Talia had avoided the dancers to no end when she came back to Keaton. The school had accepted her back with open arms into the music course and for the past couple of weeks of catching up, it was a pain in the behind.
Bianca was solidly her new best friend. They never left each others side. Jax was lovely, willing to help the girl with her music, Miles helping too and although Talia made an effort to try talk to Alya, the blonde brushed her to the side, ignoring any chances to get to know the girl.
"What's with all the notebooks?" Talia questioned as she and Bianca were strutting down the halls, like they owned it. Their eyes landed on Julia Maslany and Miles kissing in the hall, "We get it, you're in love. Go away."
Miles broke away from his session with his girlfriend, "You want a bit of me, Tal?"
Talia smiled slying, "Only if that bit of you can go fu-"
"Hey!" Bianca cut her off, "You got a blue notebook?" She had stopped at her locker, raising hers so it was near her face, "Come on, Tee, we haven't got all day."
Talia rushed to her locker, waving goodbye to Miles, Julie and Bianca, "I've got a blue one Bee!" She shouted down the hallway after she reached her locker, "What the hell is going on with this school?"
***
Chaos was going on in the school. There was thirteen people sat in the main dance studio plus Ms Helsweel which just brought back odd memories for the girl and she noticed Vanessa sitting down.
They were the only two of the OG group.
"I kissed your brother." Was the first thing that came out of Vanessa's mouth, "I kissed your brother and I'm sorry but now he's not talking to me."
This was the first time in a couple weeks they had spoken to each other, "Why do boys keep doing that?!" Talia exclaimed, knowing what Vee was going through, "Want me to punch him? I can, I will, I will totally do it. I mean, I don't even need to know a reason to do it, I'll just do it." It rambled out of Talia's mouth as Bianca sat next to her.
"Gosh, I've missed you, Tee."
"The more perceptive of you may have guessed that the books on your locker are colour co-ordinated for a reason." Ms Helsweel gave a death stare to the guy at the end of the bench they all sat on, Talia only just noticing that he was holding a red notebook. He quickly left, being on the receiving end of one of Helsweel's glares would do that, "Look around. The people around you are your collaborators for the next few weeks in which time you will produce an interpretive performance of your story to marries dance, music, drama and visual artistry," Talia's heart dropped, "You will be graded by a panel of teachers that includes me. Blue group, your story is that of the steadfast tin soldier."
"The who what now?" Talia mumbled to Bianca, who just gave her a look and a nudge to shut up, "Sorry, cranky pants."
"Google it." Helsweel was definitely done with the whole generation that sat in front of her.
She left.
"So..." Bianca started, turning to Talia and Vanessa, "She's terrifying. You never told me she was terrifying."
Talia turned to her, "That's the only thing I've ever told you Banks." Both girls cringed, "I just heard what I said, lets not comment."
Vanessa decided to save them, "You have no idea how terrifying she is until she's yelling at you to get better turn out."
"Or to point your toes."
"Or to jump higher."
"Or to stop talking to her son cause you're distracting him from becoming an amazing performer and then you kiss him and he stops talking to you so it doesn't matter because the teacher from hell gets what she wants when he doesn't acknowledge your existence and your left wondering if you didn't lean up and kiss when in your hospital bed, would you still be friends or would have slipped on the eggs shells you were treading on around him?"
The two girls looked at Talia in disbelief, "What on earth, Talia?"
She shrugged, "Did I not mention that?" She did an awkward laugh, "Oops."
They all stood up, introducing themselves, "Bianca."
"Vanessa."
"Alya."
"You all know me, so imma not say my name." Talia finger shot the three, two of the laughing at the sheer awkwardness of the girl, Alya just not finding it funny.
"Nice to meet you." Vanessa said to both girls.
*"I'm so glad I get along with most these people."*
"This the tin soldier group."
*"I hate this place."*
The two made eye contact, the first time since he left in hospital. And Talia felt an anger rise in her that she'd never felt before.
***
*"I'm fuming. I'm vexed. I've gone past angry. I am so past angry, not angry cowers in my presence."*
"I remember this story." Vanessa's cheery face made Talia feel a little better, "The boy has a broken toy tin soldier who falls in love with a paper ballerina."
Talia looked at everyone, all of them seeming to remember the fairytale, "I've never heard of it."
"What fairytale did you have?" Bianca asked, knowing that the girl hadn't even of many fairytales.
