Another day, another dance class. Another pyramid.
"This weekend we were on in Providence, Rhode Island. An hour outside of Boston. Some of the most prestigious dance studios in the country are there. Tough schools, tough competitors. And you really held your own. You won that victory cup. You killed it. I'm very proud," Miss Abby started, and we all clapped. "I'm very proud of every one of you. And you know I don't say that too often. I just wanted to say that I was very impressed with Max's acting skills, I was shocked. Well done. I'm also very proud that all the moms kept their mouths shut and didn't say anything to me. See how much nicer it is when everything goes so smoothly? It's wonderful. Now if only the moms could learn to be team players like their daughters, then we'd be in business."
Miss Abby liked my acting. That made me very happy.
"Now let's talk about this week's competition," Miss Abby spoke, turning the chalkboard around.
𝙈𝙖𝙙𝙙𝙞𝙚
𝘾𝙝𝙡𝙤𝙚 𝘽𝙧𝙤𝙤𝙠𝙚 𝙋𝙖𝙞𝙜𝙚 𝙉𝙞𝙖
𝙈𝙖𝙭 𝙈𝙖𝙘𝙠𝙚𝙣𝙯𝙞𝙚 𝙑𝙞𝙫𝙞-𝘼𝙣𝙣𝙚
"We are going to...what?" Miss Abby asked, pointing to the writing on the board.
"StarPower!" we all yelled.
"It's at the Mohegan Sun in Connecticut. And it's a resort. It's all self-contained. We can't forget anything. So we will have a wardrobe for each day that they are going to be there. Just like the old school days. Yes? And you will pack here in front of me, so that I know that you have everything. Let's talk about the board. First of all, everybody work together as a team. That teamwork is going to help you at nationals. That's what going to put you over the top. Teamwork and technique. Those are the two things that we're going to concentrate on this week. Moms, we're doing another new number. One more costume. This week I'm going to ask you to work harder than you've ever worked before. We need to show up and walk in there like we own the place. And I will give you a pack list for clothes for the trip. And I want them dressed a certain way every single day we are there. Does everyone understand that? Yes? Moms, thank you very much. Ladies, let's get up. Let's go," Miss Abby finished.
Kenzie, Vivi and I left the studio since we weren't in the new group number.
"Max, Mackenzie, Matt needs you for class," Gia said, popping her head in. We followed her out, leaving Vivi alone in the den.
"Hi girls, we were just getting started," Matt stated as we entered. I went to stand next to my friends.
"You didn't miss anything good," Kylie whispered. I nodded.
"When will we see what Josie got?" I asked.
"Later," she replied, and we focused our attention on the class.
-
Later, we all had a ballet class with Miss Abby. Kenzie, Vivi and I were using the outside bars while the other girls were in the middle.
"Push through. Tighten the abs. Stronger arm, stronger arm, stronger arm," Miss Abby said, slapping Maddie's arm. "Passé. Your ribs are open, derrière is up. Tighten it, tighten it. No squishy."
"I hate ballet," Paige sighed when the class was over.
"Same, it's so annoying," Maddie stated, packing up her dance bag.
"There are so many better styles of dance," Nia added, and they all agreed.
"Yeah, like acro," Brooke said.
"Or lyrical," Maddie spoke.
"All of the above," I stated.
•Four days to competition•
We were all in Studio A, watching Maddie rehearse her new solo called 'Angel.' It was a beautiful lyrical routine.
-
During class, Mommy came in and said that Minister Dawn was back. Miss Abby went to talk with her, and we all know how that went last time.
The rest of the day was the usual. Maddie had a tap private, Kenzie had a jazz class. I was meeting up with my friends to see what Josie got.
"You're not ready for this," Josie insisted once we all arrived. "It is the most magnificent, beautiful, glorious, stunning, breathtakingly gorgeous-"
"Just show us," Stella snapped, and Josie gave her a look before pulling something out of her back pocket.
"I present you...a fake phone!" Josie exclaimed.
"My sister has one of those. Her's is pink," I stated. "What's so special about it?"
