Chapter Eleven
Carly
Monday after school is our first dance practice.
I’m super excited because I spent the whole weekend choreographing the perfect routine.
Addie has already learned some of it and she loves it and can’t wait for me to share it with the rest of the team.
Some of the moves are a little difficult, but I have faith in our dancers.
Coach Moreno wanted us to have our practices three or four times a week, but a competition is coming up in two weeks and there’s no way we’ll be ready with only a handful of practices.
So we’ll be meeting after school every day this week and next week.
There’s also a football game this Friday and we’re set to perform during halftime.
It will be our first performance ever, which is so nerve-wracking but exhilarating, too.
When I enter the gym after classes are over, I find Addie already there doing stretches.
We squeal when we see each other and throw our arms around each other.
I know, I know, we saw each other many times today, but neither of us can help it.
We love each other and the rest of our friends so much and are so thankful for our friendship.
Especially Addie, since she doesn’t have many people she’s close to.
Her parents are no longer alive and she’s not as tight with her old friends as she used to be.
As for me, I know what it’s like to not have any friends, so the fact that I have such close ones makes me feel like the luckiest person on earth.
“So exciting, isn’t it?” she says as she continues to stretch. “I can’t wait to see the team’s expression when you show them the routine. It’ll be both terrifying and mind-blowing.”
“Me, too,” I say as I join her in stretching. “I just hope we’ll be ready in time for the competition. And there’s also our performance at the game…”
She places her hand on my arm. “Don’t stress. It’ll be okay. I know the team will work hard and we’ll be ready for the game and the competition. With you as the choreographer, we’re sure to kick lots of butt.”
I release a breath and fling my arms around her, thanking her for her reassuring words. I’m so glad Addie is here. She definitely knows how to keep me sane.
“Hi,” a nervous voice says.
Pulling out of the hug, I turn around and see Naya standing there with an anxious expression.
Her dark hair is pulled into a bun and she’s wearing her gym clothes, just like Addie and me.
Coach Moreno told me we’ll have to order our uniforms right away or we’ll have no choice but to wear our gym clothes to the competition. How mortifying would that be?
Naya looks around at the empty gym. “Am I early?”
“Nah, you’re perfect,” I tell her. “Better to be punctual than late, right? You can start your stretches.”
“Okay.” She joins us and does just that.
“I’m so happy about the team,” she says with a shy smile.
“I was part of the dance team in middle school, but we weren’t any good.
Kids cared more about clothes and popularity and their social standing, and boys of course.
” She lifts her shoulders. “I want to be a professional dancer.”
“That’s cool!” I say. “I want to be a professional dancer or a choreographer.”
“But I’m sure your mom is supportive. My mom wants me to take over the business. We own a chain of beauty stores.”
“Well, my mom is definitely supportive. My dad is, too, but he’s too practical for his own good. He’s worried I won’t make it out there and wants me to have a backup plan. That’s why he’s always on my case about raising my grades.”
“Oh, that sucks. Parents suck sometimes.”
I glance at Addie and find her swallowing as she stretches. It must be so hard for her to hear kids take their parents for granted when she’ll never see hers again. I change the subject and say, “So who’s excited to perform at the game this Friday?”
Neither of them has a chance to respond because there’s a commotion at the entrance to the gym.
It seems that Ryder Bennett has decided to grace us with his presence, along with a crowd of girls.
Well, he’s early—I’ll give him that. I recognize most of the girls because they tried out for the team last week, but they didn’t make the cut.
“Hey, do you know Ryder?” Naya asks.
“You can say that,” I mumble.
“My roommate told me he was trying very hard to convince her to try out for the team. I think he really wanted it to happen.”
“Or he wanted to impress someone,” Addie teases.
I give her a face before gently shoving her shoulder. “As if.”
“Are you and him together?” Naya asks me with huge eyes. “You’d look really cute as a couple.”
“Agreed,” Addie tells her with a smile.
“Will you stop?” I hiss at her. “Have you forgotten that I hate his guts?”
“Absolutely not.” She rolls her eyes. “How could anyone forget that when you mention it like every five seconds?”
“I do not .”
“You do, too .”
“Hey, are we talking about me?” Ryder’s voice says. When I snap my head to the left, I find him standing right next to us. He glances from me, to Addie, to Naya, but he keeps his gaze mostly on me.
