• You might scream at me for this one if you're an OG, lmao •

When Fiona left school that afternoon and headed for the DanceDec, she was a bit of a nervous wreck, but that was nothing new at this point.

After the talk with her mom yesterday, she had promised to send the invite onwards to Adam and his grams about the dinner offer. She had never asked anyone over for dinner before, much less with family included, but if this was what it took for her mom to trust her with him, then dinner it was.

... But wasn't it truly just a polite opportunity for her mom to grill Adam some more and ask him the same questions she had asked Fiona yesterday?

So with slightly sweaty palms, Fiona jumped off the bus and walked towards the DanceDec, only to come to a slow halt outside of it when she spotted something unusual.

Adam was standing on the curb in front of the building, still in his school uniform, backpack slung over his shoulder, and was talking to... some guy?

Fiona frowned a little and watched as Adam appeared to be caught in a deep conversation with the man standing in front of him, a guy who appeared to be somewhat mid- to late twenties. He was reasonably tall and had black hair and olive skin. He looked friendly from the looks of his calm demeanor, but there was just something about him that made Fiona feel slightly anxious. He looked... official.

Who was this man, and how did Adam know him?

Carefully walking up to the two of them, Fiona hesitantly cleared her throat when she paused up right behind Adam. He turned around at the sound and then immediately grinned when he saw her standing there.

"And when speaking of the sun!" He laughed and wrapped his arm around her. He tenderly pecked her head. "This is her. Fiona, this is Matteo Jackson, my parole officer."

"Oh," Fiona's eyes widened when Matteo Jackson smiled her way. "It's nice to meet you."

"It's nice to meet you too," Mr Jackson extended his hand, and Fiona politely shook it. "Adam's talked a lot about you."

Fiona looked surprised up at Adam who smiled sheepishly. "He has?"

"I told him you're the one keeping me out of trouble," Adam replied and tugged her closer to him. "And also promised not to get you into any either."

"If only all parolees were as well-behaved as you," Mr Jackson shook his head, but grinned. Fiona couldn't help but notice he spoke with a slight accent, but she couldn't quite pin it down. "Anyway. I just dropped by to say my goodbye. You'll get a call from your new parole officer sometime later this week."

"He's transferring to the west," Adam filled in when Fiona frowned confused. "He's leaving tomorrow, but I was his first assigned case, so I'm actually surprised he hasn't brought me a goodbye gift. Like a bag of coke to reminisce the good ole' days."

"Watch it," Mr Jackson pointed a reprimanding finger at him, but did so with a crooked smile. "Alright, I gotta get going. You two take care."

"Whoa, whoa," Adam held up his hands and stepped in Mr Jackson's way when he tried to leave. "It's dance circle Monday. Don't tell me you're trying to leave without a proper goodbye."

"Well, actually, I—"

"Unless you didn't bring it, of course," Adam challenged and looked him up and down with a teasing grin. "I bet old age took it from you and that's why you never show up anymore."

"Oh, so that's how it is?" Mr Jackson replied, chuckling with a shake of his head. "Old man, huh?"

"You know where the circle is," Adam gestured towards the doors and wagged his eyebrows. "Prove me wrong, grandpa. You know, my gram's still single. I could give you her number—"

"Alright, you little asshole," Mr Jackson laughed and then snatched the cap off of Adam's head. He propped it on his own and flipped it around for good measure. "Lead the way."

Adam howled with triumph, then grabbed Fiona's hand and ran inside, dragging her on tow.

"This is going to be amazing, wait and see," He told, grinning to her.

They ran upstairs, where everyone was gathering in the big studio, already starting to form a circle and gearing up for the big event. Rani, Kalo and the gang were there too, and as soon as they saw Adam and Fiona, they all grinned and waved them over.

"What's up?" Kalo wanted to know when Adam headed straight for the stereo. He shook his head and pulled her phone cord out, only to plug his own in.

"MC's outside, he's here for a last dance, so I'm throwing the beat down for him," He rapidly told with a sly grin. "Fuck, he's gonna hate me."

"What are you picking?" Kalo leaned in over his shoulder to follow along, and so did Fiona, only to hear Kalo let out a low laugh when he finally selected a track. "Oooooooh, man. You're dead."

The track started playing, and just in the same moment, Matteo Jackson came into the room, everyone making way for him. Some shook his hand, others fist-bumped him, while a few simply just whistled – mainly the girls.

