Not A Small Town Girl (dance moms and magcon)

Prologue

I can't decide whether I want to go in or not. I notice myself biting my lip, a horrible habit that I've been trying to break since forever. I slowly release my lower lip from my clenching bite. I'm not sure how long I've been standing here now. But I'm sure that I rather be late on my first day of high school than walk in there right now. I've seen enough movies and had enough nightmares to know that in those halls everything is different. It doesn't matter if your Maddie Ziegler, in there nobody really cares. Or at least that's what my friend Kalani told me.

Approximately 10 hours earlier

"Maddie, you can't walk in there thinking you're the shit. I mean, like, what I'm saying is that," one of my best friends is preparing me for arguably the biggest day in my 15 year life, she takes a breath before she continues, "this is your first day back at school since you were, what, 10?" I try to answer her and say yes but she cuts me off as usual, "High school is really fucking different. It's pretty shitty too. But I mean I know you'll like it" Kalani smiles at me, I smile too cause she's finally done.

"That sounds really great, thanks." I scoff and lean back in the reclined pool chair. With my favorite VS zipup and more than baggy soffee shorts comfortably on, I think that I don't ever wanna leave here. A breeze wisps up the dirt from the dusty ground below me. Kendall walks out of the house and on to the deck coughing, "The- dust-bleh" she says between yacks.

"Welcome to Arizona!" Kalani announces lifting her hands up pretending to hold a cup.

"Cheers to that" Kendall slaps her solo cup into Kalani's outreached hand. In her other hand she holds her phone. I notice that she's changed into grey sweats and a destroyed light pink crew neck sweatshirt. I watch as she shimmies on to the narrowing recliner Kalani is already lounging on.

"Look who it is, Ms. I-like-being-homeschooled!" I yell out upon her arrival.

"Look who it is, Ms. I'm-clearly-regretting-my-stupid-decision-to-go-to-high-school!" she mocks me.

"That joke loses its funniness when it's too long. And I'm not regretting my decision" I answer back trying to at least look somewhat convincing.

Kalani shifts around on the chair so she can see me again. Kendall's body had blocked her before, either that or she was adjusting her unnecessarily short, shorts. While in the process of it all she chimes in, "I still don't get why you're not going. It's not like it's even that bad. And you're leaving Maddie all alone."

I quietly thank her in my mind.

"She's not alone, she has you!" Kendall quickly backs herself up.

"I know that everyone often forgets. But, I'm a year older. We're barely gonna see each other at school, maybe once or twice in the hall but that's it" Kalani informs us.

"So I'm basically screwed. I have nobody!" I say this and I'm not being over dramatic.

"Told ya so" Kendall quickly mutters under her breath but I hear it. She bites her lip and smiles at me at the same time. Maybe that's where I picked up my bad habit.

"Girls! Let's go! Bed! Now!" Kira yells from the window upstairs. I've gotten used to her broken, one word sentences since my stay with the Hilliker's over the summer. It had been three months since I had last been in Pittsburgh and I didn't miss it all that much. Kendall didn't miss back home at all, I couldn't blame her, the hot weather Arizona had to offer was way better than the piles of snow in PA.

"Mom, it's 11 o'clock! We have neighbors who don't wanna hear you shoutin from the rooftops!" Kalani yells back at her mom even louder.

"Well let's go then" Kira softens her volume a bit and I roll off the lounge chair like a giant rolly polly. Kalani moves off her chair and Kendall thumps back since Kalani was supporting half her body weight.