Emilia absentmindedly rubbed her forehead. The sweat that had been dripping just a moment ago was now dry.
A chill ran down her spine as her body temperature plummeted rapidly.
‘Let’s just go for now.’
Her motivation plummeted. Emilia packed her things and left the practice room.
The empty corridor was silent. It had always been like this since she joined the company. But it was strange that Stage Director Carlo was here at this time, even coming down to the practice room. Emilia was about to open the dressing room door with a puzzled expression when she heard a voice.
“-did you say?”
Her hand froze at the sound coming from somewhere.
‘Where is that sound coming from?’
She stopped and focused on the sound. The faint voices were coming from the direction of the emergency staircase . She would have normally ignored it, but Carlo’s appearance just before had made her feel uneasy.
She cautiously approached the emergency staircase door. As expected, she could hear two voices talking from the other side. Thanks to hearing Carlo’s voice earlier, she knew right away that it was him inside.
‘It’s a woman’s voice… Who is it at this time?’
After looking around, Emilia put her ear to the door.
“What did Emilia say?”
“What do you think she said? She bowed down and apologized.”
“Oh, Mr. Director. You’re so cool. I should have seen that for myself… It’s a shame.”
The voice was familiar. Who was it? Emilia furrowed her brow and tried to remember. Before she could remember first, Director Carlo called the woman’s name.
“I can show you how cool I am separately. Eva, how are you now?”
…Eva? That Eva Fabre? Emilia’s eyes widened. It was a completely unexpected figure.
TL/N: MY FACE RN: (sometimes words can’t express it, so pics will:/)
“You don’t have to go home early today, do you? Your wife is waiting for you.”
“Fine, fine. Why would I want to go home when you’re right here in front of me?”
Director Carlo and Eva were clearly on intimate terms, as their voices were filled with familiarity as they chatted. Even if someone dull came and heard them, it would be suspicious enough to doubt their relationship.
‘Crazy… .’
It seemed qualitatively different from the sponsorship deal she had signed. Moreover, sponsorships only touch on relationships with outsiders, but if the other party is an internal superior, that’s a different story. It’s a warning she heard as soon as she joined the company that the Theater Director hates that the most, so Eva couldn’t have not known it as soon as she joined the company.
A loud, scratchy laugh came from the other side of the door. Emilia stepped back with a flushed face at the sound of a kiss that followed.
But then, with a thud, the bag she was holding shook and hit the wall between the doors. The other side of the door fell silent for a moment.
An awkward silence fell. Emilia, with a flustered face, wondered whether to run away or bump into them.
She had no reason to avoid them, but she didn’t have any evidence to accuse them of anything right now, and the Stage Director, who was already displeased with her, would not let her off easy.
“…What was that sound?”
“Wait a minute.”
She could hear footsteps approaching. It seemed like the emergency staircase door would open easily if she ran away. Emilia, instinctively backing away a little, almost screamed when she felt a hand on her shoulder.
“…Huh.”
When Emilia turned around quickly, she saw Sub Director Silvia covering her mouth, pressing her index finger against her lips. Silvia looked at Emilia’s trembling eyes for a moment, then slowly removed her hand and approached the emergency staircase door. At that moment, the sound of someone holding the door handle on the other side was heard.
“Who’s in there?”
The movement of the door handle stopped abruptly at Silvia’s voice. Silvia, who had casually asked, gestured to Emilia to move aside and grabbed the handle as if aiming at someone holding it from the inside. Emilia quietly stood against the wall, out of sight from the emergency staircase door.
Soon, urgent footsteps were heard from the other side. Click, click… Silvia glanced up and down as if she were glaring at someone holding the door from the inside.
“…Is it broken? Why won’t it open?”
As if asking to be heard, a murmuring voice made the other side quiet down immediately. After a moment of silence, Sub Director Silvia let go of the handle, and the door slowly began to open.
“Oh, this door seems to be malfunctioning. I’ll have to take a look at it.”
With a shameless face, Director Carlo revealed himself.
“Oh, Director Carlo. But why are you here? Weren’t you off work earlier?”
