A New Dream

I Want You to Stay: Dawn's POV

A/N I really hope that you guys are reading this somewhere you can listen to the music because it is WAY more impactful if you can listen to the song while reading the descriptions of the performance ^.^ I hope you enjoy the finale of the performances! We still have one more chapter for the battles to see who wins the tournament though, so hopefully you are enjoying it :D

"O.M.Goodness, Dawn!! That was the most amazing thing I've ever seen!" I turned and braced myself as Leia threw her arms around me excitedly and I let out a shaky chuckle. "Oh my goodness, you're soaked!" Leia yelped before leaping away from me, wiping her dress protectively and I bowed slightly.

"Sorry about that, Leia. That performance with the Whirlpool and the snow normally gets me pretty wet. Do you mind if I go get changed?" I asked politely and she smiled.

"Well, it was effective so that's all that matters! And of course, go ahead."

With a wave I ducked into a changing room and slowly let a shaky breath out. The top eight had been announced and my picture had shown up right after Kailani's, which had caused my heart to race. But even more than the fact that I had beaten Traavi in a performance round, my body was shaking from pent up nervous energy. 

Even though I was drenched and should feel cold, the thought of Paul's amethyst eyes watching me intently as I danced made my entire body feel warm. Part of that was a blush though and I wondered if Paul had listened to the lyrics of the songs. Each performance I was giving was for Paul and I chose songs that held messages that I wanted to convey to him, so I hoped that he was paying attention. 

Although it may actually make him pull farther away, I thought with worry but I shook my head and changed out of the dress that Serena and I bought together yesterday before pulling out the outfit that she had presented to me this morning.

I looked at the bold outfit and smiled, gratitude rushing through me as I thought of everything that Serena had done to support me and help me through this last month. Smiling gently I toweled off my skin to make sure I was completely dry before slipping on the intricate outfit she had given me. Serena told me it was a "Dark Elf" dress and I hoped that I would be able to pull off the ethereal outfit. 

The top was basically a fancy black bikini top with intricate gold swirls around the edge of the material. It somehow fit me perfectly, contouring to my curves and not showing off anything while being held up with two thin black straps, and two identical black straps fell against my upper arms. Black sleeves fastened above my elbow by a gold clasp and the top of the sleeve stopped above my wrist and then cascaded down to the floor in a beautiful wave of silky fabric.

The skirt was made of the same flowy material as the false sleeves and a gold belt fastened tightly against my waist, keeping the skirt firmly in place right below my belly button. The back and sides of the skirt flowed to the ground, but the front of the skirt stopped above my knees. However, a long strip of fabric fell from the middle of the belt and spilled down to the floor as well. Delicate gold chains spilled from the top and hooked down onto the belt to make it seem more like a dress instead of a two piece and Serena had bought me delicate gold earrings, a necklace, and gold-netted fingerless gloves to complete the look.

The finishing touch was a gold chain that looked almost like a crown that I held in place with bobby pins so that it would stay on my head as I danced. Nervousness overtook me for a second as I thought of the song that I was going to be dancing to in just a few minutes. Part of me had doubted that Paul would come today and I threw caution to the wind with my choice for this third song. Now that I knew he was out there and watching me nervousness and a little bit of recklessness bubbled through me. Part of me hoped that Paul would listen and understand what I was trying to say to him, and another part hoped that he wouldn't pay attention at all since he may misunderstand.