She nodded. “I did.”
“I never would have guessed.”
“You’ve known me my whole life, and I’m still full of surprises.”
“I like you that way,” he said with a smile.
“Yeah,” she whispered, leaning against the door and looking out at her city as it sped by.
Renée was waiting for them on the front steps of the Dance House when they drove up. Her black hair was tied up into a sleek bun, and she had on a pink skirt over her tights and leotard.
“I see how it is,” Trihn said as Renée climbed into the SUV. “Can’t even bother to get decent for us.”
Renée threw her dance bag into the back and plopped down. “I don’t want to hear it from you, missy. You ran away from home.”
“Technically, I ran to home,” Trihn corrected her.
“Well, fill me in on the details, and let’s get something to eat. I’m starving. I need a burger.”
“So, you’re not on the Juilliard diet yet?”
Renée grabbed a pointe shoe from her bag and threw it at the back of Trihn’s head. Trihn dodged it and laughed.
“Oh, hey, Ian,” Renée said. “Long time no see.”
“Good to see you again. Congratulations on Juilliard,” Ian said, veering them out of Manhattan and back toward Trihn’s home in Brooklyn.
“And you’ll be at…Columbia?” she asked.
“Yeah, that’s right. We’ll both be on the Upper West Side.”
“That’s still terrifying to me. Moving from the Bronx to the Upper anything,” she admitted. Renée shuddered. “All right. Give me the deets.”
So, Trihn filled her in on everything that she had missed while Trihn was on vacation. All the sordid details of the past week spilled out of her in a long, detailed diatribe. It sounded pretty awful and pathetic when it was all displayed in that fashion. She kind of hated herself for allowing something like this to happen, but mostly, she despised Preston for the kind of person he turned women into. She and Lydia were supposed to be strong, independent women, and they were both acting like idiots over a man.
They reached Trihn’s place by the end of the conversation, and they all bustled inside. Trihn started whipping up sandwiches for them since most of the good places nearby were closed. She could have ordered in, but it was somehow calming to have something to do while she finished her story.
“So, I went to see Cassidy,” Trihn told Renée and Ian.
He was still listening to the story he already knew, but this next part would be new to him.
“Cassidy Kincaid?” Renée asked, her eyes wide. “You still hang out with her?”
Trihn nodded. “I’ve been dancing with her after the studio closes for about two years now.”
“Why didn’t you say anything?”
“No one else really got along with her. She didn’t fit the ballerina mold,” Trihn explained. “And she’s not dancing ballet anymore. She’s been working in a burlesque club and pole dancing.”
“Wow. Good for her,” Renée said.
“Wait, really?”
“Yeah. I mean, she was a great ballerina, but I could see her being amazing at anything. Plus, I bet she’s happier in that atmosphere, doing what she loves.”
“She is,” Trihn agreed. “She offered me a job pole dancing, but then she was offered a job for a Cirque show in Las Vegas.”
“Holy shit! That’s fantastic!”
“Wow,” Ian said. Even he was impressed.
“Yeah.” Trihn looked down at her hands. “She asked me to go with her.”
Both of her best friends were silent. She peeked up at them, and they both looked stunned.
“But you start school in a few weeks,” Ian reasoned.
“And what would you do there? What about fashion design?” Renée asked.
“I know. I know. I told her I’d think about it.”
“Are you thinking about it?” Renée asked at the same time as Ian said, “Seriously?”
“I don’t know.” She sighed. “I’m tired of living in Lydia’s shadow, and I can’t live with her if she’s with Preston. I told her that, but I don’t think she believes me. I can’t do it.”
“That doesn’t mean you walk away from everything!” Ian said.
“Shh,” Renée chided him. “This isn’t our decision. You’re serious, aren’t you?”
Trihn nodded. “I think I am. I mean, at least I’m seriously considering it. Renée, you’re going to Juilliard to pursue your dreams, and, Ian, you’re going to Columbia to pursue yours.”
“Aren’t you going to NYU to pursue yours?” Ian asked. “Fashion design?”
“Yeah. I want to design fashion, but I also don’t want to give up everything else in my life to do it. It’s not wrong to want to pursue all your dreams, is it?” Trihn asked.
She didn’t want to stop dancing, and maybe one day, she would even want to model again. She felt so limited, quitting everything else to pursue just one thing. That wasn’t what college was supposed to be about. It was supposed to broaden her horizons, not limit them.
“It sounds crazy,” Ian said.
Renée shrugged. “A little crazy, but if you think it’s right, then do it.”
“I don’t know. I don’t know what feels right,” Trihn told them.
“Take this time while you’re here, without your family telling you what to do, and you’ll figure it out.” Renée covered Trihn’s hand with her own. “Do what’s best for you. If that means staying in New York and going to NYU but getting a dorm with a stranger and not living with Lydia, then do that. If it means making amends with Lydia and starting fresh, that’s fine, too. If it means taking this opportunity to go to Las Vegas…well, that’s up to you, too. You have to think about you. It’s the only way you’ll be happy.”
Trihn took the next two days to think over Cassidy’s offer. She didn’t want to just jump into something crazy, but she did want to actually consider it.
On the day that her family was supposed to come back to the city, she had made up her mind. She dialed Cassidy’s number and waited.
“Hello?” Cassidy answered.
“Cassidy?” Trihn said.
“Hey, Trihn! You caught me at a good time. I was just packing a bunch of stuff for Las Vegas and sending it with the movers.”
“That’s really awesome.”
“Why does it sound like this is the last time I’m going to hear from you?” Cassidy asked.
Trihn took a deep breath. “I’ve made up my mind about your offer, and I just wanted to call and talk to you about it.”
“Well, will you at least promise to come visit?” Cassidy asked. “It’s supposed to be so much fun there.”
Trihn’s stomach flipped as she broke the news to her friend, “I’m in.”
EXPLAINING TO HER FATHER over the phone that she’d be moving to Las Vegas the day they came back from vacation was easier than she’d thought it would be.
“I understand,” he said into the phone. “I thought the distance would make you decide that you wanted to make up with your sister, but it seems that’s not the case.”
“No. I think I’m ready for something new, somewhere else. I want to be my own person.”
“And not follow behind Lydia?” he asked.
“Exactly. And this isn’t all about Lydia either. I was offered something amazing. I’m only young once, and I want to embrace it.”
“I always knew my wild child was still in there,” he said with a laugh.
She ended the call with tears in her eyes as she packed a suitcase. She was supposed to meet Cassidy at the airport in a couple of hours. She was only bringing enough stuff to get her through the first week or two before classes started. Her dad had agreed to send the rest to her once they had things sorted out with the university, and she had her own place.