[2X07]
{Michelle is upset when Eldon won't do a duet with her and Riley is left hurt after witnessing something she wasn't meant to.}
❝I think those two are the most oblivious people I have ever met. Time will tell, though. Time will tell.❞
"Maxie!" was the first thing the girl heard as she walked into the studio that morning. Quickly placing her bag into her allotted shelf, not failing to throw an exhausted eye roll, she moved to sit down next to the boy who had called her over.
James waited expectantly for her to get settled before starting his story, not giving the poor girl any time to greet him in response, "You have to hear what happened at my Uncle Manny's house this weekend."
"The Uncle Manny that likes me, or the one that doesn't?" Max asked him wearily.
In truth, James actually did have two Uncle Mannys. One, Uncle Manny B, would be arguably one of Maxie's favourite members of James's family - second to Deborah of course. And the other, Uncle Manny J, was a heavily influenced patriot who was openly against anyone that wasn't Canadian - not great for Maxie the British person.
"Definitely the Manny that likes you," James nodded, "But anyway, this story is legendary. Like, anyone in the next two hundred years that is closely related to me will talk about this story."
At that point, Max was hooked. Leaning forward in her seat, her eyes widened as she spoke, "Go on then. Don't keep me waiting."
"Yeah, yeah, okay," he agreed before jumping right in, "So Uncle Manny... The one that likes you."
"Yeah, the one always riding his motorcycle?"
"Yep, that's the one. So, once again, he was riding his motorcycle. And he's just rolling, like, a block away from home, just going for a ride. He tries to pop a wheelie, okay? Completely falls off the bike."
"No way."
With wide eyes, James excitedly nodded as he continued, "But that's not all. The bike lands and keeps going straight. My Aunt Carla, she's at home, just chilling, sees the bike roll by, runs up to it, hops on the bike and goes grocery shopping. What are the chances of that?"
It seemed that Maxie was at a loss for words, for she remained in the same position, mouth wide open, eyes bulged in amazement for what seemed like ages before she responded, "Oh. My. Days. Just... She just goes shopping? James that's like-"
"The best thing ever!" they both exclaimed at the same time before breaking out into laughter - practically getting lost in their own little bubble.
Maxie held a smirk as she told the camera, "I already knew the story. Deborah told my mum who told me this morning. But James looks so excited about it I'll just let him have his moment."
The laughter died down once Riley was spotted down the hall and James called out, "Riley, Riley! You have to hear the story I just told Max."
Standing up, Maxie turned around to share a smile of greeting with the girl before leaving her to listen to James's story.
After a few minutes of stretching with Giselle, Maxie was pulled out of her thoughts when Miss Kate walked into the room.
"All right, guys," she called out whilst the dancers formed a huddle in front of her, "I want to explain the rules of Nationals to you, okay? Nationals are totally different from Regionals."
"It's all group dances?" Chloe asked obliviously.
With an incredulous look, Maxie scoffed, "No, Chloe, that's Regionals. And if you were listening about five seconds ago, you would've heard Miss Kate say 'Nationals are totally different from Regionals'," the girl told her, feigning a pretty accurate Canadian accent.
"Yeah," Michelle backed her up, "It's way different to Regionals."
"Basically, Nationals has six categories," the blonde began to explain.
"Up first, would be the male solos," Maxie continued, "And if you win that, you move on and do small groups."
Riley added, "Small groups are pretty much like group dances but instead of using everyone from the team, you have around three to seven dancers."
"There's duets," West old the camera.
"And then female solos," Michelle concluded.
Once they had gone through the rounds with the dancers, Maxie finally confirmed, "And if you get through all the rounds, you then perform a group dance for the semi-final and a different one for the final. So, basically, you need two solos, one duet, one small group dance, and two group dances."
"And both the final groups are eleven dancers each," James added as if it wasn't obvious.
Miss Kate nodded, "It's an elimination competition, which means, if you lose one round, you're out."
James continued to express his opinion as he spoke, "Honestly, I kind of like the Nationals rules. I think it's kind of cut-throat and I like that."
"Okay, I just want to focus on solos and duets for now," Kate told the dancers.
Immediately, Chloe whipped her head around and said, "I think Michelle and Eldon should do the duet, I mean, they are pretty much the reason we won Regionals."
