Beauty in Everything

Chapter 23

^ February 26th 2017^

It was the very next day that Pearl decided she would not be a 'giverupper' as she feared Garnets parents thought her to be. So she got up at six am, and pulled on her thermal leggings and jogging sweatshirt that had been tucked away in her closet for months and headed outside. It was cold enough that you could still see your breath, and the wind coming off the ocean was harsh but it felt refreshing on her skin. She started off at a fast paced walk as she made her way down the streets toward the board walk. When she got to the edge of the board walk it was six thirty, and she stepped into the sand. She took a deep breath of the salt filled air and started a light jog.
Her muscles ached from not using them for so long, but she pushed on.

XxxX

When she got home it was nearly eight o'clock and her mother was awake sitting on the couch waiting for her. She sat in her pajama pants still with her cup of coffee still wrapped in her hand.
"Next time you leave my house at dawn while I sleep I expect a note." Blanche said straight faced, but Pearl knew she was happy that she went running at all. Her mother had always been her biggest supporter, always encouraging her to follow her dreams, whatever they may be.
"Sorry mom, I just went for a slow jog, try and break in slowly..." Pearl said, pulling off her sweat shirt, throwing it over a chair in the kitchen and grabbing a water bottle before heading into the living room with her mother.

XxxX

^March 1st ^

School had gone well so far that day, pretty uneventful. When the final bell rang and all the kids ran off to their individual hobbies Pearl looked down the hallway toward the Ballet practice room.
"Remember when you were in the hospital and you asked me to choreograph you something?"Her mothers voice startled her from behind. Pearl spun around quickly looking into her mothers eyes.
"I do..." she said softly, "but I just-"
"Well I did." Her mother interrupted her.
Pearls mouth fell open and she gaped up at the taller woman.
"Would you like to come and try it with me?" She asked with her hand held out for Pearl to take. Grasping her mothers hand she let herself be led into the dance practice room.
Her nerves were exploding with her anxiety to enter the dance room again. Blanche opened the door and held it open for her, the room was empty and pearl stepped onto the wooded floor slowly. She sucked in a deep breath a looked around. Walking to the bar she ran her hand along it and smiled. She dropped her bag in the corner and started stretching.
"So Ill show you the whole thing and then we can start the first part today, and if you want to we can continue for a few weeks like we would any other routine, but just us, until you feel more comfortable." Blanche said. "So just watch me first, then you'll try."

^ March 24th ^
They'd been practicing for a few weeks now, bits at a time, and Pearl felt pretty confident that she could get all the steps together as a whole. It wasn't a particularly hard dance, but at the same time it was challenging enough. Her mother had choreographed the perfect dance for her to begin again with. She clicked the play button on the remote in her hand then set it down on the side table before stepping to the center of the room. She took a deep breath and looked down at her practice outfit. A light teal leotard with a little flowing skirt, a darker teal sash around her waste and yellow spandex shorts. Her pink leg warmers and teal ballet shoes completing the outfit. She moved softly to the music as it filled the room, Pearl was odd in the way she thought about dance, she knew, most people liked to feel the music and move to that feeling, but Pearl always appreciated the mathematical approach to dance. The way that each step and movement was a mathematical equation. Once she knew all the technical steps is when she would dig into the emotional half of the choreography, she knew that to be a good dancer you needed the perfect balance of emotion and technicality.
About half way through the song she felt her leg muscles cramp up and she fell to knee. She was so disappointing in herself she had gotten the most difficult part of the dance, the full spit in the air while holding her weight on her arms. The movement shed crumbled under was a triple pirouette. She signed and stood up. Stuffing her things back in her bag she stomped out of the dance hall loudly, letting the door slam on the way out.

^March 25th^

Pearl and Lapis sat at the corner table of the little cafe near the school waiting on Jasper and Garnet for a small double date-ish thing.
"I couldn't go the triple pirouette today..." Pearl said, breaking the comfortable silence that had encased them.
Lapis looked at her skeptically, her eyebrow raised slightly as she took a small sip of her drink before she places it on the table and focused on Pearl.
"Listen..." she sighed, "I've know you a really long time P, and I also know that you've been able to do a triple since you were seven, I cant imagine a little down time has suddenly taken away your raw skill."
Pearl sighed, she knew, somewhere deep inside her that Lapis was right but that didn't change the way she was feeling right now. The deep nearly gut wrenching feeling of failure at a simple ballet move. Her thoughts were interrupted at the sound of the bell above to door to the small cafe dinged. She watched as Garnet and Jasper came in together, having apparently met up outside, and walk over to them.
She shook her head and smiled at her girlfriend. These negative thoughts would need to wait, because Garnet was a very busy person and Pearl refused to waste time with her brooding about anything when she could be enjoying the company of be loved one.

The next day Pearl headed to the school with the permission of her mother, and her mothers keys to practice some more. After nearly five attempts she got it right.