A piece of the story...Part 4

I hope you all had a WONDERFUL Thanksgiving! I know I did!! My family went down to The Wilds Christian camp in North Carolina to visit my brother, who works there. It was amazing! We hiked through the mountains, saw waterfalls, played games, and the list goes on :) Comment below some of the fun things you did on Thanksgiving! Now to the story...

My inner dancer took hold of me and I couldn’t resist the desire that suddenly filled me. I peered back into the entryway and, when no one was spotted, I bent down to take off my shoes. Leaving my bag and shoes beside the door, I made my way to the center of the room. And then my body took over. Reality disappeared as I twisted and spun to the dance routine my mom had taught me. Each twirl took me back to the blessed yesteryears. 

“Keep your head high. Point your toes a little more.” I could hear my mother directing me like she was still beside me. “That’s it, my girl. You got it!”

I smiled to myself, almost believing that this wasn’t a dream. I lept one last time and then froze in the final position, the music that was playing in my head coming to an end.

“Who are you?”

My head snapped up to see that my mother’s smiling face had been replaced by a man. A man who did not seem to be very happy. My stomach dropped to the floor. 

“Oh, I’m sorry. I was just waiting for Tara.” I hurriedly slipped my shoes back on and slipped the strap of my bag over my shoulder.

“Tara?”

“Yeah, she’s about 5’ 3”, quite slim, a bit of spunk in her eyes. You’ll know her when you see her.” And that’s how my defensive wall came up. In any awkward, embarrassing, or emotional situations, I masked my true self in humor. And it worked. A hint of a smile crossed his face.

“I know who she is. I meant, you know Tara?”

“Well, of course I do. I just said that, didn’t I?” I added a smile for effect.

The man crossed his arms across his chest and tilted his head. I could tell he was beyond confused about this smart-talkin’ girl in a rag of a dress. Our staredown lasted for a while, when we heard Tara bounding down the stairs.

“I found the scarf, Cassie, and a pin to go with it.” She obviously couldn’t figure out where I was, for shortly after that she called “Cassie?”

The man pointed at me with a mock question in his eyes. As if he couldn’t figure out I was Cassie. Men were just plain weird. 

“In here.” I pushed past the man who refused to move and stood in the entrance to the ballroom.

“Oh, hey. I thought I lost you.” Tara strode over to me, the scarf trailing behind her. “I see you met Henry.”

I turned to see him beside me now. “Yes, I did.”

“Excellent.” She smiled. “I’m sure mother won’t mind if you stay for dinner. Do you think so?” This she asked Henry as if I have no say in the discussion. Which I did.

“Oh, that’s not-”

“No, no.” Henry cut me off. “You definitely should stay.” He leaned closer to us and lowered his tone. “I heard a rumor that we’re having a roast and potatoes tonight.”

Tara clapped her hands together and squealed like a child. “My favorite. You must stay, Cassie-please.”

“Oh, all right, I’ll stay.”

“Come then.” She grabbed my hand and pulled me away. “We’ll have Jane cut your hair fashionably. And makeup. Oh, you’ll be just lovely!”

Henry smirked and ignored my mock plea for help. And in all reality, I was going to love it.