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Chapter Text

Chapter Text

The next day, Nooshy woke up before her alarm clock went off, leaving her with a bad taste in her mouth. It had taken her an hour to sleep the night before, she tossed and turned in bed, thinking about what the next day would bring, feeling anxious and excited. So she reluctantly got up (again), got dressed and went to the kitchen, surprised not to find her friend there, so she turned on the coffee pot and sat on the couch waiting for her friend to get up. 

Twenty minutes later, Johnny came out of his room ready to start the day, whistling a happy tune, he walked happily towards the small living room, until he saw his best friend in a ball, swaying back and forth with her eyes on the floor. 

"Oh no!... I can't believe it!... Somebody just broke my best friend!" He dramatized as he sat down beside her. 

"Enough drama, I'm fine, I'm just... Anxious... And a little nervous." 

"Because of today?"

"Yeah... I, I think even though my mind doesn't want to accept it, I'm excited to see how this will end." She said, looking at him with her amber eyes full of determination, drawing the boy's gaze. Johnny always knew his best friend was pretty, the looks some guys gave her when they walked down the street were just proof of that, but at times like this, reality hit him hard, leaving him breathless and with a strange feeling in his stomach. 

"Well... I guess... I think it's okay," he said, trying to compose himself. "It's okay that you're excited, it means you care and you really want to do this." And there they were, the words were back and his brain started working as usual, leaving that uncomfortable feeling behind. (But leaving him with a pleasant warmth running through his insides). 

"Yes, I think so," and with a sigh she got up. "Come on, I'll help you make breakfast."

"Oh no, I'm not going to risk eating a burnt breakfast," he said jokingly, then dashed into the kitchen to get there before her. "I'll do it, don't worry." 

"Well, okay, I'll stay here while my personal chef prepares breakfast for me." She said as she sat back down and settled in. 

"Personal chef." Johnny mumbled between surprise and amusement, then opened the refrigerator and pulled out the necessary ingredients for breakfast. 

"I won!" Nooshy shouted as she reached the curtain before her friend. 

"Yeah, yeah, you won, but I swear tomorrow won't be like this." Johnny grumbled as he stood next to Gunter with bated breath.

"Ash, I think I owe you five dollars." Gunter said reluctantly as he pulled out his money and handed it to the aforementioned. 

"Thanks, it's good to bet with you." The girl said as she put the money in her pocket.

"Really guys, how many bets do you have a day?" Rosita asked amused. 

"Too many to count." Porsha replied from her spot on the floor in the middle of some boxes, huddling into her jacket and putting her phone down for a few seconds to look at the singer. 

"Attention everyone," Moon came in with some papers in his hands. "Today is the first rehearsal day of these three weeks, in case anyone was in doubt, we will be here for one week and next weekend we will travel to Redshore City to rehearse for two more weeks, so everyone go to your rehearsal rooms," after saying that, everyone stood up and went to their respective rooms. "Johnny, Nooshy, Porsha, come with me," the aforementioned were surprised but followed the director curiously. "First of all, Nooshy, Johnny, are you ready to find out what you're going to do?" 

"Of course we do Mr. Moon." Johnny replied enthusiastically, while the girl just nodded with a smile, trying to calm her nerves.

"Great," and he handed them a few sheets of paper with the lyrics of the new song and the few dialogues they would be saying. "The song Gunter and I decided on after much thought was Rewrite the Stars ."

"No way!" Nooshy and Porsha exclaimed excitedly. 

"Does that mean we are going to recreate the choreography on the trapeze?" Nooshy asked excitedly, ever since she had seen the movie with Ash and Porsha a few months ago, she had wanted to recreate all the dances to all the songs, but the one that had her most excited was Rewrite the Stars , which caused her confusion since she was not a romantic girl. 

"Yes and no, some steps will be with trapeze or with wire.... We're still thinking about it." 

"Wait, wait, wait. Trapeze? Rewrite the stars ? Can someone please tell me what's going on?" Johnny asked confusedly as he went back to reading the lyrics. 

"You've never seen The Greatest Show-zoo ?" Porsha asked instead of answering, eyeing him suspiciously.  

"No." He replied uncertainly. 

"That explains a lot." The singer replied disappointedly. 

"The Greatest Show-zoo is an amazing musical, and the song we're going to sing is from that movie," her best friend explained with an amused smile. "Don't worry, I'll make you watch it when we get back to the apartment." 

"Now," Mr. Moon got their attention. "For tomorrow's homework, I want you to watch the movie, analyze the song and the choreography," of all the homework the boys had ever had in their lives, this was the best. "So, Porsha, what do you think about having your own group of dancers for your number?" 

"That... That... That would be spectaculaaaaaar!" the girl exclaimed excitedly. "A group of dancers instead of inflatable dolls, that would certainly add a twist to the plot." She said, not avoiding to jump up and down a little.

"Great, because most of the dancers on the war planet will dance with you." Mr. Moon announced and at that moment both Johnny and Nooshy felt a great relief. 

"Oh yes, I'll have my own dancers!... Yeah!" She shouted/sang enthusiastically. "When do we start?" 

"Right now, just go to Ballroom III," the koala told her, and without waiting another second, the girl ran to the right place. "Guys, this week we're going to teach Nooshy how to sing and I think the best options are Johnny and Rosita, what do you think?" He asked the dancer. 

"Great, I think it's great." And she meant it, if there was anyone who could teach her how to sing, it was Rosita and her best friend, someone who had the patience to do it and someone who knew everything about her (almost everything).

"Perfect, then go rehearse in the V singing room." With that, both friends went to the place. It was a small room with only one window and a heavy wooden door. 

"I'm nervous Johnny." The girl whispered to him, bouncing on her toes as she walked, something many had told her was not so easy to do. 

"Relax Noosh, it's not as hard as it looks and with Rosita and me as your teachers it will be easier and more fun than you think." Her friend reassured her as he stopped her and put both hands on her shoulders, causing her to stop jumping nervously. 

"You're right, it's just you and Rosita, I'll be fine." She said as she dropped her head onto his shoulder, leaving them in a strange embrace.

"That's the attitude," he said, taking her hand and pulling her towards the singing room, completely ignoring the sudden heat he felt in his stomach. "Come on, it's time to get started." 

"Oh, hi guys." Rosita greeted them as she got up from the chair she had been sitting in. If she had noticed that they had come in with their hands clasped together, she would have said nothing so as not to arouse emotions that would do no good at the moment, but in the near future... well, that was different. 

“Hello Rosita.” Johnny greeted her as the girl just made a gentle wave of her hand.

“Ready to get started, Nooshy?” Rosita asked politely as she stood in front of the girl. 

"Yes... I think." She said as she began to question why she was there. 

“Don't worry, you'll do fine.” The girl sat down in a chair across from her two couches. 

"Well, first your voice needs to be tested." Johnny told her, activating his master singing mode.

"Good idea Johnny, any songs in mind?" Rosita asked him.

"I have one." Meanwhile, Nooshy looked at them with confusion, not knowing exactly what was going to happen next. 

"Now, my dear," Rosita began to explain. "We're going to play a song and you're going to have to sing it, you don't have to use any of the singing techniques you've learned before, just sing in your natural voice so we know your tone and how to start training it, okay?" 

"Sure, as long as you know I could break your eardrums." She joked, getting laughs from the other two. 

"Okay, don't worry, we're ready." And with that, his best friend played the song and then handed her his phone with the lyrics. Nooshy was surprised to see the title, but didn't think much of it when the part where she had to sing started. 

" All smiles, I know what it takes to fool this town

I'll do it 'til the sun goes down

And all through the nighttime

Oh, yeah

Oh, yeah, I'll tell you what you wanna hear

Leave my sunglasses on while I shed a tear

It's never the right time

Yeah, yeah

I put my armor on, show you how strong I am

I put my armor on, I'll show you that I am "

The girl began to sing as she closed her eyes and slowly relaxed, letting go of the worries that had kept her up late the night before. Meanwhile, Johnny and Rosita were surprised to hear how melodious the girl's voice was, sure, she made some mistakes, but her natural voice had a lot of potential. 

