Shooting Star

Chapter 22

"Thank You ladies and gentlemen for coming out to watch this year's Rhythm Dance Championships! Without further ado, we are going to announce the Top Dancer Awards to each level and group, and the Top Overall Dancer!"

The audience cheered and the dancers clapped politely.

I clutched Janelle's hand anxiously. I was the Top Overall Dancer at this competition for three years running. I couldn't lose out this year.

"The Top Overall Mini Dancer goes to..."

We all waited with bated breath.

"Elliana Grossman of the Accent Dance Academy!"

A small girl, about 4-5, stood up and received the trophy.

"The Top Overall Part-Time Dancer goes to..."

"Jackie Renwick of the Dazzle Dance School!"

A tall girl, probably about 15, stood up, tossed her brown hair over her shoulder, and beamed at the audience when she got her trophy.

"The Top Overall Junior Dancer goes to..." 

"Charlene Lexington, from Kicks Dance Institute!"

We screamed for our fellow dancer. Charlene was a really great dancer, she totally deserved the award. Plus, she was Janelle's younger sister.

"GO CHARLENE!" Janelle and I bellowed.

Charlene smiled at us and went to grab her trophy.

"The Top Overall Intermediate Dancer goes to..."

I knew if it was me I was out of the running for Overall Dancer of the entire competition, so I prayed that my name wouldn't be called.

"Natalie Williams, from Kicks Dance Institute!"

Aly-G, Janelle, and I screamed and cheered as Natalie, in utter shock, stood up and climbed across the stage to get her trophy.

"Congratulations," I grinned at her when she sat back down. 

"Yeah," Janelle said. "You deserved it."

"You're awesome," Aly-G said, hugging her.

"Thanks guys," Natalie beamed.

"And the Top Overall Senior Dancer goes to..."

"Yvonne Chiu, from Ballet Dance School!"

We clapped politely. 

"The Top Overall Soloist goes to... JANELLE LEXINGTON, KICKS DANCE INSTITUTE!"

Janelle's mouth fell open and we cheered.

"Janelle, they're waiting for you!" I said.

Janelle stood up and got her trophy, and quickly sat back down.

"The Top Overall Duetists goes to..."

I glanced at Aly-G, who looked a little miffed. She was up for the Overall Soloist, but she'd been beaten out by Janelle. For the third year in a row.

"Natalie Williams and Alaina-Grace Freemount, Kicks Dance Institute!"

Aly-G and Natalie screamed with delight and both went up to collect their trophies.

"The Top Overall Trio goes to..."

We didn't expect it to be us, and we were right.

"Holly Richardson, Nicole Fletcher, and Alexandra Daley, from Dazzle Dance School!"

Cheers exploded from the other side of the stage. All of the dancers were sitting on the stage, and the trophies were being handed out near the back of the stage.

"The Top Overall Small Group goes to..."

"Starry Eyed, from Kicks Dance Institute!"

Our eyes all went wide and we jumped up, cheering. That was the name of our contemporary small group number.

Aly-G went to get our trophy, and when she returned, we all sat down and admired the trophy. Our first ever contemporary small group, and we won the overall award. Holy shit, I felt like I was on cloud nine.

"The Top Overall Large Group goes to..."

"Good Time, from Dazzle Dance School!"

We clapped politely. We'd seen their number, and it was flawless. Amazing. They really did deserve it.

"The Top Overall Extended Line goes to..."

"Rag Time, from Shining Starred Dance School!" 

We clapped. We were upset that our Extended Line didn't win, but hey, you can't win 'em all.

"We should've won," Janelle grumbled.

"Yeah, ours was way better," Aly-G nodded.

"Hey, just let it go guys," I said, just as Natalie said, "Cool it guys, it's all good."

 Janelle shrugged but it was clear she was still ticked off.

"And the winner of this year's Rhythm Dance Competition Overall Dancer Award goes to..."

I inhaled quickly and squeezed Janelle's hand, hard. She squeezed back reassuringly.

"Oh, hold on. It seems the judges would like to make some comments about this dancer's performance during this competition," the host said.

I groaned. "You've got to be kidding me."

"At least this way, based off of what they're saying, you can tell if it's you or not," Natalie reasoned.

The head judge stepped up. "This dancer we feel deserves the award because every time she comes out onto the stage, we're wowed by her performance, her expression, her movement, and her energy. She lights up the stage. If there were no lights, we would still be able to see her."

The second judge took the mic. "This dancer has danced every single day this weekend, and has had multiple dances each day. We enjoyed watching each of her 17 dances."

My mind was buzzing. I had four on Thursday. Four on Friday. Four on Saturday. Four on Sunday. My heart sank. It wasn't me.

Wait. I missed Extended Line. I'm still in this! I cheered in my head.

The last judge stepped up to the podium. "We feel this dancer deserves this award because she stood apart from the other competitors in a good way. She has talent, and she's right to be dancing here tonight--"

The host stole the microphone back and winked at the third judge. "And without further ado, the winner of this year's Rhythm Dance Competition Overall Dancer Award goes to..."

I took a deep breath, steadied my racing heart, and closed my eyes.