Missing Moments

INTERLUDE: B-Troupe Think Piper and Finn are Dating

7x08

"Man, I am so ready for this weekend," Henry was saying as he cleaned out his locker. A photo of him and Summer sat on the top shelf, and he picked it up, swallowing thickly before stuffing it at the bottom of his dance bag.

Heath was sat on the bench behind him, getting ready to leave the studio for the day. "Got big plans?" he asked curiously.

It was hard finding his place on A-Troupe, especially when everyone else was already so close. Henry and Finn were two of the more inclusive members of the team, but Heath still didn't feel like he was really fitting in. Even still, he was going to take any opportunity to find a friend somewhere on the team. Anyone but Oswald would do.

"It's Bro Weekend," Henry replied excitedly, "We used to do them all the time, but then Noah left and we got busy. Now that I'm a single man again, I'm starting it back up."

"Oh. That sounds fun," Heath commented, twisting down to tie his shoe with a frown. Bro Weekend. That meant all of the boys on A-Troupe were hanging out, right? All of the boys except him. Great.

"No more weekend archery classes. No more discussions about oracle cards that I don't get. No more weird dinners at that one vegan restaurant." Henry sniffed as he shut his locker and swung the strap of his dance bag over his shoulder. "I'm free to do whatever I want now."

Heath glanced over at him as Henry sniffed again and hastily wiped at his nose, reiterating once more that he was a free man. News of Henry and Summer's break-up had spread pretty fast throughout the studio. Despite Henry's assurances to himself that he was a free man, however, it didn't seem like he was necessarily happy to be one. It actually seemed quite the opposite. Heath just hoped he wouldn't start crying or something. He wouldn't know what to do if that happened.

Thankfully, before he had to worry too seriously about that, Finn entered the locker room, an extra skip in his step. Henry immediately straightened up, holding out his hand for a brief handshake in greeting as Finn sat on the other end of Heath's bench.

"You seem happy," Henry noted of his energetic friend.

Heath had pulled out his phone to make sure he wasn't going to miss his bus home but looked up curiously as Finn said, "I've got a date tonight!"

"Really? With who?" Henry asked.

"Amy!"

Heath had to stop himself from audibly reacting as he stared down at his phone, trying to appear like he wasn't listening. Finn was dating Amy now? What about his relationship with Piper? Had they broken up?

Meanwhile, Henry had stiffened, his eyebrows shooting up in surprise. "Amy?" he repeated in disbelief.

Finn nodded enthusiastically, but his grin faded as he noticed the way Henry had tensed. "Is that okay with you though? I mean, I know you two had a thing. I'll cancel if it bothers you."

Henry cleared his throat, plastering on a smile that looked a little forced to Heathcliff as he said, "Nah bro. Amy's... She's really great. You should go for it."

"Yeah, I've had a lot of fun with her this week."

"Where are you taking her?"

"I don't know. I have to figure that out," Finn said with a frown.

"Well, whatever you do, don't take her anywhere with spicy food. It messes with her stomach," Henry advised. He held out a hand, which Finn grasped for a moment as Henry wished him good luck. Finn took note of his advice as Henry hurried out of the locker room as if he couldn't get away quick enough.

Heath jumped up, giving a wave to Finn before chasing after Henry. His mind was racing at the conversation he'd just overheard. He had been so certain that Finn and Piper were a thing, but everything he thought he knew had just been turned upside down.

Were Finn and Piper not dating? Had they ever been dating?

"Hey, Henry!" He caught up to the senior A-Trouper in the hallway, hoping Henry would set the record straight for him. "What's the deal with Finn and Amy?"

Henry shrugged, staring ahead impassively as he told him, "Guess they're dating now."

"But what about Piper?" Heath asked.

"What about her?"

"Isn't she dating Finn?"

The stoic expression Henry had adopted suddenly lit up as he laughed, eyes shining in amusement as he turned to Heath. "What? No way. They're just friends."

"So they've never been dating?" Heath asked for clarification.

"Nope. He had a huge crush on her last year, but she friend-zoned him hard. Guess he finally decided to move on." The amusement was already fading from his eyes again, but just a glimpse of it remained as he looked to Heath with a smirk on his face. "You really thought they were dating?"

"Well, yeah," Heath said, clutching the strap of his dance bag and averting his gaze. Now he felt like an idiot, but was it really his fault for assuming? He rarely saw Finn or Piper without the other, and in the handful of conversations he'd had with Finn since joining A-Troupe, Finn had casually brought up Piper in every single one even if she wasn't at all related to the topic they were discussing.

In his own defense, he added, "Everyone on B-Troupe thinks they're dating. Winnie and I used to see them flirting in Shakes and Ladders all the time."

This seemed to amuse Henry greatly, and he laughed again before his mood grew more somber. After a moment, he said, "Damn, I miss Shakes and Ladders. That place was bomb."

"Their smoothies were unrivaled," Heath agreed.

"For real, bro. Now I gotta walk three blocks to get a decent smoothie. The Next Steep just isn't it for me."

"Their scones are pretty good, but I'm not a tea person," Heath admitted.

"Me either. That's another thing Summer liked that I didn't," Henry said with a sigh. "I mean, okay, it's not like I hate tea. I'd just rather get a juice after rehearsal, not tea. You feel me? But Summer thinks The Next Steep is the greatest thing that's ever happened to this place. I can't be with someone who prefers The Next Steep to Shakes and Ladders."

"Who thought it was a good idea to put a tea place next to a dance studio? It's been a juice bar for as long as I can remember."

Henry vehemently agreed, and Heath listened as he continued ranting about how much Summer loved the changes The Next Steep had made to their once beloved juice bar. The conversation had derailed entirely from the subject Heath really wanted to talk about, but if listening to Henry vent about his ex-girlfriend was one way to get on the good side of a senior member of A-Troupe, who was he to complain?

After bidding goodbye to Henry, Heath continued on to the bus stop and waited for the next bus to arrive at 4:00. As he did, he pulled his phone out of his pocket to text Winnie. Considering they were technically the ones responsible for spreading the rumor on B-Troupe (and J-Troupe) that Finn and Piper were dating, he figured it was only right to let her know the truth.

Besides, Winnie would go crazy when she heard that Finn wasn't actually dating Piper but Piper's best friend. Now that was a twist that nobody could have seen coming.