This chapter is dedicated to "Janette Manrara" She was my all time favorite dancer from this year's real season five of "So You Think You Can Dance." She was just eliminated last Thursday (July 23) America is so stupid! (Pouts in a corner) I guess I shouldn't be too surprised, my favorites never win.
Anyway, onto the chapter, this chapter was written to "Love Again" By: Cascada
Chapter 9- Hurricane Skobel
POV-Bella
I was up with the dawn again the next day. I showered early and pulled on clean clothes for the day. We would no doubt be returning to pre-choreographed styles today and it was going to be ruthless. There were only 67 dancers left and only 20 spots open for the show.
Angela was still sleeping and I was attempting to brush out my wet hair when there was a soft knock on the door. I had a good idea about who it was but I peeked though the little eye hole on the door all the same.
Edward was standing in the hall waving at me. He was already dressed so I was assuming Emmett hadn't kicked him out today. I opened the door and let him slip past me.
"To what do I owe the pleasure?" I asked, as he sat down on the end of my bed.
"I thought you said I could come back if Emmett kicked me out?"
"It doesn't look like Emmett kicked you out." I said pointing out his fresh change of clothes. His hair was perfect and he looked ready to start the day.
Edward smirked at me and shrugged. "I thought I would save him the trouble."
It was only 5:30 and breakfast wouldn't even start until six. I sat on the edge of the bed and continued working my brush though my hair.
He motioned me closer and took my brush from me, running it gently through my hair. His hands worked quickly and he never pulled too hard. I was kind of surprised at how good he was at brushing long hair.
"What are you thinking?"
His question broke the comfortable silence we had been sitting in and I bit back a giggle.
"I was wondering where you learned to brush long hair."
I felt him shrug behind me. "Should this be difficult?"
"You seem to be pretty good at everything." I pointed out.
He chuckled. "You haven't seen me dance Hip-Hop yet, not a pretty sight."
"You can't dance Hip-Hop?"
He shook his head. "Not really. I've only ever tried it a few times, but I just couldn't seem to get it down."
"I have trouble believing that." I said honestly.
He finished with my hair and laid down next to me.
"What about you? There has to be one style you struggle with."
"Did you see my disco routine?" I asked sarcastically.
He nodded. "You were easily the best in your group."
"Yeah, right." I rolled my eyes and laid down next to him. Part of his bangs had fallen in front of his eyes and I had a strange urge to brush it out of his face.
He propped himself up on his side and the hair in his face fell to the side. "You don't believe me?"
"I've never done disco before. It couldn't have been that good."
"I didn't say your style was the best. You were just the best dancer on stage. It's very hard not to watch you when you dance. Everyone can tell you're having fun and that adds a layer of emotion to your dancing that most people don't have. It's almost enchanting."
I smiled up at him and didn't miss the pink tinge on the tops of his ears. I was making him blush now. I felt like doing a happy dance but I didn't want him to feel awkward about sharing his feeling with me. It was really sweet.
"Ballet."
He raised an eyebrow at me. "What about Ballet?"
"I can't dance Ballet, at all."
He chuckled. "I could have probably guessed that one. You seem to have enough trouble walking over flat surfaces."
I hit him in the shoulder and tried to scowl at him like I was mad. "Shut up."
He wasn't fooled. He laughed even harder and I decided to try pouting instead. I stuck out my bottom lip and gave him my sorry excuse for puppy eyes. He blanched and looked regretful. I couldn't have hoped for it to work any better.
"I'm sorry Bella."
I giggled and he looked confused. "Apology accepted."
"You're a tease."
"I am no such thing."
We continued with an unofficial game of twenty questions. He asked about my home life and about the high school I had attended. He seemed truly shocked when I told him I had never had a serious boyfriend before. I told him about Samba Sun and how I had been teaching there for almost three years now.
In turn I got to learn more about him and his life back in Forks. I learned that he liked fast cars, even though he didn't have one right now. He was a fan of classical music as well as classic novels and he played the piano.
"You have to play for me someday."
He nodded. "I would love to." I smiled and he continued. "Ok, next question. What's your favorite color?"
"It changes from day to day."
"What's your favorite color right now?" He pressed and I lost myself in his eyes again. It was strangely hard to form coherent sentences when he looked at me like that and I fumbled over my words as I spoke.
"Um- Th- That's two questions."
