The sounds of the studio echo throughout the building the moment Mason steps inside the doors. Gripping his dance bag a little tighter in his hand the boy kindly smiles at the woman seated at the desk in the lobby - her strawberry blonde hair is pulled into a tight knot that she pulls down to fix the pieces that have shaken loose throughout the day - she vocalizes a quiet hello before continuing to type away at her computer; the sound of her false nails clacking against the keys is pleasing to the boy’s ears. Hurrying through the halls Mason can hear the sounds of the studio growing louder, since he was six years old he has been walking through these corridors nearly every day, at this point he could get to the practice area in his sleep. Ten years, Mason thinks, can’t believe it’s been that long.

Pushing through the doors at the end of a long hall Mason finds himself once again in the male’s changing room - this room runs parallel to the studio area and instantly eradicates any ounce of sleepiness that is coursing through his veins. This week at school has been a flurry of exams, study halls and stress but as soon as he walks through those doors all of that will be long forgotten, melted away.

Quickly untying the laces on his sneakers and slipping them off his feet the boy shuffles out of his sweatpants that he had worn all day, changing into the casual practice clothes he’s been wearing for months. With all the time dedicated to dancing Mason has never yet had the chance at a first job, therefore, saving money for things like more clothes can take months of earning allowance when he can spare the time to complete his chores. Mason’s parents understand the importance of ballroom dancing and for the most part they pay for everything he needs - trousers, dress shirts, suspenders, new shoes every few months, dance bags, lessons etc. - but they also believe in the importance of responsibility, of working hard to earn his own money. Thankfully they’ve never pushed the job issue too harshly as they know it would be near impossible to keep up his National Champion title while slinging burgers at some fast food restaurant for ungrateful teenagers. And so he wears his hard earned practice outfit with a smile. Sitting down on a bench Mason digs through his duffle bag to find his ballroom shoes, slipping them onto his feet and taking the time to carefully lace them the correct way. His shoes are mostly solid black with a strip of white that runs from the side of his ankle to bottom of the laces, the raised heel clicks against the floor as he stands and walks his bag over to a locker.

After depositing all his belongings - including his cell phone, set to vibrate - Mason begins the short journey to the ballroom. The large set of double doors that lead to the studio are glass and framed with beautiful, light colored hardwood; he can see the dancers beginning practice with their preset stretching exercises as he approaches. Pushing through the doors the boy greets his fellow classmates and instructor, Mr. Burkley, before lessons officially begin the teenagers chat and laugh while helping one another when needed with their stretching exercises. The time flies by in what seems like only an instant, before he knows it Mason has his arms positioned and ready to practice his solo Waltz. The joyous sound of the tapping shoes against the hardwood flooring all around him instantly fills him with a euphoric, rushing feeling of joy; like he’s finally home after a long day.

Last year Mason and his partner, Anna, were titled National Champions after months upon months of hard work. The moment their team number was called is one Mason knows he’ll never forget, the smile on his face was so wide it had his cheeks aching; he was crying a lot more than he’d like to admit as well. It was nearly impossible not to take off in a sprint to the first place podium. His arm linked with Anna’s, Mason stole sharp inhales of breath so quick that his pounding heart started to ache in his chest. After what seemed like an eternity the couple reached their spot on the podium and stood proud, backs straight and chests puffed out. The light glinted off Anna’s yellow sequined dress in a way that reflected onto her face, making her glow more than she already was. Swiping the back of his hand across each cheek in an attempt to stop the endlessly flowing tears Mason couldn’t help but laugh in disbelief, he and Anna had been partners for three years and strived to get here from the beginning of their partnership and they had done it. After all the hours spent in the studio they could stand proud knowing that in that moment, they were the best ballroom dancers the world had to see. Using his fingers to comb the brunette hair away from his watery eyes he couldn’t help himself any longer, leaning forward he wrapped Anna in a tight embrace, whispering something into her ear he never thought he’d get to say, “We’re National Champions!”

The buzz of the days that followed their newfound title was a feeling Mason has been chasing ever since, hoping to relive the sweet bliss of people cheering when they entered the studio, numerous hugs and warm welcomes and congratulations. Although the feeling didn’t last nearly as long as he dreamed; it wasn’t even three weeks later when Anna showed up at the studio without her dance bag and crying an endless stream of tears. Anna was moving to Europe to train with famous choreographers to help her improve her skills in the ballroom, and no matter how much she begged Mason to come with her he just couldn’t afford it. The depression that Mason felt after Anna’s departure lasted for months on end. Cycling through six partners in eight months and never once coming in the top three rankings at competitions people started to talk about how Mason had lost his touch, let the national title get to his head, couldn’t dance well without Anna there to snag all the trophies. He felt defeated.

So here he stands, practicing day and night on his solo dances and going on his second month of no competitions - a record for Mason since he began dancing ten years ago, the longest he had previously gone without competing was maybe two weekends in a row - though it’s not for lack of trying. Since Anna left for Europe Mason has been through so many partner auditions he lost count long ago, the few times he’s been able to find a suitable match for his skills and techniques they never end up lasting past the two month mark. Anna has put in an effort to call on FaceTime whenever she gets a chance - which isn’t often considering the difference in the teen’s timezones and excessive amount of practice time. The last time she called she “introduced” Mason to her new partner, Daniel, and it took every ounce of Mason’s strength not to cry right there on the spot. When she called it had been the day yet another one of his partner’s broke the news to him that it wasn’t going to work out - Mason had never been through a breakup but he now felt he could handle it fairly well after all his partnerships that have ended - and he didn’t have the heart to tell her how horrible his ballroom career had been since she left, if she felt disappointed in him too he wouldn’t know what to do; especially when she seemed to be radiating happiness, evident even through a cell phone. That was the last time Mason and Anna have spoken, at the end of their call Mason promised to FaceTime next time he had the chance but no matter how strongly he tried to bring himself to do so he just couldn’t. There is no bigger insult in dance than when another man takes your partner away from you, Mason tried to remind himself that Anna didn’t leave for Europe to dance with Daniel - she didn’t even know him before she moved - but it was getting harder and harder to make up lies about how well his competitions have been going. Mason tells himself almost daily:As soon as I get back on track with another great partner and a few trophies under my belt I’ll call her...I just need a new partner.