"Look at the back," she smirked, flipping it over. It was signed by Justin Bieber. Stella and Kayla went nuts. Jack, Kylie and I shared a look. They get it.
"I want one!"
"Where did you get it?"
"Who cares?"
"My stuffed animals are having a party in many minutes. I have to go," Kylie insisted.
"You don't care about my Justin Bieber signed fake phone?" Josie questioned in shock.
"No," she replied.
"Whatever. You don't deserve to be here," Josie sassed.
"My Aunt Cheryl is waiting outside," Jack insisted.
"Then go. Stop ruining the moment," Josie stated, and the three of us left.
"They are crazy," Kylie spoke.
"Tell me about it. My sisters are obsessed," I ranted.
"So are mine," Jack said as we went our separate ways.
•Three days to competition•
We were back at the studio, and Miss Abby came into the den. I was sitting next to Maddie and Kenzie.
"Okay, ladies, this is your pack list for the competition," Miss Abby said, handing each of us a list. "Now, I didn't get into too much detail, since you guys go away all the time. Cathy, the reason we do this is so it's easy for me to find the kids. When I'm traveling with children, and I need to get them quickly, I want to take photos, somebody shows up, and then they all look good for my program book."
"I'm all about themes, but these little themed outfits are just for the children," Cathy nodded.
"Oh, no, no, no, they're for everyone attending," Miss Abby spoke.
"Hold the phone for just a moment, because we've already went shopping and we've bought some fabulous clothes, and I'm seeing here 'Black-and-White Nighttime,' and I'm going to assume that you're talking about banquets. And I have a fabulous fuchsia formal that I'm going to be wearing, and she has green," Cathy insisted. "You do remember that I am not a team player, and we will be packing at home. And what we pack is what we're bringing. This may not be totally conductive."
"Do not make your child an outcast," Miss Abby demanded.
"Oh, we would love for Vivi to blend, but the reason why we're here is to stand out," Cathy spoke. Miss Abby ignored her.
"Alright, everybody understands? Yes? Mothers, I have your word? Cathy?" Miss Abby questioned.
"Oh. Well, I'll have to think about it," Cathy told her.
-
We were packing up our things to leave, talking about Cathy.
"Why can't she just follow the list?" Nia asked, putting on her jacket.
"She wants her 'precious Vivi' to stand out," Paige stated.
"Well, if she doesn't do it, Miss Abby will be mad. And that'll make our lives harder," Chloe said.
"Miss Abby is already angry enough, she doesn't need any more anger," Brooke smirked.
"Okay Max, Kenz, let's go," Maddie instructed, leading us out.
"I don't like Cathy. Vivi is nice though," Kenzie told us as we walked to the car.
"Really? Vivi seems kind of annoying," Maddie shrugged, throwing her bag in the trunk.
"I like her. She dances funny," I stated, and Kenzie agreed.
"Max, that's not very nice. She's a great dancer," Mommy insisted. The three of us laughed.
•Two days to competition•
Everyone agreed to go to dance, (me and Kenz, Maddie always wants to go) so we were on time.
The girls had a group rehearsal, so Kenzie and I were in the den.
We were coloring in her Mickey Mouse coloring book when the door opened. Kylie walked in, looking very tired.
"Class was hard," she sighed, plopping down next to me.
"I can tell," Kenzie joked. "Wanna color?"
"Yes," she replied, grabbing a blue crayon and coloring the sky.
"You're bad," I told her, and she threw the crayon at me. I threw it right back.
"Mean," she said, crossing her arms.
"You started it," I shrugged, and she couldn't hold back her smile.
"I like your shorts," Kylie complimented.
"Yes, cause they're mine," Kenzie scoffed.
"You said I could wear them," I told her. She didn't say anything. Kylie was confused.
-
A few hours later, Miss Abby came into the den holding a bunch of costumes. The moms were also there.
"I have costumes!" Miss Abby sang, and we all cheered in excitement. "Alright, Nia, you're gonna put this on first, sweetie. Then put the pants and the crop top and everything else on after that. Chloe, this is you. Again, it's not what I drew. I should have sent the fabric..."
We all got our costumes and quickly went to change. Kenzie, Vivi and I were doing a trio called 'Summer Boy.' I love the costume.