He shrugged. "Just answer the question Bella."
"Today?" I hesitated for a second. I liked a lot of beautiful colors: Orange was bright and happy, Brown was warm and comfortable, but at the moment I could only think of one and it was staring me straight in the face. "Emerald"
He smiled and I managed to pull away from his gaze. As soon as I looked away from him it was easier to think and I shot his question back at him.
"What's your favorite color?"
"The color of that tank-top you were wearing what I came with Erik and Sam to pick you up for dinner on the first day." He hadn't missed a beat and I could tell he was being completely serious.
I rolled over and fished my pajama tank out of my suitcase. I had never given a lot of thought over my old tank-top. It was just something I slept in. It was a dark blue color and there were little white butterflies along the bottom.
"This color?" I held the top up and he nodded.
"That blue color looks great on you."
I blushed and the alarm clock on my bed side table started buzzing. I jumped and managed to keep myself from falling off the edge of the bed.
Angela wiggled under her covers and smiled when she saw who was with me.
"Good morning Edward, Bella."
He nodded and stood up. "Good morning, Angela." He nodded in my direction. "I'll see you both down at breakfast."
I walked him to the door again and waved as he disappeared up the stairs. Angela grabbed some clothes and disappeared into the bathroom. I sat back down on my bed and tucked my tank-top back into my suitcase. I was going to have to find a dress in that color.
I sent Summer a text, not expecting her to respond this early. My phone beeped and I checked my messages. Summer was still awake? She was meeting Sam at the airport to welcome him home. The plane bringing him in had been delayed for hours and she was getting ready to tear her hair out. Summer hated airports. A fact that I quickly pointed out to her.
I laughed at her reply. She had told me to shut up and that she didn't feel like waiting for Sam to get home before seeing him. She had it bad for him. I sent Sam a warning text, letting him know that he shouldn't dawdle once the plane landed and warned him that if he hurt my best friend I would hunt him down. I wasn't sure what I would do with him once I had him but, I would hunt him down all the same. Summer had never been lucky in love and I really didn't want her to get hurt again.
After Angela was done in the bathroom we used the elevator to bring us down to the first floor and found the others waiting for us. Alice and Jasper were sitting with Rosalie, and Angela ditched us to go sit with Ben as soon as she found him.
Talk at breakfast was minimal.
"Sam's afraid of you Bella." Erik said as I took my seat.
I raised an eyebrow at him and Erik pulled a cell phone out of his pocket and waved it at me.
"He's been texting me all morning about your threat. He really likes Summer. I don't think you have to worry about him hurting her."
"Bella threatened Sam?" Emmett asked, amused.
I nodded and picked at my bagel. "I just warned him against hurting my friend back home. I have a feeling they're going to start dating soon."
"You're not very scary Bells." Jake pointed out.
I shrugged. "Sam seems to think I am. That's all that matters."
After breakfast we made the journey with the other dancers across the street and into the auditorium. Everyday the room seemed to get bigger as fewer and fewer dancers returned. Nigel and Mary were on stage talking with some of the crew men.
I took my seat next to Edward as our group sat up in the front. Alice and Jasper joined us and I was glad to see they had brought Rosalie over with them. Jasper introduced his sister and did formal introductions.
"Guys this is my sister, Rosalie. Rose this is everyone I've been telling you about.." He pointed around the group and quickly went through everyone's names for his sister.
"That's Jake, Bella, Tanya and Erik, The one next to Bella is Edward and this is Edward's brother Emmett." He glanced around and noted our missing member. "Where's Angela?"
"She's sitting somewhere with Ben." I answered.
"We're right here."
I glanced over my shoulder and found Angela leading Ben over to where we were sitting. They sat down behind Edward and I, leaving the only place open for Rosalie right next to Emmett. Emmett seemed to have gone speechless. It was a miracle, seeing as how he almost never shut up.
Alice nudged my side and nodded in their direction, a big smile on her face. I watched with her as Rosalie sat down next to Emmett and he struggled not to drool on himself as he introduced himself again. I leaned into Alice's side and tried to keep my voice low so no one else would overhear me.
"Did you do that on purpose?"
She shrugged and tried to give me one of her innocent expressions. "Do what?" I wasn't fooled. Alice was a mastermind and I caught the little twinkle in her eye as Emmett and Rose started talking less awkwardly. She was truly an evil little genius.