Sweat slides down the brunette boy’s back as his lesson progresses, after a couple hours of straight solo Waltzing Mason excuses himself for a speedy restroom break. Grabbing his hand towel and water bottle from the floor - there’s an area in their practice room where the students can keep beverages or other small things they may need throughout the lesson - the boy gazes at all the other students dance through the studio, there are a handful of people practicing solo dances but the majority of boys in his group have partners. The girl’s hair flies beautifully through the air as their partner’s parade them around the floor, their practice dresses flowing and their dancing shoes gliding with ease across the room. The sight uproots a feeling of sadness Mason hasn’t allowed himself to feel in a while, dabbing the sweat from his face with his towel the brunette forces himself to look away from all the happy couples and exit the room hastily. The walk to the bathrooms seems longer and sadder than it has in weeks, since his last competition - where Mason danced so badly his partner dropped him before the scores were even announced - the boy has tried to keep a positive mental attitude and focus on his own skill before he looked for a new partner, again. This was seeming to take a far longer period than he had anticipated, if anything he only feels his mental health wearing down further.

Mason couldn’t let anyone know about how he was feeling, he should be able to handle this on his own. He’s stronger than this. If anyone were to know how far he’s let himself spiral everyone would be disappointed in him, his parents, Anna, his instructor...they can’t find out. Before Nationals Mason never thought of himself as being an emotional person, he was a go with the flow, happy go lucky kind of guy. Everything is so different now, he misses the way he used to be. The way he looks, the way he talks, his dance skills, his grades, his body, he hates it all now. He feels insecurity in everything he does, it's not a nice feeling. It’s not Anna’s fault but when she left is the moment Mason can pinpoint when everything around him started to crumble down. So he pretends nothing bothers him, if he dances horribly at competitions or loses another partner Mason acts like it’s not big deal when in reality he finds himself being driven closer and closer to his breaking point. He doesn’t know how long he can keep this up.

His instructor has convinced him it’s time to attempt to find another girl to dance with, and unable to think of any plausible reason to deny it Mason has to stay after today’s lesson to audition with a girl he’s never even met before. Splashing some water from the sink in the bathroom on his face Mason peers at his reflection in the mirror.

“You’ve got this,” He whispers to himself, his tone all but convincing. He can’t even fool himself into false hope that this audition will go differently than any of the other dozens he’s been through. When he and Anna got paired up it only took a few minutes into their first dance together to know that they could be something special, something beautiful. Craving that feeling again the boy exits the bathroom to wander back into the studio to finish class and mentally prepare for his audition.

-

Shuffling awkwardly on his feet next to a tall blonde girl, Mason averts his eyes from her striking green gaze. She chews gum loudly, blowing bubbles every couple minutes. Her hands are crossed tightly against her chest as Mr. Burkley talks to them about what he wants them to dance. Mason can already tell this girl doesn’t want to be there, he doesn’t either but at least he’s trying to hide it. Mr. Burkley introduces her as Katie and Mason awkwardly extends his hand out towards her, is that a weird way to greet a girl? He didn’t know. Rolling her eyes Katie grabs his hand, shaking it one single time before dropping her arm back to her side.

Mr. Burkley holds a little remote in his hand, fiddling with the buttons for a moment he starts up the music for a Foxtrot. Letting all of his awkwardness melt away into dance Mason steps closer to Katie, grabbing her hand and holding it tightly. Her fingers are cold against his but fit perfectly in the palm of his hand, his other hand snakes around her to rest flat against her shoulder. Katie grips his arm with her free hand, assuming the position to dance. The music is set in a 4/4 tempo and as soon as they count their way into the beat they take off. All thoughts fly from the boy’s mind as they make their way around the dance floor. Left foot forward, right foot forward, slide together and close the gap. Putting his all into this audition Mason can’t help but feel like it’s going well, Katie might seem a little bossy and not so friendly but even she can’t deny how well they’re doing.

The song is nearing the end when the studio doors suddenly slam open, startled, the couple halts to a stop to stare at the door, still holding onto one another. A boy with a shocked expression and cell phone in his hand that Mason has never seen before is standing in the doorway. His dark hair is laid in soft waves across his forehead that is now burning crimson in embarrassment, stuffing his phone in his pocket he scratches the back of his neck awkwardly. 

“I’m so sorry, I uh...forgot something,” he speaks quickly, laughing awkwardly. Shooting the couple a lopsided smile the boy puts his head down and quickly makes his way past Mason and Katie over to a metal water bottle that is indeed left behind against the wall. Scooping it up the boy meets Mason’s eyes for a brief moment. “Sorry. You can continue now.”

As he scurries from the room Mason doesn’t think much of anything about the encounter until Katie huffs, pulling his attention away from the boy and over to her eyes. “That’s the new transfer student. What an idiot,” she mutters under her breath.

Mason isn’t a person who really puts himself out there to be friends with someone but a pang in his heart at Katie’s rude comment makes him feel bad for the boy. He looked old to be transferring to a new studio, probably the same age as Mason. The next time he sees him Mason decides he will try to be welcoming. Being the new kid is never easy. Without another thought of the mysterious boy Mr. Burkley starts the music back up and the couple takes off again.