Tiny Dancer

1.01 Pilot

Jesse Karban reluctantly makes his way to the front door of the Vega household, dragging his feet all the while. "Do I really have to do this?" he asks.

Andre gives him a look. "Yes," he says.

"But it's Trina. She's kinda- I mean- it's just-"

"She's annoying and untalented?" Andre finishes.

Jesse frowns at him. "That's mean, Andre."

"It's also true," he points out. He sighs as they come to a stop in front of the door. "Come on, man. You said you would handle choreography for her performance."

Jesse sighs back. "I know. I know." He takes a deep breath, trying to brace himself for the next few hours. "Okay. Let's do this."

Andre claps one hand on his shoulder. "I owe you one, buddy. Seriously. I would have been left alone with her if you didn't agree to this."

With that, he reaches forward and rings the doorbell.

Trina Vega answers the door with an irritated look on her face. "Come in," she says reluctantly.

"Thanks," Andre drawls as they do.

Trina sighs as she closes the door and walks over toward another brunette standing near their piano. "Tori, this is Andrew and Jake," she incorrectly introduces.

"Andre and Jesse," Andre corrects.

"Hey," Tori says cheerfully.

"You go to Hollywood Arts too?" Andre asks.

"Oh, no. I'm not a performer." She gestures at Trina. "Just my sister."

Trina throws one arm around her neck. "Yup. I got the talent, and she got the strong teeth." She squishes her sister's cheeks. "You know, she's never had one cavity?"

"I try not to brag about it," Tori shrugs.

Jesse grins, dimples on full display. "Impressive," he jokes. "And I'm sure you could be a great performer too," he adds sweetly.

That's when Andre really looks at the instrument behind them. "Nice piano," he says, already walking over to take a seat. He plays a not uncomplicated tune and Tori's jaw drops.

"Oh, my god! You're fantastic," she says as she sits beside him on the piano bench.

"He's okay," Trina scoffs.

Jesse sends her an odd look before smiling at the other two. "Best musician you can find," he informs Tori.

Andre grins and holds up one hand for a high-five. "Yeah, well, Jesse here's the best dancer you can find."

Jesse grins back as they slap hands.

That's when Andre starts to sniff the air. He grabs Tori's hand, quickly figuring out where the smell is coming from.

"Fish mold," she says simply.

Andre immediately drops her hand while Jesse takes a step back.

"I have questions, but I feel like it's probably best I don't ask," he says slowly.

Tori just nods. "Probably best," she agrees.

A few days of headache-inducing Big Showcase preparation later finds Jesse sitting in the Vega's backyard as he watches Andre talk on the phone with his grandmother.

"Grandma, no- listen!" he says. "There's no way you can drown at my school."

Tori comes out with glasses of lemonade in hand and a confused smile when she hears him. She turns to Jesse and hands him a glass, silently asking what's going on.