Hi everyone!
I hope every single on of you is having a nice day :)
For the people who haven't seen the message on the previous chapter; The author of this story isn't able to write for a while, due some personal issues. So the author asked me if I would like to write some chapters for this story until she has the feeling to write again.
If you're wondering who I am, I rather keep myself anonymous at the moment :)
Anyway, I had a lot of fun writing this chapter and I hope you will enjoy reading it
P.S. English is not my first language, so most likely you'll see a couple of grammar and/or spelling mistakes. Sorry about that.
Chapter 10
"Isn't this some exciting news?" Kate wondered enthusiastic towards the two teens. "I'll leave you two alone, you clearly need to discuss some things." Kate said with a smile as she excused herself and left her office. That let Michelle and Hunter alone in the office.
Hunter waited for Michelle to say something, but she was surprised that she didn't knew what to say. Of course she was excited that she and Hunter could be co-captains together like back in Madison, but she hated it at the same time, just because she had a crush for Hunter. It would make things very awkward between them. She hoped if she spend a bit less time with Hunter, the feelings would eventually just fade away, but this situation will probably only make it worse.
Seconds passed by, but Michelle still didn't react in any form, so Hunter decided to begin the conversation. "So... What do you think?" He wondered. Michelle smiled towards and tried to sounds as excited as possible.
"You're full of surprises lately." Michelle said. "But I'm excited! You and I! A-Troupe captains and going to Internationals!"
"It came unexpected to me as well, but I'm glad that you're as excited as me!"Hunter smiled. "So that means that we have to spend more time together! Isn't that great?"
"Yeah it is!" Michelle lied. "Just great..."
"Are you okay Michelle?"Hunter asked slightly worried. "You seem kinda down. Is there something wrong?"
"I'm fine, I just been thinking about something."Michelle replied.
"About what?"
"It's nothing important, just forget it." Michelle said.
"Are you sure?" Hunter wondered. "You acted kinda different in the car the last time we've met... You know you can tell me anything right?"
Michelle gave in and sighed. "There is something." Michelle started. "It isn't something huge so don't worry too much."
"If it isn't huge feel free to tell me about it. Maybe I can help?" Hunter said.
"I really appreciate your care Hunter, but trust me. There's nothing to worry about, okay?" Michelle confirmed kindly to the slightly worried Hunter.
"You sure?" Hunter asked. Michelle responded by giving him a smile and a short nod. "Okay, if you ever feel to talk about it, my door is always open for you."
"I know." Michelle smiled. "Thanks Hunter."
"Anytime." Hunter smiled. "And whatever is going through your mind right know, I'm sure it's going to be fine eventually." Michelle looked in the eyes.
"You really think so?" Michelle wondered.
"Of course!" Hunter replied as he gave Michelle a comforting hug.
"You always know what to say at moments like this." Michelle said while they were still hugging. Hunter chuckled. A few seconds later pulled away. "Listen Hunter, I'm sorry I acted kind of oddly these last couple of days, like I said, there's a lot rushing through my head. But I want to let you know that I'm very happy and lucky to have you as a new co-captain."
Hunter smiled. "I'm very glad to hear that Michelle. And you don't need to apologize, I know how stressful some days can be, I totally understand." Hunter said.
"I'm glad you do." Michelle smiled. Hunter smiled back.
"I think we should head back to the group." He said. "I guess the group is wondering where we are, and we want to tell them the news. Are you coming?"
(-)
Two days later, Kate thought it would be to skip a day of training and instead go do something fun with the whole group. Kate and the rest of the A-Troupe decided to go the theme park, it would be fun if they spend a whole day together without any dance stress and just have a good time.
They whole group currently entered the theme park, the group immediately spread went they entered the park. Beth and Hunter for example, the fresh couple just took a walk around the park, they took this opportunity to talk probably, because Hunter has been so busy studying for his exams lately, which were in two days, he hardly had time to communicate with Beth, Michelle, James and the rest of the team. They were both happy that they could spend this day together.
"I really enjoy this." Beth said as she walked next to her boyfriend. Hunter smiled.
"Enjoy what?" He questioned.
"You know.. Walking around in a theme park, talking and being around you."Beth said shyly. Hunter smiled and putted an arm around her.
