A Newfound Home - Adopted by Josh Dun

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V I C T Ø R I A
"I'm gonna pass out!" I exclaimed while trying to find my other ballet slipper.

Ruby and I searched through all of my stuff until it fell out of my shirt that was piled up by my bag. I threw it on and we wandered out across the hall from the auditorium to practice our dances.

She was in several, but I was only in our duet and my solo.

I pressed play on the song for our duet and we started in our positions and went through the music. Halfway through my solo, Mariah, one of the dancers, called us into the dressing room.

We did our good luck warm-ups and then the show started.

My solo was two dances after our duet so I had to plan a quick outfit change while the recital was going on.

When my hands were starting to get shaky from nerves, Ruby grabbed one and yanked me towards the stage to get into our positions. Ruby and I shared a grin across the stage and looked back down.

Friend, Please started playing and the lights brightened as Ruby started stepping out. I joined her and stood behind her, our arms moving in sync.

As we moved to the beats, my nerves melted away and I tried my best to keep the smile off my face to not ruin the mood.

The song ended and we posed, waiting for the lights to dim and the crowd started to applaud. I grinned and ran off, going to do my quick change before my solo.

I waited on the sidelines for the group to finish their dance and looked out into the crowd for everyone.

Josh, Max, and Debby were sitting in the second row, with Tyler and Jenna right behind them. I smiled to myself and took a deep breath as the group passed me.

It was a difficult choice to pick a song for my solo since I connect so easily to several songs, but my mind went silent as soon as A Car, A Torch, A Death started playing.

I closed my eyes and let the song flow through me, ignoring the real world.

It was a hard choice for a song, but I chose it because it was the song that played the first time I tried to take my life.

That song kept me alive.

As if it was only a blink, the dance was done and I rushed off the stage. Ruby was standing there, ready to greet me with a hug.

"You did so well!" I grinned and took a deep breath, processing the moment.

We waited in the back for the recital to finish and went on stage for our bows. Ruby and I stood next to each other in the back and smiled at each other as the room's lights brightened and people got out of their seats.

"You better dance this fall when you come back to school. I'll personally drag you to practice myself." I laughed and hugged her before we separated to find our families.

I spotted Josh's fluffy hair in the crowd and snuck through to him, bumping him in the hip. He turned around and grinned.

"There's our dancer!" He reached down for a hug and I accepted it, burrowing my face into his shoulder. "You did amazing, kid." I smiled to myself and he let go so the others could hug me.

Jenna and Debby both gave me a quick hug and a compliment, and Tyler grinned. "Amazing song choices." He gave me a hug.

"Well considering A Car, A Torch, A Death is the reason I'm still alive, I'd say it was my best choice for a song." Tyler's grip tightened and I smiled to myself.

The last person to hug was Max.

"It's not fair I get to see you dance and then you have to leave. I want to see you do more." I hugged him and felt his arms tighten around my waist.

"I'm gonna miss you," I mumbled into his shoulder. He pulled away and looked down at me.

"Hey," he smiled softly and continued, "you're gonna be okay. I'll see you in the summer and we'll get to spend a ton of time together."

We hugged again for a good minute until Ruby came over to bring me back to the dressing room to change.

I looked back and waved to Max, shooting him a smile, which he returned.