Falling for my boyfriend’s Navy brother
Chapter 98: Penny
The motors ** ford at the edges, tot from temperature, but from time fears of sy mense of
and shoulders that won’t stop torting
I’m tired. Ur’s Gired. Everyone’s tind
But we said one more time,
And when dancers say that, they mean it.
They mean this is the take that sticks in your body for the rest of the night. This is the one you dreams word. The one your sides mer. The is the
one that tells your brain you’re ready, even if your bones say otherwise.
Loc wipes his brow with the hem of his shirt and looks at me, “You okay, étoile?
I nod, even though I’m not. My knees are shaky. My toes are screaming inside my shoes. But this is what it takes. If I can get it right now,
empty, then tomorrow will be fine
“Let’s do it,” I whisper.
The music begins.
It’s a soft build, strings gliding under the woodwinds like silk over stone. I launch into the opening arabesque, arms extended, spine carved into the perfect bow,
Luc meets me midfloor and lifts me. Clean. Effortless.
It flows. It works.
I hear the doors to the studio open at some point, but I don’t let it distract me. Dancers know not to open doors when the music is on, but it’s fine.
We move through each beat of choreography like our bodies are threaded together–turns and pas de deux, catches and soft landings, the kind that hide how heavy human beings really are. The kind that trick an audience into thinking flight is possible.
Madame’s voice is quiet now, not shouting. But I still feel her presence, her gaze like the weight of a lead vest from across the studio.
“Better,” she murmurs. “Almost there.”
It’s the final jump.
Luc positions himself as I turn, my back to him, arms loose and ready. My legs coil. I push off the ground—
Then everything fractures.
A shrill ringtone slices through the music like a bullet. An obnoxious digital trill, way too loud in the cathedral silence of the studio.
Luc’s head turns–just for a second. But it’s enough.
I see it in his face, the shift. The split–second delay. The way his focus dips and his arms don’t extend in time. Even for half a second.
I scream his name “Luc!“–but it’s too late.
Gravity grabs me.
I hit the floor.
Hard.
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Chapter 98: Penny
My head makes a sick, crack sound I feel more than hear. My vision flashes white, then nothing, then-
Sound returns in pieces. Muffled. Like I’m underwater.
There’s shouting. Footsteps pounding. Hands reaching.
Luc’s voice is panicked, slurred with fear: “Penny–non, non, non, mon Dieu-”
Madame is yelling, too. “Move! Get away from her!”
I try to speak, but the world tilts.
My limbs feel loose. Floaty. Wrong.
Everything smells like floor wax and fear.
Someone’s hand is on my shoulder, another brushing my forehead. My vision swims in and out of focus. I can’t tell who’s in front of me.
There’s a man’s face–Luc. His brown eyes wide, terrified. “You’re bleeding,” he says, like maybe I didn’t know.
The edges of my vision go pink.
Then red.
Warmth trickles down the side of my face. Into my ear.
Luc shouts again. “She’s bleeding from her head!” Then to someone else, “You idiot–why was your phone even on?”
“I’m sorry! I didn’t mean-!”
Madame’s voice slices through him. “Get out before I call the police. You could’ve killed her you imbecile. OUT!”
A shadow rushes past me. A slammed door. A curse.
I try to sit up. Bad idea.
The studio spins, a sickening carousel. I double over and vomit beside me on the mat. Someone shrieks.
Luc grabs me as I sway. “Stay down, étoile. Don’t move.”
“I’m… I’m okay,” I whisper. But I’m not.
A hand strokes my cheek. I think it’s Madame.
“You are not okay,” she says. “Someone call 911!”
“I already did!” another dancer yells from the corner.
Everything buzzes.
My skin is cold. But I’m sweating.
My fingers twitch, then go numb. My mouth tastes like iron.
Luc is holding my hand now. He keeps saying “I’m sorry” over and over again, like it might undo what happened. Like if he says it enough, the fall will un- happen.
I want to tell him it’s not his fault.
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Chapter 98: Penny
But my tongue doesn’t move tight.
He’s crying.
Madame is kneeling by my other side, fingers gripping my wrist for a pulse. Her face usually severe and unreadable–is white with worry.
“Stay with us,” she says. Her voice is not commanding now. It’s pleading. “You’re okay. You’re strong. Don’t close your eyes.”
But I’m so tired.
The lights above blur. The ceiling stretches and sways like it’s not attached to anything real.
I hear Luc’s voice again, distant and desperate: “Don’t fall asleep, Penny. Stay awake. Look at me.”
I blink slowly.
“Luc…” I whisper.
“Oui, I’m here,” he says, voice breaking. “I’ve got you.”
I try to smile. It probably looks awful. My face is wet. I think it’s blood.
The pain doesn’t come all at once. It builds slowly–like a fire crawling toward dry wood. First it’s my skull, pounding with pressure. Then my ribs, where I hit the ground second. My legs won’t move. My neck aches.
There’s a siren somewhere now. Getting closer.
I let the sound carry me. Hold me like a lullaby.
Someone’s crying again. Not me this time. I don’t think I’m making any sound.
Then another shout:
“They’re here! They’re coming in!”
I feel people around me shift. Madame stands. Luc stays.
“Don’t leave her,” he says to someone. “Please, she keeps falling asleep! Please don’t let her!”
Then I hear boots, Male voices. Medical jargon.
A hand on my neck. My head being tilted gently. A light flashed in my eye.
“She’s got a scalp laceration. Pupil reactivity is slow. Possible concussion. Possible spinal.”
Another man: “She’s going to throw up again–grab a basin-”
I feel myself being lifted.
“Stabilize her neck. Easy-*
Luc’s voice cuts in, raw. “She’s the lead. The Gala/She can’t-”
Madame: “Let them do their job!”
I’m on a stretcher. Wheeled through doors. Lights fly above me like stars.
My last thought before the blackness swallows me whole?
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Chapter 98: Penny
This is the most perfect we’ve been.
Then nothing.
Just dark.
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