Hey guys, I know I disappeared and I'm so sorry but I have exams at the moment but even so, I'm going to try to update more. Thank you so much for all the love we're nearly at 100k reads which is crazy!
---
1 week later
"These came for you." Mable said dumping a heavy bouquet of flowers on the table in front of me. "He's getting more persistent." She remarked.
I sighed.
"I don't know what to do." I said, head in hand.
"Fuck him." She said calmly.
"What?"
"Not literally fuck him, but fuck him. He did something horrible to you, even though you won't tell me what it is, but I can see from your reaction that it is bad enough."
I felt guilty about not telling Mable, but what happened between Tom and I stays between Tom and I.
"Would now be a good time for you to tell me what he said or did?" She asked tentatively.
I tucked a strand of hair behind my ear and traced the edge of my mug of tea with my pointer finger.
"I'm sorry, Mable. I want to, I just can't." I still wasn't looking at her.
"Well, when you feel like it then you can. Just know that for the time being I hate his guts."
I smiled but it was weak.
Tom could send me all the flowers he wanted but he was yet to approach me in person to apologise. I wasn't even sure if I could forgive him but he wasn't even trying. I had opened up to him and he took what I had shared and turned it against me. How could I forgive that?
"Thank you."
"I know you'll probably say no, but do you want to dance with me?" She asked, sitting down on the stool next to me at our mini breakfast bar.
I turned the idea over in my head. "I'm not sure I'm ready to dance again-"
She nodded, and started to get up again. I held out my hand and touched her arm, stopping her.
"But could I watch?" I said quietly.
The smile Mable gave me then was the biggest one I had ever seen.
———
"This is Julie, Darius, Owen and Grace." Mable said, smiling. "We all dance together, just for fun."
I smiled and greeted all of them.
"Val was the best dancer back in London." Mable said, nodding as their eyes all widened.
"No I wasn't." I said, laughing.
"Okay, she was named dancer with most potential, but still."
"It's not quite the same as best dancer in London." Darius muttered.
Mable gave him a dirty look while Grace said, "Shut up, Darius." She turned to me, "Ignore him, he's just moody at the moment because he auditioned for Swan Lake three years in a row and hasn't got a part."
"You will this year." Said Owen, smiling at Darius.
He grumbled and moved to the Barr where he started his stretches.
"I didn't know you had all these other friends." I said, frowning at Mable.
"I didn't really know they were friends. One day I saw an ad that they needed someone else to practice in their slot of the hall to afford the rent and I thought why not. I guess we became friends after a while." She shrugged, lacing up her pointe shoes.
I eyed her pointe shoes and it took me back to the thing that made me happiest.
Mable caught me looking and said, "Are you sure you don't want to dance?"
"Not yet." I said, shaking my head.
"Not yet." She said, grinning.
"Soon." I said, giving her a small smile.
"Soon!" She said, beaming.
"Soon what?" Julie asked.
"Val is going to dance again!" Mable said excitedly.
"Why did you stop?" Grace asked.
Mable gave her a look which soon let Grace know that she shouldn't have asked that.
"No it's fine. I stopped dancing because it just wasn't me anymore." This was partly the truth. "Even if I started again now, there wouldn't be a lot of point except for fun. I've probably lost all that potential anyways." I laughed nervously.
"Probably." Darius chipped in.
"Shut up." Grace snapped.
———
"Are you sure you don't want to come?" I asked, pulling a knee-high boot on.
I was wearing a short black skirt, knee-high boots and a black tube top.
"I wasn't really invited." Mable said.
"That's not his fault, he doesn't really know you. But if he did, he would definitely want you to come." I said.
"I have nothing in common with Toby." Mable grumbled.
"Toby is on the ice hockey team. Do you know who else is on the ice hockey team? Marcus."
Mable rolled her eyes.
"That's something in common." I pointed out.
"Marcus is different." She said.
"He'll be there too."
"He will?" She said hopefully.
"Yes, along with some others."
"What others?" She asked, slowly.
