“So painful,” Lily said as we put our stuff in our bags.
“The doctor gave me a new muscle rub if you want it.” I reached into my bag to look for it.
“I meant all the corrections Vanessa gave me. Turnout! Ribs in! Shoulders down! I’ve been taking intensive ballet forever and I can’t get my turnout right. You’re so good at footwork and technique.”
“My teachers have told me I have good feet,” I said, holding out my foot. “High arches, so I can hyperextend and all that. I can’t really take credit for it.”
“Okay, but that’s not it. You’re also really focused,” Lily said. “You’re really standing out already.”
I laughed.
“Yeah, by falling off the float!” I said.
“Yeah, I’m blending so much I’m invisible,” Lily said quietly. “At least you got to be on the news.”
Oh. I hadn’t really thought about it like that.
“You know the news showed you because of your amazing twirls,” she said. “And you won the freestyle dance-off and you got a ton of likes.”
“Oh! Well! I guess it’s kind of cool,” I said.
“It’s really cool!” Lily smiled at me. “Go get some good attention and then share some with me, okay? Hey, can you go to Sugar Plums now? You don’t have class after this, right?”
“Oh,” I said. “I’m really sorry, but I can’t. I have to meet with Vanessa.”
“About the parade? Again? Is something wrong?”
“No, no!” I assured her. I was going to tell her that was a private lesson to help me with these tricky steps from our routine, but then I felt stupid. Here was Lily, thinking I was this special dancer, getting the attention, who won the dance-off and was on the news. I didn’t want to remind her, or anyone—or myself—of my failures.
I took a deep breath. I just needed to master the dance moves and forget the big mess I’d caused—and be the great dancer that truly deserved all of the attention.
CHAPTER
16
Trust me, I would have rather gone to Sugar Plums with Lily.
I walked into Studio C. I was already warmed up from pointe, so I just did a few twirls to loosen up. It was weird to be in an empty studio. I looked up at the video camera and realized that everyone in the lobby could see into the room. The last thing I wanted was the Bunheads to look up and see me messing up my steps with Vanessa. I found the remote control and clicked a button so the red light turned off.
Then Trina walked in.
“Oh, hey!” I said. “Are you looking for the other Bunheads?”
“No, Megan and Riley have a tumbling private in Studio B,” she said.
“Well, uh, I think this room is reserved.”
“It is!” Trina said brightly. “For us!”
Huh? Vanessa walked in the door.
“Good. You’re both here,” Vanessa said.
“Trina needs to work on the tricky steps too?” I was confused. Trina had actually nailed those steps.
“No, no. Trina is going to work with you,” Vanessa said.
“I thought, um, you were going to help me?” I asked hopefully.
“Trina will help you. She is good at teaching and explaining things,” Vanessa said.
“Vanessa has me work with a lot of the little kids.” Trina nodded. “I assist with the minis.”
The minis. Great. She teaches the minis—and me. Okay, in my old studio, if someone couldn’t get the choreography, it would be no big deal for someone to help them. But here, it was tricky. The Bunheads didn’t want me here, and I already felt stupid enough trying to keep up.
To have Vanessa make Trina tutor me like a mini . . . That was pitiful. Oh no, the Bunheads must think this is hilarious.
“But—”
“Trina is very patient,” Vanessa cut me off. “Take your time. This studio is unused until four.”
With that, she left. So. Vanessa thought I’d need a lot of time and patience. Just like the minis.
This was humiliating.
“Okay!” Trina said, looking at me. “Is that the music remote?”
“No, it’s the monitor. I turned it off so nobody in the lobby can see us.” I gave her a pointed look. As in her friends. As in the Bunheads. Well, at least the other two, who weren’t in the room actually watching me mess up.
“Then it’s time to sweat, sparkle, and shine!” she said brightly. “That’s my new signature saying before I teach. Do you think it’s good? Or stupid? You think it’s stupid, don’t you?”
“Uh, no?” I said.
