Carleigh left it at that, and we decided to head out and get some ice cream. Since I was still sweaty from dancing, Carleigh agreed to stay in my dorm room while I went and showered.
We got to my dorm, and I dug through my suitcase to find an outfit to wear for the day. When I found an outfit, I grabbed my toiletry bag and ran out of my dorm. I used the directory to find the nearest shower area. Once I got there, I realized that it was one of those large campus shower rooms with cubicles for each person. I went to an empty one and hung my toiletry bag on the provided hook. Then, I hung my clothes on a hook on the door. All I had to do was live through another day. I had one more day until I could finally see my idiot friends. Words can't begin to describe how much I miss them.
When I finished showering, I dried myself off and put on my clothes. After lotioning and applying makeup, I gripped my toiletry bag and exited the cubicle. I wrapped my hair up in a towel and began to walk back to the dorms. On my way out, I started examining myself in the mirror. I wore a loose tan striped tank top and frayed denim shorts. For shoes, I decided to wear simple white Vans.
As I stared at the girl in front of me, I could barely recognize her. She had a thinner face and a smaller waist. The sparkle in her eyes was barely noticeable, and her lips were painted a mixture of pink and purple. Her skin was pale and bones were sitting right underneath the thin surface. This girl couldn't possibly be me.
It took me a little bit longer than it should have to get back to my room. Carleigh was laying on my bed doing who-knows-what while I placed my laundry in the laundry bin and my toiletry bag in my suitcase.
"Hey! Are you ready?" she asked.
"Hold on," I replied.
I pulled the towel off of my head and began to comb through my hair with my fingers. There was a ponytail holder sitting on the table, so I grabbed it and began to fishtail braid my hair. When I finished, both Carleigh and I decided to take her car to the ice cream shop around the corner .
We got there about five minutes after we left, and I wasn't exactly feeling too excited about getting something to eat.
"Eli, what kind of ice cream would you like?" Carleigh asked with a smile.
"Erm, I'll get whatever you get," I replied.
This gave me a little bit of time to think of how I could possibly get out of eating the ice cream. It made me feel kind of bad that Carleigh was paying for something I wouldn't even eat, so I decided to just take out some money and pay her back later.
Carleigh nodded, and I found us a table in the nearly abandoned courtyard. She returned later with what looked like three scoops of cookies and cream with a bunch of chocolate sprinkles.
"Here. It's a little congratulations present for making it here," she smiled.
"Thanks, and uh, here's the money to pay for it," I said. My hand pushed the money towards her, but she pushed it back to me.
"No, you deserve it," she spoke.
Here goes nothing.
I looked down at the mountain of ice cream and began picking at it with my spoon. A wave of anxiety hit me, and I didn't know what to do. Should I eat it and gain the weight I was trying so hard to loose, or should I just not eat and have Carleigh suspicious and possibly tell Luke?
No.
Luke isn't allowed to know, because he'd go crazy if he did. I just don't want any body to see me this way. My hand reached up to grab the spoon, and I slowly lifted a spoonful of ice cream into my mouth. As soon as the sweet flavor touched my tongue, I immediately spit it out into a paper towel. I tried to swallow, but I just couldn't.
"Eli what the hell?" Carleigh squealed.
"Sorry, uh... I just don't like cookies and cream very much," I lied.
"You could've just told me," she mumbled.
"I know... I uh, sorry," I stuttered.
"Do you want ano-" she began.
"No! I'm fine! On my way up from the shower I got a banana and trail mix, so I'm good to go," I lied again.
"Okay..." she dragged suspiciously.
Luckily, she let it go, and dropped me off at the campus. Apparently, the guys thought she was visiting her mum up in Brisbane, so she had to go ahead and drive back to Sydney.
"Bye!" I yelled before walking back to my dorm room.
When I got there, a note was sitting at the bottom of my door. It was a list of audition opportunities and competitions.
