Life could be a dream...

***

CHAPTER 32:

CONDITIONING AND COORDINATION 

Mars had completely trashed my mood. Even though he was gone, his words, that annoying grin, and those suggestive looks were still floating around like a bad smell. No matter how hard Tarben tried to distract me, I couldn't focus on anything he was saying or even touch the food he brought.

Thankfully, Tarben was super understanding. He didn't bring up Mars again and suggested we call it a night, mentioning I looked exhausted. He walked me to my door, handed me the basket, wished me a good night, and left. As soon as I stepped inside, Trouble was all over me. After a quick circle around my legs, he decided the basket was more interesting and started sniffing it.

I quickly checked my pet's stats. Fed? Check. Peed and pooped? Check. Played and happy? Double check. Apparently, it had spent the day roaming the Dorm and doing whatever it pleased. I sighed with relief and flopped onto my bed. How my cat managed to come and go from the room at will was still a mystery. But for tonight, I added it to the ever-growing list of unsolved Dorm mysteries and turned my attention to my current problem: Mars.

How dare he embarrass me like that? Those comments... those insinuations... Ugh! What an arrogant, self-centered jerk! I buried my face in my pillow and screamed. Still not enough. I thrashed, punched the blanket, and then started pacing the room like a mad carousel. I was fuming. Thinking a shower might cool me down, I jumped in, but the flames refused to die. Desperate, I turned to Tarben's basket for solace and devoured everything like it was my last meal. The result? A glorious food coma.

Trouble passed out next to the half-eaten strawberry pudding, and I conked out beside the half-empty basket. I had never slept on the floor before. The sleeping part was fine; the waking up was brutal. For a moment, I had no clue where I was or what time it was. Why was I on the floor? Why did everything hurt? And why was my alarm blaring? The sight of the basket and scattered dishes jogged my memory: the greenhouse, my workshop, Mars... Ugh. I groaned and cursed.

As I stood up, the alarm stopped. Thank goodness... It must've been a mistake. It wasn't a school day. I didn't have anywhere to be. Honestly, I couldn't think of doing anything but spending the entire day in bed. Trouble had somehow moved from the floor to the pillows during the night. I crawled under the covers next to my cat. But... as soon as my head hit the pillow, the alarm went off again.

"What's going on?" I shouted, jumping up in horror.

The Dorm didn't respond. Instead, my mailbox was blinking. Frowning, I disentangled myself from the covers and went to grab the letter. Had I lost track of the days? Was the schedule changed? No, it wasn't about a class. The letter was from Diego.

Couldn't see you at breakfast.

I'm heading out.

Meet me in the Pink Room.

D.

"Diego!" I whined, scrunching my face.

How could I forget about our dance practice? I must've slept through breakfast! Damn it! I rushed to the closet, tossing clothes everywhere looking for something decent. Nothing good, so I grabbed a purple dress. And of course, the Dorm cursed me with heeled dance shoes. No way out. Grumbling, I strapped them on and sprinted into the hallway.

Thankfully, the shoes were more comfortable than they appeared. This revelation came to me as I leaped down the stairs two or three at a time, my knee-length dress fluttering with a daring slit. In no time, I found myself in front of the dance studios, dashing down the hallway toward the Pink Room. And there was Diego, behind the fifth door, surrounded by ornate walls and facing the mirrors.

"Diego, I'm so, so, so sorry," I blurted out, bursting into the room.

Diego turned to me with a huge smile. "Why?" he asked, genuinely confused.

"I'm late. First, I couldn't sleep. Then I overslept. When the alarm went off..."

"Olive!" Diego said, grabbing my hands. "Calm down. I just got here too. Come on, start warming up. I'll get the music ready."

I nodded like an obedient pupil. While he moved to the corner to ready the cassette player, my gaze drifted around the room. This space was much smaller than the grand ballroom where our class usually met. Wooden floors and mirrored walls defined the room, but it was the ceiling and columns that truly distinguished it. We seemed to be standing in the midst of a pink rose garden, the blossoms not merely painted but appearing as if each were individually sculpted and affixed to the surfaces, lending them a striking three-dimensional effect.

