Heart of A Dancer

It was a big day at Strawberry Fields High. The day to sign up for auditions for the Jazz and Swing Dance Troupe. Only freshmen were actually allowed to audition. This was because once you got in you most likely stayed in the Troupe. The Troupe was extremely selective about who they let in. Only taking the best of what the school had to offer. You needed at least a semester each of Jazz and Swing Dancing as electives to even audition. Not to mention, the Troupe also picked from the members of the Middle School Troupe who wanted to continue. Most years it was difficult to find an audition spot as a freshman. Sometimes you’d get lucky if someone from the middle school Troupe decided to quit. If you weren’t, there would be inexperienced hopefuls against Troupe dancers. This year there was a single open spot. Kyle Layman, the second best boy on the Troupe, had unexpectedly quit. Leaving his middle school troupe partner unpaired for the audition. That is if she chose to audition without him. Everyone knew what had happened between Kyle and the Troupe. Including Adrian Knight. He hoped that Kyle’s old partner Bethany Harris would still be auditioning. Adrian had a crush on Bethany, but he’d never even spoken to her. She was so beautiful and cool. Bethany would never notice a non-dancer like him. Adrian’s best friend Eddie Marsh had been dreaming of auditioning for Troupe for years. Now he was about to get his shot. Adrian hoped Eddie and Bethany would at least make Troupe. Maybe even get paired together. It was the best chance he had to even be introduced to her. Episode One Chapter One Bethany Harris walked up to the sign-up list with a heavy heart. She tried not to think about what had happened last semester. Kyle had made his choice when he left the middle school Troupe after three years. They hadn’t been a couple, but he’d been her dance partner and closest friend in the Troupe. Bethany’s Troupe friends were auditioning too, but they had their partners. She’d be stuck doing the Swing number with a non-troupe hopeful. “This is a good thing.”, Bethany reminded herself.” A fresh start.” As Bethany wrote her name on the list she checked to see if she’d been the first non-paired hopeful to sign up. She’d been the second. The first was a boy named Eddie Marsh. Whoever this guy was, he must have really wanted to get on the list. She hoped he was good. She needed a good partner. For the Troupe, for her dream of being a professional dancer and for herself. There were just six spots open this year. Three audition pairs would be decided on the day of the audition. Only one pair would make the cut. Bethany hoped she wouldn’t lose her spot on the squad. Troupe had been like her second home. The squad was her second family. One audition stood between her and continuing with dance in High School. Adrian leaned against the wall. He wasn’t worried that Eddie was a few minutes late. Today was the day of the sign up after all. Adrian knew Eddie had been waiting years to sign up for that audition. Just then Eddie came running down the hallway,” I did it. First unpaired hopeful on the list.” Adrian smiled,” Never doubted you’d get there first. Can’t have the best non-troupe dancer in our grade missing his one shot at the Troupe.” Eddie laughed,” Right. Wait a minute, I almost forgot.” “End of the Road.” “Ride or Die bro.” Fist bump, high-five, handshake, clasp As they headed to class, Adrian was already feeling pretty good about their Freshman Year at Strawberry Fields High. They’d been Ride or Die bros for three years and it meant everything to them. Eddie was just a week away from his audition for the Troupe. High school was going to be different than middle school. He could feel it. Adrian wondered if Bethany had signed up for the audition. There was a chance she wouldn't. He didn't want to think about that. Adrian had too much riding on the audition next week. Not only Eddie's chance to finally make the Troupe, but their chance to be in with the cool kids.He hoped Bethany hadn't given up on dance because of her old partner Kyle. If she had, then he might never even get the chance to meet her. Bethany was still able to get to her first class before the bell and found a seat behind her friend Alice. They were both dancers from the middle school Troupe. Alice was her best friend, but had developed a bit of a diva attitude due to being the featured dancer twice in a row in middle school. No pair had been featured more than twice for over a decade. Both Alice and Bethany wanted to try to break that record. Alice wrote a note and tapped Bethany’s desk with it. Bethany grabbed the note and unfolded it,” You’re still auditioning?” She wrote a response and passed up. Alice read it with a slight smile,” Got to. Just hoping for a good partner.” This year was going to be fun. The two of them had a friendly rivalry going, but Alice loved Beth like a sister. She’d been hoping the summer had been enough time for the initial sting of last semester to wear off. During their lunch break, the boys checked the list. There was one name they were looking for. Both of them hoped that Bethany would come back. They were both fans of hers. Though Adrian was the bigger fan. Adrian nudged Eddie,” Go on Ed. Check out the competition. But make sure to check for her too. Eddie checked the list,” I know the other unpaired hopefuls. They’re almost as good as me, but not quite. Let me see….. Yes!” “Knew it! Our favorite’s back.” The boys were impressed that Bethany was still auditioning. After what had gone down last semester, Kyle hadn’t just quit on her. He’d humiliated her. It was the closing night of the final showcase of the year. Right after their final performance. Kyle hadn’t even waited until they got offstage to tell Bethany and everyone else that he’d decided not to continue. What made things worse was what he’d done after that. Bethany had started crying and Kyle hadn’t even tried to comfort her. He’d just let her have an emotional breakdown onstage. During lunch that day, Eddie started thinking about who he wanted to be paired with at the audition. He already knew who his ideal partner was. The problem was that he also knew about how Adrian felt about Bethany. “What if I get to audition with her?”, he asked. Adrian smiled a little,“I’d rather have you audition with Bethany than either of the others. She deserves the best partner. That’s you, hands down. Mr. Specialist.” Eddie sighed,“Don’t get started. It was luck Adrian. Luck and timing. That’s how they were able to even get the video of that in the first place.” “Either way, you’ve got what it takes. Now the returning members know it.” Eddie nodded,“If I could be paired with any unpaired girl I’d want it to be Bethany.” “There’s something you should probably know. Now that you're the best hopeful they’ve got.” “Your middle school fanboy crush on her hasn’t gone away yet. I know.” “I wish you hadn’t caught on last year.” “It was kind of hard not to. I tried.” An idea was starting to form in both of their minds. If Eddie and Bethany were paired up, the three of them would likely be friends. In the case of Adrian and Bethany, maybe even more than friends. During lunch, Bethany asked Alice,” Heard of someone named Eddie Marsh?” Alice snickered,” What type of a last name is that? Don’t tell me he’s a hopeful.” Bethany rolled her eyes,” Don’t make fun of it. Yes, he’s a hopeful. First name on the unpaired list actually.” “Doubt he’ll be good enough. Most of this year's unpaired won’t stand a chance. Hope you don’t end up with a mediocre partner.” Bethany leaned closer and lowered her voice,” I was thinking he might be, you know…. that guy. The one who was at Troupe level last year but wasn’t in the Troupe.” “Could be. No one knew who that guy was. If he can pull off princess at troupe level that well last year, this year is going to be interesting.” They both remembered the day last semester when they’d seen that video. It had been taken from the hallway outside of the advanced swing dance class. The Troupe member who’d taken the video had caught the lead in and execution of a Troupe quality princess lift. There was something surprising though. The boy who’d pulled that off wasn’t a Troupe member.