Ballet Hurts; A Tiny Pretty Things Fanfiction

Corps

Y/n's POV

My internal alarm clock woke me up, and when I was greeted with a small bit on sunlight, I smiled. I liked getting up early to practice because practice makes perfect. And I need to be perfect. I climbed out of bed, careful not to disturb my roommate Bette, but then again, why shouldn't I disturb her rest? I put on a black leotard with my white tights and ballet shoes, and on the way out of my room, I put my hair up in a tight bun. As soon as I arrived in the studio, I stretched for a bit before beginning to practice. It was the same routine every time.

Chaîné. Chaîné. Piqué. Piqué. Arm extension and turn. Pas de chat. Saut de chat. Pas de Bourree. Penche. Arabesque.

Clapping startled me at the end of my routine, and I fell out of my pose, landing on the heels of my feet. I whipped towards the entrance of the studio to see Shane, a good friend of mine. He was also a ballet dancer. Everyone here was.

"That was beautiful," Shane said.

"Not beautiful enough," I counter and start the routine again. Just before I could get into my first piqué, Shane grabbed onto my arm and stopped me.

"You're good, Y/n. Stop pushing yourself to be better," Shane muttered. I yanked my arm from his grip and began a series of Chaînés in a circle.

"Practice makes perfect," I murmur.

"I know that, but you don't want to overexert yourself. Remember what happened last time?" Shane questioned. Last time I had practiced too much, I ended up passing out from a lack of food, water, and sleep. I was brought to the hospital where I stayed for two days to be monitored.

"That was back when Cassie and I were competing against each other for Sleeping Beauty. Cassie isn't here anymore," I remind him. "I'll see you later, Shane." Later that day, after lunch, it was time for dance from 1-6:30. I arrived at the studio along with all of the other dancers, taking my spot at the barre smack dab in the middle of the room.

"All right everyone, let's get started. Facing the barre in sixth, please," Master Brooks ordered. I got into the right position, and as Master Brooks called out moves, I followed what he asked for. As we were dancing, Master Brooks went up to the new girl, Neveah. I heard she was taking Cassie's place. Well, she didn't seem to good seeing as she couldn't follow directions. "Y/n, would you demonstrate, please?" I nodded and did the move Master Brooks wanted with all eyes on me. "Look. Do you see?" Neveah nodded. "Okay, I'll spare you. Just visiting?"

"New admission," Neveah answered.

"Then show up next class in proper attire with better shoes. Those are a fiasco," Master Brooks said and walked back to the front of the class. After class, I headed to the shoe room to see if I could get a new pair, and when I got there, I saw Shane, Neveah, June and Bette.

"You're trash, Shane. Have fun scavenging with your new petit rat," Bette spoke and turned to the door, only to spot me standing there. "Look. More garbage."

"You only talk shit to the people you're jealous of, Bette. You worried that Neveah's going to push you out of the top group?" I question.

"What, you mean like you pushed Cassie off the roof?" Bette asked. I clenched my fists at my sides, digging my nails into my palms.

"I didn't push Cassie," I state.

"Mmhm. Except you and her had a big fight that night, and we all know how you get when you're angry. Now, if you'll excuse me, I'm going to go have some fun with Oren and have him go down on me like he used to do on you," Bette exclaimed.

"If you need a boy to make you feel good about yourself, then you're pathetic. And I don't care about Oren anymore. He's all yours," I tell her.

"Come on, June. Lets go," Bette ordered and walked out of the room.

"Thank you," Neveah said to me.

"I didn't to it for you," I mutter and grab a pair of shoes from the cubby labeled with my size. "That backstabbing bitch stole my boyfriend, and she's my roommate, so we try to make each others' lives as miserable as possible. And if you're here because you're replacing Cassie, that means you're pretty good, which makes you my competition. I hope you've had a great first day." And with that, I left the room. The next afternoon, I was back in dance class, and today, we would be receiving our partners.

"Partnering. It is about working together, but it's also about opposition. About finding a language of reach and response. A partner doesn't have to be a friend. Nureyev was 20 years younger than Fonteyn. Hallberg and Osipova, they did not even speak the same language. But through the dance, you will find a bond, or you will die trying. Sarah, you will dance with Kirill. Gwen, you'll dance with Josh. Lily, you'll be with Evgeni. Emily with Lucas. Neveah with Caleb. June, you'll dance with Nabil. Bette, you will be with Shane. And Y/n, you will be with Oren," Brooks informed us.

"Oren? Why couldn't you pair me with Caleb or Shane or Nabil?" I ask.

Brooks sighed. "I could pair you with Caleb, but you have two different styles, so it would not work. You and Shane are too good of friends, and you'd probably do nothing but goof off during class. And you and Nabil are the top two in the class, so pairing you together will do no good for anyone else. Besides, with everything going on right now with the investigation, it is not wise to pair you two. I know the history you have with Oren. I don't care that you used to date and now you don't. You used to have trust in each other, but now there is none. You will learn to build that trust back up, and if you don't, you'll never make it." Oren and I were not in the first group, so we didn't have to dance together just yet. I stood as far away from his as possible, but considering we only have one wall to lean against, I wasn't very far from him. "Take it from the corner into the jetées. Shane, faster hands. Bette, find your center. Close your ribs and up, up, go up!" Brooks ordered. Shane lifted Bette into the air, and as she came down, she slipped out of Shane's hands and fell to the floor.

"Lordy fuck, are you okay?" Shane asked.

"I'm fine," Bette replied and stood up.

"I'll spare you. If you don't properly prepare for a lift, it will never work. If your timing isn't in sync, you need to find a way to save it, to adapt. Y/n, Oren, come show us the second half, please," Brooks said. I hesitated, but stepped into the middle of the floor with Oren. The first few moves went fine, and Oren and I glided across the floor together in perfect sync. Then, we got to the lift. As Oren placed his hands on my sides, my mind flashed back to the time when we were together. Oren would always rest his hands on my sides because it comforted me, and at certain times, him being there was the only thing that made me feel better. My mind then flashed again, this time to when I walked into my dorm room to find Oren cheating on me with Bette, his hands resting on her sides. When I got out of my head and came back to reality, I started freaking out, so I shoved Oren's hands off of me. And then came the second fall of the day. I slid out of his arms and fell to the floor, landing awkwardly on my foot. I cried out in pain as tears prickled the corners of my eyes. My foot began throbbing, and Oren held out a hand to help me up, but I pushed it away and stood up by myself, which caused another wave of pain to run through my foot. "Okay then. We'll continue tomorrow."

"Tomorrow's spoken for," Ramon Costa spoke from where he was standing at the entrance of the studio. "Tomorrow we begin auditions. The rep this term is no longer Sleeping Beauty. Tomorrow, I work on a new ballet. We'll create a ballet of passion and darkness on the edge of desire. We'll tell the story of Jack the Ripper."

"The sex maniac who killed those women, like, a hundred years ago?" Shane questioned.

"We'll find something more appropriate," Madame DuBois said.

"What could be better? We live in a dark, twisted world full of loss, lies, and brutality. Monique DuBois, you have your ballet. Auditions tomorrow. Go," Ramon ordered.

"Y/n," Oren started.

"Don't. Just don't," I tell him before storming out of the room.