I was mentally preparing. Tonight was the night I was paying tribute to my dad on the show. I was nervous for this one especially. I wanted to make my dad proud but I also wanted to get good feedback about it. Most importantly, I wanted to honor my dad in the best way possible.
I sat in the trailer alone while I waited for the appropriate time to get ready. Gleb was out talking to some of the other dancers and just hanging out with them while we waited. All morning I couldn't quit thinking about what my dad had told me about Gleb. That he wanted me to be happy and that he thought Gleb was the one I could be happy with. Gleb has been there for me more in the past eight weeks than anyone ever has in my whole life besides my family and my best friends. Every day I spent with him, I liked him more and more. At this point, it was more than that. I, I loved him. I was in love with Gleb. And I didn't realize it until today. I mean, he's done so much for me but what he was doing this week really made me understand what I was feeling for him. He'd put together this incredible choreography to honor my dad and he barely knew the man. Gleb really did love me. He loved me so much that he would do anything for me. And that was something I couldn't turn down. Not anymore. Tonight was the night I would tell him. But I wanted to wait until after the show.
The door opened and Gleb walked in the trailer. "Hey." he said with a smile. "Are you ready for tonight?"
"Yeah." I said. "Thank you for doing this for me. It means so much more than you know."
"I know it does." he said. "But I'm happy to do it for you." I felt the butterflies in my stomach and then I got up. "Where are you off to?"
"I just need some air." I said. "It's gonna be an emotional night." He nodded and then I walked out the door. I just started walking anywhere but also staying close. I couldn't believe I was actually gonna tell Gleb that I was in love with him later. I had to make sure we kept it hidden. I didn't need anyone thinking that I was getting special treatment or longer rehearsals than everyone else. I mean, I don't know if anyone other pro has ever fallen in love with their celebrity they were paired with but I didn't want the judgements. I didn't want the comments from fans or anyone and I knew that's what I was going to get if we were to go public.
"Davina, hey." I looked over to see Val walking this way.
"Hey Val." I said.
"I wanted to say I'm sorry about your dad." he said.
"Oh. Thank you." I said. "I'm really nervous about this dance for him though. I just wanna do right by his memory."
"I'm sure you will. Just like I'm sure he's proud of you." he said. "You're an incredible dancer and even better human being. He raised a good person."
"That means a lot." I said. "Thank you."
"No problem." he said. "Good luck tonight." I nodded and then he walked away. I let out a breath and continued to walk around a little before deciding to head back to the trailer. It was starting to get later and I needed to get ready for our performance. I walked into the trailer and Gleb was sitting on the couch going through his phone.
"Hey." I said. "Is it almost show time?"
"Yeah." he said. "We better get ready." I went to go towards the bathroom but then almost forgot my dress so I turned around and Gleb was standing right there and we were now chest to chest. His arms went around me to keep me from losing my balance.
"Sorry." I said. My heart started beating faster as I looked at him. He looked like he wanted to kiss me and I badly wanted to let him right now but I couldn't. Not yet.
"It's okay." he said.
"I just have to get my dress." I said as I reached around him. I grabbed the dress and then turned to go into the bathroom and change. Now that I know how I really feel about Gleb, that interaction a second ago made it difficult to breathe. I felt like my lungs had run out of air and my heart was beating fast. It was like all of our physical contact was different. Not the way it used to be.
