The Forgotten Ballerina

Thirteen

When I woke up, Eli was already up. I got out of his bed and walked over to him. "Good morning." I say to him. He turned around and smiled at me. "Well, hello." He replies. "What are you doing?" I ask.

"I'm getting ready." He says. "For what?" I ask. "Ballet. Did you forget we had class?" He asks and laughs. "Shit! I'll see you there!" I say, kissing him goodbye and rushing out the door with my shoes in hand.

I close the door behind me and in the hallway, I see Cameron. He looks at me and stops. "Lilly." He says, confused. I smile at him and walk toward him. "What are you doing here?" He asks. My face turns red.

"Uhh, well... I'm sort of seeing someone." I mumble. "Does he live here?" He asks. I nod at him and he sighs. "Can I just ask one question?" He asks. "Why not me?" He continues. I'm speechless.

"I don't think I'll ever have an answer for you." I say as I walk away. I could feel him turning around to look back at me. He wanted to watch me leave. To know it was real. I would too. I call Marissa to come pick me up.

She pulls up and rolls the window down. "Wow. Never thought I'd see you do the walk of shame." She jokes. "Shut up. I need to get ready for ballet." I get in the car and we drive back to our apartment.

I get ready really quick and we drive faster than usual to get to the studio. We walk in and start stretching. "Ok, first up. The swan duet." Our instructor says.

Me and Marissa start dancing and this time, she's the one struggling with the choreography. He stops the music and sighs. "What happened to my perfect black swan that was in this room three days ago? Where is she? Please try to summon her!" He yells.

He turns the music back on and then the ending comes with my Grande Jeté. I landed it and the height was perfect. Our instructor smiles at me and then we start to go over the group dance. Eli has to sit by the barres since he's not in it.

I'm only in it for a short time so I go sit next to him. "You looked beautiful." He whispers to me. I blush and put my hand on his shoulder, smiling at him. "Thank you. I can't wait to see your solo." I whisper back.

"Now, time for Eli's solo. Remember to be elegant but sharp." Our instructor directs him. He starts the music and I can't help but notice his turns. The only thing I'm focusing on is his swiftness. He is amazing.

"Alright that's all for today's class. I'll see you all tomorrow bright and early for another rehearsal." Our instructor says. Eli comes up to me. "Was it good?" He asks. "You were everything. I couldn't keep my eyes off of you." I say. He smiles as he looks into my eyes.

"Do you want to go get something to eat? There's a pretty good cafe by your apartment." He says. I can hear Marissa snicker behind me while she packs up her things. "Maybe another day?" I ask. He agreed.