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Where’s Dylan? At first, I think I see her then a movement or gesture tells me otherwise. About a third of the way in, the music builds like a giant rain cloud as she bursts through the center in a pale blue flowing dress. She floats across the stage so effortlessly.
Her toe simply points, and she’s vaulted into the air. Her touch can be so poignant when she wants it to be. She gently gathers the players together with her movement. It’s almost like she’s hypnotizing them to drive the darkness into the floor, casting it away.
The cast isn’t listening. That is the point of the piece. She is the heart and they aren’t listening. It dawns on me in that moment the true meaning of the piece for her. It’s a commentary on her relationship with her parents, the struggle she feels between the two worlds in her heart.
I feel this pull toher. I can see her face in the light. It’s covered in pain. It’s not the pain of acting to convey a message. She’s leaving her heart on the floor, and this time, not in a good way. My right hand balls into a fist, and I settle it just in front of my lips at my chin.
Hayley’s grip on my hand changes. I can feel a quiver to it. I’d look but I can’t take my eyes off the stage. Dylan’s movements become heavier and more direct, for lack of a better word. Theethereal quality is leaving, and the strength is in the force. She’s fighting.
Fighting herself.
Fighting for what she believes in.
Fighting for what she feels in her heart.
Her group of dancers spreads out and copies her movement exactly. They’ve seen the light and are fighting alongside her. In the end, they hold her up in the silence. There’s a fraction of a second before applause begins where everyone sits stunned. This wasn’t a simple performance. This was a soul put on display and that moment of silence was the respect for it.
I watch the crowd stand one by one in an ovation for the cast and all their hard work. The minute Dylan is brought to the front, the roar in the room goes to the next level. Wes breaks out his patented whistle. Hayley is wiping tears away from her cheeks. I feel this warmth in my chest. I’m beyond proud. I can’t wait to put my arms around her in private and tell her everything I’m feeling.
After the showcase, Wes, Hayley, and I wait in a corner of the auditorium. It’s the best place for me to go unnoticed. Everyone will be filing out. I crack my knuckles over and over again as I pace slowly in a tiny circle.
“Would you stop?” Hayley scolds.
I lean back against the wall doing the only thing I can continue to do, which is be patient. Dylan gave me an idea of what might be going on after the performances. The audience at these events are packed with the scouts, for the lack of a better term, she talked about from dance companies all over the United States and some globally.
If they’re interested in a particular dancer, they notify the director and he’ll make the introductions. This is how the students get their shot at jobs after graduation. Her unicorn is here. They’d be lucky to have her and stupid not to take her. Shehas an amazing gift. As much as we would like to keep her at AnSa, I would like to keep her, this is where she should be.
There’s one other cluster of patrons still left besides the three of us. Time is ticking by so slowly. That’s when I see her. She’s standing at the top of the stairs, stage left. Dylan’s still in costume. I can tell it’s caught her off guard that I’m not alone. I hold up my hands in a silent gesture of ‘well?’ Her hand, from softly at her side, holds up the number two.
I wink and motion for her to come to me. She pads quickly off stage charging in my direction. Dylan leaps from a yard away and I catch her. My arm at her back cements her to my body. My hand cradling her head anchors her to my heart. She nests in closer with the tip of her toes brushing across the tops of my shoes.
I whisper in her ear, “I’m so proud of you.”
Wes drapes his arm around Hayley’s shoulder and whispers something in her ear. “What was that?” I ask him.
“Just a running commentary, friend. It’s nice seeing you like this.”
“Like what exactly?” I ask, as I set Dylan back on her feet. There’s a piece of hair floating across her forehead. I gently push it back into place.
“Fucking happy.”
Something happens I’ve rarely seen before from Dylan. The mention by another person suggesting that she makes me happy makes her blush. She can dance hard for hours and be dripping with sweat; she can make the innuendo gods smile with the dirtiest of suggestions, but she’s never blushed over either one.
She does make meveryhappy.
Hayley reaches up and takes Wes’s hand while rocking forward and back on her feet. “When are you going to tell her your surprise, Eli?”
“Come on, Hayles.”
Dylan looks between us. “What surprise?”
I sigh defeated. “Thank you for letting the air out of the balloon, Hayley. Your timing is impeccable.”
“I just wanted to see you tell her.”
Dylan begins tugging at the cuff of my sleeve. “Tell me what?”
“I’ve been a witness to how exhausted you’ve been. We’ve been working hellish hours to get things ironed out for the gala. When you weren’t at the office, you were in the studio. With a long holiday weekend upon us, I thought we could take a run up to Vermont before the craziness begins.”