"Girls. Brooke. Oh, we're not too bad," Miss Abby said, calling us out.
"Oh, my God. You girls look so cute!" Mommy exclaimed as we showed her our outfits.
We all had white polka dots with a black background. Kenzie had a blue outline, Vivi had a pink outline, and I had a yellow outline.
"Do you guys like it?" Mommy asked us, and we nodded.
"I love it!" Kenzie yelled.
Holly wasn't happy with Nia's. I'm not sure why, I was mainly focusing on my costume.
"We look so cute!" Kenzie exclaimed, grabbing my hands to dance with me. We danced together, and Mommy started videoing.
"Aww, my babies are growing up so fast!" Mommy exclaimed, pretending to cry. "My little M&M's!"
"Mommy don't cry," I said, hugging her waist. Not even, I was too short.
"Awe, I'm not crying. But thank you," Mommy smiled, picking me up.
"Hey, what about me!" Kenzie yelled. Mommy chuckled, picking her up as well.
"Wow, you girls are getting so big!" Mommy spoke, barely holding onto us.
"We're big girls!" I exclaimed, and they both agreed.
•Competition day•
We all woke up bright and early for competition. I forgot to charge my iPad last night, so it was almost dead.
"Girls, come get your breakfast!" Mommy shouted, and Kenzie and I ran downstairs. I was staring. There were three bowls of cereal on the counter.
"Yummy," I said, mouth-full of cereal.
"Where's your sister?" Mommy asked, putting the cereal box away. We shrugged.
A few minutes later, Maddie came running down the stairs holding a bunch of books.
"You'll never guess what I just found," Maddie started, dropping the books on the counter and flipping through the first one. "So, I was looking through these books, doing research for a school project. I came across this dancer, Kym, Herjavec, and it wrote that she-"
"Oh, gotta get the laundry," Mommy spoke. A timer went off, signalling the laundry was ready. She left the room without another word.
"But what about-" she was already gone. Maddie turned to face us, and we immediately walked away. I heard her groan in annoyance, and we giggled as we ran away.
-
We arrived at the studio a little early, so we waited in the car for a bit.
"Can I please put on Justin Bieber? It's been so long!" Maddie insisted.
"No, let me play my music!" Mommy exclaimed, putting on old people music that nobody cares about.
"No," I stated.
"No? You don't want me to play my music?" she questioned, looking back at me. I shook my head.
"We always listen to their stupid Bubble Guppies and you're boring adult music. I need my Bieber time!" Maddie insisted.
"You always blast it in your room," I spoke.
"So? There's no such thing as too much Justin," Maddie argued.
"Yes there is," I said.
"No there's not," Kenzie added.
"Okay, enough arguing, it's time to go," Mommy said once the bus arrived.
All of the girls started pulling in, and we shoved all of our makeup cases in the bus and began boarding. Cameras were set up and ready to film.
I sat in the back with Paige.
"I'm tired," I stated as the bus started moving. She agreed. Miss Abby started yelling at the bus driver again.
"Mackenzie?" Miss Abby called, taking attendance.
"Here."
"Maddie?"
"Here."
"Max?"
"Here."
-
Miss Abby fell asleep with her mouth open. She looked very funny. Paige nudged my shoulder.
"Look, I have a pack of gummi worms. Let's put one in her mouth," Paige suggested, and I agreed. She ran over to her and plopped it in her mouth, quickly evacuating while giggling. Everybody watched, trying to contain their laughs.
Miss Abby woke up, catching the gummi worm that fell out of her mouth.
"I thought you like Gummi Worms," Paige joked, and we all laughed. I gave her a high-five.
"Do you like My Little Pony?" I asked the blonde when we sat down again.
"Um, of course. I love it!" Paige exclaimed, closing her laptop. "Damnit. It just died."
"Do you wanna watch My Little Pony with me?" I questioned, and she nodded. "Kenzie!"
"What?" she called, looking back at me. She was sitting with Clara.
"Can I have your iPad? Mine is dead," I stated, and she climbed out of her seat and walked over to us. She handed me her iPad. "Thank you."