Whilst everyone else agreed, Maxie muttered, "Yeah, them and nine other dancers, but way to focus on the romance, Chloe."
"I really do want to do the duet with Eldon," Michelle began with a smile, "Because, you know, we're dating and we have so much chemistry. It would be great."
As the clapping and cheers of agreement began to die down, a nervous-looking Eldon spoke up, "Um, actually, uh... I don't wanna do the duet," he said bluntly before dramatically exiting the room.
"I do still want to do the duet with Michelle," he explained, "But Hunter beat me fair and square in the dance battle. So, now I have to stay away from Michelle."
"No," Maxie began, shaking her finger as she tried to hold in a laugh, "It wasn't Hunter that beat him. It was 'Jorge'."
"I'm really confused when Eldon says that he doesn't want to do the duet because... there's no reason behind it," Michelle told the camera, a little let down.
‧₊˚✩彡
Music echoed around the studio as the dancers all stretched and discussed between themselves about the upcoming auditions to be featured at Nationals.
"All right, dancers," Miss Kate called out with a smile as she walked into the room to join her sister, "Have you all decided what we'd like to audition for?"
As the groups formed yet another circle around the studio head and choreographer, Eldon was the first to step forward, "I'd like to audition for the male solo," he announced nonchalantly before stepping back.
"Great. Thank you, Eldon," Kate nodded, just as confused as the others as to why he refused to do the duet with Michelle earlier on.
Stepping forward, West began to speak up, "Well, you know what, Miss Kate, I-," however, quickly backed down when James advised him not to - for the sake of Eldon's fragile ego.
"I tell West to drop the solo because Eldon needs his confidence back," James explained, "And he doesn't need anybody messing with that."
"You know what," West cut himself off, taking a step back, "Never mind, Miss Kate. You got this one, Eldon."
"Great, thank you, West," Kate said through a forced smile, already fed up with the boys' antics and it wasn't even midday yet, "Anyone else?"
Instinctively, Daniel took a proud step forward, which caused James to begin muttering nonsense, "Dee, dee, dee, dee!" he nodded for Daniel to step back, "Let Eldon have it."
"No, jee, jee, jee, jee," Daniel hissed back, mocking James's nonsense talk.
"I'm a little shocked that James doesn't want me to step forward and audition for the solo," Daniel explained to the camera, "I thought everyone was supportive of everyone else in A-Troupe."
Huffing, James sighed, "Just drop the solo, man. Get over yourself. For the boys, for the boys."
"Daniel just doesn't understand how much Eldon needs this," Maxie shrugged before furrowing her brows slightly, "In truth, I don't understand why he needs it, but you do you I guess."
"I am a team player and A-Troupe means everything to me, but t the end of the day, once I'm done at The Next Step, it's just me," Daniel continued to explain bluntly.
Turning back to Miss Kate, the boy told her, "I want it. I want the solo."
"Great," the blonde grinned, "There'll be some competition," which made both Daniel and Eldon share a look, "Okay, female solo. Who would like to audition?"
Unlike when she asked for the male solos, the room turned immediately quiet as some of the boys looked around the room, expectantly waiting for someone to step forward, yet nobody did.
"Maxie," West whispered just so quietly so that only the girl could hear him.
Mirroring his silent tone, the girl responded, "Nope."
"What do you mean-"
"Nope. I'm not doing it. No way."
"I think you should."
"Well, what you think I should do and what I think I should do are two very different thin-"
The girl was abruptly cut off when Miss Kate, who had been stood with a smile on her face waiting, spoke up, "Anyone?" she then turned to look at both Maxie and Michelle, "Anyone?"
"No," they both spoke at the same time, chuckling slightly about how in sync they were.
"I don't really want to do the female solo because there's already enough happening between Eldon and I," Michelle explained.
"One of the many reasons I don't want to do the solo is because I know how competitive they can get," Maxie simply stated, "I mean, if Canada is anything like England, I would be locking my windows in case of sabotage."
Giving the girls a suspicious look, Kate told them, "All right, well, I'll give you some more time to think about it then," she then turned to the blonde with yet another grin, "Michelle, can I talk to you in my office, please?"
