“Rad moves out there!” Riley’s mother called out.
“Thank you!” We waved back.
“She’s the one with the skills!” I pointed at Lily.
“When I get home,” I said to Lily, “I’ll have to find a skating rink I could go to every so often so I can practice to catch up to your skills.”
“Connecticut home?” Lily asked.
“No, I mean Florida,” I said. I paused and looked at the dazzling Christmas tree. “I know I’ve been weird. It’s complicated, I guess. It’s tough to explain. You wouldn’t understand.”
Lily wraps her hands around her drink. “Why would you think I wouldn’t understand?”
I considered her question.
“I’m new to DanceStarz, just like you are,” Lily continued. “I moved from the only home I knew too, you know. Maybe I was in the same state, but still.”
“But you seem to be adjusting so great. It’s like you’re handling everything so well. Plus, your parents’ shop feels like it’s always been there,” I said. “I guess you don’t even talk about your old home, so for some weird reason, it feels like you’re not new.”
She shrugs. “Maybe I just don’t show my feelings about this as much. But believe me, I know how weird and hard it is when you’re new. At least you got to see your friends. I haven’t been back since I moved.”
“Well, I’ve been making it even weirder for you these past few days.” I make a face. “I’m so sorry about slipping out of our room the other day without saying good-bye.”
“Yeah, that was super weird and uncool,” said Lily. “When Eliza is around, it’s like you forget you have other friends.”
I knew this was the point the others—especially Megan—had been trying make to me these past few days, but hearing it from Lily was like the kick in the pants I needed.
I winced. “That bad, huh?”
Lily crossed her arms and nodded.
“I’m so sorry.” I let out a deep sigh. “That was totally uncool. You shouldn’t have had to deal with that. I was just so excited to be here and fit back into my old life, I think I lost my way.”
“Well, now I feel bad I didn’t ask.” Lily uncrossed her arms and leaned her elbows on the little round tabletop. “How was your visit in Connecticut?”
“It was nice, but not what I’d imagined it would be.” I leaned forward too, resting my forearms on the table. “Before I visited, I thought that I would just go to Connecticut and pick up where I left off. But so much had changed. And for a while there, I was confused about where I belong.”
I told her about my “cheesy” night.
“Yikes.”
I nodded. “They weren’t doing anything on purpose. I just felt left out in my own head. And I didn’t mean for you to feel the way I felt that night.”
“Thanks for saying that,” Lily said, looking lighter from the weight lifted off her shoulders. It was so nice being able to talk to her honestly like this. I was glad she was willing to hear me out after all I’d done. Her phone went off. She pulled it from her jacket pocket and smiled when she looked at the screen.
“It’s my parents!
“Cool!”
Lily and I said hi to her mom and dad. “The trophy is going to be held in a display case at DanceStarz Academy,” Lily explained to her parents. I smiled to myself when I imagined what the look on the faces of the tiniest dancers there would be.
As she spoke to them, me waving hello in the background, I decided to video chat my own family. Hailey would love to see where I was right now. There were a lot of competing sounds around us, but I could still make out my parents’ words. They said they couldn’t wait to see the trophy in person.
It was sweet how excited my mom was for me. “I’m so happy this was such a great trip for you!” she said, getting a little too close to the camera. “Winning the nationals, getting a solo, seeing Eliza again…”
Eliza still hadn’t reached out. It wasn’t a good feeling knowing we were leaving things this way. But I knew I’d see her tomorrow one last time before we flew back to Florida. I hoped maybe I could make things better then.
CHAPTER 18
If we were nervous on day one and guarded on day two, day three was all about excitement.
Nationals was dropping its competitive edge and going festive for the day. We’d been invited to not only dance but watch the exhibition performers from the audience! Aside from nationals having invited all contestants still in town to come see the show, the top three dance teams were asked to make an appearance onstage in full performance gear, just like last year’s winners had yesterday.
This meant that the morning of the day-three show, Lily was up and dressed early too. We were both arranging our beauty products on the hotel room desk to make it easier to get the pregame routine started.
Knock, knock, knock!
I looked at Lily. “That can’t be our fifteen-minute warning already.”
“It’s us!” Trina whispered through the door.
Lily unlocked the door, and Trina, Megan, and Riley rushed in carrying armloads of products. “We thought it would be fun to do hair and makeup together our last day.”
“That’s a fun idea.” I smiled from ear to ear.
“Turn on some music,” said Riley to no one in particular. “Something good.”
“Whose phone has the best speaker?” Lily asked.
“Megan’s!” everyone agreed. Megan had a skill for getting her parents to buy her most of everything she wanted. Her tech game was on point.
“Fine, but then I get to choose the playlist,” Megan said.
Before long, we were all cracking jokes and telling stories.
“You guys,” I said. “I’m sorry if I made things weird with my old studio and stuff. Moving is hard.”
“Aw, it’s good having Harper back on our side,” said Riley, adding pins to her flawless bun.
“It was never about choosing sides,” Lily said in my defense. “She was just hanging out with an old friend.”
“It sure looked like she was always swinging back and forth from over here,” said Megan, angling her hand mirror so she could check out her updo from different angles.
