Let There Be Peace

Chapter 1

Soul stood at the doorway of the dance studio. He wasn't brave enough to announce his presence because the owner was rehearsing in the empty studio. Keeho had told him about this dance instructor who might be willing to pair with him in a dance competition named, somewhat unoriginally, Korean Dance Off. It had always been a dream of Soul's to win a dance competition. So, when Keeho mentioned his friend might help him to scratch that off his bucket list, Soul had jumped at the chance.

Now, standing at the threshold of the door, he watched the woman with the thick and powerful legs leaping with ease across the hardwood floor in front of a wall-length mirror. Her hair was a dark chestnut color with red highlights that popped under the buzzing florescent lights. She wore a black sports bra and a pair of pink spandex shorts. Her body was nothing like the typical Korean beauty standard. Her hips were wide but muscular. Her bronzed shoulders were broad and made her look somewhat imposing if Soul were to be honest. She would not be considered delicate like many Korean women, but she exuded a sensuality from her clay-colored skin that was undeniable. He found himself under her spell. As he watched her dancing, Soul's mouth went a bit slack. As soon as she saw him and stopped dancing, Soul closed his gaping mouth.

"Annyeonghaseyo," the woman greeted him in perfect Korean. She grabbed a towel that was lying atop her gym bag and wiped her flushed face. "You must be the guy Keeho told me about," she surmised.

"Ne," Soul affirmed. "I was interested in dancing with you in the Korean Dance Off," he said somewhat unnecessarily since Keeho would have surely told her the reason for his visit.

The woman nodded and smiled at Soul, which for some reason, made his knees feel a bit weak. "I'm Paz," she said, extending her hand in the American style. Soul took her hand hesitantly and gave it a light squeeze.

"Okay, the first thing we have to work on is your grip. What kind of handshake was that?" Paz questioned. "You gotta have a strong grip when you hold my hand when we're dancing. I need to know I can trust you to not let me spin out. You've got to hold me with confidence and decisiveness," she explained. "Let's try that again," she said, holding out her tan hand. Soul took her hand in his pale, thin fingers and squeezed a little harder than he had the first time.

"Oh, boy, we've got some work to do," Paz said with a slight roll of her eyes. "Listen, I watched some videos that Keeho sent me, and you've got moves, but this kind of modern interpretive dance is not like the synchronized hip-hop thing that you are used to. So, you have to let me guide you because this is my wheelhouse. And if you have a problem following the instructions of a woman, you can just leave now," Paz said firmly.

Soul was a bit taken aback by her no-nonsense demeanor, but he simply shook his head and replied, "I have no problem following your lead."

"Good," Paz said. "I'm going to be honest; I already have a song picked out. Have you heard 'Ceilings' by Lizzy McAlpine?" she asked as she scrolled through her Spotify playlist.

"Yeah," Soul confirmed. "It's a cool song," he added. Everything was going very fast. Soul wondered if he was just the last piece of the puzzle for this woman who seemed to have everything already figured out. It was almost as if she had planned all of this out with someone else and had been ditched at the last minute. But Keeho had assured him that Paz knew her stuff. So, he decided to trust her process.

"So, I have it about half-choreographed," Paz admitted, cementing Soul's suspicion that he was a replacement for someone else.

"I do a bit of choreography myself," Soul said, humbly.

"Well, we can brain storm on the choreography, but I think it's important to get a feel for what the song is trying to communicate," Paz insisted.

"Of course," Soul agreed. "When I saw the music video, I felt like Lizzy was feeling a bit vulnerable and uneasy," he opined.

"Yeah, which is not usually my shtick," Paz admitted. "I don't really do vulnerable, but I had already begun this song with my ex-partner." And there it was. She had intended to do this song with another man.

"Oh, I see," Soul replied. "Your ex-partner. Dance partner or life partner?" he asked, curious to understand what made this tough-talking woman tick.

"Both --- if that is some of your business," Paz answered, sounding annoyed. Soul looked at the cedar floor feeling a bit sad that their first meeting was turning out to be a bit uncomfortable.

"Let's just listen to the song over once and kind of freestyle and see if any of the moves should stay in the choreography or not," she suggested. She turned on the song which played through a Bluetooth speaker. She was standing close to the windows of the studios which were covered with white vinyl blinds. Suddenly, something caught her eye. She spread two of the blind's slats apart and peeked between them.

"Pendejo," she whispered. Soul didn't know what the word meant, but he assumed by her tone that it wasn't good.

"Everything okay?" he asked.

Paz gritted her teeth. "I just saw my ex coming out of the studio across the street. He's with Mishin," she practically spat.

"Who's Mishin?" Soul asked hesitantly, not knowing if it was wise to encourage her to continue.

"She is the most unlivable little bitch you could ever meet," Paz replied with a frown.

Soul wasn't sure what to say to de-escalate Paz as he could see she was unsettled by the sight of her ex with another woman. "Well, her name is nice. It means 'admired dynasty'," he told Paz.

"Ah, well, it would be just like an entitled, rich princess to be named for a dynasty," Paz answered back.

"Why do you dislike her so much?" Soul questioned.

"I don't dislike her," Paz clarified. "I fucking hate her," she told a stunned Soul. "She has seduced every dance partner she has ever worked with. And then, when the competition is over, she disappears from their lives," Paz explained. "I just don't want Jeong to get hurt," she added as she finally let the slat of the blind return to its former position. "And I know what you're going to say --- Not my circus, not my monkeys," she continued.

"I definitely wasn't going to say that," Soul assured her. "I've never heard that one before," he admitted. "Does it just mean it's not your business?" he questioned.

"Yeah," Paz answered distractedly as she pulled the blinds apart again, but Jeong and Mishin were already gone. "I mean, I know --- Not my sink, not my dishes. I know that," she said seemingly annoyed with her own self.

"Right," Soul agreed. "Jeong will have to learn his own lessons," he added sagely. "It's best to leave it alone."

"So, what you're saying is --- Not my garden, not my weeds?" Paz asked as she wiped her finger over the dusty blind.

"How many of these phrases do you have?" Soul asked, grinning at Paz who seemed to have dropped her shoulders a bit and allowed her body to relax.

"Oh, I have an endless supply," she answered. "The circus and monkey one is a Polish proverb, but the rest of them are riffs off of that one." She turned to Soul and, for the first time, actually saw him. "Not my garbage dump, not my flies," she said with a tiny smirk.

"See, now I feel like you're just making stuff up," Soul laughed.

"Guilty as charged," Paz admitted, returning Soul'sbright smile