We waited another ten minutes before all of the cameras were set up for filming and it was time to learn today's style. Nigel and Mary weren't alone onstage anymore. They had been joined by a short man with smooth, almond colored skin.
He looked almost Chinese but I wasn't sure. I was sure I recognized him though. I just couldn't remember from where.
"That's Chris Skobel." Angela whispered from behind us and suddenly it clicked where I knew this man from. He was a new up and coming choreographer and was making waves all over the dance world. I had recently seen an article about him in a magazine.
Edward glanced back at Angela. "He's a contemporary dancer right?"
I glanced over my shoulder to watch her. Angela nodded. "He just won a young choreographers award for his work. He's supposed to be really good."
Emmett twisted around in his seat to join our conversation. "I heard he's supposed to be really tough. That's why his dances all turn out so well. Anyone who can't take it quits."
"Oh joy." Erik said rolling his eyes and we all turned our attention back to the stage as Nigel started talking.
He introduced Chris and whispering broke out amongst some of the dancers. Emmett glanced back over at the rest of us.
"He doesn't look scary."
I nodded and some of the others whispered their agreement. I was having trouble finding anything scary about Chris. He was probably about 5'3 and he had fashion sense that would rival Summer. He was wearing black dance pants and a simple white top. There was a scarf wrapped around his neck and his watch had to be designer.
Nigel finished talking and gave the mic to Mary. She told us about the award Chris had just won and thanked him for coming on the show. He smiled and nodded along, getting all of the filming formalities out of the way.
Once Mary gave the mic to Chris so he could address the dancers, his entire demeanor changed. His smile fell and he gazed over the group of dancers in front of him like he wasn't impressed by what he saw. I was starting to see the scary part.
"Welcome to Hell, top 67. I'm going to be working with you on a new contemporary dance I have recently been working on." He smiled again but I could feel the threatening edge to his face. "It's my job to break you. Only twenty of you will make it to the top and I'm going to make sure only the best get the chance to fight for the title."
He handed the mic back to Mary and walked off stage without another word. The room was silent. Nigel informed us we would all be working in studio one and told us it would be best not to keep our choreographer waiting. There was a sort of frenzied rush as everyone got to their feet and hurried into studio one.
Skobel walked through the lines of dancers and everyone waited for him to say something, anything. He stopped in front of a girl with long black hair. It took me a moment but I recognized her as Monika, the girl from Edward's random CD group. He pulled her forward and paired her with a boy from the second row.
"You two" He pointed out another pair standing next to each other in the last row. "Pair up." He walked around the room mixing people up and pairing them off. He took Alice from my left and paired her with Erik.
Angela got matched with Mike, Jake got paired with Leah, Emmett visibly flinched when Chris paired him with Amber, his partner from the Tango round. Tanya got paired with Ben, and Jane wound up with a guy almost a foot taller than her.
"You" Chris pointed to Rosalie and motioned for her to follow him. He walked down the row and stopped in front of Jasper. "You two, partner up."
Rosalie and Jasper exchanged identical looks of distaste.
"Oh, I don't think so." Rosalie spun on her toes and called after Chris, he had walked away as soon as they were paired and seemed shocked that someone would challenge his decision.
He turned around slowly to face Rosalie and raised one perfectly sculpted eyebrow at her. "Yes, you have a problem with my pairing?"
Rosalie folded her arms over her chest and stood at her full height. She was a foot taller than Chris but he didn't back down.
"Yes I do. I think it would be best for both of us if we were given different partners."
Chris glanced up at Jasper, who nodded his agreement with his sister. When he looked back at Rosalie he almost seemed impressed that someone would stand up to him.
"Why?"
Rosalie nodded in Jasper's direction. "He's my brother. I don't know what your dance involves but you should know that before you pair us together. "
Chris nodded and glanced between the pair of them. "That might make this dance uncomfortable. I do prefer to keep siblings separate." He clapped his hands once and glanced around the room. "Very well, follow me miss."
He paired Rose up with another man and Jasper got a girl who could have rivaled Rosalie in the category of 'best legs'. Chris continued pairing people off until most of the room was standing in groups of two.
He stopped in front of Edward and I held my breath. "You" He curled his finger at Edward and motioned for him to follow. He walked down the line and stopped in front of the girl on my right. He glanced between the two of us and then pointed at me.
"With her."
