Track Fifteen
No One's POV
A few days later.
Tour rehearsals start ramping up for Beautiful Chaos.
Group chat buzzing. Fittings. Choreo. Travel meetings.
Daniela's busy in a way that feels bigger than just "work.
" You're in sessions constantly, too. Both of you are stretched.
One of you try to not think too much about it while the other tries to pull away before it can become an issue.
Daniela sent a small, somewhat vulnerable text.
She obviously means, don't worry. Don't think I'm pulling away. But what does your head tell you?
She's preparing to detach.
And how do you reply?
You: I get it, i'm proud. it's fine, do what you gotta do.
Which, at first glance, seems regular. Reasonable.
But emotionally? It's flat. Dani stares at it.
To her, "it's fine" feels distant. But she doesn't push.
Conversations between you too, then don't consist of much.
Instead of "come over," it's "i'm exhausted but i miss you.
" Instead of your usual late night calls or falling asleep on the phone, it then turns into, "i cant tonight, i have early rehearsal and glam tomorrow. "
And you understand you genuinely do, but you've seen how shit like this turns. At first, either you both or one of you is busy, and then it falls apart. You start to feel the distance in the very quiet moments. Until one night, you have a conversation that seems to fuck it all up.
She calls you from rehearsal. Still in glam, hair pulled back, eyeliner slightly smudged.
You're in the studio again.
"You eating?" she asks first.
"Yeah," you lie.
She narrows her eyes through the screen. "You're lying." You smirk. "Okay maybe not yet." She sighs. "See? This is what I mean." "What?"
"You disappear into work when you're stressed."
"I'm not stressed."
"You've been quieter."
That lands. You lean back in your chair. "You've been busy."
"I told you I would be." "I know."
"But?" There it is. You hesitate just a second too long.
She catches it.
"But nothing," you say. "You're about to go on tour. That's huge. I'm not trying to compete with that." Her expression softens. "You're not competing."
"I just don't wanna feel like... something you fit in between soundcheck and choreography."
The honesty surprises both of you.
She sits down somewhere in the rehearsal space, suddenly serious.
"You're not in between anything. I'm trying to build something with you. And also build my career. Those don't cancel each other out."
You nod. But something in you still tightens.
Because you've seen this before.
People get busy.
Things fade.
Nobody means to disappear.
They just do.
Over the next week, you text less first. You respond — but slower. You stop sending the random "thinking about you" messages. Not out of anger. Out of protection. Daniela notices.
At first, she tells herself, they'rejust working.
Then she notices:You don't ask about rehearsal details anymore. You don't tease her about tour outfits. You don't say "proud of you" unprompted. It's small. But it's different. So, who does she tell? The girls.
Daniela's POV
It doesn't happen in one dramatic confession. It builds. One night in the hotel they're staying at. Manon says to her, "You're checking your phone a lot." Daniela shrugs. "No I'm not." "You are."Sophia chimes in gently. "Did something happen?"
Daniela sighs. "No. That's the thing. Nothing happened." "Which means something happened," Megan mutters. Daniela sits down.
"They're not mean. They're not distant-distant. They just... keep puling back when I get busy."
Manon doesn't jump to conclusions. She listens.
"How much of that is them? And how much of that is you needing reassurance?" she asks carefully. Daniela frowns. "What does that mean?"
"It means you've been talking about them like they're your peace. Your calm. Your safe space." Manon pauses. "Just don't romanticize potential."
That line doesn't hit as criticism.
It hits as a warning.
Because Daniela realizes...She has been building them into something steady in her head. But they're still new.
And now the distance makes her question:
Was it calm?
Or was it just quiet before reality?
Your POV
Malcolm's in the studio, he and now Steve Lacy. Malcolm introduced you two, and you've been with them a lot more lately, so they've been getting to know you and vice versa.
"Thought you didn't do the relationship thing." Malcolm says You shrug. "I don't." "But you're smiling at your phone like you do." You don't answer.
Later that night, Daniela texts
Dani: Rehearsals went so well today. They're adding a dance break moment for Gnarly. It looks like it's gonna be great.
You read it. You are proud. You type: That's dope. You almost add: I'm proud of you.
But you don't.
Because your brain whispers:
Don't get too invested. She's about to be on the road. You send the short version instead. She stares at it."That's dope."That's it. That's when she feels it.
Later that night, she calls.
Not angry. Just careful.
"Are you pulling away?" she asks quietly. You freeze. "No." "You are."
"I'm not disappearing."
"I didn't say disappearing," she replies gently. "I said pulling away."
Silence. She continues. "I know I'm busy. I know the tour is about to be crazy. But if you need reassurance, just say that. Don't start protecting yourself from something I'm not even doing."
That hits hard. You run a hand over your face.
"It's not you," you admit. "It's patterns. People get busy. I get replaced by whatever's louder in their life." Her voice softens immediately. "I'm not replacing you with choreography." A tiny laugh escapes you. "I just don't know how to stay steady when things shift."
She responds without hesitation: "Then learn with me. Don't step back before I push you."
And that statement? That's the shift.
Because she's not accusing.
She's inviting.
Daniela's POV
A few days later, after another minor, distant exchange, Daniela tells Manon:
"I think they're scared."
Manon nods. "Then don't carry both your fears."
Daniela blinks. "What?" "You can reassure them. But you can't stabilize them if they decide to leave." That one lingers.
Not toxic.
Not dramatic.Just real.
But where does this leave you two?
Not broken.Not perfectly secure.Just... aware. You're trying not to disappear. She's trying not to romanticize too fast.Tour is starting.
Distance is real. But neither of you slammed a door shut. And that tension? You're both unsure of what it is but what you do know. It feels human. Which is somehow better than nothing.