I Hope You Dance

They say that when you finally obtain something that you have seemingly desired your entire life, it isn't always everything that you thought it would be. When this realization hits you it leaves a somewhat bittersweet aftertaste as a wave of regret washes over you. "We will be landing at the LAX airport in 15 minutes, right on schedule. We hope that you have had an enjoyable flight and look forward to seeing you again soon." The animated voice of the flight attendant snapped me out of the contemplative daydream in which I had emerged myself in for the majority of the flight. I let out a breathy sigh as I leisurely opened my eyes and turned them towards the small airplane window. I was momentarily stunned as I looked below at the breathtaking view that was the city of Los Angeles. Just seconds later I snapped my head forward in a slight panic with my head swimming. I closed my eyes and inhaled three times in an attempt to calm myself. I'm sure that the people sitting around me thought I was mental having slept nearly the entire flight only to wake up and have a mild panic attack. They were complete strangers that I would probably never see again why should I care. As I began to breathe regularly again I began to give myself a pep talk in my head. This was my big chance. I was here to make my dreams come true. I mean, what better place to start than the City of Dreams itself? I have been dancing since I was three years old and have learned every style that you can imagine : ballet, modern, contemporary, jazz, hip-hop, tap and so on. I realize that I wanted to be a professional dancer the moment I saw my first Rockettes performance at Radio City Music Hall in New York at the age of 10. Initially, I wanted to be a Rockette but when I stopped growing at the height of 5'5'' and the minimum height requirement to become a Rockette was 5'6" I realized that was out of the picture. But my passion for dance drove me to consider other dance options. Whenever I would watch award shows or go to concerts I would constantly find myself being drawn to the dancers in the background. To me, the dancers were slightly more fascinating than the main performer themselves. After I while, I decided that I wanted to become a professional dancer for the biggest music artists in the industry. It seemed like such a thrilling career to me. Being able to mingle with pop stars as if we were the closest friends, traveling all over the world, and of course being able to pursue my passion: dance. And all of that is what landed me here in Los Angeles. As I stepped off the plane the flight attendant grinned at me and said "I hope that your time in California is everything you are hoping it will be." I just nodded and smiled back but in my head I was thinking me too, me too... My first destination after leaving the airplane was to retrieve the little bit of luggage that I had brought with me. I lazily scrolled through my emails as I stood waiting for my things to come around on the conveyer belt. Just as I was about to put my phone away, an unfamiliar name caught my eye. It read BLOC DANCE AGENCY. That was the agency through which I had signed up to find out about auditions occurring in LA. I wanted to get started auditioning as soon as possible because I was going to need to pay rent on the apartment that I planned on renting. I wasn't really in the mood for auditioning today because of jetlag and homesickness but I scrolled through today's audition list anyway:

Demi Lovato- tour - 12:30

Taylor Swift - music video- 2:30

Carly Rae Jepsen - award show- 3:00

One Direction - tour- 3:30

I froze as my eyes fell upon the last audition opportunity of the day. One Direction. The chance to audition for One Direction. I quickly glanced at the time on the top of my phone, 3:05. I had less than half an hour to find my things on the conveyer belt, call for a taxi, change into appropriate dance audition clothes, and fill out the paperwork needed to audition. I paused momentarily considering it and nearly decided against it. But something inside me told me to take the chance because I seriously doubted that I would have the chance to audition for someone as huge as One Direction any time soon. With that thought, I flew like a madwoman to the conveyer belt desperately searching for my things. Once I found them I turned to make my way to the outside of the airport when I ran into a tall brunette with curls very similar to mine. She glared at me as I quickly apologized and continued my rush to a taxi. I finally found a taxi driver that didn't completely ignore me and clambered into the taxi. Panting I asked "How far is Bloc Dance Agency?" He turned around a smirked "You're in luck, only about 10 minutes." I checked my phone again, 3:15. "Step on it." He drove as if possessed through the busy streets of Los Angeles but I was grateful. He made small conversation asking me my name and such. I found out his was Darren and he was only 20. I thought that was young for a taxi driver. As promised I reached BLOC with five minutes to spare. I uttered a quick thank you and threw what I believed to be the correct amount of money at him. He grabbed my arm as I turned to leave and gave me his card "In case you need a speed demon driver again." I laughed and turned as I made my way into the building. I frantically searched for the front desk and when I found it I practically threw myself at the receptionist behind the desk. She looked at me warily as I asked "Am I too late for the One Direction tour audition?" It appeared as if she was about to tell me that I was indeed too late but I think she noticed my pleading gaze. She reached down and then handed me and audition number, #1294. I smiled gratefully and thanked her as she said "Just be sure to come back after the audition and fill out the information because you don't have time now." I nodded and as I turned she smiled and said "Good luck." I quickly walked to the door she had indicated as the audition room. I took a deep breath as I looked at the sign on the door: One Direction Dancer Audition Here. I put on my most dazzling, confident smile and opened the door.