All for the Mirrorball

Chapter 13 - This is a Distraction

After her workout on Friday morning, Ilona texted Alan.

Ilona:
How's my favorite Bersten doing today?

Alan:
Good! Already got a nice walk in, ready to take on the day!

Ilona:
We're both talking about Jeff right?

Alan:
Obviously.
I feel bad leaving him.

Ilona:
Can we feature him in our routine?

Alan:
I wish.

Ilona:
Did he keep you up last night? I was going to see if you wanted an extra shot of espresso.

Alan:
No, he's an angel 😭
Can I still have an extra shot though? I'm exhausted.

Ilona:
🫡

Their morning rehearsals went really well, and Alan gushed to anyone he could over Jeff - "he's the cutest dog on the planet." Ilona thought it was adorable, to put it mildly.

By mid-morning, it was clear Alan was worried about Jeff. "Do you think he's okay? He doesn't start doggy daycare until Monday."

"I'm sure he's fine, but I don't see why you shouldn't just go pick him up over lunch. We're not filming anything this afternoon."

"Okay, you're right." He looked up at her, eyes big. "What are you going to do for lunch though?" It was a rare day that they didn't have lunch together.

"Oh, I'll go with Joey and Jenna or something!" Her smile was wide. "I can bring you something for when you get back."

He took a second to admire his partner. She seemed to know exactly what he needed, just by instinct. "Okay. Thanks, Lo." He said.

When they finally took their lunch break a few hours later, Ilona went out with Jenna and Chandler. They were both excited to hear about her date that night, and she told them all about the outfit she and Olivia had picked out.

"He seemed really nice," Chandler said. "You'll have to tell us how it goes!"

"I haven't been on a date in so long. I'm more nervous than I expected to be!" Ilona confided in them. "I went from the Olympics to a press tour, and now I spend all my time here, with Alan."

Chandler let out a small laugh and looked at Jenna, who met her eyes before looking back to Ilona.

"True." Jenna said. "This will be good!"

"Yeah, I'm excited for you!" Chandler added.

—

The day had flown by, as per usual.

"I was going to take Jeff to his first dog park later - want to join?" Alan asked, hopefully.

"Oh, I... um, I can't tonight." For a brief moment, Ilona considered lying about why. Then, she asked herself why she was hiding her date from a man who was in a relationship.

"Oooh, what, have you got a hot date or something?" He joked, hoping for an emphatic no.

"Yeah, actually," she laughed, trying to squash the awkward feeling that was rising in her chest. "I'm going out with Danny's friend Graham."

Alan's heart dropped into his stomach. He wasn't sure whether he contained his facial expression. "Wow, that's... that's great, Ilona." When he tried to meet her gaze, it felt like she was boring into his soul. "You deserve someone great."

"Thanks, bestie. So, rain check - park tomorrow? You know I want to go on adventures with Jeff."

"Oh yeah, for sure. Let's do it." He set his water bottle down and hopped up, signaling their return to rehearsal.

They were having fun with this week's jazz dance. Ilona was so excited for all of the fun lifts and tricks they had planned. One of them was still giving her a little bit of trouble, but she knew she'd get it down by Tuesday.

When they were filming some content, a message from Graham popped up on Ilona's screen. She swiped it away, but once they finished filming, she turned to Alan and asked, "Do you think I should wear my hair up or down?"

"Down." He answered way too quickly. Why was he giving her advice on how to look her best for some other guy? "But I don't think we should talk about this stuff."

"I mean, we talk about everything else, but... sure, I guess," she said, calling him out in a way that no one else did.

"No, obviously," he rushed to backtrack. "I just mean... I'm worried about getting distracted when we really need to keep our momentum."

"No, you're right. This is a distraction." She gave a meaningful look in Jeff's direction. When she looked back to Alan, he was making a face she hadn't seen before. One full of shock, but also full of hurt. As soon as she saw it, he had adjusted his expression.

Ilona already regretted snapping. He's right, he never tries to talk to me about Emma. Maybe I'm just being unprofessional. "I didn't mean that. Sorry. You're right." There was a slightly awkward pause. "Can we practice that last lift again?"

He gladly jumped back into practicing, kicking himself for how he'd reacted. Have you seen her? Of course she has a date.

She felt a lot better about the lift after a few more attempts. When they finally went to pack up for the day, Alan grabbed her hand to stop her.

"Um, Lo? Sorry." He dropped her hand. "For earlier. You're probably the most focused person I know. That wasn't fair."

She pulled him into a hug, patting his back in a way she thought was comforting. "Don't worry about it. Being a new parent is hard." Both of them cracked up at that. "Anyway, we were both being bitchy," she added.

—

Ilona curled her hair for her date, wishing she had the whole glam team with her for this. Graham picked her up and took her to a cute little restaurant for dinner. He was sweet, and even tried to open her car door for her... but she had already opened it herself.

The whole thing went pretty well, but she was quickly realizing that Graham was better in a group setting, or else over text. He was so good with other people, it was like he could absorb their fun traits and relate to them. When it was just the two of them, though... well, she was doing most of the work when it came to keeping the conversation afloat.

She kept comparing to how easy everything was with Alan. It's a first date. They're supposed to be awkward, she told herself. Still, there were just so many things that felt off. His go-to movie genre was horror, his favorite sport was golf, he thought Chappell Roan was overrated... and the list went on.

When he dropped her off back at her apartment, he walked her to the door like a gentleman, but she felt no butterflies when he leaned in to kiss her.

"Tell me everything!" Her sister squealed when she walked in.

"Do I have to?" Ilona responded, flopping down onto the couch.

"Oh no... that bad, huh?"

"He's so nice. What is wrong with me?"

"I mean, I think I know the answer, but I know you don't want to hear it."

Ilona carefully considered what her sister said. "Can you tell me later? I just want to wallow for tonight."

"Sure thing. Love you." She got up and started making chocolate chip cookies, which always seemed to make a situation better.

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Okay I didn't plan for this chapter to end here, but I started a new job today and I'm so tired. I might not update for a couple of days because things are crazy rn but this story WILL be finished - it means way too much to me, don't worry. It's just getting good y'all 🤓

Love you so much for being here!!!!