In honor of Step Up 5: All In (and because there aren't a whole lot of Moose and Camille stories) I present, "How To Fall In Love With Your Best Friend"
A series of one-shots based on the relationship of my favorite Step Up couple.
Disclaimer: I do not own the Step Up series (If I did, I would have made Moose and Camille the main couple of Step Up 5.)
Anyway, enjoy!
I won't dance. Don't ask me.
I won't dance. Don't ask me.
I won't dance, Madame, with you.
My heart won't let my feet do things they should do.
"I Won't Dance" By. Fred Astaire
Moose watches from his seat on the floor, head bobbing along to the beat of a random song coming from his I-pod, as students begin to leave. He watches with slight envy as they walk out the door, talking about exciting plans they had with their already formed cliques. He lets out a sigh.
School had started 2 months ago and he still hadn't made any friends. He wasn't sure where or who he fit in with exactly. And all the other kids just stayed away from the charismatic and care-free, curly haired young man. They deemed him weird because of his unique nickname and geeky exterior. But he didn't take it hard. In his opinion, they were the ones missing out on his awesomeness.
Even though class was over, Moose decided to stay behind. His mom was working late, so he had a good half n hour until she came to pick him up. And staying in here was better than having to wait out front awkwardly as students passed him.
His eyes are closed as he lets himself get lost in the music. The door slamming open breaks him from his trance and his eyes snap open. The person responsible for it was a girl. As Moose gets a good look at her, he could tell she was different from the other girls that occupied the halls of MSA.
She was dressed in a dark purple t-shirt that slipped off her shoulder with a white camisole underneath, along with grey sweatpants that were rolled up to her calves. It was a stark contrast to the tights and leotards that he has seen in most of the dance classes being held here. Her hair was in two pigtails; not the traditional bun or pushed back with a headband. On her feet were a pair a hi tops; very similar to the ones Moose had on. A scowl is present on her face as she lets out a huff.
He takes out his ear-buds when he sees her lips moving; thinking she was kicking him out. But she hasn't seemed to notice his presence, too occupied with mumbling under her breath. "Stupid assignment. I'd like to see her come up with something in less than two days." She tosses her bag to the ground, kneeling to rummage through it.
When she turns around, her eyes widen in surprise, as she spots him. He gives a slight awkward wave, not sure what to say. Her face turns a slight red, "Oh. Hi," she looks around in embarrassment, running a hand up and down her arm. "I didn't know anybody was in here."
"It's cool," he shrugs. "I wasn't really doing anything important. If you need me to, I'll leave." He gets up, reaching for his bag but she stops him.
"No, no. You're fine. Besides, you were here first. If anything, I should leave."
"Well, you came in here for a reason, so." He tries to think of something to say. Finally, he questions, "What's got you so stressed out?"
She rolls her eyes as she thinks back to what had made her annoyed in the first place. "My dance teacher wants me to come up with a dance."
"That's usually what dance teachers do," Moose comments with a chuckle.
"Yeah, well," she heads toward the stereo, placing a CD into it as she continues ranting. "I just started here like a week ago, and I'm expected to figure out a whole routine to an assigned song by Friday. It's ridiculous."
"Man, that sucks."
"Tell me about it," she mumbles. Camille couldn't believe Ms. Garish was being so unreasonable. It wasn't her fault she had to start school so late. That blame could be put on the school's acceptance committee. They were the ones who took their sweet time in deciding if she belonged here or not.
A curious voice rings out, "What song?"
The questions brings her out of her thoughts. "Excuse me?"
Moose clarifies, "What's the song you have to dance to?"
"Oh, it's this real old one. You probably never heard of it."
She pushes play on the stereo and Moose recognizes it. "I Won't Dance" by Fred Astaire. He was familiar with the song because his Baba forced him to dance to it when he went to visit his grandparents in L.A. last Summer.
As he approaches, her hands go to her hips and she looks as if she's trying to imagine steps in her mind.
Moose rubs a hand over the back of his hand in nervousness. "I could help you?" His offer comes out more like a question.
She turns at this, surprised. "Really?"
"Yeah," he nods with a grin.
"Thanks," she smiles sincerely. Walking a little closer to him, she looks a little relieved. "You're the first person here who has actually been nice."
"Yeah, the people here aren't exactly known for their friendly attitudes." He retells one of his experiences, "My first day here, I asked a kid where stage lighting was being held, he told me to go back to the Shire."
She comments with a serious expression, "People really suck sometimes."
Moose chuckles and holds out his hand, which she takes gratefully. He then asks,"So, mystery dance partner, what's your name?"
"Camille."
