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InitiaPermalink Reply by ✓ Clara Carter on July 27, 2020 at 19:25

The pamphlet sat on her desk, as it had been sitting there for the last four weeks, it was for a dance studio, she knew that because she had read the pamphlet cover to back at least five different times it had been sitting with her for a while to finally start on some of the resolutions that she had set up for herself when the year had begun it was almost August and so far all she had gotten done on that list was to read ten different inspirational books to change a life and to clean out her house. Her house was clean, but had her life changed? No. That was the reason for learning to dance, to become a more skilled individual. So she did it, she called, she had set up the one on one dance lesson and would start today, she was still nervous though but she did her best to push the worry aside and left her house, out of her comfort zone.

She walked into the studio with as much confidence as she could muster, and when the assistant told her it was her turn, her wavering confidence was already slipping, she decided though it was too late to back out now. She walked through the doors and was induced to her dance instructor. 

"Yes, that's me, it's nice to meet you Yeon," she said, her eyes wandering to the man sitting on the floor. "It would have to be my two left feet," she joked, but in all honesty, she couldn't dance to save her life, yes she could sway and rock back and forth to whatever was playing but anything more complicated than that she just couldn't work with. "I want to learn how to dance, fair warning a duck could dance better than I could," she replied to his question. 

ValkyrPermalink Reply by ✓ Yeonseok Lee on August 2, 2020 at 21:24

Dance was something Yeon had always been naturally passionate about from a young age and getting to turn that into a career was somewhat of a dream come true, he was always reaching for new things and getting to experience more and more things but he always tried to stay humble and remember what brought him here. That was why despite the fact he didn’t need to money he still ran one to one dance lessons, because inspiring a love for dancing in others was just as important to him as performing was.

He tilted his head with a friendly smile when the blonde explained that her two left feet had carried her here and he shrugged “If I had a dollar for every time I’ve heard that” he responded with a playful smirk “Don’t worry, I’ve yet to find someone I can’t guide along” he patted the floor beside him and nodded “If you want to follow along with the stretches I’m doing while we talk, wouldn’t want you to pull a muscle” he leaned over to the side, leaning against his leg to stretch out his muscle.

“So what sort of dancing do you feel like learning? I’ve have a range of experience so whatever you feel you’d be more comfortable moving to, my specialties are ballroom, contemporary and modern, though I can do a little hip hop and I’m not opposed to a bit of ballet either” he chuckled, though most of his experience nowadays was in modern and street dance, his roots were very much seeded in contemporary.

InitiaPermalink Reply by ✓ Clara Carter on August 8, 2020 at 11:44

She returned his smile and took a minute to eye the spot on the floor he had patted for her to join him, Clara eyed her feet for a moment, took a deep and walked over to sit beside him, Stretches, she could do this, this was probably the easy part. She followed along as he leaned over to stretch his leg, she thanked years of yoga to being this flexible and quite enjoyed the stretch. 

Thinking over his question she already knew the answer, she had spent a few weeks going over different dances which ones seemed the most practical to learn and which ones were completely out of the question. She knew she would never be able to keep up with some of them, such as freestyle or even hip-hop, though ballet was beautiful she knew she was too old to choose that one, so that had left her with the other ones on her list. "Ballroom, and maybe some Latin dance," she voiced.  "I'm not sure I would be coordinated enough for contemporary," 

ValkyrPermalink Reply by ✓ Yeonseok Lee on August 14, 2020 at 16:05

He didn’t take on new students often because of his busy schedule but he had a good feeling about today, it was always nice to see someone new come in, they always seemed to be so filled with passion to learn which was exactly what he loved about dance, seeing people able to just get onto their feet and enjoy it. He nodded with a playful smile before switching position to another spot and stretching out his body.

“Ballroom is a good choice” he responded and smiled softly “Learning to dance with others is always nice, very useful for weddings and the likes”  ballroom wasn’t his first choice but that’s because he was a choreographer and ballroom dance had very little room for self expression, but it was nice to be reminded of traditional roots from time to time and then to move into some Latin was a good natural progression “Yeah, I don’t see many takers on contemporary, unsurprisingly, it’s not the casual lesson kind of dance” he nodded before he got to his feet leading a few more stretches before he was ready to begin the lessons.

“So I’m assuming from the two left feet comments we’re talking complete beginner?” he headed over to the stereo and checked his phone to pick out some music with a slow but rhythmic beat which they could use to practice “Then we shall start with learning a waltz box step, basically your staple when it comes to ballroom dancing, anything harder typically is a variation of the step” he nodded as he held his hands up as though he was holding a partner and then showed her how the step looked in practice.

InitiaPermalink Reply by ✓ Clara Carter on August 16, 2020 at 18:40

Clara knew when it came to dancing where she lacked in skill and talent she filled with her ambition and desire to learn, once Clara put her mind to something (or someone) nothing could stop her from going after her goals, she had one life and she intended to use it to the fullest, she knew death came unexpectedly the loss of her parents had taught her that, she liked to think it was their last parting gift to her, the ability to persevere.