Adelaide Arena Auditions
Alice in Wonderland musical (reserved audition only)- March 30, 2014 @ 9:30 am
Adelaide Regional Dance (eligible competitors only)- March 29, 2014 @ 12:00 pm
The Nutcracker Ballet (walk in auditions welcome)- March 28, 2014 @ 11:00 am
Grease the Musical (reserved auditions only)- March 30, 2014 @ 5:00 pm
The X Factor Australia backup dancers (walk in auditions welcome)- March 27, 2014 @ 4:00 pm
Someone must have dropped this paper by my door on their way to class or something. I read the last one, and I began thinking about the possibility of me actually being a backup dancer for the X Factor. Maybe I should go to the audition. It's only two, so I would make it to the audition on time.
After deciding to do the audition, I decided to audition with a routine I learned in UWA. I went on the X Factor website and found out that they will only be accepting five new dancers, so I better be good if I want to get the job.
It was about a quarter until three when I decided to go ahead and go to the audition. I put on a pair of black spandex shorts and a loose white crop top that said 'DANCE' in large cursive letters. Once I was dressed, I slipped on my neon pink Nike shoes and headed to my car with my hair in a high ballet bun.
I got to the audition arena at around 3:30 pm, and I followed the other people to the warm up room. My heart began to beat quicker, and I felt like everyone was staring at me. It's just the nerves.
There was a thirty minute time period where I just sat and stretched in the warm up room. Many people were getting up to practice their routines in the hallway, so there was enough space for the few people left inside.
I decided to practice the dance just in case I forgot any of the steps. Luckily, I remembered the choreography, and decided to sit back down and just wait for my name to be called. Before I forgot, I took off my shoes and placed them in the back corner of the room so no one would try to steal them.
After what seemed like hours later, I was finally called into the audition room. It wasn't really a room; it was more like a stage than a room. People I didn't even know wished me good luck as I nervously walked onto the large dance space.
(Play video)
"That was beautiful Elianna!" one of the judges praised.
That one comment made me feel as if a gigantic weight had just been lifted off of my shoulders. Maybe this wasn't such a bad idea.
A smile began to grow on my face as all four judges said something similar. They told me that I would get a call the next day to tell me whether or not I got the job. I was ushered out of the room with a feeling of slight nervousness and a bit of confidence.
My forehead was damp with sweat, and I began to feel dizzy and weak. I found a water fountain and began to take in large gulps of water. The feeling slowly disappeared, and I soon felt normal again.
A low growl erupted from my stomach, but I ignored it. It soon became louder, and I couldn't handle it. I sat down against the wall next to the water fountain and placed my head in my hands. The overwhelming feeling of hunger was just too much. I took my phone out and grabbed a dollar from my emergency money inside of my phone case. There was a vending machine that had different crisps and trail mixes. I decided to go for the healthier option.
I made my way back to my car and drove back to the academy dorm rooms. It was half eight, so I still had time to shower and get back up to my room before curfew.
Most of the lights were still on, but many of them had turned off. I went up to my room to get a change of clothing, and then I went back down to take a quick shower.
Once I was clean again, I got to my room just in time. My hair was still damp, so I decided to put it in a ballet bun and sleep with the bun in. I was wearing white pajama pants with lilac colored polka dots on them and an oversized Pierce the Veil shirt. I was in the process of tucking myself into bed when I began to receive numerous text messages.
I grabbed my phone and began to read the texts from a blocked number.
Elianna, Elianna. Your boyfriend's so sweet. He's someone everyone wants to keep. Elianna, Elianna. Here's your warning sign. Enjoy Luke now, because he will soon be mine.
Who the hell is this?
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Author's note:
I'm soooooo sorry that this chapter was short. I'm also sorry that it sucked... Who do you think sent Eli the texts? I don't know... ;D Anyways, I'll update again on Friday if I have the time, but for now you're left with this monstrosity I call a chapter. I love you guys so much!
-J