Halfway to Love | A Joanne Fanfiction

Fifteen

Today was the day. Despite having been a professional dancer for years, and having performed in countless auditions and shows, Dianne couldn't remember a time where she'd been so nervous. The usually bubbly and chatty red-head had been unusually withdrawn all day, slipping away into her own thoughts. All-too quickly, she spotted the venue through the tour bus window and silently collected her things as she tried to savour the last minutes of quiet before entering the craziness of the dressing room.

Her legs wobbled slightly as she stepped off of the bus. Karen watched her for a moment, before catching up to her friend. "How are you doing Di?"

She sighed, brushing her hair off of her shoulders. "I'm bricking it. I'm so terrified. What if this was a terrible idea? What if he doesn't want to see me?"

Karen smiled, knowing that Oti had already heard this particular speech countless times already. "Di that guy has just travelled for four hours just to see you perform. He definitely wants to see you. Are you meeting up before you go on or after?"

"I told him to meet me at stage door after." She replied, nibbling on her bottom lip as she felt a familiar rush of butterflies as she thought about it.

"Okay, so there's no need to worry until we've finished the show." Her friend said, ignoring the look of protest on Dianne's face.

"But-"

"But nothing Di, come on we need to get a move on and get ready, the last thing you want to do is to go out with only half of your makeup on!"

Luckily for Dianne, she was soon distracted by her nerves as she became quickly swept up in the preparations for the show. There was always so much to do, and before long she was stood in the wings, ready to step out in front of a crowded room of people who were ready to see what she did best. She took a deep breath, smoothed out her dress and stepped out onto the stage gracefully, immediately acclimatising to the harsh stage lights as she found her partner.

Joe, by contrast, was completely out of his depth in the room. He had arrived early, and he only felt more and more uncomfortable as the room began to fill up until every seat was full. He glanced around warily, spotting couples and families and almost no one of his own age. He sighed, knowing that he was likely to have absolutely no idea what the dancers on stage were doing. On the journey, he'd tried to do some background research on the other dancers involved, but it quickly proved useless as he realised he hadn't taken any of it in.

Despite not having any knowledge of the art, he was shocked at how much he was entranced by the dancers on the stage, even if none of them were the one that he wanted to see. The art that they created had the illusion of being effortless as they glided around the stage and he was captivated. So captivated in fact that he didn't notice that Dianne had entered the stage. He gasped quietly at seeing her confidence on the stage, as she followed her partner through a series of turns and clicks and flicks, the smile on her face wide and bright under the lights. He knew that she was going to be good, having seen the others' talent and her job role, but he found that he couldn't take her eyes of her. She looked so at home, so happy that he smiled through the number, standing up with the rest of the audience and clapping as loudly as he could manage. He was so happy that she'd invited him.

The rest of the show passed as a blur. Dianne had told Joe that as this wasn't her show, that she wouldn't be in many of the numbers, but he couldn't help but feel disappointed every time that she wasn't lighting up the stage. He was in awe of not only her but the other dancers too as they moved and lifted each other up in ways he never thought were possible. All too-quickly, the show finished and he took a deep breath to try and settle his nerves as he made his way to the stage door, a nervous smile on his face.