Greetings Miss Harley Kingsley,

It is our pleasure to inform you that you have been nominated by the Redville Skate Team based on the stats provided by your middle school. Please contact the skate coach ([email protected]) or team captain ([email protected]) latest by next friday.

Regards,

Redville Sports Department.

"Hey," Mason's soft voice reaches my ears. I look up from my phone as he strolls inside, sitting right next to me. "What are you up to?"

I show him the screen of my phone. His eyes go over the words for a couple seconds before his expression twists into a genuinely surprised and amused one. His eyes flick to mine and lips curl up in a small kind smile.

"Whoa, Harley, skate team? That's so fucking cool. I didn't know you skated. And I definitely didn't know you were good enough to be in the team." He's trying to hype me up but I'm too distracted by that. I don't think joining a sports team in the midst of all this is going to be okay for me in general. "You're good at everything. The next thing you know, you're excelling in all the programs this academy offers."

Well, that would be quite a challenge. Kind of an offer I would not have been able to refuse once upon a time but with not so much regret, I'm afraid I'll have to refuse.

"Sorry to dissappoint," I laugh, "but I can't sing for fuck's sake. I'd sound like an exhausted car engine if I even tried to."

"You could always play an instrument," he points out.

"Fair enough but that's too much work." I hear footsteps right outside the room. It isn't the person I expected to be so I let out a sigh. "Requires a lot of patience."

He hums, following my gaze. "You waiting for Iris? It's not eight yet. Plus, she's never been on time for anything anyways?"

I nod. "Yeah, true. She hasn't. I called Reece, by the way."

His face falls for a moment before he regains his composure. He shifts a little, his elbow brushing against my shoulder in the process. "Why would you call him?"

I shrug.

"Last time I checked, he wasn't a dance student."

"He isn't."

"I know." He lets out a sigh, running a hand through his hair. "How close are you with him?"

"I don't know. I'm not," I tell him. "What are you trying to say?"

"I'm asking how much do you know about him?"

I tilt my head, sparing him a glance. He's looking at me too, trying his best to maintain the playful look that is always there in his eyes.

I exhale. "Not much."

He mutters something under his breath before reaching for his pockets and taking out his phone. He gets up and stretches himself before beginning to walk around. "If," he says, "you are any smart, then you should stay away from him."

"Stay away from-"

"Stay away from who?" a feminine voice fills the room and I have to do everything in my power to not do anything reckless like breaking her face. Thinking about broken faces, my hands instinctively reach for my cheek, touching them lightly for a moment before I get up, brushing and straightening my clothes. I look at Iris and she looks at me - one of those dramatic moments where she doesn't know what to say and I don't know where to begin.

"Your friend," I say, "gave me a swollen face because I refused to dance with you. What is it with you and your friends? How do you get people to like you in the first place? It would be better if you do whatever you do to make people like you on me so that maybe I'm not annoyed to do that anymore."

She lets out a sigh. "Are we really going to do this?"

"Yes," I answer. "We are. I'm not fond of you. I know you're not fond of me either."

"At least we agree on something," she mutters under her breath. Then she shifts, putting her weight on one foot and leaning on it with her hands folded. "You do know what an unreasonable time this is to call someone for practice when they've never danced before?"

"You have a problem with that?" I raise my eyebrow. I'm not provoked - she does not have that effect on me. "Maybe we can just leave and fail on Friday? That's alright with me. You know I won't care about any of it."

She shrugs. "I didn't say that."

A small smile creeps up on my lips as I fold my arms. I see someone enter the room and my eyes go to the blond who just entered the room. Our eyes meet and I look away, focusing on Iris again. "Go warm up. If you cry today, that's not on me."

"Why won't that be on you?" she deadpans. "That doesn't make sense."

"It doesn't have to make sense."

With a final look, she walks to the other corner of the room. I look back at Mason, who raises his brows and walks to Iris, probably to see whether she's doing it properly or not. I let out a sigh before giving Reece my full attention. I walk over to him and stand. "Hey," I say to him.

"Hey Lee," he says, bored. "Only doing this because you called in the favour. You're fucking confusing. Who the fuck would waste the favour like this on a mere matter like-" he lowers his voice, "-helping Iris?"

"I would." I shrug.

He clicks his tongue. "Why am I even here? You could've done it by calling anyone else and recording her through the phone. You don't need a proper video camera for this."

