dancing in the stars (ballerina x singer wlw romance)

chapter sixteen

WILLOW

I'm well aware that my whole body is shaking and I can't breathe normally when my finger press the doorbell. I checked fifteen times for the right house– House. This is not a house. This is a fucking mansion. Yes, because rich people live here.
My heart speeds up when I hear someone yelling 'Summer, there's someone at the door!' meaning her moms are here. Her Grammy winner mom and her hockey player mom. Holy shit, I should not be here right now. What was I thinking? Why did I say yes?
I'm at Luna Bennett's house. How is this even real? How much will it hurt to see Summer interacting with her moms? Fuck, I'm gonna meet them. The family that made me cry every time I glanced at the TV, every time I opened a social media app. I know it's not their fault I grew up with a shitty parent but it's pretty obvious I don't fucking belong here.

Soft steps come from the inside of the house and I feel her presence before I see her. My heart goes crazy in my chest and I suck in a breath when the door opens. It's like in slow motion when I see her– so pretty and tiny and delicate, there she is.
Looking so tired and sad but she gives me a genuine smile that lights up her eyes. Summer is wearing a Taylor Swift oversized shirt and purple sweatpants. Jesus fuck. Why is she always this pretty? And why does she look so broken? Her sadness is so obvious to me, making my own chest hurt. Maybe it's because I know what sadness feels and looks like. Something burns inside my chest, I hate to see her like this.

"Willow, hi." her sweet voice fills the air, bringing a smile to my lips. "Come in, I was waiting for you."

She takes a step back, door opening as she does, making room for me to step inside. "Sorry I'm late. I was just..." deciding if I should come or not. "I'm sorry."

"It's fine, don't worry." she smiles. "Follow me, my moms are watching a movie they won't bother us."

I follow Summer inside the house with shaky hands and a heart that's going a mile per second, the smell of strawberries fills my lungs as soon as we step in.
The white walls are filled with picture frames everywhere. Family photos, a lot of trophies and medals, drawings. Some kid toys are laying on the white marble floor, I notice three pair of skates in one of the corners of the house, some hockey sticks, everything in here screams Home, so I force myself to stop looking around. This is what a home looks like. I was lucky if I had food in the fridge once a week, or month.

Stop comparing your lives, Willow!

"Sunshine! Who was it?" a voice makes my heart stop for a moment.
Summer stops walking and I accidentally tripped over her, she winces when our bodies collide and her eyes close probably expecting the fall but I don't let her. My arms wrap tightly around her tiny waist without even thinking about it. Her chest press against mine and our faces are so close that I feel her warm breath near my lips. Fuck, no.

"Summer?" a different voice calls.

"Fuck." Summer presses her lips together in... pain?

"Are you okay?" my voice comes out as a whisper. I let her go, placing her softly in the ground. "Did I hurt you?"

She shakes her head, biting her bottom lip. "I'm fine, sorry." she breathes. "You didn't hurt me."

"Are you hurt?"

She hesitates for a second, her soft brown eyes landing on mine. "I... It's normal. Life of a full time ballerina." she tries to joke, chuckling as she does but the sound is off. Fake.

I get lost for a moment inside those hazel eyes but my head turns to the left at the sound of footsteps. My heart skips a lot of beats at once when I notice the two older women walking to us. A redhead walks in first with a frown on her face, blue eyes fill with something I can't name but she doesn't even look at me.