Edward moved to my side and flashed me one of his beautiful grins. I nodded once and tried to keep the smile off my face. I wasn't sure how well I hid my excitement on the outside but I was happy dancing on the inside. Edward was a great dancer. This was going to be perfect.
Once Chris was happy with the pairings he returned to the front of the room and hit the play button on the stereo. I knew the song that started playing over the speakers. "Love Again" By: Cascada. It was a beautiful song.
Chris introduced us to his partner. She had been the lead dancer in his award winning piece and she was going to be helping us learn the new dance. They performed the dance for us once and I felt butterflies in my stomach. It was a slower lyrical contemporary dance. Very emotional, very passionate, very beautiful.
I watched with the others as they moved. Several of the moves followed along with the lyrics and the slower dance steps left plenty of exposed spots in the dance. I had always found slow dances to be more of a challenge over fast numbers. In a fast move if you make a mistake you're moving so fast people don't tend to notice it, but in a slow number everyone sees everything. If you misstep or if you're not in control of your entire body the dance falls apart.
Once they were done it was time for the rest of us to try. Edward and I turned to face each other. He wrapped his hand around my right forearm as we copied the opening pose. My left hand hung at my side as I tensed my right fist.
"It's not the Samba, but I think this'll be fun." Edward said as we followed Chris' directions into the first step.
Edward moved to stand behind me still holding my arm in front of me. The concept of the dance was two lovers fighting to understand the love that they shared, neither one willing to admit they needed the other, while at the same time not willing to let the other go. I nodded as we watched Chris's partner make the next move.
"Lots of fun."
I twisted as quickly as I could and pulled away from him. Edward kept a hold of my arm and pulled me back to his chest. The dance lead would go back and forth between Edward and I, each trying to keep the other from running away while at the same time fighting to escape ourselves.
We continued all morning. Chris pushed us harder than any of the other choreographers had. He yelled at people when they got the moves wrong and pushed more than one person to tears. It was tough love but I could see why his dances always did so well. He wouldn't settle for anything less than the best.
"Bella, let's try the lift again."
I nodded and Edward twisted my back in front of him. The first lift took place right after the opening verse of the song. There was a tempo change and we had to come out of the lift twice as fast as we started it.
"Ready?"
I nodded. "Don't drop me."
"Would I drop you?"
"Not on purpose."
He nodded "True, I'll do my best. Just don't kick me in the face."
"Would I kick you?"
He smiled. "Not on purpose."
I raced forward a few steps and jumped as hard as I could. Edward had his hands wrapped around my forearms again and I kicked out my legs, hitting a split midair. I kicked one of my legs forward and hooked it over his shoulder so I was perched on his left shoulder. Edward had one hand on my waist holding me steady.
"We did it."
I wobbled and grabbed onto his hair to keep from falling backwards.
"Ouch."
"Sorry."
My leg slipped and I locked my legs around his chest, trying to keep myself from falling as Edward tried to regain his balance.
"You're slipping Bella."
I rolled my eyes but the effect was lost since he couldn't see. "I noticed."
He chuckled at me and I pulled on his hair again.
"Would you stop that?"
"Don't laugh at me."
He chuckled again. "But you're so amusing."
"Help me down Edward."
He crouched down and I tried to get my legs under me. I let go of his shoulders too soon and wound up landing on my butt.
"Ouch."
Edward spun around and helped me to my feet. "Are you ok?" I chuckled and fixed the short skirt I was wearing over my leggings.
"I've had worse."
"Want to try it again?"
I was going to say sure when Chris descended on us. "Oh no you don't. That was wrong and frankly I'm glad you didn't get hurt trying it." He waved his partner over to him. "We'll show you the lift again. Watch closely this time."
We watched as Chris counted off and his partner ran at him. Chris crossed his arms when he grabbed her so, when she landed on his shoulder they were both facing forwards. It was exactly the same as what we had just done. Except for the falling down part at the end.
Chris's partner started talking and I finally noticed what we had done wrong.
"You don't want to center your weight or you'll pull Edward backwards and fall again. When you land you want to keep your weight on the left side and hook your left leg over his shoulder so you don't fall. It will help you both keep your balance."
I nodded. I could see it now. She was sitting on Chris's left shoulder but her right leg was how she kept her balance. I glanced up at Edward and gave him a sheepish smile.
He shrugged it off. "Want to try again?"
