All for the Mirrorball

Chapter 8 - Just Peachy?

"So, what was that?" Adrianna asked once they were back in the apartment, comfortable on the couch.

"Oh, I was just saying how Jenn -"

Adrianna cut Olivia off, pointing at their sister. "No, Ilona."

Ilona's eyes went wide. "What was what?" She looked around for the cause of concern.

"What's going on with Alan?"

"Huh? Oh, please. Don't be fooled by the baby and lover boy of it all. It was just an act!"

"Oh my God, Ilona," Adrianna replied with a scoff. "Are you blind? Every time I looked at him, he was wholly focused on you."

"You guys are pretty touchy," Olivia added.

Ilona tried not to show her frustration, but failed miserably. "That's how all of the dancers are! Anyway, he's with Emma." She stood up to get a glass of water.

"If you say so..." Olivia added with a smirk. When she saw Ilona's face, she quieted.

"Maybe we do need to tone it down... I need to get through this season without any extra drama."

—

She went extra hard for her morning workout, and was rewarded with an extra boost of endorphins.

When she handed Alan his coffee in the morning, she broke their hug a few seconds before she usually would've.

"Morning, baby," he said with a smile, trying not to read into it.

"I guess we need to update the week's nicknames, huh?" She shrugged. "Don't want anyone getting the wrong idea!" The chuckle she forced died in her throat as she watched his face fall.

"Ohh... right. Yeah, I'll have to figure something else out for Soul Train week." He tried to feign indifference to her slightly icy new attitude towards him.

A few minutes later, Shay came in, and the crew started filming their next week's package.

Alan told her that her "personality really came through" on the show last week. The three points improvement made her the most improved celeb, which had her beaming.

"I never liked complacency. Even in rugby, I never want to get complacent," she replied.

Where did this girl come from? Alan thought. I wish I could bottle her drive.

This week, they'd be performing a foxtrot to Lady Marmalade. That meant she needed not only to dance in frame, but also to exude elegance and grace - demonstrating softness where she typically showed strength.

Once they were done recording, Shay explained this week's special circumstances. "Okay, so this week, we're still recording the show on Tuesday, but because of the debate, it won't air until the following Monday, so no eliminations this week, double next week,"

Before she left the room, Shay and Ilona made plans to go to lunch. Alan had to remind himself that it was Shay's idea, and not a tactic for avoiding him. He tried to act normal when they got back to rehearsal.

"Okay, so the good news is that the foxtrot requires a lot of body awareness and footwork - I think it should work to your strengths."

"Okay, well that's encouraging!"

The start of their rehearsals for the week went slowly, and Ilona had to remind herself that the very beginning of learning a new style had been the hardest part of every week so far. It was made even worse by her hyper-awareness of every touch.

She was more than ready for a long break by the time she met with Shay for lunch. It was nice to talk to her new friend - someone who didn't seem to be searching for deeper meaning in everything she said, unlike her sisters and her dance partner.

Back in the studio, though, she had to stop herself from hugging Alan. It's been an hour.

Luckily, the focus required for blocking the week's new dance helped get them both back to their normal flow.

Over the next few days, things improved further. She warmed up a little, though some invisible boundary had clearly been put in place, but Alan had finally seemed to make it back to being her friend, or at least acting it.

They still had lunch every day, though more often than not, Chandler or Jenna joined them now.

The instagram video she posted from a campaign that had her in a swimsuit caused some backsliding on his part, but they were getting back to normal, nonetheless.

—

By the time taping day rolled around, Ilona felt really good about her dance. Something about a non-live taping felt less stressful, too, even though there were still no re-takes for the important bits. They had their first guest judge of the season, Rosie Perez, and she seemed to be having lots of fun in her role.

Despite Ilona's normal pre-show jitters, she felt good - maybe it was the confidence that Lady Marmalade always gave her. Maybe it was the stunning, flowy peach dress they put her in. Maybe it was the clip in bangs. Maybe it was the fact that she and Alan felt normal again, to the point where she questioned whether it was all in her head to begin with... No matter what, she was looking and feeling foxy and performed a solid routine.

After she flung Alan to the ground to end the dance, he sprung back up and pulled her into the tightest bear hug. "You are a literal showstopper," he whispered in her ear. She didn't fight the grin plastered across her face.

Bruno even called it a "proper foxtrot."  She was so proud of her two 8s and two 7s, and was ecstatic to hear the commentary on her being 'most improved.' She and Alan were both literally jumping for joy as their scores were revealed. She almost wished there was an elimination tonight, but decided to ride the high into next week. She wished she didn't have to keep her scores a secret for a full week.

A group of them went out to celebrate the night. Alan and Emma were being super flirty, which Ilona told herself she was happy to see. After she witnessed the awkwardness between ex-partners (and just exes), Rylee and Harry, at the taping that night, she was especially glad she had drawn a line in the sand.

She had fun chatting with other dancers and flirting with Danny's friend, Graham, before calling it an early night.

She said her goodbyes and walked out to call an uber.

She turned when she heard the door swing
open.

"Bestie! You're headed out?" Alan asked as he stepped out.

"Oh, hey. She shrugged. I know, I can't hang." She shrugged. "I'm calling an uber now."

"No, it was just a long day!" He threw his arms around her before continuing, "I get it. I'll wait with you." When they broke the hug, she was smiling up at him, and he couldn't help but be grateful they were getting past the weirdness.

"You really don't have to, Alan. I can handle myself." She laughed and gave him what she hoped was a confident smile.

"I'm not leaving my partner out here all alone. It's what, like -" he glanced down at her phone, "only three minutes away, anyway."

They chatted until her ride drove up, at which point Alan pulled her in a tight hug before helping her into the car.

"Night, Lo. Text me when you're home." He shut the car door and went back inside to his friends.