I roll my eyes. "Mason is gonna observe. I'm going to help. You're the first person that came to my mind when I thought of this. Feel free to leave but the next time I call the favour in won't be as easy."

"When did I say that I'm leaving?" The corner of his mouth tugs up but there's a smile on his face. I pinch his cheek for some reason and he flushes. "Fuck off."

"I'd rather not," I say with a playful smile. "Do you need help with this?"

He shakes his head. "I got this."

"Suit yourself."

The next fifteen minutes are spent with Iris warming up and Reece setting up the camera. I watch them all carefully all the while running the choreography in my brain over and over again. I'd practiced it on my own without Iris throughout Monday and Tuesday just so I'd know it for today. I was here early so I was able to warm up and run through it once myself to avoid problems.

"I'm done," Iris calls out to me the moment her warm up is done. "Are we actually going to practice now?"

My eyes meet Mason's, who takes the hint and backs away, then walks over to Reece where he connects his phone to the speakers. One thing I like with Mason: he understands me well enough on this matter.

"Do you remember the whole thing?" I ask her.

"More or less, yes. I haven't practiced much yet." I look over to Mason for confirmation. He nods, a confused look in his eyes. I bite my lip before taking a step back. Iris shoots me a puzzled look. "What are we doing?"

"Mason, play the song in ten seconds," I call out. Iris is about to protest when I walk away to where the other two are standing. She's about to open her mouth to say something desperate when I speak up again. I'm taken aback by my own patience. "You asked for this, Iris. I know it's a team performance. Don't worry about it. Dance the whole thing."

I nudge Reece, gesturing to him to start the camera. I know they're all confused but I don't exactly have the time to give them an explanation on what I'm about to do. The guys don't ask anything either. I'm sure it's something to do with the tense environment the situation and Iris' reluctance has created. Exactly ten long seconds laters, a familiar song begins to play.

Out of the darkness, I saw an angel

Held back the flood, until the sky fell . . .

At first, she's reluctant and shy. Making faces, sloppy and late beginning, embarrassment to be dancing in here all alone. The delayed movements. The mismatched beats. It's average. Not something you can get into Redville with, but she did. I really want to see her audition clips again, trying to find just what it was that made her pass the Redville Advanced Dance practical course entrance. I can't imagine the bar to be this low. Surely, they saw something. They have had to.

Iris is a forgetful person. Somehow, she remembers everything, but what she forgets is the timing and beat. If she manages to match those, her performances wouldn't be half bad. Long story short, she should really pay attention in music study for dancers lessons.

There is no partnered move that Mason's added for the performance. That's one advantage of making her dance alone right now. The major con in syncing. How am I supposed to sync with a person who is not able to recognise the beats?

The minute lasts longer than I would have preferred it too and by the end of it, Iris is already breathing heavily. No stamina either. She's rightfully at the bottom and in that moment, I understand. I understand why I've been paired up with the girl at the bottom. It would make perfect sense, wouldn't it? I almost laugh when I realise it, cursing Valeria mentally.

"Tell me what's your fault."

My words are cold, chilling. I feel Mason and Reece looking at me and Iris while my gaze is fixed at her, not faltering at all.

"I don't get it," Iris says. "What are you trying to ask?"

"Do you know why I'm doing this?"

She rolls her eyes. "Because I suck?"

"Yes, you do," I say. "Go again."

She blinks. "What?"

"Go again. Play the song."

"Harley-" Mason begins to interrupt but I throw him a look which reminds him that he's not supposed to interrupt at all. He lets out a sigh before playing the song again. Iris throws me a helpless look before beginning again and I observe her once again.

I don't know what happens, but watching her drowns me in one of my memories. A memory that I thought I forgot until I see it now, and with my half attention towards what Iris is doing, I remember the rest of it, making it run through my brain.

I'm standing in a room. Mirrors are attached on the wall, smooth wooden floorboards creak under my feet. I'm young, so much younger than I am right now. I remember the place so clearly - the pictures at one corner of the room attached to the mirror, the bars and the bright lights. It's the studio my parents built for my sister.

There are two of them - one for each of my parent's houses since we were the kind of people who'd move around my parent's house, depending on the amount of work that they had. Mom's house was built in the other town and wasn't used much. However, when we'd learnt that it was going to become a thing, Elia and I knew it.

Everyone knew it but no one said a thing.