"Let's do it."
We worked on the lift until Chris approved. As each couple worked, the song played over and over again in the back ground. Emmett and Amber were fighting and more than once Tanya made her opinion on Ben's dancing known to the whole room.
"You're doing it wrong!"
"No, I'm not. Would you just listen for a second?"
"Why should I listen to you?"
"Because I'm your partner, we need to work together!"
"Some pathetic excuse for a partner."
Edward groaned and ran his hands through his hair. "She's going to get herself kicked off if she doesn't quit fighting."
I nodded along and turned to watch with some of the other dancers as Tanya and Ben shouted at each other. Chris pulled them apart and told them both to suck it up and if they didn't he would recommend to the judges that they were both removed from the competition.
"It's nearly lunch time anyway. Everyone go eat and I want you back here in an hour. There are no excuses for being late."
Edward and I grabbed our things and made a quick escape. We waited outside on the sidewalk as one by one the rest of our little breakfast club showed up. Emmett was fuming.
"I really can't stand that woman anymore."
He shot a dirty look at Amber as she crossed the street with another friend and disappeared into the hotel. I had never seen Emmett angry before and I was kind of glad I wasn't the focus of his frustration.
Alice and Erik were getting along fine but Erik didn't have Jasper's skill in dancing with someone so much shorter than he was.
Angela was trying to keep her weight off her left leg. It seemed Mike was good at tripping his partners no matter what style of dance he was doing and she was quite sore.
Neither Jasper or Rosalie offered any information on their partners so I assumed both were doing just fine. Jake and Leah seemed to be getting along ok and I was pleased to learn Leah would be joining us for lunch.
"How are you two coming along? It sounded like Chris was riding you pretty hard about that lift?" Erik asked, as Edward and I sat down at the table. Our dining group was getting pretty big. There were now twelve of us gathered around one table we almost couldn't fit everyone. Angela had brought Ben over to join us and Rosalie was looking very comfortable in the seat next to Emmett.
"We got it down eventually." Edward offered.
I rolled my eyes at him. "Yeah, the bruises on my butt really love that lift."
"I'm gonna give Amber a few bruises if she doesn't start paying attention." Emmett grumbled as he took a bite out of his sandwich.
"Now Emmett, that's not very nice." Edward scolded his older brother playfully and Emmett responded by flipping him off.
"I didn't mean I was going to hit her. She's just got two left feet. She keeps tripping over me and I'm sick of catching her. I meant it when I said I was going to let her fall on her butt."
Lunch moved faster than I would have liked and soon we were all under the tirade of Chris Skobel again. He circled the room like a buzzard yelling at anyone who made a mistake in his routine.
"What the hell was that?!?"
"You're doing that move wrong! Don't make me show it to you again."
"I thought you were supposed to be dancers! What is this crap?"
"Bella point your toes more."
I jumped as Chris appeared out of nowhere at my side. I fixed my foot and Edward and I repeated the move we had just performed for Chris's inspection.
He nodded and slightly adjusted Edward's hand lower on my waist. "Better. You've got to follow through on all your lines, from your hip to your toes and your shoulder to your finger tips. This dance is all about movement. Each move flows to the next like a single step. It should be hard for the judges to tell where one move starts and the next begins."
We both nodded and set up to run the move again. We were working on the ending of the song. The last move was one of my favorites. Edward had his right hand wrapped around my left forearm again, much like the opening move. But instead of trying to fight away from him I had my arm locked around his neck.
We continued the dance moving across the room, trying not to run into any of the other groups as they worked. I had half of my attention on the steps and the other on my toes. I didn't want to get yelled at again for something as basic as pointing my toes. Edward spun me away from him, his hand moving from my forearm, to just holding my hand.
I hit my pose at the farthest point in our twist, our fingers just barely touching between us, but always in contact. I twisted back into him and he wrapped his hand around my waist. The last move was probably the hardest, but the challenge was always part of the fun in dance.
I bent my knees at the last possible second and with Edward's hands to guide me I flipped backwards over his right shoulder. As soon as my feet hit the ground I jumped again but this time wrapping my arms around his neck and my legs around his waist. The music ended and I rested my forehead against his shoulder trying to catch my breath.
"That was perfect Bella."
I nodded into his shoulder. "How did the lift go?"
"It was fine, are you planning to get down today?"
