Authors: Brina Courtney
2
The next morning Dallas found herself sitting at the kitchen table alone. Her mother was away at some menial job making minimum wage and she figured that Mike was either passed out at some bar, or he had finally gotten his stuff together and was at the temporary employment office. She was betting on the first one. She sat quietly staring her cereal waiting for the bus to arrive at the trailer park where she lived. She hated riding the bus; it was so noisy and full. But she didn't have another choice, it was her only way to get to school considering she didn't have a car that ran and it was too far to walk. Her Cheerios floated sadly, soggy from sitting in the milk too long. She bumped at a couple with her spoon and as she heard the mail arrive, she ran out to the box to see if today was the day. Two weeks ago she had applied for a scholarship she heard about at school for a dance academy in New England. It was a boarding school, which meant she could get away from Mike and her mother in all their disgusting habits, she could be her own person. The school was crazy expensive and the only way that Dallas would be able to afford to go is if she got a full ride, something that wasn't very likely to happen, but hope was all that Dallas had to hold onto anymore. She knew that if she didn't find some way out of this hellhole there was no way she could get to college or have any type of trade schooling. Her mom didn't have the money, and Dallas truly believed that her mother just didn't want her to go either. She was one of those parents who wanted you to stay and take care of them, instead of making it on your own. Dallas also kind of thought that her mother didn't want her to be any more intelligent than she was, it may sound strange but some parents are like that. They're supposed to want the best for you, but Dallas thought that if her mother truly believed that she would've dumped Mike and found a real job and a real life a long time ago. Instead her mother shot up with heroin every other night and had loud altercations with her brainless boyfriend.
Dallas practically ran down the wooden steps
as she made her way to the mailbox. When she arrived the mail woman was still putting packages in the metal boxes.
“Do you have anything for the T
anners?” Dallas asked expectantly.
The woman nodded,
“Yeah I think I have a couple things in here for you. Hold on a second.” She dug through the navy blue bag and came up with three envelopes.
Dallas thought for a moment about the DVD she had sent in as her audition. A kid from her high school played piano in the background as Dallas put her every emotion into a lyrical routine she choreographed herself. It was a beautiful piece and she could only hope the admissions board at the school would agree.
As soon as Dallas grabbed them from her she felt that the bottom one had been made of the more substantial material. She pulled up to the top and her eyes grew wide as she saw that the return address was from Allenwood Dance Academy, of Cape Haven, Connecticut. It was then that she walked slowly back to her steps and as she sat down the disappointment flooded her. She had heard all the seniors talk about thin envelopes being the nos, and that the thicker envelopes meant the school had said yes. A few small tears rolled down her cheek as she opened the envelope slowly. She pulled out a beautiful looking letter with a gold seal in the corner of two ballet shoes. But what her eyes saw next was completely unexpected.
Miss Dallas Tanner,
Thank you for your interest in the Allenwood Dance Academy. We have reviewed your application extensively and have found you to be a qualified candidate for our scholarship program. We are excited to begin this adventure with you in your next step towards a dance career, and would like you to begin immediately for the fall semester. You may respond by telephone or e-mail, located at the top of this letter. Again we would like to welcome you to Allenwood to support you in your dancing endeavors.
Sincerely,
Headmaster Fallsworth
Allenwood
Dance Academy
Dallas clutched the paper so tightly in her hand
s she was afraid it was going to rip in front of her. The tears flowed more freely as happiness overtook her disappointment and she realized that her dreams were finally coming true. She was going to get out of this place and make something of her life, she thought for a moment about calling her mom but she wasn't sure that the news would excite her mother as much as it made her happy. She decided she would skip the bus that day and began to pack her things, calling a taxi later to get her paperwork from her current school. If she could get on a bus tomorrow to Connecticut, she would.
3
Dallas sat on the bus with her one bag of clothing and the small dance bag containing her newly bought ballet slippers. The seat was only slightly uncomfortable and
as she put her head against the window to stare out the glass she thought back to the night before.
Her mother hardly reacted when she told her the amazing news. She just stood there scratching her arms, wanting a fix. Dallas tried to ignore her as her eyes darted around the room looking for her needle.
