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Au Lait!

Bailar Conmigo!

By Samia AfraPublished 3 years ago Updated 3 years ago 10 min read
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Photo by Cottonbro on Pexels

Santiago hails from Barcelona, Spain – never meek or mild-mannered; he is the king of dramatic. So dramatic so, he trains to become a professional dancer daily. His skill set includes many dance styles: tango, flamenco, salsa – but his dance of choice is the Paso Doble, practiced eight-plus hours religiously with his partner, Emma. When he isn’t dancing, Santiago listens to EMO music. He loves to apply guyliner in the mirror or has his stylist use guy lights and switch up his hairstyle on the weekly.

Photo by Stephane YAICH on Unsplash

Santiago’s mother, Señora Oro, happily watches her son dance with Emma. She silently wishes Emma and him would find love in each other’s eyes. She hopes that they would take that passion for one another on the dance floor and titrate it into a pure affection IRL – one that is genuine and displayed openly to the masses. Señora Oro prays daily, nightly, every Sunday, and in confession for her son to find his numero uno with Mila, Luna, or Señorita so-‘n’-so. Señora Oro’s penchant for scandalous telenovelas and trashy romantic paperbacks runs deep; to her delight, she often finds herself matchmaking several of her town’s singles into happily entwined couples or parejas enamorados – couples in love.

Santiago dresses in all black with a lightly gelled bang and clunky boots. Today he wears his bullring in his septum and two additional piercings – one on either side of his bull nostrils.

“Mamá, I’m going to the café at the Plaça de Catalunya , El Serpiente Negra,” he declares in Castilian.

Photo by Biel Morro on Unsplash

Sí, sí Corazón, enjoy your afternoon. Your hair looks muy guapos con los reflejos. Your tail, though, might catch in your pants with those chains on your belt, mi Amor,” his Mamá cautions.

Santiago catches loads of side glances from the ladies en route to the café. He isn’t the only bull in the fight, but he scores well in the looks department. He sits at a nearby table, looking provocative one minute and acting aloof the next. Carmen, his sister, meets him while she waits to join her friends for a K-Pop concert. She has an Evian and shares the newspaper with him. Carmen likes the pink entertainment section that showcases the nightlife for the upcoming weekend. She passes him the personals with a wink.

Photo by Duncan Kidd on Unsplash

“Here, Mamá wants you to look for a girlfriend, so she won’t be lying to her nosy friends that you’re dating someone seriously.” He eyes the personals. “Ahem, here they are.” She points to the area while smirking at him. She tosses the rest of the used newspaper on a nearby empty table for others to read, then dashes away.

With Carmen gone, Santiago takes the paper between his hooves and holds it upright twelve inches from his chest. The personals suggest someone has already read them since a tiny ad is missing from its center page, forming a little rectangular hole. He straightens the newspaper taut between his hooves again. This time, the hole lines up straight and centered at the barista station. Inside the hole, Santiago sees the most perfect specimen of a bull ever seen on planet Tierra. He has a broad chest, quite tall on his hind legs at 6’1’’, and an apron that wraps him tight in all the right places. Santiago sits behind the paper, hiding and being a peeping Tomás. He musters the courage to introduce himself to barista Señor Toro. He puts the newspaper down, swishes his Bieber bang to the side, and strolls to the coffee station.

¡Hola!” he smirks, nervous and jittery.

¡Hola! Quieres algo de beber?” the barista smiles. Their eyes meet and swim around in each other’s energy until Santiago eventually answers.

Photo by Nathan Dumlao on Unsplash

Au lait, por favor. Perdón, un café au lait, por favor,” he smiles again.

Sí, y como se llama, por favor,” the barista uses an unfamiliar accent while holding a black marker to write his name on his paper cup.

Santiago, Santiago dello Campos Oro Hernández. Y usted?” He asks the barista his name in return.

“Sebastián. I am from Bayonne, France,” he smiles with his French accent making him 1000% more attractive.

Santiago watches him make his coffee and steals peeks here and there, trying not to appear too bully ga-ga.

Au Lait,” Sebastián places Santiago’s coffee next to him and smiles.

¡Olé!” Santiago jests then ;)s.

***

Santiago is eager for today’s mail. His Mamá hands him a purple envelope.

“¡Felicitaciones! Descubre Los Bailarines Españoles [Discover the Spanish Dancers] chooses you and your dance partner to appear this Saturday night on TV. Please meet at 6 pm for costumes and be ready promptly at 7 pm to dance on air in front of 1.5M viewers, Stage A, Lot 2, escenario central.”

Photo by Isaiah McClean on Unsplash

His heart goes boom, boom, boom. “Emma, nosotros vamos a ser famosos!” he phones her. He runs to the bathroom mirror and practices his famous faces, glances, profiles, smiles in the mirror, takes selfies, DMs his friends, posts on social media, then tells his Mamá, then phones Carlos, then Maria, then Diego, then, then, then …

Photo by andrew on Pexels

***

The famous day arrives, and Santiago and Emma are costumed in the backroom, then made up, ready, and now standing in line backstage. Santiago looks exceptional in his costume: tight black pants, a gold ring in his nose, and a small black mask glittered with sequins covering his eyes. Emma dons a pair of black leggings, a white ruffled blouse, a thick slanted belt, and a black matador hat. Her cape is attached to her shirt with Velcro, ready to taunt her bull, Santiago, during their Paso Doble dance.

