Chapter Text
“Good job girls. Ua, cleaner moves on the second verse. Get some water then start again.” The dance instructor told the panting girls.
Ua turned to the translator clarifying the instructions as Adela smoothly crossed the room to her bottle, only to find it empty.
“I gotta go fill this. Be right back.” She said to Megan before she left the sweaty studio room.
Entering the hallway she immediately noticed the drop in temperature from the practice room. They had been dancing for nearly five hours preparing for the first mission filming tomorrow, and the girls’ collective body heat had nearly started to produce fog on the practice room mirror.
Adela reached the fountain in the hall and took a long sip from it before placing her bottle under the spout. Having been working so hard in T&D for over a year, not to mention dancing and singing her whole life, she was buzzing with excitement at the prospect of debuting. And soon.
The moment it was announced that there would be a survival show to form the group for debut, her heart both jumped for joy and tore in half at the same time. She was elated, knowing they were ready to go public. But at the same time anxious at the idea that any one of the girls in the room could have their dreams crushed like that for the world to see.
She had been training so hard with all the other girls in the program. Making friends, helping each other, watching each other get better and better. Saying goodbye to Abby and Naisha alone had been hard enough on everyone. The thought of anyone else leaving was terrifying.
Suddenly she felt the cool water sliding down her warm hands under the tap and emerged from her wandering thoughts to see her bottle had overflowed. She lifted it from the fountain and sipped a bit off the top before screwing on the lid and turning back down the hall.
She passed the practice rooms, spotting vocal team two hard at work in one room. She had overheard some of the members practicing the song around the trainee house and knew already they sounded amazing. She loved how beautifully they harmonized and knew they would score well.
Next she passed by dance team two in practice room three and took a moment to watch through the window. She saw Emily walking through the choreo in the mirror, helping Mei and Ezrela polish some of the harder moves. She admired her friends’ teamwork and dedication. She could see Emily not only guiding the other girls, but also watching her own performance, checking to ensure everything was perfect.
Adela continued down the hall sipping from her bottle, hoping her wandering mind hadn't made her late. Her skin felt cool against the warm air and sheen of sweat on her shoulders. She took in the room, glad she wasn't late as she approached Megan and Daniella chatting on the side of the room. Out of the corner of her eye noting Ua hard at work at the mirror reviewing the choreo.
“Hey Adela!” Daniella welcomed her with a smiling face. “How are you feeling about tomorrow?”
“Nervous, but excited” Adela replied, a huge understatement. Her eyes drifted to Ua. “I don't want to see anyone go.”
“Me neither,” Megan replied. “We've all been working together for so long. All the girls feel like family.
“Yeah,” Daniella agreed. “I feel pretty confident. I know some of the other girls aren't though. I wish there was some way we could help them feel more confident.”
Adela had only half listened to her friends as she continued to watch Ua at the mirror. She could see the worry in the young girl’s eyes as she tried the moves of the second verse over and over. Repeating every time she didn't hit it perfectly.
Adela knew that worry all too well. Especially from her ballet days when she was younger. She would never forget her teacher in her tight bun and tighter looking tights as she guided the group of young girls through their positions. How when Adela didn't dip her knees low enough in the pilé to satisfy, the teacher would force the whole class to start from the beginning.
Her frequent mistakes in those early days made her the black sheep among her peers. Some days going to class after school felt like the worst punishment. Especially when they called her by that awful nickname: “stick legs”. If only someone had helped her instead of calling her names. She would have been much more confident in those early days. Then it clicked.
“What if there was?” She said to her friends, whose focus had shifted to what outfits they might wear for the mission tomorrow. “A way to give everyone more confidence, that is. What if…” but before she could finish she heard the clap of the dance instructor calling them back to the main part of the floor to run the dance again.
The girls shuffled into their positions to start the dance. Starting over every time the instructor noticed a mistake. On the fifth restart Adela couldn't help but notice Ua’s eyes shimmering before the girl blinked the unfallen tears away, returning to the first position of the dance.
“There just had to be a way to help,” Adela thought. “And I just may know how”