“Mom! Are you even listening to me? I'm moving away!” When her mother still didn't make eye contact Dallas tried to speak slowly, “Mom, I got the scholarship. I'm going to boarding school.”
Her mother nodded at this,
“Good for you. There’s some money on my dresser, you can take it for a bus ticket. Be good.”
Dallas watched
her mother’s back as she walked away, wondering when this shell of a woman had once been her vibrant mother. The drugs were killing her, she could see it, but there was nothing she could do. It was Dallas's job to take care of Dallas, and from now on that would be her first priority.
Unfortunately her excitement allowed her to down a quarter bottle of whiskey at about midnight after purchasing a bus ticket. She passed out as usual, and was fortunate that there were two buses on their way to Connecticut that
day, for she had overslept and missed hers. The woman at the ticket window had been nice and exchanged her ticket with no extra cost even though she was supposed to pay an extra twenty dollars for her unused seat. She guessed her straggly clothes and lack of much luggage allowed the woman to believe that her situation was fairly desperate, which it was. There hadn't been much money on the dresser, and after she had paid for the ticket Dallas only had about ten dollars left from her mother. She had fifty of her own. She hoped that things would be provided for her at school, or possibly she could find a job to help support her needs. Another school would just mean more people staring at her unkempt appearance. She didn't mind buying clothes second hand, but she knew she would have to find some nicer ones in order to fit in.
She clutched her bag tightly as the bus rolled out of the station and she
thought about the long ride ahead of her. A couple teachers at school had said they would miss her and one girl, who was kind of a friend of Dallas’s, had given her a hug right before she left school. It was an odd feeling to be breaking out on her own but she knew that it was the only way that she had any chance of becoming successful.
Almost
two days later she arrived at the small bus station in Cape Haven, Connecticut. The air was crisp and she pulled the hood of her sweatshirt up around her face. She saw a man dressed in black with a sign that had her name on it and walked over to him slowly.
He beamed at her as she approached.
“
Dallas Tanner, I presume,” he said never losing his smile.
She nodded slowly and
he offered to take her luggage. She gave him the bag containing all of her belongings but kept her dance gear on her shoulder. She wondered if he noticed how heavy her clothing bag was. The tote containing her dance shoes had suddenly become a lifeline, the only thing tying her to this new place and new life.
She followed him to the dark town
car, where he opened the door and she slid in across the leather seats. She couldn't remember a time in her life when she had ever been in a car this nice but she rolled down the window in order to take in her new location instead of enjoying its lavishness. She could smell the salty air as a breeze came in from over the ocean. Something about being here was magical, Dallas could feel it. This place could change lives.
Within ten minutes they had arrived in front of what looked like a large castle. She knew the architecture in New England was different than back home but this was something marvelous and beyond anything she had ever seen before, except for possibly on television. Looking out the window she couldn't even see the top of the stone structure before her but she imagine
d that there were peaks and balconies extending from turrets. This place looked like a typical movie set, or at least what she expected one to. She wondered if anything had actually been filmed here. The driver arrived with her bag and opened the door for her again and she practically fell out as she wasn't paying attention to his almost silent movements. He offered her a hand to steady herself but she waved him off embarrassed, “I'm fine, thank you.” She took the bag from him and he nodded as she walked up the beautiful stone steps. There were autumn flowers on either side of the steps welcoming fall in the beautiful stone structure. She arrived at a large wooden door and wasn't sure whether to knock or enter without permission. She could hear voices on the other side, lots of kids talking, some people singing? She shrugged her shoulders as she pulled on the door handle and arrived inside the beautiful lobby with plush chairs and stained-glass windows. No one seemed to notice her arrival, her fears of being pegged as the new kid suddenly seemed silly. She stood in the entranceway and stared at her now fellow classmates, people of all ages and races. Most had on bright colors and loungewear as they were probably coming or going to class. Ballet and tap shoes hung from almost every shoulder and those that didn't wore character heels were the students attempting to make in the theater world. She remembered reading on the website that they also offered singing lessons for those wishing for jobs on Broadway, but Dallas had brushed it off as she only sang in the shower.
She stood there for a moment unsure of what to expect as a petite dark-haired girl approached her.