"Bella Venezia, Don Joseph Pear or my favourite, Puss In Boots." Talia smiled.
Vanessa looked at her, "You're family is so weird."
Alya seemed to not care about anything that came out of anyone's mouth at that point, trying to get everyone back on track, "Well, doesn't he think she'd broken too? 'Cause she only stand on one leg?"
"That sounds about right. And there's this manipulative jack in the box that tries to keep them apart."
Bianca smirked, loving it already, "Sounds juicy."
Vanessa just embodied everything Talia wasn't at the time, "In the end their love was so strong, they combined to form a tin heart."
Talia pointed at Vanessa, "Okay, that doesn't make any sense."
"And a talking cat does?" Bianca questioned her.
"Hey! Puss is more than a talking cat! He is an assassin, a fourth musketeer, a hero!"
Everyone chuckled, loving how the girl was right now, those who knew her never really seeing her this confident in a room full of people she didn't know. It was refreshing, "Well, the casting seems obvious."
"Fine! I'll play the ballerina!" Beckett joked, everyone laughing at him, Talia just frowning in response.
Bianca looked at Talia, "You'll do it right? It's perfect!"
Talia's eyes widened, "Uh, no! I'm not allowed to dance." That wasn't entirely true, "I can't- I-"
"Bish bosh, Tee." Vanessa cut her off, "You're dancing"
She wasn't even given time to argue her case before they moved on, "You can borrow my tutu." Beckett tried to joke with her, but Talia wasn't having it.
*"Sorry, are you speaking to me or the person behind me because frankly, you can shove your attempt of trying to speak to me up my perky-"*
"Thanks." She deadpanned, not looking at the boy, making him frown.
"Don't be brokenhearted about it," Bianca started, "You can be the tin soldier."
Hell no.
"Seems more like the jack in the box." Talia mumbled, but it wasn't mumbled quite of quietly as she wanted.
"Oh, salty." A girl in a hat piped up.
Vanessa chimed in, hoping to take the pressure off Talia, "I just think we're being too literally about this. I mean, the two able dancers in the group play the leads? Shouldn't our performance be interpretive?"
Bianca wasn't thinking of what was going on in her best friends head, "Do you have any better ideas?"
"I could whack my head with a locker door?" Talia offered, "No?"
"Um, puppets?" Vanessa then counter offered.
Alya took lead, "Okay, everybody in favour with Talia and Beckett taking the leads?" Everyone, including Beckett, rose their hands, leaving Vanessa and Talia to look at each other in worry, "Great, then lets get to it." She strummed a chord on her guitar.
*"I'm going to choke her with the strings." Talia spoke. glaring into the camera, "It's not funny! Stop laughing!"*
The discussion taking place was cut off by a vibrating sound, "Oh! Give me a sec?" Talia questioned, grabbing the ringing phone, "Trevor? Oh thank god!" Her phone call was the muffled by the door closing. Beckett was no longer able to hear the conversation, but his frown was visible enough for people to notice as he stared after her.
*Beckett looked heartbroken, "I done messed up sis."*
***
The choreography was going great, if you took into consideration that Talia and Beckett hadn't looked at each other the entire time Vanessa had been choreographing them. "It might help if you guys look at each other."
It was insane, how their hearts were going 110 mph as they looked at each other, neither willing to make the first move in case something happened and they released their true feelings for one another, although they both knew.
Beckett was the first to step forward, lifting the ballerina up in the air, "Ouch, you're hurting me." Talia grimaced as he held her wrong.
"Sorry." Beckett quickly put her down, "You okay?"
She finally looked at him. Properly looked at him and sneered, "Like you care." His face dropped as they carried on dancing, "Let's just remain professional, yea?"
He spun her around before pulling her really close so her face was near his chest, their eyes meeting in something passionate. It took a minute for Beckett to realise what had happened and quickly walked (ran) out the room, bag in tow.
"That soldier isn't exactly steadfast." Hat girl commented.
"Yea, well, he's just doing what he does best. Avoiding the problem."
"Is he coming back?" Bianca questioned.
Vanessa looked between Bianca and Talia, who just carried on dancing, "Don't hold your breath."
***
Bianca was on a rant, Talia frankly not caring a jot and she texted Trevor and Cody on their groupchat.
Trevor
I swear, if you send another dat boi meme again, Cody, I'm going to ruin your tap shoes.