"Sure," she responded unsurely, however, quickly followed, leaving the rest of the dancers in the room.
Maxie was just about to go over and talk to Amanda and Giselle before her hand was grabbed by someone and her body was pulled towards them.
"Hey," West grinned, stepping back slightly as he blushed at the contact.
"Hey," she grinned back, also subtly blushing, "What's up?"
Swallowing down the nervousness rising in his throat, West went on to ask, "So I was wondering, uh, y'know now you're not doing the solo and all, maybe, I just wanted to know if you'd like to audition for the duet with me? As friends, of course."
Maxie smirked slightly before nodding excitedly, "Yeah, of course. I'd love to," she grinned, making the boy mirror the smile on her face as they stood in their own little world for what felt like forever.
Well, up until James and Eldon interrupted the moment as they jogged over.
"Yo, Maxie," the brunette began, leaning on her shoulder as if it were an armrest, much to Max's annoyance, "'Sup? Why didn't you go for the solo?"
With a nod, Eldon added, "Yeah, you'd be like one of our best chances of winning the female solo round."
"I dunno, just didn't feel it," the girl brushed it off, "And anyway, I have a duet partner now," she smirked, punching West in the arm lightly as they shared a giggle.
"Oh really?" James asked, suggestively raising his eyebrows which, in turn, made both Maxie and West blush furiously.
James sat up in his chair slightly as he snickered, "I think those two are the most oblivious people I have ever met. Time will tell, though. Time will tell."
"Not like that you pillock," Max scoffed, hitting James over the head to try and change the subject, "We're doing it as friends."
Eldon chuckled slightly before mumbling, "Yeah, whatever you say lovebir- Ouch!"
‧₊˚✩彡
"So, he's like a block away from home and he's just rolling down the street," James explained, repeating the same words he had been saying all day to anyone who would listen.
Maxie sat on an uncomfortable blue chair on the other side of the room, scrolling on her phone as she waited for James and Beth to continue their rehearsal, yet she couldn't help but notice how close the two seemed to be getting.
"Seeing Beth react to James's story in a much more positive way than Riley did..." Maxie cringed, "Is not a good sign. But it's not my relationship. Not my problem."
James, on the other hand, held a different facial expression as he said, "When Beth agrees that my story is legendary, I'm happy. I mean, Riley didn't agree with that at all."
The girl was quickly pulled out of her thoughts when her eyes glanced over the time on her phone screen, "Hey, guys, I've gotta get going, but you two will be alright on your own, right? I mean, you've got the choreo down, it's just keeping in time with each other."
"Do you really have to go?" the both of them asked simultaneously, James tone seeming more pleading than Beth's unconcerned stance.
Sending her friend a look of apology, Maxie grinned, "No can do, Jameseth. Just remember, it's one-hundred per cent about the winning. Show no mercy," she simply stated before waltzing out of the room, leaving a helpless James and a confused Beth.
A few minutes later, and Maxie was jogging down the hallway to get into the studio before she nearly crashed right into Michelle and Chloe, who were walking out of Kate's office.
"Gosh, Maxie, you nearly took my eye out," Chloe chuckled, re-linking arms with Michelle as they both continued into the studio, not failing to hide their giggles.
Maxie herself was about to follow them before Kate summoned her into the office, trying to suppress her amusement at how the girl was almost sent flying not even five seconds prior.
"Max, hey, take a seat," Kate grinned at the girl, gesturing for her to, well, take a seat.
Hesitantly, Maxie obliged, still unsure of why she had been summoned as she placed herself on yet another uncomfortable chair.
With a slight shrug, Kate explained, "Right now, I'm just trying to find out why Maxie didn't want to audition for the female solo for Nationals. She is one of our strongest dancers here and I'd hate to think she's missing out on opportunities for no real reason."
"Maxie, why don't you want to audition for the female solo?" the woman outright asked. All sense of 'gentle approach' had been thrown out the window entirely at that point, making Maxie snicker to herself at the irony.
Bringing herself back into the conversation, Maxie tried her hardest to create a reason to give to Kate, yet, all attempts fell to no avail as she drew a blank.
"Um," she began, trying her hardest to ignore the expectant look on Kate's face, "I'm busy," was the best Maxie could come up with.