Elia, my cousins, and I were kids but none of us were dumb enough to see how our parents were drifting apart. The only reason they were together was for the sake of Elia's future career and reputation. They cared about her a lot - she probably was the only thing they cared about in common. The only thing holding them both together like a thread.

I'm standing in front of the mirror, staring at myself. My postures are all wrong and immature, making me frustrated. I take the first position and then move to the second. I close my eyes, picturing my sister and the way she did it, realising that I'm doing it all wrong. I let out a frustrated groan before stomping one of my feet against the ground.

"I knew I'd find you here," Elia's soft voice fills the room, making me look up. My eyes meet hers in the mirror. She's leaning against the door, her fair curls over her shoulders. She's wearing her mickey mouse pajamas with soft duck slippers. She's nine. I'm seven. "Why are you still up?"

"I can't sleep," I answer her.

She smiles, standing straight and strolling inside the room. "You could've come to me. Or gone to mom. Or stolen some ice cream like you always do."

"There's no strawberries in the kitchen," I pout. "I want to learn dancing."

"I know you do," Elia laughs. She stops walking in front of me, holding my shoulders. She leans in towards me, smiling. "You're already really good, Lee. Why don't you ask mom to make you learn with Cecily too? She likes you dancing too."

"Mom said no to me."

My voice is disappointed. Sad.

She presses my shoulders. "You know what?" she says. "I'm going to ask mom about it. She won't say no to me."

My face immediately lights up. "Thank you!"

"And," she says, "A piece of friendly advice for you. Cecily gave it to me."

I clap my hands with a beaming smile. "What is it?"

A wide, superior smile tugs up at Elia's lips as she begins to step back, the warmth of her hands leaving my shoulders.

"If you ever think that you are not doing something good enough, watch yourself do it. Record it. Watch it over and over again until you memorise your own flaws well enough to unconsciously avoid them. Do you understand what I'm saying?" I blink, obviously not getting a word she said except for the part where she's advised me to record myself. "I forget that you're younger than me sometimes. And dumber."

"So what do I do?" I call out as she begins to leave for the door. She stops and I see her smile from the mirror.

"Practice, Lee. You'll figure yourself out if you practice enough."

"Have you figured yourself out?"

She shakes her head. "Not yet, but the moment it feels like I'm not flying anymore, I know it's not the thing for me."

I stand there as she leaves, confused about everything she's just said. That's how she's always been - a person who would use her new vocabulary to say things beyond the understanding of a seven year old, but when they hit you later on, you realise that they're the greatest source of comfort and help you'd ever have.

The music comes to a stop again. I raise my eyebrow, tilting my head towards Mason.

"Why did you stop?" I ask him. "Again."

"Harley, this is a group activity," Iris says, her eyes wet. She looks like she's about to cry from frustration, so weak, so fucking weak like she has no mental strength at all. "I can't do this alone."

"You were okay with me doing this all alone before, weren't you? To get you the scores you needed to not fall down the rankings? That is, if you can fall any further. You're already at the bottom, aren't you?"

She doesn't say anything. I sit down, her eyes anywhere but herself in the mirror or me. She sends a pleading look towards Mason, who looks away almost instantly and presses play. I knew he would be the kind of person to keep his promise, especially one like this.

The music plays again, but her beats don't improve much. It's just like in her attitude, she cannot find the faults in her dance on her own. Cannot figure out or even ask what she's doing wrong here. That's her problem. Her only problem - and if she fixes this, she'll really grow from here on.

"Again," I say to her when she stops.

This time, no one stops me. However, I feel Reece lightly tug my elbow. I don't look at him now. He probably doesn't understand me yet. He probably never will. I don't reply to him and he sighs, eyes back on Iris.

"Again."

The same thing repeats itself. She dances, she's exhausted, even. She's sweating even when she's wearing a tank top. The minute passes by comparatively quickly, and the moment it's over, she clutches her knees and bends forward to catch her breath.

"Again."

"Fuck, no," she breathes out, not looking up. "What's your fucking problem with me?" She looks up at me, expression desperate and annoyed at the same time. I suppress a grin and succeed in keeping a straight face throughout. "I didn't do anything to you so why the fuck are you being so mean to me right now? You realise how cruel you're being? You-" She breaks off, unsure of what to say.