"Who is this guy?" Fiona whispered to Adam who chuckled and crossed his arms.

"Watch this," He laughed as Jackson stepped into the circle, glaring at Adam with a teasing grin. "He's pure legend. He busts like nobody else, I swear."

Fiona turned her head and now watched curiously as the man everyone apparently seemed geared up to see dance again smirked slowly at Adam.

And then, with a chuckle, Matteo Jackson truly did break it down.

Fiona dropped her jaw and heard as Adam howled and whistled while his parole officer tore up the floor. His feet and his rhythm was something so incredible, even Fiona couldn't believe it. It was like he was on beat with every movement and every loop in the music. He moved his body in ways that looked so effortless, yet so impossible, Fiona could only stare.

But she also couldn't help but notice something else: A lot of the steps he did were steps she had seen Adam do.

Had he been his mentor?

Fiona cheered along with the rest of the crowd as Mr Jackson danced the floor raw and finally ended it with walking up to Adam and pulling him out to join. Adam laughed and stepped right up next to him, and then did a routine that seemed so rehearsed, it had to be a private thing they had together. Fiona couldn't help but smile, seeing how happy Adam was. How come she never knew about this guy before now?

The song eventually came to a finish and transitioned into the next one, and just like that, Adam and Mr Jackson ended their number with a glorious cheer from the crowd. Adam then turned towards Jackson and stuck out his hand, to which Mr Jackson grabbed it and pulled him in for a short hug.

"Give it up one last time for the real MC!" Adam then shouted over all the cheers, which only made the crowd that much wilder. Everyone walked up to say their goodbyes to him, and while they did, Adam sneaked his way back to Fiona, who still stood hidden by the speakers.

"Ready to go?" He asked, panting lightly while picking up his bag, but still smiling like a mad man.

"Are you?" She asked him. "You don't want to say a proper goodbye...?"

Adam shook his head and slung his arm around her. "I don't believe in goodbyes. Especially with feet like that. Believe me, I'll be seeing him again."

He started dragging them out of the studio, but Fiona couldn't help but look back and get one last look at the tall, black-haired man who was still shaking hands with everyone. "Yeah... he really was great out there."

"Yeah," Adam agreed, just as they made it into the hall. "Guess that's why they call him Jagger."

They made it to their studio where Adam walked in first and dumped his bag down, whereafter Fiona did the same. They both sat down on the floor where Fiona watched as Adam started tugging his school tie loose and peeling off his uniform shirt. He wore a white tank top beneath.

"So, one week left," He finally said and stuffed away his things into his bag. Fiona, who had been staring at his muscular arms, snapped her head up and looked confused at him.

"Huh?"

"Your audition?" He reminded her with a raised brow.

Oh, right. The life important audition that her whole life had revolved around... that one. "Right."

"Are you nervous?"

It was strange, but suddenly the audition seemed like the last thing she was worried about. She had a million other things that seemed so much more important... and right now she couldn't even remember why she was auditioning. "Uh... I guess? A little?"

"I think we should start preparing your piece," He stated, then walked up to the one of the walls where a foam roller laid tucked into corner. "You have two weeks of copped attitude and different dance styles to express yourself with. I want to see what we can do with it."

"Okay..." Fiona slowly said, watching him smirk and then toss the foam roller at her. She narrowly caught it.

"Time to stretch you out then," He cheekily winked, but then joined her on the floor for warmups when she rolled her eyes.

But why did that slightly also make her blush?

The day then went on with them first warming up, using the foam rollers and a bit of resistant band training to warm up all their joints. Adam then watched her closely while she warmed up by the barre and helped stretch out her legs and press down on her hips so she got the last inch eliminated in her deep pliés. All of her limbs ached and felt wobbly afterwards, but she hadn't felt this stretched in weeks. Her feet were working overtime and they hadn't even switched to pointe yet.

"Separate those shoulder blades," Adam corrected while she did her routine by the barre. "Elongate your neck. Don't worry so much about looking perfect, focus more on your technique. They're gonna scrutinize you in there if you don't extend your leg straight behind you."

She had always wondered how he knew so much about all these different kinds of dancing, but ballet in particular. She remember he told her he started with ballet, but did he really learn that much from just that?

"Alright, I wanna see you en pointe again," Adam then said, after another fifteen minutes of watching her do her routine. Fiona immediately turned and headed for her bag. "I wanna see if you still remember what I taught you when we first met."

