Vanessa knocked twice on the dressing room door before letting herself in. “Emilia?”
She and Scarlet were seated by two of the vanities with their chairs angled toward one another. Scarlet massaged her arm. In her opposite hand, Emilia had a plastic water bottle pressed to her cheek. “Vanessa,” she smiled over at her.
Vanessa grabbed another of the chairs and moved it across from her. “How are you feeling?”
“A little better… I’d been pushing so hard to have this dance ready for showtime. I guess I just overdid it.”
“Amber will be sorry she missed it. She’s on her way now.”
“That’s good,” Scarlet replied, her attention still with Emilia.
Hoping to lighten the mood, Vanessa asked, “Do you think this is something you’ll pursue in the future? Bringing fairy tale characters to life?”
“Maybe.” She shrugged, taking a large swig of her water. “Right now, I just want to put that night behind me and move on.”
“Wait, what are you talking about?” Vanessa turned to Scarlet and back to Emilia. Both deliberately avoided her eye. “Something happened, didn’t it? That’s why we were shut out this whole time?”
“Talia probably separated us for her own selfish reasons, but I’m equally responsible. I wasn’t ready to talk about it yet.” Emilia admitted, the remaining color draining from her face. Vanessa held her breath as she waited for her to elaborate. Squeezing her eyes shut, Emilia finally explained, “When I left that night after you and Amber said I could go, Talia’s sex partner, Rodrigo…”
“He didn’t… oh God, Emilia, tell me he didn’t…” Her lip trembled, tears already pouring down her cheeks.
“He didn’t, but he almost did.” Emilia wiped away her own tear. “JP was nearby and saved me before anything could happen. The bruises have all faded, but I still feel like I lost something.”
Vanessa turned to Scarlet, livid, “that bastard, Rodrigo. I’m going to murder him!”
She calmly interrupted, “According to Alejandro, the brothers now have him in their custody. I think he even said his own family turned him in. Something about a business dispute that hinged on him no longer having a seat at the table. It’ll be up to Talia what his punishment will be.”
“Why doesn’t that make me feel any better?” Vanessa hung her head, muttering behind clenched teeth, “Talia has the worst judgment when it comes to that guy, I swear to God.”
The increase in volume outside the room thrust everyone back into reality as did Scarlet’s phone ringing.
“Hey little sis, how are you feeling?” She quickly switched the setting to speaker phone. “I’m in the dressing room with Vanessa and Emilia.“
“Hey… yeah, I’m feeling a little better. I took some pills and made a hot bath for myself. That seems to be helping. So how was your routine, Emilia? Did it go well?”
The music fully kicked in at that moment. Emilia’s ears pricked up upon recognizing the song. As if in a trance, she walked to the door and pressed her ear against it to listen in. The other two picked up the slack in the conversation and explained what happened in little detail. They took turns looking at her, waiting for some sort of response, but she was completely distracted by the world outside the door. A quiet conflict brewed in her heart as it slowly sank. Whatever comfort she’d received from Talia after her routine suddenly felt lightyears away. Her eyebrows crinkled and she whispered, “what are you up to now?”
* * *
The reception Amber received when she arrived at Calypso was the last thing she expected. Half the room erupted in applause. Several people patted her on the back and at least a dozen offered to buy her drinks. It wasn’t until she agreed and took a bar stool, she realized what she was being congratulated on.
She mouthed ‘wow’ as Alejandro took the order and slid a blue margarita in her direction. “I can’t believe people liked the show that much…” she trailed off as she took a big sip of her drink.
“It was a great show, Amber. You deserve a lot of credit.” Alejandro crossed his arms and rested them on the counter. As he watched her take tentative sips, it dawned on him that he wouldn’t need to do much to detain her. Unlike Vanessa, Amber was in no hurry to get backstage. “Is everything all right? You are a little distracted tonight.”
“I wonder… did Emilia enjoy doing the show with me or did I screw that up? Why else wouldn’t she answer my calls?”
Alejandro tilted his head. “Where’s the Amber I know? Putting all this hard work in to get where you are. Giving up isn’t in your blood.”
“Funny,” she managed a chuckle, “Vanessa said the same thing earlier. But what’s the point anymore? She’s back with Talia. She won.”
