Where Dance Fits In

Chapter 2: Inside Edition

Miss Laurie

When I walk inside my house, there's food on the stove and Jackson's playing in the living room.

"Hi baby." I say to him, even though I know he can't understand me. He'll be two in September.

"Where's Mark?" I wonder out loud.

"In here, mom!" my seven year old says to me.

"Hey sweetie." I say, giving him a kiss on the top of his head. "Where's your father?" "Upstairs." Mark tells me.

I cross into the living room and pick up Jackson, bounce him, and give him his bottle.

"How was practice, mom?" Mark asks me.

"Pretty good." I tell him.

Mark's practices are before the U14 kids, because we order it by age.

"How was your practice?"

"Pretty good....too."

He snorts.

Daniel Fitzpatrick is Mark's instructor.

At our school, we have five dance instructors: there's me, Laurie O'Brien, Daniel Fitzpatrick, Elaine Taylor, my brother Ethan O'Brien, and Kathleen Hunt. The school was named after my family, after my mom founded the O'Brien school of Irish Dance, when she was just fifteen years old.

Now I'm thirty two with two kids and this hammy down dance school that I never really got to call my own.

Sometimes, it's a blessing and a curse.

My husband, Ryder, comes down the stairs.

He owns a big name Law Firm, and let me just say that he is the best negotiator that I have ever met.

"Hey hon." Ryder says to me, giving me a kiss on the cheek. "How was your day?" "Good." I reply.

"How was yours." "Yikes." is all he says and I laugh.

Ryder goes and picks up Jackson and I see the resemblance between them.

"Hey bud!" Ryder says to Mark. "How was your day?" "We dissected a frog!" Mark replies with a grin. "So good then?" Ryder laughs.

After dinner I take a shower and check my phone.

Brooklyn's mother had texted me.

"Ugh." I groan. "Dance moms?" Ryder knows me so well. "Yup." I reply. "Denise is wondering if I could teach Brooklyn some different steps because she doesn't like the ones she has now." I say mockingly.

I don't reply.