" I'm unstoppable

I'm a Porsche with no brakes

I'm invincible

Yeah, I win every single game

I'm so powerful

I don't need batteries to play

I'm so confident

Yeah, I'm unstoppable today

Unstoppable today

Unstoppable today

Unstoppable today

I'm unstoppable today

Break down, only alone I will cry out loud

You'll never see what's hiding out

Hiding out deep down

Yeah, yeah

I know, I've heard that to let your feelings show

Is the only way to make friendships grow

But I'm too afraid now

Yeah, yeah "

She didn't know at what point she stopped reading the lyrics and instead concentrated on looking at her friend, which caused them to end up looking into each other's eyes, unable to look away, and leaving Rosita with various mixed feelings when she noticed. 

" I put my armor on, show you how strong I am

I put my armor on, I'll show you that I am

I'm unstoppable

I'm a Porsche with no brakes

I'm invincible

Yeah, I win every single game

I'm so powerful

I don't need batteries to play

I'm so confident

Yeah, I'm unstoppable today

Unstoppable today

Unstoppable today

Unstoppable today

I'm unstoppable today

Unstoppable today

Unstoppable today

Unstoppable today

I'm unstoppable today ."

When she finished, there were a few seconds of silence until Rosita and Johnny started clapping excitedly. 

"Wow, and you said you couldn't sing." Rosita complimented her. 

"I don't know, that went weirdly well." Nooshy said with a shy smile. 

"Sure, well, there are a few mistakes in tone and stuff, but it was perfect for your first try." Nooshy liked that about Johnny, he could be honest without making her feel bad, a quality all friends should have and yet didn't. She was definitely lucky to have him as a best friend. 

"Thanks, guys," she thanked them, suddenly feeling very excited and ready to continue. "So... What's next?"

"Well, since you ask, we should continue with something all of us singers do before a big debut; the mouth warm-up." Rosita explained. Her apprentice's excited attitude only makes her more excited about the new show and the process of getting there. 

Two and a half hours later, the door burst open and Porsha entered with obvious concern. "Nooshy, thank God I found you, I need your help."

"Is everything okay, Porsha?" Rosita asked worriedly as she stood next to the girl and tried to calm her down. 

"No, everything is not okay!" and letting the surrogate mother of the group sit her down in a chair, she took a deep breath and began to explain. "The dance guys and I have been trying to choreograph alone because the choreographer is sick and won't be able to help us this week, but we have so many ideas that none of them seem to fit." And she put her feet up on the chair, hugged her legs, and hid her face between her knees. 

"Porsha, relax, everything's going to be fine." Rosita told her as she gently rubbed her back. 

"I don't know Rosita... I, I thought I could lead the boys, but it seems my idea is 'too dangerous'." She said the last, making quotation marks with her fingers. 

"What's your idea?" Nooshy asked her after listening carefully to the situation and starting to think of choreography ideas for the song. 

"I thought they could jump and do circus-like tricks, even go through hoops of fire and stuff," she said excitedly, and immediately all three of them grimaced in horror. "See, even you think it's terrible."

"No." Rosita and Johnny said with forced smiles. 

"I'm going to be honest with you, because what you always look for in a teacher is to be as honest as possible, okay?" said Nooshy, switching into her dance teacher mode and bringing out one of her greatest qualities; telling the truth in a gentle way, even when it hurts. Porsha just nodded and braced herself. "The idea is a bit risky, jumping through hoops of fire is always a risk not many are willing to take," the other three looked at her expectantly, knowing there was more to come. "However, the idea of doing tricks on the trampoline is a good one, as I recall there are about four guys who can do that, so we could have them do tricks in the background without overshadowing you."

"That... That actually sounds pretty good." Porsha agreed, perking up at the idea, while Johnny and Rosita nodded in agreement. 

"So how are you doing with the steps in general?" 

"Bad," the singer said immediately. "There are lots of ideas, but nothing concrete. I, since I don't know much about dancing, gave as an idea some steps I saw in ZikZok, someone gave as an idea jazz steps, someone gave 90's rock steps, some K-pop ones, some ballet ones and some contemporary dance ones.... And me... As the leader, I could choose just one style, but I want us to be a team and I want us all to agree on the choreography because I want everyone's opinion to count, but it's getting hard. 

"Hey, what you're doing is amazing," Nooshy supported her. "Taking the opinions of all the dancers into account is something no choreographer does, and because of that, you have earned the respect of the rest of the dancers."

"Really?" Porsha asked in surprise. 

"Sure," now it was Johnny's turn to speak. "Believe me, following the choreographer's steps, whether you like it or not, isn't a very nice thing to do, I mean, yes, it might have an excellent idea in concrete, but there's always more than one way to do it." 

"And what you're doing just shows what an excellent person you are, don't doubt it." Rosita agreed. 

"Thanks guys." 

"Now, how about we go over there and look at everyone's ideas and come up with an amazing remix to go with your song?" Nooshy asked excitedly, but before the singer could answer, the door opened. 

"Sorry to interrupt." Ryan said with a shy smile. Nooshy and Johnny had met the tiger in Redshore City as part of the dancers for A Sky Full of Stars, and after he had accepted the new job, he had moved to Calatonia to remain part of the group. 

"Hi Ryan." Nooshy, Johnny and Rosita greeted him enthusiastically. 

"Oh, hi Nosshy, Johnny, Rosita," he greeted politely, his shyness gone after seeing his dancing friends there. "Porsha, I heard you were here."

"What's going on?"

"Mr. Moon came by a few seconds after you left to see how we were doing, when I told him the truth he said we could finish for today to start again tomorrow with a clear mind and I came to get your confirmation." The boy explained. 

"Oh, that's great," Porsha said sincerely. "That way we can all clear our minds and relax, okay, you can go, see you tomorrow." 

"Thanks, see you tomorrow." And, waving goodbye, he left the room as quickly as he had entered. 

"Well, there you have it, Mr. Moon gave you a day off, which you certainly deserve." Nooshy told him with a smile.

"Yes, but... You'll help us tomorrow, right?"

"Sure, when I'm done with my singing lessons, I'll help them create a choreography prototype so perfect that the choreographer of Redshore City will have no choice but to accept it." 

"I can help you if you want." Johnny offered. 

"Sure, the more the merrier," Porsha agreed. "Well, I guess that's it for today, thanks for your help guys, see you tomorrow, love you." And she walked out with renewed energy.

"Wow, for all the enthusiasm everyone is putting into it, this show will no doubt be amazing." Rosita said excitedly. 

"I can't disagree." Johnny said. 

"And... What will be my next lesson?" Nooshy asked. 

"I think that's enough for today, so go get some rest and we'll continue tomorrow with renewed energy." Rosita told him as she stood up and grabbed her bag. 

"All right, see you tomorrow Rosita." 

"See you tomorrow." And she walked out with a spring in her step. 

"Well, since it looks like the work day ended much earlier, what do you want to do?" Johnny asked his best friend. 

"Well, I was thinking of moving the skeleton until the official workday is over." Even though they had a schedule, no one ever followed it and they always finished early, but not before rehearsing to perfection. 

"I like the way you think, and if you want, we can stop by on the way back and get something to eat and watch The Greatest Show-zoo ." 

"Only if it's Chinese food." 

"Okay, we'll trade your ice cream for Chinese food." And as they left the salon and headed for the ballrooms, they joked with each other, the nervousness of the morning completely gone.

Chapter Text

It was seven o'clock at night when Johnny and Nooshy arrived at their apartment with Chinese food in plastic bags, ready to watch The Greatest Show-zoo and analyze the forbidden love song they would have to sing in the new show. 

"Ready to watch the most amazing movie ever?" Nooshy asked him excitedly as she plopped down on the couch. 

"Of course." The boy replied as he unpacked the food and then sat down.

"I have to warn you, it's ridiculously romantic." The girl told him amusedly, then shoved a piece of spring roll into her mouth. 

"Well, I like ridiculously romantic movies, so I'll be fine." He replied with an inadequate smile. 

"Oh right, I forgot that you're a super cute and cuddly guy who believes in true and everlasting love." She said sarcastically. 

"Aren't you?"

"No!.... I mean yes!... I mean..." she sighed and took a sip of her coffee. "I haven't witnessed the power of love being a real thing, so it doesn't exist for me."

"Well, I have, and believe me, you'll start to believe in it when you fall in love with someone." He told her jokingly, causing her to choke on her noodles.

"Yeah... That will never happen, in fact, out of the two of us, you're the one who will fall in love." She told him, waving her chopsticks menacingly. 

"Yeah, yeah... I'm just telling you, nobody escapes from that," and he turned on the TV. He remembered something his friend had said earlier and reminded her with a wicked smile. "By the way, do you think I'm cute?" 