"Some more people from the team, a couple I don't really know... and Tom- Thomas." I corrected myself.
Mable's eyes softened. "You don't have to go-"
"I can face him. I'm very good at avoiding people. Something I learned in the last four years of my life." I added.
Mable grimaced. "Why don't you ever talk about that part of your life?"
I knew why. Deep down, she knew why too.
"It's in the past. I'm somewhere new. It's not a part of my life anymore, so why would I?"
"I don't know, because it's healthy?" Mable asked.
I laughed, but it wasn't really that funny. "People heal in different ways. This way is mine."
"I don't think you're healed, Val."
I went still. "Mable, you know I love you, but drop it. That isn't for you to decide."
She bit her lip, looking like she wanted to protest. "But-"
"I'm going now. I can't be late. It's Toby's birthday."
———
I walked up the steps of the Brooklyn Brownstone. Jesus Christ the people that went to my Uni were rich.
I pulled my skirt down, slightly self-conscious and thinking that maybe the outfit I wore was too skimpy.
As I was reaching the top step, I hear footsteps behind me, also climbing the steps.
"Are you here for Toby's too?" I heard a very familiar voice say.
My whole body went rigid. He reached the top of the steps. Where I was. Tom got to the top step. He stopped in his tracks.
"Val, I didn't recognise you-"
Before he had time to finish, I'm ringing the doorbell and waiting for it to be answered. The soft hum of the music seeped out of the cracks in the window and I could hear people chattering and laughing.
"Val-"
"Yes?" I said, turning to him and looking him dead in the eye.
I took him in. His hair looked soft and boyish, he was wearing a shirt with a few buttons undone and smart trousers. He looked good. Which made me hate him more. He had clearly taken care with how he looked and I wondered why. He was holding a bottle of whatever wanky champagne he had brought.
"Have you ever been to a party before?" I asked him, not bothering to hide the disdain in my voice.
"What?" He said, caught off guard.
"Have you ever been to a party before?"
He gave me a confused look but answered, "Yes, of course I have."
"You don't bring one of those to one of these." I looked at his champagne bottle pointedly.
"Well I wasn't really sure what kind of party this would be so..." He trailed off, unsure what to say. "You look nice." He said.
I didn't know what to reply to that with so I rung the doorbell again. "When will someone answer?" I said frustratedly. I was stuck out here with Tom. The last person I wanted to be stuck here with. What were the chances?
"I don't think they can hear it." He said, knocking on the door.
"Thank you so much for clearing that up. What would we do without you?" It was mean and I expected him to say something back but he just smiled. Grinned, even.
I didn't look at him. I just stood there, waiting for an apology. None came.
"Val-"
"Hey guys! You're here!" The door burst open, revealing a drunk Toby. "Together?" He added in a confused tone.
"Not intentionally." I muttered.
"Happy Birthday, Toby." Tom said and I followed suit.
"Come, come in!" He said, ushering us in. I didn't need to be told twice. I pushed past Tom straight into the heat of the party. Several people were sloshing their drinks, clearly already drunk. I wanted to join in.
"Did you get my flowers?" I rolled my eyes before turning around to face him. I was hoping he would take the hint and leave me alone. Looked like I wouldn't be so lucky.
"Yes. I did."
He nodded, poking his tongue in his cheek and looking away. "And?"
I stared blankly at him. "And what?"
"No thank you, no we can be friends again, no nothing?" He looked at me, completely serious.
Rage. Pure rage. He thought he could send me some flowers, some he didn't pick, probably clicked a button and called it a day and all would be forgiven? This man had destroyed my mother's letter, pushed me into a puddle, been an absolute cock and used something I hated about myself against me.
His face was looking exceedingly punch-able. I almost did it too. But not wanting to ruin the party or Toby's birthday, instead I settled with, "You, Thomas Verner are a conceited, self-obsessed, righteous, posh prick."
He looked almost taken aback. He frowned. "I sent you those flowers, why aren't you accepting my apology?" He looked like he was genuinely confused... and even upset.
