Chapter 53: Chapter 47: A Special Parent

After rejecting Shane Sterling, Isla dedicated herself even more to her work.

Although she felt a pang of regret whenever she thought about it, she didn’t regret her moment of clarity.

’A fleeting moment of regret is better than getting hurt all over again.’

They also started improving their social media content after taking some advice from Miaomiao.

They still meticulously rehearsed and filmed full dance videos, but now they also edited their daily choreography, rehearsal, and filming sessions into fun vlogs, titling them, “With moves like these, think we have a shot at the big time?”

After making this change, their traffic didn’t immediately explode, but their video metrics gradually started looking better. It was a small step, but for Isla and Annabelle, as long as the numbers were trending up, it meant there was hope.

After this small breakthrough, Isla became even more motivated. In addition to her regular teaching duties, she spent most of her time researching how to produce high-quality videos. She was so engrossed that she sometimes even forgot to eat.

Annabelle often said she was becoming dangerously obsessed.

“You need to have a life outside of work. You’re working like a robot every day. I’m worried you’re going to burn out, physically and mentally,” Annabelle urged her. “You could just treat dating as a fun distraction, you know. If you don’t think Shane Sterling is the one, you can always find someone else.”

“With who?”

“Doesn’t Cassie’s uncle have a crush on you? I think he’s pretty handsome. Not on Shane Sterling’s level, of course, but guys that gorgeous are a once-in-a-lifetime thing. Cassie’s uncle is, at the very least, a classically handsome guy.”

Isla was looking over their analytics. Hearing Annabelle’s words, she frowned and looked up. “Who are you talking about?”

“Cassie’s uncle.”

Cassie was a student in Isla’s dance class—the same little girl who had been going through a tough time emotionally and had almost dropped out a while back.

When Isla learned from Cassie’s Mom that Cassie was struggling because of her parents’ divorce, she comforted not only Cassie over the phone but her mother as well. Isla’s sincerity moved Cassie’s Mom, who then decided that Cassie absolutely had to continue her dance lessons with Isla.

Cassie’s Mom was very busy with work, so after the divorce, Cassie’s uncle began picking her up from dance class instead of her father.

Cassie’s uncle was a programmer, but he didn’t fit the stereotype of plaid shirts, dark circles, and a receding hairline. He was clean-cut, cheerful, and quite romantic. Every time he came to pick up Cassie, he’d have a “little surprise” for her—sometimes candied fruit skewers, sometimes a small toy, sometimes a little bouquet of flowers… And no matter what surprise he brought for Cassie, he would always bring something for the instructors at the dance studio, too.

Isla had only ever thought of Cassie’s uncle as a particularly thoughtful parent; it had never crossed her mind that he might have feelings for her.

“What makes you say Cassie’s uncle likes me?”

“Everyone can see it! Every time he comes over, his eyes are glued to you.”

“And you’re saying he likes me just because of that? Isn’t that jumping to conclusions?”

“Of course, there’s more to it than that. He always shows up to get Cassie way too early, then uses it as an excuse to chat with us at the studio. And the conversation always, one way or another, drifts toward him asking about you.”

Isla still wasn’t convinced. “Please don’t speculate about what he’s thinking. It just makes things awkward for me.”

“He’s totally into you. If you don’t believe me, just you wait.”

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