AN: Ballet AU. BALLET. GISELLE. KAI IN TIGHTS.
I wrote this one for Kainora Week (originally titled Harmony) and was pleasantly surprised to see people liked it. A lot. So I've decided to continue it, which I definitely do not mind, because they're really fun to write.
I.
The first day Jinora saw Kai walk into the studio, she almost laughed.
She had seen him around school before, and he was absolutely the last boy she would ever expect to be dragged into a ballet performance. Usually the unlucky guys who the girls in the company would ask were the ideal Prince Charming's: blonde, fair-skinned, tall, slender. Kai, with his messy undercut, his tendency towards oversized flannels, and his flair for ill-fated adventures that usually resulted in either detention or the emergency room, was very much not Prince Charming. Not that she had actually spoken to him or had any plans to, but she did overhear more than her fair share of gossip during the period she spent working in the school library. Jinora found herself debating whether this was amusing or just plain sad.
Seeing Kai attempt ballet, well, that made up her mind.
To be honest, his extensions were absolutely horrible, and more than once the teacher rolled her eyes or slammed her fist against her head, to which Kai protested, "I'm trying!" multiple times. Jinora sat against the wall with some other girls, watching this, and had to smother her face in her novel to muffle her laughs. And when she did this, even though all the other girls were in stitches as well, as she lowered her book with the intent to keep reading, most of time her eyes found Kai's. Or maybe his found hers, or however it worked, but his amused smirk was enough to make her cheeks heat up and for her to force her eyes back to the page where she had no recollection of what had just happened to the heroine.
II.
The first time Jinora actually spoke to Kai, it caught her so off-guard that she choked on her sip of tea and quite possibly almost died from shock.
He had approached her while she was waiting for her dad to come and pick her up at the theater after a kind-of dress rehearsal. She was just sitting in one of the audience seats, deep into her favorite chapter of Pride and Prejudice, her silver thermos pressing against her lips and her company jacket supplying her with extra coziness when he spoke.
"This part's pretty boring."
Jinora jumped in her seat and coughed out the burning sensation in her throat, even though she couldn't do anything to help her cheeks, which were undoubtedly on fire. Once she felt composed enough to actually say something that wasn't completely idiotic, she took a deep breath and glanced over her shoulder at the apologetic grin of the boy standing behind her.
"How long were you standing there?"
He shrugged. "A couple chapters."
She stared at him, her jaw slack.
He vaulted over the theater seat next to her and sat down. "It's not like I actually read all of it. You read twice as fast as I do," he said with a kind of awed tone, and Jinora took another deep breath. "Anyways, it's Pride and Prejudice, right?" She nodded. "Nice. My fost- I mean, my mom, she likes those kind of books." He rubbed the back of his neck awkwardly, and Jinora couldn't help but find that a bit cute.
"That's ... awesome?" Jinora replied for lack of a better word, and then it dawned on her that she may have made him uncomfortable, because that came out sarcastic or at the least very uninterested when in reality she was really interested and she didn't want him to think she was rude and she was getting so flustered by the way he awkwardly was fiddling with his zipper and not talking and she needed to backtrack. "I mean, that is really good, I mean, those - these, um, they're good books."
Good spirits, Jinora, you're such an idiot.
"Yeah, so, uh ..." Kai grinned at her, and even though she barely knew him (no, she thought, more like she didn't know him at all), she felt like she would do anything for him to smile at her like that again. "How long have you been in dance?"
She laughed and closed her book, slipping it into her bag. "A long time. Since I was three."
He rubbed his neck again. "Oh. I was wondering because, you know, you're really good."
At that, Jinora looked up at him, and he had his eyes shut tight and a faint shade of red was coloring his tan cheeks. She flushed as well. "Thanks, Kai."
He opened his eyes and attempted to resume his old attitude. "Ah, so you do know who I am," he said, kind of with a sense of swagger, and leaned back. "I wasn't aware we were on a first-name basis, you know."