"With what?" the woman followed up suspiciously. Of course, there would be follow-up questions, how could Maxie forget?
Her eyes wandered around the studio in a desperate hope of coming up with an excuse before landing on a picture of a dancing ballet shoe. Perfect.
"I'm busy with practising ballet, y'know. No time to choreograph a solo," the girl shrugged, hoping her lie would be enough to convince Miss Kate to drop the subject.
Unfortunately, Max had no such luck, "Maxie, you can't be serious," Miss Kate exclaimed exasperatedly, "Your plies are so good Margie wanted to rename the entire move after you. She even got the rest of the baby ballet class to sign a petition. Do you know how hard it was to clean the crayon stains out of their dresses? There's no way you need practise."
Of course. Of course, Kate had found an excuse. At that point, Maxie was at a crossroads: would she deepen the lie and hope that it all pans out, or would she tell the truth?
Being the risktaker she was, the British girl expanded, "Yeah, well, I- Oh would you look at that? My phone's ringing," she grinned, whipping the, very silent, mobile out of her pocket and dashing out of the office, "Nice talking to you, Kate, same time next week? Same time next week. Thanks!" she yelled over her shoulder before turning the corner into Studio B.
Once again, the girl almost found herself walking slap-bang into yet another unsuspecting dancer, however, managed to evade the situation when none other than Charlie stepped out of the way just in time.
"Hey, Maxie, what're you doin-" he began, however, was abruptly cut off.
"Not now, Charlie," she sighed, dialling a number into the mobile device, not even looking up from it to see the boy, "Go away, please. Thanks."
Poor Charlie couldn't even get a word in protest before whoever was on the other end of the line picked up, causing Maxie to launch into conversation.
"Greetings from Hawaii!" the familiar voice of her younger cousin, Tara, chimed across the line, making Maxie smile ever so slightly.
Shrugging, the girl simply explained, "I call Tara because, not only does it get Miss Kate off my back for however long, it just feels like we haven't chatted in a while and I miss her. Don't tell her I said that, though."
With a chuckle, Max responded, "I thought you were in Miami?"
"Yeah, well, I just had a Hawaiian pizza and I felt like embodying the summer holiday vibe," Tara responded as seriously as she could, "Don't kill the vibe, Max. You don't wanna be a vibe-killer."
"No, no, I don't," she laughed, however, she suddenly caught a glimpse of Kate's shadow in the doorway so decided to change the subject, "Anyway, I thought I'd just check up on you. How's life? How's your mum? How's dance going? Do you still wanna move here? Any luck on the whole getting a dog thing?" she rambled on in hopes of boring her studio head into leaving.
Tara, who had no idea why her cousin had even called her in the first place, let alone why she was bombarding her with questions, cleared her throat before attempting to both remember the questions asked and answer them, "Well, life's pretty boring at the minute, my mum's actually doing a lot better since we last spoke, I've finally learned how to do a standing back-tuck, yep anything's better than Miami, and nope the neighbour is still allergic."
"Sucks," Max sighed, "But congrats on your back-tuck."
"Yeah, thanks," Tara smiled in response. Not that Maxie could see her, obviously, but the way she said it indicated no trace of her usual sarcasm, "So why did you really call me?"
Taken aback as to how the girl had figured her out so quickly, Maxie tried to backtrack, "What do you mean? Am I not allowed to call my favourite cousin to see how she's doing?"
"Maxie, I'm your only cousin."
"My statement still stands."
"And no, because, as much as you hate to admit it, you're a very stubborn person. Meaning, you wouldn't ever 'chat' with me unless I initiated the conversation first. So, what is it?"
It was true, what Tara had said, but Maxie didn't feel like telling her the real reason why she called, 'cause that would mean she'd have to tell her why she wouldn't do the solo, and that would just make Tara feel worse for asking, so, instead, she decided to pull a fast one on her to try and get out of it.
"Okay, so," she began, however, stopped herself mid-sentence and began making some odd hissing-crackling noise, "Oh no, you're cutting out," she lied straight through her teeth.
"I didn't even say anythin-" Tara began, however, was then cut off once more by the sound of Maxie's bad reception impersonation, followed by the girl hanging up on her.
