by Sheryl Berk
“No, that’s the point. She didn’t. She tried her hardest, but Marcus was never interested in her, only her dancing. You see what I’m saying?”
Rochelle slowly nodded her head. “That I shouldn’t worry about Liberty doing a duet with Hayden?”
“Exactly!” Toni said, patting her on the arm. “What you should worry about is the wind machine, Swanilda.”
Rochelle checked and double-checked that all the Divas’ music was ready, and all their props were in place and working. “Don’t forget, Anya,” she reminded her new teammate. “You enter down the ramp.”
She pointed to a white wooden wedge Toni had stowed in the wings. Anya was dancing the role of Nikiya, a royal temple dancer, from the ballet La Bayadère. It was Toni’s idea to dress her in a flowing white handkerchief skirt, a silver beaded halter top, and a white chiffon veil draped over her face. The dance called for incredible grace and beautiful long lines—both were Anya’s specialty. But Anya wasn’t too sure about the veil.
“It’s kind of hard to see through,” she told Rochelle. “I’m afraid I’m going to fall down the ramp. Or worse, into the judges’ laps! Then there’s this . . .”
She held up a porcelain water jug Miss Toni had brought along on the bus. “She wants me to balance it on my head. Seriously! It weighs a ton!”
Rochelle laughed. “Okay, that’s pretty funny. Toni does have a talent for throwing things into the routines at the very last minute.”
Anya placed the jug on her head and tried to steady it. Every time she took her hands away, it wobbled, threatening to crash to the floor. “This is hopeless!” she cried.
“If you want my advice . . .,” Rochelle began.
“Yes! Please!” Anya pleaded. “I don’t want to make a complete fool out of myself in front of City Feet—not to mention the entire audience!”
Rochelle knew Toni hated when anyone changed her choreography, but she had appointed her assistant dance coach, hadn’t she? “Lose the veil over your face and drape it down your back instead, so it flies out behind you as you do your tour jetés. And carry the jug on your shoulder . . . but just for your entrance. When you’re done with your dance, you can pick it up again and bow to the audience—like you’re a servant, bowing before the Indian Royal Court. It’ll be very dramatic.”
“Thank you!” Anya said, hugging her. “That’s so much better.”
Gracie also had an issue with her solo. Miss Toni had rigged the pancakes on the stove to flip up in the air just as she did her backflip.
“It’s stuck,” Gracie said. “I keep hitting the button, but they just keep sitting there.”
“I’ll take care of it,” Rochelle assured her. “It’s probably a short circuit in the trigger.”
Last but not least, Hayden had a problem with his umbrella. “Toni wants it to fly out of my hand on an invisible wire,” he said, demonstrating. The umbrella was supposed to float above his head while he did his routine. Instead, it levitated a few inches off the ground and stayed there.
“I think it just needs a little boost. The umbrella’s probably too heavy. I’ll look into it,” Rochelle promised.
By the five-minutes-to-curtain call, she thought she had fixed all the Divas’ dilemmas. She was sure Miss Toni would be proud of her handling everything so calmly and efficiently. Who knows, Rochelle pondered, maybe she’ll even make me her permanent assistant.
The announcer welcomed the crowd and announced the first competitor in the Petite Solo category. “Please give a round of applause for Mandy doing an acro routine to ‘Red, Red Robin’!”
Mandy burst onto the gym floor in a series of tumbles, twists, and flips. She flapped her arms and wiggled the red feathers sewn to the backside of her costume. She chirped, whistled, and made cute, pouty faces at the judges.
“Ugh, this dance is for the birds!” Liberty groaned, watching from the sidelines. “Gracie, your routine is so much better than this! Gracie?”
Everyone suddenly realized Gracie was nowhere to be found. “Maybe she went to the bathroom?” Scarlett suggested. “I’ll go check!”
“I’ll check the locker room,” Bria said.
“Liberty and I will check the vending machines,” said Anya. “Maybe she got hungry and went for a snack.”
Rochelle looked at the lineup listed in the program. “She’s the third dancer up in Petite Solo—we don’t have a lot of time! Find her! Fast!”