Oh, she didn't think she would ever forget that.

Tying up her shoes and fastening them securely around her feet so they were comfortable, she stepped up to the centre of the floor. Adam stepped up right behind her and lightly gripped her hips as she slowly went on pointe. Then, lifting her leg backwards and slightly letting herself lean forward, she watched and felt as Adam adjusted her posture.

"Keeping that foot tugged in," He noticed with a satisfied chuckle. "Good. How far is your extension?"

"Pretty far," Fiona lifted her leg a bit more and continued to lower her upper body. Adam stabilized her and raised a brow as she kept going down and down... and then down some more.

Standing in an almost perfect vertical split, Adam whistled lowly and then helped her up again to both feet. "That's more than pretty far, show-off. Alright then, let's work some more on your feet. To the barre."

Fiona grinned but then went back to the barre. Together, they then worked on a few different moves that he deemed she was a little rusty in. Since she had never received professional training, all she had had to go from in the past were videos, books and learning by herself. That meant a lot of her techniques weren't up to scratch, according to how the companies wanted you to dance. Every company wanted a different style, but the New York Ballet was looking for the classic and contemporary artists.

After about two hours of dancing, working on her feet and perfecting a few dance moves, Fiona was feeling sore, but good. Adam was sweating behind her as well as he lifted and supported her around on the floor. Around mid-afternoon, they finally both decided on a snack break.

"What've you got?" Adam grinned and looked into her lunchbox where her mom had packed her some healthier alternatives. A sandwich with lots of tomatoes, avocado and chicken slices and an added apple on the side. "Looks so damn good."

"What about you?" Fiona watched as he pulled a lunch sack out of his bag. He had granola bars, a few orange slices and a peanut butter jelly sandwich.

"Want a bite?" Adam offered when he pulled up his sandwich. Fiona eyed the sandwich out and mentally counted the calories. Peanut butter... dense fats... the jam... pure sugar... and the bread... complex carbs...

"Can I... can I have a piece of one of your granola bars instead?" She carefully asked, not feeling quite ready for the sandwich yet. She was getting better at eating bigger and more calorie-dense meals, but... she still had problems when it came to carb bombs.

"Sure," Adam pulled up one of his granola bars which were oats, protein and chocolate-chipped. A bite of that was less damaging than a whole bar.

Fiona nervously watched as he opened the granola bar and broke off a little piece. When he handled it to her, she smiled back and then weighed the piece in her hand. It was just one piece.

"So about your solo," He said, biting into his sandwich. Her attention shifted and she quickly snapped out of her inner turmoil.

"What about it?"

"I'm not sure the song you picked is enough to show off your full range of abilities. Especially now when you've learned so much more and have a whole lot more to add. Would you be interested in changing it up?"

"You mean... learning a whole new solo a week before my audition?" Fiona questioned and suddenly realized she was chewing. She blinked in almost shock when she tasted oats and chocolate. She hadn't even registered she had put the granola piece in her mouth.

Adam nodded and grinned, taking another bite of his sandwich. "Yeah. It's gonna be a challenge, but if you trust me, I'll help you. I think I already have something in mind."

Fiona swallowed the granola piece in her mouth and realized she had liked the taste. She smiled a little to herself, but then picked up her apple. "Can I make up my mind after you show it to me?"

"Sure. I can show you after we're doing here," He waved his sandwich and quickly licked the side when the jam was dripping out. She chuckled a little, but then suddenly remembered something. She had gotten completely sidetracked this morning and had almost forgotten she had something important to ask.

"Speaking of... eating," She said and instantly felt her stomach squeeze together tightly and do a flip. "My mom wants to invite you and your grams over for dinner tonight. Would that, uhm... be something you'd want?"

Adam raised a brow, but smiled slowly. "Your mom asked? Well fuck, then I'm not saying no. I'll ask my grams, but any food we don't have to cook ourselves, we'll usually take. We're in."

"You do realize it's my mom's way of feeling you out... right?" Fiona questioned and raised a brow as well when Adam grinned, but then sighed.

"Damn. Sounds kinky," He chuckled, before leaning in towards her and pressing a quick kiss to her lips, before smirking slowly. "Good thing you bought me a thong then."

