Dancing at the ALDC

Chapter 11

Lucy POV

"Lucy! Oh my god Lucy!"  Chloe came running towards me.  "They--you--they are--I'm--"

"Whoa, slow down, Chloe!"  I said standing up.  She was breathing hard and fast and obviously had something big on the tip of her tongue.  I put my hands on her shoulders to steady her.

"They--are--talking--about--you."  Chloe said, still out of breath.

"Who is?"  I asked, my defense mode was kicking into gear.  I had been bullied a lot in elementary school.  Whether it was about my clothes, my hair, or my lack of money, they always found something new to bully me for.

"The moms,"  Chloe said, calmer now.  Okay, I was not expecting that.

"They are?"  I could feel my brow furrowing.

"Yes they said lots of stuff."  Chloe said.  "Melissa was upset and complaining about how you are going up against Maddie this week."

"She was?"  I asked, incredulously.  "What happened?"  My defense mode was crumbling now, too weak to stand my pride.  I could feel a smile forming on my lips.

"This isn't something to be proud of!"  Chloe said, shaking her head as though to say amateurs.

"Why not?"

"Because," Chloe said. "This is the first real fight that has happened on dance moms since season one!!!"  I found myself nodding even though I didn't quite comprehend. 

"So, you're saying...?"

"I'm saying, that since all the other fights were scripted, the drama was never real.  That's why the girls were never embarrassed by their mothers' fighting."  Chloe looked worried but I couldn't see why.  "But since this is real, Melissa could really be out to get you!"

"No, Melissa wouldn't do that!"  I said.  "Would she?"

"If it meant whether or not her daughter would win Nationals!" 

"But this isn't Nationals!"  I cried out.  Everyone in the room around us stared.  I shrank back and pulled Chloe into the bathroom where the camera men would hopefully not follow.  "What do you mean Nationals?"

"It's real life Nationals, but on the show, its just a regular competition."  Chloe hissed.

"How come no one ever told me?"  I asked, betrayed.

"Because the producers told us not to.  When there is a new person on the team, they usually don't tell them very much about what's going on because they don't want to have to do multiple shootings and make it look any more scripted than it already is."

"So it's bad if someone accidentally says "Nationals" in the middle of a conversation?"

"Sure, you could say that."  Chloe said, looking like she wanted to end this conversation.  "Don't tell anyone that I told you because you're not supposed to know.  Neither is your mom."