{"id":230,"date":"2016-01-28T11:23:03","date_gmt":"2016-01-28T17:23:03","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.nicholls.edu\/mosaic\/?p=230"},"modified":"2016-01-28T11:23:03","modified_gmt":"2016-01-28T17:23:03","slug":"la-tarantella","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.nicholls.edu\/mosaic\/2016\/01\/28\/la-tarantella\/","title":{"rendered":"La Tarantella"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><em>By Trey Acosta<\/em><\/p>\n<p>We waltzed around the smoldering pit until the last embers zipped upwards. You twirled and said you wanted another dance, twisting my arms, tangling into me, interlocking our limbs, soldering together. I dipped you right before taking the flashlight out of my pocket. Tiny sparkles responded to the high-powered ultraviolet beam cast into the umbrage, wood and her shadow. I grasped your hand and brambled forward through briar, brush, and branches; we stumbled to the ancient tree where a duet of spiders watched us dance through octancular amethyst. We weaved as vines, our fingers laced creepers, back to the campsite.<\/p>\n<p>We extinguished the fire before withdrawing into the freezing tent. Blazing venom spat from our mouths. Rattling teeth and bones played a dirge. Though metronomes in sync, I shimmied in solo, forcing you to do the same. When we stopped the dance, the warmth between us ceased to spark, never to kindle again. A pair of thermal ghosts promenading into cold dark, our fire died in the middle of nowhere, our body heat lost in the unknown forest.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>By Trey Acosta We waltzed around the smoldering pit until the last embers zipped upwards. You twirled and said you wanted another dance, twisting my arms, tangling into me, interlocking our limbs, soldering together. I dipped you right before taking the flashlight out of my pocket. Tiny sparkles responded to the high-powered ultraviolet beam cast [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":6,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"site-sidebar-layout":"default","site-content-layout":"","ast-site-content-layout":"default","site-content-style":"default","site-sidebar-style":"default","ast-global-header-display":"","ast-banner-title-visibility":"","ast-main-header-display":"","ast-hfb-above-header-display":"","ast-hfb-below-header-display":"","ast-hfb-mobile-header-display":"","site-post-title":"","ast-breadcrumbs-content":"","ast-featured-img":"","footer-sml-layout":"","ast-disable-related-posts":"","theme-transparent-header-meta":"","adv-header-id-meta":"","stick-header-meta":"","header-above-stick-meta":"","header-main-stick-meta":"","header-below-stick-meta":"","astra-migrate-meta-layouts":"default","ast-page-background-enabled":"default","ast-page-background-meta":{"desktop":{"background-color":"","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"tablet":{"background-color":"","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"mobile":{"background-color":"","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""}},"ast-content-background-meta":{"desktop":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-5)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"tablet":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-5)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"mobile":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-5)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""}},"footnotes":""},"categories":[17],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-230","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-fiction"],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v27.2 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/product\/yoast-seo-wordpress\/ -->\n<title>La Tarantella - Mosaic Literary Magazine<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.nicholls.edu\/mosaic\/2016\/01\/28\/la-tarantella\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"La Tarantella - Mosaic Literary Magazine\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"By Trey Acosta We waltzed around the smoldering pit until the last embers zipped upwards. You twirled and said you wanted another dance, twisting my arms, tangling into me, interlocking our limbs, soldering together. I dipped you right before taking the flashlight out of my pocket. Tiny sparkles responded to the high-powered ultraviolet beam cast [&hellip;]\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/www.nicholls.edu\/mosaic\/2016\/01\/28\/la-tarantella\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"Mosaic Literary Magazine\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2016-01-28T17:23:03+00:00\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"Nicholls State\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"Nicholls State\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"1 