Tap Shoes
Fastening the buckle on her shoe as she had sixty-four-thousand times before, she rolled her ankles and rose from where she sat, her legs splayed to her sides haphazardly, on the ballroom floor. The room was vacant as usual and for once she welcomed the solitude.
Standing, she admired the sparkling tap shoes on her feet, lovingly given to her by her boyfriend. Normally thinking of him would either send a lustful tingle down her spine or depress her, depending on her mood. Today, she merely smiled.
Her gaze wandered to the jukebox to the side of the room. A gift from her other boyfriend. She didn't dare think of him, ruin her mood with tears brought about by him. Fearing her complacent state of mind would collapse if she so much as let her mind flicker over an image of him or anything related to him, she ignored the jukebox, letting it glow blue in the corner, unattended.
She wanted nothing more than to clear her head, which is why she decided to dance. It always made her feel better, just shuffling and spinning till her mind was free of worry.
Tap-tap-tap-tap-tap. With each click her shoes mad eon the hardwood floor, she could imagine her troubles lifting off of her shoulders and disappearing. She ignored everything but the sounds of her shoes tap-tap- tapping, her eyes closing, her arms swinging. Twirling with reckless abandon, she danced unaccompanied and unpartnered as she so often did.
Any other day the emptiness of the ballroom would have caused her to long for companionship, companionship that was in such short supply lately. One of them was never there; the other was constantly busy. She wasn't the kind of person who could simply be alone for very long. She thrived off of interaction with others, off of talking and laughing and in some cases, flirting. However, for once in her life she didn't mind being by herself. If she would have been with anyone else it would have undoubtedly led to her thinking too much about everything she was trying so hard to avoid.
Instead of thinking, she merely danced. She loved everything about it: the tapping noise her shoes made on the floor, the way the shoes fit her feet so perfectly, how it could make her feel so lighthearted and blissful. Her shoes glittered and her eyes shined, full of hope and renewed delight. She felt more cheerful with every tap, twirl, turn. Shuffle-step-ball-change, shuffle-step-ball-change. Flap, flap, flap, ball-change. Repeating steps she had learned so long ago, in days of innocence that had been lost for some time. She danced with more exuberance than she had in a very long time, throwing her cares to the wind, freeing herself of her anxieties.
She danced until she ran out of breath, collapsing gleefully on the ballroom floor. She felt satisfied. After a minute of just lying there inhaling and exhaling with her eyes shut she sat up and removed her tap shoes smoothly. So contented, like she always was after she danced. Simply... happy.
Fastening the buckle on her shoe as she had sixty-four-thousand times before, she rolled her ankles and rose from where she sat, her legs splayed to her sides haphazardly, on the ballroom floor. The room was vacant as usual and for once she welcomed the solitude.
Standing, she admired the sparkling tap shoes on her feet, lovingly given to her by her boyfriend. Normally thinking of him would either send a lustful tingle down her spine or depress her, depending on her mood. Today, she merely smiled.
Her gaze wandered to the jukebox to the side of the room. A gift from her other boyfriend. She didn't dare think of him, ruin her mood with tears brought about by him. Fearing her complacent state of mind would collapse if she so much as let her mind flicker over an image of him or anything related to him, she ignored the jukebox, letting it glow blue in the corner, unattended.
She wanted nothing more than to clear her head, which is why she decided to dance. It always made her feel better, just shuffling and spinning till her mind was free of worry.
Tap-tap-tap-tap-tap. With each click her shoes mad eon the hardwood floor, she could imagine her troubles lifting off of her shoulders and disappearing. She ignored everything but the sounds of her shoes tap-tap- tapping, her eyes closing, her arms swinging. Twirling with reckless abandon, she danced unaccompanied and unpartnered as she so often did.
Any other day the emptiness of the ballroom would have caused her to long for companionship, companionship that was in such short supply lately. One of them was never there; the other was constantly busy. She wasn't the kind of person who could simply be alone for very long. She thrived off of interaction with others, off of talking and laughing and in some cases, flirting. However, for once in her life she didn't mind being by herself. If she would have been with anyone else it would have undoubtedly led to her thinking too much about everything she was trying so hard to avoid.
Instead of thinking, she merely danced. She loved everything about it: the tapping noise her shoes made on the floor, the way the shoes fit her feet so perfectly, how it could make her feel so lighthearted and blissful. Her shoes glittered and her eyes shined, full of hope and renewed delight. She felt more cheerful with every tap, twirl, turn. Shuffle-step-ball-change, shuffle-step-ball-change. Flap, flap, flap, ball-change. Repeating steps she had learned so long ago, in days of innocence that had been lost for some time. She danced with more exuberance than she had in a very long time, throwing her cares to the wind, freeing herself of her anxieties.
She danced until she ran out of breath, collapsing gleefully on the ballroom floor. She felt satisfied. After a minute of just lying there inhaling and exhaling with her eyes shut she sat up and removed her tap shoes smoothly. So contented, like she always was after she danced. Simply... happy.