LV Chapter 2.2

Sasya didn’t refuse George this time when he said he would come to pick him up. The reason was simply that he might be able to ride that wonderful car he had taken with Karel one more time.

But George had come alone by taxi this time. As he got into the common yellow cab, Sasya disappointedly stared out the window.

“We’re going to look at a house now.”

“A house?”

Sasya asked loudly in surprise. George nodded.

He was about to ask how much he would need to pay, but stopped himself, thinking he might look too poor if he seemed anxious. So he waited patiently, desperately hoping the property would be under $200 a month, knowing full well how unrealistic that was.

“Of course, it’s not easy to find a house inside Manhattan. Especially when you need one urgently, the properties become incredibly expensive.”

“I know. It doesn’t have to be Manhattan. Queens or New Jersey… I can go even further. As long as I can take the subway.”

“…”

“The cheaper the rent, the better, right?”

Sasya spoke confidently, but Georg seemed to barely listen, showing no particular reaction. Instead, he signaled the taxi driver to stop nearby.

Sasya looked a bit confused at where George indicated to get off. It was somewhere between 6th and 7th Street, right near Central Park.

“You get off first.”

And they really got off there.

Thinking he might want to take the subway again, Sasya obediently followed George. He thought the secretary seemed like the type to save money.

Is his salary low?

But George was wearing a suit of as high quality as Karel’s. ‘To buy clothes like that, he must need to save money…’ While Sasya was lost in this completely unrelated fantasy.

“This way.”

Employees who recognized George’s face opened a heavy door. Surprisingly, where he entered was not a subway entrance, but the lobby of a five-star hotel. Sasya, feeling somewhat intimidated, quietly followed him. Passing through the antique lobby and moving further inside, another employee was guarding the door that only hotel guests could pass through.

“Here, the staff memorizes the faces of all guests. It’s a very traditional security method. Now they’ve memorized your face too.”

The guard nodded in agreement with George’s words and offered Sasya a handshake.

“Michael.”

“I’m Sasya.”

“Sasya! Welcome.”

In a fluster, Sasya shook hands with him and kept glancing at him as he followed George.

Behind the standing employee was an elevator he had never seen before.

“There are many passages to go through, so it’s a bit troublesome, but you’ll get used to it.”

Saying this, George pressed the up button. Sasya looked at the elevator where no floor numbers were written. He wondered if he should follow George and get on.

“Uhm, excuse me… sir.”

“Yes?”

George responded emotionlessly to the strange form of address¹.

“Why didn’t you read my email? I mean… why didn’t you show it to the sponsor? I know Mr. Clements is busy. Still, it doesn’t take a minute to read, so why…”

George, with raised eyebrows, looked down at Sasya, who was now near his chest, and replied:

“I do not personally decide whether to show an email to my superior.”

“Then…?”

“He didn’t receive any emails.”

“What?”

“What a good timing. Since we’re on the topic, let’s check where you sent them.”

Before fully understanding George’s words, Sasya, as if hypnotized, opened the email app on his phone. George quickly skimmed through an email with random grammar and words and said as if he had expected it,

“The address is wrong.”

“The address?”

“The spelling.”

Sasya slowly understood George’s words. In other words, all the emails he had spent time writing had disappeared into thin air. Or perhaps they had reached someone entirely different.

Sasya was too desperate to even speak. While his mouth was slightly agape, the elevator doors conveniently opened.

“Get out. And check if you like it.”

George pressed the open button and gestured with his chin. Sasya stepped out as instructed. Following the soundless, plush carpet, he arrived at the penthouse floor of a hotel that occupied an entire floor.

“H-here?”

George nodded.

“I’ll say it again, finding a suitable property was unreasonable. Mr. Clements has some personal real estate, but there weren’t many places immediately available for residential use. So I judged this was the most reasonable. A hotel is best for a student to use. You don’t have to worry about housekeeping.”

Is this considered reasonable?

The room before his eyes – in Sasya’s words – was large enough to accommodate 300 Sasya Shchedrins. No, even just the carpeted corridor space would be enough for him to live most comfortably.

Sasya’s throat moved noticeably.

George had been watching Sasya for a while, who stood like a borrowed cat at the doorway and showed no intention of entering, and went inside first.

“There are four bedrooms in total, including the master room. You can use any room you want. The master room is probably best as it connects to the dressing room.”

Following George’s path, ceiling sensors turned on one by one. Seeing lights that seemed to magically illuminate, Sasya thought he wouldn’t even be scared of going to the bathroom at night.