“That’s the one thing I’ve always hated about this business. You girls always feel like you have to compete. All of you have overcome a lot in your lives. That alone is something to be proud of.” He reached over and patted the hand closest to him. Before she could control it, a gasp escaped her lips. One look in his eyes and every inch of her body quivered and was consumed by flames. Afraid he’d see right through her, she turned away. “If you’re thinking about leaving us because you don’t think we appreciate you, you couldn’t be more wrong. Your last night here may not have been perfect but everyone still talks about how amazing it was.”
“Even Emilia?”
“Especially Emilia.” Despite how furiously she was blushing, Amber searched his eyes and found nothing but truth in his words. Both began opening their mouths to speak when a new song started playing on the speakers. Alejandro slowly backed away, his body rigid as a board. Amber followed his line of sight to the stage. He groaned, “Talia, on the other hand, she may have a few choice words to add. Excuse me.”
He abruptly departed for the stage to work all the special effects. Amber’s heart sank when she also recognized the song playing over the speakers. As the number progressed, her uneasiness and insecurities were quickly overtaken by rage. She could only think to herself over and over. “She can’t do this… I won’t let her do this to him.”
Talia had half a dozen routines in her repertoire for whenever Alejandro had done something to make her mad. However, this time was different in one significant way. She gave him a more direct role in her performance.
A thin fog covered the stage. Talia was surrounded by replicas of famous Greek and Roman statues. All of which depicted angels or men. She wore her favorite rhinestone studded red dress. A cape similar to the one Emilia wore in the previous number hung off her shoulders. Behind a gothic iron gate hung a large projection screen draping inches above the floor. During the verses, it showed footage that had been filmed years ago. They featured Emilia wearing a white blouse and cutoff denim shorts. One scene simply showed her from the back, slipping her hands into her pockets and searching as if waiting for someone to arrive. The other, she and Alejandro were huddled together. She looked down, blushing and laughing after he’d told her a joke and she settled into the comfort of his embrace. Both were night shoots where hazy spotlights were the only light source.
Meanwhile, Talia was in the foreground doing what she did best- speaking through her dance. When she wasn’t exuding sexuality with her scintillating belly rolls, every other step was tinged with attitude and self-assurance. The glares she occasionally threw off stage were accusatory; a crime had been committed and she was going to right the wrong. For an interesting twist, the lyrics, not the melody, determined the pacing of her footwork. The chorus switched back and forth between slow slinky samba walks and rapid cha-cha movements, accentuating every syllable of the song’s title.
The climax of the piece caught everyone by surprise except for the parties involved. Alejandro joined Talia on stage. She circled him a few times and his head followed her steps carefully. The story was all about goodbye yet when the chorus returned, both of them entered a hold and danced together. They stepped forward and back, ending each line with a hip wiggle, and repeated. On the third line, it was another quick cha-cha. Then they crossed the stage, dancing in three large circles. He attempted to lead her in more cha-cha but she forced him away from her so hard he fell. It was at the point in the music where everything suddenly stopped for three seconds before continuing where it’d left off. Talia belly-danced in front of him as he silently begged for her forgiveness. In the end, she gave her answer. She took off the cape and threw it on top of him. It was in the same manner matadors finished bullfights, except their capes draped over the corpses of the bulls they’d slain.
***
Song: "Alejandro" by Lady Gaga
...I should note that I had the idea in my head for Alejandro before I decided that'd be the perfect name for him.
He'd changed a lot over time. He used to be the jealous ex-boyfriend or Talia's boss and at the end of the story, he decides to let her go and be happy. Somewhere along the way, he became who he is now.
And canonically, Fernando and Roberto (two other names mentioned in the song) are the names of his uncles but actually adding it in print would've made the reference to the song a little too obvious.
He'd changed a lot over time. He used to be the jealous ex-boyfriend or Talia's boss and at the end of the story, he decides to let her go and be happy. Somewhere along the way, he became who he is now.
And canonically, Fernando and Roberto (two other names mentioned in the song) are the names of his uncles but actually adding it in print would've made the reference to the song a little too obvious.
No comments:
Post a Comment