Trust Issues: The Risks Of Partnership • Sean & Kaycee

1. Soldier

"Always. In all ways."

Sean was looking at her with those big, brown, puppy-dog eyes of his, and Kaycee knew that there was absolutely no way she was going to refuse him. But it didn't hurt to make him suffer a bit more.

"But are you sure, Kayc?" He dropped his voice into a low whisper, and began chewing on his lower lip. Sean had his chin lowered to his chest, but his eyes never left hers, so they looked even bigger and nervous than before.

"Well...we need to be careful. I don't want to get hurt-"

"I would never hurt you!" Sean's eyes went wide. "You know what, let's not do it. I'm sorry. I knew it was a reckless thing to do. Let's just forget about it." He anxiously ruffled his jet-black hair, and finallly averted his gaze from her.

Sean turned away from her, and pretended to busy himself with the playlist blasting in the studio. The two of them had been in the dance studio all day, practicing a new routine and trying out new tricks.

Since ending World of Dance, they've rarely had an opportunity to dance to their full potential as a duet. Sure, they often took classes together and still performed freuqently as a duet. But these classes and workshops are normally designed for individual dancers, not pairs, so they hardly ever did lifts, jumps, and tricks. Sean and Kaycee were starting to feel restricted, their growth stunted.

Then came "After You", which gave them the chance they were looking for to push themselves, and do a true duet again. It reignited a passion in them, reminded them that they don't just love dancing together, but also telling stories together.

So here they were, 4 hours in with most of the dance down to pat. But Sean felt like something was missing. A grand climax to punctuate the story - a gorgeous lift that entailed Sean boosting Kaycee up on his shoulders, then she'll jump, twist in the air, and freefall into his waiting arms, finishing in a bridal-style carry.

A similar sequence was done by Charity and Andres in WOD, so Kaycee knows it can be done well and safely. But the problem was that they were not Charity and Andres.

At this point, they had only been a duet for a few years, and only learned how to do lifts and jumps shortly before WOD. They knew that their strength as a unit was not in doing jaw-dropping stunts, but rather in their connection and synchronity. But still, stunts were part of partner dancing, to elevate the story.

Kaycee continued to watch Sean with amused eyes. He still refused to look at her, frowning at his shoes and moving his arms in a small movements, apparently trying to craft a sequence to replace the lift.

She bit down on her cheek to keep from laughing out loud at how pitiful he looked. Like a sad puppy who got scolded and put in a corner. Sean was very literally in a corner of the studio, facing the wall.

"Okay, okay, okay. You look too darn sad!" Kaycee laughed, and got up from her spot in the middle of the studio. She approached him with a mock pout, copying his expression, to which he resposonded to with an eye roll and a scowl. "I'm sure. Let's do it."

An hour later, Kaycee's body burned from muscle pain and exhaustion. She pressed her hot forehead to the cool mirror while massaging her thigh. Her panting breath fogged the glass in front of her, and she focused solely on the condensation, distracting herself from the protests of her body.

They had practiced the lift over and over again, first checking if they were even physically capable of doing it. But now they had to speed it up to meet the timing of the music, and that scared Kaycee.

They both needed to be precise in order for this to go well. Otherwise, they could seriously injure each other. But Kaycee chased the negative thoughts away and turned to nod at Sean, signalling that she was ready.

Sean played the music, and they patiently waited for the cue for the lift.

"One, two, three, four..." She murmured under her breath, going through the motions of the dance. "Zoom, ah, three, four..." She moved with the music, futilely trying to vacate her thoughts.

How we've grown

Every single day I'm proud

"Kayc." Sean broke her out of her reverie. The lift was coming soon. She met his eyes in anticipation.

"Kayc. Do you trust me?" Almost there. Almost there. She got into position, forgetting about the rest of the dance, building tension in her knees to get a running start. She returned his gaze, and watched his eyes soften.

I swear I won't let anything stop us now

Her fear melted away at that simple question. Of course she did. This was Sean. He never failed  her before, never let her get hurt, and he never would. He  has, time and time again, sacrificed his body to protect her from getting hurt. How could she be so foolish, being afraid of nothing, when this was Sean?

"Always. In all ways." She breathed out her affirmation. He  nodded and braced himself for the impact.

I'm not a soldier

But I'll fight through our darkest of days

Kaycee ran straight for him, her foot finding his hands as he boosted her up on his shoulders.

Get on my shoulders

She spun quickly so that they faced the same way, and planted both feet on his shoulders. Sean's hands were braced on her thighs, as high as he could manage, as she spread her arms open in a triumphant pose.

And I'll carry you all of the way

Kaycee launches in the air, twists her body, and positions herself horizontally to and lands in Sean's arms. He catches her in a bridal carry, and gently sets her down.

Because there's no life worth living

If you're not with me in it

The rest of the choreography is quickly forgotten because -

"Holy shit! We did it!". Sean screamed in joy and attacked her in a bear hug. He lifted her off the ground and spun her around, her laughter in his ear drowning out the rest of the song.

He set her down again, and they looked at each other for a few seconds with dumbfounded disbelief of what they just did.

"I know I said I just wanted to try a new routine, but that was amazing, Kayc. We have got to see this through." His hands stayed on her waist, and she let him keep it them, placing her hands over his. His shallow breath came out in puffs that warmed her face. His eyes shone with wonder and ambition, and Kaycee knew, again, that there was absolutely no way she was going to refuse him.

She took a deep breath to swallow the rest of her laughter. "What did you have in mind?"

"Concept video."

"About what?"

"I dunno." Sean shrugged his shoulders. "Us, I guess. That's what the piece is about - us." Then he smiles her favorite smile - a soft quirk on his lip, dimming the light in his eyes into a warm glow.

"Hmmmm let me think about it." She quickly walked away, knowing full well that he was ready to grovel, or argue, or charm, or bribe into getting his way. It couldn't hurt to let him suffer a bit more.

~~~

Author's Note: This is my first forage into the Sean x Kaycee world. I absolutely adore their relationship, the implicit trust and care they have for one another. The song I used here is Soldier by James TW. It's a wonderful track, and I highly recommend giving it a listen. Let me know what you think!