I Raised a Ballerina Who Destroyed Me - Chapter 9

Chapter 9 Hearing that name, one | hadn't heard in ages, | couldn't stop my tears from welling up. Kiara was the best friend | ever had. She took a splash of acid for me in college, protecting me from thugs, but leaving her back scarred. She also entrusted her daughter to me on her deathbed, then hid away in her cramped rented apartment to embroider the dress as she slowly went blind. What a foolish woman. | slowly picked up the torn pieces of cloth from the ground, each piece cutting deeper than the last.

"Lucy, | want to bring Kiara home." My voice was hoarse as | hugged the sealed bag in my arms. The next day, Lara's arrest was trending. Her own fans had turned on her, and everyone on the Internet was tearing into her for being ungrateful. "Wait, she cut the last gift her mother died to make for her?" "How dare she call herself a dancer? That's a disgrace to the stage." "One million dollars in damages plus prison time. Serves her right." The luxury house that had loaned her the haute couture wasn't letting her off the hook either.

They were suing her for damaging their reputation, asking for an astronomical sum. While in custody, she'd screamed for me nonstop. The prison guard told me she'd even clawed her own fingers raw, just for a chance to see me. However, | didn't bother to oblige her. Some mistakes were never meant to be forgiven. | visited Kiara's grave, where she was still smiling brightly in the photo on her tombstone. | placed the sewn-together dress in front of her tombstone. "Kiara, I'm sorry for not raising her right." | poured two glasses of wine.

One | spilled before her grave, the other | downed in one go. The fiery liquid burned its way down my throat, leaving a sharp sting behind. "Don't you worry, though. I'll live for myself from now on." A gentle breeze brushed past me, as if she were softly caressing my cheek. Standing up, | wiped my tears dry and walked out of the cemetery without looking back. Three months later, the graduation tour of Janswick Arts Academy finally took place.

Daniel's dance company had welcomed a new principal dancer, a girl who had spent ten years quietly practicing in that same rehearsal room, never once complaining, even when the soles of her shoes wore through. She had no connections, no resources. All she had was a burning passion. | watched from the VIP section as she danced in a plain white dress, no rhinestones, no haute couture. But the moment the spotlight hit her, she shone like no one else ever could. Lucy took a seat beside me and handed me a court verdict. "The verdict's out.