Maxie looked overly proud of herself as she patted her shoulder, "Managed to evade two conversations," she grinned at the camera, "All in a day's work, I'd say."
‧₊˚✩彡
Maxie stood beside West discussing the choreo for their upcoming duet audition, however, the conversation seemed to be about anything but dance before Kate walked into the studio.
"All right!" the woman called out, clapping her hands together, "Have we all decided who's going to audition for duets?"
"These auditions are so important," Kate stressed, "If we don't choose the best duet partners, we won't have any chance at Nationals."
Giselle and Amanda walked to stand next to each other as the ginger announced, "We are," with a grin spread on both of their faces.
"Great."
"So are we," Max nodded whilst West wrapped an arm around her shoulders, sheepish grins on their faces as they stepped forward.
Miss Kate seemed confused, "But I thought you said-"
"No you didn't," Maxie immediately shut her down, "You didn't think anything."
"Right..."
"Um..." Riley spoke up, pulling the attention to herself, "Me and James have a duet," she began and was swiftly joined by a panting James, who had just run from the rehearsal space with Beth.
Nodding, he iterated, "Duet, duet, yeah."
"Awesome," Kate grinned.
Hunter then stepped forward with a hopeful look on his features, "Michelle and I are going to be doing a duet as well," he proclaimed, making Maxie furrow her brows.
"Michelle and Hunter?" the Brit asked confusedly, "Don't get me wrong, they're both great people, but... Michelle and Hunter? Michunter? What happened to Micheldon? Abit suspicious if I do say so myself."
"I've kinda decided to do the solo instead," Michelle spoke up from beside Maxie, her words seeming apologetic in a way, however, it didn't stop the look of disappointment spreading onto Hunter's face. And the look of bemusement from spreading onto Maxie's, "I just... It's too much."
With a huff, Hunter spoke, "I can't believe Michelle backed out of the duet. I'm so upset right now."
"I guess Hunter isn't as cool as he thinks he is," Eldon smirked.
"Hunter was never cool," Maxie sighed, "And neither is Eldon. I'm a bit embarrassed with Michelle's taste in guys but Eldon's my mate so I'll allow it... for now."
As if she had only just remembered, Kate perked up, "Oh, that's right! We have Michelle and Chloe auditioning for the female solo," she told the group, not failing to send Maxie a look, "And Daniel and Eldon auditioning for the male solo. So, is there anyone else who'd like to audition?"
Out of nowhere, Emily then spoke up, "Miss Kate?"
"Yes."
"There's one more duet to add to the list. Hunter and I," she grinned, prompting a shocked-looking Hunter to join the blonde at her side.
With an awkward nod, Kate chuckled slightly, "Okay! Great, I'm looking forward to that."
‧₊˚✩彡
The dancers had forty-eight hours to come up with choreo for their duet/solos and the day to audition had finally come. They each stood in a line, stretching and waiting for their turn to be called up.
"Right now, we're just stretching, warming up and getting ready for the duet and solo auditions," Riley explained nonchalantly.
Kate and Phoebe made their way over to the far left of the room before the blonde called out, "All right, you guys, let's do this! Duets auditions! Here we go!" she cheered as the studio began to applaud.
After a few minutes, the group separated so each dancer was stood with their partner before Phoebe yelled, "Alright! Let's see Amanda and Giselle!"
Everyone gave applause for the pair whilst they made their way into the start positions on the floor; the pair of them looked uncertain, yet ready to perform.
'Hurricane' began [playing over the speakers as the two girls began their dance: all worries and fears seemed to have been shaken off as soon as they started moving to the music.
"I'm kind of intrigued to see this," Maxie told the camera, "I mean, Amanda's still new to the studio and her dance style is quite different to Giselle's in a way that she's more technicality, whilst Ellie is more 'go with the flow'," she spoke, trying to mimic her friend's Canadian accent terribly.
Amanda seemed to show little emotion to the camera as she explained, "I'm actually kind of nervous to perform our duet, just because I've never worked with Giselle before, but, it would be awesome to work with her at Nationals."
On the other hand, Giselle held a proud smile, "I think Amanda and I have a really big chance of getting this duet. I mean, Eldon and Michelle aren't doing it, and I think we have as big of a chance as anybody else," she shrugged.