"What..." her friend caught her off guard, causing a slight blush to spread across her cheeks, a blush that even her fur couldn't cover. "No, of course not, where would you get such an idea?" She asked him, suddenly feeling nervous.

"Well, a while ago you said 'you're a super cute and cuddly guy', that, my friend, answers my question."

"That... That's not even," she began to stammer until she realized that her friend was doing it with the intention of annoying her, so she took a deep breath and decided not to give him the satisfaction. "So what if I did, it doesn't mean anything."

"Oh really, only you can tell if it means anything." He said as he slowly moved closer to his friend to emphasize his words. 

"No, I can't." She said approaching him, but with a look of anger and pure hatred. 

"Are you sure?" He said, leaning closer. And so they stood, waging a silent war of gazes that Nooshy was losing miserably, until Johnny realized how close their faces were. So close that he could see his friend's long lashes, her amber eyes full of courage and joy, her cheeks flushed beneath her snow-white fur. But what struck Johnny most, and for which he couldn't find a reason (or didn't want to know), was that he found himself staring at her small, fleshy pink lips, puckered in anger, and found himself wanting to know how they would feel against his own.

Then a loud announcement came from the TV, making both of them turn away, Nooshy with pink cheeks and Johnny with a deep red face that was just as conspicuous despite his short fur. They stood in an awkward silence for a while, which really worried the boy, who already had enough doubts in his head, because there was no way he would think that way about his friend, at least there was no reason that didn't include feelings that would definitely destroy their friendship. 

"W-well," Johnny spoke with a slight stutter. "I think... I think we need to start watching the movie before it gets any later." 

"Yeah... You're right." Nooshy said in a whisper and then concentrated on her noodles. Meanwhile, Johnny put on the movie, half excited about what he was going to see and half anxious about what had happened. 

A few minutes later, pleasant music began to play. "Oh, I love this." Nooshy said excitedly as she hummed along. 

"Hey yeah, it's got a good beat," Johnny agreed as he tapped his fingers on his knee, keeping up with the music. "And lyrics, acting, vocal mastery and choreography."

"I told you, best musical movie ever." And thankfully, they put the awkwardness behind them and went back to acting like the best friends they were. Johnny told himself that whatever he thought and felt for his best friend, it wasn't something he wanted to find out right now, but he subconsciously promised himself to work it out in the near future. 

---------------

"Hey, Tightrope it's really sad, don't you think?" Johnny asked in the middle of the movie after an intense conversation about Rewrite the Stars that, to the boy's surprise, went better than he thought. "Noosh?" he asked again when he got no answer. Turning, he saw his friend fast asleep in an uncomfortable sitting position. "Oh no, you really couldn't stay awake, you know I'm going to use that against you, don't you?" he asked amusedly, knowing full well that the girl wouldn't be able to yell at him like she usually did. "All right, all right, I'll let you sleep, and when the movie's over, I'll wake you up with the biggest cheeky grin I've ever had in my entire life." And with that, he resumed watching the movie, but minutes later he felt a nice warm weight fall on his shoulder, turned around and looked in surprise at his best friend who had moved from where she was and was leaning against his shoulder as a soft snore came from her. Johnny smiled softly and, pausing the movie, reached over and grabbed the blanket that was on the opposite armrest, then draped it over Nooshy, causing the girl to snuggle even closer to him. 

---------------

Johnny didn't know exactly when he let his head fall on the girl's, only that his eyes began to close every few seconds as the movie came to its end. After a few minutes of struggling, he lost it and let sleep overtake him, moving sideways to lean back against the armrest and let his friend use his chest as a pillow. He lazily pulled the blanket over them both as Nooshy hugged him tightly around his torso and, holding his friend's lower back and waist, fell asleep with a soft smile and slightly flushed cheeks. 

---------------

Nooshy awoke with a pain in her neck, but it was quickly overshadowed by the unusual warmth and comfort of her bed, so she snuggled even more as a familiar smell flooded her nostrils, her bed rose and fell and she heard the soft beating of a heart...

She quickly opened her eyes and realized she was in the living room, the TV was on and the movie credits song was playing on a strange loop, she was lying on what she thought was the couch until she heard a sigh and felt two arms adjust their grip on her back and waist, a grip she hadn't realized existed until that moment. 

Carefully lifting her head, she found Johnny's face deeply asleep, his eyes softly closed, his eyebrows slightly furrowed, his mouth open and a large lock of hair falling across his forehead. Nooshy found herself gasping at the sight of her best friend so relaxed, and without even thinking, she pulled one of her hands out from under his back and carefully brushed the lock of hair away from her friend's forehead. She had to admit, he looked super cute when he was sleeping and in a state of pure relaxation, not to mention how attractive he looked with that lock of hair on his forehead.... 

Quickly, as if the contact had burned her, she pulled her hand away from his face as she scolded herself for what she had just thought. She knew her friend was naturally attractive, and to prove it, he had been getting a lot of letters lately about girls admiring him and wanting to spend time with him. But that never caused her to have the same stalkerish thoughts towards him, at least not yet. 

Taking a deep breath, she began to remember what had happened last night, trying to figure out what had caused the two of them to sleep together. The last thing she remembered was that she began to feel sleepy and, without realizing it, fell asleep with an acceptable distance between her and Johnny. After that, she had a fuzzy memory of someone snuggling her against something warm, and nothing but peace and happy dreams followed all night. She let out a loud, exasperated sigh and hid her face in her hands, knowing that somehow they had both fallen asleep and snuggled up together to spend the entire night on the not-so-comfortable couch.

With a million emotions in her, she managed to wriggle out of Johnny's grip and, seeing that there were still a few minutes before their alarm clocks would go off, decided to take a hot bath and, with much effort, prepare breakfast. 

After she surprisingly prepares an acceptable breakfast and clears things up before things get any more awkward, the friends go to the theater as if nothing had happened. 

"Oh yeah, I won!" Johnny shouted as he broke into an impromptu victory dance. 

"I can't believe it, the world's about to end," Ash joked. "Hurry, do what you would never dare do before it's too late."

"Oh, haha, you're funny Ash." Johnny told her sarcastically. 

"Thanks Johnny, I just won five dollars," Gunter thanked him excitedly, and Ash promptly handed him the money. "Oh yes, hello again my dear five dollars." 

"I don't even want to ask." Rosita said as she arrived. 

"Gambling, of course." Porsha replied as she tossed the cardboard cup she had been drinking her morning coffee in. 

"No comment." Rosita said rubbing her temples. 

"All right guys, I'll just tell you that you're doing a great job, keep it up. I won't distract you anymore, everyone go rehearse." Mr. Moon told them, and immediately everyone went to their studios, all except Ash, who went to the director. 

"Moon, can I talk to you for a minute?" Ash asked him. 

"Sure Ash, what's up?" 

"Well, I've been thinking, all the other acts are going to add something to this presentation, and after talking to Calloway, we want to add something to our act."  

"Great, that sounds like an excellent idea. What do you have in mind?" 

"That's the problem, we can't think of anything that's already there; dancers, bouncers, special lights, all that's already in some act." 

"Hmm, how about I give you guys until next week to come up with something?" 

"Yeah, great, thanks Moon." And after giving him a quick hug, she ran off to her studio. 

When their singing lesson was over, Nooshy and Johnny went to the dance studio where Porsha and the other dancers were working on the choreography for It Could Have Been Me , still without a concrete idea and with only two and a half days left in the first week of rehearsals and before they go to Redshore. 

"Hey guys." Nooshy greeted excitedly as she walked into the studio. 

"Nooshy, Johnny!!!" Porsha shouted, then greeted them with a big hug. "I'm so glad you guys are here, so much has happened, I just want this to go well." 

" Everything okay?" Johnny asked the teenager as he saw a glimmer of sadness in her light brown eyes. 

"Sure, just..." And with a sigh, she moved a little closer to the boys. "Some family issues, nothing major." 

"Are you sure you're okay?" Nooshy asked her worriedly. "You know you can trust us and tell us anything." And she hugged her tightly. At the mention of family problems, Nooshy and Johnny knew right away that it was about the girl's father in prison. 

"Yes, we won't judge you and we will try to help you." Johnny said, hugging the girl and her best friend.

"Awww, thanks guys. I'll take your advice, and if you guys feel like it, I'll tell you later," she said as she broke away and, receiving a nod, wiped away the single tear that was beginning to form in her eye. "Well then, let's get started." She said as she turned around to see the dancers talking amongst themselves to give their friends some privacy. 