"Don't break it," she demanded, going back to her seat. I turned it on and started playing the show, placing it in front of both of us.
-
After a few more hours on the bus, we finally arrived at the competition. I returned Kenzie's iPad to her, in the same condition that I got it in.
We got off of the bus, grabbed our makeup cases and made our way inside the building.
"Girls, you have to go change into your pink outfits," Mommy said, handing us what we picked out at home.
"Come on, Max. Let's go," Maddie said, grabbing my hand. "You too, Kenz."
She led us to the bathroom, where we each went into our own stalls. It took me a long time to put on my outfit. I tried my very best.
When I eventually finished, I stepped out of the stall.
"Rock those sunglasses!" Maddie exclaimed, taking Kenzie and I's hands and leaving the bathroom. "Let me put the bows in your hair."
I stood still as Maddie took the hair bows from my hand and wrapped them around my pigtails.
Mommy made me take off the sunglasses. At least I had the pretty bracelet.
We unpacked in the dressing room, ready for the crazy day ahead of us.
"Moms, they're running 30 minutes ahead. So get the makeup on as quickly as possible, so that we have time to run this number. That's more important," Miss Abby instructed. Kenzie and I sat in the corner, playing on her iPad. Mommy got straight to work on Maddie.
Miss Abby started talking with the girls once they were all ready for the group dance.
We went to the audience to watch and support the girls.
"Please help me welcome 'Make You Mine.' Number 128," the EMCEE stated, and the girls took the stage. They each had a black chair.
Slip my lace on, put on my makeup
Slap the little shoes on to get my groove on
Put some purple Chanel on with a little lip gloss
To knock your socks off so we can get it on
I'm gonna make you mine
"Why is she so far stage left?" Miss Abby asked. Nia was standing on her chair very far away from the girls.
They did amazing, I was very happy for them.
We were all gathered back into the dressing room so Miss Abby could talk to us.
"Girls, I'm talking to you right now because I'm disappointed. Maddie, now, why were you crying?" Miss Abby asked.
"I got hurt a little," she replied.
"You got hurt a little?" Miss Abby questioned. She nodded. "What happened?"
"When I jumped off my chair, I twisted my ankle," she explained.
"Okay," Miss Abby said.
The girls went back to getting ready, and Kenzie and I kept playing on her iPad.
We went back to the audience for awards, and I wasn't sure what was gonna happen. Kenzie and I went onstage with the girls.
"Yeah, I said, how you guys doing out there? Let me hear you scream!" the announcer yelled, and the audience went crazy. "Only four-tenths of a point separate first from third. Third place is, 'Gratitude,' number 124. Your second place world champion today is, 'Make You Mine,' number 128."
The group number got second. I was sad for them.
"Name of your studio, and who's the choreographer?" the announcer asked.
"Abby Lee Dance Company," Paige replied.
"Take a bow girls."
We went back to the dressing room to get ready for the solos.
We didn't stay there very long, since we had to go back to the audience to watch Maddie. I was on Mommy's lap while Kenzie was next to us.
Maddie was doing her solo 'Angel.' I love this dance, it's so pretty. Maddie looks so pretty doing it. This solo is dedicated to my grandmother Babcha, who's watching from Heaven.
We went back to the dressing room, and everything was getting ready for their solos.
"Okay girls, let's get going. It's almost time for your trio!" Mommy exclaimed, grabbing our hands.
The three of us went backstage and waited to be called on.
"If you would please put your hands together as they perform 'Summer Boy,'" the EMCEE announced, and we ran onstage.
Summer seems to go so fast
I guess the good times never last
We finished the routine, and I thought we did a good job. Kenzie and I ran off to go find Mommy, leaving Vivi on her own.
We eventually found her, and she engulfed us in a hug.
"You guys did so good, I'm so proud of you!" Mommy told us.
We went back to the audience to watch the other solos.
Brooke's was next, and she did amazing. Her solo was called 'Beautiful Dangerous.'
Then Paige, and she did great. Her solo was entitled 'Hot List.'
Next was Chloe, and she was flawless. Her solo was 'Different Bodies.'
