Rosa and the Special Prize. Darcey Bussell

Her mum had been a fantastic ballet dancer before a car accident had left her in a wheelchair. Rosa’s dream was to be a ballerina just like her one day.

      “Rosa, this is Imogen Green,” her mum went on. “We used to dance together when we were younger, but now she works for the Royal Ballet School.”

      Rosa’s eyes widened as she looked at the red-haired lady. The Royal Ballet School! That was where her mum had trained. Everyone knew it was the best ballet school in the country.

      “Hello, Rosa.” Imogen smiled at her. “My job is to help organise the auditions for the Royal Ballet School. I am a friend of Madame Za-Za’s and she told me she had some very talented young dancers in her classes. Would you be interested in auditioning?”

      “Oh, yes!” Rosa exclaimed in delight.

      “I have a list of other girls here too,” said Imogen, looking down at her notepad. “There was a girl called Olivia in your class and a few girls from the class above.”

      Oh, wow! Rosa’s head spun. She couldn’t wait to tell everyone!

      “Obviously this is just an audition and there’s no guarantee that you would get a place at the school,” Imogen went on.

      “And if you did it’s a big decision because it would mean coming to live in London and attending boarding school.”

      Boarding school! Rosa felt as if a bucket of water had just been dumped over her.

      She couldn’t do that. It was just her and her mum because her dad wasn’t around any more. She couldn’t leave her mum on her own to go to boarding school. She stared at Imogen in dismay.

      “Rosa?” her mum said, catching her expression. “Is something wrong?”

      “I…I hadn’t realised it would be boarding!” stammered Rosa.

      “Don’t you want to board?” her mum asked in surprise.

      Rosa hesitated. If I say I don’t want to go because it will leave Mum on her own, she’ll feel really guilty. “I…um…no, not really,” she lied.

      Imogen nodded understandingly. “Some girls do find the idea of boarding very difficult. And maybe you’ll find that the Royal Ballet School isn’t right for you, Rosa. But why don’t you have a think about it?

      I’ve given the forms to your mum. If you do decide to audition you need to send them off in the next few days.” She smiled. “Now, I’d better go and speak to the others. Maybe I’ll see you again soon.” She hurried off.

      Rosa swallowed. The thought of being able to dance every day, living with other girls who were mad about ballet too, taking lots and lots of different dancing classes…It sounded like heaven! But what about her mum? She couldn’t leave her, could she?

      Rosa’s mother squeezed her hand. “Don’t look so anxious, sweetheart. I thought you’d leap at the chance of auditioning, but of course you don’t have to try for a place if you don’t really want to.”

       But I do want to!

      Rosa bit the words back.

      “We’ll talk about it when we get home,” her mum said.

      Rosa nodded sadly, but inside she knew there was nothing to talk about. How could she go? She just couldn’t!

      

      “What do you mean, you’re not going to audition?” Olivia sounded shocked. Rosa had only been home about ten minutes when the phone had rung. It had been her best friend, bubbling with excitement at the news. “You have to go! Oh, just imagine if we both got in, Rosa. It would be so cool! And I heard Delphie, Lola and Sukie have all been asked to audition too!”

      Rosa didn’t say anything. The thought of the others from Madame Za-Za’s school going to the auditions, maybe getting in, and going to the Royal Ballet School without her, made her want to cry. And if Olivia went she wouldn’t even have a best friend at Madame Za-Za’s any more.

      “You just have to audition,” Olivia told her. “I can’t!” Rosa burst out. “Because…” Just then her mum came into the lounge where Rosa was talking. “Because I don’t want to,” Rosa said quickly.

      “But why?” Olivia sounded completely confused.

      “I just don’t.” Rosa felt tears starting to prickle in her eyes. “Look, I’ve got to go,” she said, knowing that if she didn’t get off the phone straight away she might really start to cry. “I’ll see you tomorrow.”

      She pressed the off button on the phone.

      “Rosa, can we talk about the auditions?” her mum said gently. “There’s something the matter, I know there is. I can’t believe you don’t want to go.”

      Rosa looked at her. “You don’t want me to go to the Royal Ballet School, do you, Mum? You don’t want me to board and be away from you?”

      “Well, I don’t want you to but…”

      “Well, then that’s OK,” Rosa interrupted. She could hear that her voice sounded higher than normal. “Because I don’t want to go either.” She forced herself to smile. “I’m fine about it, Mum, really. I’m not going to audition. I’m just going to my bedroom for a bit.”

      She ran out of the lounge and along the corridor to her room. Her mum had left the leaflet about the auditions on her bed, together with her dancing clothes and red ballet shoes. Rosa slowly went over.

      Longing shot through her as she looked at the application form.