A Few Glasses of Wine

"i was starting to break"

Y/n's POV

The next afternoon I got ready to go to the theatre. I was going to practice for the upcoming show that we had later this month. I was doing a solo as a black swan. I put my hair in a tight bun and put on my leotard under my dress. I got a carriage to the theatre and began stretching.

"Good afternoon miss Y/n" the younger dancers said in unison. "Good afternoon girls" I smiled at them.

They took me back to when I was younger. I started doing ballet when I was only four and I've continued for 21 years. It was something that my mother did too, so I wanted to keep it in the family. I tied the ribbons on my pointe shoes and rolled my ankles. I then stretched in a split and then got up.

"Are you ready Y/n?" Ms. Lawrence asked me. "Yes" I nodded to my dance instructor.

She was my instructor since I started. At first she was really intimidating but as I got older, I realized that she has been doing this for a long time and she knows what is best. I walked up onto the stage expecting to see and empty auditorium but I was surprised with Spencer and his friends.

Not right now I thought to myself.

I stood there in fifth position staring into his eyes. I've never felt so scared in such a long time. It felt like I would be killed if I even missed a count. The music started faster than I expected. I did the first rond de jambe and then a full extension. I then gently set my foot on the floor and did a few turns. They looked really slow but they were actually really graceful and carefully executed. I began counting in my head. The turns then turned into slow spins.

"Why is she so stiff?" I heard one of Spencer's friends. "She looks like she skips meals" another one judged me. "You could've done better than her" they weren't even trying to be secretive about it.

I tried to ignore them to the best of my ability but it was so frustrating. They knew nothing about me and my talent yet they were so quick to comment about it. I then did a pirouette and then I started to feel a little dizzy. I stopped after my second full count and did a small hop. I landed weird and tripped. The music stopped and Spencer's friends roared with laughter. I don't know why, but it really hurt emotionally. I was trying so hard not to mess up and make a fool of myself in front of him but that's what I ended up doing.

"It's okay, we'll start over. It's just a few spectators Y/n, you've done this many times in the past" Ms. Lawrence tried to make me feel better.

I nodded and got back up. I took a deep breath in and tried to calm myself down before starting again. The music started playing again and I redid the entire routine, making sure I didn't mess up again. I made sure to count everything I did in my head and kept everything I did smooth. I was even more scared than before. I had already messed up and if I did again, I would have been humiliated. I was preparing for the split and then dropped down.

"Now I see why you chose her" his friend continued.

I felt like I was under a microscope. Every single thing that I did was being watched and judged without any mercy. My body, facials, spins, everything was being judged and I didn't want them there. They were treating me as if I was some type play that was supposed to be watched and laughed at. I didn't feel real. I did my arabesque perfectly and then turned with my leg raised. I took a few steps and did my grande jeté. My legs were perfectly straight and arched my back, my hands were almost touching my back leg.

"Y/n baby! Darling! Don't fall!" Spencer screamed as loud as possible.

I lost my focus and I didn't land properly. When my foot landed on the ground, I slipped and fell to my knees. A white flash appeared for a second and then there was silence.

Third Person POV

"Send it to the press" Spencer said to his friend.

He quickly ran out of the theatre with his camera. Unknown to them, Fred was also there and he heard their conversation. He ran out through another door and quickly went to the Moriarty Mansion.

"Albert! William! They're sending pictures of her to the press" he yelled. "William you go" Albert said to him. "It's no use, they're probably already at the post office" William explained to his older brother. "But-" "We have what we need to expose Marvolo now" he cut him off. "You're right" Albert calmed down; A part of him was defeated.

Y/n's POV

I was starting to break. My eyes started watering and soon I was bawling. I don't even know why, I wasn't in that much pain, I've fallen harder in the past.

"Y/n are you okay?" Ms. Lawrence asked me.

I shook my head.

"Y/n...it was one bad day, all of your hard work makes up for one mistake" she comforted me. "What if I can't dance anymore?" I asked her. "Y/n, don't spit rubbish like that, you've danced to Tchaikovsky multiple times which is a lot harder than this. I think it's just pressure, you were dancing in front of your fiancé for the first time. Be a little easier on yourself" she wiped away my tears. "What if everyone finds out what happened?" I asked her. "If he really loves you it'll stay between the two of you" Ms. Lawrence said to me.

I tried to take her advice but everything she said went in one ear and out the other.

"I'm gonna call Timothy to pick you up" Ms. Lawrence said to me.

I got up from the floor and changed into my dress. I looked at my knees, they were gonna bruise up from that fall. After a few minutes, Tim came for me.

"N/n I'm here" he called out for me.

I wiped my last tear and followed him to the carriage.

"Was it that bad?" he asked me. "I fell" I replied to him. "Oh" he didn't know what to say, if he said the wrong thing it would've been bad.

The rest of the ride back home was silent. I was ashamed of myself and I didn't want to show Spencer my face ever again. No words could describe the pain that I felt in my heart. He almost destroyed my love for my passion and I couldn't forgive him for that.