Photo by Olivia Bauso on Unsplash

Santiago’s sister, Carmen, and his mother ready themselves for his performance. They are dressed in black lace and are easily distracted by the glitz and glamour of live televisión. The ladies in the audience begin to bicker. They are waiting to see if the camera showcases their faces – even for mere seconds – so they can gossip to their friends. Señora Oro takes her rosary in her hands and prays with her daughter in a whispery hush after making the sign of the cross. “Por favor help them win, Amen.”

The MC arrives center stage to begin the show. A fleet of pink flamingos named Gustavo, each standing behind the other, form a perfect starburst in front of the camera. “¡Hola!, ladies and gentlemen, tonight on Descubre Los Bailarines Españoles [Discover the Spanish Dancers], we have many new guests. Please help me introduce them with a round of applause. Thank you, gracias. I present to you Señor Fabergé Peacock, on the right side of the panel. [He stands and extends his plumage in a bouquet of cerulean beauty.] Señor Napoleon sits in the middle. [His entourage parts ways to display a tiny mouse no bigger than a human thumb, with a cocked collar.] Señor Gallo Royale sits on the left. [He stands in a sparkly pantsuit a la Elvis and fixes his pompadour, masked in oversized sunglasses to hide his coked-out eyes.].”

While waiting backstage, Santiago notices a bull standing at Stage Right, opposite to him at Stage Left. He sees him through the curtain panel opening and tries to locate him in his memory. This bull is wearing cream-colored leather pants and a sequined mask, like his. His dance partner wears all black and has a red cape. He recalls the bull’s curves and places him in his mind. “Wait, noooooo, this can’t be. Sebastián? Noooooo, noooooo, noooooo. I can not compete with him, No!” Santiago begins to pace backstage.

Emma tries to comfort him. “Qué? What is happening? Remain focused; we have this contest, Santiago. Let’s meditate.” She holds his hooves. “Now, breathe with me.” Then they say a prayer, “Amen.”

***

“May I present to you our first couple on stage tonight, Team Las Estrellas de la Ensenada [Team Bright Stars], with Sebastián and Lola, bringing you the Paso Doble.

The music cues after Sebastián stands at attention on the left and Lola the matador on the right. The music begins, the bull circles around the matador, the pace quickens, the matador taunts him, the cape flies, the horns ram, the drama ensues, and the red represents blood. The matador falls, and the bull has won – a spectacle of both glamour and drama occurs for their first time on TV.

The crowd swoons as the couple stands at attention, and the judges begin to whisper.

“Well, amigos, what do we think?” Gustavo and his starburst flutter. The crowd cheers. The camera pans across their faces. A few women smile and wave and show their good profiles on screen. The judges begin.

“Bea – YOU – ti -FULL! Que bonita y muy guapo, Señor Toroooooooo!” Fabergé announces and puffs up in a sea of feathered beauty. “Diez!” He shines a ten on his placard.

Muy Guapo, Team Bright Stars!” Napoleon squeaks among the masses, then grabs a megaphone and repeats. “Diez!” He and his assistants hold a ten placard for the camera.

Señor Royale, y usted?” Gustavoessssssss duplicates behind him query.

Sí, una nueva, necessitan mucho drama, muchoooooo, muchoooooo, muchoooo!” [Yes, a nine. They have too much drama.]

Sebastian and Lola slump an unnoticeable bit. They smile then head off after the MC dismisses them in front of the camera. “Y todos, clap with me for Team Bright Stars and a score of 29! Bailamos todos!

Photo by Preillumination SeTh on Unsplash

Three other couples dance, and their scores are 24, 26, and 21, respectively. There is one more couple set to dance before the show closes: Team Corozon Rojo!

Y todos, the last team is Team Corozon Rojo! Applause for our last couple and the camera.”

The camera displays the stage where Santiago and Emma take their places. A close shot of Gustavo’s brows fretting with anticipation. Señora Oro’s rosary near her mouth, praying silently, and Carmen on the edge of her seat. One red light shows on a darkened stage.

Santiago begins by making quick steps traveling across the room, only to have Emma twirl her cape and miss him by mere centimeters. Emma teases, and they twist and twirl and wrap their bodies here and there, looking provocative, flirty, and seductive. Emma becomes gored, and the bull goes to grab her before dropping to the floor, then everything fades to black …

The audience stands and applauds, the camera pans across the judges. Finally, they begin.

Muy guapo and dramatic, Team Corozon Rojo, diez!” Fabergé flashes a ten, a smile, and puffs for the camera.

Sí, Sí y usted Señor Napoleon?” Gustavo questions.

“Dramatic and sensual, diez!” Napoleon proclaims on his megaphone.

“Perfectooooooo, we have twenty so far; they need to receive another ten for a perfect score to win tonight on Discover, the Spanish Dancers! Will they get it?”

Sí, sí, sí the dance was perfection. I am giving them a perfect ten!!!!!” Royale announces only to steal the show with his charming smile and fancy pompadour coming undone.

Photo by Giovanni Calia on Unsplash

The audience cheers, Señora Oro faints, Carmen laughs, the ladies around her muscle for airtime on the camera.

Sebastián and Santiago embrace to wish each other congratulations.

Photo by John Vasilopoulos from Pexels

“Perfecto, maybe you will join me tomorrow night for a coffee?” Sebastián inquires.

, definitely, sí!” Santiago accepts with a long smile.

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About the Creator

Samia Afra

I'm new to this, so go easy on me.

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