lower back as they walked in. I winked at her.

"Is this for me?" Holden asked, gesturing to the iced-tea-with-lemon sitting in front of him.

I smiled. "I already mixed in three sugars."

"You're good."

"I know."

"So," Tristan asked, "Why are we having this lovely get-together at Applebee's tonight?"

"It used to be our tradition," Abbie shrugged, "We always used to spend nights before competitions driving around and hitting up all the eateries in this fine town."

"I don't know why we ever really stopped," Holden murmured.

"Hey, you," Abbie called, pointing at Holden, "What's your problem today?"

"I don't have a problem," he protested, "I'm just a little...I guess I'm surprised."

"Well, now you've gotta tell us everything," Tristan figured with a shrug.

Holden laughed. "Madison just broke up with me. Over text."

Abbie's eyes grew wide and flitted to mine for a second. "Ouch. How are ya feeling, bud?"

He shook his head. "I feel awful because...I feel nothing. Nothing at all. I think I knew a month ago that I didn't really like her as much as I originally thought. But I can't believe she texted saying it was over. I guess I feel kinda free right now, though. Not a bad thing. Just different."

Different. That was something I'd been dealing with, ever since the accident. And you know what? After everything, I was so very grateful for being 'different.' I suddenly came to the realization that 'different' was something everybody had to go through, and each person came out of the situation better than they'd been before. So with that burst of brilliance, I reached for Holden's hand, under the cover of the table. He threaded his fingers through mine without hesitation.

***

"Welcome to Nationals, Day 1!" Miss Sarah exclaimed with a flourish.

We all stared at her. It was too early for this, but she was glowing.

"We have a long bus ride ahead of us. We should make it to the hotel by 1:30 or 2:00. Any students attending the master class, be ready to dance at 4! Everybody else, relax. Competition starts tomorrow, and I'll have the schedule available for viewing this time tomorrow morning."

With that, the group dispersed to their cars to grab suitcases and load them onto the bus. I looked around, spotting Tristan and Abbie flirting (as per usual). The juniors all seemed to be ready, and I smiled. They would win with my routine. There was no doubt.

"Hey," I said, tapping Miss Sarah on the shoulder, "Where's Holden?"

She squinted. "Good question. If he's not here in 5 minutes, he's a dead boy."

I laughed, pulling out my phone. No messages. It was 8:45.

At 8:51, his car screeched into the parking lot. Miss Sarah looked up, amused, as he practically sprinted over to her. "I am so sorry, I-"

"Shhhhhh, put your bags on the bus."

He sighed with relief and jogged back over to his car. I followed, coming up behind him.

"I can hear you," he started, "And just for the record, you're the reason why I'm late."

"Am I?" I asked, amused.

He turned, holding out a steaming white Starbucks cup. "For you. I hope you're happy."

I shook my head, holding back a smile. "Why'd you do that? And just for the record, I was only worried because Miss Sarah threatened to give Tristan your part in the duet if you didn't get here on time."

He didn't answer my question, but snorted at comment about Tristan. "Yeah, right. No one can replace me. I'm pretty great, if you haven't already noticed."

I laughed. "Suuuuuuuure you are."

***

I was 99% sure that 99% of the studio went to the master class. Because the 1% that didn't go was me. After everything, dancing had become my greatest challenge as well as my greatest escape. Things were great when Miss Sarah worked around my paralysis, but a famous choreographer teaching hundreds of kids wouldn't have patience for a one-armed dancer. Everybody knew it, too.

"Miss Ford?" asked a muffled voice. There was a knock on the door.

I turned down the speaker my music was coming from and padded to the door. There was a hotel attendant, holding out a box. "This is from..." She read off the names of a few competing studios. I took the box from her. "Thank you! Have a nice day."

"You too." She smiled.

I opened up the box. An assortment of cookies. It seemed strange to be getting gifts from our competition. I set the cookies aside. The other girls sharing my room would love them.

I decided to explore the hotel during my down time. Most of the big studios were staying here, since the performance center was right across the road. Everything was big and fancy. I almost expected to accidentally walk in on a wedding reception or something. There was a pool and a fitness room, as well as a sitting room and big porch. Out back was a beautiful garden and pond with benches and fountains. By the time I'd finished exploring, dancers with their hair pulled back and sweat gleaming on their foreheads began to appear. I made my way back to my room, smiling as I saw the girls in my room already devouring the box of cookies.

"Oh, are these yours?" Abbie mumbled, spitting crumbs as she talked.

"Chew and swallow before you talk," I said with a laugh, "And I saved them for you guys."

"Well great, cuz we were gonna eat them anyway," another girl replied.

"Oh, and Miss Sarah wants to talk to you ASAP," Abbie said.

I swiped a cookie before they were all gone, sighing. "Alrighty. I'll go find her."

***

Hello lovely readers :) Thoughts? Opinions? Predictions?

Unpredictable's wrapping up, and I hope you guys will like my ending!!! Leave your comments below

So, exciting news, I auditioned and made it into performing arts high school! I get to dance half the day and I'm sooooo excited :D

But remember, never go to a cute little greek restaurant and eat two plates of hummus and pita bread before your meal comes, because you will be extremely full and you won't be able to walk for at least 2 hours after the whole dinner ordeal *dies from hummus overload* :p

-HalleBallet