Austy Quinn's Christmas Special I

Chapter 9: Hailey's Surprise

Sometimes, the worst things can come disguised as the best. A disaster masquerading as a serendipity.

Hailey spent her Christmas morning like any other; opening presents with her grandparents, enjoying each other's company. It was when she saw the red-and-black wrapping, she knew something was off. But she didn't have time to sit and contemplate if Quinn was involved or not. She had more important things to do. Like get ready for the Nutcracker performance she had that night. She had no time to think of anything else.

She opened the box, finding a pair of red and black ballet shoes. They weren't your typical dark coloring, they were more of a pastel. And surprisingly, Hailey liked them. She had to like them, because she wore out her other ones.

It all ended when she put them on. They were a snug fit, and they went well with her Spanish outfit. She waved goodbye to her grandparents and drove off, heading for Alamosa. She thought it was odd how difficult it was to get her foot off the pedal at some intervals, like her feet just wanted to be iron weights whenever they felt like it. But she didn't care. She had no time to care.

As she pulled herself into the parking lot of the auditorium, she sighed. She took so long to get ready for one last performance. She enjoyed it, of course. But the feeling was...bittersweet, to say the least.

She managed to get herself out of the car, her worry for the show seeping through. Would she do good enough? What if she fell? She had no time to think about that stuff though.

She practiced. She practiced and practiced and practiced. And her shoes did flawlessly. They never even got scuffed. Maybe they weren't so bad after all.

Now, it was her part to dance. To shine. She strutted her way on stage, her glittering fan in her hand. And she spun. She twirled. She shined.

For as long as she had control. The shoes, as you should've guessed, were not ordinary. They had a mind of their own. And Hailey realized this as she couldn't control her legs anymore. She kept spinning. She kept twirling. She was shining like the North Star. She heard a snap, and she noticed she had fallen.

She had no time to fall! She had no time for this! Her leg was on fire, but she kept trying. She limped up, blood lightly decorating her face as she felt angry tears fall as well. She had to keep dancing. She had to keep shining.

Her director sent some of the other actors to get her, it was almost horrifying. But she yelled at them. She yelled that she had to keep dancing. Her director called an ambulance. She tore the shoes off, and threw them on the stage, screaming violently. Her last words before she was taken off the stage were that she had to keep dancing.

End of Chapter 9