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I’ll meet you there, unless I’m running late. If so, I’ll text you
ME:
Looking forward to seeing you
KILLIAN:
Me too
He was looking forward to seeing me. A smile tugged at my lips as I exited out of my texts and scrolled through my contacts to Ander’s name. After a quick call, I had the assurance that he’d show up with Elliot and at least one of the football team members. My second and final task was to send a quick message to my group chat that included Niccolò, Dexter, and Shay to see if any of them were free. That done, I sat back against the mirrored studio wall with my legs outstretched, sipping from my water bottle while I crunched on an energy bar.
Leo wandered over and took a seat on the floor next to me, his arms encircling his knees. “I asked Connor and Niall if they could come. They’re, um, my friends from computing. Connor’s busy, but Niall said he’d come. I…it’s going to be weird, doing this in front of him.”
“Connor? He’s the one with the YouTube channel, right?” Before Leo could reply, I shook my head. I was getting off track. That wasn’t important right now. The most important thing was to reassure him. “Listen. If your friend’s coming, then it’s because he wants to support you.” I gave him an encouraging smile. “We’re all here to support you. You’ve got this. I know you do. You’ve got the talent, and you know the steps.”
He sighed, burying his face in his arms. “I-I wish I wasn’t like this.”
“Don’t wish you were different. You’re great as you are, babe. And you’re not going to let anything stop you from blowing the minds of our audience with your talent, okay?”
“Okay.”
“Good.” Squeezing his shoulder gently, I finished up my energy bar and then leaned my head back against the wall. With the silence that had fallen, I found my thoughts drifting towards Killian again.
He’d reassured me by text that Gage wouldn’t say anything about what had happened, but I couldn’t help feeling like there was something he wasn’t telling me.
Tonight, we’d speak properly, and I’d find out if there was anything he was hiding.
Our agreed rundown for the rehearsal was our three solo dances—Leo going in between Alyssa and me so he didn’t have to wait for too long—and we’d finish up with our group routine. Strutting onto the stage to introduce us, I glanced down at our audience.
Alyssa’s dancer friends, Erin and Amy, were in the front row. Next to them, my housemates Ander, Elliot, Levi, and Charlie had all shown up, and they’d dragged my least favourite member of the football team with them, Finn. Niccolò was seated in the centre, and he waved madly when I caught his eye. I blew him a kiss, making him grin. The group was rounded off by Leo’s friend Niall, which meant that Leo only had nine people to dance in front of, excluding Alyssa and me. Perfect.
After intros, I dimmed the lights as much as possible and turned the stage lights’ brightness up, plunging the audience into shadow to help Leo feel more comfortable.
Then, we began.
Alyssa’s dance went off without a hitch, and she was rewarded with enthusiastic applause and whistles from our audience. After taking a bow, she skipped over to the side of the stage, where Leo was waiting with me.
“You can do it.” She squeezed his arm, smiling widely. “It’s such a buzz, honestly.”
He gave her a jerky nod, and then with a deep breath, he stepped onto the stage. From my vantage point, I could see his whole body shaking, and all I wanted was to comfort him, but he had to do this for himself.
The music started up, but instead of starting his routine, he remained frozen in place, his eyes wide and fearful.
Fuck.
“Do something!” Alyssa hissed in my ear. “Quick!”
Sweeping my gaze across the stage, I came to a decision. “I’m gonna turn the spotlight right down and put the sidelights on low. When I’m done, restart the music, okay?” Without waiting for a reply, I sprinted towards the lighting deck, turning the spotlight to low and adding a soft glow from the sidelights. Leo blinked, and suddenly, the fear in his eyes was replaced by determination. This time, when the music started, he moved.
Alyssa clung to my arm, both of us holding our breaths as Leo danced. But he did it. He made it through the entire routine with only a couple of minor errors that I doubted anyone else would have picked up on.
When he came offstage to the sound of applause, there were tears in his eyes, and his body shook. “I did it. I actually did it,” he whispered, his voice cracking, and we pulled him into a group hug, the three of us basking in this moment.
Pulling back, I smiled. “We never doubted you.”
He returned my smile with a tremulous one of his own. “Thanks. Your turn now.”
Right. I’d forgotten I was up next in all the excitement.
