Two Become Three- A Joanne Story

Together

"Sorry, just give me 5 minutes," Dianne said, pressing the heal of her hand to her eye as Joe went wrong again. Before Joe could reply she was gone. He contemplated following her for a split second, she seemed upset but he knew better than to follow her straight away, a piece of advice Zöe gave him quite a few years ago ringing loud and clear in his over full mind.

'Joe, if a girl's upset let her be before you bombard her with questions' she had told him after he had found her scrunched in a ball crying in the corner of their sofa at his Dad's and, naturally to him, bombarded her.

In the mean time, whilst he gave her a few minutes he deposited himself on the floor and watched back a few of the videos. Now Joe knew he wasn't and expert, but even he could tell that it was absolutely awful. He didn't look like the sexy Latino drummer he was meant to be, no instead he looked floppy and unsure. His hips weren't doing what they were meant to and there was absolutely no bounce.

He could see, more disturbingly the disappointment in Dianne's face, the crushing look of despair. He supposed that was because she was thinking 'we're not going through, we're not making it to Blackpool' and, he was presently agreeing.

"Position Joe," Dianne ordered, as she came back in, blotchy faced, "come on up."

"Are you okay?" He asked, as he returned the phone back to its original place and got up.

"Come on, position Joe." The way she said his name was like his heart hat been pierced with a giant icicle. Much like the one Christina Yang had been stabbed with in Grey's, Joe thought, except this time there would be no Major Hunt to pull it out of him and make him feel better. No. Instead he would have to shoulder her obvious sadness and frustration and try not to fuck too much up. Why his mind had just gone to a TV programme Louuse had made him watch when she was pregnant he had no idea.

As the music started he tried to focus on keeping his posture and fixing his hips. Through the whole dance Dianne didn't look him in the eye once, which wasn't helping him develop the character or story. He didn't blame ger though, he guessed it was because she was raging at him.

"Better, god awful but better. Again," she said, not giving him any tips or time to get back to his starting position, as she started the music.

"No, come on Joe there's no bounce. We've been over this." she shouted, something she had only done about 6 times in the entire 10 weeks he had known her.

"I'm sorry can you show me again? And the vulcher thing?" He asked, as she stropped away from him to restart the music.

"Voltas Joe, voltas," she corrected him harshly, as she stopped the music and stood as far away from him as possible whilst still being able to see herself in the mirror, showing him a volta. Joe watched her and then stood there stunned, how was that meant to help him get it? She'd done it so quickly he blinked and practically missed it. "Got it?" She huffed.

"Dianne maybe you should take a break and calm dow..." he didn't finish before she whipped around to face him. As soon as it left his mouth he knew he'd fucked up.

"Calm down Joe? Calm down? Are you shitting me? Calm down, you know nothing Joe. Nothing." She said, not shouting but in a quietly angry voice, perhaps terrifying him even more.

"Shit, sorry wrong thing to say I'm sorry, it's just because you're so tense and you can't look at me," he trailed off, knowing there was no way to get out of it. He'd dug his grave may as well lie in it.

"One more run and then I think you should go home early and mull over the steps and I'll text you pointers because this," she gestured in between them, "isn't working at the moment." Dianne sighed, she was just exhausted and knew her being harsh on Joe wasn't helping him. But she also knew that this rage and annoyance and disappointment and everything else she was feeling wasn't going to leave her quickly. And definitely not whilst he was in front of her.