“Hi,” she said, extending her hand. Dallas rearranged her bags on her shoulder in order to shake it. Making friends was something she was never particularly good at but this girl approached her and she didn't want to seem rude.
“
I'm Mila, are you new here?”
“
Yeah I'm Dallas. I just got here.”
Mila nodded her head in response,
“I thought it was you. I'm supposed to seek you out to take you to admission, to get your room assignment. You're going to be my new roommate.”
“
Oh,” Dallas said as she followed the girl towards the left and up a grand staircase. The wood was so ornate that Dallas was afraid to touch it for fear of smudging the beautiful grain. Dallas wasn't sure she'd liked the way the girl said
new
perhaps she'd been through a lot of roommates previous to herself.
“
Have you had a lot of roommates?”
Mila shook her head, “J
ust one since I’ve been here. But she just got offered a job, you'll find it's pretty transient around here.”
That made
Dallas hopeful, perhaps she would find a job one day dancing professionally. “Do a lot of kids get jobs?”
Mila stopped at the top of the stairs and thought
for a moment, “Well they took six this year for a tour, and we had one to go to Broadway, and one is in Paris I think. So yeah a decent amount.” She shrugged and continued walking.
Dallas followed her to the end of the hall passing by large wooden doors on either side.
“These are your classrooms,” Mila said gesturing to the doors with her hands. “You're a junior right?”
“
Yeah, I had just started my junior year before I got the letter.”
“D
id your parents do the jumping up-and-down thing when you got the letter, too?”
When Dallas didn't answer righ
t away Milo followed up with, “All the scholarships kids live in the same rooms. It's supposed to be so we don't feel like we’re missing out when all the rich kids go do stuff. I think it's segregation, but whatever –, so what did your parents think?”
Dallas thought Mila
was genuinely interested in Dallas’s life but it was difficult for her to disclose anything personal. “I mean it's just me and my mom, and her boyfriend Mike.” She couldn't help but roll her eyes as she said his name. “I kind of think they were glad to be rid of me to be honest,” she said no louder than a whisper.
Mila looked up at her and
Dallas noticed her extremely dark brown eyes, “I'm sure that's not true,” she said quietly.
After a moment she continued on the tour and they walked through the last
door at the end of the hallway. It had a big sign that said Admissions on the front, “We'll go in here and get your key and then I'll show you to our room. You’re probably hungry right? Dinner’s in like forty-five minutes, you can sit with me and my friends.”
S
he was so kind it made Dallas’s chest hurt, no one was like this back home.
“
Sure, that sounds great.”
Dallas walked through
the large wooden door to find a portly woman sitting on a desk labeled secretary. She introduced herself as Dallas Tanner and the woman quickly got together her file.
“
Oh that's right you’re our new transfer! Yes here, all of your files were sent over today from your old school. Got quite a recommendation from one of your teachers, they commented on your excellent grades. I hope you don't find the curriculum here too difficult to keep up with.” She smiled brightly and Dallas saw the rosiness in her cheeks which made her relax a little. This woman looked like a female Santa Claus, there was no way not to smile when you were around her.
“
Your room assignment is here dear,” she passed Dallas a key. “Mila Kretchneycov is your new roommate. Very sweet girl, I'm sure you'll have no problems getting along with her.” She smiled at the small girl standing near the door.
Dallas
took a moment holding the key in her hands; she never considered how amazing it would feel to have a place of her own.
“
Now I see you are a part of our scholarship program, so that means all of your meals are included. As are all your textbooks and anything you should need for school, just make me a list of everything and we’ll have it provided for you.”
“
Thank you,” Dallas said. She couldn’t believe she wouldn't have to worry about feeding herself or getting school supplies. “Do you know where I can do a little clothes shopping?”
The woman nodded, “T
he students are allowed off campus every weekend on Saturdays. Mila can show you around town, today's Thursday so that shouldn't be too much of a wait, right?”
“
That's perfect,” Dallas stood to leave, “thank you very much.”
“
Of course dear, oh and welcome to Allenwood!”
Dallas smiled and for the first time in year
s felt truly at home.
Want to find out what happens to Dallas next?