Oh, lord.

~~~

Fiona had been so nervous about tonight. After confirming with his grandma, the dinner was officially on and her mom had cooked up a whole meal. Everything had been set up nicely, but in truth it was all just a pretty disguise her mom put out so she could question Adam without them feeling uncomfortable. And that was exactly why Fiona had been pacing the floor in her room for half an hour before they were set to arrive.

What if his parole came up? His prison time? What if her mom found out somehow, and what if that was what made her change her whole mind about him? She was already on the edge with him, even though he had won some points after she found out how he had helped Fiona. Even still... her mom was even more protective of her now that she knew what problems she had been dealing with. If just one thing went wrong tonight...

Fiona had been a mess when they finally showed up, and as if noticing that straight away, Adam had pulled her into a hug and discreetly kissed her neck while her mom and his grams were saying hi. He had squeezed her hand and then whispered quietly in her ear; "I told her not to bring up my past."

Fiona exhaled visibly after that. It wasn't that she was ashamed of his past, it was just that their whole future together was hanging on the thread that was her mother's approval of him. She would tell her about his past when the time was right, but tonight wasn't it. Tonight was all about kissing up and making sure they could still dance together every day.

"Thank you so much for this lovely invitation," Adam's grandma voice as they stepped into the kitchen, after removing their jackets. "I can't remember the last time I had a good home cooked meal that actually tasted good."

"Hey?" Adam said, looking at his grams with a mock-offended look. "I can cook, alright? You just always need fifty pounds of hot sauce before you can taste anything."

"Hush now," His grams patted his shoulder and instead grabbed his elbow. "Help me to the chair, please."

"Of course, sit down," Fiona's mom smiled and gestured towards kitchen dining table. "Dinner's gonna be ready in a second. You want water or some wine? We got both."

Adam helped his grams wobble into a chair and take a seat. You could tell she wasn't walking very well any more, and getting into the chair took Adam lowering her in carefully. Once she was seated, Adam took a seat next to Fiona, who had sat down at the end of the table.

"Water, please," His grams replied. "Everything smells just delicious. Let me know if you need any help, Adam will get it for you."

"Yes, ma'am," Adam prompted and smiled up at Fiona's mom.

"You can help lift that heavy pot there over to the table, if you please," Her mom responded curtly while tossing the salad around, after mixing in the dressing. "Just right over there on the wooden block. Grab the oven mitts on the wall over there, the pot's probably still hot."

Adam immediately got up and effortlessly lifted the heavy pot to the table, after taking the oven mitts. Fiona watched nervously as everything seemed to be going well so far. But for how long? Tonight was going to be a long night.

Pretty soon they all got seated around the table and got ready to eat. Adam's grams led the prayer and they all waited till she had blessed the food. After that, Adam helped plate the food for his grams and offered the same for Fiona and her mom. Fiona was too nervous to even focus on the food, she merely looked between her mom and Adam, waiting for something to happen. Whenever she caught Adam's eyes though, he smiled calmly at her and somehow eased her worry. If only for a few moments at a time.

They made it through the whole dinner and onto dessert, which was coffee cake and coffee, without a single incident. Her mom had asked a few personal questions, but Adam had responded as openly as he usually did. The topic of his past didn't come up, but around dessert, another topic did.

"He was such a sweet boy, right from the start," His grams said and looked at him as he and Fiona sat at the end of the table with a couple of her pointe shoes. After today's dance lesson, she had to repair the seams and change the laces. Adam had offered to help her. "He was delivered to our doorstep sometime in the early morning, we think. It was something right outta an old western movie. A little basket with the sweetest little boy sleeping with his stuffed animal. We don't believe his mother meant him any harm or abandoned him out of hatred. We merely believed she knew his future would be better with us than with her. God bless her soul."

"So you never knew your parents?" Fiona's mom asked Adam.

Looking at the shoe he was sewing, he peaked up with a little smile and shook his head. "No, ma'am. But I've never needed to, either. The orphanage took better care of me than any other place could have. I can't imagine my mother having been able to match their love."

"He's being too kind," His grams reached forward and pinched his cheek like he was still a little boy. Adam actually blushed and looked down. "We did the best we could with him, and he repaid us in all the love he could give us. Adam's always been such a happy soul. I don't know where he gets it from. God sure did give him a heart worth more than gold."

