35. Eli
Eli
“Imean, dancing can’t be that hard, right?” chuckles Knox the next day.
We’re all gathered around the campfire outside, crickets chirping around us as Henry demonstrates the correct way to construct a s’more.
I didn’t know that Sienna used to dance when she was young. I saw the passion on her face as she taught Henry, but I assumed it was just a hobby she picked up after she moved to LA.
“You wanna bet?” Sienna licks melted chocolate from her fingers.
“Knox is gonna be sooo bad at it.” Henry sits on the stump, giggling.
That smile has not left his face all day. I even caught him smiling when he was writing out his letters earlier. Sienna told him she was going to be staying and he hasn’t stopped smiling since.
“Up!” Sienna snaps her fingertips at Knox. “Actually, I want you all on your feet. We’re going to start with a pirouette.”
“A what now?” Cash snorts, watching as Sienna gets into position.
The flames dance on her face just right, making her skin glow. Everything about her is perfect. Her eyes. Her smile. I even love the way she eats, how she smacks her lips when tasting something sweet.
I knew she’d come back. I never lost faith.
And I have a feeling she’s going to stay forever.
Sienna curls her leg up to her hip, switching between arching and extending it as she spins, keeping the momentum. I lose track of how many times she goes around.
Cradling her hands above her head, she increases momentum and spins faster, all while keeping balance.
My eyes go wide. She really knows how to dance.
“I used to dance for my Grammy after a rough day at school,” says Sienna, extending her leg a final time and bringing herself to a stop. She’s not even breathless. “It’s how I ended up in Hollywood.”
“What do you mean?” Cash asks.
I’ve never seen him stare at someone so intently before.
“I wanted to dance on stage. I did a few gigs in Los Angeles, then got scouted as a model when I was sixteen. From there, I started acting…” Sienna gets lost in her own thoughts for a moment.
“Yeah. I slowly started to forget about dancing. But hey!” She lightens her tone.
“I still got it though. And now it’s time to see if you guys can dance.
Knox first.” She drags him away from the fire, demonstrating the first step.
“Pick your left leg off the floor and place it here.” She taps the inside of his thigh. “Point your toes. Make it look pretty.”
Knox stumbles. Almost face-plants onto the floor.
“You need to balance.”
“Like a flamingo!” chips in Henry, shooting off his tree stump to demonstrate.
“Amazing, Henry! Now—” Sienna returns to Knox— “start with your arms chest-height and think about raising them above your head as you twirl.”
Knox gets into an awkward position and spins himself around. And this time he actually does face-plant.
Henry roars with laughter.
“Okay, you proved your point,” laughs Knox, picking himself up from the ground. “Dancing is definitely hard.”
“And that’s just one move. Next, we can get you to drop into a front split!” Sienna demonstrates the move with minimal effort.
I wince just watching her. That has to take some serious training.
“I wanna learn that!” says Henry.
“And you will, buddy.” Sienna ruffles his hair as she exits the splits. “But it’s going to take a lot of practice.”
“And practice makes perfect!” says Henry, reciting a phrase Sienna uses a lot around him.
My heart overflows with love as I watch the two of them interact. Practice does make perfect. You have to walk down the wrong path a few times to realize which one is right.
And I owe that blizzard my life for putting Sienna on the right path that brought her to us.