High Noon

Ch1

I fiddled nervously with my ballet skirt, waiting with the other girls to enter onto the stage for our performance.

"Remember, girls, be elegant, elegant and graceful." Madame Aveline told us as she adjusted the tiaras on our heads.

We nodded and the piano music played, telling us it was time for us to go on, and we twirled onto the stage.

Our ballet was supposed to show sadness and fear. That's why some of us wore black leotards, tights, and skirts, while others wore blue. Black was supposed to signify fear and blue, of course, sadness.

We fell onto the ground once we all were on stage and in our formation. Reaching out towards the crowd as if we were in anguish. We swiftly got up, the music intensified, and the blues backed away, which included me and the black outfit dancers took our place.

We leaped in the background of the blacks as they twirled and when they leaped; we twirled in the back doing the opposite of each other.

When the music softened again, the blues were back as we leaped across the stage, the other dancers chasing after us. Then suddenly it was only me and the other dancer who was wearing a black outfit.

The music intensified, and we leaped across from each other. The other girl laid on the ground, her legs underneath her, and then I twirled over and leaped around her until the music lowered and then I slowly went onto the ground.

The curtains closed and I could hear the cheering of the crowd and I smiled.

As we were in our dressing room getting back into our normal dress attire, my friend Ruth helped to put my hair down. My hair being up high for too long always gave me a headache.

Madame Aveline came into the dressing room and congratulated us on an impressive performance, and we all received a box of chocolates as a reward.

That night, Ruth and I were hanging out in my room while her parents were downstairs talking to my parents.

"My feet hurt," Ruth told me as she sat on my bed and rubbed the bottom of her feet.

"You would think we would be used to this by now," I said as I sat beside her.

She shook her head and smiled as she plopped a piece of chocolate in her mouth. "I'll never get used to it."

The next day at school, the teachers seemed distracted. I heard snippets of conversation like Nazis and Poland. I didn't know what they were talking about. None of it made any sense and when I asked Ruth about it, she only shook her head.

"It's just a rumor, it means nothing." She told me.

"But do you know what the rumors are?" I asked her curiously.

"Just about how the Germans invaded Poland, but Madame Evangeline told me that it was nothing to worry about," Ruth said with a shrug.

I didn't understand why would the Germans invade Poland? It made little sense to my brain why they would do it and if something made little sense then it can't be true, can it?

"Yeah, I'm sure it's just a rumor," I told her.

As the day went on I realized it was more than just a rumor, it was true. Mama and Papa talked about it and the news on the radio was all over it. 

As I put on my ballet shoes that day for practice Madame Aveline seemed distressed and I remembered her once telling us how she had come from Poland but moved here because of work. I knew she must be worried about her family.

After practice, Ruth walked with me to my house and we talked about normal things, school, the boys we had crushes on in class, and ballet.

We stopped at an ice cream shop and both got chocolate ice cream. I had used the rest of the money that my parents had given me after I had done something without being asked.

When I got home my Papa was sitting at the table smoking and reading the newspaper, smiling at me as I walked inside.

"How was ballet?"

"It was good, my feet are killing me though," I said as I slipped off my boots by the door.

"That just means you worked hard, how was your teacher today?" Papa said.

I remembered how distressed she had looked throughout practice and how we had to remind her we needed her to instruct us on what to do.

"She was sad and distracted, she must be worried about her family in Poland," I told Papa with a sigh.

"No doubt you've heard about that." He took a long smoke and then sighed. "I just hope we don't get dragged into another war."

Dinner that night, Mother talked about other things, avoiding at all costs even talking about the invasion of Poland and what might happen.

I thought about what Papa said about getting dragged into another war. The Great War was supposed to be the war to end all wars my grandpa had told me about the war, how it seemed like the entire world was torn apart, how men came home missing arms and legs, and how home never felt the same.

I hoped to God we wouldn't be dragged into another war.

The next morning we went to visit Grandpa down in Paris. We were going to be spending a week there. I hadn't seen Grandpa since last year, so I was excited but nervous to see him. Grandpa lived in the center of the busiest part of Paris. There was a lot of traffic and large groups of people trying to get to places.

It took us almost half an hour to get through traffic and finally, we arrived at his apartment.

Papa knocked on the door, and it opened to reveal Grandma, who greeted us with a smile. 

She had smile wrinkles around her soft brown eyes, and when she hugged me I felt her smooth, wrinkly skin.

"Bonjour, I'm so glad you are here, your Grandpa is in the living room, he'll be happy to see you." She told me.

"I'm happy to see you too, Grandma," I told her as I walked in.

I looked to the living room and saw my grandpa roll out, he was in a wheelchair since he had gotten paralyzed from the waist down during the war. 

He smiled at us as we entered.

"Ah, Roselíne and Peter." He said, his arms outstretched to them.

Mama hugged him and then Papa. 

 Grandpa looked over at me and said, "Don't think I didn't notice you." 

I laughed and hugged him tightly.

 I could feel his mustache pricking against my skin as my cheek was pressed against his face.

"We have tea and cookies in the kitchen. Why don't we go in there and you can tell me what you've been up to." He told me.

We got to the kitchen; we gathered around the table eating cookies and I talked about school, ballet, and everything to Grandma, while Grandpa talked to Mama and Papa.

Suddenly I heard Grandpa say, "There is going to be a war, and I know what the Germans are capable of, and trust me when it does we'll all never be the same."

It was silent after that and I could hear my heart pounding as I thought about war and what Grandpa had talked about the last time we were here. I imagined soldiers coming off the train bloody and missing limbs.

I shivered.