Soon enough, the dance was over and the others were once again applauding the two, or they had done a better job than anyone had expected. Maxie and West, however, seemed to be just as apprehensive as they rose from their seats, knowing that they were up next.
After sharing a handshake with both Eldon and James and then giving each other a short, but sweet, hug for luck, the due took the floor just as 'Hurricane' began playing once again.
"I'm so glad I got the opportunity to dance with West again," Maxie began, a grin gracing her lips, before quickly snapping out of it "I mean, obviously we have a strong platonic bond and I think it's portrayed really well through the dance."
Kate looked quite impressed as she told the camera, "They're amazing dance partners. They share the same ability when it comes to tricks and hip-hop, and Maxie even brings out a different contemporary style that we don't usually see West perform voluntarily."
James shuddered, "The number of times they looked into each other's eyes in that dance was sickening. I mean, get together already, it's not that hard."
"I love dancing with Maxie," West admitted, "It's such a great feeling when you're able to just bounce off each other's energies and really feel the music. Overall, I'm pretty confident that we might have a chance of getting the duet"
Their fellow dancers cheered for them when the music finally came to a close, signalling it was time for the next duet. After Kate had announced that Emily and Hunter were due for their turn, the others clapped whilst the, seemingly odd, pair took their positions just as the music started.
Emily was the one to talk as she said, "We worked really hard and... And we had a really good time and I think the dance is pretty good, so we might have a shot. Who knows?"
As the pair were dancing, Maxie couldn't help but notice the almost disappointed look on Michelle's face, yet couldn't even begin to create assumptions, for as soon as they began, the dance was over and it was James and Riley's turn.
"I am a little nervous about me and James's duet," Riley began, "I mean, I want to be able to dance with him at Nationals so bad and... I don't know, I just really want this."
James elaborated, "Our duet is about our relationship. I mean, it's a very passionate dance."
"You know, it's basically a hurricane of love, really," Riley added, "And, in some ways, love can be so crazy and out of control, but then in other ways, it can kind of just fit together and work."
Soon enough, the dance was over and, once again, applause echoed around the room, making the dancers in the middle blush slightly at the attention.
"You guys..." Kate started, looking around at all the pairings that had just auditioned, knowing it would be a tough choice, "You guys have outdone yourselves, ho-ly. Okay, well that's it for duets! Shall we move onto solos?"
Almost immediately, the woman's sister responded, "Yes."
"We would love to see Miss Chloe!" the woman called out, causing the dancer to make her way into the middle to begin her piece.
'All I Can Do' began to play as Chloe's body started flowing to the music.
"I put a lot of my favourite and best moves in it, and it's really who I am," she told the camera, a sense of sentimentality lacing her words, "It would mean a lot to me to get this solo. I do feel really nervous going up against Michelle because she's obviously great, but... it's good to have some friendly competition," Chloe grinned.
Next up for a solo was Daniel, one of the two boys going up for the Male Soloist position.
The boy shrugged, "My solo is going really well, my turns are looking great, and I feel like my style's improved a lot from before I was injured."
"Daniel's dancing awesome," Eldon admitted, awestruck, "He's looking so solid, as usual. That could be a problem for me, but I'm also confident in myself that I can make this happen."
After Daniel came Michelle, who, even though she didn't initially want the female solo, seemed to be giving it her all.
"Even though the solo wasn't my first choice," the blonde began, "I'm still trying really hard and still wanting it."
Eldon looked a little less energetic as he said, "When I'm watching Michelle dance, it just... It really makes me sad inside, because she's such an amazing dancer, and she's such an amazing girl. And it just makes me ache for her."
Finally, it was Eldon's turn to audition and, with the added pressure of Hunter watching him, seemed to be pushing himself for the spot.
"As I'm dancing, I just, the more I think about the dance battle, the harder I dance," he proclaimed, "The more it makes me want to improve. I don't know, I can't explain it, it's just this feeling I get, and I just start dancing my heart out."
Maxie looked both concerned and impressed as she spoke, "I have no clue what's gotten into Eldon, but there is no way he isn't getting that solo."
