max ziegler | dance moms

Bullets and Ballet

My friends and I were gathered at our signature spot to come up with a plan to stop Nora.

"Where's Kayla?" Cam asked, noticing the missing girl. We all shrugged in response.

"Last week, Nora said she was gonna 'execute her plan.' What does that mean?" Jack questioned.

"Well, we don't know. We have to wait and see," Stella said. "Maybe she will poop all over the floor."

"Eww," we all said.

"Maybe she's gonna-"

Before Olivia could finish her sentence, Nora started walking over to us.

"Hello," she greeted, and we all looked at each other.

"Hi..." Jordan trailed off.

"It's been a while. Hello again, Max," Nora stated, looking over at me. I stayed silent. "Just thought I'd stop and say hi. Stella, are you and Jordan happy?"

They both exchanged a glance before looking back at Nora, confusion written all over their faces.

"Ew, I don't like him," Stella insisted.

"Me too. She's gross," Jordan said, stepping away from her.

"Oh," Nora spoke, pausing for a moment. "Well, I have a gift. For Stella."

She took out a rock from her pocket and threw it at her.

"Ow!" she exclaimed, grabbing her arm.

"What the frick?" Claire asked.

"That was for taking away Jordan. Bye," she smiled, walking away.

"What a weenie," Caleb stated as Maddie came running over.

"Max, we gotta to to Studio A for filming," she said, dragging me away.

"We will fill you in!" Kylie yelled, and I gave her a thumbs up.

"Fill you in on what?" Maddie questioned, and I shook my head.

"Nothing," I insisted.

"Ladies, let's go! Come on," Miss Abby said, and we all filed into the studio. "We have lots to go over. It's gonna be a busy, busy, busy week here. No coming late, no leaving early. Now...Texas. We had all these plans made to go to New Jersey. And then, at the last minute we had to completely flip it. There's a lot of dance companies in this country that would have said, 'Fine. We're not going.' And we didn't do that. We went, some great things happened, and some really bad thing happened. Now, this week, we're going to Hollywood Vibe right here in Pittsburgh. I want to see 100% from every single one of you. Remember, we're in our backyard. You have a target on your back. So do I. The group number is called 'Private Eyes.' I'm gonna arm you with a secret weapon. You're going to be using guns in your routine. When you step on that stage, I want you to kill it. Understood? You're gonna blow the competition away."

The moms were shocked, their mouths were literally hung open.

"Now we're gonna move onto the pyramid. Mackenzie, you went from first to worst in one routine. You always have to keep working. Max, you started the routine with lots of energy and excitement, but towards the end you looked tired, and all that energy was gone. You have to keep the energy and excitement going throughout the whole dance, not just at the beginning. Even if you're tired, don't show it. Nia, you had a pretty dance. I thought you did well, no problem. Kendall, I understand the costume was an issue. Jill, I'm sure you have something to say about it. But I'll tell you what, it doesn't matter what you wear. Ultimately, at the end of the day, it's your technique, and that's what you need to work on. Alright. Next...Maddie. Maddie, you could've been seriously injured. Get the pout off your face, Maddie. You know that you made that mistake, and that's what you get. So let that be a lesson to everybody. Don't change your mind in midair. Moving on...Chloe. Chloe, it was good, but obviously, not good enough. Next I have Brooke. Great performance, and then you forgot the ending. You didn't know what you were doing, and you just fizzled out. And on the top of the pyramid...Paige," Miss Abby spoke, revealing her headshot.