A piano plays softly in the background in the busy ballroom; people in suits and dresses surround the floor and mingle with one another. Grace and Jamie walk into the ballroom with Willow, they look around at the various amount of people.
Grace: Thank you for coming.
Jamie: Yeah.
Grace still feels bad about not telling him about this event sooner. They’ve tried to talk it out, but Jamie just seems to still be upset about the situation. Grace doesn’t push him.
A couple of people spot Grace and greet her. She tries to hide the sadness from her face and greet the people; Jamie does the same.
Jamie: I’ll take little bean to our table.
He kisses Grace on the forehead and takes Willow to the table. Grace looks at them, sullen, until the crowd of people distract her.
Jamie sits down at the table with Willow on his lap. He smiles at the excited toddler.
Jamie: You’re excited to see eomma perform?
Willow claps and squeals. He instantly cheese at her; he truly loves little bean.
His phone begins to vibrate in his pocket. He takes it out of his pocket and to his surprise, it’s Mina.
Jamie: yeoboseyo? (Hello?)
Jamie looks around the ballroom while his friend speaks to him in Korean on the phone.
Mina: Jaemin-ah, We’re landing in like 4 hours! You’re going to pick us up, right?
Jamie’s eyes widen, fuck. He totally forgot.
Jamie: You’re flying into what airport again?
Mina: Uhm… JFK I think? The international one.
Jamie squeezes his eyes shut, Willow gets fussy on his lap.
Jamie: Let me know when you and noona are an hour away.
They say their goodbyes and Jamie hang up the phone. She sees Grace walk over to the table with Emerson and Cami.
Cami: *with open arms* There’s our cutie pie!
Cami goes over to get Willow and hug her. Emerson greets Jamie at the table.
Grace: I have to go and get changed for the showcase, I’ll catch up with you guys a little later.
Before Grace goes, she gives Jamie a tight hug, which catches him off-guard.
Grace: *whispers* I love you. I’m sorry.
Grace lets go and before he can say anything back, She’s running to the back stage. Jamie sits back down at the table with Emerson and Cami.
Cami: You must be excited for Grace’s new adventure in life, huh?
Jamie: *smiles* Very. I’m happy she’s happy doing what she loves.
Emerson: I remember telling her way back that she was gonna dance again one day. She swore her dancing days were over but she was always way too in it to just quit.
Jamie: The pictures in her apartment… there’s a lot of her dancing.
Emerson: Dancing was her escape; I was shocked when she gave it up for good. I’m glad she’s going it again. She’s too talented to not be doing it, y’know?
Jamie is shock ed to hear that Grace really had a side of her that she didn’t want to show anyone. Was she trying to be something she was not? Was she trying to hide herself from who she really wanted to be? Moments later, an announcer takes the stage; it’s Grace’s aunt, Jennifer.
Jennifer: Good evening, everyone. I hope your night is going well, and thank you for coming out to support a new generation of the Castro Dance Academy.
The audience applauds. Jennifer continues when it dies down.
Jennifer: For the last 35 years, I passionately ran CDA from the little studio at my house that my wonderful husband put together when I first started to business, to it now being a studio space in the city that dozens of kids and teenagers come and dance at. My youngest sister, as well as world-renounced dance competitor, Mollie Sue Castro, was one of my very first students in the academy when I was starting out. Her passion and dedication to the craft has gotten her where she is at, and i hope that CDA prepares more future dancers to follow their paths and dreams in dance.
Jamie watches the stage and smiles.
Jennifer: With that being said, I am officially passing down the family business to a wonderful woman that also grew up around the world of dance. She won a partial scholarship for dance to Julliard and studied for years in the craft, technique, and exceeded levels of dance that I for one wish I had when I was her age. She is my beautiful niece, Grace Renee Ashmore.
The lights dim down and Grace walks out. She takes in a deep breath in, looking at all of the faces looking at her. She finds Jamie’s face in the crowd; he’s holding Willow in his lap and smiles at the stage. She instantly feels at ease and begins dancing.
She’s instantly taken back to when she was in NYC for the first time when she was 17. She was dancing the number her mother choreographed for her. She remembers how she felt being on that stage, twirling and jumping and dancing her heart out. She remembers seeing her dad watch her dance for the first time in a long time.
This time, her daughter and her love watch her dance for the first time.
The song stops and the audience applauds, even give her a standing ovation. Jamie stands and applauds with Willow in his arms. Grace smiles at them.
…
Later on in the night, Grace and Jamie are seen slow dancing on the ballroom floor. They both look happy together.
Jamie: You looked amazing on stage, Gracie.
Grace: Thank you. I’ve missed it. Again, I’m sorry for not telling you about this business. I was just afraid and stupid for being afraid…
Jamie: It’s okay, Grace. Just let me know what you’re up to next time, okay? I want to be your biggest cheerleader in what ever you do.
Grace: *smiles* That means a lot to me.
Jamie kisses Grace on the forehead when his phone buzzes in his pocket. He takes it out and looks at his screen.
Jamie: *nervous* So, I guess this would be the perfect time to tell you this…
Grace tilts her head to the side.
Jamie: … My sisters are landing at JFK in less than a hour.
Grace widens her eyes.
Grace: Jamie! Why did you wait to tell me last minute?!
Jamie: I didn’t want to ruin your night! Plus, they were scheduled to land way later than… well, an hour from now.
Grace looks around, thinking of a plan.
Grace: Alright, you grab our coats, I’m going to ask my parents if they could watch Willow.
The both run their separate ways to do what they have to do.
…
People pass through the busy airport; walking in and out of terminals, stopping to look through the gift shops; and eating at the food court within the area. Two Korean women are walking out of the gate, looking around to find the person they are meeting. They finally find the person and to their surprise, is wearing a suit while standing next to a girl in a ballgown. They wave at the two confused Korean women.
Letters From Liz. 