Cody
Don't you dare Zac! I mean Trevor!
Talia
You guys are dorks. Hope Abbey Hill isn't this nerdy without me.
Trevor
Don't be bitter, cause I'm fitter
Talia
Did you just Six the musical me?
Trevor
"Talia! Pay attention!" Alya called out, "Why don't you go find Beckett?" She was actually being sincere, "With all due respect to Fred Astaire over there." Talia looked behind her, noticing the said boy practising a dance move with Vanessa, "We need Beckett back."
"So he can bail again? That's his move now."
Alya looked confused at Talia's words, "How is bailing a move?"
*"It's a move when you bail on projects, dance partners, or girls after you kiss them."*
"It's just what he does. Can we not speak about this anymore?"
Alya's face dropped into shock, "Oh my god, you guys had a thing."
"We did not have a thing!" Talia whisper exclaimed, "No things, no tings, no anything. Just regular things. ZERO. Thanks."
"Okay."
It was not okay because Alya didn't believe it for a second. Talia rose from where she sat, "I'm going to go grab a snack, anyone want anything?"
A snack.
Vanessa smiled.
***
Talia spotted Beckett under a tree when she was walking back to the dance room, a reese's peanut butter cup hanging out her mouth, "Jesus." She stomped over there, "Get your ass back in that room Beckett. I don't care. I don't care if you don't like me. I don't care if I upset you. I don't care if I stole your first kiss or something and that's why your acting this way. What I do care about is my grade, and passing this year because frankly, I have better things to do with my time then contemplate what if."
"Tally-"
"No!" Talia rose her voice, "You've ignored me for the last, how many months? If you want to dance professionally, there's gonna be times where feelings get felt."
"Sure." Beckett sassed, his angry building up now, "But it-"
Talia sent him a death glare, "I'm not finished. You don't talk to me anymore, I don't talk to you. We do this assignment, we go our separate ways when it's done and luckily for you, I'm no longer in dance unless you already noticed with your packed schedule of ignoring me."
She was done, Beckett finally getting to put his word in, "I can't do that. I can't do the dance."
Talia scoffed, "Then you're gonna have to come up with another solution cuz as much as I hate to admit it, you're a better dancer than Fred Astaire."
"I'm pretty much certain that's not true."
"You get what I mean!" She exclaimed, getting fed up with everything, "We need you back in the group because it's an interdisciplinary project and I don't know if you've noticed, but my head starts going cuckoo when I dance." Beckett stood up, his height towering over Talia, "What? What now?"
Beckett looked down at her, "I didn't leave the group because I don't like you. It's that I like you too much."
That was the wrong thing to say because Talia exploded, "I SPENT ALL DAY TRYING TO PUT MY BAGGAGE ASIDE SO WE COULD WORK AND YOU JUST DROP THIS ON ME?! WHAT THE HELL BECKETT?!"
*"He scoffed." Talia was shocked, "He had to audacity to scoff!"*
"I bounced around a lot, okay? City to city. It's hard to get close to people and when I let myself, someone's always leaving. And it's usually me."
He expected that to work, for Talia to understand what he was feeling, "Congratulations. You're consistant."
"I'm trying to apologise here."
"Well, I don't need an apology. I need a dancer." With that, the girl took of, taking the last bite out of her chocolate as she walked across the grass.
***
"ALYA!" Talia was still in a rage, "Let's do this." She looked at the musician who she was going to be dancing with, "You ready?" He stood up, coming to her side, "You're gonna be fantastic Sweetie."
He apologised, "Again, I've never really danced before."
"I talk, you listen." She showed him the moves, Vanessa chiming in for Talia to add something, "So this is where thing get a little complicated." She turned away, "You're going to extend your arms like this-" And she turned to face him again, except it was someone taller, "Jesus! What are you doing?"
Beckett shrugged, "You need a dancer. Here I am."
"I think Fred was doing just fine."
"I think he might be a better option." Fred pointed at Beckett.
Talia narrowed her eyes at him, "I think I said, I talk, you listen, Fred."
Beckett chuckled, stepping forward and starting the dance with Talia, their eyes barely leaving each other for more than a few seconds. Alya started strumming along, everyone captivated by the choreography, but even more so the chemistry.
*"Uh oh." Vanessa looked into the camera, "I know that look."*
*"I'm screwed."*
"We cool?"
"Yea... We're cool."
*"I AM NOT COOL!"*