“Deaf…So what?” I asked, “You she can’t think she can’t dance?”

“No,” Draco replied “I think she can’t hear.” All his friends guffawed loudly.

“Well, I’m going to make her,” I challenged. “Really Samantha?” he sneered. “We’ll see that.”

The subject of our conversation, Bella was looking horrified as we left the room. I guess she had lip-read.

“What have you done? The competition is three weeks from now,” she groaned. The enormity of what I had just done dawned upon me. Challenging Draco was no joke and if I lost he won’t let me hear the end of it.

“Don’t worry, I know what I’m doing,” I lied. “Meet me at my house at two,” I enacted the words.

My friend, Cedric, Tyler and Ashley reluctantly joined my dance group and I started teaching Bella the dance steps from that day itself. She was very passionate about dance and in a few days she knew all the steps.

But the problem that faced us now was how was she to coordinate the steps with the music. While we were pondering over the solution to the problem, Ashley suddenly gave a cry of joy and rushed to write something on a paper which she showed to Bella. Her face broke into a grin and she walked over to the stage.

Then, even before the music started Ashley started clapping. It wasn’t the usual clapping. It was more like she was giving a one second gap between each time, her hands met.

I got the trick. Now we were supposed to show Bella the right steps to go with the beat of our hands.

The day of the competition came. Tyler was backstage with Bella and he escorted her to the stage when her name was called out. Bella looked nervous. And then…

To the surprise of the entire stadium three people sitting at the front row now started clapping. It wasn’t the usual clapping. It was more like they were giving a one second gap between each time their hands met.

Bella danced beautifully. I got my reward seeing her ecstatic face and also my satisfaction on seeing Draco’s jaw drop.

Three weeks from the competition the results were out. It was then that I found a sense of overwhelming pleasure in Draco’s sulky and morose face.

Bella was deaf…so what?