I tightened my legs around his waist and smiled into his neck. "I'm not too heavy for you am I?"
"Of course not Bella, but it is almost time to go."
I craned my neck around to look at the clock above the door. I couldn't decide if I thought the day had gone by very quickly or extremely slowly. Being under Chris's watchful eye was nerve wracking and I could tell where all the rumors about him had come from. On the other hand, Edward was easily the best partner I had ever danced with.
I tightened my hold around his neck and dropped to my feet. Edward took my hand and motioned for me to lead the way. Chris had turned off the music and dancers were starting to make their way back to the auditorium.
"Do you think we're ready?" I asked nervously as we walked down the aisle to where the rest of our group was sitting.
His grip tightened on my hand and his thumb rubbed soothing circles on the back of my hand. "It's going to be great Bella. You're a great dancer."
"I have a good partner."
He smirked down at me. "You're just saying that."
"No, really. I've never been able to dance that well with anyone before, at least not right away."
As I said the words out loud I realized just how true they were. Dancing with Edward came so naturally, I really hadn't though about it until now. I had only known him a short time but I trusted him completely. Trust really was the base layer of any dancing partnership. Unlike my time dancing with Mike, I knew Edward wouldn't let me fall on my butt.
He raised my hand to his face and kissed my knuckles. "I quite enjoyed dancing with you too Bella."
I blushed five shades of red and my pulse took off, pounding in my chest. The lights in the auditorium dimmed and I was grateful for the distraction. Nigel, Mary, and Chris had all taken their seats in the judges booth and they were talking to the camera.
Chris talked a little bit about his piece and thanked FOX for the chance to come on the show. Once he was done talking, Nigel called the first couple and the fourth round of callbacks began. I felt my nerves growing as group after group performed the routine Chris had been grilling us on all day. They were all so good. How was I going to stand out against this many excellent dancers?
A crew man in black tapped me on the shoulder and I jumped in my seat.
"I'm sorry I startled you miss, you and Edward are on deck. Pleas come back stage with me."
Edward and I followed the man through the maze of wires backstage until we were standing just offstage. I was taking deep breaths through my nose in a desperate attempt to calm myself down. The only part about dancing I didn't like was the pre-show butterflies.
Edward wrapped his arm around my waist and pulled me to his side. He leaned into my ear and kept his voice down so the techies wouldn't complain about the noise.
"Calm down Bella. It's going to be fine."
I nodded along and bit on my lower lip. Sure everything would be fine. Until I tripped on stage and made us both look like morons. Or I could make a wrong move and trip him and wreck his chance for the finals. Or he could miss one of the lifts and I could fall. My breathing picked up again as I freaked myself out.
He put a finger under my chin and forced me to look at him. He didn't start speaking until he was sure I was looking at him.
"You're not calming down Bella."
I locked my eyes on his and even in the minimal light I could see the deep green color. He had such beautiful eyes. I took a deep breath and forced myself not to think about what I was about to do. I was going to dance with Edward. We were going to do just fine.
I nodded my head "I'm ok."
He searched my eyes for some sign that I was going to fall apart. I'm not sure what he saw there but he nodded and took my hand again as the couple on stage were asked to step down.
"Just keep your eyes on me. I won't drop you."
Nigel called our names and we walked on stage, already falling into character. We had talked about doing an opener to the song, and as we hit center stage I dropped Edward's hand and stepped away from him. He glanced over at me like he was confused and I looked him in the eye and shook my head slowly. This opener would help set the tone for the dance, I just hoped Chris wouldn't ring us for adding something to his choreography.
He took a step towards me and I moved back raising my hand to stop him. His right hand locked itself around my left forearm, the opening move Chris had taught us and the music began.
I can see it in your eyes.
No more tears, no alibis.
I'm still in love with you.
Edward twisted behind me, stilling holding my arm out in front of me. My back was flush with his chest and I matched my breathing to his. I twisted around and tried to pull away from him. He kept his hand locked around my arm and pulled me back to him.
There's so much I gotta show.
I will never let you go.
I lifted my free hand up and let my fingers trail down his cheek. Everything fell away as I set myself into the emotion of the dance: The lights, the judges, the crowd. I forced everything out of my head except for Edward and our dance.
I pulled away again and Edward let me go. I only got a few steps away before I jerked to a stop. My character couldn't leave him behind. I glanced over my shoulder and held my hand out, waiting for him to take it.