"Camille," he repeats, testing the name out on his tongue. "Well Camille, I'm Robert Alexander the III. But you can call me Moose."
"Moose?" Camille wonders with a quizzical look. "Why Moose?"
He spins her out, before spinning her back in. "Why not?" Her laugh makes him grin. She had a nice laugh. "You don't have to call me that though, if you don't want to."
Camille just smiles. "I like it. It suits you." He can't stop the grin that forms on his face.
"You're presentation is gonna be really boring if all you do is this," he states after a minute of their simple watlz.
"Yeah, I know." Her eyes shut in frustration. "I just can't think of what would work."
Moose comes up with an idea. "How about we shake it up a bit? That is if you can handle my moves," he speaks with a false air of confidence.
"I think the real question is," she retorts as she lets go of his hands and spins, "can you keep up with me?"
He raises his eyebrows at her comeback. She was witty and confident. Oh, he liked this girl.
He backs away from her and she eyes him expectantly. "Alright. How about this?" He begins to do a simple tap dance, trying to start off easy. When he finishes, he turns his head to her.
"Pu-lease. That's kid stuff. " She repeats his exact movements with ease and he's impressed; so he tries another move.
Soon, they are dancing completely in sync. It's like they could read each other's minds; they knew where to move and what to do, without using words.
As the song comes to a close, he spins her back to himself and dips her. Her head falls back as she laughs, and he lifts her back to a standing position.
They look at each other, breathing heavily after the impromptu battle.
"You're amazing," Moose marvels with a shocked expression. "I didn't think a tiny thing like you, could move like that."
Glaring at him playfully, she smiles. "I'll take that as a compliment." As she takes a seat on the floor in exhaustion, he follows suit. "And you're pretty awesome too."
Camille lays down, her knees bent as she stares up at the ceiling. "This is the most fun I've had since I got to this school," she confides in a soft voice.
"Me too," he admits. He lays down beside her, his hands folded and resting on his stomach.
After a few minutes of silence, he speaks up, "No offense, but, you don't seem like the kind of girl who would go here."
Camille's eyes open as she turns her head to look at him. "What do you mean?"
"You know. The rich, stuck up, doesn't think of anyone but herself type."
Camille sits up on her elbows, her head tilting in a curious manner, she asks, "Well, what type of girl am I?"
Moose ponders for a second before answering. "You're more like the street dancing, basketball and video game playing, really fun to hang out, with kind of girl."
He had just described her perfectly and she's in slight shock. But she plays it cool, speaking in a teasing tone, "And how did you come up with that?"
Moose shrugs, his explanation simply, "It's the vibe you give off. "
"Well, I could say the same for you." She gestures to his appearance with a chuckle. "You don't look like you could even tap your foot to a beat, but your moves are sic."
"Well, you know," he says cockily, "I try," as he pops his collar.
Camille gives him a funny look, eyes squinting and a small smile playing on her lips. "You're not like most people are you?"
"Is that a bad thing?"
She shakes her head, "No. It's just, most people here act so much alike." She tells him honestly, "It's nice to talk to someone who's actually being themselves."
"Well, that's good. Cause if you didn't want me to be myself, I don't think we could be friends."
Camille glances up at this with raised brows. "Friends?" Moose sees that she seems surprised at his words, so he tries to clarify.
"Yeah, you know, friends. Amigos, pals, best buds, chums, mates, two peas-in-a pod," he stops and stares at her, "Do you get it now? Cause I'm running out of other names."
She rolls her eyes and punches his arm lightly, making him chuckle. "I know what you meant. It's just, I didn't think anyone here would want to be my friend. Like you said," she picks at her nails as she speaks insecurely, "I'm not exactly the type of girl to go here."
Moose gestures between the himself and her, excitedly,"That's exactly why we should be friends. We're two outcasts who have found each other against all odds," he announces in a deep voice as if he were the narrator of a comic book. "Destined to break the mold of what is expected from all the stereotypical students who roam these halls."
She snorts,"You are such a dork." But he knows she's kidding because of the smile on her face.
"Yeah well, how about this dork takes you to get some ice-cream?" He gets up, looking down at her. "My mom should be here and she'd be happy to drive us."
Camille ponders for a second before standing up. "I'm in." Slinging her bag over her shoulder she adds, "As long as I can get mint chocolate chip."
He places an arm around her shoulder. "You know what?" As he leads the slightly shorter brunette out of the room, he states with a grin,"I think this is the start of a beautiful friendship."
And there you have it, chapter 1. I hope you guys liked it. Reviews are appreciated and they help keep me motivated. Chapter 2 should be up in a few days. Thank you for taking time to read this.