“From the master room, you can see Central Park. If you want a different view, look around other bedrooms and sleep where you like. Press this button, and the shade will come down. Press it again, and blackout curtains will drop, so adjust the light as you prefer. And the dressing room… doesn’t seem fully cleared yet. I’ll have it removed soon.”

While peeking inside the dressing room, which was much larger than the room he had shared with six people in the dormitory, Sasya quickly understood what George meant. The walls were filled with wardrobes of dark-colored wood, and in the center showcase, there were scattered remnants of someone else’s belongings.

Noticing the glinting watch straps and neatly displayed ties in the showcase, like sales items, Sasya quickly spoke,

“It’s okay! You can leave it as is. I don’t have that many clothes anyway.”

“Hmm… I’ll let them know and have it cleared out.”

“It’s really okay. I just need this one space.”

Sasya looked at the area where several new pairs of shoes were displayed. The new shoes seemed to be roughly the same size as his sponsor’s, which would be too big for him and would drag on the ground if he tried them on. Moreover, based on George’s reaction, these shoes were definitely Karel’s. Sasya’s heart began to pound helplessly.

“I’ll lock the door then.”

At those words, Sasya was stunned, precisely understanding Georg’s intention to leave this place.

“Why? Are you afraid I’ll steal something? These don’t even suit me… The shoes don’t even fit.”

George turned around without answering. Indeed, even if he were to lock the dressing room door, there was plenty of space in this room. What was disappointing was his attitude of blocking him from the sponsor’s private space. He felt disappointed that his slight desire to peek had been discovered.

“Does Mr. Clements live here too?”

Sasya asked with just a tiny bit of hope.

“He stays here very occasionally. It’s not his primary residence.”

“…”

“If you decide to use this space, he won’t come. So don’t be uncomfortable or worry about it.”

“Why?”

Why? George looked down at Sasya indifferently. Sasya felt his chest tighten, feeling like he wasn’t understanding him at all.

“There are so many rooms. I’m fine with living in a small room.”

“Oh, Mr. Clements lives in an even larger place, so don’t worry.”

“…”

George continued to take Sasya around, briefly explaining the room’s structure. Besides four bedrooms, there were two bathrooms with large tubs, three dry toilets, a living room, a reception room, and even a study… Even after touring everything, he still felt it was overwhelmingly burdensome, but thinking it was once the sponsor’s space made him want to stay here.

If only it wasn’t too expensive.

“So… how much would I need to pay to live here?”

George looked down at Sasya as if he’d said something ridiculous.

“Don’t worry about money.”

“…”

“It’s an unused space anyway, and it’s Mr. Clements’ personal property. Whether you use it or not, it doesn’t cost more or less. No one is losing anything, so just use it.”

As he listened to his words, it started to feel more real. Sasya asked, suppressing his excitement,

“Uh… until when?”

“Until you become a full member of a ballet company, he said.”

Sasya covered his mouth to suppress a scream. This meant he wouldn’t have to return to the dormitory until graduation. Karel’s voice echoed again: ‘Promise me you’ll become an outstanding dancer’ He seemed to genuinely intend to accept his future as payment instead of money.

“Thank you… I’ll definitely pass the promotion exam with top honors. I promise I’ll graduate, audition, and become a full member without ever disappointing him.”

George listened to Sasya’s sincere words with an impassive face, merely nodding.

“Where is Mr. Clements?”

“Why do you want to know?”

“I want to thank him personally.”

“He’s busy… I’ll make sure to convey your message.”

Saying this, George checked the time.

“Tomorrow’s the day you return to school, right? Moving while attending school would be hectic, so shall we move all your things today?”

“Is that okay?”

George nodded and headed to the entrance. He seemed busy, immediately making a phone call. Sasya, who had been about to follow him, heard him say he would bring his luggage and stood bewildered, watching the door close.

Left alone, Sasya began exploring the space again, first walking to the bathroom.

‘Wow…’

There was a wide bathtub with a view of Central Park. Now he wouldn’t have to carry his sweaty practice clothes in a bag to a coin laundry. Plus, the sink was large and spacious, so he could handwash his leotards and tights right away.

After leaving the bathroom, Sasya approached the large bed in the master bedroom. He sat on the bed and then bounced around, and the mattress’s elasticity was incredible. Muttering ‘It’s amazing’ to himself, he stood up and was startled to see the corner of the neatly spread blanket had sunk in the shape of his butt, and he patted the blanket with his palm.

