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AS PHOEBE STRETCHED, she couldn't help but notice how Gina and EJ kept looking at each other. "Hey," Nini walked up to her, snapping her attention away from the sophomore and her boyfriend.
"Hey," Phoebe smiled.
"Don't listen to her," Nini advised. "Lily. She's wrong. You're the perfect Belle, Bee."
"Oh," Phoebe shook her head. "Don't worry. I'm not gonna let her get under my skin that easily."
"Good," Nini nodded. "I like that energy."
"Okay, everyone," Lily hollered. "Warm up is over, gather around." EJ walked over to Phoebe and slid his hand into hers. She gave him a small smile. "l will now press shuffle to choose the song."
Antoine, the French kid, pushed past Phoebe and got next to Lily onstage. "After which, I will prepare a dance remix of the song, since I, on occasion, DJ."
"Ah, of course he's a DJ," Big Red grumbled.
"Non, monsieur. I DJ but I would not say I am a DJ," Antoine laughed.
Big Red rolled his eyes. "Thanks for the clarity."
"Everyone ready?" Lily held up her phone. "And it's. . . The Mob Song."
EJ squeezed Phoebe's hand. "Yes!" As soon as he heard the groan slip past her lips, his gaze snapped to her. "I knew you didn't like The Mob Song."
"It's not really the type of song to have a dance off to, baby," Phoebe told him softly.
"What Bee is trying to say is that the song sucks, Caswell," Clara crossed her arms as she appeared next to Phoebe.
"It's fine, guys," Gina gave him a reassuring smile, placing a hand on his arm. Phoebe's face instantly dropped. "We're East High. We can make anything work."
"Yeah, we can," EJ agreed.
"Open the curtain!" Lily ordered.
The curtain opened to reveal their set, which was gorgeous, but Phoebe was focused on the person in the Beast costume. "I thought they said no costumes?"
"These people can't even follow their own rules," Clara commented.
"Is it just me or is all of this, like, off the rails insane?" Nini wondered.
"Uh, honestly, if you don't want to do it with us, you could always take off," Ricky replied. "Don't want you to feel confined."
"Wait, what?" Nini looked between him and the stage before scoffing and walking away. "This is a bad idea."