“I admit I was excited to see Eliza, since I hadn’t seen her in so long,” I said.
“We knowwww,” Riley said, rolling her eyes.
“But know that I consider you guys my new team totally, and just because I still have a good friend back home, it doesn’t mean that I’ve forgotten who has helped me get here,” I said, making eye contact with everyone, especially Lily.
“We forgive you!” Trina put down her curling iron and walked over to give me a hug. Lily threw her arms around the both of us, and then Riley joined the group hug, pulling Megan along with her.
“Squad on three!” shouted Lily from somewhere inside of the group hug. “One, two, three…”
“SQUAD!” we shouted before breaking away.
“National championship Squad!” I pumped my fist. We rode that team bonding feeling all the way to the backstage at nationals.
* * *
“Right after this performance, Trey will call you out to take a bow,” said the busy stagehand who’d led us to the stage from our front-row seats moments before.
We nodded and thanked her before she speed-walked off, disappearing into the backstage scenery.
Up until now, we’d been having a great time watching Trey MC. He was wearing another sequined bomber, but I didn’t need to train myself to stare into its shimming back, because the pressure was totally off my shoulders. I sat in the audience enjoying Trey’s charming MC style, cheering for the exhibition performers, and tossing the balloons that at one point were released from a giant net overhead.
Between the surprise pop-up Squad salon in our hotel room to the fun show, it had been more of a chill morning. My stomach wasn’t churning as loudly as it had been the past two days. That is, until I saw something that got it going again.
The stage
hand was back with another person—Eliza. “Your performance will be right after they take their bow,” she instructed Eliza.
There was an awkward silence for a few seconds.
“Hey, Eliza,” I said as I walked over to her.
“Hey, Harper,” she smiled, but she seemed a little quiet.
Everyone else greeted Eliza, except for Megan.
That was all anyone said. We turned our attention to the performance about to start onstage. Trey had just finished interviewing the little girls dressed up like rock-star elves—candy-striped leggings and Santa hats with black biker jackets. They told Trey they were kindergarteners from New Jersey.
When they started dancing to a popular holiday song, we couldn’t look away from their performance. It was the cutest thing. Throughout their routine, they didn’t stop smiling and engaging the audience. There were a boatload of people out there, but these little girls weren’t intimidated by that at all. They gave it their all until the very last note of the song.
The crowd went wild for them.
“That was fun!” said a tiny, giggling voice. The kindergarteners were exiting the stage in our direction.
They could hardly contain their excitement. Trina put up her hand—not too high up—so that each kid could high-five her on their way off stage. It was such a sweet, supportive thing to do, so I stood behind her and did the same. Lily and Riley stood across from us, creating a tunnel of congrats for the kids. Megan and Vanessa followed suit—one stood across from the other. As the kids walked through, I looked at the tops of their heads, bobbing all the way through our tunnel.
They weren’t concerned with outperforming anyone or scoring higher; they were just having fun. And their excitement was contagious.
“Have fun!” the little girl in braids shouted to us. She probably assumed we’d be heading out to dance as a group.
“Trina!” I responded, giving her a high five. “Did you hear her orders? Let’s have fun!” I said, playfully pumping my fist.
“Have fun!” Lily chimed in like she was chanting.
“Have fun! Have fun!” We all grinned and continued chanting with the little girls.
Eliza stared blankly at us at first, but then seemed to blink the judgment away. She chuckled to herself and smiled.
“Ladies and gentlemen, introducing the champions of the forty-fourth annual nationals dance competition, the Squad, from DanceStarz Academy!”
We trotted our way to center stage, waving to the cheering crowd. By now it felt like Trey Thompson was an old friend.
“This group came to town and took it by storm. I have to say, as we wrap up these three days, I am a fan.”
Riley jumped up and down, and we covered our mouths, laughing. That was so cool of him to say.
“You have inspired dancers such as myself to aim higher, and I thank you for being such a good example,” said Trey.
“Wowzers!” Riley high-pitched shrieked to us, but Tristan’s mic picked it up loud and clear. The crowd laughed but cheered Riley’s relatable outburst.
Trey laughed and threw a big-brotherly arm around Riley to help her recover from her embarrassment.
“We wish the Squad all the best, and we look forward to seeing their solo performances. Let’s hear it again for them!”
We waved and then exited the stage the same way we’d entered.
The stagehand was back, instructing Megan and me to stay with Eliza backstage. As the final three solo acts left, we’d have back-to-back performances, beginning with Eliza and followed by Megan and then me. Afterward, we were to run back onstage together for a quick, joint bow.
It was odd to admit it, but being alone with Megan was less awkward than being alone with Eliza right now. I was glad when it was her turn onstage. Plus, I was happy that I got to see her perform. I always love checking out her unique flow of movement. She was a naturally talented dancer who seemed like she could excel at any type of dance. She’d chosen a lyrical routine to a jazzy holiday tune, and she was out there rocking it.
“She’s not bad,” Megan said, her eyebrows raised.
