He peered through a curtain of glass beads to find her sitting by the window in solitude.  A beam of warm light pierced through the tattered window blinds and splattered onto her raven-coloured hair.  She was covered in a gray satin shawl that seemed to blend straight into the beige background like a seamless watercolour.  A baby pink silk blanket was draped over her lap as if to make a bold romantic statement against the plainness of her surroundings.

---

     She could feel her sweat trickling down her chest.  How long had she been dancing for?  One hour?  Two hours?  Six hours?  She had lost count. She had been dancing for as long as she could remember.  Monsieur Noton promised her that she could join the corps de ballet next month if she perfected the Swan Lake repertoire.  She was willing to do whatever it took to achieve her dream.
                                                                        ---

“Odette?”

Her tinted hazel eyes met his.  Her eyes sounded like shattered glass.

“You’re here.”

Her voice smelled like fresh mint.

“Can I come over?”

“Up to you.”

With a soft sigh, he pushed through the curtain of glass beads and ventured over to her side.   He knelt down and clasped her hands in his.

“It’s going to be okay.”

“I don’t know.”

“I’ll always be here for you.”

“Do you have a cigarette?”

“You really shouldn’t.”

“I will, thank you.”

---

     She knew that this was her moment.  After ten years of sweat, blood, and tears, the company had finally cast her as the Swan Queen.  She was living her dream.  Everything was exactly how she had imagined it to be.  The colourful lights were every bit as blinding, the stage was every bit as grand, and her heart was every bit as trembling.  She looked into the audience and saw an empty void of nothingness.  With a deep breath, she felt her body take flight with Tchaikovsky’s music.
__

The man reached into his bag and pulled out a pack of cigarettes.

“Thank you.”

“Odette, what are you going to do next?”

“I don’t know.”

“You know I’d do anything for you.”

__

       She felt it.  The entire ballet was perfect.  Every jump, every turn, every spin was synchronized with artistic genius.  She knew that she had been the perfect Swan Queen.  Now, finally, this was her last dance.  The last stage of her flawless metamorphosis.  The virginal swan queen betrayed by her prince shall now plunge to her death. 

__

    “What happened to the mattress!” The girl screamed.  “There was supposed to be a mattress! Where was the mattress?”

    “Odette, please calm down.”  The man’s voice sounded hoarse.  “It was an accident.  I’m so sorry Odette.”

     “A whole three metres.  You were supposed to catch me.  There was no mattress! Why did you drop me?  When they sent me to the emergency room, you should’ve told them to finish me!  If I knew that this would happen I would want to die!  I don’t care if I die!”

    Her eyes were now consumed by a fiery rage.  Upon hastily stuffing the cigarette in her mouth, the girl choked and coughed loudly.  She looked like a child who had been playing with her mother’s cosmetics.

“Stop it.  You don’t know how to smoke.”

“It’s the only thing I have right now.”

“I’m so sorry.  It’s been three months since it happened.  You can still have your whole life.”

“You killed me that day.  You really did.”

“Don’t talk like that.”

“It’s true.”

“Odette, I’m so sorry.  Odette, you still have me.  I love you.  You know I do.”

“Odette.”  She scoffed sadly.  “How ironic.  I would give anything to become the dying swan.  You should’ve let me become Odette.  I could’ve died in grace.  What am I now?”

“You’re still my Odette.  You’ll always be my swan queen.”

“I’m touched.”

“I couldn’t watch you die.”  He whimpered like a lost child.  “ I love you I love you I love you I love you I love you.  I couldn’t watch you die.  I don’t want to lose you.”

“So you’d rather have me live the rest of life as if I was dead?”  Her voice was mercilessly cold.  “You killed me the day you thought you had saved me.”

“Odette.   Odette.  Forgive me.”

He reached over and desperately tried to cling onto her.  This was the one girl that he had love with his entire heart and soul.  She was his universe, and he would never let her go.  He placed his hand on the baby pink silk blanket that was draped over her lap.  He could almost hear her heart sink.

“I can’t feel your touch.”

He looked up again, and met eyes that sounded like shattered glass.