𝖢𝗁𝖺𝗌𝗂𝗇𝗀 𝖲𝗍𝖺𝗋𝗌 || 𝖣𝖺𝗇𝖼𝖾 𝖬𝗈𝗆𝗌

New Girl In Town

"Does anyone think about how weird this is for me?" Annie asks as we all stretch in the dancer's den. "Evie says my name and everyone freaks out about it."

We all laughed in response as she smiled.

"Then you should go by something else," Chloe suggests. "Like Julie, or Jules."

"I don't know," Annie admits. "My nickname is Annie because of Cooper."

"He didn't know how to pronounce her name," Riley adds. "Her old nickname was Anna Grace."

"That's cute." Maddie comments.

"Sounds just like my sister's." Giselle points out. "Anna and Ava Grace."

"Then it's good my nickname's Annie." Annie realizes. "Makes me feel special."

"Girls, let's go!"

"It's time for the pyramid?" Nia asks. "Why so early?"

"Let's go, let's go, let's go!"

All of us rush out of the dancer's den to the other entrance before entering studio "A".

"Congratulations on a successful dance concert." Abby starts and we all clap. "All of your performances were amazing. You showed the entire city of Pittsburgh why we are ranked, nationally in the country, as one of the top dance studios. Now, keep in mind-- this is the road to nationals. This is where it gets tough. Because we will be traveling to California to go to the iHollywood competition."

All of us girls cheered as the moms smiled. Abby then started with the pyramid, revealing Paige's headshot.

"You couldn't do too much with the boot. I understand that; I want it to heal." Abby explains. "You were supposed to see a doctor in four weeks."

"She's going this week," Kelly speaks up.

"So, let's hope, Paige--" Abby crossed her fingers. "That you're gonna be dancing again." Paige nodded in response as Abby revealed the nest headshot. "Brooke, the hip-hop dance wasn't really your thing."

Brooke held in a laugh as Abby moved on.

"Mackenzie, you went out there, and you looked just like the big girls. However, I thought the hip-hop choreography was a bit over your head." Abby continues. "Giselle. You did well. You took control and made sure everything looked good." Next. "I have Nia. You received the award for the Most Improved Student, and that's something to be very proud of. However, like I've said before, do not rest on your laurels."

Nia nodded as Abby revealed the next headshot.

"Chloe, "Trapped". You did a great job in the role," Abby says. "Second on the pyramid, Maddie. Maddie, you won the scholarship in your age division."

Both Maddie and Melissa smiled as Abby revealed the top headshot.

"On top of the pyramid, Evie," Abby announces and everyone claps. "About a year later, but it looks like you're moving forward with the Broadway plans. You got a callback for Annie. The agent, Cesar, was there, but he had to leave due to an emergency, so they sent you an email instead. Really looking forward to what happens next."

Genevieve

Maddie    Chloe    Nia

Giselle    Mackenzie    Brooke    Paige

When I found out about the callback, everything became perfect for a couple of hours. It was almost as if I had forgotten everything that had happened. However, once I went back home, I was hit with a reality check.

"Mackenzie, you have a solo. You better do the whole number." Abby starts. "Nia, you also have a solo."

We all clapped for the two of them.

The group routine was a creepy one. It was similar to the "Where Have All The Children Gone?" dance back in season one. It was cool to be back with something like that, and hopefully, Kenzie wouldn't have to stand behind a swing the whole time.

~~~

As we continued learning the dance throughout the week, I realized that everyone was feeling the pressure of nationals being only two weeks away. It was crazy how fast the competition season had gone by. A new girl, Nicaya, tried out for the team. Abby decided to take her to the competition, although it's not official that she's dancing with us. Paige also had an appointment this week to see if she's finally free from the boot. Brooke talked about a song she wrote and posted online. The moms were getting to know Nicaya's mom, Kaya, whose nickname supposedly is "Black Patsy".

In between rehearsals ― and gossip sessions in the dancer's den ― the week went by pretty quickly, with us soon being in California for the competition.

After the three solos were performed, we got ready for the group routine, still not knowing who was going to be performing and who wasn't.

Or at least, that was until we all ended up performing it together.