There was even a fairly large refrigerator in the reception room. Seeing it didn’t match the surrounding decor, it seemed the sponsor had separately brought it for personal use. Opening and closing the refrigerator, which only contained hotel-branded water bottles, Sasya was happy that he no longer needed to write his name on his milk. The dormitory kitchen refrigerator was shared with roommates, and even a small carbonated water would be taken if not labeled.

Finally, Sasya approached the dressing room that George had locked.

Even though he had absolutely no intention of stealing, he found himself walking stealthily and quietly. He touched shoes and neckties, then shifted his gaze to shirts and jackets hanging in the closet. What slightly disappointed Sasya was that the jackets had store tags. Realizing these were just things hastily filled in for sudden needs and Karel might never have worn them, his interest quickly faded.

“They’re giving a space like this to a kid to use alone? He’s crazy, absolutely crazy. There’s a limit to charity!”

At that familiar voice, Sasya quickly escaped from the dressing room. Passing through the master bedroom to the open living room, he saw Vadim was there with George.

“Sasya, these are your things.”

Vadim held two sports bags containing all of Sasya’s luggage.

“If you’ve forgotten anything, tell me at school. I’ll bring it to you.”

Sasya nodded and took the bags almost reflexively. He felt like he should hold them, even though he could have set them down.

Vadim and George, who seemed familiar with each other, walked into the living room, chatting among themselves. Sasya followed them, still holding his bags.

“The bar needs to be at least 2 meters long, right?”

“Yes, it can be even longer, but it’s not essential. However, at least 2 meters is necessary to be comfortable to use. And we’ll attach the mirror here… And if we could replace the floor, that would be good. Since he needs to jump, we need a floor with appropriate elasticity and some friction.”

“Are there specialists who professionally make ballet practice rooms?”

“The school’s facilities team will know. I’ll provide you with their contact information.”

From their conversation, it seemed they were planning to create a space to practice here. George was taking notes based on Vadim’s advice.

“I’ll head out now. See you at school tomorrow.”

Sasya gave a small nod. Vadim looked around the excessively large hotel room with a relieved yet complex expression before finally leaving.

After seeing Vadim off, George said,

“I’ll prepare dinner soon. You can order room service when needed. You can even order items not on the menu, so keep that in mind.”

“Yes…”

“And for breakfast, check the menu the night before and hang it outside the door. They’ll bring it to you at the set time.”

“…”

“Then, rest well.”

With that, George headed toward the entrance. It seemed he was really leaving this time.

But Sasya, who couldn’t quite believe that his entire luggage had been moved into this hotel within hours and that he would be sleeping here tonight, unconsciously followed George. He rode the elevator with him, avoiding Georg’s sideways glances. He followed him down, past Michael guarding the door, and all the way to the hotel lobby. He waited behind George at the front desk as he requested a taxi, watching him intently.

As George waited for the taxi at the hotel entrance, he could no longer pretend not to notice and spoke first:

“Are you planning to take a neighborhood walk or something?”

“Not exactly…”

“Then why did you come out?”

“Uhm…”

“Want to have dinner together?”

“Hmm…”

“Feel free to invite friends if you’re bored. The taxi’s here. Well then.”

George got into the taxi and disappeared quickly. Sasya kicked a fallen leaf on the ground and wandered around aimlessly.

The sunset began to cover the always bustling, glamorous street.

Sasya headed toward 5th Avenue, stopping to watch several large cameras filming news in front of Trump Tower. Then he changed direction toward Lincoln Center. The hotel was less than a 15-minute walk from school. His sponsor had probably considered this when allowing him to use this place.

Suddenly, the completely changed environment didn’t feel real, and there was no way he could adapt so quickly. If it were just a bit of good fortune, he might have excitedly boasted to his friends or immediately called Levin to chat. But now, for some reason, he felt scared.

Sasya returned to the hotel. Passing through the even more sparkling lobby at night, past Michael who greeted him, he took the elevator. When he returned to his room, the scenery had changed.

The shades George had lowered earlier were now raised, revealing the night view, and the room was set with a soft, reddish halogen glow from the turndown service. Sasya slowly walked to the table. On the large glass table, small snacks like fruits and cookies were prepared.

Sasya stood still, observing the cookies’ shape. They were the same type Karel had given him. Curling up on the sofa, he looked at the view that filled his eyes for a while, eating only a few cookies. He didn’t feel much like having dinner.

