The Last Dance (25 page)
Authors: Kiki Hamilton
“You’re okay with that?” We’d arrived home at two in the morning the previous night, but I was already up and over at Mira’s. I couldn’t wait to tell her—to make sure everything was okay.
“Of course,” Mira scoffed. “He told me he loved you way back during Christmas break. That guy’s got it so bad for you—I’m surprised he didn’t propose in Paris.”
ONE MONTH LATER we were in Mira’s room again. She held her fingers out and blew on nails she’d just painted sparkling black. “It’s called Midnight Elegance.” She wiggled her fingers for me to see. “It goes with my dress.
Very
sophisticated.”
We were going to Prom. With dates. “You’re going to be a knock-out tonight,” I said. And she was. Her hair was blond with just a small streak of black threaded through one section and swept to the side and pinned back behind her head with a sparkling clip. She was wearing a long, sleek black gown embellished with little sequins that sparkled like a thousand suns in the light. She was beautiful. “CJ’s not going to know what hit him.”
Mira grinned. “I know.” She screwed the lid back on the nail polish, her fingers splayed to dry. “I have other news, too.”
“Oh? What’s that?”
“Ollie and Jasmine are getting married! They’re going to live in Seattle and raise the baby there while Ollie plays football for the U.”
“That’s wonderful. It doesn’t sound easy, but Ollie and Jazzy love each other. They can make it work.”
“Well, if they need a babysitter, at least I’ll be able to help them out.” Mira had a smug look on her face.
I was busy straightening the skirt of the black gown I was wearing. “How’s that?” I asked.
“I’ve been accepted at U-Dub, too.” She grinned at me. “I’m going to college.”
“Mira!” I grabbed for her hands. “That’s awesome.”
“Watch the nails, watch the nails,” she cried, holding her hands out of my reach, but her lips twitched in a grin.
“What will you study?”
She shrugged. “My dad has mentioned something about an internship after I get my degree but I think I’m meant for the stage.” She struck a pose and grinned at me.
“Of course you are. And how handy that CJ is going to be going to school there, too.”
She waggled her eyebrows at me. “I know. Just like you and Q at Harvard.” Mira blew on her nails. “Have you given up on your dream to live in Paris?”
My answer came from my heart. “I’ve been to Paris with the boy I love. I don’t need to live there anymore. Besides, who knows? Maybe the four of us will be exchange students some day.” I nudged her knee and grinned at her. “Remember, life is all about choices—
anything
is possible.”
I
vy and I danced with the rest of the seniors beneath the sparkling chandelier in the grand ballroom where prom was being held. Reflections of snowflakes twirled around on the ceiling as if they were falling from the sky. The whole effect was magical.
The music changed to a slow song and I held my arms out to Ivy. She slid into my embrace like I was made to hold her. I rested my cheek against her silky hair as we rocked slowly to the music.
Nine months ago I thought my life had ended. Now, I felt like I had endless possibilities. I put my finger under Ivy’s chin and tilted her face up to mine so I could kiss her. I guess Homecoming wasn’t my last dance after all.
T
hough THE LAST DANCE is a work of fiction, the type of traumatic brain injury that Kellen suffers is very real. Chronic Traumatic Encephalopathy, or CTE, is a disease resulting from trauma to the brain. Researchers have found a disturbing association between CTE and football injuries.
The recent suicides of professional football players, Junior Seau, Ray Easterling and Dave Duerson have forced a rising tide of concern regarding traumatic brain injuries and their link to football. No other contact sport gives rise to as many serious injuries. Studies are showing that players who are receiving sub-concussive blows are just as much at risk as those who have been diagnosed with concussion.
The program that Q was accepted into, Harvard’s School of Engineering and Applied Sciences (SEAS) really exists and is “using cutting-edge tissue engineering techniques—essentially creating a living brain on a chip—biologists, physicists, engineers, and materials scientists have been collaborating on the study of brain injury and potential targets for treatment.”
“Where words fail, music speaks,” wrote Danish author Hans Christian Andersen. But researchers are learning that music may also encourage speech in patients suffering the debilitating effects of strokes and other neurological conditions.
“We are just beginning to understand the immense potential of music to enhance lives, improve health and increase our understanding of the human brain,” says Music Education Professor Steven M. Demorest, conference organizer. “While ICMPC has been meeting since 1989, there has been an explosion of research in this area in the last decade or so. Even with this increasing activity, the study of music perception and cognition is a relatively new field compared to research in areas such as language or visual perception. There are new findings all the time regarding how music shapes the developing brain and how musical thought and behavior relate to cognition in other domains.”
Thank you for reading THE LAST DANCE.
Kiki Hamilton
April 23, 2012
T
hanks to the wise words and encouragement of early readers Carly Hamilton, Jean Martin, Paula MacLaughlin and Amy Dominy.
Also, to the wonderful bloggers, librarians, booksellers and readers who have supported me in this writing journey and were willing to take a chance on a different kind of story from me – Thank you!
K
iki Hamilton is the author of THE FAERIE RING fantasy series. She believes in magic and the idea of hidden worlds co-existing with our own. Kiki lives near Seattle, though she dreams of living in London one day. Visit her website at:
www.kikihamilton.com