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PHOEBE SAT AT the piano as Carlos taught Ricky and Nini the dance for the curtain call. She glanced over to Clara, who was sitting near the entrance on her phone while eating Twizzlers.
"I'm kinda lost," Ricky admitted as he walked next to Nini and Carlos. "If the, uh, plays over, why would we still be dancing?"
"It's a curtain call," Carlos explained. "You're the last two to come out. We want to bring the audience to their feet."
"Teach them the dance," Ricky retorted.
"Carlos?" Nini was very clearly annoyed with Ricky. "Can we just wait until Miss Jenn gets here?"
"Miss Jenn is busy tracking down a prop," Carlos denied, shaking his head. "She's asked me to create a crescendo, people. So let's stop swirling and start twirling."
"But why are we practicing the bows when we haven't even practiced the play?" Ricky wondered.
"Because you start with the hardest dance that takes the longest to learn," Carlos told him. "It's in The Big Book of Broadway."
"Page 374," Gina, the girl playing Taylor, and Carlos finished together.
Carlos turned towards her and raised his hand for a high-five. "Okay, people. Let's take it from, um, three counts of eight, right before Troy and Gabriella's entrance for the bows." Phoebe watched everyone get into places. "A five, six, seven, eight."
Phoebe started playing, glancing away from the piano to look at the dancers every once in a while. It was going pretty smoothly until it reached Ricky and Nini's part. Ricky didn't know the steps, and Phoebe cringed as she watched him stumble, reminding her slightly of Finn from Glee. Phoebe's hands left the keys as soon as everyone stopped dancing.
"I'm sorry," Ricky apologized.
Nini looked at Carlos and extended her arm out to Ricky. "What is he doing?"
"Why are you talking to him?" Ricky questioned, motioning to Carlos before himself. "I'm right here."
"'Cause you're not here," Nini answered. "At least not for the right reasons."
"What's that supposed to mean?"
"Exactly what I said, Ricky," Nini replied. "You hate musicals. You're only doing this so we'd be in each other's grills."
"Back to the dance, please," Carlos tried to calmly instruct.
"Now you're rubbing some weird cologne on your neck," Nini went on.
