everyone knows maddie and mackenzie ziegler. abby lee's favorite dancers. but let's throw one more into the mix, malia ziegler. the oldest half sister of maddie and mackenzie.
Oops! This image does not follow our content guidelines. To continue publishing, please remove it or upload a different image.
the car ride after school was anything but quiet. diego's old-school playlist was bumping through the speakers—some 90s r&b track he claimed was a "certified classic"—and andres was in the passenger seat pretending not to know the lyrics while clearly mouthing every word.
in the back, malia was trying to tie her hair into a bun using the rearview mirror and the reflection in alejandro's phone screen.
"hold still," she told him, elbowing his side. "i can't see my part."
"you're lucky i'm nice," alejandro muttered, tilting his phone toward her like a mirror.
"you? nice?" andres laughed, still facing forward. "since when?"
"since i let you live rent-free in this car," alejandro snapped back with a grin.
"alright, alright, enough," diego said with a chuckle as he turned the corner onto the studio's street. "malia's got rehearsal. let's not give her a headache before she even starts dancing."
malia gave a dramatic sigh and leaned back. "thank you, dad. at least someone cares."
"hey, i care," andres said, turning in his seat to look at her. "you've been killing it lately. didn't riley say your solo gave her goosebumps?"
"yeah," malia said with a little smile, kicking her feet out in front of her. "but for some reason i keep rushing a beat ahead of the music when i do lyrical."
"this dance talk always confuses me." alejandro mumbled while dropping his phone in his lap when malia was done.
they pulled into the studio parking lot, where parents were already double-parking and dancers were spilling out of minivans with messy buns and rolling duffels.
diego put the car in park. "alright, you got your water? shoes? snacks?"
malia nodded. "yep. i'm good."
"go have fun, mija," he said.
malia gave him a grateful smile as she opened the door. "love you, dad. bye, dorks."
"break a leg," andres called out.
"or a toe," alejandro added. "just not both."
malia laughed as she slammed the door behind her and jogged toward the entrance, the weight of the day falling off her shoulders with every step.
~~
after her usual private with riley where she learned a brand-new solo, malia walked into the studio, joining the rest of the girls gathering for pyramid.
abby stood at the front of the room, arms crossed, already in full teacher mode.
"so did everybody have a good time in chicago?" she asked, looking around at the girls who nodded in unison.