“Did you hear your name mentioned?” I ask him.
“No.”
“Then why do you assume we’re talking about you?”
“Because you get this expression on your face whenever you talk about me,” he says. “Or when you’re ticked off at me. Well, whenever I’m pretty much in the same vicinity as you.”
“I don’t get any expression,” I mutter.
“You definitely do,” he says with a light chuckle. “Honestly? It makes me feel special.”
“Glad to hear it.”
“She’s cute when she’s mad, isn’t she?” Ryder says to Addie. “Well, you’re cute all the time,” he clarifies as his eyes settle back on me. “But you’re extra cute when you’re ticked off.”
“Is that why you’re ruining my life?” I demand.
He winks. “Can’t tell you all my secrets.”
More and more dancers arrive, and then Coach Moreno walks in. She seems very excited to be here, as do the rest of the dancers. There’s a charge in the air that I didn’t feel during the tryouts. That gives me hope that we can turn this team into the best it can be.
“As you all do your stretches, I want you to vote for a captain,” Coach Moreno announces.
“Carly Simmons was our temporary captain because this whole idea was hers, but everyone should have a say on who they want as their captain. We can wait a few days if you guys want to get to know each other better, but I would like someone chosen within the next few days.”
Ryder raises his hand. “Why can’t Carly remain captain?”
Addie nods.
“She can,” Coach Moreno says. “But it was her idea to put it to a vote. She didn’t want to push herself on anyone.”
“The dance team was her idea,” Naya says in a quiet voice. “We wouldn’t be here if not for her.”
“Agreed,” Addie says. “And she worked really hard on the choreography. No one is as dedicated as her. I think she’ll be the best captain in the world.”
Ryder raises his hand again. “I couldn’t agree more.”
More members of the team nod as well.
Every part of me fills with warmth. It feels really good to be appreciated. The fact that Ryder is part of the appreciation party makes my insides fill with nothing but confusion, but I don’t have time to try to make sense of it now. He could be trying to mess with me somehow.
Coach Moreno smiles. “Wonderful. Now that the matter is taken care of, there’s also the topic of choosing a dance uniform.
But we’ll deal with it after practice. I want to get started right away so we can have something ready in time for this Friday’s game.
And the competition is only two weeks away.
If we’re not ready by then, we may not be able to compete. ”
“But then we might not qualify for nationals,” I say.
She nods. “That’s true. So let’s try our hardest to make this happen!”
We cheer and then spread out to the center of the gym. Coach Moreno gestures at me and says, “I heard you put together a routine.”
“Yeah.” I step forward and turn around to face everyone. “It’s okay if you guys don’t like it. We can try something else. Okay, here it is.”
The routine is about two minutes long. I like to incorporate all different kinds of dance styles into my routines, even moves that might be a little on the athletic side.
I’m not sure if the dancers are ready for this, though, and I just found out that Ryder hurt his leg during a football game and can’t play anymore.
He’s still recovering from his injury. Will he be able to do the routine?
When my eyes flit in his direction, I find him watching me with what looks like awe.
He’s seen me dance a million times, and he saw me dominate at the dance game.
But for some reason, he’s watching me like he’s never seen me dance like this before.
And that makes butterflies flap around in my stomach.
But I try to push all that away. There shouldn’t be a single butterfly in my stomach because Ryder watching me dance means nothing to me.
Maybe my dislike for him has dropped a tiny bit because of all he’s done for the team, but that doesn’t mean I want to be his best friend.
It’s like he said—he and I will be teammates. But that’s all.
When I’m done, I find every single member of the team gaping at me. Then they clap and cheer, a girl whistling.
“Oh my gosh, that was epic!”
“I can’t wait to learn it.”
“I don’t know if I can learn the moves. It looks so complicated.”
“How can we learn it all in just two weeks?”
I hold up my hands, my chest rising and falling as I try to catch my breath. “Hey, everyone!” I shout over the voices. “I know it might seem daunting, but I think we can do it. If not, we’ll pivot and try something else. But first, we need to try. We’re all here to support each other, right?”
Everyone cheers.
I look at Coach Moreno. “What do you think?”
“I love it,” she says. “Some of the moves might be a bit difficult, but let’s take it one step at a time.”