She plants her hands on her hip. “I’d never do that.”
“You say that now, but trust me, you would.” I’m trying hard to keep the waterworks at bay and to be rational, but my composure is slipping.
Corinne sizes me up. Her facial features soften, and her arms wrap around me again. “Come on, let’s get out of here. This place is full of bad juju right now. I have a pint of key lime pie ice cream in my freezer with your name on it. We’ll go to my place, put onThe Devil Wears Prada, and have a girls’ night in, just like we used to when we were students at the academy.”
I manage a nod. I’m numb and I can’t think straight. In my heart of hearts, I know there are way more ballerinas out there than companies have positions for. If a smaller regional company like LABT doesn’t want me, then who will? My dance career as I know it is over.
One
FOUR YEARS LATER
“Mom, my answer is not going to change.” I take another lap around my living room to vent some of my frustration. “I’m not moving back to Canada.”
“Minnie, there is no reason to rush your decision.”
“We’ve talked about this. I’mnotrushing my decision. The plan from the day I moved across the pond was for me to stay here and find a job when I finished my degree. You know that.”
I hear my dad’s voice in the background grumbling in Korean. Mom shushes him.
“But there are plenty of jobs in the fashion industry closer to home. What about New York or Los Angeles? I know you didn’t have the best experience in America, but...”
“No.” My tone is flat. There is no room for negotiation. “Nanaimo hasn’t been home since I was fourteen. It’swhere you and Dad live, but it’s not a place I ever connected with.”
“But . . .” Mom sputters.
“Please, let me finish.” I’m fighting to maintain my composure.
She inhales sharply.
“LA is a nonstarter. As for New York, I’m sure you’re right. There probably are a million opportunities, but it’s not where my heart is.” I swallow hard. “You and Dad have never had a problem with me living abroad to pursue my dreams. You encouraged it. What’s changed? Why are you two so against me staying here all of the sudden?”
“Hand me the phone, Aurelie,” Dad says.
“She gets her stubbornness from your side of the family,” Mom mumbles.
“Minnie?”
“Hi, Dad. I assume the phone was on speaker and you heard everything I said to Mom?”
“Yes, I did,” he admits.
I shake my head. They’re so predictable. I lean against the couch. “So tell me... what’s the big deal?”
“We thought by now, you’d grow out of this fashion nonsense.” I wince. Okay, I knew Dad didn’t agree with my decision to pursue fashion design, but he’s always kept his opinions to himself. Hearing him say it out loud hurts. “There is no job stability. But if you were to consider going into the business side of the fashion industry, that’s something I would be able to get behind. When I was your age...”
Ding. Ding. Ding. There it is. Dad’s about to start in on how it would be best for my future if I applied to MBA programs. I understand where he’s coming from. Myparents are first-generation immigrants. Mom from France and Dad from Korea. They came to Canada with hardly anything and worked hard to build and open a successful bed-and-breakfast business. He doesn’t want me to have to struggle the same way they did.
But what they don’t understand is that I’ve thought about this long and hard. I inherited that strong drive to succeed and be the best I can be. One of the biggest pros about staying here is that the London School of Fashion guarantees its graduates will find a fashion-related job within six months.
If we don’t, the school will temporarily employ you and have an advisor from the career department work one-on-one with you until you find something. There couldn’t be a better safety net. Not to mention, I already have a part-time job that pays my bills. It’s not great, but at least it’s something.
“Dad. I hear what you’re saying, and I agree. On paper, an MBA would be the next logical step for me to take—that isifI were interested in becoming an executive in a company. But I’m not. I went to school to learn how to design. That means working in the trenches and getting my hands dirty.”
“Minnie, please. Your mother and I will pay for your studies if you do the MBA, just like we did for your brother’s advanced schooling.”
I frown. Mom and Dad have been working on paying back the loans from Cam’s medical school days for more than a decade and they still have a long way to go. I refuse to saddle them with more debt. Especially when I don’t need a fancy piece of paper.
“A bribe isn’t going to work on me.” I huff. “I’ve found a way to make it this far, and I’m going to continue on the path I’m on. It may not always be straightforward, but the experience I’ve gained along the way is more valuable than any piece of paper or things so-called business experts would tell me.”