“I have a hunch where she may be,” Hayden said. “Give me a sec.”
“Where?” Rochelle asked. She was frantic. If Gracie missed her cue, Toni would punish them all, starting with her assistant.
Hayden walked outside the gym and found what he was looking for: the broom closet. He slowly opened the door and peered inside. There, seated on the floor among the mops and buckets, was Gracie.
“Hey, you,” Hayden said gently. “You found my special hiding place.”
“Your hiding place? This is my hiding place,” she insisted.
“Nuh-uh,” Hayden insisted. “I’ve been hiding in broom closets for about seven years. Nobody ever thinks to look in here, you know.”
“Except you,” Gracie pointed out. “Are you gonna make me go back out there?”
Hayden shook his head. “Nope. Not if you don’t want to go beat Mandy. I totally understand.”
Gracie bit her nails. “Well, I wanna beat Mandy. But I’m not sure I can.”
“I’m sure you can’t beat her sitting in here,” Hayden said. “There’s nothing to be scared of, you know. There’s not even a stage—just a gym floor. And you’re used to tumbling on those all the time, right?”
Gracie mulled it over. “It’s not a stage, is it?”
“Nope, just a big ol’ gym with bleachers. No sweat. I’m not even nervous about going up against City Feet.”
“You’re not? How come?” Gracie asked.
“Because feet always stink,” he joked, waving his toes in her face. “Am I right or am I right?”
“Eww!” Gracie said, giggling and holding her nose.
He stood up and offered Gracie his hand. “You coming? I’m kind of starving. So when you’re done with your dance, can you save me a pancake—with ketchup, please?”
“Next up in the Petite Solo division, we have Gracie doing an acro routine to ‘Cooking by the Book’!” Rochelle’s heart was pounding as the announcer called Gracie’s name. She saw Toni’s face in the audience. She looked livid.
“Do we have Gracie? Is she in the gym?” the announcer said, trying again. “Last call for Gracie . . .”
“Here!” said a small voice. Gracie appeared at the door of the gym holding Hayden’s hand. Rochelle was relieved to see she didn’t look scared at all. She was smiling and waving at the audience.
“Quick! Get into your costume!” Rochelle said, tying Gracie’s apron over her red leotard and securing her chef’s hat with a few bobby pins. The littlest Diva took her place onstage just as the music started to play.
She saw Toni making her way over from the bleachers.
“What happened?” she demanded. “Divas don’t miss their cues.”
“No biggie,” Hayden said, trying to assure her. “Gracie just got a little lost in the hallway.”
She gave Rochelle her iciest look. “It’s your job to make sure everything goes according to plan. You wanted to be my assistant.”
“I know . . . I’m trying!” Rochelle said. “There are just so many little details.”
“Welcome to my world,” Toni said. “If you can’t take the heat, then get out of the kitchen.”
Chapter 13
Hayden the Hero
Rochelle crossed her fingers that Gracie would get through her routine without any further drama. Each of her flips was flawless, and the judges smiled as she did a spider walk around the gym floor. Finally, it was time for the big finale: her backflip timed to the pancake flip. She hit the button on the stove and the pancakes catapulted into the air. Thank goodness! Rochelle breathed a sigh
of relief. Then she watched in horror as one climbed higher and higher till it landed—KERSPLAT!—right on the bald head of one of the judges! The entire gym roared with laughter.
Gracie looked startled; Rochelle prayed she wouldn’t burst into tears. Instead, she cracked up as well. Luckily, the judge was a good sport. He pulled the pancake off his head and took a bite.
“That was a delicious routine,” the announcer joked as Gracie skipped back to the sidelines.
“I did it! I did it!” she squealed.
“You sure did!” Scarlett said, hugging her little sister. “I’m so proud of you, Gracie!”
“Me, too.” Hayden smiled, high-fiving her. “Nice job. You showed that Mandy who’s boss.”
Rochelle saw Mandy standing with her team on the opposite side of the gym. She didn’t look happy. One down, she thought, a few more to go.
