HEARTBURST,, The Next Step

[2.7] it takes two

[2X07]

{Michelle is upset when Eldon won't do a duet with her and Riley is left hurt after witnessing something she wasn't meant to.}

❝I think those two are the most oblivious people I have ever met. Time will tell, though. Time will tell.❞

"Maxie!" was the first thing the girl heard as she walked into the studio that morning. Quickly placing her bag into her allotted shelf, not failing to throw an exhausted eye roll, she moved to sit down next to the boy who had called her over.

James waited expectantly for her to get settled before starting his story, not giving the poor girl any time to greet him in response, "You have to hear what happened at my Uncle Manny's house this weekend."

"The Uncle Manny that likes me, or the one that doesn't?" Max asked him wearily. 

In truth, James actually did have two Uncle Mannys. One, Uncle Manny B, would be arguably one of Maxie's favourite members of James's family - second to Deborah of course. And the other, Uncle Manny J, was a heavily influenced patriot who was openly against anyone that wasn't Canadian - not great for Maxie the British person.

"Definitely the Manny that likes you," James nodded, "But anyway, this story is legendary. Like, anyone in the next two hundred years that is closely related to me will talk about this story."

At that point, Max was hooked. Leaning forward in her seat, her eyes widened as she spoke, "Go on then. Don't keep me waiting."

"Yeah, yeah, okay," he agreed before jumping right in, "So Uncle Manny... The one that likes you."

"Yeah, the one always riding his motorcycle?"

"Yep, that's the one. So, once again, he was riding his motorcycle. And he's just rolling, like, a block away from home, just going for a ride. He tries to pop a wheelie, okay? Completely falls off the bike."

"No way."

With wide eyes, James excitedly nodded as he continued, "But that's not all. The bike lands and keeps going straight. My Aunt Carla, she's at home, just chilling, sees the bike roll by, runs up to it, hops on the bike and goes grocery shopping. What are the chances of that?"

It seemed that Maxie was at a loss for words, for she remained in the same position, mouth wide open, eyes bulged in amazement for what seemed like ages before she responded, "Oh. My. Days. Just... She just goes shopping? James that's like-"

"The best thing ever!" they both exclaimed at the same time before breaking out into laughter - practically getting lost in their own little bubble.

Maxie held a smirk as she told the camera, "I already knew the story. Deborah told my mum who told me this morning. But James looks so excited about it I'll just let him have his moment."

The laughter died down once Riley was spotted down the hall and James called out, "Riley, Riley! You have to hear the story I just told Max."

Standing up, Maxie turned around to share a smile of greeting with the girl before leaving her to listen to James's story.

After a few minutes of stretching with Giselle, Maxie was pulled out of her thoughts when Miss Kate walked into the room.

"All right, guys," she called out whilst the dancers formed a huddle in front of her, "I want to explain the rules of Nationals to you, okay? Nationals are totally different from Regionals."