minute\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\/\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"Article\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.nicholls.edu\/mosaic\/2016\/01\/28\/la-tarantella\/#article\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.nicholls.edu\/mosaic\/2016\/01\/28\/la-tarantella\/\"},\"author\":{\"name\":\"Nicholls State\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.nicholls.edu\/mosaic\/#\/schema\/person\/073e094613b8d622621e55e100baecd3\"},\"headline\":\"La Tarantella\",\"datePublished\":\"2016-01-28T17:23:03+00:00\",\"mainEntityOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.nicholls.edu\/mosaic\/2016\/01\/28\/la-tarantella\/\"},\"wordCount\":183,\"publisher\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.nicholls.edu\/mosaic\/#organization\"},\"articleSection\":[\"Fiction\"],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"},{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.nicholls.edu\/mosaic\/2016\/01\/28\/la-tarantella\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.nicholls.edu\/mosaic\/2016\/01\/28\/la-tarantella\/\",\"name\":\"La Tarantella - Mosaic Literary Magazine\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.nicholls.edu\/mosaic\/#website\"},\"datePublished\":\"2016-01-28T17:23:03+00:00\",\"breadcrumb\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.nicholls.edu\/mosaic\/2016\/01\/28\/la-tarantella\/#breadcrumb\"},\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"ReadAction\",\"target\":[\"https:\/\/www.nicholls.edu\/mosaic\/2016\/01\/28\/la-tarantella\/\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"BreadcrumbList\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.nicholls.edu\/mosaic\/2016\/01\/28\/la-tarantella\/#breadcrumb\",\"itemListElement\":[{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":1,\"name\":\"Home\",\"item\":\"https:\/\/www.nicholls.edu\/mosaic\/\"},{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":2,\"name\":\"La Tarantella\"}]},{\"@type\":\"WebSite\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.nicholls.edu\/mosaic\/#website\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.nicholls.edu\/mosaic\/\",\"name\":\"Mosaic Literary Magazine\",\"description\":\"\",\"publisher\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.nicholls.edu\/mosaic\/#organization\"},\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"SearchAction\",\"target\":{\"@type\":\"EntryPoint\",\"urlTemplate\":\"https:\/\/www.nicholls.edu\/mosaic\/?s={search_term_string}\"},\"query-input\":{\"@type\":\"PropertyValueSpecification\",\"valueRequired\":true,\"valueName\":\"search_term_string\"}}],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"},{\"@type\":\"Organization\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.nicholls.edu\/mosaic\/#organization\",\"name\":\"Mosaic Literary Magazine\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.nicholls.edu\/mosaic\/\",\"logo\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.nicholls.edu\/mosaic\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.nicholls.edu\/mosaic\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/88\/2025\/04\/cropped-cropped-Jaci-Header-JPEG.jpg\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\/\/www.nicholls.edu\/mosaic\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/88\/2025\/04\/cropped-cropped-Jaci-Header-JPEG.jpg\",\"width\":490,\"height\":164,\"caption\":\"Mosaic Literary Magazine\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.nicholls.edu\/mosaic\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/\"}},{\"@type\":\"Person\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.nicholls.edu\/mosaic\/#\/schema\/person\/073e094613b8d622621e55e100baecd3\",\"name\":\"Nicholls State\",\"image\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/3328047cdfb3020290ce068d6fb7721f49d0439b10d4d4484fd91e22681411a4?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/3328047cdfb3020290ce068d6fb7721f49d0439b10d4d4484fd91e22681411a4?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/3328047cdfb3020290ce068d6fb7721f49d0439b10d4d4484fd91e22681411a4?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"caption\":\"Nicholls State\"},\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.nicholls.edu\/mosaic\/author\/webmanager\/\"}]}<\/script>\n<!-- \/ Yoast SEO plugin. -->","yoast_head_json":{"title":"La Tarantella - Mosaic Literary Magazine","robots":{"index":"index","follow":"follow","max-snippet":"max-snippet:-1","max-image-preview":"max-image-preview:large","max-video-preview":"max-video-preview:-1"},"canonical":"https:\/\/www.nicholls.edu\/mosaic\/2016\/01\/28\/la-tarantella\/","og_locale":"en_US","og_type":"article","og_title":"La Tarantella - Mosaic Literary Magazine","og_description":"By Trey Acosta We waltzed around the smoldering pit until the last embers zipped upwards. You twirled and said you wanted another dance, twisting my arms, tangling into me, interlocking our limbs, soldering together. I dipped you right before taking the flashlight out of my pocket. Tiny sparkles responded to the high-powered ultraviolet beam cast [&hellip;]","og_url":"https:\/\/www.nicholls.edu\/mosaic\/2016\/01\/28\/la-tarantella\/","og_site_name":"Mosaic