“Okay, well, I think we should first look at the proposals you all have,” Nooshy began to speak, earning a wave of nods. “But, we'll use another song for you to improvise and bring out the best in you.” 

“That sounds like a good idea.” Said Ryan who Porsha had named as her 'second in command'. 

“But, first of all, I have a question,” Johnny said before they turned on the music. “Who's going to be with Nooshy and me on Rewrite the Stars ?” 

“Well, Mr. Moon said you two wouldn't get to choose,” Ryan began to explain with amusement. “So he picked Maya, Spike, Diana, Ed, Rose and me.” 

“Great,” Johnny agreed. “And I'm glad Mr. Moon chose for us.” 

“Yeah, it saved us a lot of sleepless nights.” Nooshy joked earning a wave of amused and unforced laughter from those present. Despite the fact that the girl had joined from nowhere and without having had a formal 'dancing career', most of the dancers accepted her without a problem (and the names of those who criticized her ended up in Mr. Moon's hands thanks to Johnny and were fired without much trouble). 

“Good, good, I'm glad you have your reduced group of dancers,” Porsha spoke up after everyone calmed down. “But there's a bigger problem here.” 

“Oh, right,” the dancer said then turned to Porsha's Bluetooth speaker. “Well, I have a song that I think is perfect for demonstrating what you have in mind, so.... Here it goes.” And, without further ado, she hit play. 

(turn on the music)

Oh-oh-oh-oh-oh, oh-oh-oh-oh, oh-oh-oh

Caught in a bad romance

Oh-oh-oh-oh-oh, oh-oh-oh-oh, oh-oh-oh

Caught in a bad romance

“Oh yeah.” Said one girl to then, along with two other girls, walk to the center and start hip hop dancing. 

Rah, rah-ah-ah-ah

Roma, roma-ma

Gaga, ooh-la-la

Want your bad romance

Rah, rah-ah-ah-ah

Roma, roma-ma

Gaga, ooh-la-la

Want your bad romance

I want your ugly, I want your disease

I want your everything as long as it's free

I want your love

Love, love, love, I want your love (hey)

After that, they were followed by a group of guys dancing breakdance style. 

I want your drama, the touch of your hand (hey)

I want your leather-studded kiss in the sand

I want your love

Love, love, love, I want your love (love, love, love)

(I want your love)

You know that I want you

And you know that I need you

I want it bad, your bad romance

The next ones were some who started doing contemporary dance. 

I want your love, and I want your revenge

You and me could write a bad romance (oh-oh-oh-oh-oh)

I want your love and all your lover's revenge

You and me could write a bad romance

Oh-oh-oh-oh-oh, oh-oh-oh-oh, oh-oh-oh

Caught in a bad romance

Oh-oh-oh-oh-oh, oh-oh-oh-oh, oh-oh-oh

Caught in a bad romance

Rah, rah-ah-ah-ah

Roma, roma-ma

Gaga, ooh-la-la

Want your bad romance

And so they continued, improvising with the dance techniques they had mastered to create a great choreography to which Nooshy paid full attention. 

Rah, rah-ah-ah-ah

Roma, roma-ma

Gaga, ooh-la-la

Want your bad romance

Johnny didn't know when he stopped watching the dancers and turned to look at his best friend, who was swaying her hips from side to side, her hand tapping on the bar next to her in time to the song. And just then, the boy's mind decided it would be fun to torture him a little and made him remember the awkward situation they had been in before watching the movie.

I want your love, and I want your revenge

I want your love, I don't wanna be friends

Nooshy felt someone looking at her, and when she shifted her eyes to the back of the room, she saw her best friend looking at her as if she were the most precious thing in the world. She felt confused and a little dizzy at first, until her mind decided to bring out her flirtatious side (one that hadn't come out in a long time) and with a smile, she began to move her lips to the lyrics of the song, but without making any noise.

J'veux ton amour, et je veux ta revanche

J'veux ton amour, I don't wanna be friends (oh-oh-oh-oh-oh, oh-oh-oh-oh)

Johnny almost fell over when the lips he had been looking at without his consent began to silently sing the song in the background, causing him to focus only on them and their owner and everything else to disappear. 

No, I don't wanna be friends (oh-oh-oh, caught in a bad romance)

I don't wanna be friends (oh-oh-oh-oh-oh, oh-oh-oh-oh)

When the song got to that part, both friends gasped as they understood the deep meaning of those phrases, what the author of the song wished for with all her heart and, deep down, so did they. 

Want your bad romance (oh-oh-oh)

Caught in a bad romance

Want your bad romance

I want your love, and I want your revenge

You and me could write a bad romance (oh-oh-oh-oh-oh)

I want your love and all your lover's revenge

You and me could write a bad romance

Oh-oh-oh-oh-oh, oh-oh-oh-oh, oh-oh-oh

Soon, both friends found themselves singing the lyrics silently, just for themselves and their complicated feelings. 

---------------

When the song ended, everyone clapped loudly with excitement, causing the best friends to snap out of the strange trance they had been in, leaving them with an unusual feeling of emptiness in their hearts that scared them terribly. 

"Yay, that was awesome!" Porsha exclaimed next to Nooshy with a smile somewhere between excited and cheeky, having seen her friends' strange flirtation from a distance. "Nooshy, what do you think?"

"I think..." the aforementioned started to speak, but her voice was cut off by an intense emotion that only she knew was there, because those butterflies fluttering in her stomach were definitely inside and not outside of her. "I think that was spectacular, and it definitely gave me a lot of ideas for your choreography," luckily she could control herself very well, so she was back to her normal voice in seconds. "But I'm only here to help, not to tell you what to choreograph, so why don't you divide into groups where there's more than one style and create a short choreography together?" When she suggested this, everyone let out exclamations of agreement and quickly began to form teams. 

"What a good idea, Nooshy," Porsha complimented her. "I'm going to Rayan's group to plan something 'out of this world'," she turned to leave, but remembered something and quickly returned to her friend. "By the way, we have a lot to talk about, miss." And without another word, she walked away, leaving the dancer super confused. 

"Wow, you really know how to organize the guys." Johnny, who had been doing breathing exercises to calm his racing heart and excited mind, told her with a wry smile as he approached her.

"It's no big deal, they just had to remember that choreographing together is about listening to what the others have to say and always being in communication," he explained, downplaying it as his hands began to tingle as if they wanted to do something. "Once they remember this very important rule, they will create the best choreography on their own and they won't even need our help." 

"Yes, you are amazing," Johnny told her with sincerity and a slight smile. "Oh, by the way... You owe me an ice cream." 

"Ugh, nooooo, I forgot." Nooshy replied, visibly deflated as she leaned back on her friend's arm. 

"Relax, I'm not that picky, a two scoop ice cream will do me fine." 

"Well, at least you didn't want to get back at me and ask for a three-scoop ice cream like I did."

"Oh, nono, if I wanted to get back at you, I'd make you buy a five-ball." 

"But that doesn't even exist."

"Exactly." He replied and they both began to laugh uncontrollably, but a strange heavy feeling settled in their stomachs and they began to get an idea as to why. An idea that neither of them liked.

Meanwhile, Porsha and Ryan were watching their friends with cheeky grins. "Please tell me I wasn't the only one who saw what happened in that song." 

"You mean the 'I don't want to be friends' part?" Ryan asked excitedly, and when he received an excited nod, he continued. "Of course I saw it, the ship begins to sail."

“Never say never, Porsha, fate can sometimes take unexpected turns.” 

“You're right, we just have to wait and watch it from the front row.” 

“That's the spirit.”

After a hard day at the theater, Porsha called Nooshy and Johnny to the rooftop to tell them what was bothering her. 

"So... What's going on?" Nooshy asked her after sitting down on one of the couches with Johnny next to her and the teenager directly across from them. 

"Well, when I got here, I got a call from someone I didn't expect, talking to me about a situation I didn't want..." 

Chapter Text

"Well, when I got here, I got a call from someone I didn't expect, talking to me about a situation I didn't want..." Porsha said, her voice cracking as she tried not to cry. "As you may know, after I left Redshore, there were some issues regarding the Crystal Company and me being a minor. Suki, who is also a lawyer, decided to take my case and most importantly, she got me a guardian here in Calatonia, which luckily was Mr. Moon," everyone had been surprised when Mr. Moon had announced that he would be the guardian of the daughter of the lord who almost killed him, luckily for everyone, Porsha was not like her father and just needed a good guide to not get lost. "And the next situation Suki had to fix was to see who would take over Crystal Entertainment or else they would have to shut it down forever... That's when everything changed." And she fell silent, as if taking in painful memories. 

