HEARTBURST,, The Next Step

[2.31] what are you waiting for?

[2X31]

{Elite tries to sabotage Maxie's chance to dance in the female solo round, planting seeds of doubt into Amanda's head as she wonders why her team lacks confidence in her ability to win.}

❝Elite should've known better than to mess with me.❞

"So, what does this mean?" Maxie finally spoke up, pulling herself away from West as she looked at him with confusion, "I mean, for us. Like, what are we?"

Letting out a breathy chuckle, West responded, "Well, I'm pretty sure we're a lot more than friends. Of course, if you feel that way, too."

"Yeah, obviously," Maxie grinned at him, feeling the familiar butterflies swarm her stomach at his voice, "I'm just..." She sighed, dropping her gaze to the floor as she continued, "This changes a lot, you know? 'Cause, like, what happens now? Do we get together? But then what if we break up? That'd completely ruin our friendship, and I don't think I'd be able to lose you, not after everything."

As the girl continued to ramble nervously about her worries and doubts, West couldn't help but find amusement in her overthinking. Taking a tentative step forward, he placed his hands on her shoulders in a gentle attempt to grab her attention before he began to speak, "Maxie. Whatever happens, we do it together, alright? I don't want you overthinking anything and blowing things out of proportion, 'cause that'll just stress you out even more. Okay?"

Maxie gave him a heartwarming smile before nodding, glad that through the madness of the day, she still had West to help her calm down, no matter what had happened. Without missing a beat, she pulled him into a tight hug; the way his smell filtered through her senses made her feel more at ease whilst he softly reciprocated the embrace, pulling the girl impossibly closer as he enjoyed the small moment they had to themselves.

"After telling West how I feel and then kissing him..." Maxie began, unable to wipe the grin off her face, "I mean, it feels amazing, almost as if a weight has been lifted from my shoulders."

Wearing a similar expression, West continued, "I think there is a mutual understanding here. Even without speaking, I think we both know we're not gonna tell the others. 'Cause, there isn't much to tell at the minute."

The small moment, however, was soon cut short by the sounds of cheering coming from the direction of the stage, indicating that the winner of their duet round had been announced; the pair could only hope that James and Riley had brought back that small victory.

"We should..." Maxie mumbled, pulling back from the hug as she nodded in the direction of the door.

Giving the girl an awkward small, West rubbed the back of his neck sheepishly as he responded, "Yeah, we should." Before the two dancers made their way out the door, essays of unspoken words trailed behind their bubble of nervous grins and explosive butterflies as they hurriedly followed each other towards the wings.

The first person they saw upon finally arriving backstage was Eldon, who wore a smile the size of Jupiter on his face both at the sight of Maxie and West and at whatever news had just been announced.

"I'm assuming James and Riley won?" Maxie called out over the roaring crowd and the squeals of the rest of the team, watching as West made his way over to Giselle to probably ask the same questions.

Nodding ecstatically, Eldon yelled, "Yep! You should've seen it, Max! They had a proper big kiss in front of the whole crowd, too," He laughed, pulling her in for a celebratory hug as the winning duo rushed towards the team, still in shock that they had won.