Destination Revealed

The day finally came when the Foreign Exchange Troupe was revealing the destination of the year. Katie was nervous when she entered the meeting. It had been a while since she last left the country and this time she would do it with strangers. She knew that she would enjoy the experience and meet new friends with common interests, but she was anxious none the less.

Everyone in the troupe nervously sat around and started to get to know each other. It was exciting and nerve racking but good to know that the whole room was in the same situation. Finally the meeting was called to attention and the coordinators announced the destination. "This year we will be heading to CUBA!!!"

"Cuba?" Katie's head whirled. "How can this be?" Katie thought. She started to hear alarms starting to ring in her head. "What is the probability?" Doubts started to creep into her mind about whether or not she should be going. Then she heard the coordinator say "We chose Cuba, because it is the perfect opportunity to try to create good will between our nations with the recent tensions. Also we were lucky enough to have Katie Miller join our troupe, so that she can help our experience and enhance our understanding and representation of our two cultures." Katie zoned out when the coordinated elaborated on Katie's background and performance history. Until the girl next to her, Jackie, nudged Katie and Katie realized she was supposed to stand up and acknowledge everyone's attention to her. Katie numbly stood up and smiled. Now there was no way of getting out of the situation. She was stuck. Maybe it wouldn't be that bad after all, it had been a long time. For all she knew, he wasn't there anymore or he was with someone else.

At about the same time in Cuba, there was another similar meeting taking place. It was the meeting of the Dance Club at the University of Havana where Javier attended. Their supervisor gathered the group together and announced that they would be hosting a foreign exchange troupe from the United States. Everyone was thrilled. Javier hearing the news didn't show much emotion but smiled for the rest of the group. In his mind, Javier told himself, "What is the big deal. Sure, it would be fun for some Yanks to come, but did it really matter, it is not like one of them would be Katie." Then before Javier could think more her scolded himself, "Don't even think about it. It is wishful thinking. She is not coming. So don't dream about it." Then Javier shook his head, refocused and participated in the planning with the rest of the group.

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