Fly With You - TNS Season 7

chapter 10

It was Monday, which meant it was time to present our duet to Nick and Emily. And boy, was I scared. Other than auditions, which didn't really count anyways, this was the first time I was going to be graded against other dancers on the team. Richelle and I had to win this. 

Speaking of Richelle, she'd arrived at rehearsal last night with Piper, chatting enthusiastically. Which was nice, but also weird. I hadn't really ever seen the two of them interact, let alone get along. But when Richelle had spotted me, she'd given me a shy smile. It had reassured me. I believed what she'd said earlier that day - we really were friends. 

Last night's rehearsal had actually gone well. I'd been on my guard for drama between Kingston and Heath, but they hadn't so much as looked at one another. I assumed, from the little context that I had, that Kingston had won the argument. 

But now it was show time. Nick clapped his hands excitedly. "Who wants to volunteer to go first?" 

Ozzy waved his hand frantically. "Jude and I would be honored." 

"Alright, alright! Let's hear it for Ozzy and Jude." A smattering of applause circled around Studio A as the two took their positions on the dance floor. 

*

The music started, and I recognized it instantly - My Turn. A flood of memories came rushing back to me, and I had to focus all my energy on watching the dance.

Jude and Ozzy's duet was good. Really good. True to their word, it was almost all contemporary, but there was a small hip hop section, and some amazing acro tricks thrown in there. There were also a few lifts, which were impressive, but I hoped that Lena and I would be able to outshine them with our own. 

Once they'd finished performing, we all clapped, and Emily ushered them over to give a couple of notes. Nick stepped forwards. "Who's next?" 

"Uh, Cleo and I would like to go," Summer said softly, and Nick shot her a thumbs up, stepping back to allow them to begin their dance. Once again, I knew the song - this time it was Fire With Fire. It was a good choice, and I felt like it matched Summer and Cleo's reverse personalities perfectly. 

They began the dance facing away from each other, at opposite ends of the room. They circled around each other, their expressions angry, and I was worried that they hadn't actually choreographed a duet and were still mad at each other. But as the dance went on, it seemed their initial rage was a part of it. 

What stood out was their use of a piece of ribbon, which they introduced towards the start of the dance, looping one end of it around one of their wrists each. No matter how hard they tried to pull away, they couldn't escape one another, and were forced to cooperate. As the dance went on, their expressions brightened, and they began to sync up with their choreo. When the song was over, I noticed that they discarded the ribbon, but still kept dancing together. 

I clapped loudly when they finished. Their dance was really clever - the story behind it definitely reflected the partnership. I was really impressed by Cleo and Summer. They were the ones to beat, so far. 

"Next we'll have... Piper and Finn?" Nick announced.

Their duet was good, too. I didn't recognize the song, but it was lyrical and slow and beautiful, and they had some incredible lifts, not to mention their electric chemistry together. 

After that, it was time for Dylan and Henry's duet. I noticed Lena fiddle with her braids worriedly, and I couldn't blame her. It had seemed like there was some bad blood between these two. The music started up - an upbeat hip-hop song - and the two boys went from standing at the side of their room with their hands jammed in their pockets to mid-air in an insane series of backflips in a mere matter of seconds. Someone from the other side of the room wolf-whistled loudly.