Jinora wondered if it was physically possible to blush so much in a five-minute conversation. "Well, seeing as how I don't know your last name –"
"No, no, it's fine!" he protested. "It's just, uh, yeah, just, don't even listen to me." She laughed, and for a second, it almost looked as if Kai zoned out or something. He cleared his throat. "But, um, I don't really think I know your name. Yet. I mean, nobody's said it directly to me, or maybe I forgot, but I just –"
"Jinora," she smiled.
Kai looked back at her, and his mouth pulled itself into a wry grin. "Jinora," he repeated, and she decided she liked the way her name fit into his mouth. "Well, Jinora, I have a feeling you know more about this ballet than I do, and to be very honest, I'm really confused about it."
She sighed, partly exasperated, partly in disbelief. "You cannot sit there and tell me you've never heard of Giselle."
He sat there and said nothing.
She rolled her eyes. "It's about a woman who loves a man, and when she dies, her soul is brought back to life with the intent to kill that man, but her love saves him from the afterlife."
Kai stared at her and laughed. "That is the stupidest thing I've ever heard of, you know."
"It's a beautiful love story!"
"It's so stupid!" he came back with, flailing his hands in the air. "It's completely pointless, but it does explain a lot, but it's still pointless!"
She sighed, "It was written during the romantic period. Of course it's pointless." And, of course, that launched a three-minute discussion on the different periods of ballet, which Kai started critiquing thoroughly and Jinora frantically explained. When Tenzin called her cell to tell her he was parked out front, she somehow managed to spare a minute before wrapping up the conversation with Kai and excusing herself.
And when she glanced back before closing the door of the auditorium, he was still looking at her.
III.
The first time Kai asked her to help him, she was watching a Disney marathon with her siblings.
It was via text, of course. She had been texting him ever since the latest rehearsal for Giselle. Ikki had insisted upon watching her choice of movies the previous night, and so had Meelo. Rohan just shifted sides between the two of them, so Jinora called a truce and suggested a Disney marathon the next day. Of course, she hadn't quite anticipated getting woken up at six-thirty in the morning for Lilo and Stitch in the basement.
Now, it was a quarter after noon, and the opening number to Beauty and the Beast was backing up Meelo's ear-splitting vocals when she felt her phone twitch next to her on the couch. Eagerly, she slid her thumb across the screen to read Kai's reply. It was plain and simple.
He wanted help with his ballet.
For some reason, she blushed. She didn't really know why, but Kai did have a tendency to make her feel a little flustered. What was she supposed so say? Agree? Well, obviously. But how could she reply without sounding too needy? Or without sounding uninterested and bored? She bit her lip, staring at the screen so earnestly she didn't notice Ikki peering over her shoulder.
"Who's Kai?" she asked, and Jinora almost screamed. Ikki noticed her red cheeks and gasped, squealing in her high-pitched voice, "Is Kai your boyfriend?"
"No!" Jinora sputtered, clicking off the phone and shoving it in her pocket. "No, he's not, for your information, not that it's your business."
"Dad!" Ikki screamed anyways, "Jinora has a boyfriend!"
"What?" came the replying shout from upstairs. Jinora groaned. "Not for long, she doesn't!"
"Dad, I don't! Ikki's lying!" Jinora insisted.
"He asked for help with ballet!"
"He what?"
"Oh my gosh," Jinora moaned. "He's the guy who's in the dance, Dad, it's nothing, I swear!"
"I bet he's really handsome," Ikki cooed, leaning in. "Did you invite him to watch the movies with us? Like a date? What's his favorite movie? Is it this movie? Does he bring you books like the Beast does for Belle? Is this your favorite movie because it reminds you of your boyfriend? I'll bet it is."
After trying to dodge questions from Ikki and off-handed comments from an uninterested Rohan and attempting to survive through Meelo, who insisted on singing every word along with the movie, Jinora decided on simply texting Kai a time and place, which ended up being the local park, because she didn't dare bring him over while her parents were home and her siblings were living.
When she pulled up to the park in leggings and a sweater, she started to second guess her choice. There were kids everywhere, like a swarm of screaming bees on the play equipment. People walking dogs dotted the rest of the landscape, and she doubted she would find a suitable place void of both children and dog droppings. But where else would they have gone? The studio was either closed or busy, and her house had already been crossed off the list. Maybe she should have just said no. Maybe she should've made up a somewhat-true reason to not help him. Maybe she should've waited until the house was empty, but then her dad would be suspicious, and –
"Hey."
