From Conundrums to Kisses | ONC 2020

Chapter 4: A Time To Be Me

Teagan's POV

Teagan tapped a stick along the edges of the bright green bushes. The sunlight peeked through the trees, and with it, a marvelous sunrise full of pink swirled with blue and splotches of yellow in between. It was a beautiful sight for anyone who was an early bird. She considered herself one of these people as the neighborhood full of people slept soundly in their beds. She had gotten up for an early morning jog, her brown locks flowing wildly in the wind.

Her duffle bag moved alongside her, packed with clothes that were comfortable enough to move in. The bakery opens at nine, so she had better get to her spot before someone came inside. She quickly sprinted along the sidewalk, stopping when she found the object of her desire. It was a small dance studio, which had once been a spot for ballet dancers of all ages, twirling and leaping to their heart's content.

Not wanting the joy of those memories to fade away, Teagan knew her mom's friend was a famous graphic designer and brought it upon herself to pay her to design the place. Someone could use the building as a dance studio to hold lessons for people who wanted to learn all forms of dance, whether it be ballet or something else.

Taking a deep breath, Teagan went inside and turned on the light. She felt the hardness of the wooden floor on her feet as it brought back memories to the days where she learned ballet. It was a chance for her to be herself, have fun with friends, and, more importantly, make mistakes and learn from them. She remembered the audience's applause as she and her friends leaped and pirouetted their way across the stage, soaring through the air with grace.

Well, no time to waste. Time to get a move on. She locked the door behind her, the apprehension of someone coming in weighing heavily on her mind. She stripped into the clothes she carried with her: a simple white tank top with bootcut pants and flat shoes to complete the outfit.

Teagan scrolled through her phone as she finally found the song she was looking for. She stretched her legs and rolled her shoulders back as she listened to the music that began to play through her phone's speaker.

Now's as good a time as any, I guess. Teagan moved her hips to the beat of the music, feeling a burst of energy flow throughout her body. She danced along with her reflection, feeling as free as a bird would, gliding through the sky with its wings. She was so busy dancing that she didn't hear someone unlock the door from behind her.

"Wow, those are some nice moves you got there." A voice spoke.

Teagan gasped, turning around so she could see the stranger with her own eyes. She let out a relieved sigh, seeing that it was Colton. "Don't scare me like that, dude," she said, catching her breath.

"Sorry. Your mom said that I might find you here, so here I am."

"Well, you're here now. So, what do you want?" Teagan asked, arching an eyebrow.

Colton looked away. This is so stupid. She was gonna laugh in his face if she found out. With a deep breath, he let out the words that danced on his lips. "I want you to teach me how to dance," he said quietly, fearful of Teagan's response.

Teagan snorted. "Wait, are you-are you actually serious right now?"

"Forget it!" Colton snapped. "I should have known you were only gonna make fun of me." He turned around, making his way toward the door.

"Wait..." she said, not realizing how much he was hurt by her words. "I'm sorry. I'll teach you how to dance."

Colton held the door handle, contemplating her words. There was silence for a moment as he walked back to her.

"Thanks for giving me another chance. So, here's what you do..." Teagan instructed as she walked over to her phone to play another song.

The familiar lyrics made its way into Colton's mind as he let himself loose. Teagan moved her feet to the rhythm of the music as she swayed her hips to the beat. Colton began to follow, mimicking her moves while he laughed. "This is actually kinda fun."

"I was hoping you would say that," Teagan admitted as she reveled in the joy of dancing with an old friend.

The two continued dancing to the melody...until Teagan tripped over her own feet. "Woah!" she exclaimed as she prepared herself for what was gonna be a nasty fall. She closed her eyes as she braced for the impact, but it never came.

Teagan slowly opened her eyes, finding Colton's arms wrapped around her waist.

"You okay?" Colton asked, his eyes showing a deep concern for her wellbeing.

Teagan dusted herself off, stammering. "Y−y−yeah, I'm okay."

Colton sensed that something was off and moved closer towards her, not knowing that he was the problem. "You sure?"

Teagan nodded, not trusting herself to speak.

"Hmmm..." Colton replied, unsure of whether to believe her. "Come on. We need to get you to the bakery before you start your shift."

The two walked back to the bakery in awkward silence, the silence becoming so loud you could hear a pin drop or at least that's what Teagan felt now.

Soon they arrived at the bakery, where Colton waved her goodbye as she went inside.

"Hey, sweetie! How was your day? Miss Valdez greeted her daughter as she came inside the shop to start working.

"It was..." Teagan struggled to find the word for it. "Interesting."

Her mother's eyebrow went up a few notches before Teagan tried to ease her mother's suspicions. "It wasn't like that." Teagan blurted out as a bead of sweat trickled down the side of her forehand.

"I'm just saying. You two were alone for quite some time..."

Here we go again... "Mom, please..." Teagan pleaded to avoid the awkward conversation.

Miss Valdez turned away from her daughter. "It's not that I don't trust the two of you, but more often than not, teenagers can get carried away." She said, thinking aloud.

"Oh my god, mom. We didn't..."

"Didn't what? Colton entered the store, a perplexed look on his face as he held Teagan's phone in his hand. "You forgot your phone on the bench in the music studio."

He looked between the two women, scratching his head. "Am I missing something here?

Teagan let out a muffled sound, mixed with surprise and embarrassment.

The ground...the ground needed to swallow her whole quicker