"Aww, that's sweet of you babe." Hunter smiled at his girlfriend. "I'm enjoying having you around as well. And I'm sorry I haven't been around the last couple of days."
"You don't have to apologize, I totally understand it. Your exams are your number one priority at the moment."Beth said. "And don't worry, we can spend a lot of time together today, and that's what matters right?"
"You are amazing, you know that right?" Hunter said.
"Of course I do!" Beth smiled as she quickly gave Hunter a peck on his lips.
As the couple continued walking through the park, Beth noticed something that caught her eye immediately. It was a small tin toss stall, on the ceiling of the stall hung a dozen of stuffed toys and stuffed animals. An huge minion grabbed Beth's attention, it was about 2,4 feet tall. She really liked it because The Minions and Despicable Me are one of her favorite animated movies.
"You want that?" Hunter asked as he pointed at the huge stuffed doll. Beth nodded like a little girl in a toy store. Hunter smiled at his girlfriend and they walked towards the stall. Hunter asked the owner of the stall how much it costed to toss down the tins. "One dollar, one attempt to throw down all the tins." The man said.
Hunter putted down a dollar on the counter, and a moment later he received a softball from the stall owner. Hunter aimed for the stacked tins and threw.. He only knocked three out of the ten tins.
The owner chuckled a bit."Another attempt?"
Hunter put another dollar on the counter without saying a word. The man smirked and handed Hunter another ball. "Good luck."
Hunter took a step back and took a deep breath so he could focus better on his target. He stretched his arm backwards and then he launched the ball with a lot of power. Result, the ball when missed the target and didn't hit any tins.
With a deep sigh Hunter put another dollar bill on the counter. "Uhm, Hunter. You really don't have to waste money on that doll for me." Beth said a bit unsure.
"It's okay Beth. I'm sure I will get this doll this time." Hunter stated confident.
Nine attempts later…
"Hunter, please stop! It's okay that you didn't get that doll. You tried and I really appreciate it, but please stop! I hate it to see someone wasting money." Beth said as she tried to convince her boyfriend.
"But Beth, I hit eight tins this time! I feel I'm getting really close winning that minion for you." Hunter said hopefully.
"Hunter, please." Beth begged. "There are a lot of other things in the theme park that we can enjoy."
Hunter sighed. "Fine, if you really want that."
As he stepped away from the toss stall, a six year old girl put an one dollar bill on the counter. The man behind it handed her a ball, she threw it and knocked down all the tins in one attempt.
"Yaay!" The little girl cheered as she pointed to one of the many minion dolls. "I want that one!" The man behind the counter smiled and handed her a minion. As the little girl got her minion she ran of with the brightest smile on her face towards her mother. Hunter watched the little girl in confusion and shock.
"How the heck is that possible?!" Hunter wondered in shock.
"Well, she had a bit of luck I guess, I mean-" While Beth was talking Hunter ran to the counter and smashed another dollar bill on it.
"No Hunter! What did I just said?"
(-)
"It surprises me how much we actually have in common Noah." Amanda said as she walked throughout the park with her new friend alongside with her.
"I know right! For example; I didn't knew you loved extreme rollercoasters as much as I do." Noah exclaimed excited. "I don't know many people who have the guts to ride the biggest rollercoaster in this theme park with me."
"You call that huge? That's nothing compared to the rollercoasters I ride." Amanda said playfully. Noah chuckled.
"You're fun hanging around with Amanda." Noah smiled. Amanda smiled back.
"Thanks, you're fun as well." Amanda said. "So where is the line for the rollercoaster? I really can't wait to ride it."
Noah pulled out a map of the theme park out of his pocket and started scanning it quickly. "According to this map, the rollercoaster is straight to the left." Noah said while he pointed towards the rollercoaster's direction.
"Great!" Amanda said. "Who's first there!" Amanda exclaimed as she started running. Noah chuckled and started running behind Amanda. As the raced to their destination, they got blocked by a huge line of people.
"What are they doing here?" Amanda wondered. Noah noticed what's going on and pointed to a sign beside the huge line of people.
"That's what going on." He said while he pointed. The sign said: 'Queue for this attraction, 15 minutes.'
"A queue, seriously?" Amanda said disappointed.
"Well, on the bright side, it's only 15 minutes. It could get much worse." As Noah said that, an employee of the theme parked walked up to the sign and switched the 'one' into a 'five', which made the sign said: 'Queue for this attraction, 55 minutes.'