“It’s the first time I’ve ever used it. It sounded good in my head, but it felt kind of silly when I actually said it out loud.” Trina bit her lip.
“You?” I couldn’t help saying. “The only one stupid here is me. I can’t get those tricky steps. Your saying isn’t stupid.”
“Oh, goody! Well then, it’s sweat, sparkle, and shine time!” Trina said happily. “Show me what you got.”
“Well, as you know, I keep ending up the wrong way.” I went into the quick moves and the tricky steps, screwing up as always.
“Back up a few steps and show me how you’re going into it,” Trina said. “Let’s break it down.”
She watched me dance and her eyebrows furrowed. I felt myself get more and more uptight every time I goofed it up. Finally, I just stopped.
“I’m not getting it,” I said, frustrated.
“You need to re—”
“Relax, I know, I know. My teachers always tell me to relax,” I said.
“I was going to say remember to look at the spot so you don’t get confused,” Trina said. “I was not saying ‘relax.’ Ugh, I hate when people tell me to relax. It always makes me feel even more tense.”
“I know, right? It makes it worse,” I agreed. “I mean, I’ll relax when I get things right.”
“You do need to get out of your head, though.” Trina frowned. “Here, let’s just break down the steps and you can memorize them without overthinking it.”
We went to the center of the floor.
“Okay, let’s just start with the first eight counts here, and we will keep adding on bit by bit,” Trina suggested. We tried that. Trina’s advice was actually really helpful. I tried it through again, with a stumble but a little smoother. She had me practice over and over again.
“You are really patient. And a good teacher. You really broke down the steps and explained to me,” I told her. I realized I’d judged her. She was pretty smart in a way I hadn’t thought about before.
“Thanks!” she said happily. “That’s why I get to teach the little kids.”
“Well, now I just feel stupid,” I said.
“Why?” Trina said.
“Because, like you said, you teach little kids. I’m not a little kid. I’m on the select team. I should be able to do this choreo,” I said.
“But you can do other things,” Trina said. “Like your pirouettes. I don’t feel stupid that I can’t do that.”
She had a point. The Bunheads had just made me feel so embarrassed that I couldn’t do their signature move.
But they couldn’t do my signature move, could they?
Trina’s phone beeped.
“My sister is almost here,” Trina said. Then she looked at me. “Hey, where do you live?”
I told her.
“That’s on our way. Do you want a ride home from my sister?” Trina asked.
That actually could be good. When I’d told my mom I was staying late, she’d told me I would have to wait because she had to get her errands done first. This way, I wouldn’t have to wait around for her. I texted my mom, and I answered her questions about how long her sister had been driving and other mother-type safety things.
“My mom said yes and thanks,” I told Trina.
The door opened.
“Oh!” Riley came in. “I didn’t know anyone was in here.”
Just when I thought things were going okay. I’d been hoping the Bunheads woul
dn’t have to know about this tutoring.
“What are you guys doing in here?” Riley asked.
“Us?” Trina asked. “What are you doing in here?”
“Vanessa just asked me to hang up some flyers around the studio.” Riley held up some papers in her hand.
“And I was looking for you!” Trina said. “So yay! I found you!”
“You knew I was going to be coming into this room?” Riley was genuinely confused.
“She did.” I nodded vigorously. “I was just here practicing and she came in and asked if you had been here yet!”
“I just had a feeling!” Trina said. “Sometimes I’m good like that. I wanted to see the flyer!”
“You knew I was going to have to pass out flyers?” Riley asked.
“She did.” I nodded again. “She asked if you’d been here to pass out flyers!”
“That is so spooky,” Riley said.
Surprisingly, she fell for it.
“Hey, what’s on the flyer?” Trina asked her.
“A hip-hop workshop!” Riley sounded excited.
I remembered that she had said hip-hop was her favorite. I looked at the flyer.
