Page 102 of Heir of Fire
The show wasn’t a cohesive play, but rather multiple performances from the students to demonstrate their skills from the semester. Some were in groups, some were in pairs, and some, like Gianna, were solo. Everyone, however, was extremely nervous because of the possibility of being scouted for things like professional acting and dance careers. It happened to a handful of students from their program throughout the years. Honestly, Gianna didn’t know if she wanted to do it full time or not. She hadn’t thought much about her future in that way. She did know that she wanted to continue dancing for as long as she could and maybe teach it someday.
The first couple of performances had already gone. Gianna stood backstage watching them all in awe. They were a talented group of students. It made her feel weirdly intimidated but also motivated to get out there and show everyone what she could do.
She stretched out her muscles, making sure they were nice and warmed up all day. She flexed her ankles and applied rosin to the tops of her shoes to make sure she could grip the stage good.
“Gianna, you’re on next,” the stage manager told her.
She nodded, standing up and taking a couple of deep breaths. Once the curtain closed and the duo on stage scurried off, Gianna made her way to the center. She got into position, raising her arms above her head and keeping her feet in third position. She took a deep breath and counted down the moments until it began.
The curtains opened, exposing her to the crowd. Her music began.
The melody took off slowly, as did she. She turned on pointe, moving across the stage before she bent over, letting her arms extend down her leg. She lifted her left leg up swiftly, stretching it straight behind her. Just as the music began reaching the crescendo, she let it fall effortlessly.
This was the tough part, where everything began moving quicker and more dramatically. As the violin and the cello in the song got played with quick strokes of the bow, Gianna met every change with a jump, crisscrossing her legs every time. Her arms were held at fifthen avantand then they moved toà la seconde.
Her legs were already burning, her feet were aching, but she was in the final stretch. The part that had been so hard for her to get time and time again, until Finn had come to watch her that one rehearsal and then so many times after. She used him as her guiding force to nail it.
Gianna looked for him out in the audience, and it wasn’t hard to find him. Even with the bright light on her, she could see him sitting directly in the center of the third row; the best seat in the house as she had told him. His eyes were locked on hers and goosebumps trailed down her spine.
She did her series of quick spins, using him as her spot for every turn. She stopped in fifth position. She did thepas de chatand then moved into aglissadeas she got to the center of the stage. The music was loud, and it was finally the moment.
Gianna leapt into the air, pushing off with everything she had and keeping her arms extended eloquently beside her. She had both legs completely straight in the air, practically doing the splits, keeping her feet arched and her head held high. As she ascended back on the ground, she landed on the front leg, immediately doing a series of turns without ever letting the other leg touch the ground.
Her eyes found Finn’s as the music slowed. The orchestral sound turned softer, slowly slipping away. With one lastglissade, she fell to the floor, letting the music finish out. She stayed there for a moment before the clapping and cheering began.
Gianna stood up, sucking in deep breaths of air as she looked out into the crowd. Finn stood clapping and hollering loudly. She couldn’t help the grin on her face. She saw Allister beside him, and her father there too. She saw Luna and Cecilia and Blair. She saw Valerio and Dante. Hell, even Augustus was there. She saw everyone she loved in the crowd, clapping and cheering with smiles that made her realize that she was going to be perfectly fine.
She took a bow, blowing out kisses to everyone.
The curtain closed, ending her performance.
She changed into one of the dresses she bought for the night and redid her makeup before she decided to go out and meet everyone in the lobby. Immediately, Gianna was picked up and smothered with kisses from Finn. She laughed, wrapping her arms around him.
He set her on the floor, holding her face in his hands. “You were absolutely stunning. Wonderful. Amazing. Magnificent. Fuck. You were the best thing I have ever seen in my life. I swear, princess. I wish I could watch it all over again for the first time.”
She knew she was blushing uncontrollably, but his endless compliments only made it worse. “You really mean all of that?”
“One hundred percent,” he said, pressing another kiss to her lips. “Fucking perfection.”
“Thank you,” she said.
“I almost forgot to give you these,” he said, pulling away suddenly. He moved quickly to the huge bouquet of red roses that were being held by Augustus for the time being, grabbing them from him. Finn handed them to her, and she couldn’t even wrap her arms around them.
“This is insane,” she said, laughing.
“Only the best for you.”
“Okay, stop hogging her,” Blair said, pushing through. Finally, the hugs with everyone else were able to happen. She got other bouquets as well, but none as big as Finn’s.
When she saw her father, she pulled him into a huge hug. He had been calling almost every day to check up on both Allister and her, but she hadn’t managed to see him since. Having him in the audience made her heart explode. Something akin to prideknowing her father had been with her through it all, and he was still showing up for everything.
“You were amazing,” he said, pulling out of the hug. “The best dancer of the night.”
“Oh, come on, Dad,” she said, waving him off.
“I’m being serious. My daughter is the best,” he said. “I also managed to meet your boyfriend.”
She nodded her head, looking over at Finn who stood with Luna. “And? What do you think?”