At that moment, a sweet guitar solo filled the room. Diego was suddenly beside me. I noticed his shirt was the same color as my dress. Our reflections in the mirrors smiled at each other.

"Ready?"

I let out a deep breath. "Not at all."

Diego laughed. "Perfect! Then we can start."

And we began. Some people have a presence as soft as cotton. They don't just touch; they caress, they're gentle. Diego was one of those people. I already knew that, but today I had the chance to discover it up close. Every sentence, every comment, every command sounded like a different song to my ears. There was no getting angry, no getting bored, no getting tired. He laughed and made me laugh along with him. Turning even my most challenging moments into big laughs must have been his superpower.

Beyond that, he was the most patient instructor I had ever encountered. Concepts that seemed as complex as quantum physics were simplified under his guidance. He broke down the most daunting technicalities step by step, turning them into playful challenges. By the end of our session, the dance floor, once a stage for my fears and embarrassments, had transformed into a playground where fear no longer tread.

"Your conditioning is already great because you're an athlete," Diego had said.

According to him, swimming had improved my coordination too, so I was learning quickly and doing the movements correctly. I didn't know if he was saying these things just to motivate me, but they certainly worked. I could never imagine myself dancing with someone in the middle of mirrors. Now I was spinning, gliding, following the choreography.

"Now, let your beautiful hair join the dance," Diego suggested as we stood before the mirror, ready to begin the choreography once more. "It's part of your expression." Demonstrating with a dramatic toss of his own hair, he sent me into peals of laughter. We repeated the movements over and over, me attempting to mirror Diego's fluidity, twisting and turning in a myriad of graceful contortions.

"Awesome! Just like that! Fantastic!" Diego shouted in between to hype me up. He sang along with the song, mimicked the instruments, and whistled.

It was obvious I was having a blast, and I think Diego was pleased with my progress too. We had moved past the basic steps and onto some fancy flourishes. Turn, stop, right, left, jump, jump, spin, spin, spin!

"Now the hair!" Diego shouted. "And two, three, pose!"

I tossed my head, letting my hair whip around, and struck the pose he had taught me, raising my arm. Diego was right behind me, one hand on my waist, striking his own pose. I looked at our reflection in the mirror in awe. The image was so perfect that my smile reached my ears. But that smile vanished when I noticed a third reflection in the mirror. Horrified, I broke the pose and turned around.

"Oh, how beautifully you two dance!" Blue said, clapping her hands. Before either Diego or I could recover from the shock and say anything, she had joined us. "A private lesson from the best dancer in the Dorm, huh..." she said. "You're so lucky, Olive! But why didn't I know about this?"

I glanced at Diego. His cheeks were bright red, and his mouth was hanging open. He was melting right next to me. Getting a compliment like that from Blue had totally blown his mind. Knowing this was the opportunity he had been waiting for, I seized the moment.

"If you're free, why don't you join us! Diego is seriously amazing. He even got me, someone with two left feet, to dance."

We laughed. Diego's smile looked like he had been struck by lightning.

"We have a concert rehearsal," Blue said, pouting. She thought for a moment, glancing over her shoulder at the corridor. "Actually... I came early. I think I can stay with you guys for a bit."

Clapping my hands, I announced, "Let's take it from the top."

Blue, ever the diligent student, quickly positioned herself in front of the mirror. Noticing Diego still dazed, I gently took his arm, steering him to face our reflection. Despite being momentarily lost in thought, Diego's feet knew their way; the music kicked in, and instinctively, he moved in rhythm with us.

Initially, Diego seemed tense around Blue, not as at ease as when he danced with me. I worried he might not loosen up, but dance proved to be his solace. By our third run-through, Diego's instructions flowed naturally again, his movements growing smoother. By the fourth, he was fully engaged, dancing with each of us in turn. He spun Blue, then me, weaving us through the choreography, his steps drawing circles, gliding across the floor. He wasn't just performing the song; he was living it, and he brought us into that vivid experience with him.

