Scream Me a Dream

“I…” Soya bit her lip before sighing. “Josef really isn’t my boyfriend Ville.”

Ville raised his brow in confusion. “But you said…”

“I said my relationship with Josef is complicated.” She said, looking at him through the corner of her eye. “Which it is, but we’re not…together.”

“You’re not?” Ville asked.

She shook her head before she laughed. “Don’t get me wrong, when I first met him I had the hugest crush on him, not only was he very handsome but he could dance, that crush became an instant dislike the minute he opened his mouth.”

“But you’re friends now?”

“Turned out we had and still have a lot in common, we bonded.” She shook her head in amusement. “The alcohol he poured down my throat helped a lot to.”

“He got you drunk?” Ville laughed.

“He did, he swore he just wanted me to loosen up, but I knew he just wanted me to talk and open up.” She bit her lip. “I was so…” she sighed. “I didn’t know anyone when I first got here, and my English wasn’t very good, it was difficult for me to fit in with anyone at Juilliard let alone the private school I was attending.”

“I doubt that,” Ville said. “You were amazingly social back home.”

“Sure, because in Finland people knew my family, knew where I came from, it actually mattered that I was very high up on the totem pole. But here, if you’re not part of the elite from the Upper East Side, or have the connections then you might as well be trash.” She shrugged. “I was trash.”

“Soya.” Ville said touching her arm.

Soya laughed before scoffing. “Please, at least in Finland I knew that my friends were actually my friends, they weren’t talking to me because of what my father did, but because I was actually liked. Here, it was this contest to see who has the better connection, it’s disgusting. I didn’t fit in and I didn’t want to. It’s why I bonded to Josef so quickly. He felt the same way, he just dealt with it very differently. Where I was quiet and detached, he was loud and spoke his mind. I loved it.”

She pulled into the JFK parking lot, parking in the visitor section before frowning. “I thought we couldn’t go past security without a ticket?”

Ville reached into his jacket pocket and pulled out two tickets, handing one to her. “I got them.”

“You…” she looked at the ticket and couldn’t help but laugh. “You got two one way tickets to Hoboken, New Jersey…really, they actually sell plane tickets to Hoboken?”

Ville shrugged. “I wasn’t about to pay a hundred dollars just to have lunch in an airport.”

Soya laughed as she got out of the car, grabbing her clutch and cap, putting her clutch on the hood of the car with the ticket. Ville watched as she let her hair loose and piled it on the top of her head, before putting on her black knit equestrian style cap that had some type of shiny piping around the brim.

“What?” she asked when she caught him staring. “You can wear a cap and I can’t?”

Ville shook his head in amusement, watching her grab her things, locking her car, causing it to beep and sliding the keys into her clutch before locking her arm with his as they walked into the entrance.

“I’ve never seen you with any type of hat before.”

Soya hummed as she rested her chin on his arm and looked up at him. “Really? Because I have quite an affinity for hats, they are my weakness when it comes to shopping. That and shoes.”

He looked down at her feet and laughed when he saw the worn out converse with holes on the side and tattered material, on her feet. “Oh yes I can see that.”

She shoved him playfully as they walked into the airport straight to security; they showed their boarding passes, getting curious looks from the security people before they were allowed to pass. Ville led her through the airport to the gate where the rest of the group was waiting.

“I’m surprised we’re not being mobbed.” She teased, still holding on to his arm.

“Why’s that?” Ville asked in confusion.

Soya rolled her eyes. “You’re famous.”

“So are you.” Ville pointed out.

“The dancing fans and the rock fans are a very different group of people.” She laughed only to let go when she saw Linde standing when he caught sight of them, she ran over and hugged the man as Ville watched slowing down with a smile as she hugged Mige.

“What took you guys so long?” Mige asked.

“That was my fault.” Soya said with a light blush. “My classes ran over time. What time does your flight leave?”

“Not for another couple of hours.” Linde assured.

“Soya,” Ville said as he waved over the other two members of their band. “This is Gas and Burton, guys this is our very good friend Soya.”

“It’s nice to meet you guys.” Soya said shaking their hands.

“It’s nice to finally put a face with a name.” Burton said while Gas shook her hand.

“These three won’t shut up about you.”

“Well I hope it has all been good.” Soya laughed while a light blush crept into her cheeks.

“Only good, I assure you.” Burton assured.

“Now I’m hungry, let’s get some dinner before the flight.” Linde said rubbing his stomach while they started away from their gate and towards the restaurants that lined the airport.