But still I know for sure.
Come take me by the hand.
This summer never ends.
He took my hand and pulled me back into his arms. We danced across the stage, moving in perfect time with each other. Edward spun me out in front of him and I stopped on my toes facing him. He held out his arms, inviting me back. I raced forward as fast as I could. This was the lift, one chance to get it right. I crossed the small space in two bounds and jumped.
And I want to know that you believe in love again.
Please tell me now it's not the end,
'Cause this I promise you so true.
The summer belongs to you.
Edward's hands locked around my forearms as he lifted me into the air for a vertical lift. I kicked my legs out, briefly noting that I hadn't kicked him in the face. Edward twisted me to the side and I landed on his shoulder. I used the balancing trick Chris had showed us to hold myself steady as Edward spun us around.
Could you believe in love again?
How can I make you understand?
But, this I promise you so true.
The summer belongs to you.
I pushed off of Edward's shoulder and jumped away from him as soon as I hit the ground. We danced on opposite sides of the stage, both trying to get back to the middle while at the same time not wanting to go back. Every time we faced each other I locked my eyes on his. Focusing on his face made it easier to keep my heart rate under control, and steady my breathing.
The summer belongs to you.
At the end of the musical interlude we met at center stage. This time I was the one who locked my hand around Edward's arm and pulled him back to me when he tried to pull away. Our faces were only inches apart and I took the moment to match our breathing again.
Edward pulled away again and I let him go. He threw himself away from me and I didn't give chase. I spun slowly on my toes and walked away from him. I knew he would come back. I crossed my arms over my chest, took a deep breath, and let myself fall backwards.
Would you catch me if I fall?
Crash and burn and lose it all.
Tell me what to do.
Edward's arms caught me before I came anywhere close to the ground. He pushed me back to my feet and took hold of my hand. I spun on my heel and tucked myself into his chest. He wrapped his arms around me for a second before putting his hands on my shoulders and pushed me a step away. He was giving me the chance to go. I took a step back and he held his hand out to me, just like I had done for him, giving me the chance to stay, or the change to run.
'Cause I need you night and day,
Will you ever run away?
Just one more thing to say,
Come take me by the hand.
This summer never ends.
I only hesitated a moment before racing back to him. Edward grabbed my arm again and I locked my free arm around his neck. We had finally accepted the fact that neither one of us would leave the other. We danced again moving all the way to the far side of the stage before returning to the center again. I spun away from him making sure I didn't get too far away. Our fingers were always in contact.
It was time for the last flip. I locked my eyes on Edward's green ones and he nodded ever so slightly. I knew he would catch me. I spun back to him and as I neared him he placed his hands on my waist. At the least second I bent my knees and jumped, throwing myself into the air. Edward guided my body as I flipped over his shoulder.
And I want to know that you believe in love again.
Please tell me now it's not the end.
'Cause this I promise you so true,
The summer belongs to you.
Could you believe in love again?
How can I make you understand?
But this I promise you so true,
The summer belongs to you.
As soon as my feet hit the ground I jumped back and wrapped my arms around his neck. I locked my legs around his waist and the last notes of the song faded away. I tucked my head into Edward's neck and tried to slow my breathing.
The audience clapped and Edward wrapped his arms around my legs, holding me up.
"Bella?"
I rested my chin on his shoulder and smiled. "Yes?"
"Come up here you two!"
Mary was yelling into her microphone and I jumped at just how loud she was. TV didn't do her any justice. I dropped to my feet and Edward wrapped his arm around my waist as we stepped forward. Mary was all smiles.
She commented on the dance and Nigel agreed it was one of the most emotional they had seen all night. His exact words were we had truly captured "the essence of what Chris was trying to portray". Once Mary and Nigel had given us their comments it was time for Chris to let us have it.
For the most part he had torn all of the groups apart even telling one group that small children would cry when they watched them dance.
He nodded a couple of times and pointed at me. "If you do not make it to the top twenty I'll be surprised."
I felt my jaw drop. Surely he wasn't talking to me? I glanced up at Edward who smiled down at me. Edward pushed me a step forward and his arm left my waist. I glanced back to the judges table.
"Sir.?"
Chris smiled at me. "You have the same quality to your dancing that I look for in all of my dancers. You put yourself into the dance on more than just a physical level. You find an emotional balance to your dancing. It's very impressive in someone your age."