At some point, we completely let go of the choreography and simply followed Diego's lead. The session turned into pure joy, and both Blue and I were laughing so hard that it left us more breathless than the dancing itself. When Diego focused on Blue again, I stepped back to dance solo, keeping an eye on them from a distance. As Diego spun Blue around, her laughter escalated into a full-blown fit. She nearly toppled over but caught herself by grabbing onto Diego, and their shared laughter filled the room.

Watching them, a warm admiration spread through me; they looked incredibly sweet together, leaving a goofy grin plastered on my face. But that smile lasted barely thirty seconds before another reflection caught my attention in the mirror. It was sudden, unexpected, unreal— I froze mid-step, one hand in the air, left foot forward. Then the reflection of Zeus decided to descend from the heavens, bringing his thunderbolts with him.

"Of course you're here!" Mars exclaimed; his voice tinged with irritation.

Though we hadn't spotted him earlier, it was obvious he hadn't just shown up. He stood at the entrance, hands buried in his pockets, his eyes fixed on Blue with a look of deep disappointment. His gaze briefly flickered to me, then swiftly returned to Blue.

"Oops!" Blue said, noticing him. "Busted!" She didn't seem the least bit sorry. Her smile instantly dispelled the toxic energy radiating from Mars. "How did you know I was here?"

"Your voice is echoing through the entire floor," Mars replied wearily. "Care to explain why you're here instead of practicing in the studio?"

Blue draped an arm over Diego's shoulder. "We're working on stage conditioning and coordination," she said proudly. "I found an amazing coach."

Diego was shocked once again. I was surprised. Mars's eyebrows were furrowed. Only Blue seemed confident in what she was doing. She ran over to Mars and started pulling him toward us.

"Come on, you need the practice too. Otherwise, you're just a stiff on stage."

"I am not!" Mars said, shaking her off.

"Admit it, you're totally hunched."

"It just looks that way because I'm playing the guitar," Mars defended himself. "I'm definitely not hunched."

"Let the coach decide that," Blue challenged. "Come on, grab your partner! Today's practice is stage posture, rhythm, and coordination."

"Blue!" Mars protested.

Ignoring him, Blue turned to Diego and took his hand. "So, coach, where do we start?"

"Blue!" Mars repeated.

"Mars!" Blue shot back, lifting her chin toward him.

This one-word standoff continued for a few more rounds. In the end, Mars gave in. When his gaze shifted to me, I realized he had chosen me as the weak link to vent his frustration on.

"Then I'll partner with the coach!" he declared. "Oliver can't dance. If you're so inclined, you can partner with her."

"Of course I can dance!" I blurted out.

Oh, my foolish pride... What bold words those were. But Mars's presence had reignited yesterday's anger. A wild thought crossed my mind—perhaps I could 'accidentally' land a few kicks I'd missed in the greenhouse. His skeptical eyebrow raise only fueled my irritation further.

"You were watching us earlier," I pressed on. "You saw I could dance. Maybe the problem is you! Maybe I struggled in class because you couldn't lead me properly. Blue's right; you do hunch on stage!"

Sparks of anger lit Mars's eyes—a clear sign I had struck a nerve, adding to the damage Blue had already done. But I was beyond caring; I was confident, righteous in my anger. And then...

Mars pounced like a panther. It took only a second for him to be beside me. When he grabbed my waist and pulled me toward him, I lost my breath. Before I could exhale, his other hand had taken mine, positioning us in the pose we had practiced in class.

Holding my gaze, he challenged, "The problem's with me, huh? Let's see about that. Yes, coach, where do we start?"

I swallowed hard, my heart racing. What had I just unleashed?

***

While Mars and Olive are at each other's throats, I turned my attention to Diego and Blue in this episode. They're so cute, aren't day :D  

Alright, enough laughing and having fun for now. Next chapter, dark clouds start looming over our story.  If anyone senses the approaching danger, let's hear your guesses.

Take very good care of yourselves as always, my dears.

Kisses, EC