Junior Solos were up next. City Feet’s Regan did a bold Broadway-style dance number from Anything Goes, dressed in a sailor hat and blue sparkly leotard.
“Her arabesques are pretty impressive,” Scarlett whispered to Rochelle.
“You’re way more talented than she is,” Rochelle assured her. “Just wait till I get this boot off. She’s no competition for either of us.”
The Teen Solos were next, with Addison leading the pack. She strolled onstage dressed in a black dress, pearl necklace, and sunglasses. She was Audrey Hepburn’s character in Breakfast at Tiffany’s, and she did a sad, haunting ballet to “Moon River.”
“Wow,” Bria said, watching from the wings. “She’s really amazing.”
“She’s not bad,” Liberty said with a sniff. “Where do you suppose Justine stole her from?”
As she walked back to the wings, Addison purposely bumped into Rochelle, knocking one of her crutches out from under her.
“Watch it!” Rochelle yelled, trying to steady herself.
“Sorry,” Addison replied. “I forgot we had a little old lady limping around backstage. It’s just not safe for you here. Maybe you should go home and take a nap.”
Rochelle gritted her teeth. “The only ones going home are you guys . . . empty-handed,” she said. “Because the Divas are going to win every title today.”
Addison laughed in her face. “I don’t think so. Especially when ‘Rock’ here needs a rocking chair.”
“It’s not nice to make fun of Rock,” Gracie spoke up. “She’s hurt.”
Addison patted her on the head. “Maybe you could both go and take a nap. Babies need a lot of sleep.”
“I am not a baby!” Gracie screamed.
Hayden saw what was happening and rushed to Rochelle’s side.
“Is there a problem?” he asked calmly.
“She’s being mean to me and Rock,” Gracie said, pointing an accusing finger at Addison.
“Aw, I forgot you had a bodyguard to fight your battles for you, Rochelle.” Addison smirked.
“I don’t need anyone to fight my battles,” Rochelle countered. She hoped that didn’t hurt Hayden’s feelings, but she was not going to let this girl push her around, crutches or no crutches.
“She’s right. I’m not fighting anyone’s battles,” Hayden interrupted. “I’m just sharing a little advice.”
“Advice?” Addison laughed. “What advice could you possibly give me? I’ve been competing my whole life.”
Hayden ignored her bragging. “ ‘I do not try to dance better than anyone else. I only try to dance better than myself,’ ” he said.
Addison looked at him, puzzled.
“What is that supposed to mean?”
“It’s a quote from Mikhail Baryshnikov, one of the greatest dancers of all time,” Hayden answered.
“Hayden is really smart,” Gracie whispered to Rochelle.
“It means you should stop picking on the Divas and worry about your own dancing,” he said. “Because trust me . . . you need to worry. I just heard Justine saying that was the sloppiest chaîné she’d ever seen.”
Addison looked petrified. She scanned the bleachers for her dance coach. “Did she really say that? Or are you making it up?”
Hayden grinned. He waved to no one in the bleachers. “Hey, Justine! Over here! I found Addison for you.”
Addison took off without another nasty word.
“Hayden is our hero!” Gracie exclaimed.
“I second that. Thanks for stomping on those Feet,” Rochelle added.
“You’re welcome,” Hayden replied. “No one picks on us Divas.”
Chapter 14
Dancing in the Rain
Anya was up next—and she was more than a little nervous to be up against her former City Feet teammates.
“They’re just waiting for me to mess up,” she told Rochelle.
Rochelle knew she wasn’t as good at pep talks as Scarlett, but she did her best. “You won’t mess up. You’re an amazing dancer,” she told Anya. “We’re so lucky to have you on our team.”
Anya took a deep breath. “You mean that? Because I could totally understand if you guys didn’t want me. I was with the enemy once, after all. And Mandy, Regan, and Addison are pretty mean to you.”
“At first, we didn’t want you,” Rochelle admitted. “But you’ve been a real team player. You saved our group dance.”
Anya smiled. “Thanks, Rock.”
Rochelle adjusted the veil one last time to make sure it was draped down Anya’s back. “Now go out there and show them what Divas are made of.”
Anya’s classical routine was mesmerizing.