"You've got to be kidding me!" The both said in disbelieve at the exact same time.
(-)
"Have you ever been in one like these before?" Giselle asked to Daniel while the two were entering a so called mirror maze.
"I haven't, but how hard can it be right?" Daniel said with a chuckle.
"I know right!" Giselle reacted, "It's just a maze with mirrors."
"It is! I'm sure we'll be out of this in no time." Daniel said overconfident.
10 Minutes later…
"Okay this was fun! But I really think we've seen enough of this maze and ourselves." Giselle said.
"Agreed!" Daniel said. "The exit is right over there, let's go!"
"Uhm, you sure?" Giselle asked with a bit of confusion in her tone. "Because I think the exit is on the other side?"
"I'm sure Giselle, we've been there before." Daniel stated.
"How do you know that?" Giselle wondered. "Everything looks exactly the same!"
"It does not!"
"Yes, it does!"
Giselle sighed. "Daniel, it is supposed to be a happy day, so I'm not really in the mood of having an argument."
"We don't have to argue if you choose to go that direction with me." Daniel said.
"But that's the wrong direction!" Giselle said half annoyed.
"How do you know that?" Daniel asked. "Doesn't everything seem the same?" Daniel said while he tried to imitate Giselle's voice.
"Ok, I'm done!" Giselle said slightly angry. "Why don't you go your own way and I'll go my own. Let's see who will get out of this maze first!" She said as she walked away from Daniel.
"Giselle I didn't meant it that way, please come back..." Daniel said. The only thing Daniel saw was Giselle's mirror reflections slowly disappear into emptiness. Daniel tried to catch up with Giselle by running towards the direction she went, but after taking a few turns in the maze without finding her, he knew that he lost her.
(-)
Michelle was exploring the park by herself. A couple of A-Troupe members asked if she wanted to join them, but she prefered a part of the day by herself. Firstly, because she needed some inspiration for her solo. Internationals kicks off in less than three months and Michelle still haven't got a clue about what she has to dance about. So she hoped by walking around the park would give her some idea's. Secondly, she didn't really liked theme parks. She wasn't a fan of huge and terrifying attractions. So by walking alone she didn't had to feel pressured by others for going in any attractions. Lastly, she needed time to think about her complicated friendship with Hunter. Michelle didn't know how to deal with this situation. She hoped by spending less time with Hunter her feelings would eventually fade away, but faith wasn't with her. A couple of days earlier Hunter was named co-captain of the A-Troupe, so that meant that the two surely have to spend more time together. However, today was a great opportunity think peacefully about all these thoughts without any stress.
After a short 20 minutes of exploring the park, Michelle decided to get a drink. As she reached the food court of the theme park, she saw someone familiar ordering at the counter. It was West. After a few seconds a lady behind the counter handed West four gigantic sticks of cotton candy. As West made his way towards the exit he noticed Michelle.
"Hey Michelle! How are you doing?" West asked in a very energetic way like always.
"Hey West. I'm doing alright, thanks for asking." Michelle responded. "What is up with the cotton candy? You bought it for the others?" West bursted out in laughter.
"Nope, these are all mine!" West said in a kind of hyper way. "I really love cotton candy! Cotton candy is the best!"
"You alright West? You seem more 'active' than normal." Michelle wondered slightly concerned.
"Yeah, I'm alright! Actually I'm feeling great! I couldn't feel better at the moment!" West said between a couple of chuckles.
"Um, West… How much sticks of cotton candy have you eaten?"
"I don't Michelle. I guess two, three, four… Maybe eleven…" West said.
"Eleven?! West, that isn't good for you! No wonder you more hyper than usually!" Michelle stated concerned.
"Don't worry Michelle, I'm feeling great!" West chuckled. "Here, have one!" West said as he offered Michelle a stick.
"No thanks West. I think you've got enough. So much sugar isn't good for anyone. I think it's better if you just hand the cotton candy to me." Michelle said.
"Why? You can't just take it away from me!" West stated.
"Yes I can West." Michelle said. "I am the captain. It's one of my responsibilities to make sure that my teammates don't make choices that can affect their health. So West… Please give me the cotton candy." West thought for a few seconds before he responded.
"No."
"Come on West, you had enough. Just give it to me." Michelle said as she slowly held out her hand.