My cheeks turned pink. "Thank you Sir, but I had a good partner."
Chris nodded. "Yes, Edward you are very impressive as well. I think this pairing was a perfect match."
Edward bowed his head slightly and I caught the corners of his mouth turn up before he composed his face.
"Thank you."
"I do have one question though." Chris continued. "What was that opener you did just before the music started?"
This was the part I had been fearing. "We thought it might add another layer to the dance, pull the audience in before the music even started."
He nodded slowly. "I usually would chew you out for trying to adjust my choreography, but in this case..." He paused for a second and my breathing caught in my throat. "I liked it."
Mary nodded along with him and folded her fingers together in front of her. "You're just a little Hot Tamale aren't you?!? I just know good things are going to come from both of you this year." Then she screamed again.
"I agree that this was a winning pair." Nigel said as he scribbled some notes down on the paper in front of him. I felt a stupid grin break out of my face. I've seen Mary talk about her "Hot Tamale Train" before on TV but, this was the first time she had even mentioned it this season.
I had always though it was kind of a stupid idea--winning tickets to a train that didn't exist. It was just something she did for the camera. But, I suddenly wanted nothing more than a first class trip. I would get on that train before my time on this show was over.
Nigel dismissed us before calling the next group out. Edward and I hurried off stage. We weaved our way around all of the equipment and climbed down the set of stairs that led back to the auditorium.
As soon as the door had shut behind us I spun around and threw my arms around Edward again. They had liked our dance! Chris hadn't said we sucked. I felt like happy dancing. Edward and I snuck around the back of the auditorium and made our way back to where the others were sitting.
Alice and Erik were gone so I assumed they were on deck. We watched as one by one all of the remaining couples danced. During hers and Emmett's dance, Amber had gone the wrong way and tripped forcing Emmett to make up for her mistake so the dance wouldn't fall behind.
Alice and Erik managed to finish without any major accident, but on both the lift and the flip it looked like Alice might end up falling. Jake and Leah were the most surprising. Leah's strength was a perfect compliment to Jake's and they finished the dance with flare. Mary and Nigel loved them and Chris said that they had done an admirable job, whatever that meant.
Once the last group had finished their dance and the cameras gave the signal to stop shooting we all gathered back at the hotel for dinner. We loaded up on chicken and mashed potatoes before going back to the auditorium to face the judge's cuts.
One at a time the judges recalled the groups on stage and gave their verdict. The first two groups were sent home and we watched as several more groups were split with one person going and one staying to fight in the last round.
Rosalie and her partner were called on stage. Rose's partner got a couple of nasty comments from Chris before he was dismissed and Rosalie joined the rest of us. Jasper and his partner Heidi were both welcomed to the last round, along with Angela and Mike.
Finally, it was time for Edward and I to face the judges. Mary said we did a great job. Nigel was expecting great things and Chris said he would see me in the finals when he returned to be a guest judge later in the season.
Alice and Erik were next and even though Chris didn't like them, Mary and Nigel agreed that they should go to the next round. Emmett had a hard time keeping a straight face as Amber got chewed out by Chris before she was asked not to come back.
By the end of the night another twenty seven dancers were cut and only forty of us would be going into the final round. Forty dancers fighting for twenty spots. Those numbers didn't exactly work out. Everyone was going to be fighting tooth and nail to make it to the top.
After Mary and Nigel said goodbye to the camera, one of the crew members gave the cut single and talking broke out. I let out a sigh and rubbed my hands over my eyes. This week was kicking my butt and a long hot shower was starting to sound really good.
"You look beat."
I peaked through my fingers and found Edward standing over me.
"I'm ok. Just tired."
He nodded. "It's been a long four days."
"Just one more round to go."
He offered me his hand and pulled me to my feet. "Come on. The others are waiting for us."
We found everyone else waiting in the back of the auditorium and together we walked back to the hotel.
~Darkrose
Yeah! Another chapter! Now please review and let me know what you think.
With the help of some of my reviewers and a little more searching online. I did manage to find out about the apartments the couples stay in during the taping of the top twenty. I'm not sure if I'm going to make them stay in apartments or not. I think it might be more fun if they're all in the same building--more cut off from the rest of the city, more opportunities for drama and our young couple to discover their feelings for each other.
I still have some time to work it out but we'll see.