Everyone Asenka knew loved to dance, but Asenka didn’t have a feel for it. Nothing was overtly wrong with her physically, and she could get a beat, but she couldn’t move her limbs to match a dance, let alone know when to put forward which foot awkwardly. Asenka, therefore, didn’t love to dance, and this meant that she demurred when asked, and faked excuses, and felt left out, because dancing was how other young people socialized. It was how they met their future partners. The consequences were not subtle; they were profound and lifelong. Asenka was more critical of her culture than her peers; she didn’t participate in their tribal identity that promoted competition, war, and fear of foreigners. She didn’t feel that she needed to live her life as others lived theirs.
Unusual characters