The Girl Who Despised Talent
Mikaela stifled a yawn. This time she managed to not the alarm clock into the wall. She’s been adamant about self-control these past weeks and not seeing a broken device the first thing in the morning was, for her, a success.
As she walked down to the kitchen while stretching her lithe body, waking up the muscles, the phone pinged. It was from Elena, her dance teacher that reminded Mikaela about the dry rehearsal later during the day. Mikaela rolled her eyes at the tone of the message was too caring, too nagging - almost like back at home. It was her great debut, of course she wouldn’t miss the rehearsals. She knew the whole show inside out, not only her part. She’s been practising like a madman, in fact…
Mikaela looked around the kitchen and measured the space around, nodding in approval as she bowed her legs in plié and slowly swung out her hands and legs in a gentle dance. Her ruffled blonde hair covered her head like a halo with thin strands occasionally getting in the way of her ice blue eyes. But her focus was solid, counting the rhythm in her breaths while also humming the melody as her body moved from place to place.
Arabesque, pirouetté, and don’t forget to slow down half a tempo when we move to adagio. It was a sight to behold, a woman in her pink Lilo & Stitch pyjamas dancing gracefully in the kitchen. She ended the dance with a bow. Having not only worked up some sweat but also an appetite she hurried to take a shower and make some breakfast.
It was a dream come to true for Mikaela since she had always loved dancing for as long as she remembered. She recalled that the only trait people memorized about her during middle-school was her dancing, even in high school. In fact, it was more common that she was called “dance-girl” instead of her name. Which wasn’t nice per say, but still a testament to her dedication. She had continued with dancing after high school, entering to an Arts College and during her last year, she was scouted. And now she’s the main star in the coming Swan Lake. It was wonderful.
Then she remembered what others said about her success and sneered. She shrugged off the memories and packed her bags, heading to the local theatre for the rehearsals.
---
“One, two, three, four, two, two, three, four,” counted Elena as the dance group moved in unison to her call. “Paulina, stretch out your neck more. Good, just like that.”
It was midday, the rehearsal has been going on for hours but no one uttered a word of exhaustion. They were professionals, and they were prepared to make it through, come what may. Everything needs to look perfect for the show.
“Alright, that’s it for now. Rest up and eat your lunch. We gather again in thirty minutes,” said Elena at last. It was like the strings were cut from a puppet, the dance crew fell down on the ground, panting and huffing for air. Some crawled to their rucksacks to get out some food, others gulped down their whole water bottles.
Mikaela patted herself dry, as she discussed some details with Elena while chewing on a few slices of apples.
“You know, I think you will get more accepted if you talk with the rest of the crew,” murmured Elena while looking at some notes.
“Been there, done that,” said Mikaela. “But every time I try to motivate them they just say words that triggers me.”
“Well, you are talented,” acknowledged the teacher.
“Stop it,” said Mikaela with a glare. “You know I hate that word.”
“Many take it as a compliment. You’re strange to despise that word,” commented the teacher with a small chuckle.
“It’s so degrading,” muttered the blonde girl. “I spent my life, my blood, sweat and tears for dancing. They say I’m talented? What happened to hard work? Dedicated? Talent is just a fluff word.” She huffed and puffed as to vent out her frustration. “And do you know what Paulina said when I tried to cheer her up and tell her to practice more? ‘It’s really hard, I’m not as talented as you are.’ Bullshit, it’s hard for me too. Just work through the pain.”
The older teacher had to take a step away from Mikaela, the anger that seeped out from the woman was too much.
“Micky,” said Elena softly. The affectionate nickname made Mikaela calm down. “I know how you feel. But still, the star should not only dazzle the watchers, but also the troupe. So go now.”
“I’ve already tried it,” whined Mikaela. “How did you do it?”
Elena smiled wryly and left the main star to solve the problems herself, only leaving one single sentence of advice.
“Just work through the pain.”
---
Hello again, here's the story for this week. It was fun looking in my yearbook and reminiscing about the past. We had quite a handful of personalities in my class so it was really hard to decide who to write a story about. I decided with Mikaela because I remember her having a solo dance performance during our last semester. I've known that she danced a lot, but I've only seen her perform that one time. It was fun to imagine her continuing with her dance, and extrapolating some of her characteristics.
Thank you for reading!
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