“And you came up with that all on your own?” Nova flashed me a tentative look, and I remembered last night, Derek talking to me on the phone past midnight after yet another fight with my parents.
“They just don't get it,” I muttered in a hushed voice, not wanting to wake Daisy. “They don't take me seriously, and they are forcing me to pick something.”
“If you could do anything, what would it be?” he asked, his voice gruff and heavy with sleep. “The sky's the limit.”
“Dance,” I answered with no hesitation. “But in this reality, I can't. No company in their right mind would give me a contract.”
“Can't you freelance?” he asked. “Do certain roles in various companies. You said you wanted to see the world.”
“I don't think I'm good enough for that, plus there's no freelance degree.”
There was a short silence from his side, trying to figure out what to say, but I continued in a low, tentative voice. I’ve never said the things I was going to say out loud yet.
“I kind of like the whole Pilates and Barre teaching, it's fun and creative. I could open a studio like the one I teach in, create a fusion workout mixing ballet and Pilates, and it would be so cool.”
He chuckled on the other end of the line. “What would you call it?”
“The Rosealine method,” I let out a low laugh before slapping my hand over my mouth and glancing over to the other side of the room, making sure my roomie was sound asleep. “It's so stupid, but I came up with it over the summer when I was doing my teacher training, and it's ridiculous, but I love it.”
“I think you should do it,” Dex chuckled. “I love it. The Rosealine method saved me. I can give a testimony for your website.”
“There's so much that goes into opening a studio, I don't even know where to start.”
“You have time to figure it out... and maybe that's what you could. Major in entrepreneurship or business administration. It can give you the foundation, and you can always build on it, and if not, you can just open your studio.”
I remained silent for a long moment, contemplating his words. “You know, I think that's an excellent idea. I love it. Thank you.”
“Glad I could help.” I could feel him smile on the other end of the line.
“Sorry for venting,” I muttered, but surprisingly, I didn't feel embarrassed over my word vomit. “Thank you for listening.”
“Always, Rosie.”
“I should probably let you get some sleep,” I smiled to myself. “See you tomorrow?”
“See you tomorrow, honey. Good night.”
“Good night.”
“Rosie,” Nova shook my arm, and I wiped the dreamy smile off my face and glanced at her.
“Sorry, what?”
“You were daydreaming,” she groaned.
“Got distracted,” I admitted, with a sheepish grin. “You were saying?”
“Never mind,” Nova rolled her eyes. “I need to finish reading this play, so I’m going to ask the librarian… again.”
She stood and walked off between the shelves, leaving me alone in my daydream. The number of times I thought about Derek was not normal. It was increasingly concerning.
I still held onto Arthur's number, even if I had no intentions of calling him. I wanted to feel like I had a backup option, but the truth was, I wanted Derek. And I was ready to cross the line.
His patience and being a perfect gentleman were driving me crazy.
With a wide grin, I swiped on our new Playlist entitled'Stretch and Score,’and I addedLavender Hazefrom Taylor Swift.
It didn't take more than five minutes for Derek’s message to appear on my phone.