"Never! It's mine!"
Michelle slowly started to lose her patience, so she attempted to grab the cotton candy out of his hands. West who was filled with a lot of energy and adrenaline kept the cotton candy easily away from Michelle.
"West, just give me the candy!"
"No!"
"Give it!"
"No!"
"Give me the freaking candy West!"
West stood still for a while and started laughing again. "You know what Michelle? You can have my cotton candy." West said as he handed all his cotton candy to Michelle.
"Wait… what?" Michelle wondered confused. "Why do you give it to me suddenly?"
"I'm so hyped Michelle! I'm feeling so energetic right now! I am just having a strong intention to start running!" West stated extremely enthusiastic.
"West, I think it's better if you stick around me for a while." Michelle said. "I don't want you do things that may hurt you while you are so hyper, so I think it's for the best if-" Halfway through Michelle's sentence, West ran up and climbed a table where a family was sitting. He started chanting excited and backflipped of the table.
"West! What did I just said?" Michelle shouted as she ran towards the family and West at the table. "I sincerely apologize for his behaviour, he has-" And again during Michelle's sentence West ran of while doing some cartwheels on his way. "West, wait up!" Michelle shouted as she started to run after him.
She better catch him up quickly before he does anything stupid.
(-)
"I hope this ride is worth waiting the full 45 minutes." Amanda said to Noah as they were the next up for the ride in the queue.
"It hope it is. I only heard positive reviews about this roller coaster, so I expect a lot of it as well." Noah said.
"Well, I'm very excited! In less than a minute will be reading the fastest and the most largest rollercoaster in the country!" Amanda excitedly said. At the same moment Amanda said that, an employee of the park walked up in front of the line of people trying to get the people's attention.
"Um, everyone, please listen up!" The employee started. "I have an important announcement to make according to this rollercoaster… Something technically went wrong during the last ride, so we're going to call an engineer to fix this issue. The problem is that it will take a couple of hours to fix it. Since it will be taking so long the park decided just to close this attraction for the rest of the day…"
The line of people reacted with disappointed, sad but mostly angry chants. "I know this news is quite disappointing, but we can't guarantee your safety during the ride if we let you in, that would be very irresponsible. We would like to compensate this with a free meal and cotton candy at the food court. We're extremely sorry and we hope you understand. Thanks for patience."
"This can't be happening!" Amanda said in disbelieve. "We were next in line! We literally wasted 45 of our lives!"
"Look it on the bright side, we get a free meal!" Noah said as he tried to sound excited as possible. Amanda who was clearly still upset just gave him glare. Noah chuckled uncomfortably. "And cotton candy…"
Amanda couldn't help it but chuckled a bit. "Well, I like cotton candy…"
"See, it isn't going to be that bad." Noah smiled. "Of course it's quite disappointing that we haven't ride the roller coaster, but I enjoyed the day so far."
"You do realize that the only thing we did today was standing in a queue, right?"
"Of course I do! I'm not letting that ruin this day." Noah said. "I made a new friend today, I got the chance to know her better, and I will get a free meal and cotton candy at the end of the day. Just to be clear that new friend is you…"
"Yeah, I knew that." Amanda chuckled. "And I guess you are right Noah. It wasn't a 'bad' day, I actually enjoyed being here with, getting to know you better. You're a fun person to hang around with."
"Thanks, I really appreciate that." Noah smiled. "Well, we've been waiting long enough. How about we grab some free cotton candy and go on some other attractions?"
"I would love that."
(-)
"West! Are you somewhere in here?" Michelle shouted as she entered the mirror maze. She thought she saw West entering it, so she did the same. "West? Please say something!"
"Michelle, is that you?" Chloe asked as she walked out of a corner.
"Chloe! Glad to see you here!" Michelle said.
"Glad to see you here as well! We've been stuck in this maze for like an half hour." Chloe stated.
"We've? Who's here with you?" Michelle wondered.
"I'm here with Riley." Chloe answered. "Riley, come over here!"
"Well, that's kinda hard when I can't see where you are!" Riley shouted.
"Just follow the sound of my voice." Chloe said back. After a couple of seconds Riley managed to find the two girls and joined them.
"Oh, hey Michelle. What's up?" Riley asked.
