Cross Lines

Chapter 19: The Dance

By the time Maggie took the stage, Emily Luo had been sitting in her theater seat for so long that her back was starting to ache. In such a public setting, she had to constantly shift positions to maintain her composure. During this time, the two daughters of the Gao family arrived in the audience. Jasmine was sitting next to her father, occasionally chatting with Seymour Gao, while Qiqi came over to sit with Emily Luo for less than ten minutes before floating back to her dressing room after making a stunning appearance before the employees.

Finally, Emily Luo heard the names of the Design Department, Zachary, and Maggie from the host's mouth. She straightened up and put her hand down from propping up her chin.

The auditorium quieted down as many people looked forward eagerly. The previous performances hadn't been particularly poor; Peter Gao had even made a rare appearance to humorously dress up as Superman. The crowd's excitement was stirred up, eagerly anticipating who would bring the energy to a boiling point.

The lights were very bright. Maggie, resplendent in her appearance, was led out by Zachary, who was dressed in a tailcoat with a white bow tie. Emily Luo raised her eyebrows, and immediately, there was a huge cheer, whistling, and applause from behind her.

In a soft yellow base with six layers of rainbow-colored fabric, Maggie's floor-length cake skirt didn’t look at all cumbersome on her slender frame. Her exposed neck, shoulders, and arms were long and well-proportioned, while the thin metal chain earrings hanging from her ears reflected dazzling light.

“Is she going to dance? Is it a ballroom dance? Wow!! She looks amazing!!”

“Don’t talk nonsense if you don’t understand. It’s not a ballroom dance, it’s a modern dance standard!”

Excited discussions accompanied by applause came from the people around and behind Emily Luo. She ignored them, her eyes focused on Maggie’s dress, a knowing smile curving her lips. The six stripes of the rainbow contained meanings that most people present probably didn't understand, but she did. Maggie's understated intentions felt very special to her.

Zachary and Maggie assumed their positions, and as the lively music started, they began a dazzling display of dance steps. Emily Luo watched in amazement as they performed a very professional quickstep, the fastest rhythm in modern dance. The energetic and exuberant style was perfect for the New Year and almost instantly ignited the excitement of the audience. However, such a dance requires a high level of skill, and to see it…

Zachary, with his ponytail, took off his glasses, his Westernized face looking elegant and noble. He and Maggie, in high-heeled dance shoes, spun on the stage like a top, their colorful skirts waving like flags. Their coordination was as if they were long-time dance partners, with their expressions, movements, and steps all demonstrating a professional level of skill. This was starkly different from their usual reserved demeanor in the Design Department. The audience was stunned for a few seconds, as this was a far cry from the standard ballroom dance they were accustomed to seeing, and then came the thunderous applause and cheers.

Poppy and several designers from the Design Department in the audience were almost beside themselves, shouting until their voices gave out. They only knew that the boss and Maggie were responsible for the performance, but they absolutely did not expect such a glamorous appearance. The Design Department, usually low-profile, was now elated and dizzy with pride.

Even Emily Luo, who had not clapped for over three hours, couldn't help but join in, her face expressing genuine admiration. It was indeed an extraordinarily splendid debut; under the lights, Maggie looked completely different from what she had seen before, almost too beautiful to reach.

The performance, intentionally extended to three minutes, ended amidst the audience’s synchronized chants of “Together! Together!” The auditorium was as lively as a box of fireworks, and even Seymour Gao stood up with a big smile, clapping. Maggie and Zachary paid no attention to the playful remarks, instead holding hands and acknowledging the audience, both trying to control their breathing to avoid appearing too out of breath. The performance was incredibly taxing, and they vowed never to do it again next year.

This was the only thought in Maggie’s mind before she left the stage.

The host took several attempts to calm the excited crowd. Then, Qiqi’s name was announced. Emily Luo’s smile froze on her face. Oh no…

Qiqi had scheduled her performance for this time slot to clearly aim to push the party to its peak. However, Maggie had already achieved that goal before her, leaving the audience still buzzing with excitement and discussing the previous act, completely ignoring the song that was supposed to be introduced in a much quieter atmosphere.

Qiqi, who came out from backstage, looked quite upset. She sang her part perfunctorily and quickly returned to her dressing room while holding her skirt.

Emily Luo hurriedly stood up and left through the door, taking the spiral staircase to the second floor. She initially intended to go directly to Qiqi’s dressing room but, upon turning the corner, saw Maggie leaning on the railing. Her steps unconsciously slowed down.

Maggie, in her coat, looked slightly out of breath but was smiling broadly. She was chatting happily with three women who seemed to be colleagues, one of whom looked at her with an almost infatuated gaze.