“I was just checking things out. Ahem, what are you, a Sub Director, doing here? If you’re done with your work, you should go home.”
“I was just looking around too, and I happened to pass by.”
“Haha, I see. Next time you want to look around, you should follow the schedule. Well, I’m going to go now….”
“But were you alone? I heard other voices.”
“T-there, there was no one else!”
However, Director Carlo’s attempt to act nonchalant reached its limit, and he became visibly flustered. Silvia smiled and nodded.
“I must have misheard, then. I’ve been tired lately, so I might have heard things.”
“That’s right! You must be tired. You should go home quickly and rest, don’t stay here too late!”
“Yes, I will. Thank you for your concern.”
“Ahem…”
With a casual reply from Silvia, the director, feeling awkward, quickly left the scene. Emilia, who was listening from a distance, awkwardly made eye contact with Silvia, who remained in the corridor.
“Can you please tell me what’s going on now?”
Silvia asked with a serious expression.
* * *
Time flew by. It was already February, when trees were occasionally seen sprouting very small shoots, although the cold wind was still blowing.
It was already the fifth day that Emilia had performed ballet in front of Enrico, and she was worried that she would be auditioning for the role of [La Sylphide] next week. She felt strange.
She was soon able to hear the second piece of evidence, but she was worried about how Stage Director Carlo would appear in the upcoming audition.
‘I can’t help it because the Sub Director told me to keep an eye out, but……’
Emilia recalled the day she learned about the affair between Eva and the Stage Director Carlo while stretching in the empty practice room.
‘I thought it was absurd at first glance, but it seems like the two of them were having an affair.’
‘Yes, it seems so.’
‘That’s really irresponsible. To do such a thing at the theater. The Stage Director may be suspended for a few months, but Eva will be fired for tarnishing the honor of the ballet company.’
‘…I heard that the Theater Director is strict about internal disputes, but will the Stage Director only be suspended?’
‘As far as I know, yes. We’ll have to see about the details later.’
Sub Director Silvia didn’t say anything for a while. She looked at the void with a conflicted face, then tilted her head back and let out a deep sigh. She suddenly met Emilia’s eyes again and opened her mouth.
‘Can you just pretend you don’t know?’
‘Yes?’
‘Maybe there’s a way. I don’t want to, but I think this is the only chance to get rid of the Stage Director.’
Emilia nodded as if agreeing, as if she understood that the Stage Director and Sub Director did not get along well, and that she was not just asking to be hidden.
“Ugh!”
Emilia squatted down in sudden ankle pain while practicing a center movement. Her head went blank. She was worried about the sudden ankle pain that was coming on despite her recent efforts at massage and moxibustion.
TL/N: moxibustion: In traditional Chinese medicine, a type of heat therapy in which an herb is burned on or above the skin to warm and stimulate an acupuncture point or affected area.
‘Oh… it’s not time to rest.’
Emilia clenched her ankle tightly with a nervous expression. She felt a hot heat. Fortunately, it didn’t seem to be swollen, but that was already the worst state, so she felt like she should take a break from individual practice for a while. Even for the audition.
Emilia sighed and took off her pointed shoes altogether. As her feet, which had been pressed down by the shoes, were released, the suppressed sensations came alive. It was a familiar pain. As she looked down at her ugly, bumpy toes, Enrico suddenly came to mind. The aestheticist would probably frown if he saw these feet.
‘Maybe he’ll call it ruined. These feet are a blemish in his aesthetics.’
Emilia smiled weakly. Even though they might not look good to others, these feet were the product of her hard work. They were the embodiment of how hard she had been working all this time.
Anyway, it doesn’t matter since she won’t have to show him her feet, right? She thought she was worrying too much, but she couldn’t help it because it was important to maintain her contract with him. He said he would continue to pay the price if he changed his mind, but that was something she would have to deal with later, so it was better to prevent it in advance.
‘…but why is my body so heavy?’
She felt like her whole body was sagging, not just her ankle. Emilia got up from her seat and put on her scarf. She shouldn’t be sick in the evening. She was already worried about the stage she would show him.
* * * *
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