HIP-HOP WORKSHOP!
with Guest Choreographer
George J. from Miami
It was scheduled for Wednesday, right before our rehearsal. I definitely hoped I could go. I hadn’t been able to take a hip-hop class since we’d moved here. Even though I wasn’t the best at hip-hop, I loved the high-energy fun in class.
“Well, now that I’ve found you, you can go finish up your posters!” Trina said.
“Okay.” Riley shrugged and left.
“Thanks for covering for me,” I said.
“I always give my students privacy.” Trina smiled. “Well, I mean, usually they have their moms with them because they’re like five or six years old, but—”
“I got it.” I sighed. At least she hadn’t given me away to the other Bunheads.
I hung back as Trina went out into the lobby. I noticed some of the younger girls saying hi to her and running up to give her hugs. I had a new respect for her teaching skills and her patience. I needed some more of that with my little sister sometimes.
When she went to the front door, she turned to look to see if I was coming. I quickly went outside to her sister’s car.
“Hi!” Her sister had the window down and smiled. “I’m Alexis.”
“I’m Harper. Thanks for taking me home,” I said.
“No problem; we have to go that way anyway,” she said.
I got into the backseat and Trina got in the other side—and slid into the back next to me. I thought it was a little weird that she didn’t sit in the front.
Then the front door opened.
“Hiiii, Alexis!” Megan said, and leaned over to give Trina’s sister an air kiss. “Hi, Trina! Hi—”
Megan was startled.
“You’re not Riley,” she said.
“No. I’m not,” I said.
Just then the door next to me opened and Riley jumped in—right on my lap.
“Ack!” we both said.
“What are you doing here?” Riley asked. “Are you everywhere?”
“Riley! That sounded rude!” Alexis glared at her, and Riley looked embarrassed.
“I mean, uh,” Riley stammered. “Uh. Skooch over.”
I slid over to give her room too.
“Alexis, that is so nice of you to give Harper a ride,” Megan said. “And Trina is being such a good teammate, just like Vanessa told us to do. Right, Riley?”
“Right,” Riley muttered.
“Smile, everyone!” Megan said, holding up her phone. “I’ll add this to my story!”
“Hey, it’s DanceStarz Squad!” Megan cheered into the phone. “Hanging out with Alexis, our fave high school cheerleader! And Harper, our new Squad member bestie. Wave to my fans, Harper!”
“Uh.” I waved awkwardly. Bestie? Megan was really playing this up.
“And me, Rileeeey!” Riley sang out, waving wildly.
“Oh, I already stopped filming,” Megan said. “There, I posted it.”
“Buckle up, people,” Alexis said, and started to drive.
“Harper, wave to my fans!”
Megan’s voice came out of Riley’s phone. Riley was watching the video, and I peered over her shoulder. Yup, my face was front and center. I noticed it was tagged “#DanceStarz.” Megan definitely wanted Vanessa to see her “team bonding” efforts.
“You totally cut me off,” Riley whispered to me, like it was my fault.
“Hey, Riley! Did you know Harper lives right near you?” Alexis said, as if that were a good thing. Riley didn’t seem too thrilled. “So, what class did you guys have?”
“Um . . . dance class!” Trina did not cover up our secret too well. Fortunately, Megan was more than happy to talk over her.
“I think she figured that out.” Megan laughed. “First, we had ballet technique, and then Trina waited for us while Riley and I had a tumbling private,” Megan said. “I’m working on my round-off to back layout.”
“That’s great,” Alexis said. “If you do cheer in high school, they’re going to love that you can do one.”
Megan sat up straight and smiled. We pulled out of the parking spot and drove past Sugar Plums, and then out onto the main road.
“Where do you go to school, Harper?” Alexis asked.
“I’m starting at South,” I told her.
“Riley goes to South!” Trina said. “Megan and I go to North.”
“Oooh. You’re our rivals,” Alexis said, in a teasing voice. “Wait till football season.”
“Ugh, I wish I went to North,” Riley grumbled. “So much better.”