"That's the thing. You didn't apologise. You haven't. Not via text, on the phone, in a note, let alone in person."
"My flowers-"
"I don't care about the flowers. Yes, they were pretty but I care about an apology. A proper, sincere one, and you haven't given one to me."
He stood there, mouth closed, and I could see the words formulating in his mind. He opened his mouth.
"Val? Val!" A vaguely familiar British voice called out from behind me, somewhere in the swarm of people.
I swivelled round to see a familiar face. I couldn't place where I knew her from until she got closer and I saw those familiar freckles that dotted her nose.
"Daisy Myers." I said in awe.
"Who?" Tom said, utterly confused.
She ran up to me and squeezed me into a hug.
"I'm confused." Tom said, quiet enough so only I could hear.
"Shut up." I whispered back. This made him smile.
"I can't believe this." Daisy said, eyes wide.
"How do you two know each other?" Tom said, curiously. "I'm Thomas, Val's friend."
I grimaced at the word friend.
"We went to the same ballet school for ten years. From four to fourteen. When Val left." Daisy cleared her throat uncomfortably.
Tom didn't look different. But I noticed a change. A slight one. He was interested. And wanted to know more.
"How do you know Toby?" I asked, deciding to change the subject.
"He's an old family friend of my boyfriend's. They're letting us stay here on our gap year while I do a couple of shows."
"Ballet?" I asked.
"More West End, actually. I was never exactly the best in the class. That was always you."
I glanced at Tom who was drinking in every word like it was his lifeline.
I chuckled nervously. "I'm not too sure about that."
This time she directed her words in Tom's direction. "She's just being modest. She was given this amazing solo. The youngest ever to do it." She paused, realising what solo she was talking about and directed her next words to me. "I'm so sorry for your loss, Val. I never got a chance to say it, but I'm so sorry." Usually when people told me they were sorry for my mother passing, it all sounded the same. But from the slight droopiness of her eyes and hardness of her pressed lips, I could tell she knew a familiar pain.
"Thank you." I said quietly, unsure if I was able to carry on standing up right.
As if he knew, Tom had his hand around my arm, steadying me. His thumb stroked the inside of my arm and my eyes threatened to close with the proximity of him. I thought back to the night we spent together.
"We made you a gift. Our class did. It was my idea. I know it was four years ago but did you like it?" She asked softly.
"What gift?" I asked, genuinely confused.
Daisy frowned. "We gave it to your dad to give to you."
"He must've thrown it away, I'm so sorry." Tom was looking at me closely now.
"Thrown it away? That's cruel." Daisy said, taken aback.
"Yes, well, you know how dads are." I tried to play it off light-heartedly.
She smiled weakly. "Mine actually passed, a few months after your mother so I know how it feels."
"So we all have something in common, then." Tom said, trying to lighten the mood.
"This looks cheery." A boyish voice said next to Daisy. A man around 6'1, lean with dark skin approached.
"Val, Tom, this is Luca, my boyfriend. Val you know him-"
"From the class above, yes." I said smiling. "It's nice to meet you." I said. "Officially that is. All the girls in our class used to gawk at you and the other guys through a window. A bit creepy, really."
Tom frowned at Luca.
Luca laughed at my admittance and then stopped as if he had realised something. "Val. As in Valerie Fawkes."
"Yes." I frowned.
"You were a popular subject among us in the other class. Namely that you took our solo."
"Sorry." I said, face reddening.
"You're quite the prodigy. You never told me this." Tom said.
"Well I don't really enjoy talking to you or looking at you or really being anywhere near you so why would I?"
Daisy and Luca just laughed, like we were having a lovers squabble.
"Who fancies a smoke?" Daisy said, giving me a knowing look.
"Oh go on then." I said smiling.
"Tom you should come too, mate." Luca said.
"I think I will. Thank you."
For fuck's sake.
---
Hi everyone, I just want to say thank you again for nearly 100k reads it really is unbelievable. I thought no one would read this so thank you so much
Word count: 2379