Free Skin and Bones by Sherry Shahan

fat?”
    “You’re the first real dancer I’ve met.”
    “A virgin.” She smiled again, teasing him.
    When she smiled at him like that it looked like a master had painted her. “The lighter we are—the higher we sail,” she said. “How else can our partners lift us?”
    She picked through the tiles and set G-I-S-E-L-L-E on the board. “This is the role that defines all classical ballerinas.”
    Nicole walked by sucking an orange wedge.
    “Completely lacking self-control,” Alice muttered.
    “No willpower,” Bones agreed.
    “At least we have clear goals.”
    He nodded. “No one can call us quitters.”
    Nicole pretended like she hadn’t heard them. “Bones,” she said, ripping pulp with her teeth. “Your shoe is leaking.”
    Bones shrugged, trying to act nonchalant.
    Nicole sauntered off.
    “I was wondering,” Alice said, “can you meet me in my room? Say in an hour?”
    He was ready, willing, and able—for whatever she wanted.
    Bones showered and changed into clean sweats. He sprayed Lard’s aftershave on his shirt, then changed his mind. He was in the middle of swapping shirts when Lard came in.
    “Thanks for sticking up for me,” Bones said. “But Elsie isn’t worth it.”
    “You can put up with some of the people some of the time”—Lard parked his lunchbox on his desk—“but not a domesticated ungulate.”
    Bones laughed. He’d called her a hoofed animal yet again. He went to the windowsill to check his shoe. Still wet.
    Nancy appeared in the doorway, a bottle of Ensure in one hand, and a plastic cup in the other. Bones tried mild surprise. “What’s up?”
    She shook the bottle and her head in unison before unscrewing the cap. “This is to make up for the milk and cereal you dumped at breakfast.”
    Busted!
    “How’d you know?”
    Nancy poured, measuring carefully. “Do you mean besides the trail you left?”
    Bones stepped backward, panic gnawing at him. “The milk I have for breakfast is nonfat,” he said urgently. “And fifty calories from Ensure is from fat .”
    “Sorry, Bones. You made the kind of choice that didn’t leave us with one.” Nancy handed him the cup. “Dr. Chu ordered four ounces.”
    “BUT THE SCALES ARE SCREWED UP!”
    It was handy having Alice’s room so close. Classical music filtered through the door, which was only open a few inches. Bones rapped softly, eased the door open, and knocked again.
    “I’ve been waiting,” Alice said.
    Bones stepped inside.
    Alice was sitting on the floor cutting strips of adhesive tape off a roll. Her hair was still in a shiny bun but now ribbons were woven in. It was the first time he’d seen her in pink tights. They were as sexy as her ripped pair.
    “This might seem like a crummy little hospital room,” she said with a warm smile. “And, of course, it is. But it’s also my studio while I’m stuck here, so I treat it like a temple. You know?”
    “Sure.”
    “Lard told me about Elsie,” she said. “I try to leave that kind of negative garbage outside.”
    He nodded again.
    Bones didn’t know why he was there or what to do with his hands. He shoved them in his pockets, playing with his gloves. Being alone with her like this was the closest he’d ever come to sex, even if they were both fully dressed.
    Alice slipped a pad over her toes. “Gel pads,” she explained. “I can’t afford to lose any more toenails. After a while they don’t grow back.” She put on a pointe shoe, winding the ribbon around her ankle. Then she tied a knot and tucked in the loose ends. “At least I don’t have bunions.”
    If she did, he’d kiss them away.
    “With auditions coming up it’s more important than ever that my technique is solid,” she said, standing up. Her skirt moved restlessly around her thighs while she showed him how to use her video camera.
    “Does Dr. Chu know you have this?”
    “Yeah, a small concession.” She shrugged. “Now try to keep it steady. Vertical, on my whole body.”
    “No