Soar // Hamliza

• chapter 20 •

• Eliza •

Standing in the middle of the sidewalk in New York City desperately searching for a specific address can be overwhelming, to say the least.

A few days ago, I had officially made the decision in honor of my mother to pursue a career as a dancer for the New York City Ballet. Today, I was attending both my first private lesson and group class in months.

I hadn't attended class at a studio since before my mother passed, which was over 6 months ago. And even then, my attendance was slowly on the decline as my anxiety got worse and worse.

I was starting fresh at a new studio today, somewhere I had never heard of but seen a lot of really good reviews about. So now, I was struggling to find the address so I could show up to my first private lesson in time.

People and cars swarmed around me and I could hear my quickening heart rate in my ears as I speed-walked through the street, searching for the sign or address or something to guide me.

My bag was slung across my shoulders, flat shoes and pointe shoes inside. I had a pair of sweats on over my leotard and tights, a pair of Birkenstock's on my feet. I felt like a little kid on her way to her first big-girl dance class without her mom by her side. I mean... that's pretty accurate for right now, I'd say.

At long last, I found the building and sighed with relief as I pulled the white door open and stepped inside of Soo Ballet Studios. A woman who had been standing at the front desk turned around and smiled at me, walking over to greet me.

"Hi there, you must be Eliza, right?" She asked, looking bright and welcoming. I nodded.

"Yep, that's me. Are you Ms Soo?" I asked. She nodded and began to walk, telling me to follow her as she led me through the studio, giving me a tour.

"Alright, so room A is where I teach all my private lessons. Room C is where you're going to head over for class later, but if you can't remember where it is, I can show you, since I'm headed there too." She said as we wandered the halls. She showed me where the bathrooms and the vending machine were, where I could change into my regular clothes after class and where I could wait if I had time between classes in the future.

"And don't worry about joining the others in class. They're all the nicest girls, so I'm sure you'll have no problem fitting in. We love having new dancers join us!" She said as she opened the door to room A, picking up a bag from the bench sitting outside the door.

"Thank you. I'm really looking forward to all this, I haven't danced with a class in forever. I'm nervous, but I'm excited." I told her as she slipped her pointe shoes on. I did the same, lacing them up quickly before standing at the barre for a quick warmup.

I didn't know if she wanted me to warm up before I had my lesson, so I did a little bit at home, but more couldn't hurt. She led me through barre basics to warm up before asking me to demonstrate some of the skills I had. She wanted to know my weaknesses and strengths as a dancer, so she knew how to guide me in lessons.

She watched carefully as I turned, leapt, and hopped across the room, back and forth. By the time the things she had asked me to do were done, she just stood next to the speaker with a smile on her face.

"You have an incredible amount of potential, Miss Eliza. The way you fill up the room with your dancing is just spectacular. I think we should get on teaching you some variations so you've got some more performance-type dancing in your brain. Other than that... your form is nearly spot-on perfect. You have beautiful musicality and don't even get me started on those extensions!" She said, clasping her hands together with a smile. I couldn't help but feel giddy. Her excitement was contagious.