Page 24 of The Dance Deception
Aleksis surveys the room then dumps his bag in a corner and pulls out his dance shoes. Expecting to be dropped from the show this morning, I didn’t bring mine with me, so I’ll have to dance in my socks.
‘We’ve got the salsa,’ he says – his first words to me. ‘You know the basics?’
I nod.
‘Good, let’s warm up then. Just watch in the mirror and copy everything I do.’
We spend the next few hours going over the footwork he wants me to learn. First without music, then with, then with arm movements, then again from the beginning, again with sharper turns, and again with more style. It’s hard to keep up, and I don’t feel like I’m really getting it, but he doesn’t slow down or make any allowances for the fact that I’m still a novice.
And then, midway through the afternoon, he suddenly announces, ‘Okay, we’re done,’ leaving me staring at him from the middle of the dance floor.
‘But it’s only three,’ I point out. ‘There’s still loads more time.’
‘Tomorrow we’ll start partnerwork. We’ll meet here at eleven,’ he says coldly, snatching up his bag and heading for the door without even changing his shoes.
‘But …’
It’s probably a full minute before the shock subsides and I manage to react. I run to the open door and peer down into the stairwell, but he’s nowhere to be seen. I goback into the studio and look out of the window, but I can’t see him on the street below. I check the time on my phone, in case the clock on the wall is wrong, but it really is just three o’clock. He really has just walked out in the middle of training and I don’t quite know what to do about it. All I can think is,What the hell is his problem?
For a few minutes longer I remain immobilised. At first I convince myself he must be pranking me and will come back any minute. When he doesn’t, I try to go through the steps again on my own in front of the mirror, but my heart’s not in it and I keep looking at the door every five seconds to check if he’s come back.
Eventually I sink to the floor next to my bag and pull my trainers back on, feeling dejected. Was Aleksis really so annoyed about having to dance with me in this dingy little studio that he couldn’t bear to stay here any longer? Was he worried I might try it on with him if he stuck around too long? Maybe he also has a wife and doesn’t want her to think he might follow in Merle’s footsteps.
I reach for my phone and pull up the dressing room photos on the screen yet again. Those bloody pictures. If it wasn’t for them, none of this would be happening. I’d be back in the studio with Merle, I probably wouldn’t know he was married and we’d probably be getting up to all sorts. All of which feels preferable to this.
There is absolutely zero chemistry between me and Aleksis. I’d even go so far as to say today’s session has been downright depressing after the excitement of last week. I reckon if I’d been paired with him from the start, it would have been me, not Liam, who was voted out of the show on Saturday.
I’m amazed Aleksis managed to do so well with Emilia. Lucky for him that she’s so talented. I flick to YouTube and search for their performance. I watch it twice, trying to figure out what it is she has that the rest of us don’t. Are you just born a good dancer?
I try to copy one of her moves in the mirror from my position on the floor, but my arms refuse to look how I want them to, which makes me feel even more deflated. I know I pulled off a presentable kizomba last week, but realistically that came from Merle. What a fool I was to let anyone make me believe I had any talent. I drop my head into my hands and sigh through my fingers, feeling stupid and alone.
I can’t help thinking how good Merle and Emilia are going to look together on stage next Saturday. I wonder which dance they’ve got. The more I think about them as partners, the more gutted I am about how things have panned out.
I’m sure Merle could have dragged a decent salsa out of me. I’m sure we would have focused on our partnerwork right from the start rather than the footwork drills Aleksis has fired at me all morning. The truth is, much as I hate what he’s done, I wish I was still dancing with Merle.
With a sigh I grab my bag and head home, where I distract myself with the telly until Lucy gets home from work. She’s dying to know what the outcome of my meeting with Shane was and I tell her everything. I know I’m not supposed to mention the partner switch to anyone, but I trust her to keep it secret.
‘So you’re still in the showandyou don’t have to dance with that arsehole any more? That’s great!’ she exclaims.Then she clocks my glum expression and narrows her eyes. ‘Only you don’t look like you think it’s so great … What am I missing?’
‘Aleksis absolutely detests me. He walked out halfway through the session,’ I sigh.
She looks alarmed. ‘Why? What did you do?’
‘I didn’t do anything,’ I protest. ‘We were just going over our solo section for the umpteenth time and I thought we were about to move on to something else, but instead he announced we were done and just left.’
I fight back the urge to cry as I recall how hated he made me feel.
‘That’s so weird,’ Lucy frowns.
‘The whole thing was awful,’ I confess. ‘He was so unfriendly and he didn’t make any effort to talk to me. I don’t know how we’re meant to look like we’ve got any kind of connection on the dance floor if this is how he’s going to be with me.’
‘Maybe he just needs a day to get used to the new partnership,’ she suggests. ‘It probably came as a shock to him too, right? I reckon he’ll be fine about it once he’s had time for it to sink in.’
‘I hope you’re right,’ I sigh, but I’m not so optimistic.
‘I think he’s kind of cute,’ she says sheepishly. ‘I thought that at the show on Saturday.’
‘What? Ew!’ I chuck a cushion at her in horror.