"Is everything okay?" Nooshy asked her as she got up and sat down next to her friend. 

"Yes..." And with a sigh, as her friend put a hand on her shoulder, she continued. "Crystal Entreteinment was founded by my grandfather, Frederick Crystal, and when my father turned 21, they inherited the whole company from him. Now that Jimmy Crystal is in jail and none of his employees are willing to take over, Suki's only solution was to call in the former director."  

"Does that mean your grandfather..." Johnny started to ask. 

"Yes, Frederick Crystal is back in show business." Porsha answered his question. 

"Wow, that's great," the boy exclaimed excitedly until he saw the teenager's sad face. "Hey, what's going on?" And following in the footsteps of her best friend (who had glared at him when he said the first thing), he sat down next to the girl for support.

"Well, it's... It's great that my grandfather is coming back to be the head of Crystal Entreteinment again, but ever since my father inherited the company, he and my grandfather stopped talking to each other. In the early years, my grandfather tried to advise my father, but my father never listened to him and always slammed the door in his face, so one day my grandfather got tired and went to a retirement home on the beach.... I... I didn't live with him very much and the only memories I have are very blurry and it's ..... I think it's sad." And without further ado, she burst into tears, causing eyeliner to run from her eyes and smearing black lines across her fur. Both Nooshy and Johnny didn't hesitate to hug the girl, giving her the comfort she needed. 

"Hey, it's okay, I didn't get to meet my grandfather either." Johnny told her in a calming voice. 

"Yeah, me neither... In fact, I didn't even get to meet my parents..." Nooshy started to speak until she saw her best friend glare at her, chastising her for bringing that up now and for continuing to act as if it was nothing that her parents had abandoned her in an orphanage at the age of two. "BUT, you're getting a chance to finally see him, no matter how many years have passed, he's your grandfather and I'm sure he's excited to see you again." 

"That's the problem," Porsha exclaimed, leaving the other two confused. "Suki told me that my grandfather wants me to move to Redshore with him, but as long as I'm here in Calatonia with my legal guardian, he can't force me to leave, but as soon as I set foot in Redshore City, he has every right to 'force' me to stay because I'm a minor and he's like my guardian over there and I... I... I don't want to move, I'm happy here with my new family and I don't want this to end". And she started to cry even harder. 

"Hey, relax, I'm sure you and Suki will be able to convince your grandfather that you're happier with us." Johnny tried to calm her down.

"And if they can't, there's always the possibility of running away like a year and a half ago, it'll be fun..." Nooshy tried to lighten the mood, which worked when Porsha let out a giggle. 

"You're right, there's always more than one way to work things out," she said much more cheerfully. "Besides, you have to look on the bright side, Crystal Entreteinment has become famous again thanks to my grandfather's new approach, in fact this show is to (spoiler alert) raise funds to create free theater schools in over eight states across the country." 

"Wow, Porsha, that's amazing." Johnny was amazed at the transformation Crystal Entreteinment had undergone in the past year and a half. 

"Yes. But don't tell the others, because Mr. Moon is supposed to tell you all when we get to the Crystal Theater." 

"Don't worry my friend, our mouths are sealed." Nooshy promised her and after wiping away her tears, Porsha got up from the couch. 

"Okay, enough drama, let's go get some ice cream, my treat!" 

"I can't believe you saved yourself from buying me ice cream." Johnny whispered to her best friend as they walked downstairs with the teenager leading the way.

"What can I say, luck is on my side."

" Yeah, yeah, yeah, enjoy it while it lasts." 

It was 7 a.m. on Saturday morning and the cast was gathered at the bus station, half dozing in their seats as they waited for Mr. Moon to pick up their tickets to Redshore City. Although the first week of rehearsals had been intense and exhausting, they had made good progress with the changes to the show: Porsha and the dancers had finally managed to come up with some amazing choreography that they hoped wouldn't change too much when they got to Redshore, Nooshy had managed to learn up to intermediate level of singing, and she and Johnny had started rehearsing the song that (to the satisfaction of all their shipers) sounded perfect with their voices. 

"All right guys, here are your tickets, so let's get on the truck and.... Let's go to Redshore City!" Mr. Moon said enthusiastically, earning a wave of excited exclamations from everyone.

Slowly everyone boarded the bus, which was larger than usual because it had to carry the entire cast, dancers and their families to the big city. The dancers sat in the front with their companions, followed by Rosita, Norman and their many pairs of children who were spread out in four rows of seats, two on each side, behind them were Gunter with his mother, Ash with Clay, Johnny with Nooshy, the boy's father and uncles had preferred to drive, so they were right behind the truck with their van. They were followed by Miss Crawley, Mr. Moon and Porsha, the latter more nervous than excited, shifting around in the wide space at the back. 

"Relax, everything will be fine, as soon as we arrive you will be in Suki's hands and no one will force you to do anything you don't want to, okay?" Mr. Moon reassured the girl as he stopped her and made her sit down.

"Okay, okay," Porsha said, taking a deep breath and letting the worry go. "By the way, any recommendations for a family reunion you never expected?"

"Um... Just... Just be yourself, show your grandfather who you are, tell him only what you want to tell him and have fun, this is an opportunity not many get." Fortunately, Mr. Moon was great at motivational speeches. 

"Okay, thank you, Mr. Moon," and gave him a big hug. "Really, thank you for everything you've done for me over the last year and a half, I couldn't have asked for a better tutor and director." 

"Oh, you're welcome, Porsha," and they parted ways. "Now get comfortable because we've got a long ride ahead of us." 

Meanwhile, Johnny and Nooshy took their seats and put their things in the overhead trunk. Then they placed a blanket by the window, spread out some pillows, and placed their bag of snacks next to Nooshy, who was sitting in the aisle seat. 

"Wow guys, looks like you moved into the truck." Ash said as she turned around in her seat to get a better look at them. 

"Well, we need to get comfortable for the worst movies marathon." Nooshy explained with an amused smile as she rested her laptop on her left leg and her friend's right. 

"Yes, while playing road trip music in the background." Johnny completed as he grabbed the computer as if his life depended on it. 

"Worst movies, what in the world do you like to suffer?" The singer asked them amused. 

"Something like that," the dancer shot back. "Besides, we can make fun of whatever they do wrong while forgetting the stress of the show for a moment." 

"Well, that makes sense, I'm going to watch something too.... Only it's going to be a Fuller Burrow marathon."

"Something I unfortunately have to watch because I'm his seatmate." Clay spoke for the first time since they got on the bus, making the guys in the back seat laugh. 

"Oh come on, the show is pretty entertaining and funny, give it a chance." Ash grumbled as she heard the uncontrolled laughter of her other two friends. 

"All I know is it's some kind of remake of Full Borrow and it can't be any better than the original show." 

"You'll never know if you don't try," the girl said, grateful that her friends were finally done laughing. "I dare you to watch it with me, and if you still don't like it, I'll buy you an ice cream when we get to Redshore." 

"Oh, Ash dares Clay Calloway, now that's a plot twist." Nooshy  whisper-shouted to his friend, as if she was telling the biggest gossip of all. 

"All right, I accept." The singer reluctantly agreed.

"And he has accepted, my friends," Johnny played along with his friend. "Stay with us to find out what happens in the next chapter." 

"I'm Nooshy." 

"And I'm Johnny, bringing you the best news from the theater in..." 

"The Gossip Expert!" Both friends finished in unison, proving once again how in sync they were and how well they knew each other, and earning a wave of applause from some of their friends who had been listening in amusement. 

"Okay, okay, enough of that guys, it's just a friendly bet." Ash scolded them, not stopping a smile from spreading across her face.

"But this is the first bet Calloway has agreed to take part in, it is certainly worth documenting." Nooshy defended herself as her best friend nodded in support. 

"Anyway, enjoy your marathon of the worst movies, see you at Redshore." And with that, her friend disappeared behind her seat. 

"Well, let's take Ash's good wishes and start the marathon." Nooshy said to his friend as he played the first movie they had downloaded, putting on one earpiece and holding the other out to the boy. 

"Sure." Johnny said, accepting the headset and handing his friend a wireless one, and started playing the playlist for a road trip. 

