ARTSY. Chapter 1: The Audition

ARTSY: How It Is In My Head: https://7bracelets.wordpress.com/2010/01/03/artsy-how-it-is-in-my-head/

“Breathe, Mandy, breathe!”, sighed Andrea in her last attempt to calm her friend down, “both of us know you’re going to get it anyway.”.

“How do you know?”, blurted Mandy instantly.

Andrea couldn’t help but rolled her eyes. Sometimes she just could not understand why Mandy had to be so dramatic. She was the best dancer in the school – after Andrea, of course – thus if there was someone that would definitely pass the audition, that would be Mandy. Sensing another nervous breakdown coming from her friend, Andrea decided it was time to pull out the big gun.

“You forgot something, Mandy. That I”, Andrea paused theatrically, “am the only judge. And the only choreographer.”

—

Andrea let out a long sigh, slightly frustrated as the dancer on the stage attempted to do a few spot turns just to end up almost toppled over. Seeing the color rising to the girl’s cheeks, Andrea felt bad for her. Absolutely embarrassing, she thought, not getting why these dancers even bothered to come for the audition when they couldn’t even balance themselves on their feet. It was a very big event of the school that would attract many dancers and choreographers from all over the countries, not just some late afternoon practices.

Andrea had been in Victoire School of the Arts for three years, ever since the day she managed to persuade her guardian to let her pursue her dance career instead of wasting her time dealing with preppy kids in some high school. Now, as a senior in Modern Dance class, Andrea had been more than one of the most brilliant students in the school’s history. She was legendary. When she first stepped in to the audition hall of Victoire, nobody could tell that Andrea, the girl with untamable blue highlights in her hair, would be the choreographer and lead dancer of the school’s biggest performance of the year. Andrea herself was shocked when she found out the inhospitable headmaster, Dr. Wilson, had chosen her to hold the honor. While Andrea knew too well she was the best the school had, she couldn’t stop wondering, since this year performance was to support same sex marriage, if it had anything to do with the fact that she was gay.

Yes, you saw it right. Andrea Moss, the most alluring, talented and unobtainable female being in Victoire School of the Arts, was not interested in men. When the news were spread by Andrea herself, it had crashed every single young man’s heart and, at the same time, won Andrea a brand new apartment (it was small, but it still was an apartment) as her guardian “couldn’t stand to have a lesbian in the house”. At the age of 18, Andrea had a shelter above her head, a not-so-bad income from dancing in a club and many jobs awaiting after her graduation. Parents are way too overrated, she thought.

Andrea glanced at her watch and exhaled deeply. It’d been two hours since the audition started and she couldn’t find a single dancer that quite met the criteria. True, she had always been a perfectionist, but how could you not in dancing? To avoid being bored to death, Andrea entertained herself by recalling Mandy hitting the door when a handsome guy from Painting class walked by. Speaking of Mandy, Andrea wondered why it hadn’t been her turn yet. Not that Andrea looked forward to Mandy being her love interest (in the dance, of course) but the headmaster’s daughter was rather attractive of a young lady and more importantly, quite graceful of a dancer. Other than the tendency to overreact in every single situation, Mandy Wilson also inherited the most delightful dance moves from her father. Thank God she wasn’t bald!

Tracking the tip of her pencil down the page, Andrea’s face was suddenly lit up. Speaking of the devil.

“Next. Mandy Wilson.”

Andrea could tell, even with her eyes closed, that Mandy was wearing those creepy red dance socks that Dr. Wilson bought her two years ago. Mandy claimed these Christmas disasters her good luck charms, so often that Andrea had given up on telling Mandy the truth that they made her look like rotten tomatoes. And she was right. There was Mandy, showing absolute self-conflict with a sexy outfit and a retarded pair socks that didn’t quite match.

“Start when you’re ready!”, shouted Andrea excitedly. She would get to go home soon.

And Mandy did. Andrea found the dance familiar. It was no other than the dance Dr. Wilson choreographed specially for Mandy. As much as Andrea hated to say it, Dr. Wilson was a brilliant dancer and choreographer. Then again, he wouldn’t make it to the top position of this reputed school if it wasn’t for his talent, now would he?

Mandy finished her dance routine by an elegant back spot turn as Andrea let out a sigh of relief. Her friend had done it well, just like she expected. Now that Mandy had done well, Andrea had nothing else to do except for sitting back and relax before coming to Dr. Wilson and tell him that his daughter was her dance partner. There was only one name left before the audition ended. Since Andrea had never seen this person’s name before, she was pretty sure that was a freshman, probably just another kid who dreamed to put her hands on the famous Andrea Moss. Inflated by her own ego, Andrea couldn’t hide her smirk as she called out the name.

