Piper's POV:
"This isn't as bad as we thought. Richelle would be in time for the tour and that's all that matters." I was sat in A Latte Love with Kenzie and Lily. Richelle temporarily leaving A-troupe was still a hot topic amongst the team. I was all for it. At least this time, we were getting a decent notice. And if that was what Richelle deemed best for her, then she should be free to do it.
Sadly, not everyone thought this way.
"Yeah, but she has so many lead roles," Lily argued. "She won't be able to catch up on time."
"There's always a possibility that someone might replace her," Kenzie said in a hushed tone. Taking a role that once belonged to someone else is always a secret wish of every dancer. No matter how bad that sounds, we all deep down wait for that opportunity to step into a lead role at the expense of someone else.
"Do you think we're going to get her solo?" Lily asked with just a bit too much enthusiasm in her voice. Was she reading my mind? I shot her a glare, shooting down my own thoughts at the same time.
Sure, we, especially the girls, were all thinking about it. No matter how good Richelle was, she couldn't keep all her lead roles. Someone was going to have to take them.
"If anything, I'm getting that solo," Kenzie said with the same confidence she exuded 24 hours a day.
I chuckled politely. "Fair enough."
After Kenzie's dance video went viral with 10 million likes, in counting, it would be stupid to not use that to our advantage. Ever since, she had been posting more videos and had gained quite a following. She may have brought in more people willing to buy tickets for the tour and they would want to see Kenzie before anyone else.
Lily glanced at her phone. "You guys want to start going." We nodded. Kenzie and Lily tossed their cups in the nearby bin as we walked out of the door.
***
Having the reputation of being a "perfectionist", it was clear that our new way of rehearsing was going to irk me, to say the least. Leaving spaces out for people was my number one pet peeve, which was why I always made an effort to show up on time and (almost) never miss rehearsal. However, I don't think I would be able to take leaving out spaces for a lead dancer. Not for this long. Evidently, the other dancers felt the same. Jones was without a partner and was stuck awkwardly marking the numerous counts of partner work. Out complex formation changes were getting messed up as Amy and Kingston forgot to leave room for the imaginary Richelle as they chaînéd from one side of the room to another.
"Ozzy, make sure to- Summer if you could just-" Michelle through around futile comments as the music played before stopping it all together. It was one thing having a back or middle row dancer missing, but this was...
"This clearly isn't going to work." Michelle twisted her lips in thought.
"We could get someone to temporarily take her spot," Ozzy suggested.
"Where are we going to get someone?" Henry asked. "It's not like we can take someone from B-troupe." A mutual sigh came from across the room. Michelle pressed against her temple.
"If we take a five minute break and then we'll discuss this later." We all agreed, dispersing to different sides of the room. I went to the bench closest to the office, sitting next to Finn.
"You think Michelle regrets letting Richelle leave?" Finn asked for only me to hear.
"No, why would she?" That seemed obviously stupid but B-troupe did need someone to compete at Nationals. This was just a minor inconvenience we could get through.
"If you ask me, I say someone else on the team takes Richelle's spot and when she gets back we can shove her in the background."
"One," I began. "I didn't ask. Two, who would take Richelle's spot." She may be the smallest on the team, but those were some big shoes to fill.
"You could," he suggested.
"Nah, I can't do half of the acro she does." Not even a quarter. It then took me a second to realize that was Finn trying to complement me.
"But thanks," I quickly said. "You know, when you put it that way, it doesn't sound as evil."
"Evil? Why would it sound evil?" My mind flashed back to my conversation with Lily and Kenzie. Both of them were like hyenas ready to pounce on their prey. The prey being Richelle's spots in all the dances.
I shook my head. "Long story."
Our conversations were paused by Emily's entrance.
"Why aren't we rehearsing?" She asked with a confident stance.
"We're waiting for Michelle to sort somethings out," Amy answered. Emily nodded slowly as though she was trying to telepathically find out everything that was happening before taking action.
"Okay, then. Carry on." She briskly walked into the office to join Michelle. With Emily here, our problem would either be fixed, or destroyed, in five minutes. Ten minutes max.
The dancers were slowly being more attracted to the spot Finn and I were sat in. Getting onto their knees to discreetly watch whatever conversation may be going on between Michelle and Emily.
"What do you think their talking about?" Ozzy asked in a strained voice. He was stretching his neck and trying, but failing, to read Michelle and Emily's lips.
"Are you guys seriously trying to spy on them?" Jones asked. Unlike the rest of us, he was sat regularly at the other side of the room.
"No," we all said in unison, sitting back down in normal positions. Jones didn't bother stifling his laugh. He really just saw us as walking entertainment.
"Hey, guys." Before anything could start, Michelle and Emily walked in again.
We all shot them eager looks that asked what they were planning to do.
Emily clapped her hands together as though she was making a deal with her self. "We've decided to make some changes."