Meanwhile, Porsha had taken her friends' advice and started watching her favorite movie for the fifth time that week, it was a movie she had seen on her first day in Calatonia when she was feeling unsure about her decision and just wanted some comfort, luckily for her, Mr. Moon sensed something was up and invited the entire cast over for an impromptu sleepover. Watching the movie with the people who would soon become her family undoubtedly calmed her, and watching it again gave her the pleasant feeling of sitting between Buster and Rosita, with Johnny, Nooshy, and Ash on the floor betting on who would guess the end of the movie, Gunter making popcorn, and Meena giving them a cup of honey-sweetened tea. So yes, Falling for Christmas was undoubtedly her favorite movie (even though it was out of season, having been Halloween a few weeks ago). 

Rosita and Norman were watching their "favorite show" as their children casually walked by to see what their parents were watching. Both parents knew that their children were too curious and would spy on what they were watching, so they decided to watch a children's show so as not to traumatize the little ones with their real favorite show.

Gunter and his mother had gotten into an intense conversation about the best plays and how their directors and writers had managed to create them with nothing but their imaginations to begin with. 

Miss Crawley was glad she didn't have to share a seat with anyone, so she decided to lie back on the pillow she'd brought, put on an avocado mask, and listen to the funny cooking podcast she loved. 

And Mr. Moon could only look around at all the people on the bus enjoying the ride, and once again he was amazed at how far everyone had come and how amazing the process had been. After making sure everyone was okay, he decided to watch his favorite baking show with happiness in his heart. 

As the bus was about to arrive at Redshore, Johnny woke up with severe neck and back pain, his whole body felt numb and he had no idea how they had arrived at their destination so quickly. 

"Good evening, Johnny," Ash greeted him from her seat opposite him. "We're almost at Redshore Station, so wake up the sleeping beauty." And she sat down again without further explanation. 

"What..." The boy was stunned and had no idea what his friend's words meant. That was until he tried to get up and was stopped by a pleasant weight on him, a weight he hadn't realized existed, and he was surprised to see Nooshy lying on top of him, sleeping peacefully. It made sense now what Ash had said, and the boy couldn't help but blush when he realized that they had slept cuddled together on the bus, where their friends had surely already seen them. 

"Wow, you finally noticed," Ash said again. "You two look super cute sleeping together." And she winked at him, making the boy's face turn even redder. 

"No, we don't," and when he looked down again, he realized that they had not only accidentally slept together, but were also covered with the blanket they had brought with them, making it look like they had fallen asleep like that on purpose. "What the..." 

"Oh, at some point you both started shivering from the cold, so Rosita decided it would be a good idea to cover you with your blanket." Ash explained with an amused grin as she watched the boy turn pale. 

"How long have we been asleep?" Johnny asked, beginning to calm down, and without realizing it, he began to run a hand down the girl's back in massage mode, causing his best friend to snuggle even more tightly against him and his other friend to squeal with excitement inside. 

"About three or four hours." Ash told him casually. 

"Wow, that's too much."

"Meh, if you needed it, then it's okay... Anyway, wake Nooshy up before someone else does." And she disappeared behind her seat again. 

"Noosh," Johnny whispered to her friend to wake her up. "Noosh, wake up," the girl stirred slightly and hugged the boy even tighter, causing a few butterflies to flutter in his stomach. "Come on Nooshy, you have to wake up," he got up and pulled his friend into a sitting position and started to shake her by the shoulders. "Come on friend, I hate to do this, but you have to wake up, we're almost at Redshore Station." He spoke to her a little louder and out of nowhere he felt a sharp tap on his shoulder, causing him to release his grip. 

"What the... Johnny?" Nooshy asked, confused. "You scared me." 

"And I guess your way of defending yourself is to hit." 

"Yep, exactly." She replied and then let out a tired yawn. 

"Anyway, here we are." His friend replied then pointed to the window and the incredible view of the huge city of Redshore lit up by millions of lights making it look like daytime.

"I've lived here for so many years and I still can't get enough of this view." Nooshy spoke in awe, leaving her work for a moment to put her things away. 

"Yes, and we'll be here for two weeks to enjoy it again." His friend agreed, his heart stopped beating so desperately and a nice warm feeling washed over him, it was something that had been happening since he and Nooshy had fallen asleep together on the couch and he was beginning to get a sense of what it was like. And secretly, he liked it.

When they arrived at the hotel, Suki greeted them with open arms and told them to get some sleep because they had a meeting with Frederick Crystal the next day, so the whole cast went to the suite, which was even bigger than the previous one. 

The room consisted of a huge living room with six five-seater armchairs, lots of cushions, and a large television in the middle. There was a kitchen on the left side, a Jacuzzi on the right, and three single rooms on the first floor. Up the stairs were five more doors, two leading to double rooms with private bathrooms, two to single rooms with private bathrooms, and the last one to the largest room that spanned both floors. Everyone received instructions from Mr. Moon and quickly made their way to their respective rooms, but something had changed. 

When Nooshy opened the door to the room she was supposed to share with Ash, she met Porsha instead. "Ummm, what's going on?"

"Oh, Nooshy... I talked to Ash and we want to use these two weeks to make a K-Pop music video and..." Porsha started to explain.

"Say no more," the dancer and that music didn't get along very well, so she had no problem with the room change. "Okay, I'll go to the other room then." She explained without thinking and without reminding the other people that they were free to share a room. 

"I'm sorry Nooshy." Ash apologized sincerely.

"No worries... I hope you girls make the best K-pop music video," and as she said this, she shivered. "Anyway, see you later." And she walked out with an amused smile on her face. 

***

When Johnny arrived at the room he was to share with Gunter, he found it empty, so he put his things in it and went out to look for him. He found him stuffing his things into one of the single rooms. "Gunter, are you going to sleep here?" 

"Yes, sorry Johnny, but I tend to snore a lot and I don't want to disturb you, so I'll take the single room and my mom will take the other one." The singer explained in his typical French accent and with a strange smile. 

"Okay, see you at dinner."

***

Nooshy and Johnny met at the same time, just as they were about to enter the only empty room. 

"Let me guess, your partner turned the tables and left you alone and desolate?" Nooshy asked him, beginning to suspect what was going on. 

"Yes, that's exactly what happened." Johnny replied with mock sadness as he opened the door to the room. 

"Well, I guess we'll have to share a room." The girl said as she came in and closed the door. 

"And here I thought these two weeks were going to get me rid of you." Johnny told her amused. 

"Oh come on, you know you love me." The dancer told him as she put her bags down next to the bed near the minibar and when she turned around she thought she saw some shadows under the door but didn't think much of it. 

"Yeah, sure, you wish," Johnny said sarcastically. The truth was, he was happy to share a room with his best friend. "Just don't snore too loud."

"No promises." She told him with amusement and a strange excitement for what the next day would bring. 

Chapter Text

It was a sunny morning in Redshore City, and the cast of Out of this World was gathered in the Crystal Theater, waiting for the company's new leader to arrive to begin their important meeting.

"I'm nervous." Porsha said from her seat in the front row.

Moon, who had been pacing the stage, came down from the stage and sat down next to the girl. "Don't worry, you'll be fine, we're with you."

"Yes," Rosita supported her as she also came down from the theater and approached her. "Everything will be fine, you'll see, this meeting will be excellent."

"We're with you Porsha." Nooshy told her after getting up from where she had been lying half asleep on the stage floor and sitting on the edge of the stage.

"Whatever happens, we're with you." Ash also joined the conversation, putting his guitar down on a chair and sitting next to the teenager.

"You know you can count on us for anything." Johnny, who had actually fallen asleep on the stage floor, also joined the conversation after being brutally awakened by his best friend.

"Yah, even if we have to run away again and do the show in secret." Gunter agreed, making everyone laugh.

"Thanks guys," Porsha thanked them as she took the tissue Rosita gave her and wiped away her tears. "You're the best family I could ask for," they all stood up to give her a warm group hug. "I want you to know that no matter what happens I will never give this up, you are the best thing that has ever happened to me and I don't plan on losing you."

"We love you Porsha." They all said in unison, causing them to start laughing as they tried to keep their balance and keep hugging.

Then they heard the door open and everyone started in alarm, luckily it was only Suki. "I have to say, you guys are the tightest cast I've ever met," she said honestly as she arrived at Buster's side. "I'm glad you got here on time, that speaks very highly of you.... However, Mr. Crystal is running a little late and will be here in about ten minutes, so please wait for him." The four younger ones groaned in despair. 