"You what?" I find myself speaking. "You can't call your mom or Val or boyfriend here. You can always complain, though I doubt that's what you'll do. Your precious friend almost broke my face and injured my back while trying to get me to cooperate with you. Now when I'm trying to help you, you ask me what my problem is? Jeez, give me a break."

"You call this help?" she spits. "This does not help me in any way. This is you taking advantage of me."

I laugh. I get up, strolling towards her. "Trust me, Iris, if I want to take advantage of you, I'll be forcing you to pole dance at the lamp post downtown while he records you and uploads it online."

She looks at me with eyes full of annoyance and rage.

"Are you tired?" I ask her.

She doesn't reply.

"I'll only ask this one more time. If you're not, then we're going to go again. So, are you tired, Iris?" There's a hint of dare in her eyes, like she's going to rebel but she doesn't know against who. Against me? I don't give a fuck about her. I'm here because this is the only time I'll try to help her. If she doesn't want it, then I'm going to leave and fail this assignment.

No matter what.

"I am," she finally says. "I'm tired."

I sigh, standing straighter while setting my gaze on her. "Tell me what's your fault."

She clicks her tongue in annoyance. "How many times do I have to tell you that I have no fucking idea what you're talking about?"

"You only said that once," I say.

"It should be enough."

"But it isn't."

"I didn't even do anything!" She's almost crying at this point. "I'm not a fucking perfectionist, good at everything person like you are, okay? Not everyone is like you and just fucking accept that. You may be some kind of genius but right now, you're a fucking bully. Whatever I did, I'm sorry about it. Let me leave."

She begins to get up but I grab her arm, careful not to be too rough but also not too soft so that she can just push me away. Her eyes meet mine.

"What are you apologizing for?" I ask her, my voice low and dangerous. "You said you didn't even do anything wrong."

Her face falls and she stops to struggle against my grip.

"I'll tell you what I hate about you, Iris," I begin, eyes trained on her. "You don't want to accept anything when you're the one at fault. For you, apologies are just formalities. You resort to cheap tricks like asking your bully friends to bully the person who is not doing anything your way. You take things so less seriously unless it's a matter of your reputation. You always look for the easy way out of everything. You like to play games, but Redville is way out of your league. Nothing goes the way you want it to here, does it?"

She blinks. For a beat, there's a pin drop silence in the room.

"From the moment I've stepped in here, I've been asked this so many times. And even when people don't ask me about it, I know they're thinking about it. Right now, Iris, considering everything I've observed about you, I'm going to ask you the same question." I lean in towards her ear and she visibly freezes as I whisper in her ear. "How much did you pay, Iris? To get in Redville?"

I don't know why but saying those words aloud gives me a different kind of satisfaction. The way the colour drains out of her face.

I drop my hand but she doesn't move at all.

"If you think you're good enough, then why don't you do it? Again and again?"

"You think that's going to tire me out like it tired you out?"

"You're being overconfident."

"I'm not, actually."

She raises her eyebrows. "Then why don't you dance? Right here, right now. You don't look like you've practiced much either, Harley, so don't go around bossing people."

"You want me to dance? I'll dance. You spot a mistake, and you get to ask me to go again."

She looks at me like I've grown another head. I roll my eyes.

"What? You were the one who asked for this, weren't you? If you can't do it, Mason will help you."

He coughs, blinking a few times as he eyes flick between the two of us. "Me? Don't drag me into this."

"You're our choreographer," I deadpan. "You're supposed to know the dance better than us. Surely you can help this girl over here understand the dance she is supposed to do."

"I do know the dance," Iris defends herself.

"Yeah, you just know it. You can't do it and you can't match the beat. What have you been doing in music studies? Sleeping? Going on dates? Talking to your boyfriend? Anything else?"

"Shut up. I'll do it," she snaps, walking over to Reece. Mason gives me a look that clearly says 'are you sure about this' and I shrug, gesturing to him to play the song. He waits for a few minutes, then smiles and plays the song.

The lyrics hit me like a storm and I'm back in the dark trance I'm always in when I dance.

***

Mirrors are placed in the dance studio for a reason. It's to watch your movements, your posture, your mentor and their movements so that you can mirror them easily. It's important to do that in order to correct yourself. That's why you watch yourself while dancing. But sometimes, a person tends to be too focused on themselves rather than their movements.

At one point, you become more engrossed in looking at yourself rather than watching yourself dance. You can't correct yourself anymore because you're too focused on how you look while dancing rather than focusing on your movements and correcting them.

