Nothing I Can Say

Chapter Fifteen

"Rosanne? What are you doing here?"

"Oh... hey, Lucas. I... I just..."

"What makes you think you can come in to see her? After what you did!"

"I'm sorry, I just... hey, I didn't actually do anything."

"Just stop it already, Rosanne! We all saw, we all know. You don't deserve to be her friend, be with me, be..." His voice broke as he let out a sob. He'd snapped. I had snapped him. How could I do this?

Footsteps. "Oh, hello, dear. I remember you... you came in once, very quickly, and then left after seeing our Bella."

"Yes, and I should have learned then that it was a mistake. I... I'm sorry Ms. Carson, I should go."

Footsteps. They are much quieter now.

"Do you know what that was about, Lucas?"

"I... uh... well, actually-"

"Jen!" The booming voice I recognize from when I first got here. Loud, angry.

A gasp. "David?"

"Let me see her."

"No."

"Excuse me?"

"You're excused. Please leave, I meant it when I said I don't want to see you anymore."

"Jen, you told me to come here. Kate's at home-"

"Oh, right, yes, of course, Kate. I just knew-"

A cough. "Hey Jen? Why don't we go down to the café and get a hot chocolate?"

"Absolutely not, Lucas. I'm not leaving her with-"

"Please? I... I have a strong feeling about this."

A long, long pause. "Fine."

The booming voice. "Wait. Who are you?"

"I'm Lucas, Bella's boyfriend. I'm assuming you are her father?"

Another pause. Cold.

"Yes. I... I didn't know she had a boyfriend."

"There's a lot you don't know about her, Mr. Bayley."

"I... well... yes. Yes, I suppose so."

The dance was going amazingly well. I knew my team could do it. Luke and I had great chemistry, the energy was high... the audience was cheering, every flip and trick was performed perfectly.

The bridge was coming up. The test of the troupe had all made it into the wings, and my character was just realising she was all alone onstage.

I reach for you, but you were gone. My arms stretched out from my body gracefully.

I knew I had to go back home. I leapt around the stage.

To search the world for something else, to make it feel like what we had. My body twisted and turned, closing, and opening back out again. Seb and Rosanne leapt across the stage behind me.

But in the end, in Wonderland, we both went mad. I began turning. Seb had just finished his final leap into the stage left wings, ready to come back onstage again with the rest of the troupe. Rosanne was leaping across the stage. She was just about to exit as well, leaving me to turn in a silence for two counts, then stop, then find Luke and the rest. That was the choreography we had set.

But she wasn't doing the choreography. She wasn't getting off the stage. She was leaping straight towards me.

I was in the middle of turning, so I couldn't get out of the way without falling. I tried to send a message with my eyes, but if she saw it, she didn't let me know. She just smiled a dazzlingly bright stage smile at me. When you're onstage in front of an audience, all your team communication can go out the window. Troupe One had done a lot of team building and preparation in case we needed to communicate onstage at times like these, but sometimes it just doesn't work.

She was still coming towards me. Her smile was bright, but her eyes were icy. At the last second, I thought she was going to turn away and head towards the other side of the stage, but she didn't.

She took one final leap and hit me.

My left foot went weak, and I fell.

As I fell, I realised.

She knew what she was doing.

Her old studio had planned this.

She'd knocked me down on purpose.

The last thing I saw before I blacked out were Rosanne's feet turning away from me, to the stage left wings.