Jinora jumped. Her face flushed and she cursed herself for getting scared so easily lately. She turned to face Kai's grinning face in the car window. Laughing, she rolled it down. "What are you doing here?"
"Well, you kind of asked me to come," he pointed out.
"I mean standing next to my car."
He shrugged. "You were just sitting there for a long time. So."
"I guess I zoned out," she told him casually, even though she was morbidly embarrassed. "You don't mind meeting here?"
He furrowed his brows and surveyed the territory, and something tugged at Jinora's gut at her sudden realization of just how attractive he was. "It's fine," he decided. "But why didn't you want to meet at your house?"
"I'm not an only child," she said sadly. She opened the car door and Kai jumped out of the way.
"Ah," he nodded. "The dreaded siblings. I see."
They started walking together. Her breath came out a bit frosty in the November air. "Do you have any siblings?"
He shook his head. "No. Sometimes I want some, but nah. How old are yours?"
She let out a deep breath and watched the white fog drift in the air. "My sister is 14, my oldest brother is 11, and my other brother just turned 4."
"So you guys have some age gaps?"
"Yeah," Jinora sighed. "Surprisingly, Ikki - my sister - she's the least bearable." She chuckled bitterly, remembering just a while ago when Ikki was ruthlessly attacking her in ways of her love life. "Anyways, um, what exactly do you want help with?"
Kai raised his eyebrows and whistled low. "How about everything?"
She laughed. "Okay, then. You've been in the classes for a couple weeks, though. How about you tell me what you do know?"
"I know the squat."
Jinora closed her eyes and tried to suppress a smile. "That's a plié."
"I know how to kneel?" he tried, and she busted out laughing.
"You're not even that funny," she complained, giggling, and he pouted. She was about to make another jab, but instead she looked around them. "How about here?"
Kai stopped walking and glanced around them. They were kind of in a leveled off section of grass near the gravel pathway that ringed the park. "But people can see us here," he whined.
She pointed a finger at him. "Don't complain. I agreed to helping you out."
"Oh, please," he rolled his eyes. "Don't use that against me. I just don't want to look like a complete idiot on stage."
"Then why did you say agree to all this?" she asked him, and her tone was so sincere Kai looked away.
"To be honest?" He mirrored her as she sat down and began to stretch. The grass was a bit wet. "Girls in leotards."
Jinora gaped at him. "You're joking."
"I'm not," he held up his hands in defense. "I'm being honest, okay?"
She opened her mouth to say something, but blushed and looked away. "Is that the only reason?"
"Well," he edged. "I'm also getting paid fifty dollars. That's not exactly a bad thing. To be completely honest with you, I thought this would be easy. Just show up, dress pretty, twirl a lot and that's it. But it's kind of hard work." She raised her eyebrows at him and he groaned. "Don't tease me, okay? I haven't been in ballet my whole life unlike some people."
Jinora rolled her eyes and stood up. He scrambled to his feet. "Come on," she told him. "Let's see your squats."
IV.
The first time Jinora saw Kai in tights, she didn't stop laughing for a full two minutes.
He had somehow managed to get away with sweatpants for all the past rehearsals, and though Jinora thoroughly questioned him on his methods every time they had a spare minute, he wouldn't divulge his secrets. Seeing him before the performance, however, made up for all of that.
"Don't you dare say a word to me," he had warned her before the performance when she approached him with her hand over her mouth. When the laughing fits started, he just leaned against the wall and glared at her with utter distaste.
"Okay, okay, I'm good now, promise," she said shakily, but another look at Kai in mascara and she had to excuse herself to go to the bathroom in order to forget those images.
When she heard the opening number start up, she had to practically run out of the bathroom and into the wings to catch Kai up on stage. And even though his positions were nearly spot-on, Jinora thought that he looked pretty much completely ridiculous, and she bit her knuckles to keep from laughing. But she was already plotting on how she was going to get him to be in the spring presentation, and how she was going to manage to get the lead.