This gives trouble when you're rehearsing for a show, with multiple movements with multiple turns. I'd only realised this when I'd started practicing what my sister had said to me - I recorded myself dancing. It took time but I got used to not minding how I looked when I practiced choreography. I only watched myself through the videos, pointing out my own flaws. When I couldn't dance, I'd watch them over and over again.

Each mistake I did got embedded in my mind till I avoided all of them without even realising it.

I know this method won't work on everyone. I know I'm being mean here. I didn't want to be but here I am, spouting nonsense. I don't know why I'm doing this. Nothing happening here is really helping me in getting what I want. I'm just doing it. And it isn't long before I realise that I'm doing this for Iris, to help her. Or at least, I'm trying to help her.

As I dance, I'm not aware of what I'm doing. I'm just doing it like it's something I do everyday, the only thing I'm aware of is the music. It hurts sometimes, when I think about how dancing was not something I would have earlier chosen as a career and now here I am, at Redville because of my skills.

Sometimes, when I dance and the shackles clink against each other, I feel like I'm home. Because I have no idea what lies beyond them for me and I'm too scared to see it for myself. What if I find something I don't like? What if I'm trying to break free just to sink down further in this darkness that weighs so much that I feel heavy in my heart? What if there is nothing there for me to see?

These are the moments when I question myself. Question everything I'm doing. Question whether I'm sure of what I'm doing. Question whether I really deserve all this or not. Question why the world is so unfair to everyone and myself, why people take strong steps and leaps despite the risks. I don't have the answers to these questions. I don't think I'll ever have.

So much for being a 'genius', huh?

***

When I stop, I snap back to my senses almost immediately. My eyes fall on Iris, who just looks away from me. I raise my eyebrows with a scoff, losing my cool just a bit.

"Well?" I ask. "Do I go again?" When she doesn't answer, I turn towards Mason, who breaks out in a smile and shakes his head.

"No," he says, "you don't."

I shrug, walking up to Iris and standing in front of her. "Do you have any other requests for me? Or are you ready to actually hear me out instead of talking back?" She lets out a sigh before nodding once. I smile, taking a step back. "Reece, you recorded all of it?"

"Wha- yes," he says. "I did."

"Watch them," I say to Iris. "Now."

My voice is low and calmer than before now, surprising even myself. She gives me one last look before walking over to Reece. I didn't realise it before but he had been watching me with an amused look over his face for a while now. He shakes his head with a small smile before reaching for his camera and his laptop.

I step back, sighing and waiting for the video to play for her. Since the mirror is right behind her, I'm able to see what part of the video and dance she's watching.

"Point your toes," I say, my eyes on the screen in the mirror. "Always. You let your feet lose a lot. It makes you and your dance look ugly." She doesn't look up but I hear her draw in a breath. I know she isn't going to reply so I continue. "You don't hear the music properly. You don't match. You dance because you learn it with your own pace and your own count but when you're dancing to a song, your own pace does not work. You know what you have to do to make that work?"

She doesn't look up. I don't answer until she replies that this time, I've asked the question from her. She shook her head, blinking.

"You listen. That's what you do. Don't be aware and conscious of your movements. Be aware of the music and the thought of syncing with it. How you do that - that's up to you."

"I don't get it," Iris mutters under her breath. "How do I do it in one fucking day? You could've said all this to me on Sunday or Monday. I could've learnt it by now."

I roll my eyes. "You think? You were totally dependent on me for your grades, Iris. You still would be lazing around if I hadn't done this. And guess what? I'd do it all over again. No one learns something like this in a single day. Grow up, Iris. Stop trying to be smart." I run a hand through my hair, stepping back. "Do you have any idea what you're supposed to do now?"

She bites her lip. "Watch the recordings."

"Great. Reece?"

He looks up from the screen. "Yeah?"

"Is it possible to mail the recording to her?"

"Yeah, yeah. Just," he looks at Iris, takes his laptop back, "give me your mail ID. The network here sucks ass so I'll go out and connect."

Iris blinks once before snapping back into reality. She gives Reece her ID before he gets up with his laptop, walking out of the door before shooting me a last look. Iris gets up and within a few minutes, she is looking at herself in the mirror, practicing her postures and Mason helps her. He looks like he's not too sure about what happened but doesn't care about it anyway.

