Dancing for the Lord The Academy - By Emily Goodman Page 0,8

her chest and waited for him to get around to telling her what he was really thinking.

Her father sighed. “I’ve been praying for you,” he admitted.

Danni wasn’t surprised. Her father had prayed for her for years. She was, however, curious. “What are you praying for?” she asked quietly.

He studied her for a moment as he pulled up to a red light, taking advantage of the time to look over her familiar face and see whether or not she would be receptive to this particular prayer. He had done that many times over the years, too—and sometimes, he chose not to tell her what he was praying for. “Two things,” he said at last, slowly. “First and foremost, that you will remain true to your faith; and second, that your dancing will always glorify God.”

Danni felt peace fill her at those words—peace even deeper than what she had gained from her own prayers. “It’s not going to be easy,” she admitted quietly. “Going to that place…being around all those other girls who are going to be gossipy and cruel…it’s not going to be easy to keep the faith.”

“No, it’s not.” Her father’s big hand covered hers for a moment. “But I have faith in you, Danni. You can get through this.” He smiled. “I wouldn’t have let you come to this school if I didn’t believe that.”

His praise warmed her. Danni knew what he was saying: that she had a faith strong enough to survive the trails ahead of her. As long as she kept leaning on God, everything would be all right in the end.

Easy words to say. Harder words to live by. As they pulled up outside the gates of Androv’s Ballet Academy, Danni felt a shiver run over her. This was it.

The campus, she knew from her previous visits here, was relatively small: several small houses that held the students’ rooms to the right-hand side; the school itself in the center; a small library and huge theater over on the left. Toward the back of the property was the setup for camp over the summer: a huge outdoor amphitheater, several smaller buildings where campers could stay, and a large common room contained under a single roof. During the school year, she’d been told, most of that saw little use; but the campers appreciated having their own space during the summer.

Danni couldn’t remember the purpose of the other smaller buildings. She could barely remember where the school was. Suddenly, her palms were sweating, her lips were dry, and she wished that she could go back in time to the day she had put in her application and…well, not, came to mind. It wasn’t that she didn’t appreciate the opportunity that she had been given. This was everything she’d ever wanted, and Danni at least had enough sense to know that. It was just….

It was all so….

Big.

Intimidating.

Larger than life.

Her father reached over and patted her hand as he pulled up outside the large house that would be her home for the next two years. “This is it,” he told her gently.

Right. This was it. She ought to get out and start her new life.

So why was she sitting in the car, staring up at the house as though she had never seen once before?

“Come on, Danni-girl,” her father said gently. “It’s not going to get any more familiar from you sitting here and staring at it.” He put actions to those words, climbing out of his seat and reaching into the back of the truck to grab the first of her bags. “Grab one of these and come on.”

He didn’t give her a choice. Part of Danni was grateful for that as she slowly climbed up the front steps, her dance bag thrown over her shoulder. Funny, how that was the one she had grabbed instinctively. She hadn’t even thought about reaching for one of the other bags, or one of the boxes of books. No, she wanted her dance bag over her shoulder. That familiar weight was a comfort.

“Well, here you are!” The front door of the house was thrown open, and a warm, comfortable-looking woman enveloped Danni in a huge hug. “I was beginning to think that you weren’t going to get here! Was the drive difficult?”

“No, the drive was just fine,” Mr. Wilkerson said quickly. “We were just driving along, enjoying the scenery. You know how it is.”

“Oh, I do.” She winked. “And wonderful that you took the time to do it now. Why, Danni here might