so, my old dance studio had an event that kept popping up on social media. I’m glad I finally looked at it... it’s their last party because they’re moving... smack dab upstairs from my husband’s favorite brewery and restaurant! He helps organize a charity event there every year. So, I sent the brewery a message and was sure to mention that my male ex dance teacher assaulted me (remember, before he assaulted me, he apparently told lots of people that my dancing made him uncomfortable, even people who weren’t in the class; so, why not show him what that feels like?) I got such a supportive response, but I’m going to feel less safe there. 

The next day, I got a notification from the woman I think may have been an accessory. She finally read the single Facebook message I sent her almost three years ago. I was shaking like a leaf just seeing her name. 

I had been going to the dance parties very occasionally for three months after my ex dance teacher very publicly announced he would never teach me again. The studio was the only public ballroom in the city (I now dance about 30 miles from my house) and I just wanted a better party. I had a brief conversation at a bookstore with a female dance instructor I didn’t know very well one night in August ‘15. She invited me to the upcoming showcase, but seemed tense, and she was staring at me and my son later. 

After my husband drove away from dropping me off at the dance studio, I walked up to the door. Before I could open it, my ex dance instructor appeared, angrily opening and closing the door. It was almost like he’d been watching for me. He had the scariest look on his face and just stood there. Those moments were terrifying. I wanted to hear anything he had to say and he was blocking the door, so I waited. I finally smiled so this would be over, and he mockingly smiled back and made a show of graciously opening up the door for me. I was already starting to turn around, when I  felt something going between my buttocks  and all the way forward, almost entering my vagina and hitting the clitoris hard. I assume it was his foot. I was screaming, but then became incapacitated for several seconds, something I’d never felt before. In public. I found out later he is a black belt. 

I know I’ve posted too much about this, and I’ve blamed myself and my past and made a million excuses for this person. Yes, I probably should have taken the hint and quit dancing there, but this was not even in the same neighborhood as self defense, straight up assault, in my opinion.