"It's okay, Suki," Moon said, not helping but chuckling at the childish attitude of half of his cast. "We'll wait, right guys?" 

"Yeah." Ash, Nooshy, Porsha and Johnny said in a bored tone, while Rosita, Gunter and Clay just nodded with polite smiles. 

"Okay, then I guess I'll wait with you." And they all went back to their seats. 

"I can't believe it, so much insistence that we visit 'presentable' and 'elegant' for nothing." Nooshy complained as she plopped down on the stage floor. After Suki had sent them some nice suits, and after she had insisted that they dress presentable on the day of their meeting with Frederick Crystal, the dancer had no choice but to ditch her comfortable clothes and put on navy pants with a white long-sleeved blouse and, despite her best friend's protests, white tennis shoes with black stripes.

"I know, this is a total waste of time." Ash agreed. To her dismay, Porsha forced her to wear a dark purple dress with tights underneath, black tennis shoes, and a lilac jacket that was too fancy for her taste. 

"Oh come on girls, it's not that bad." Johnny was the only one of the three who was enthusiastic about the idea, he wore black pants with black shoes and a shirt in the same shade of blue as Nooshy's pants, which made it look like they were matching on purpose and caused some butterflies to flutter in the girl's stomach, giving her a strange but warm feeling and a sentiment starting to bloom in her heart. 

"Don't say anything, Johnny, you look good in everything," Nooshy scolded him, unaware of the compliment she was paying the boy. "I look awful in these things."

"Of course you don't." Johnny disagreed, unable to believe his best friend would say such a thing when it wasn't true.

"Sure I do, I look like a penguin." 

"No you don't, you look fine."

"No... I look really weird."

"Of course not, you look nice." The boy said in frustration, causing the other girl, who had been watching them with amusement, to get excited. Meanwhile, the dancer couldn't help but blush slightly at the boy's compliment, but she wasn't going to let him win so easily. 

"You're just saying that to make me feel good, if it's not true... 
I... don't... look... good."

"Of course you do." 

"No, I don't."

"You do." 

"NO." 

"YES."

"NO." 

"YES."

"That's enough you two!" Ash had started to get irritated so she decided to yell at them to calm down. "Nooshy, you look good in these clothes that aren't your style, just deal with it," she half yelled at her friend. "And Johnny... You keep being the gentleman you are and you'll be able to conquer any girl." Turning, she walked over to Porsha, who had been half listening to the conversation with excitement.

"What?" Both friends asked in confusion, but got no answer. 

"Okay," Nooshy said with a defeated sigh. "I have to admit, I look good in these clothes." 

"I told you." Johnny told her with a smug grin. 

"BUT, we won't talk about it again, okay?" The girl knew that if she allowed her boyfriend to keep talking, she would soon get a motivational talk about not self-criticizing and stuff. 

"Okay, okay, I'll let it go.... For now."

Ten minutes later the door of the theater opened again and this time a tall wolf, about sixty years old, came in, dressed in a sky-blue suit, black shoes and a dark purple tie. Between his hands he carried a folder full of papers, and behind him his fox assistant walked with more papers in her hands, the girl was a little shorter than Nooshy, she was wearing a lilac dress, and her eyes were wandering nervously around the people present until they stopped at Johnny (which made Nooshy, who had been watching all her actions, get the same strange feeling as the time she thought that another girl would be the romantic interest of his best friend's character). 

"Attention everyone," Suki called as they all got up from their seats and made their way to the side of the lawyer who was standing in front of Porsha almost as if she wanted to protect her, so they all followed in her footsteps and stood by the teenager's side to give her the unconditional support she had for being a member of the 'Moon Family' (as Rosita had called them). "May I introduce the founder and current director of Crystal Entreteinment, Frederick Crystal? Mr. Crystal, this is the New Moon Company."

"Wow, it's a pleasure to meet the talented cast of the best show ever," the director said formally, but with an excited smile that left everyone confused and surprised at the radical change between Frederick and Jimmy. "And you must be Buster Moon, the director of this show," he said as he approached Moon and extended his hand. "I have to say, you're younger than I thought." 

"Haha, yes I am, nice to meet you Mr. Crystal." Buster spoke politely as he shook the gentleman's hand. 

"Oh, please, call me Frederick," that was another thing that shocked everyone. "And... Are you going to introduce me to your amazing cast?" And more surprises, as most of the sponsors they had met were not interested in meeting the others, they were only interested in telling their audience about their brand.

"Oh, sure," Buster replied after getting over his astonishment. "She's Rosita and the star of the show... Gunter, the original creator of Out of this World and the space robot, Ash, the star who guides the lost traveler home, Johnny, the protagonist of the War Planet, Nooshy, our lead dancer and part of the War Planet, and Clay Calloway." 

"Clay, my old friend, it's been a long time." Frederick greeted him as the two embraced, leaving everyone even more surprised.

"Frederick Crystal, are you still obsessed with the worst movies in the world?" The singer asked his friend after they parted. 

"Oh, come on, you know it's fun to watch terrible movies so you can make fun of everything they do wrong," as he said this, both Johnny and Nooshy let out a surprised gasp, the girl grabbing his friend's arm and starting to move it back and forth while the boy covered his open mouth with both hands. "What happened to them?" He asked Clay, completely ignoring the surprised looks he got from everyone in the room.

Calloway sighed in exasperation and told his friend what was going on. "I never thought I'd say this, but I think you've got some rivals in watching terrible movies, those two spent the whole trip on the way to Redshore watching the worst movies and laughing like seals with epilepsy." The director laughed amusedly at the bizarre comparison, while Johnny and Nooshy gave the singer a look of betrayal. 

"Well, if it's true what you say, then I'd like to do a marathon of the worst movies with you sometime, if that's okay with you," they just nodded with an excited expression at finding another lover of terrible movies. "Whatever..." he said before Mr. Moon said anything else. "Vivian," he said to his assistant, who had been watching Johnny the whole time and jumped nervously when the attention was focused on her. "Please take Rosita, Gunter, Johnny, Johnny, Nooshy, Clay," he began to name them all with a precision that startled them again. "And this lady here," he said, pointing to Miss Crawley, who gave a nervous chuckle. "For a tour of the rehearsal room." 

"Yes-yes, sir," the assistant replied. "Follow me, please." And the aforementioned followed the obviously nervous girl.

"Do you think Mr. Crystal did this on purpose to talk to Mr. Moon, Suki and Porsha alone?" Rosita asked in a whisper. 

"Well duh," Ash replied as she slung her guitar in its case over her shoulder. "It's the family reunion they thought they'd never have, of course they'll want privacy."

"Yes, and Mr. Moon and Suki have to be there because they're Porsha's guardian and lawyer." Gunter finished as he walked - dancing, obviously happy to be back at the Crystal Theater. 

"Wow, you guys know all about the Crystal situation," Vivian spoke for the first time, making everyone turn to look at her, including Johnny, which made her nervous again. "D-don't get me wrong, I think it's... Oh." The girl didn't look and tripped over one of the steps, causing her to fall and all the papers in her hands to fly. The boys were surprised and quickly went to help her, Johnny being the first to reach her side and hold out a hand to help her up. 

"Are you okay?" The boy asked as Vivian took his hand and stood up.

"Y-yeah, I'm fine, th-thank you." She answered him nervously, trying not to stare into his brown eyes any longer than necessary. Meanwhile, Nooshy had taken it upon herself to pick up the leaves that were scattered all over the floor, and as she watched the scene, she once again got that strange feeling in her stomach that made her stare at the girl.

"Wow, easy friend, you're going to ruin those poor innocent leaves." Ash said to her out of nowhere, and when she turned to look at her, she had a mischievous grin on her face.

"What?" Nooshy asked her and when she saw what she was pointing at, she saw her own hands squeeze the leaves she was holding, causing them to crumple at the edges. She quickly released them and felt her face start to burn. 

"So... what's that supposed to mean?" Ash asked her, following her friend's gaze and seeing Vivian and Johnny trying (and failing) to start a conversation. She quickly realized what this was about and set about getting the truth out of her. "I can't believe it, you're jealous, aren't you?"

"No, of course not, me, jealous of her and MY best friend, never!" She said irritably, trying in vain to look away from the two boys in front of her.

