Valerie

24 - Val

Hey guys, I know I disappeared and I'm so sorry but I have exams at the moment but even so, I'm going to try to update more. Thank you so much for all the love we're nearly at 100k reads which is crazy!

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1 week later

"These came for you." Mable said dumping a heavy bouquet of flowers on the table in front of me. "He's getting more persistent." She remarked.

I sighed.

"I don't know what to do." I said, head in hand.

"Fuck him." She said calmly.

"What?"

"Not literally fuck him, but fuck him. He did something horrible to you, even though you won't tell me what it is, but I can see from your reaction that it is bad enough."

I felt guilty about not telling Mable, but what happened between Tom and I stays between Tom and I.

"Would now be a good time for you to tell me what he said or did?" She asked tentatively.

I tucked a strand of hair behind my ear and traced the edge of my mug of tea with my pointer finger.

"I'm sorry, Mable. I want to, I just can't." I still wasn't looking at her.

"Well, when you feel like it then you can. Just know that for the time being I hate his guts."

I smiled but it was weak.

Tom could send me all the flowers he wanted but he was yet to approach me in person to apologise. I wasn't even sure if I could forgive him but he wasn't even trying. I had opened up to him and he took what I had shared and turned it against me. How could I forgive that?

"Thank you."

"I know you'll probably say no, but do you want to dance with me?" She asked, sitting down on the stool next to me at our mini breakfast bar.

I turned the idea over in my head. "I'm not sure I'm ready to dance again-"

She nodded, and started to get up again. I held out my hand and touched her arm, stopping her.

"But could I watch?" I said quietly.

The smile Mable gave me then was the biggest one I had ever seen.

———

"This is Julie, Darius, Owen and Grace." Mable said, smiling. "We all dance together, just for fun."

I smiled and greeted all of them.

"Val was the best dancer back in London." Mable said, nodding as their eyes all widened.

"No I wasn't." I said, laughing.

"Okay, she was named dancer with most potential, but still."

"It's not quite the same as best dancer in London." Darius muttered.

Mable gave him a dirty look while Grace said, "Shut up, Darius." She turned to me, "Ignore him, he's just moody at the moment because he auditioned for Swan Lake three years in a row and hasn't got a part."

"You will this year." Said Owen, smiling at Darius.

He grumbled and moved to the Barr where he started his stretches.

"I didn't know you had all these other friends." I said, frowning at Mable.

"I didn't really know they were friends. One day I saw an ad that they needed someone else to practice in their slot of the hall to afford the rent and I thought why not. I guess we became friends after a while." She shrugged, lacing up her pointe shoes.