She listened with an intent ear, soaking up what her instructor was saying, scared if she missed a word she would never be able to keep up while following along with his stretches. "Yes, I've seen that," she replied, contemporary was an absolutely breathtaking sort of dance, she had seen lots of different dancers and to her, it seemed like it was a language one she would never understand, more creative and free than the others.

Clara let out a laugh, "Yes, I'm a beginner, or whatever is below that, at the point I'm at I couldn't dance to save my life," she was hopeless, something she knew she wanted to change. Her eyes followed his movements, waltz didn't seem too hard, and as he made the movements she thought with some practice she might even get through it, barely.

ValkyrPermalink Reply by ✓ Yeonseok Lee on August 26, 2020 at 14:02

He could have respect for people who came to the dance studio and started on their journey to learn, it didn’t matter to him whether they had been dancing for years or didn’t even have a single idea of what they were doing. If anything it was actually quite fun for him to teach newbies because they were more open to advice and didn’t tend to get themselves into bad posture habits. 

He smiled softly and nodded “I think one of my favorite things about dance is that there is so many different ways to express and all of them are very different but very beautiful” he nodded thoughtfully as he tilted his head slightly “What made you want to start to learn?” knowing her priorities and her interests would help him tailor the lesson and make it more fun “Do you have any certain pieces of music that make you wanna get up and dance?” he grinned softly.

Now they were on their feet he nodded as he glanced over at her “Well it seems like it’s time we change that then huh?” he grinned playfully as he demonstrated the basic box step of a waltz, he could see her eyes were on the floor as she practiced out the step “Good, though if you keep looking at your feet you’re going to trip the moment you try to dance with a partner” he pointed to the mirror in front of them “See if you can use the mirror to keep your head up” he continued the waltz box step to demonstrate.

InitiaPermalink Reply by ✓ Clara Carter on August 31, 2020 at 18:39

She listened to him speak and could feel the passion seeping from his voice, dancing would probably never been on her top priorities list but she had a profound respect for people who did dance, they seemed to have this fire about them that lit up not just the stage when they performed but every single aspect of their life. 
"I've always been artistically inclined when it comes to certain parts of my life, that I'm missing a certain zeal when it comes down to it, so when the New Year began I told myself it was finally time to become a better person and open myself up to new things, I know I'll never be a dancer or a performer but..." she trailed off trying to find the right words, "...but I still think I can try and be different, evolve I guess," she answered. Clara heard his next question and knew the answer to it right away. "Pop, is on the radio a lot, and some of those are pretty catchy and I listen to a lot of indie and alternative but get up and dancing to it isn't exactly on my mind, more swaying, you'll have to help me out with the music thing," 

Clara followed his moves as they stood up, and she couldn't help but smile at his eager attitude. And then they began, she was absolutely sure her eyebrows were pinched in deep concentration as she followed his every step, and he seemed to notice as well. "Ok," she replied, lifting her head up, and taking her eyes to the mirror watching in the reflection as they danced. 

ValkyrPermalink Reply by ✓ Yeonseok Lee on September 7, 2020 at 21:04

Yeon was naturally quite a forwardly passionate person and he hoped that helped to inspire the same sort of drive in others, even if it was just the motivation they needed to go to a lesson every week or just practice at home, that was bringing a small bit of joy to their lives. Clara seemed like a calm and level-headed person which was nice because it seemed to make her a good listener.

He smiled, nodding his head as though to agree with her sentiment “I think everyone has a little artistic passion in them, most people probably don’t even know it but we all daydream a little, we all look at something somewhere and see beauty in it, whether it’s nature or video game graphics” he chuckled under his breath “Keep reaching for yours, I’m sure you’ll figure out what’s calling for you” he nodded slightly, watching her moves in the mirror to make sure she was executing them right. He scrunched up his nose playfully when she went for a really generic answer to his questions “I don’t buy that one bit, you can’t name me one song which gets your feet tapping without you meaning to?” he raised his brows as he awaited her answer.

The way she looked focused as she attempted to get the step made him smile gently, there was something about seeing someone so determined which definitely brought him a sense of pride because he could respect people who worked hard for what they wanted. “That’s better, just kinda flow with the music, count the bears in your head in a single and double pattern” as he kept moving he counted it out a few times “One, two, three” when he was happy she was getting it he nodded “Okay and next you’ll want to lift your arms just like this” he nodded encouragingly. “So what do you do outside of the dance studio?” he questioned curiously.

InitiaPermalink Reply by ✓ Clara Carter on September 10, 2020 at 18:40

"What brought you to dancing?" Clara asked, "If you don't mind me asking, I just haven't met too many dancers, and I always wonder where their passion came from either it be from since they were little or if they discovered it later," It wasn't for everyone, Clara knew that better then anyone, she could still picture her mother dancing in their kitchen, not a single care in the world as she moved unashamedly to whatever country song had played on the radio, those had been the happy days in her early childhood, her mother had always had a sort of confidence that couldn't be distinguished, a flame that would never not burn. Clara wanted to be like her mother even though she knew she would feel silly if she made mistakes, she had to try.  

