I'm Okay ➵ madison ziegler

Chapter 2

"Hurry up! Go! You need to be changed!" my mom instructed Mackenzie and I.

The two of us scurried to the bathroom to change into our dance clothes. As I walked into the bathroom, I realized I didn't bring any clothes.

"Something missing?" Kenzie smirked.

I decided to text Chloe.

Maddie: Do you have any extra dance clothes?

They must have been taking a break, because I got a response only a few minutes later:

Chloe: Duh, I always do!

Maddie: Okay! Can I use them?

Chloe: Yep! Come to the den.

Maddie: 'Kay.

I quickly dashed out of the bathroom and into the den. Sitting on one of the benches, Chloe was clutching a bundle of clothes in her hands. "Here's the extra clothes," she informed, holding out a sports bra and booty shorts.

"Thank you so much!" I thanked her.

"Now go! Shoo!" Chloe laughed.

I bolted back to the bathroom to change into Chloe's purple Lululemon sports bra and a pair of black booty shorts from Discount Dance. The clothes ended up to be a little baggy on me, considering Chloe is much taller than me, but they will work for wearing them to practice just one time.

I slipped on Chloe's dance shoes and headed back to the den. As I reached the door, I overheard Mackenzie asking, "Where's Maddie?"

"She's changing into my clothes. I'll probably never be wearing those again; Maddie always forgets to return things," Chloe replied.

"True. Maddie is super sluggish and forgetful," Mackenzie agreed.

"She's not even a decent dancer!" Chloe exclaimed.

"Tell me about it," Kenzie grumbled.

I slumped my back against the door and slid down so that I was hugging my knees. How could my best friend, my only friend, have said that?

After a few minutes, I realized that I had to arrive in the studio to practice.

I walked into the den and into the dance room. "Sorry I'm late, Miss Abby." I hung my head.

"This will not happen again, correct?" Miss Abby asked.

I nodded my head in reply.

"You need to catch up fast like your sister, if you can't, you're out of the dance," she explained.

"Okay." I nodded my head.

"Okay, girls! Let's get moving!" Abby shouted after our conversation was over. "From the top!"

Swifty, I darted to my spot: the back of the pyramid formation. Once the music began, we all danced the choreography that Abby created.

I heard Abby scream, "Maddie! Your plié needs to be lower on that prep!"

I nodded slightly and moved on to the next turning section. Right in the middle, I wobbled just the slightest bit and Abby yelled, "Am I going to have to pull you from the dance, Maddie? Fix your turns!"

At the end of the dance, Abby said, "Good job Chloe, Kenzie, and Kalani. Maddie and Nia, you need to work harder! Kendall, you were okay, but you could use a little work."

I miserably nodded, everything's my fault. All I wanted was a break from all this drama. Maybe a Netflix night would have cured it but no, I still had to be at dance.

We ran through the dance a few more times, while Abby still shouted critiques at me. While I was constantly trying to fix my mistakes, Abby was repeatedly finding more.

"You are free to go home now, but I want Maddie and Nia to work on the dance at home," Miss Abby instructed.

"Thank you!" we called in unison.

Mackenzie and I left the studio with Mom and headed home.

Once we finally made it home, I texted Chloe:

Maddie: I'll bring your clothes back tomorrow.

Chloe: Okay. Thanks.

Now that I think about it, Chloe hasn't always been a true friend to me. She never had sympathy for me, she didn't care if she beat me, and she never seeks to text me.

I haven't ever had a real friend.

"Maddie!" my mom called from downstairs.

"Yeah?" I answered.

"You need to work on the dance! Your sister is practicing in the studio downstairs, so you'll have to practice in your room."

Geez, has Mackenzie had enough yet? Why can't I just practice with her?

"Okay, I will," I called back.

Maddie: Hey. Could I practice the dance with you downstairs?

Mackenzie: No. I thought you knew that there's not enough room for two people to be dancing down here.

Maddie: Okay, nevermind then.

I've had enough of this drama, enough of this mess.

Instead of practicing the dance in my room like I was instructed to do, I grabbed a pair of scissors off of my desk, and I cut into my skin. Everything's my fault, I deserved to be punished.

Blood came rushing out and at first I didn't like it, but after it felt good. I kept cutting shallow scrapes into my skin until I heard footsteps advancing up the steps.

I seized a grey pullover sweater from my closet and pulled it on over my white undershirt.

My mom opened the door and questioned, "You're dancing in that?"

I glanced down at my shirt and answered, "Yeah, it's kind of cold in here."

"Okay," she responded as she rolled her eyes.

My mom shut the door and I laid on my bed. I hate Kenzie. I hate her, I hate her, I hate her. She always gets everything and she always has. She's always on top of the pyramid, gets a solo every week, and I get nothing. I've never been on top of the pyramid and I rarely have a solo.

I grabbed my phone out of my pocket and looked at my Instagram notifications.

Why is Maddie still on the show? I read. She can't even dance.

I decided not to look at my notifications. Scrolling through my feed, I found a single good caption on a photo about me: Maddie is my favorite dancer on the show! I wish I could be like her.

At least someone thinks I'm good at something.