Odette went into the washroom in the dance studio, turned on the faucet, and took a towel from the hook.
She stared at the sink for two seconds, then dried her hands with the towel.
Odette hung the towel back on the rack, moving slowly.
Odette let out a breath and tucked the loose strands of hair on her forehead behind her ear.
This seemed to be the first time Varesa hadn't been at the theater with her, and she really did seem a little unaccustomed to it.
Never mind. She would put rehearsal aside for now and try the rest Varesa had talked about.
Then Odette left the dance studio, pushed open the theater door, and went outside.
Odette came to a secluded corner beside the entrance, where two snowmen stood.
One snowman was large and covered in cute decorations like flowers and ribbons. The other was smaller and, by comparison, had only a few flower decorations on its head, making it look a little plain.
Odette remembered building the two snowmen with Varesa. Even those few decorations had been put there by Varesa.
"I don't need decorations."
"You do! They look really nice."
"I know they look nice, but I don't need them."
"I know you don't, but your snowman does."
"..."
"Or should we go ask the snowman?"
"..."
Then Varesa ran behind the snowman and said:
"I'm the snowman, and I need pretty decorations!"
After saying that, Varesa jumped back out from behind the snowman and shouted:
"See? Even the snowman says it needs decorations!"
"Oh... all right."
Odette's thoughts drifted back to the present, and she sighed softly. So the "rest schedule" Varesa had talked about was pretty nice too.
Then she gently removed the little wing-shaped jeweled hair ornament from above her forehead, reached out, and slowly placed it on the head of the snowman she had built.
Then Odette left to see what else Varesa had usually done before.
Odette headed toward the other side of the theater and walked for she didn't know how long.
She came to a remote path in the outskirts beyond Snezhnaya City, recalling how she had cleared out monsters here before...
Just as she finished clearing out the monsters, thinking it had been a routine clearing, Varesa suddenly jumped out of the bushes beside her.
"Here comes a monster! Awoo~~~"
"Ah..." She sighed softly.
Varesa walked up to him and said:
"Odette, you've been practicing dancing and clearing out monsters these past few days. Your body has been overworked for ages! It's time you had a good rest."
"The wind and snow are just right. Let's rest for a while."
"Yay!!!"
Varesa immediately ran over and scooped up a huge armful of snow from the ground nearby.
"While we're at it, let's build a snowman~~"
Her thoughts drifted back to the present again. Odette bent down, scraped together several clumps of snow, and picked up some small sticks and a few pebbles.
A little while later, Odette built another snowman where they had built one before.
Odette looked at the snowman before her. The things she had thought were boring really were quite fun.
It seemed she needed to add more rest to her schedule, just as Varesa had said.
But she still needed to practice for a while today.
After a while, Odette returned to the theater's dance studio.
Odette got herself ready again.
She walked over to the sound system and pressed play.
The intro began, and she raised her arms, her fingertips trembling slightly-her first turn.
Her movements were fluid and light, the lines of her arms unfurling like ripples on water. When her toes touched the floor, she seemed as light as air.
It was as if snowflakes surrounded her, forming a faint, thin veil that flowed with her steps.
All that remained in her mind were the beat, muscle memory, and the feeling of moving through space.
Spin, leap, land, spin again-sweat beaded at her temples, slid down her cheeks, and dripped onto the floor.
When she reached the most difficult sequence of consecutive spins, she moved faster and faster, her whole body like a miniature storm.
Then the final note sounded.
She stopped in the finishing pose, kneeling on one knee with one arm stretched upward.
The dance studio was quiet for a few seconds. She held the pose without getting up right away.
After a while, she pushed herself up from the floor and walked over to the mirror, looking at herself.
The corners of her mouth lifted in something that barely resembled a smile.
"Looks like I really do need to schedule more rest. This practice went better than any of the previous ones," she said softly.
...Divider...
Thanks to the following generous readers for the gifts:
- Woexin: flower x2
- Buddha Hall: boba milk tea x1
- Blondie Is Emergency Food: like x2
- Ripples Awakening the Past: like x1
And thanks to everyone for your power-up support. I'll post two more chapters together later.
I love you ૮₍♡＞＜₎ა