“I don’t even know what this ballet is about and this dance is making me cry,” Bria whispered. “Anya just pours her heart into it.”
Rochelle nodded. She watched as Anya stretched her arms to the heavens and twirled effortlessly across the stage en pointe. Her face showed pain and anguish—and also hope and faith. She ended—as Rochelle had directed—by picking up the vase and bowing deeply before the audience.
The crowd gave her a standing ovation. Rochelle saw that Toni sat stubbornly in her seat, refusing to rise.
“What’s up with that?” Bria asked. “Toni looks mad. Did Anya do something wrong?”
Rochelle gulped. “I think I did. I changed a few details of her dance.”
“Rock, you didn’t!” Scarlett exclaimed. “You know how much that freaks Toni out!”
“It was for her own good. It didn’t make any sense!”
Scarlett shook her head. “It doesn’t matter. Never mess with Miss Toni’s choreography. No wonder there’s steam coming out of her ears.”
Rochelle hoped that Hayden’s routine would take her teacher’s mind off her edited version of Anya’s dance. He glided across the stage, smooth as silk, and twirled around the streetlamp before letting go of his umbrella. It floated up, up, up over his head. At least something worked! Then she noticed the umbrella hovering right in front of Hayden’s face. The heavy curved handle smacked him several times in the head as he did his pirouettes.
“Uh-oh,” Scarlett said, covering her eyes. “I hope he doesn’t get a concussion.”
“He better not!” Liberty warned Rochelle. “We have our duet coming up.”
At the end of the routine, after beating Hayden up, the umbrella delicately drifted back down to earth.
“I’m so sorry!” Rochelle said, rushing to apologize. “I don’t know what happened!”
“I’ve never had a rumble with an umbrella,” he said, rubbing his forehead. He had a huge goose egg that was already turning black and blue. “It packs quite a punch!”
“Here you go,” Liberty said sweetly, handing him an ice pack.
Rochelle growled. What else could go wrong today?
Chapter 15
Who’s Afraid of the Big Bad Wolf?
Rochelle braced herself for the two City Feet duets. She knew Justine would pull out all the stops, and she wasn’t the slightest bit surprised when Mandy and Regan walked onstage wearing neon-blue-and-green tuxedos and sunglasses.
“What ar
e they supposed to be?” Liberty cracked. “Disco penguins?”
The music started, and a blast of Korean lyrics filled the gym.
“Oh, no.” Bria gulped. “It couldn’t be.”
Rochelle grabbed the program and read the name of the routine: “Gangnam Style Revisited.”
Mandy flipped and flew through the air, while Regan hopped up and down, pumping her fists. The craziest part was when the pair rolled a trampoline onstage and did grand jetés six feet in the air! They left the stage to thunderous applause, side-skipping to the sidelines.
“What did you think?” Hayden asked Rochelle.
Rochelle wanted to say she hated it—that it was lame and Mandy and Regan were awful. But she couldn’t. The dance was undeniably cool and creative—a modern acro masterpiece.
She thought about how Miss Toni would handle it. How she would motivate the team rather than tell them their chances of topping it were slim to nothing.
“I think you and Liberty have to be even better than they are,” she said simply. “And I know you can do it.”
Hayden smiled. “I’d feel better if it were you and me going out there. But I’ll do my best.”
Addison Walsh and Phoebe Malone from City Feet were up next. Rochelle read the title of the routine: “Picnic in the Park” and hoped it would be more mellow than the last duet. But instead, the lights in the gym grew dim and a lone wolf howled over the loudspeaker.
“What in the world is that?” Bria whispered.
“Maybe Mandy turned into a werewolf,” Liberty suggested. “I always knew she was a little beast.”
Addison leaped onto the stage dressed in a gray furry vest and black unitard. Phoebe skipped in wearing a red hooded cape and carrying a basket.
“It’s the Big Bad Wolf and Red Riding Hood,” Scarlett said. “I never saw that one coming.”
The dance was dark and dangerous, with acro choreography to match. Gracie hid her eyes every time the wolf pounced at Red.
“I hate this story!” she squealed.