I look at him then mouth 'I'll be back' to him. He nods and I walk out to talk to him, not knowing about what anyway.

***

I find him sitting on the steps near the studio, waiting for the file to load. Without saying a single thing, I sit down beside him. Neither of us look at each other and neither of us even speak a word for quite a while. It's cold outside at this hour and there aren't many people around the studio since it's the time when people have dinner.

"So," he finally says, "you got on the skate team, huh?"

"I didn't agree to it," I mutter.

He scoffs. "Are you planning to disagree, then?"

"I haven't decided that yet." I look at him, raising my eyebrows. "How did you know that, by the way?"

"I'm on the team," he tells me. "So is Adelyn. And Sean. That's kinda how I met Adelyn."

"Cute. Isn't it cool for you and your roommate to have the same sport?"

"He played football and skating. Tried football last year. He's trying skating this time. Bet it's gonna be table tennis or some shit for next year."

"I like him."

He smiles, looking at me with his calm eyes. I don't smile back because I'm too tired to do that but at least I hope that my face is calm, not mad and annoyed. His hand goes to his pierced ear as he plays with his piercing, which is something that I guess he does when he's nervous.

"About Iris," he says out of nowhere, "why would you do that?"

"What do you mean?" I know exactly what he means.

He shrugs. "You know exactly what I mean. You said that you never help someone until it benefits you. You made it clear that you don't give a fuck about your rank. You also made it clear that you wouldn't care if you don't perform. And besides, helping her now isn't going to affect anything."

"What are you implying?" I ask. A soft sound interrupts us and he presses a key on his laptop before leaning back on his palms. He's wearing a loose dark blue full sleeved t-shirt that shows off his collarbone, his blond hair messy. His eyes look thoughtful now, as if he's thinking more than what he's saying.

"You pretend a lot," he says with a smile, "pretend that you don't care at all when that's exactly what you do. You care. A lot, probably but you have your own way of showing it. Which, I personally think you should change because you tend to get, uh, too harsh? It seemed like you could get worse."

"I could," I say, so low that I think that he didn't hear. I lean back with a sigh. "I need your opinion."

"Yeah?"

"Since you're on the skate team and all..." I trail off, thinking of how I should be wording it. "Do you think I should join the skate team?"

His gaze rests on me again. "If you want to, you should."

"If I knew whether I wanted to or not, I'd have made the decision already."

"Fair enough." He breathes out and closes his laptop. "I sent it to her. Anyway, I can't tell you what you want, can I? It would be fun for you, honestly. Trying something new. You can quit anytime you want."

"I don't even know how to skate."

"I;ve seen your stats. I think they're pretty good."

"You think?"

"I know it."

A smile tugs up at my lips as I shake my head, playing with my fingers and tapping my feet against the stair. "I don't know."

"It's up to you," he says with a deep breath. "But I'd say do it. Don't if you think it's gonna put a lot of pressure on you but yeah if you want some activity that will help you relax or something. Not necessary to do it competitively."

I hum. Might as well try it out before refusing, I guess. For some time, neither of us say anything even though there are things that I want to ask from him but figure that now's not the time. I'm about to get up when he speaks up again, his voice low.

"Can I ask you something?" he asks. I don't answer - I just look at him with a perplexed expression. "If you weren't at Redville, or, uh, if you couldn't pursue dance as a career, what would you have done?"

I freeze at the question. Judging from everything that has been happening around me for a month, the question seems too normal to me. I question whether to answer it or not but in the end, I do.

"A lawyer," I say, the word escaping my lips so smoothly because I didn't even have to think. "I wanted to be a lawyer."

"What changed?"

I roll my eyes, standing up. "Trying to get to know me much, are we?" I chuckle. "That's a story for another time."

He laughs, getting up as well. "Can I leave now? Or do you need something else from me?" Something in his tone tells me that that's not what he wanted to ask me at all. There's a question in his mind which he's either too scared or too nervous to ask. Maybe it isn't appropriate at the moment but that's exactly what's making me curious.

I don't ask him about it, though. "Nah, you can go. Thanks, though. I appreciate it."

"You're welcome," he says. "Good luck for your... whatever that is."

"Thanks," I laugh. He walks inside the studio to take his bag while I turn away, my smile slowly fading away. I feel cold as I check my phone for time before going inside myself, practicing with Iris and Mason for a while before all of us go back to the dorm.