I couldn’t tell if that made Megan like Eliza more or less. Megan didn’t give away any clues either way, because when Megan came out, she continued giving her the same cold shoulder.
“You were flawless out there!” I greeted Eliza, forgetting we were sort of mid–silent treatment.
“Thanks,” she smiled, still charged and happy from her dance. She went and got her water bottle and took a few gulps.
“That’s my cue,” said Megan when Trey announced her right away.
“You got this!” I whispered to her as she sashayed to her marked spot onstage, her arms swinging side to side in the air.
Eliza and I watched in silence, standing shoulder to shoulder. I had to say something to her, now while Megan wasn’t around. We’d be flying out later tonight, and I didn’t want to leave things the way they were.
I cleared my throat. “We didn’t get to take our picture on the nationals stage,” I said, looking straight ahead.
“Oh, right! I kind of forgot about that, actually,” she replied, keeping her eyes on Megan.
“You did?” I pivoted to face her. “I texted you a few times yesterday.”
Eliza looked at me, puzzled. “Ack! I’m sorry! I thought I texted you back.”
“Really? I thought you were mad at me!” I blurted.
Eliza stared at me, even more confused than before. “Mad? Why?”
Before I could respond, the crowd erupted in applause for Megan, who was making her way offstage with her hands up. I answered by meeting her with high fives.
“You were amazing,” I said truthfully.
“I know,” she responded with a mischievous grin. I shook my head and half smiled.
“Let’s hear it for Harper, our next dancer from DanceStarz Academy in Florida!” Trey shouted me out.
Eek! I’d been so wrapped up in everything I’d almost forgotten it was going to be my turn to dance.
“You got this!” I heard Megan throw at my back. Well. That was unexpected and nice.
My turn to shine.
I remembered when I first moved to Florida and I was so nervous about not being good enough on my new dance squad. I remember imagining what it would like to be chosen for a solo.…
The announcer would say:
Please welcome to the stage: Harper! Performing… A SOLO!
I would walk onto the stage, my head held high. I would get into my opening pose as the music began… five… six…
seven… eight! And I would dance! I would dance, and I would nail it!
Now it was really happening—at nationals! I trotted onto the stage, flashing a smile, waving at the crowd before turning my back to them. As the sleigh bells rang out in surround sound, I twisted my torso to the right to peeked at the crowd playfully. I did the same to the left before launching into a barrel turn and barrel jump. It was a routine packed with tricky moves in the first part of the dance, but I felt lighter than air with each leap, kick, and spin.
But a few seconds later, as I braced myself for the tricky footwork Vanessa had drilled into me, something totally unexpected happened—just as I went into my most important turn series.
I took my prep and held my plié for a second, then pulled up, spotting—One! Two! Three! Four! Five turns! And then… somebody bumped a stage light.
The light dimmed for a second, then it shifted—to the shimmering sequins on Trey’s jacket. Trey was sitting at the judges’ panel in front of the stage, totally unaware that the floodlight bouncing off his jacket was blinding me.
HUH?
I lost my spotting at a time I’d needed to concentrate most. The sequins on his jacket were like a million tiny mirrors pointing a million tiny bright suns in my face. I froze in a panic, not knowing where I’d left off and what to do next.
What had happened to I would dance and I would nail it?!
It was a disaster. I was blinking into flashes of w
hite light that I could see even when I turned away or closed my eyes. I couldn’t believe this was the end to my time at nationals. My song was more than halfway over, but I wanted to run off the stage now. But I couldn’t—because I couldn’t see where the exits were. Usually, I would have kept going, but I couldn’t do any leaps or jumps or turns—or I’d risk falling off the stage.
The audience was starting to whisper and rustle around, clearly confused by what was happening. I was so embarrassed. I couldn’t move.
The music came to a screeching halt.
“Technical difficulties!” came over the loudspeaker. “Do not move. Please hold.”
And then, from the nonflashing corner of my eye, I saw Eliza and Megan rush—well, not rush, more like carefully stumble into the light, to stand next to me.
“We can help you offstage!” Eliza whispered. Then she paused. “No, we can’t. It’s a lot brighter here than I thought.”
I was so grateful to have them there.
“Thanks for being good friends,” I said, shading my eyes from the light.
But then Megan took two light steps to the left and two to the right before hopping back once and making a quiet buzzing sound.
The Bumblebee dance! I’d taught it to Lily, Trina, and Riley at the rink, but Megan hadn’t danced along. Apparently, though, she’d been paying attention. But why was she doing this?
Eliza joined in, and after a beat, I followed too. The crowd roared when they recognized what we were doing. Some of the younger kids in the audience jumped out of their seats and filled the aisle, doing the line dance along with us. Pumped up by all the fun, Trey removed his jacket and joined the kids in the audience to groove alongside them.
Then when the chorus started, I had to crack up. Out of the blue, they all started saying, “Bzz, bzz. Bzz bzz” and doing some sting movements. Everyone committed.
It turned out to be a party!
Trey was breathless when he came up onstage to thank us for closing out the solos together. The three of us took our bows, waved to the crowd’s cheerful applause, and exited the stage one final time.
The Competition Page 12