"Nothing much. I was actually looking for West. I saw him running in here, so I wondered if you guys saw him?" Michelle said. Riley and Chloe shook their heads.
"Why are you looking for him anyway? Riley wondered.
"Long story short; West became hyper." Michelle simply answered.
Chloe gave a confused look. "So? Isn't West always hyper?"
"Yes, but today it's different, different in an extreme way."
"How is it different?" Riley asked.
"Well, just imagine West with tons of sugar in his body." Michelle said.
"That can't be good." Chloe stated with a slightly worried look.
"That's why I need to find him before he causes any trouble." Michelle said.
"And how are you supposed to find him?" Riley wondered. "We're even not sure if he is in this maze or not."
"And if he isn't we still need to manage to find for a way out." Chloe added.
While the three friends were thinking of a solution to find a way out of the maze, Daniel walked in out of nowhere.
"Daniel? What are you doing here?" Michelle asked.
"Probably the same thing like everybody in the maze; Trying to get out." Daniel answered. "I've been here for like an hour."
"All by yourself?!" Chloe wondered slightly shocked.
"Well, I was with Giselle mostly of the time, but after some time you could say that I lost her." Daniel said. "I really hope she's okay"
"She surely is." Michelle said. "Let's just stay together and find the exit of the maze okay?" The rest agreed to Michelle's suggestion, so they decided to walk around the maze hoping to find the exit. After a couple minutes of walking through the maze, Chloe stepped on something sticky.
"Gross, what is that?" Chloe mentioned while she tried to swipe of the sticky mess under her shoe. Michelle took a closer look to investigate what it is. After a few seconds she knew without a doubt what it was.
"Guys, West was here." Michelle finally said.
"How do you know that." Riley asked with slight confusion.
"The thing Chloe stepped in, that is cotton candy." Michelle answered.
"So what?" Daniel wondered.
"So… I saw West entering this maze with a lot of cotton candy."
"That really could be anyone Michelle."
"It could be…" Michelle said slightly unsure. "But there is always a chance right?"
"Guys, look at this." Chloe said while she inspected the hallway. "There is another piece of cotton here, and there, and right over there. I think the person left a trail behind."
"Do you think it will lead us to the exit?" Riley wondered.
"There's only one way to find out." Michelle said.
(-)
"That was about time." Daniel said while he and the girls finally walked through the exit of the maze.
"You would have been outside much earlier if you just had listened to me Daniel." Giselle said. she was sitting on a bench right across the exit. enjoying herself with a drink.
"Giselle?" Daniel wondered surprised. "How long have you been outside?"
"Maybe two or three minutes after we've separated from each other." Giselle answered with a quick chuckle.
"That quickly?! I really feel stupid right now, I should have listened to you."
"Maybe you should." Giselle said.
"I'm sorry." Daniel apologized. "I shouldn't have act like a selfish jerk… Again."
"It's already okay Daniel." Giselle said with a smile.
"Uhm guys, I'm sorry to interrupt your moment here, but Giselle, have you by any chance seen West?"
"I actually saw him ten minutes ago. He was heading towards the ferris wheel if I wasn't wrong." Giselle said.
"Thanks Giselle!" Michelle thanked as she smiled friendly towards the group. "I'll see you guys later."
(-)
"I still can't believe how West won that stuffed doll for you in only one attempt." Hunter mocked while he was walking throughout with Beth beside him, who held a giant minion doll in her arms.
"Well, I'm kinda glad he did." Beth reacted. "If it weren't for West, you would probably still waste money on that tin toss stall."
"Probably."
"You do realize you spend 35 dollars on nothing, right?" Beth asked.
"I knew how much you wanted that minion." Hunter said. "I guess I tried too hard to impress you."
"Aww Hunter, you don't need to impress me. I already like you." Beth chuckled. "I like you the you are, just be yourself around me." Hunter gave a smile to Beth.
"I think I can do that." Hunter said with a smile.
"Great to hear that." Beth said as she smiled back.
"How about we get some drinks and figure out what we will be doing the rest of the day." Beth suggested.
"I like the sound of that." Hunter said.
"Great! Just wait here while I get us something to drink, my threat okay?" Beth said before she left of. Hunter chuckled.
A couple of seconds later when Beth was completely out of sight, Michelle appeared in Hunter's view. It seemed like Michelle was searching for someone or something. After a while Michelle spotted Hunter too, Michelle gave Hunter a smile and walked towards him.