“I was so nervous! With such fast turns and large movements, I was afraid the skirt would fall off—”

Maggie, who was excitedly describing her experience, stopped when she saw Emily Luo, slightly startled but quickly resumed with an elegant smile, giving Dr. Luo a polite nod.

Maggie had the kind of face that was inconspicuous normally but extremely striking with makeup. Emily Luo's heart skipped a beat as she looked at her. However, she remained composed and smiled lightly, “You danced very well.”

“Thank you,” Maggie responded gracefully, not saying much more.

The colleagues around looked back, but Emily Luo's steps did not stop. She simply said a few words and walked past them. Not far away, Zachary stood in front of the glass wall, looking pale and breathing heavily.

“Is everything okay?”

Due to her profession, Dr. Luo noticed that he seemed unwell and asked as she passed by him. Zachary turned around, gasping for air and shaking his head, “It’s fine… it’s just that… the activity level was too high in a short time…”

He was struggling to calm his breathing, looking a bit awkward with a smile. Although he and Emily Luo were not well-acquainted, they had met on some occasions before, so they were not strangers. Emily Luo noticed the sweat on his forehead and chuckled, “Even in international competitions, a dance lasts only a minute and a half, and you performed the quickstep for three minutes. You must be pushing the limits. No wonder you're out of breath.”

“Heh…” Zachary also smiled, “We just joined in the fun…”

Emily Luo shook her head with a smile, not saying more, and said her goodbyes before leaving. Maggie’s gaze followed her until she disappeared from sight.

As expected, Qiqi was furious in the dressing room, smashing a cup. Several makeup artists did not dare to speak, and Liang Gao, looking impatient, tried to comfort her, “I’ll call Manager Zhang and ask them to rate our program first. Why get so worked up? It’s our own business; don’t we have the final say?”

Emily Luo glanced at Liang Gao but said nothing. Turning to Qiqi, she said, “You’re being unreasonable. It’s just a game; is it worth being so upset about?”

Qiqi, who liked to compete fiercely, obviously didn’t accept this and remained silent, showing a face full of dissatisfaction. Liang Gao had already made the call, but clearly, the other party did not heed his request. After hanging up with a bad expression, he said weakly,

“The judges said that the second uncle specifically named Zachary and Maggie as the first, and he will personally present the award. So…”

Qiqi, upon hearing this, gave Emily Luo a fierce glare and remained silent. Dr. Luo was somewhat bewildered, frowning, “Qiqi…”

“Enough, I don’t want to hear any more! Let’s change clothes and go to the hotel!”

Qiqi, irritated and throwing a tantrum, made it clear that she was upset by Maggie's performance. The discrepancy in level was evident to her, and she felt humiliated in front of the entire company. Unable to blame anyone else, especially since Emily Luo was getting closer to Maggie, she vented her frustration on her friend.

Emily Luo, ever tolerant, understood that Qiqi was in a bad mood and chose not to argue. However, she said nothing more, washed her face, changed into her gown, and called a female makeup artist to start her hair and makeup.

Qiqi, having calmed down a bit, realized that her attitude towards Emily Luo was somewhat excessive. She approached Emily Luo, wrapping her arms around her neck.

“Emily…”

While the makeup artist was applying eyeliner, Emily Luo couldn’t move, so she responded softly, “Hmm?”

“Don’t get too close to Maggie, okay? I’m annoyed with her.”

Hearing this, Emily Luo felt inexplicably angry, signaling the makeup artist to stop for a moment. She turned around and said, “Qiqi, do you think you’re still a child? You won’t play with someone just because they win?”

Qiqi's face turned cold. "I just don't like her! If you're going to get too close to her, stay away from me!" She withdrew her hand and walked over to a sofa against the wall, sitting down with her arms crossed, turning her head away and not even looking at Emily Luo.

Dr. Luo found it almost laughable. Nearly thirty years old, and she was behaving so childishly, without even trying to hide it. "So, you mean that from now on, I need your permission to interact with anyone?"

"Anyone is fine, except Maggie!" Qiqi snapped back.

Seeing the situation was about to escalate, the ever-present Liang Gao quickly stepped in to smooth things over. "Alright, alright, Qiqi, hurry up and change. We need to head to the hotel or we'll be late."

Qiqi, fuming, stood up and stormed out, slamming the door behind her.

"Emily, don’t be upset. Qiqi is just being temperamental..." Liang Gao said with a forced smile, trying to explain to Emily Luo.

Emily Luo, furious, slammed her phone down on the makeup mirror, unable to find words to express her frustration.