Amra bought shoes especially for the class. They had no high heels, only soft soles and a buckle she could fasten without help. She and her husband Elvis had signed up for ballroom dancing because their anniversary was approaching and their wedding video contained three minutes of swaying on the spot. Both wanted to learn something unrelated to groceries and bills. They arrived early, slightly embarrassed by their own excitement.
The instructor asked everyone to line up beside the mirror. He looked at Amra and said Elvis would get a serious workout leading her. Several people laughed. Amra smiled too, the way someone smiles while still searching for a polite interpretation. The instructor continued, recommending that she replace dinner with extra laps around the room. He could not yet know anything about her dancing. The music had not even started.
Elvis opened his mouth, but Amra squeezed his hand. She wanted to ask for herself what her dinner had to do with a waltz. The instructor replied that being honest was his job. He added that people could not be oversensitive when doing serious work. In the mirror she saw a woman retreat behind her partner. Suddenly she understood that this was not a failed joke invented solely for her.
She sat and began unbuckling her new shoes. Elvis sat beside her. The instructor warned them that the course fee was not refundable after teaching began. Amra said they could discuss the money later, because they were leaving now. She was angry that her hands were trembling. The buckle she had fastened immediately in the shop would not open. Elvis waited, holding her ordinary shoes.
Two more couples followed them out. In the hallway, one man admitted that his wife had heard such comments throughout the previous season. He spoke as though that justified staying. She looked at him and said that was precisely why she was leaving now. Amra did not want to lead anything. She wanted to sit somewhere without a mirror covering the entire wall. They went for soup at a nearby restaurant.
After exchanging messages with the school's owner, they received part of their money back. They did not immediately try another school. Weeks later Elvis put music on in the sitting room, and Amra wore her new shoes. Again they merely swayed. When he stepped on her foot, she said they would have to find someone who could teach them after all. They both laughed without a single glance towards her stomach.