“So how long have you been dancing?” Gas asked as he walked next to Soya

“All my life really.” Soya admitted. “My parents took me to go see Swan Lake when I was about five and I just fell in love with the dance.”

“What about it?” Gas asked with a frown. “I mean, what did you find appealing?”

Soya laughed. “Dance, especially ballet, is so precise, when you’re watching it from the audience it seems so easy, but when you’re up there…” Soya shrugged and smiled at Gas, “It’s like asking what you find so interesting about drumming?”

Gas laughed. “I get where you’re going with it.”

“It’s all the better when you have a great partner. And that’s with any type of dance, not just ballet.”

“Do you have one?” Burton asked. “A great partner I mean?”

Soya smiled as they walked towards a small café. “I got very lucky in having Josef as a partner.” She admitted as they were ushered to a table big enough for all of them.

“You were young when you left Finland to come to New York right?” Gas asked.

Soya nodded as she took a seat between Ville and Linde while Mige, Gas and Burton sat on the other side. “I was sixteen when I left. My father got me a position with Julliard’s after school program.”

Mige frowned. “What about schooling?”
Soya nodded. “I went to a private school, after school I would go to my dance classes. I had a dorm that I shared with other girls who were a bit older than me.”

The waitress came, greeting the table before taking their drink orders, before leaving them alone once again.

“Bet that was fun.” Linde said with a smirk.

Soya stuck out her tongue. “It wasn’t, I hated it. I hated my school, I hated the dorms, I hated the girls.” She laughed. “Hell I hated Josef at first too.”

Ville laughed. “I find that hard to believe, you two are so close.”

Soya nodded and smiled at the waitress as she down their drinks on the table, asking if they were ready to order. They all gave their varied orders before she walked away again.

Soya smiled at Ville. “Josef and I are close now, but we really disliked each other when we first met.”

“Really?” Mige asked. “Why?”

Soya laughed. “He was so…” she shook her head as she remembered what Josef was like when she’d first met him. “He was so pompous, thought the world revolved around him. I couldn’t stand him.”

“So how’d you two end up so close?” Mige asked.

Soya shrugged. “He found out I was having some trouble with my dorm mates, and helped me.” Ville was about to ask her to elaborate but she smiled and started again. “Enough about me, I’m sure the boys have regaled you about stories of our youth.” She teased. “I want to know about you guys! I’ve missed so much!”

“And we haven’t?” Mige teased back.

Soya laughed. “Please, my life has been insignificant compared to what you guys have accomplished.”

“It has not!” Linde argued.

Soya rolled her eyes. “I dance, Linde, I dance and I teach, compared to you guys, that’s been nothing.”

Gas started to correct her but Ville stopped him. “Don’t even bother Gas, she’s not going to back down.”

“I won’t.” Soya laughed.

“Linde says you play piano.” Burton said changing the subject.

Soya nodded. “A little. When I was younger my parents had me play every classical instrument under the sun, so I’m able to play a little of everything. Unfortunately with my schedule I haven’t been able to pick anything up to play.”

“She’s amazing on a guitar.” Mige spoke up.

“Really?” Gas asked.

“Amazing isn’t the word I would use.” Soya said with a glare in Mige’s direction. “I’m adequate.”

“Self taught.” Linde put in.

“Oh shut up!” she laughed as she looked at Gas and Burton. “I swear they put me on this pedestal so high I’m afraid I won’t be able to actually get on it.”

Burton laughed. “You’re only proving them right you know, you really are an amazing young women.”

Soya wrinkled her nose. “I don’t know about amazing, I’m more marvelous really.” She teased, causing the table to erupt in laughter.

The rest of dinner was spent talking, the boys talking about their tours and lives in Helsinki, keeping Soya entertained while Soya talked a bit more about her studio and some of her own tours. By the time they’d finished and started walking back to the gate, they had twenty minutes before the flight boarded.

“When will we see you again Soya? It can’t be the next time we’re in New York, because who knows when that’ll be.” Linde said as he wrapped her in a hug.

Soya sighed as she hugged him back, pulling away so she could speak. “I’m really not sure.” She admitted, she didn’t want to tell them that she was working out a way to go back to Helsinki, she didn’t want to get their hopes up only to disappoint when she couldn’t make it happen. “But now you know where I am, and you have my number and I have yours,” she laughed. “You will be tired of me by next week Linde.”

Linde laughed. “We never tire of you Soya.”

“I want pictures Linde,” she warned, “I want pictures of your little girl.”

“Of course.” He laughed hugging her again before passing her off to Mige.