Literary Magazine","article_published_time":"2016-01-28T17:23:03+00:00","author":"Nicholls State","twitter_card":"summary_large_image","twitter_misc":{"Written by":"Nicholls State","Est. reading time":"1 minute"},"schema":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"Article","@id":"https:\/\/www.nicholls.edu\/mosaic\/2016\/01\/28\/la-tarantella\/#article","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.nicholls.edu\/mosaic\/2016\/01\/28\/la-tarantella\/"},"author":{"name":"Nicholls State","@id":"https:\/\/www.nicholls.edu\/mosaic\/#\/schema\/person\/073e094613b8d622621e55e100baecd3"},"headline":"La Tarantella","datePublished":"2016-01-28T17:23:03+00:00","mainEntityOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.nicholls.edu\/mosaic\/2016\/01\/28\/la-tarantella\/"},"wordCount":183,"publisher":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.nicholls.edu\/mosaic\/#organization"},"articleSection":["Fiction"],"inLanguage":"en-US"},{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https:\/\/www.nicholls.edu\/mosaic\/2016\/01\/28\/la-tarantella\/","url":"https:\/\/www.nicholls.edu\/mosaic\/2016\/01\/28\/la-tarantella\/","name":"La Tarantella - Mosaic Literary Magazine","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.nicholls.edu\/mosaic\/#website"},"datePublished":"2016-01-28T17:23:03+00:00","breadcrumb":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.nicholls.edu\/mosaic\/2016\/01\/28\/la-tarantella\/#breadcrumb"},"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"ReadAction","target":["https:\/\/www.nicholls.edu\/mosaic\/2016\/01\/28\/la-tarantella\/"]}]},{"@type":"BreadcrumbList","@id":"https:\/\/www.nicholls.edu\/mosaic\/2016\/01\/28\/la-tarantella\/#breadcrumb","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"Home","item":"https:\/\/www.nicholls.edu\/mosaic\/"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"La Tarantella"}]},{"@type":"WebSite","@id":"https:\/\/www.nicholls.edu\/mosaic\/#website","url":"https:\/\/www.nicholls.edu\/mosaic\/","name":"Mosaic Literary Magazine","description":"","publisher":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.nicholls.edu\/mosaic\/#organization"},"potentialAction":[{"@type":"SearchAction","target":{"@type":"EntryPoint","urlTemplate":"https:\/\/www.nicholls.edu\/mosaic\/?s={search_term_string}"},"query-input":{"@type":"PropertyValueSpecification","valueRequired":true,"valueName":"search_term_string"}}],"inLanguage":"en-US"},{"@type":"Organization","@id":"https:\/\/www.nicholls.edu\/mosaic\/#organization","name":"Mosaic Literary Magazine","url":"https:\/\/www.nicholls.edu\/mosaic\/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/www.nicholls.edu\/mosaic\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/","url":"https:\/\/www.nicholls.edu\/mosaic\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/88\/2025\/04\/cropped-cropped-Jaci-Header-JPEG.jpg","contentUrl":"https:\/\/www.nicholls.edu\/mosaic\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/88\/2025\/04\/cropped-cropped-Jaci-Header-JPEG.jpg","width":490,"height":164,"caption":"Mosaic Literary Magazine"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.nicholls.edu\/mosaic\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/"}},{"@type":"Person","@id":"https:\/\/www.nicholls.edu\/mosaic\/#\/schema\/person\/073e094613b8d622621e55e100baecd3","name":"Nicholls State","image":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/3328047cdfb3020290ce068d6fb7721f49d0439b10d4d4484fd91e22681411a4?s=96&d=mm&r=g","url":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/3328047cdfb3020290ce068d6fb7721f49d0439b10d4d4484fd91e22681411a4?s=96&d=mm&r=g","contentUrl":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/3328047cdfb3020290ce068d6fb7721f49d0439b10d4d4484fd91e22681411a4?s=96&d=mm&r=g","caption":"Nicholls State"},"url":"https:\/\/www.nicholls.edu\/mosaic\/author\/webmanager\/"}]}},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.nicholls.edu\/mosaic\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/230","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.nicholls.edu\/mosaic\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.nicholls.edu\/mosaic\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.nicholls.edu\/mosaic\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/6"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.nicholls.edu\/mosaic\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=230"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.nicholls.edu\/mosaic\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/230\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.nicholls.edu\/mosaic\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=230"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.nicholls.edu\/mosaic\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=230"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.nicholls.edu\/mosaic\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=230"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}