HEARTBURST,, The Next Step

[2.19] sacrifice

[2X19]

{Gabi challenges Becca to a dance-off for a spot on the J-Troupe quartet and Emily encourages Hunter to make amends with Maxie and the boys for the benefit of the team.}

❝What do I do about the dance battle?
Out-dance her, obviously.❞

Chatter swarmed Studio A for yet another day as the dancers all flocked through the doors to put their stuff away and get ready for what the rehearsal had to throw at them. Nationals was getting closer by the day and if any dancer at the studio were to say they weren't nervous, they would have been lying.

Whilst they all discussed their individual plans for the day in groups, Miss Kate walked into the studio with an elated grin gracing her face, indicating that she had some good news, which was a relief after the weeks of drama and upsets the team had endured.

"Okay, I have some exciting news." Kate addressed the teens, pulling their attention to where she stood, bouncing on the balls of her feet with enthusiasm. "So there's this really prestigious quartet competition coming up soon and we have been officially been invited to compete." She said with animation, causing the dancers to 'Ooh' and 'Aah' at her announcement.

"This trio competition is a very big deal," The blonde woman explained to the camera, "A lot of the studios that are going to Nationals will be there as well, so it's a good way for us to kind of take a look at our competition."

Maxie shrugged nonchalantly, her brunette hair dancing across her collarbone, for she hadn't tied it up yet, "I already knew about it," she claimed, before doubling back, "Obviously I didn't know we were invited, but Max had told me Elite were, so I was aware of some things... Not all the things."

"It's such an honour because they only ever ask the best teams to come in," Kate then added on, making the quartet competition seem that much more enticing, "But the catch is everyone has to choreograph to the same song and there are no costumes allowed."

The last comment seemed to ignite shock in a few of the dancers, for they exchanged uneasy glances between their peers; it's one thing to be invited to such a prestigious competition, but for every team to dance to the same song in the same outfits? It was mad, but reasonable. The teens knew that the rules were there so that the judges were able to see who the most creative dance team was, and they were determined to win.

Noticing the disheartened looks on the student's faces, Kate then went on to motivate them, "But it's going to be an amazing practice for Nationals, so I think it should be Giselle, Amanda, Maxie, and Thalia who compete."

With that, a round of cheers of encouragement sprouted from dancers around the room whilst the four girls nodded in agreement, seemingly grateful about the prospect of representing their troupe at such a competitive local event.

"I'm really excited Miss Kate chose us to compete in the trio competition," Thalia admitted, giddy with pre-emptive nerves, even though the competition wasn't for a few days yet.

Giselle shared her jitters. "This is the very first time The Next Step has even been invited to one of these, and I get to compete? That's awesome!"

"I'm glad the girls and I have got this opportunity," Maxie agreed, her smile just as big as Giselle and Thalia's as she did so, "I mean, it'll be great to get on a stage again for the first time in a while and just dance to win and make the team proud."