“Don’t you dare think you can get away without calling either.” She warned Mige before going and hugging Burton and Gas who welcomed her hugs. “You two either, I’m sure Mige and Linde will tell you what a mother hen I am.”

“It was great meeting you Soya,” Burton said letting her go and allowing her to hug Gas.

“And don’t worry I’m sure you’ll hear from us soon.” Gas laughed, before he and Burton walked to gather their things leaving her alone with Mige, Linde and Ville.

“You sure you won’t be able to visit Finland anytime soon?” Mige asked.

Soya shrugged. “I’m really not sure.” She admitted. “I want to though, we’ll see how it works out with the studio and I will let you know the minute I work something out.” While she didn’t want to get their hopes up she was also embarrassed to let them know that her parents still dictated her life to the minute.

With one final wave and hug goodbye, Ville and Soya watched as the guys boarded their plane. Soya sighed as she leaned against the railing watching the plane.

“What?” Ville asked looking down at her.

“I’m going to miss them.” She whispered. “I just got you guys back,”

“You’re speaking as if you’re going to lose us.” Ville pointed out, wrapping an arm around her shoulders and tugging her under the shelter of his arm as he lead them out of the airport. “You’re afraid we’re going to tire of you.” Ville laughed. “Trust me you’ll be so annoyed with getting e-mails and phone calls from us, you’ll be blocking our numbers all together.”

“I doubt it.” Soya laughed as she wrapped her arm around his waist and gave him a half hug as they walked, not bothering to let go. “We still have years to catch up on!”

“You’ll see the boys again.” Ville assured as they walked into the late afternoon sun and back towards Soya’s car. “We’re not losing each other again, okay?”

Soya nodded. “Okay.” She opened her clutch and grabbed her keys, unlocking the door allowing them both to get in. “Where to?” she asked as she started the car.

Ville looked at the time, it was nearing six thirty in the evening and he had promised Bam he would be in Westchester that evening but he still hadn’t talked to Soya about coming with him. “I should probably go back to my hotel and pack my stuff, get to Westchester.”

“Oh.” Soya nodded. “All right I’ll take you.”

Ville smirked. “But, I’m much more interested to see the inside of where you live, then just the outside.”

Soya laughed, “All right, I’ll give you a quick tour of my house and then I’ll take you to your hotel all right?”

“All right.” Ville agreed. They drove in silence for a few minutes before Ville finally broke it. “How long is your break again, love?”

Soya smiled. “Roughly six months, not that I’ll actually stop dancing.”

“Other than teaching do you have any plans?” Ville asked, trying to get around his nerves to ask her to spend a week with him, knowing that smoking helped a bit he asked, “Do you mind if I smoke?”

“Not at all.” She said rolling down his window, watching out of the corner of her eye as he lifted his hips taking out a packet of cigarettes and a lighter from his pocket. “And not really, more like very loose plans.”

“Like?” he asked, sticking a cigarette between his lips before lighting it.

Soya shrugged. “Josef might go home to visit his family, I haven’t seen them in over a year, I might go with him.”

“Where’s home for Josef?” Ville asked.

“The Czech Republic.” She answered.

Ville smirked. “Not too far from home then.”

Soya laughed, as she looked over at Ville in disbelief. “Not far at all.” She said sarcastically as she rolled her eyes.

Ville laughed. “So teaching, Czech Republic, what else?”

Soya shrugged. “Not sure,” she looked over at him with a raised eyebrow before turning back to the road. “I’ve never really planned out my breaks before, last year was my real first break and Josef and I didn’t do anything at all which was what we needed. This year is different.”

“How so?”

“Josef and I both know what we want to do when we retire, I want to teach while Josef wants to continue in the company doing choreography. He has been asked to help with the choreography with the winter recital and he wants to keep busy so he took the job. That and he loves bossing people around.” Soya laughed. “So he’ll have long hours leaving me by my lonesome most days.”

“So no set plans, nothing that can be…changed?”

Soya frowned over at him, watching him blow smoke out the window before she pulled into the space in front of her house and parked. “Out with it Valo, what is it you want?”

Ville smirked, looking overt at her, taking one last drag, before dropping the cigarette butt to the ground outside. “You know me so well.” He said after he exhaled.

“I do.” She laughed, unbuckling herself and shifting in her seat to look at him better. “So, what is it?”

Ville shrugged. “You’re not ready to let go yet right?”

Soya bit her lip, “Of course I’m not.”

“Well I’m leaving in a matter of hours to go to Westchester and spend a month with Bam and the rest of his merry men.”

“And?”

“Well if you don’t have any plans, I was thinking…maybe you could join me?”