“Mom. My sponsor gave me a really, really nice place to live. I wish you could come live here too. I don’t have to live in the dorm anymore… I can stay here until I become a member of a ballet company.”

Sasya imagined boasting to his mother on the phone.

‘Yes, that’s nice,’ his mother would say in a tired voice with a sigh. Sasya blinked, his eyes getting slightly warm. Although Karel had offered to support his plane ticket, his mother couldn’t come. With only four days off a month, it was almost impossible for his mother to get vacation time to come to New York.

Thinking the room was too big and feeling lonely, Sasya blinked his drowsy eyes. Even though it wasn’t bedtime yet, he felt sleepy.

In his dream, Sasya felt a large hand gently laying him down. That hand tenderly brushed his hair and brought a thin blanket, carefully covering it over his chest.

He felt a gaze. Someone’s gaze.

Sasya’s closed eyes trembled slightly. The nameless man slowly bent down. Another’s breath touched very close to his exposed forehead.

His clenched fist slightly trembled.

And then…

Warm, dry lips touched his forehead.

The man kissed him reverently.

A thrilling sensation ran down his spine.

‘Sweet dreams’ – a whisper like a breath scattered over his forehead. To prevent the whisper from escaping if he woke up, Sasya didn’t show any signs of waking. Instead, he wanted to secretly open his eyes and see his back before he left. Sometimes, when he felt very lonely, he wanted to know who he was when he appeared in his dreams.

However, Sasya fell into a deep sleep again.

The next day when Sasya woke up, he couldn’t distinguish where reality ended and where dreams began. For instance, the thin blanket covering his chest was just an imagination. He was actually sleeping curled up, naked, with no blanket.

Rubbing his still sleepy eyes, Sasya thought. The reason he failed to wake up and see the man’s retreating figure last night might have been because it was all just a dream and delusion from the start.

On the table were the leftover cookie pieces and dried fruit from last night. Looking at them, Sasya sighed softly. He had to prepare to return to school after ten days.

***

Sasya felt the school was extremely unfamiliar. Just a while ago, he had spent 24 hours here, but after just ten days… Now, he couldn’t enter through the dorm entrance and had to mix with outsiders through the Lincoln Center side, making him feel like a stranger.

With this strange feeling making his steps slower, as Sasya stepped onto the stairs and into the long corridor, a girl in sportswear with her hair tied back suddenly came running from far away. Backlit, the girl was just a silhouette, unrecognizable.

“Move!”

Just as Sasya was about to make way, the running girl pushed another nearby student and approached right in front of Sasya, grabbing his neck. Sasya let out a surprised breath as his neck was gripped by a strong arm, unable to do anything before being pulled along by the girl.

And in a flash, the girl’s lips touched and then left Sasya’s cheek.

“…!”

Stumbling from the unexpected act and covering his cheek, Sasya turned back to see the girl performing a tumbling move with one arm like a gymnast, then dashing out through the sunlit entrance. Her friends around his burst into loud, cackling laughter.

“It was a bet,” José approached and said.

Come to think of it, the person the girl had just pushed away was José. Sasya followed José walking deeper into the corridor, occasionally glancing back at the girls’ laughter.

“A bet?”

“The first person to kiss Sasya Shchedrin when he returns to school wins. I overheard it, well, not exactly overheard, they were just talking loudly. They were planning among themselves. There are others too. But they’re done for because she just succeeded as soon as you arrived at school! Fuck! You’re lucky.”

Seemingly overwhelmed with frustration, José threw his shoes on the floor. Looking at the shoe soles, they were completely new.

Sasya secretly envied José for having new shoes before his old ones were completely worn out.

“Anyway, girls have such strange standards. What’s the big deal about suspension? What’s cool about getting suspended for hitting someone?”

Sasya had never had a girlfriend, but he knew suspension and popularity weren’t really related. He thought it would be better to shower morning and evening to prevent sweat from sticking to leotards.

But seeing how angry José looked, he decided against giving advice.

Instead, he asked something else.

“José, is Manuel…”

“Why don’t you contact him directly?”

José, still not calmed down, responded curtly.

“Did he really go to France?”

“I don’t know. Haven’t heard from him since he left.”

Entering the locker room with José, Sasya opened his personal locker. Inside was the same messy arrangement as ten days ago, with items scattered about.

A Cetaphil lotion bought as a drugstore promotion, a cheap ointment for muscle pain, unused sports towels, and a brush for creating friction on the shoe soles. There was also a white headband for when his hair became too long and bothersome.