"Hey Hunter." Michelle greeted.
"Hey Michelle. Great to see you again." Hunter replied.
"Great to see you again too." Michelle said. "So your exams are starting soon. I asume you're prepared for it."
"Yeah, I'm ready for it." Hunter said with a smile. "Slighty nervous, but confident."
"You shouldn't be nervous, you're totally going to pull it off." Michelle said. "I know that... We all know that." Hunter chuckled.
"Thanks for the support." He said. "Enough about me, how have you been?"
"Alright I guess." Michelle said. "A bit busy as well, but I'm doing alright."
"Ah, good to hear." Hunter smiled. "You know, I didn't expect to see you here."
"What do you mean?" Michelle wondered with slight confusion.
"Well, to see you in a theme park," Hunter said. "I know how much you dislike theme parks." Michelle chuckled.
"You do know a lot about me, huh?" Michelle said.
"Of course I do." Hunter smiled. "I know almost everything about you."
'You're right... You know almost everything about me.' Michelle thought into herself.
"Don't be so sure about that." Michelle said. Just as Hunter was about to respond, Beth who held two cups of soda in her hand walked up.
"Hi Hunt, I brougt you orange soda." Beth said as she handed the cup to her boyfriend. A couple seconds later Beth noticed Michelle standing right across them. "Hey Michelle, how are you doing?" Beth asked as she gave Michelle a friendly smile afterwards.
"I'm doing fine, thanks for asking." Michelle said. "Anyway, I gotta move on. Have you by any chance seen West around here?"
"Yeah, he actually won me this doll a couple minutes ago." Beth said. "Afterwards he went towards the caroussel."
"Alright, thanks!" Michelle thanked.
"What's up with West today, he acted kinda odd." Hunter wondered.
"I'll tell you later, but I really need to go now. Thanks again!" Michelle said before she head off to the direction Beth appointed her.
After searching the area around the caroussel a couple of times, Michelle didn't found any signs of West, instead she found Eldon, James and Thalia who were having a chat with each other.
"Hey guys, have you seen West by any chance?" Michelle.
"Yeah," Thalia simply said.
"He passed out on that bench right behind us." Eldon said as he stepped a side so Michelle could clearly see the bench. Michelle grinned.
"The sugar has worn out." Michelle said with a chuckle.
"What sugar?" James wondered confused.
"It's kind of a funny story, I'll tell you guys later." Michelle said. "Let me first check up on West." Michelle walked up to the bench and tried to wake up the half asleep West.
"West? Are you okay?" Michelle asked softly so West wouldn't freak out.
"I feel exhausted." He groaned. "And miserable." Instead of laying on the bench West sat instead, Michelle took a seat next him.
"Well, it's kinda your own fault..." Michelle said. "You should have expected this when you eat so much sugar."
West sighed. "I know, it's just when I'm sad or upset I eat a lot of sugar. That's my way of getting over stuff."
"You're upset?" Michelle asked. West nodded softly. "Well, if you want, you can talk to me about it. I'm all ears."
West sighed again. "Well, it's about Emily."
"You miss her, don't you?" Michelle wondered. West nodded.
"More than I thought actually." West said. "It haven't even been a week since she left and I already miss here. I didn't knew long distance relationships were so complicated."
"I'm sorry to hear that West." Michelle said as she gave West a short sidehug for comfort. "Don't you to like call or Facetime?"
"We do, but it doesn't feel the same like having her closely around, you understand?" West asked.
"I understand." Michelle said. "I can relate to that."
"You do?" West wondered. Michelle nodded.
"Want to have some coffee and talk about it?" Michelle asked.
"I'd like that." West said as he gave a small smile. "Thanks Michelle. And I'm sorry if I was a bit 'loco' today."
"No problem West." Michelle smiled back. "We are friends and teammates, we have to look out for each other, right?"
"We do."
"Great!" Michelle smiled. "Let's have a drink."
End chapter 10
Well I hope you enjoyed reading this chapter. I would really appreciate it if you would send me your honest opinion and some feedback :)
Send me some idea's, who do you want to see in the story more often?
Anyway, I really want to thank you for reading this chapter! I'm not sure when I'll upload the next chapter, but it's going to be soon :)
Until next time! :)