Fiona was actually feeling her heart ache, but also had to press her lips together not to smile. Adam was blushing something furiously and was trying to hide it by keeping his head down and pretending to be focused on repairing her shoe. Even the tips of his ears were red.

"Well... sounds like he found his joy in life," Fiona's mom replied. "He dances well, according to my daughter. She says he's a real pro at teaching."

"Well, he teaches all of the residents over at my friend's nursing home," His grams prompted after sipping her coffee with a smack of her lips. "He visits once a week and helps all of us keep our hides from getting glued to the couches and chairs, pardon my language. He does a real good job of it."

"Actually, speaking of that," Adam now broke in and looked up at Fiona's mom. "Tomorrow's the next time I visit, and I would love to bring Fiona if I could. I know the guys there will love the chance to dance with a pretty, talented girl. Brings them so much joy to just dance."

Fiona widened her eyes. Shit. He just looked her mom in the eyes and asked to take her daughter out without breaking a sweat. How could he even dance with balls that big?

"Dancing at the nursing home, you say?" Her mom pursed her lips ever so slightly. "What time does this... event start?"

"It starts at 6 and ends around 8," Adam replied. "It wouldn't be late at all, and my grams would be there, too. I would have her home within half an hour after 8."

Fiona turned towards her mom in shock and watched her narrow her eyes. Oh, she knew what he was playing at. Using sweet talk and dirty tricks to get her to say yes. The only question was... was she falling for it?

"Please, mom?" Fiona pleaded, carefully. She really wanted to go. Any time she could spend with Adam, even if in the company of a bunch of seniors, she wanted it. "It would just be a little longer than usual. I promise I'll be up and early for school in the morning—"

Her mom lifted a hand. Fiona shut up immediately and held her breath as she watched her mom think. After another moment, she then finally unclenched.

"I suppose I could make this one exception," She then slowly said, watching Fiona's smile almost burst in happiness. "Even though she is grounded. But I suppose a little dispersion couldn't hurt, and especially for such a good cause."

"Thank you, thank you, thank you," Fiona squealed quietly and leaned over to hug her mom with a grin. Her mom hugged her back briefly before pulling back and looking Adam in the eye.

"I want her home no later than 8.45pm. I understand you're very fond of my daughter, but you must also understand that she's currently going through a lot. I have her best interest in mind, and I'm not sure a boy is what she needs right now."

"I understand," Adam replied. "I do really care for your daughter, Ms Torrence, and I want the best for her, too. She lights up like nothing else when she dances, so if she wants to continue to dancing with me, I'll consider it my privilege to be her dance partner. Anything else is just a bonus."

Her mom hummed in response to that and pursed her lips a little. Fiona could tell she really wanted an excuse not to like Adam, but she was finding it very hard. And maybe that was because Adam really only was a sweet boy.

"Well, then," His grams then said, wiping her mouth down with her napkin. "I think we're gonna head home then. Thank you for an absolutely lovely and delicious night, Mrs Torrence. You sure do know your way around a kitchen."

"Thank you," Her mom smiled back and stood up as Adam started helping his grams get up as well. "Would you me like to call you a cab home? Busses can be so unsafe at this time."

"I think we'll manage," Her grams smiled back. "I like to stretch my legs when I can. Lord knows they need it."

They all got up and moved towards the tiny hall where Adam helped his grams put on her jacket. Fiona felt like she could breathe for the first time that whole night as they all started to say farewell, and when it became her turn to say her goodbyes, she got a firm hug from Adam's grams and and even firmer hug from Adam himself.

"I'll see you tomorrow," He whispered in her ear before giving her cheek a chaste peck. Fiona knew her mom was watching them, but she almost didn't care. Adam pulled back after a moment and gave them both a smile. "Thank you so much for tonight."

"Bye," Fiona waved goodbye as they walked out, feeling the urge to run after him. Her mom waved goodbye as well, but left to go clean the kitchen as soon as they were on their merry way. Fiona, on the other hand, stayed and watched them walk down the street, seeing Adam supporting his grams, but glancing back over his shoulder instinctively, as if feeling her still looking.

He shot her a big grin, to which Fiona couldn't help but reciprocate. Then, with a last look, Fiona finally closed the door and sighed happily.

She couldn't wait until tomorrow.

• • •

So did anyone of my OG's notice the not-so-slick cameo? Haha, don't worry. I'm just teasing you all here. There won't be any future references to this moment. I just couldn't help myself when I saw the opportunity.