“I mean it,” Finn said, grabbing Teddy by the hand and pulling him from the kitchen to the open area beside the sofa. “Talk me through it, something doable but more involved than earlier that you wouldn’t be able to show me anyway because of your hip. I warn you, though, I’ve been told I have two left feet, ball change and box step notwithstanding.”
“Finn.” Teddy chuckled again, charmed by this incredible man but still certain they couldn’t do this without looking like idiots.
“Come on. Teach me.” That grin that had an edge of sadness behind it was still genuine and hopeful and so damn beautiful that it got the better of Teddy again.
“Fine, then we’ll work on your attitude.”
“What?” Finn giggled.
“You want to be one of my students?” Teddy said sternly. “Learn the terms and fix your posture.”
Finn snapped to attention immediately.
“Better. We’ll try front, back, and a turn. If you can’t do that, it’s hopeless.” Teddy looked Finn in the eyes seriously, impressed that Finn had taken on a serious visage as well, but he still had to tease, “When I say attitude, I do not mean your annoyingly optimistic outlook on life.”
That broke Finn’s reserve with a snicker, relaxing him again, but he also smartly straightened his stance afterward.
Teddy’s instincts were to lift his own leg to demonstrate what he wanted Finn to do, but that would hurt, at least be sore and not the best position for his healing hip, so he had to improvise and think of how to explain something he couldn’t show.
“We need to back up.” He grabbed Finn when he made to back up physically. “In the lesson. First, you need to learn how toplié.”
Attitude was the simple lift of the leg, either front or back with a bend at the knee and strong rotation at the hip to bring the leg waist level or higher. Every action in ballet required the right springboard momentum, one movement leading into another to make the dance. Attitude was easier starting from aplié.
Teddy explained all that, and every time he wanted to show something, he had to think of the words instead. How Finn needed to bend, curve his leg, lift, straighten, curl his spine. He took direction quite well, though, which Teddy tried not to think about with too much distraction.
Finn’s long legs made him an ideal dancer, the perfect specimen—but his coordination sucked, absolutely laughable. Even if Teddy had been able to show the moves, it would have taken him twice as long to teach Finn something that should have been easy.
Yet he didn’t find himself growing frustrated. Like with Frankie, he could see in Finn someone who honestly wanted to learn—maybe more so for Teddy’s sake—but it made him not want to give up either.
Plié, attitude lift forward, down,plié, attitude lift back, swing forward to step, step, step into an attitude turn, andpliéto finish. Elegant and direct.
When Finn finally managed it without falling into Teddy’s arms or flailing back toward the sofa, it had been over half an hour. Only when noticing the clock did Teddy realize how hungry he was, but Finn, two left feet and all, had completed the moves like a pro.
“Still a terrible influence,” Teddy said when they were finally digging into their pot stickers, eating at the coffee table to watch the movie. “These should not have had to be warmed up in the microwave.”
“They still taste good.”
They did, but Teddy kind of wanted to push Finn over onto the cushions for how much he was grinning in triumph.
“See,” Finn said smugly, “it took longer, but you did it, and you can do it again.”
“Nice thought, but the city’s ballet company won’t accept that sort of teaching.”
“So teach around here. You know, I have a class I teach on calisthenics for people without full range of motion with the perfect candidates.”
“Like wheelchair bound, missing limbs…?” Teddy trailed off skeptically.
“Leprosy, things like that.”
“Funny.”
“You’re the one making it out to be something worth feeling shame over.”
“I don’t mean them.” Teddy felt the twinge of guilt he deserved for that, picking at his food. “I just hate feeling like an invalid.”
“Pretty sure most of my class would punch you in the nuts for calling them invalids.” Finn smiled brightly, making Teddy laugh again. “They’d also appreciate learning something new.”
He was so insistent, so amazingly positive when trying to help someone else, even though he wasn’t always successful at inspiring himself.