“Truth.” Megan laughed.
“Don’t listen to the haters,” Alexis said. “South is a good school too. Don’t tell my cheer squad I said that, though. Boo, South!”
“Well, we have better colors, Harper.” Riley turned to me. “We’re red and white. They’re green and yellow.”
“Gold,” Megan shot back. “Green and gold.”
“Eh, it’s still pretty ugly,” Alexis admitted, laughing. “Oh, so Isabelle will be at your school, Harper.”
She will? I looked at the Bunheads for confirmation.
“Yeah.” Riley’s face dropped. “She will. She’s a grade older, though.”
“At least you’ll get to see her,” Megan said.
“Aw, you miss her,” Alexis said. “It is a little strange not driving those Bells around anymore.”
“I know,” Megan whined. “It’s not the same without them.”
“That’s a little sad,” Alexis said. “But now your team won’t get stale. You have what Harper and the other new girl bring to the table.”
“Her name’s Lily,” I said. “She’s super athletic and really good at tumbling.”
“And Harper is really good at technique,” Trina said, surprising me. “I think it’s going to help our technical scores.”
“Thanks,” I said honestly. That was nice of her to say.
“But I don’t know how can we even compete with Energii. . . .” Megan let out a huge sigh and slumped in her seat.
“Sometimes it’s good to have rivals who challenge you,” Alexis said. “Like when we play South, we get all woke!”
“Sometimes rivals are just annoying,” Riley said, and I realized she was directing that at me.
When we pulled into the driveway, I thanked Alexis for the ride and turned to Riley.
“See you at the hip-hop workshop,” I said nicely. She was right. I would be everywhere.
CHAPTER
17
SASS!”
George, the guest choreographer, had introduced himself with high energy, high-fiving each of us as we walked in the door.
“I want to see some sass!” he was now shouting out. “Are you going to show me sass?”
“YESS!” people called back.
The music was alrea
dy pumping, loud with a heavy bass. The workshop was packed with about thirty people. We got into three lines. I’d originally stood next to Lily, but in the shuffle, she was now a few people away.
“Spread out into lines!”
The Bunheads went right up in front of the teacher. Hip-hop wasn’t my best, so I thought about hiding in the middle.
But I was determined. We needed to stick together as a team. I motioned to Lily that we should go up front—and not just up front, but by the Bunheads. I hurried up and slid into the front line.
“Warm up!” George announced.
I looked to the side to see Lily, but she wasn’t there. I could see her in the mirror a row back on the other side. I felt bad she hadn’t seen me tell her I’d come up front. Well, it was just warm-ups, so I’d catch her afterward.
I watched myself in the mirror as I did neck rolls. I was wearing a white tee, a red plaid shirt tied around my waist, my new black leggings with the mesh sides, and black-and-white sneakers. I had my hair in a very high ponytail, which I flipped as I did neck rolls.
First, we did toe touches side to side, then put our hands on our hips and rocked back and forth, then did step touches, and finally, jumping jacks.
“We’re going to start a combo now,” George said. “Let’s break down the first block.”
I looked for Lily. She was standing alone near the back corner away from the crowd. I ran over to stand next to her.
“This teacher is fun,” I said, and she nodded. She seemed distracted, so I guessed I was interrupting her focus. I turned forward and focused as well.
“I want to see lots of attitude!” he yelled. “Work your coolness.”
“I don’t have a lot of coolness,” I joked to Lily. She looked at me and smiled, but only a little.
Hmmm. Before I could say anything, the music started from the top.
George walked through us and yelled, “Hit, hit, boom, boom! Yes!”
He stood in front of Lily: “Sharp accents, yes! That’s it!”
I smiled at Lily, but she was just doing her body roll.
“Yay, he called you out!” I said to her, but she body-rolled the other way.
I knew something was up with her for sure. When we were done with the combo, everyone clapped and cheered. Lily still wasn’t looking my way.
The Audition Page 10
