Bad Show

'Cut!' A voice said from behind the camera.

'Again? We have been practising for nearly 6 hours because you have just said cut! My mum wanted me for dinner 2 hours ago.' I shouted as my sweat trickled down my red cheek. The person behind the cameras approached me slowly.

'That is because of you. You have kept on dancing wrong! It's left, left, left, right, left, right, right, right, right, left, straight, circle, left, left, left, back walk, smile, pose right, and then you are done! Not-'

'Oh I get it! You don't have to be so realistic!' I said, rolling my eyes.

'Whatever Anne. Can't we just continue with the practice? Anyway, this is the last day to practice, the show is on Sunday and that is in 2 days,' exclaimed Oliver, my dance partner that seems to be perfect at dancing because he has 5 years of jazz class.

'Fine we go over it one more time and then that is literally our last practice.'

I felt fizzing excitement inside but also really nervous because what if I made a wrong move? Would I be banned from GRAND SIDANCE? I couldn't make any mistakes and I had to be PERFECT like James Bond.

I was walking home carefully because yesterday I tripped on a hard stone so I wanted to prevent it from happening today.

Suddenly, Oliver approaches me.

'Hey Anne. What are you gonna do when you get home?'

'I dunno. Maybe I will eat dinner with my parents. Rice and curry maybe or just mushroom soup. Anyway, it's Anna not Anne and you know I don't like to be called that, Olive!' I said.

Oliver burst out laughing. 'WHAT? Ha ha ha hee ha hhee!'

I grinned at him as we kept on walking.

'Excited for the show? I am.... kinda,' he said after a short while of laughter.

'I'm not really excited you know? It's like..... ummmmmm.... er... I dunno.'

I replied shyly.

'That's totally fine An... Anna sorry,' Oliver said quietly.

'But you can call me Annie because that is really my real name.'

I was expecting him to look at me very shocked but instead he smiled and nodded.

'You're not suprised? How Oliver?' I exclaimed.

'Well, it's nothing really. Oh! Here is your house right? I think so yeah.'

'Uh, thanks for walking with me. I don't usually have someone with me taking me home. It was a real pleasure Olive.' I said as I opened the gate to the entrance of my huge house.

I was expecting him to be snorting by now because I called him Olive and waving goodbye to me but I realised that he already left. That was weird.

When the door creaked open I saw mum was dancing and she is a very serious business woman and barely smiles at me.

'Mum? What on earth are you doing. Actually, let me rephrase that. You're dancing but why?' I asked.

'Anna my darling, you are home,' mum said happily as ever as she carefully took my jacket off.

'We are going to Australia darling!' mum said finishing her dance with a few snake moves that don't look good when she does it. But I didn't blurt anything out.

I was speechless really. I didn't have anything to say. Even though I had a million questions inside me waiting to explode, I couldn't say a tiny, tiny word.

But why did we have to go? WHY? I had my show on Sunday and what if we had to go forever? How would I see my friends Faith, George and Abby? Would I have enough time to explain that we are going to Australia from Wellington?

I was really worried and anxious. Our family doesn't even live there so we would be in another country without any family like in New Zealand.

I started to sob. And then all the words came blurting out of me.

'That's not fair mum! My friends! What do I do about them? Just leave them behind like we did with abuela and abuelo? Like we did with all my cousing and aunties? I will not leave another person that I care behind because we already did and that is not fair mum!

OK? Do you understand me right now? Or are you just going to leave because I don't think you really care. You just worked all day in Mexico while abuela had to pick me up and drop me off from school. I don't also think you really care about leaving New Zealand because you don't have any friends. You don't think about my friends because you don't care about me! Your daughter! I want to be with you every single day, but you're never there. You always have to be at work, don't you mum? You only care about yourself and that is called selfishness and being a narcissist. OK? I hope you understand that I want to stay here OK?' I shouted, gasping for air. I slowly wiped my tears.

Mum stayed like a statue. She was absolutely speechless. So quiet I barely felt her breathing.

A tiny tear came trickling down her face.

'I'm so sorry Anna. I just wanted to go because I wanted to spend more time with you with the snakes becuase I know you love animals and I have had lots of work so I decided to take a break to have some fun with you but if you don-'

'NO!' I screamed. That was why she wanted to go to Australia! She wanted to spend time with me! I regret what I said.

'I want to go to Australia with you and let's have the most fun possible.'

Mum grinned and took 4 suitcases from behind her.

'I lied darling! We are going to Mexico to see all of our family! You don't have to do the show because I know you don't like dancing and prefer singing. We are going next Tuesday at 7pm so you will have Monday and Tuesday to say bye to all of your friend!'

Even Oliver I could say bye too! This was the best day of my life!

I hastened to my mum and hugged her tight but not rough.

'You are the best mum ever and I am so so so sorry for calling you selfish because you pay attention but I think it's me that doesn't!'

I said, feeling happiness rush through my body.