Outside Work We... •[TNN One-shots]•

Ballet •|| EVERYONE ||•

[A/N: I am going back to my happy place because that 9 part pain fest was enough to make me cry. :')]

Prompt: Carly has a new extracurricular.

It was a lively Friday evening at Reece and Marjorie’s house. The group had gathered for dinner, their usual banter filling the cozy living room. Carly, ever the wildcard, had shown up in a pale pink ballet outfit, complete with pointe shoes that looked slightly too new to have seen much use. She’d announced, with far more confidence than the situation deserved, that she’d been "practicing ballet" and was ready to perform for her audience.

“Alright, everyone,” Carly declared, clapping her hands to gather the room’s attention. “Prepare to be amazed by the grace of a true ballerina.”

Autumn, already nursing her second glass of wine, leaned back against Winter, muttering, “Oh, this should be good.”

The makeshift performance began, and Carly...well, "graceful" was not the word anyone would use. Her arms flailed more than flowed, her pirouettes were more akin to spins during a dizzy bat game, and the pointed toes were barely a suggestion. Still, she danced with enough enthusiasm to make up for her lack of skill, her dramatic leaps narrowly avoiding the coffee table.

The group struggled to contain their laughter. Marjorie hid her face behind her hand, and Sorcha even whispered something snarky to Mia, who snorted. Even Charlotte, ever the sweet one, was biting her lip to suppress a giggle.

But Autumn? She sat frozen, her face contorted in an expression that could only be described as physical pain. Winter noticed immediately.

“My love, are you alright?” he asked, his voice cutting through the giggles. The room quieted, and all eyes turned to Autumn.

Carly halted mid-spin, balancing precariously on one foot. “Wait, are you okay? Was my art so powerful it moved you to—”

“It’s just…” Autumn began, placing her wineglass on the table and rubbing her temples, “it’s just painful to watch you dance.”

The room erupted into laughter. Carly’s jaw dropped in offense. “Excuse me? I’m a beginner!”

“Exactly,” Mia said, wiping tears of laughter from her eyes. “You’re a beginner, Carly. Sit down, we’ll survive without Act Two.”

“Guys!” Carly protested, hands on her hips. “I worked hard on this! Ballet is harder than it looks!”

Autumn, unfazed, took a long sip of wine before standing. “What size are your pointe shoes, Carly?”

Carly blinked, confused. “Um...seven?”

A slow grin spread across Autumn’s face. “Take them off.”

“Wait, what?” Carly asked, suddenly defensive.

“You heard me.” Autumn walked over and gestured impatiently. “Take them off.”

Reluctantly, Carly unlaced the shoes and handed them over. Autumn slid off her own boots and, to the group’s surprise, fit perfectly into the borrowed pointe shoes. She cracked her knuckles, stretched her arms dramatically, and smirked. “This is how it’s done.”

Autumn stepped into the middle of the room and, to everyone’s astonishment, executed Carly’s clumsy routine with remarkable precision. Every flail became a graceful movement, every leap a perfect jump. Even Carly’s questionable choreography was elevated to something that almost looked professional.

The room was silent for a beat, jaws dropped. Then Sorcha let out a low whistle. “Damn, Autumn. You’ve been holding out on us.”

Carly crossed her arms, pouting. “Okay, show-off. We get it. You’re better than me.”

“Better?” Autumn said, unlacing the shoes and handing them back. “I just saved your dignity, kid.” She sank back into her chair, finishing the last of her wine.

Winter chuckled, leaning close to his wife. “Since when do you do ballet?”

“Since middle school,” Autumn replied with a smirk. “Wrestling wasn’t my only extracurricular.”

Carly groaned, flopping onto the couch in defeat. “This is so unfair.”

Mia nudged her. “Cheer up, kid. At least your moves got a glow-up for a hot minute.”

The room burst into laughter again, the chaos settling slightly as Carly pouted on the couch, tugging her pointe shoes back on. Her pride clearly bruised, she muttered just loud enough for everyone to hear, “Whatever. Next time, I’m doing tap.”

The laughter came to an abrupt halt as Sorcha whipped her head around, fixing Carly with a horrified stare.

“Absolutely not,” Sorcha declared, raising a hand like she was physically warding off the idea. “You’ve already butchered ballet. Don’t you dare ruin tap dancing too.”

Carly gasped, clutching her chest in mock offense. “Excuse me! I would be amazing at tap!”

“Sure,” Sorcha replied dryly, crossing her arms. “Amazing at making us all wish we were deaf.”

The group dissolved into hysterics again, Autumn nearly choking on her wine as Marjorie doubled over, slapping the armrest of her chair.

“Savage,” Marjorie wheezed, wiping at her eyes. “Sorcha, remind me to never let you critique my cooking.”

“I don’t need to critique your cooking,” Sorcha said with a smirk. “It’s already ruined.”

That sent another wave of laughter through the room, even Carly breaking into a grudging smile as she muttered, “You’re all so mean.”

“Love you too, kid,” Sorcha said, patting Carly’s head with mock affection before reaching for her drink. “But seriously, leave tap alone. Some of us have standards.”

The night carried on with the usual banter, Carly eventually conceding defeat but vowing to redeem herself in “some other art form.” The rest of the group promised to brace themselves for whatever chaos she’d unleash next.

[A/N: I hope this is enough to somewhat lessen the pain of the last few chapters. :) Oh, and this is based on a true story. It was hilarious.]