ballet (a kavi fanfic)

trois

"Why of course, then," Ms. Koop remarked, setting her cup down on the marble counter beside the front desk as well as her dance bag. "He's truly talented; one of the best dancers I've ever seen if I do say so myself," Esther exclaimed thoughtfully.

"Apparently his attitude isn't so fine though," Scott added, causing Kirstie to immediately jab an elbow against his chest, which resulted in a loud yelp.

"Hey, that's what you did say! Plus, Ms. Koop surely wouldn't care that we're being honest," Scott rubbed the sore spot on his ribs as Ms. Koop chuckled.

"I promise he'll seem tough right now, but he truly is a softie on the inside, Kirstie," Esther declared positively.

"Of course," Kirstie nodded, still quite upset with Scott, although surprised that Ms. Koop didn't chastise her for her words against Mr. Kaplan.

"Anyways, rehearsals are coming by quickly. I know that Kirstie is already studying as Aurora, and soon you will too, Scott, as Puss in Boots, for your Pas de Deux, and then overall rehearsals for the entire ballet. By then, I'm sure Mr. Kaplan will be well adjusted and less stressed about directing," Esther noted, causing Kirstie to nod again understandingly, even as she still secretly had her doubts.

"Perhaps so," Kirstie said, over her shoulder, following Scott out of the door with a hesitant sigh.

•••

"Again!"

Kirstie sighed, running her hands through her hair in exasperation before she did the same exact step for the fortieth time, expecting him to groan again once more with those glaring green eyes.

"How many times do I have to tell you to point your toes out more? For goodness sake, you're Aurora, not Raggedy Ann!" Mr. Kaplan yelled once more, causing her to scrunch up her nose and bite her tongue before she cursed him out.

My toes are pointed, and I'm doing the freaking step right. I've done it about a hundred times. How about you try it, huh, rather than standing there like a total as-?!

However, she simply nodded again, keeping her words to herself, as she did it once more, trying to maintain her concentration on her dancing rather than ripping that stupid beard off of that face.

He crossed his arms at her attempt, uttering, "Horrible, but not as horrible as earlier. This time, fix your face and focus on the character you are portraying. Aurora would not have a scrunched up nose and a long pout."

Maybe she would if she met you.

     Kirstin groaned mentally, doing the step again and again until it was finally pointless. It was practically engraved into her brain, like a bad memory, washing her over with unsettled nerves.

     "No, you're still not getting it," He shook his head again, frowning angrily.

     Kirstie looked over at him with big eyes, brimming with exhaustion and pent-up rage, as she simply stayed quiet, refusing to open her mouth in fear of losing her role and this opportunity that Esther had suggested her to take. She couldn't do this to herself, to her mom, or to Esther. Thus, she had to stay silent and try to understand what he was even saying.

     She inhaled and exhaled deeply, waiting for him to criticize again, before she noticed him looking over at the clock, which had been ticking away endlessly, like the pitter patter of rain in the distance.

     However, he simply bowed his head down, and with that gruff voice of his, said, "Our time is up for today, but I do expect you to practice more on your own today. It's obviously evident that we have a lot of work to do."