When new girl Michelle joins A-troupe, everything changes. What'll happen now that Emily's throne is up for grabs? With love comes scandal, sex and secrecy, and with these dancers, there's always a price to pay.
The Next Step TV show reimagined as...
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I cling to the arms of the brown leather chair as I sit down slowly, taking in James' mother's words.
James is being kicked out of the studio? What the hell?
I feel my lips part nervously, begging to form words but being too shocked to form any kind of logical sentence. A few unintelligible mumblings fall from my lips as I look to James in shock, taking in his sorrowful eyes as he smiles at me softly.
He can't leave. How can I be in the studio without him? He's the closest person that I have here, how can I cope without his crude humour and stupidly confident attempts at flirting with me.
Turning to look at Kate, her brows have pulled up in concern as she narrows her eyes, clearly shocked by the extent to which this news is affecting me.
"You're leaving?" I ask James, tilting my head back to his as I meet his saddened eyes.
He inhales sharply, looking away from my gaze for a few seconds before turning back to me, sucking his teeth nervously.
"Why?" I ask, feeling my voice break at the simple word, I'm so affected by this. All of my emotions are piling up, it's like a crash of feelings has just washed over my entire body.
He can't leave, not now. Not when I finally realised my feelings for him. Not when he's been the single person to help me grow so much this year. He can't go, he just can't.
"It's in the best interest of the studio for James to leave. We put the safety of our dancers before anything else, and James has corrupted the safety of both you and Stephanie," Kate elaborates, explaining James' predicament so he doesn't have to.
He sighs in frustration, shaking his head lightly as he curls his hands into fists on the arms of the chair he's sat on.
What does Kate mean? How has James corrupted my safety? And how the hell has he corrupted Stephanie's?
"What do you mean? He hasn't done anything to hurt me," I defend James, feeling my gaze harden as I deliver my words with harsh conviction, surprising Kate with the passion behind my words.
She shares a look with James' mom, silently signalling that she's annoyed at my reaction to this situation.
Why the hell would she be annoyed? Of course I'd defend James, I wouldn't just stand back and let him get kicked out of the studio. I hate that she thinks I'm weak enough to just roll over and let her revoke James' spot on A troupe.
Everyone underestimates me, I'm constantly compared to Emily, even my own mother does it. James is different, he likes me for me, not because I'm the younger sister of Emily. He doesn't compare the way we act, he just accepts me. All of me, in the same way that I accept all of him.
"It's recently come to our attention that James spiked your drink at one of Stephanie's parties. We don't tolerate that kind of behaviour from our dancers here at The Next Step," Kate informs me, using a professional tone as she hits me with her words. "It's in your best interest that he leaves."