Reaching deep into the locker, Sasya pulled out a tape. Then he sat down on the floor and applied long taping to his knees and calves. The taping method was something Vadim had taught him. He said it was a temporary measure to protect the ankles and knees when dealing with thigh inflammation.

After finishing his somewhat clumsy taping, Sasya put on black tights and rummaged through his bag to pull out the shoes José gave him. To fit José’s much larger shoes, he’d need to wear two pairs of socks.

‘They’re already worn out.’

Sasya noticed the white fabric showing through the heavily rubbed front of the shoes. After one class today, they would probably have holes.

‘It’s okay. I have some money.’

He had hidden his part-time earnings in the deep pocket of a bag he didn’t bring today. Even after spending on various things, he still had $525 left, enough to buy a few more pairs of shoes.

He could stop by the office before returning to the hotel and place an order. While other kids would buy and compare different brand shoes, Sasya preferred the ones provided by the school because they were the cheapest. It was convenient not having to struggle to find the perfect shoe.

As soon as Sasya entered the morning class with José, he met Vadim’s gaze, who was already in the studio. Ignoring their private interactions from the past ten days, Sasya also didn’t show any reaction and went to grab the bar.

The familiar plié music began to flow.

Although it had been a while, his body automatically tensed with the familiar sequence. Tightening his chest and tensing his entire body, Sasya’s nape quickly became moist with sweat.

And then, after a while, as he finished the right frappé² and turned his body to the opposite side during the soutenu…

He accidentally made eye contact with a girl on the opposite side of the bar.

“Oh…”

Unlike the flustered Sasya, the girl simply smiled. She was the same girl who had earlier charged down the corridor like a bull, giving him a surprise kiss on the cheek and then running away.

Sasya turned again during the soutenu to the opposite side. Amid the uniform movements of 60 people, friction sounds went ‘squeak’ here and there on the floor.

「You’re gay, right?」

Mixed within the friction sounds, a whispered voice made Sasya look sideways in surprise.

“Sasya!”

Vadim’s scolding flew towards Sasya, who had missed the sequence between the fast frappé and battu³.

Sasya quickly fixed his gaze forward again.

And when Vadim moved away while explaining the next adagio sequence, Sasya spoke while still looking ahead, slightly tilting his body towards the girl.

「No.」

「Really? I kissed you because I heard you were gay.」

「…」

Oksana. Her name just came to mind now.

Come to think of it, Oksana had been speaking in Russian all along. She had said it so casually he hadn’t even noticed.

Oksana’s side développé was so flexible it was almost touching her ear, so Sasya also raised his leg with all his might, as if competing. Vadim, passing by the two with noticeably high leg extensions among the 60 students, muttered ‘excellent.’

As Sasya stretched his leg high into the empty space, a drop of sweat rolled down from his hairline.

By the time the center work was finished and the morning class ended, Oksana had already left with her usual group of friends. He wanted to ask directly who had spread the rumor about him being gay and who else knew, but he missed the timing.

With a restless feeling, Sasya walked out into the corridor alone. Before general classes started, he needed to shower and change clothes, but he realized he could no longer use the dormitory.

While Sasya was wandering, wondering if he could use the teachers’ shower room, someone suddenly called his name.

“Sasya?”

Turning back, he saw it was Julia.

Sasya walked towards her, who was leaning her arm against the window with a faint smile.

“Hello?”

Instead of answering, Julia nodded and asked, “Did you rest well at home? Since you’ve returned to school after a long time, take it easy today. After class ends, it would be good to go to the fitness room and work out before leaving.”

“Yes, ma’am, I’ll do that.”

“More than that, I’ve been looking for some properties during your break.”

“Properties…”

Sasya quickly wiped the sweat still on his chin and muttered as he followed him. Julia was holding some freshly printed, crisp papers.

“Have you decided where to live? You can’t keep staying at Vadim’s place forever. Did your parents mention anything about how much rent would be okay?”

“Oh… it’s fine.”

“Really? Did you sign a lease somewhere?”

“Not exactly, the scholarship foundation is providing a place for me.”

At Sasya’s words, Julia tilted her head slightly. Her face still bore a smile, but a hint of puzzlement showed.

“The foundation?”

“Yes. I had an interview too. I think I answered well… so they’re going to support me.”

“Hmm… Was there a program that supports housing?”

Julia furrowed her brow, trying to recall. She eventually said she understood. She didn’t forget to congratulate him, saying “That’s great” and lightly hugging his shoulder in encouragement.