"Uh-huh, yeah right... Don't lie to me, Nooshy," the aforementioned turned to her in irritation and opened her mouth to answer, but her friend wouldn't let her. "And most of all, don't lie to yourself," she said, handing her the rest of the papers and pushing her slightly forward. "Now stop being angry and hand over these papers as if you weren't dying of jealousy inside." And she pushed her towards where the other two were, but the push was so hard that she almost bumped into them, which definitely caused her to interrupt their conversation. 

"Um, here, you dropped this." She said to Vivian, holding out the papers with a forced smile, a smile that only her friend noticed. 

"Oh, thank you." The girl said to her in a voice so sweet it cooled the dancer. The three of them stood in an awkward silence, not knowing what to say, until a voice was heard from behind them. 

"Oh, Johnny, how nice to have you back." Klaus Kickenklober spoke with genuine happiness as he approached.

"Mr. Klaus," Johnny greeted him excitedly, turning away from the girls to shake the choreographer's hand. "Good to see you again."

"Likewise," Nooshy also approached, drawing the man's attention to her. "Ah, I see you brought your girlfriend with you."

When he said that, there were different reactions. Ash gasped as she punched a surprised Gunter in the arm, who covered his mouth with his hand. Meanwhile, Rosita watched the scene with curiosity, remembering how when they were younger and best friends, many believed that she and Norman were boyfriend and girlfriend and they always denied it, saying they were just friends until the feelings came through and now they were happily married with a couple of kids. Vivian couldn't help but feel a pang of jealousy that was quickly replaced by the realization that they really did make a cute couple.

Nooshy was in disbelief, with her eyes wide open and her mouth taut in a thin line, she looked at the choreographer as if he was crazy. Meanwhile Johnny just stood there staring at nothing while the word 'girlfriend' echoed in his head like an echo that repeated it over and over again. He knew that many of the biggest fans of the show who had seen it hundreds of times were speculating if there were couples in the cast and the one who had the most votes among the fangirls was him and his best friend, which was obviously a huge misunderstanding that they didn't have time to explain... But now that Klaus, a person who hadn't seen them in 17 months, had mentioned it in such a normal way, it made him wonder how he and his friend acted that several people misunderstood it (hell, even his father once asked him if there was something going on between them).

After a few brief seconds of surprise, the boy's mind told him he had to explain the situation, so he took a deep breath and snapped out of his little trance. 

"What, Nononono, no-we're not ..... No." Great, now he started stuttering as he felt his face blush. 

"We're not dating," Nooshy said at the same time as him, making it hard to understand what each of them was saying. "No, no, never, ever, ever." She was getting nervous too, feeling butterflies in her stomach. 

"We're just friends!" They finished at the same time, unable to meet each other's eyes. 

"O... Okey," Klaus said questioningly. "But, you know, 'we're not dating' would have been enough," both friends blushed and looked at the choreographer as if he had grown another head. "Anyway, I just wanted to say hi before everyone tomorrow, I already did, so bye."

"Yeah... We'll... See you tomorrow, Mr. Klaus." Johnny managed to say goodbye before the aforementioned left. After that, there was an awkward silence as everyone tried to think of a good idea to start a conversation. Soon Rosita asked Vivian if anything had changed in the theater, and the assistant went on to tell them that nothing had really changed, since it had been Frederick's original idea.

A few minutes into the informative talk, they listened as Porsha began to sing from the theater. "That means everything's going well, right?" Ash asked, unsure and also worried that Nooshy hadn't spoken since Klaus had left. 

"Well, it's a pretty cute song, so yeah, I guess everything's going well." Rosita replied after identifying the song. 

"And that means it's still going to be a while." Gunter said boredly. 

"Well, I'm not Mr. Crystal," Vivian said in her always melodious voice that Nooshy was getting tired of. "But I guess you can do whatever you want when they're done talking." And as she said this, Ash grabbed Nooshy by the arm and dragged her into the dance room, while Gunter did the same with Johnny and led him to one of the bouncy houses.

"Alright Missy, we need to get you back." Ash said to Nooshy as she closed the door to the room. 

"What, back from where?" The dancer asked, trying to act normal and not like someone who had just had a mental battle with her emotions.

"Back to the confident Nooshy and leave the nervous Nooshy behind because this doesn't look good." The singer told her friend as she grabbed one of the Bluetooth speakers in the room. 

"Nervous Nooshy, what does that mean?"

"It means that you, my friend, need to get over what Klaus said and start opening your eyes to the truth." 

"And what is the truth?" Nooshy hated not knowing something, which was why her conversation with Ash went terribly wrong.

"That, my friend, is for you to find out for yourself," and without further ado, she stood in the middle of the room after plugging her phone into the speaker. "Well, I'm no Johnny, but I suggest some dancing." 

"All right, all right, let's dance," the girl reluctantly agreed as she stood next to her friend. "And for your information, I dance with more people than just Johnny." 

"Ha, yeah right." Ash told her teasingly, but the dancer couldn't answer her because the song started.

Her happiness ended when she started to pay attention to the lyrics of the song and quickly glared at her friend, who smiled guiltily at her and walked away slightly.

Nooshy didn't know what to think, she knew what jealousy was and she had never felt anything like it, never in her life, and she did NOT feel it when Vivian was making puppy dog eyes in love with HER best friend... And there it was again, that uncontrollable anger and the urge to punch something that confused her even more, while her head said it wasn't what she was thinking, but her heart had something else to say....

At that moment, she began to dance even more intensely, causing Ash to lose her rhythm and choose to sing instead, analyzing her friend's behavior, which (to her satisfaction) was definitely that of someone denying her feelings.

Johnny watched Gunter jump on the trampoline with childish excitement, doing several tricks in the air before falling, and out of the corner of his eye he saw Vivian look at him with an intense blush on her cheeks and then start walking toward him, leaving him extremely confused and with a strange desire to run away. 

At the same time, he heard music coming from the dance hall, so he and Gunter walked towards it, only to see Ash singing and Nooshy dancing with an intensity he had never seen from her before. She was moving back and forth, making complicated movements both standing and on the floor, she had her eyes closed and her forehead furrowed as if something was bothering her, yet the boy immediately thought she looked spectacular in her element (moving her body with such ease that Johnny, being a young man discovering certain feelings, couldn't help but watch the constant swaying of her hips).

Realizing what he was doing, he blushed as he tried to look away from his friend and pretend that he wasn't having an intense mental battle against certain thoughts that were not worthy of gentlemen like him. 

"So... what was that all about?" Gunter asked him without taking his eyes off the front, as if it were a casual conversation. 

"What... What are you talking about?" The boy asked nervously, believing he had been caught looking at his best friend. 

"About what happened earlier with Klaus, yah." His friend answered obviously.

"Ah, that," to say the boy was relieved was an understatement, he was actually thankful it hadn't been the other thing. "It was nothing, why the question?" 

"Because he was right, a simple 'we're not dating' would have been enough," Gunter replied, turning to look at him with a smile that widened even more when he saw the boy's red face. "Instead, you started saying 'no' a thousand times, as if the sentence Klaus said meant something." 

"But it doesn't... It doesn't mean anything." The boy replied, super nervous because his friend had caught him off guard. 

"Are you sure, because I remember you standing there as if you were thinking about the possibility of Nooshy being your girlfriend and you didn't seem all that upset about the idea." He dropped the bombshell like it was nothing, but in the boy's mind it was like a switch had been flipped.

Never in a million years had it occurred to him that there was a tiny, tiny possibility that he might have feelings for Nooshy outside of friendship. She was his dancing, acting, singing and apartment partner, she was his closest confidant, she was HIS best friend and that was it... Although, now that he thought about it, she had done so much for him from the moment she agreed to be his dance coach and all that time, he felt he owed her the best for leaving her life in Redshore and moving in with him in Calatonia. All this time, he had believed that this feeling was gratitude, that the butterflies in his stomach, his heart beating fast, and the excitement he felt every time she laughed or danced or just stood next to him was just friendship.... 

But now that he analyzed the situation, he couldn't help but feel like a complete idiot when he realized what was there, all the evidence telling him, practically screaming at him, that it wasn't just friendship that he felt for his best friend... It was something more, something big and something he never thought would happen, but there it was, clinging to his heart...

He was completely, absolutely and madly in love with Nooshy.

He turned his gaze back to the room and, as his mind finally came back to reality, he saw Nooshy as he hadn't before, looking at her with such affection in his eyes that he wondered why he never had. Her best friend was great at what she did, moving with such ease, as if she had no control over her own body, and yet she controlled it so well. And that lit a small flame in his heart, a flame that had been there for a long time.