She continued moving her legs in the mirror, trying desperately not to look down at her feet, she kept her shoulder straight keeping good posture, or at least she hoped she did. "I guess..." she thought to any moment in her life when she had wanted to get up and dance "Had it all by Parachute," she could still picture the day, driving in her car, radio up, the song had started to play and she had wanted to dance. "I had wanted to dance to that song," she waited for his response.

Clara followed his instructions as she had done with everything in her life, as close to the example as she could possibly get, she was a perfectionist most days, and she never gave up, not if she could help it.  She followed his movements as he added in the arms, and could feel her body adjust to the new steps. "I'm a librarian, I work in the Public Library here in the city, It's always been my dream job," she smiled, it brought her great happiness to be able to work with books each day.  

ValkyrPermalink Reply by ✓ Yeonseok Lee on September 13, 2020 at 8:07

He chuckled under his breath and brushed off her excusing her interest with a shrug of his shoulders “When I was younger I was just always that kid who was good but not great at things, never the best at anything but never the worst either” he nodded thoughtfully “And then one day I saw some street dancers on the corner of the street and decided I wanted to try it” he pressed his lips together “Went to lessons and just kinda fell in love with it, it felt like I’d finally freed a part of me that was just waiting to burst out” his parents hadn’t gotten it at the time but it was so important to him, it made him feel whole.

He grinned slightly, she seemed smart but a little shy from the way she presented herself, but he could tell she had her own passions within, she wouldn’t be here if she didn’t. Not to mention she was actually doing pretty well at following his instructions and while her form wasn’t perfect he could see her getting the hang of the steps “See, there it is” he teased playfully as he glanced up at her for a moment “Well next time you hear that song, I, as your teacher, urge you to just dance, whether it’s the worst dance in the world doesn’t matter, you’ll find it’s truly exhilarating” there was no better way to express your love for a song than letting it move you.

He could see her focus just from her expression which made him chuckle softly “You’re in luck because you get the slightly easier job, since most of the time in ballroom, the guy leads” he grinned playfully as he came around to face her so he could make sure her posture looked right and that she could do the steps without needing to see the mirror “That’s amazing” he responded with a grin “One of my friends owns a book store so I definitely understand the love for real books, sometimes it’s hard to drag him out” he chuckled and nodded holding up his hands “Okay so on one side, we’re going to hold our arm out like this and clasp hands” he took her hand in his and showed her the correct positioning.

InitiaPermalink Reply by ✓ Clara Carter on September 19, 2020 at 11:25

Clara could see the sparkle in his eyes when he talked about his passion, she imagined her eyes lit up the very same when she spoke about books, though it wasn't exactly the same she understood where he was coming from. "Is that the type of dancing you love most?" she asked.

She smiled at him. "What if I'm in the grocery store, you just want me to bust a move in isle twelve?" she teased, she understood his method though, find the song that moves you and before she would know it, she would be dancing along to all her favourite songs letting it move her inside, heart and soul she would find the rhythm and balance to move on the outside too.

"True, maybe that's why I picked it, just in case I forgot a step he could lead me," Clara replied, but she didn't think she would need it, she usually memorized each step and if she got it down then she would remember it. She watched as he studied her, hoping she was following each correct step, it wasn't too hard but one wrong move and she would through off her pattern. " I get what you mean, leaving the library is always hard I always come home with a book or two in my arms," she responded. 
Clara followed his arm movements and got in the correct positioning, posture was everything she was realizing. "Like this?" she asked. 

ValkyrPermalink Reply by ✓ Yeonseok Lee on September 23, 2020 at 11:35

He chuckled under his breath when she asked if that was his favorite kind of dancing “It’s kinda like choosing a favorite child” he commented with an amused expression “It kinda depends on my mood, sometimes street dance is the best because it’s the type of thing you can just freestyle when the urge comes along, others require more practice and precisions but they can be the most stunning to perform on stage” he nodded thoughtfully, so really the answer was it depended on the day.

He pressed his lips together when she asked what to do if she found herself in the middle of a grocery “I mean if it was me I’d go for it, but then I’m shameless so” he chuckled under his breath “There’s an easy solution to that, make the song come to you before the grocery store gets you” he grinned playfully. Dancing to him was all about expression through music, so that’s why picking a song that meant something mattered.

“Safe bet” he responded with an amused look when she said that was the reason she chose it “Though you’ll learn quickly that getting the kind of precision you need is difficult, takes a lot of practice” he chuckled, but that was why she was here, to learn and to practice “Do you have a favorite?” he questioned when she mentioned her love for books, he was standing facing her now and showing her the hand positioning “That’s it, make sure to keep a good grip because on occasion you will need to use the hold to do a movement” he nodded lifting his other hand “Then the other one goes on the waist like this” he placed his in a gentle hold against her and waited for her to do the same.

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