Watching Julia walk away down the corridor, Sasya once again thought about how fortunate he was to have Karel and how grateful he was that among the numerous talented children, Karel had discovered him.

Instead of looking for the shower room, Sasya headed to the network room. He turned on the computer and found Karel’s business card, which he had carefully placed in the innermost part of his sports bag. The card, which was crisp when he first received it, had become crumpled from moving around in the bag and was white and worn on all sides.

‘The address is wrong. The spelling, I mean.’

Recalling George’s words, Sasya checked the email address he had been using. He probably had confused the lowercase L and the uppercase I.

How stupid.

Sasya’s head naturally drooped in front of the keyboard. He buried his fingers in his thick black hair and tightly gripped it. Then, at the end of a sigh, he raised his head.

Perhaps it was fortunate that he hadn’t seen the emails sent so far. Maybe it was a good thing the sponsor hadn’t seen the emails he had sent. Thinking back, those emails were aimless. In writing class, they always emphasized that one’s intent should be clear.

But Sasya had always hidden his desire to boast, fearing he would seem like he was showing off, and sometimes he suppressed his loneliness, afraid of seeming too childish. He would resent why there was no reply, and then pretend to be mature by saying it was okay if he was busy. The emails without clear content, hiding what he wanted to say, were likely a mess with his already insufficient English grammar.

But this time would be different. This time, his words would be clear.

Sasya extended his index fingers and carefully looked between the monitor and keyboard, writing the email address accurately without any mistakes.

Then he slowly began to write what he wanted to say.

***

The next day, when Sasya returned to the hotel, George was there with workers installing the indoor practice room Vadim had mentioned. In one corner of the living room, they laid a dedicated floor about 10 meters wide, and the wall was fitted with a full-length mirror from ceiling to floor. A practice bar sized to Sasya’s height was installed by the window, allowing him to practice in the midday sunlight.

“Sir…”

But before he could say anything, George disappeared again, pretending to be busy, and the workers took away the original furniture from the practice room area.

Left alone, Sasya silently ate dinner while watching the city landscape change from crimson to blue.

On the first day, Sasya had fallen asleep on the sofa, but that night he slept alone in the master bedroom’s large bed. However, on that very night, Sasya had a nightmare just before waking up. It was a dream where he was sinking endlessly into the excessively soft bed floor like a swamp.

Believing that if he lay down again, the bed would finally swallow him whole, Sasya absolutely refused to climb back onto the bed.

Instead, he dragged the master bedroom’s blanket and spread it on the sofa in front of the practice room. Finding it a bit hard, he also brought the guest room’s blanket to add another layer.

Thus, Sasya lived like a refugee on one side of the living room, not enjoying the nice hotel room. This was his own method of adapting to this frighteningly large room.

And on the third day of entering the house, Sasya received a new email.

“Wow…”

Sasya was overwhelmed with excitement upon receiving Karel’s reply. It was a short email, but the length didn’t matter. The fact that he got a reply was what was important.

What should I reply?

What should I reply with?

Sasya paced barefoot in the living room, anxiously biting his nails.

Now that he knew Karel was reading his emails, it was time to send more serious content. Since it was the weekend, Sasya spent time lying on the sofa, searching the internet for email formats and meaningful letter templates.

Except for someone who came to bring service dessert in the afternoon, no one interrupted him.

While writing, Sasya conflicted about whether he could freely write about resting as someone receiving sponsorship. Karel might want him to be thinking about ballet 24 hours a day…

So he added one more line at the end.

Immediately after sending the email, as if to prove his words weren’t a lie, he jumped up and went to the corner of the living room to start warming up.

He went through plié, tendu, dégagé, rond de jambe, and mixed in his confident fouetté during fondu. Occasionally looking out the window, he could see vast greenery along with cars and people.

After appropriately working up a sweat and doing side stretches forward, backward, and sideways beyond 180 degrees, Sasya massaged his sore thigh. There was still a slight tingling sensation, but it had improved a lot.

Bzzz.

When the vibration sound came, Sasya went to pick up his phone.

[Clement’s’.]

The email reply was just one word.

Sasya stood still, his eyes wide, examining the email from all angles. The reply, which arrived almost like a text message, was definitely from his sponsor.

He was happy to feel connected to him, but he was also somewhat scared.

Too restless to continue practicing, Sasya returned to his blanket fortress and lay down, pondering what reply to send on his phone screen.

And that night, an unexpected guest visited the hotel.

The moment Sasya’s question about what Karel did for fun would be answered.