“Esmée V. Russell”. Andrea paused suddenly after feeling how strange the name felt on her lips. It didn’t feel quite right in some way she didn’t know.

“It’s Ez-mae, not Ez-mee, if you don’t mind.”

It was then that realization dawned over Andrea. The girl was British, and obviously speaking with her accent. Andrea had never liked the British. They were arrogant and unfriendly and sarcastic and this girl was a living example of that.  To make things worse, this Ez-mae girl was looking straight into her eyes. Usually, Andrea would never back away from someone’s gaze but in this case, there was something in the girl’s deep brown eyes that made her extremely uneasy. After letting Esmée reach deep inside her with her eyes, Andrea finally realized that she was staring into the girl’s eyes and managed to tear her own gaze away. Mentally slapping herself to do some damage control, Andrea spoke up, surprised at how low her voice sounded.

“Are you a new student, Ez-mae?”

“No, I’m a transferred student. From Elizabeth Academy of Contemporary Arts in England, actually. It’s my first day here.”

What?

“What?”, blurted Andrea. Seeing Esmée raising an eyebrow at her, Andrea felt a sudden heat in her cheeks. Realizing that she was blushing, Andrea pretended to be checking her paper as she muttered

“Ready when you are, Miss.”

First day? And she’s here with the audition without any preparation? That girl is crazy. Either that or she’s too sure of herself. Or both. Andrea thought, disgusted. British and their bigger-than-life attitude.

It was when Esmée turned her back to Andrea to prepare her music that Andrea noticed the other girl’s hair. The British girl had dyed black hair with a single highlighted purple streak. Wild child, thought Andrea. From Esmée hair, Andrea let her eyes travel down the other girl’s body. It had been a while since Andrea last saw such a beautiful girl. Andrea had always been an attractive lady herself. With her slim but curvy body and a smile to die for, Andrea had always been almost everyone’s in Victoire target. The girl in front of her now, however, was different. She was wearing a black tank top and knee-length tights that exposed her milky white skin and rather sculptured body form. If Andrea remembered it right, that was the first time she saw a person with milky white skin without thinking that they had albino. In fact, Esmée’s skin was so flawless that Andrea had the urge to reach out and touch her.

Andrea shook herself of the thought right away. There was no way she was going to like Ez-mae. Normally, when Andrea saw a hot girl, she wouldn’t hesitate to use her charm, and she would always end up getting what, or rather who, she wanted. However, she didn’t want Esmée. Reasons? There’re plenty: 1^st, she was a British. 2^nd, she corrected Andrea’s pronunciation. 3^rd, well… she was a British. See? There was no way Andrea Moss was going to like Ez-mae.

The music started playing, effectively kicking Andrea out of her thoughts and put her in place as a judge. Studying Esmée’s movements, Andrea was holding her breath, ready to point out the other girls’ mistakes and laugh at her. No such luck! Andrea had to try so hard to resist the urge to widen her eyes or open her mouth to let out a gasp as Esmée’s movements were nothing but perfection. Those continuous passé turns and barrel jumps actually gave Andrea some tiny troubles occasionally yet Esmé looked so comfortable and professional doing them. That was not to mention her facial expression. Esmé’s face was one of the most emotive that Andrea had ever seen in a dancer, like the dance was all about her. As much as Andrea hated to say it, Esmée was undoubtedly a naturally beautiful dancer. Absolutely impressive!

—

“Alright, people! The result will be out tomorrow. You all may leave now. Goodbye.”, Andrea announced the end of the audition, an utterly bored expression printed on her face, emphasized by her voice. Throwing a last glance at the crowd leaving the room, Andrea caught Esmée’s eyes. Again, Esmée’s gaze penetrated right through Andrea’s mind, making her feel a sudden sense of vulnerableness. Their eyes were locked until Esmée was finally out of the room and reality snapped back to Andrea.

Turning her back to the door, Andrea sighed heavily, rubbing her eyes strongly as if to force something out of her mind. Covering her face with her palms, Andrea continued to be lost in a thousand thoughts racing through her mind.

Mandy is so going to kill me.

Chapter 2: https://7bracelets.wordpress.com/2009/09/12/artsy-chapter-2-the-first-confrontation/