Michelle added, "I love watching him dance and it reminds me why I like him. It kinda makes me wish that I was dancing with him."
"You guys!" Kate exclaimed once Eldon had finished and the applause had died down, "It's- I can't believe it. You get better and better every year. You're blowing us away. We must be good teachers or something, I don' know!" she joked, making the others chuckle.
"Or something," Maxie shrugged, causing the group, including Kate and Phoebe, to laugh further.
Brushing off the, hopefully joking, insult, Kate continued, "Right, thank you, Maxie, for that. Now, Phoebe and I are going to make this very, very tough decision. We'll be back in a few minutes - good job," she finished, whilst Phoebe bowed, before walking back into the office.
Almost immediately, West, Maxie, Eldon and James came together to give each other supportive handshakes: the latter noticing how Maxie and West once again blushed slightly when going in for a 'well done' hug and sharing a look that said more than words could.
Cutting the little moment off, Maxie's attention was pulled to her phone when her alarm started going off. The sound of her own voice yelling 'Tell James to stop slacking off and go rehearse' chimed through the studio, making the other dancers nearby laugh as James himself gave Maxie a scowl.
"Well, you heard the phone," Max shrugged, slapping James on the arm playfully, "Get back to rehearsal."
Nostrils flared, James looked like he was about to rip the girl's head off, however, decided to remain calm. Completely ignoring the other three snickering under their breath, he made his way over to his girlfriend to let her know he was off before heading back to the rehearsal studio.
"Honestly," James began hesitantly, "I don't really wanna rehearse with Beth, but it's something I got to do and Maxie even downloaded her own little app to help me get it done."
On the other hand, Maxie looked highly chuffed with herself as she held up her phone, displaying the app James was talking about, "It's so cool," she exclaimed giddily, "I mean, yeah, I had to pay four dollars ninety-nine for it, but it lets you set alarms with your own custom message! How mind-blowing is that?"
"It's not that mind-blowing," James sighed.
‧₊˚✩彡
A little under half an hour had passed and once again, A-Troupe were waiting for the results with high hopes and rattling nerves.
Riley looked apprehensive as she told the camera, "Right now, we're all waiting to find out who got the duet and who got the solos."
"Looks like we've made a decision," Kate announced after she and her sister had taken their position in front of the dancers.
West subconsciously held Maxie's hand in excitement as they waited for the results to be read out. It's not like she minded anyways, and it's not like she let go, either.
"All right," Phoebe began, "First, we'll start with the boys. Our male soloist is going to be... Eldon," she stated, making the others applaud their friend for his achievement.
"James is right," the blonde boy spoke simply, "This is exactly what I needed to get my confidence back. Now I just need to focus on Nationals."
Daniel didn't seem as impressed, "Honestly, when Eldon gets the solo, I'm pretty upset. Everyone thinks that Eldon's the best dancer and they only view me as the hurt one, and I'm tired of people having the wrong perception."
Swiftly moving on, Kate told the group, "Now, the female soloist was a very tough decision. Chloe, you came in a very close second. We're going to give the solo to Michelle," she announced as everyone applauded once again for their new female soloist.
"I don't regret auditioning for the solo," Chloe declared, "Because it really made me believe in myself and made me more confident, and I'm really happy that I did."
"Chloe was great," Michelle smiled humbly, before continuing, "But I felt amazing when I was dancing. I just wish I could've done the duet with Eldon. But it's okay, though, I mean... solo's fine, too."
Finally, attention was pulled back to Miss Kate as she announced, "And the duet... Riley and James," she told the group, making them burst into applause once again.
Riley was the first to express, "I'm so relieved! I can't believe me and James actually got the duet. I mean, we worked really hard for this and I think we deserve it."
Shrugging, Maxie added, "I don't mind, really. I mean, if anyone deserves that duet, it's Riley and James. Or should I say... Jiley," she smirked.
"Now, we're going to hold auditions for the small group next week," Kate continued, "Good job, guys, you were great."
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A/N
ugh omg finally hello how are you.
finished my actual d of e bronze and let me just say that was a whirlwind of emotions, like, i'm pretty sure m group got lost about seven times on day one and then got chased by cows twice.
i'm so tired rn so have a nice day/night wherever you are!
stay safe <33