All of the girls did great, they looked so pretty on stage.
Our trio received 4 stars, which I was proud of. That's a good score.
"For the title of Petite Miss here at Mohegan Sun, Maddie Ziegler," the EMCEE announced. "Congratulations to you, Maddie."
She got a huge trophy, bigger than she was!
"My God, Maddie!" Mommy laughed in shock, running over to her when we left the theatre. "Congratulations!"
Miss Abby pulled Maddie into a hug when Mommy was done.
We went back to the audience to watch Nia's solo.
"I'm excited," Kenzie told me, and I agreed.
"They Call Me Laquifa," the EMCEE announced, and Nia entered the stage. We clapped and cheered. She did great.
We went back to the dressing room, packed up our belongings, and headed back do the resort.
"I just got a text from the other moms. All of the girls are at the pool. Do you guys wanna go down?" Mommy asked, and Maddie immediately said yes.
"I'll go change now!" Maddie exclaimed, running to grab her swimsuit.
"I want to go too!" Kenzie yelled, grabbing my hand and dragging me to the suitcase. We grabbed our swimsuits and waited for Maddie to leave the bathroom.
Kenzie went in next, and I waited on the bed with my iPad.
"What do you think?" Kenzie questioned, revealing her swimwear.
"You look adorable, sweetheart," Mommy replied, kissing her cheek. I went into the bathroom and began getting changed.
I couldn't figure out how to get it on, so I called for Mommy.
"Mommy! Help me!" I shouted, and she barged into the bathroom.
"What's wrong? Are you okay?" she frantically asked. When she noticed I was fine, she calmed down.
"Help me put it on," I stated, and she helped me.
"Alright, you girls ready to go?" Mommy questioned, and we made our way to the pool.
When we got there, everyone was already in the water. They were all so happy to see us, mostly Maddie.
She threw off her street clothes and wasted no time jumping into the pool, getting Kenzie and I wet.
I struggled to take my shirt off, but after a few unsuccessful attempts, I finally did. I pulled down my shorts and kicked off my sandals, revealing my unicorn one piece.
"Come in!" Paige yelled, holding Chloe on her back.
Kenzie climbed in from the stairs, dunking her head in the water. She shook it on all of the girls, and they laughed.
I sat at the edge of the pool, feeling uneasy about swimming. I can't swim.
"Max, you coming in?" Nia asked, and I shook my head.
"She can't swim," Maddie told her.
"That's okay, we'll teach you!" Chloe exclaimed from on top of Paige. Brooke shoved her shoulder, sending her tumbling down into the water.
"Jump in and I'll catch you," Brooks instructed, but I was still scared. "Don't worry, I won't drop you."
I stood up, preparing myself for what was about to happen. I jumped, feeling the cold water smack against my skin. I felt two arms wrap around my small body. When I looked up, I saw Brooke tightly holding onto me.
"See? Told you," she said, moving me around to get more comfortable. "Can you try doggy paddling?"
"I will try," I told her, and she let go. I started moving my arms and legs, doing the doggy paddle. I did it, I was swimming! All of the girls cheered.
I started getting tired, so I stopped moving. It was then that I realized I couldn't touch the ground, and I didn't know how to stay afloat, so I started going down. I couldn't breathe. I started flailing my arms and legs, splashing the water everywhere.
As I continued to panic, I felt like 15 pairs of arms grab onto me. They brought me back to the surface, and I let out a much needed gasp before I started hysterically coughing.
"Get her out of the water, get her to the edge!" I heard Brooke yell, and before I knew it, I was sitting at the edge of the pool. I kept coughing my butt off, trying to calm down.
"Are you okay?"
"What kind of question is that? Of course she isn't!"
I felt another two arms warp around me, lifting me up off of the ground. It was Mommy.
Tears were steaming down my face at this point, I was scared out of my mind.
"Shh, it's okay, you're okay," Mommy told me, placing me on her lap as I cried. "Everything's okay, baby, you're fine."
After a few minutes, I finally calmed down. I stopped crying, laying on top of Mommy. My breathing slowed down, and before it, I felt myself beginning to doze off.