Page 68 of Freestyle (Academy of Stardom 1)

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Present Day

“Clancy tells me you’re unwell,” Madame Tuillard says, cocking her head as I enter her studio a minute past eight am on Monday morning. She hates lateness, that was made perfectly clear last week. Clancy, being a really good friend, covered for me. I owe her one.

“Just a little under the weather. I’m good now,” I explain biting down the nausea I feel. Since mychatwith Jeb, my altercation with York and serious lack of sustenance, I’ve genuinely been feeling sick all weekend. I texted my brother this morning explaining that I’d tried to call him, and ask that he call back, then promptly threw up, hence the lateness.

I’m reallynotlooking forward to that one-sided conversation.

“Sit, I’m feeling generous this morning,” she responds with a wave of her hand.

Avoiding eye contact with Zayn and York who are both openly staring at me, I move towards the back of the studio to where Clancy’s sitting. She gives me a look and squeezes my hand when I sit down.

“You good?” she whispers.

“Thanks, Clancy,” I respond, avoiding her question. I’m not good. I’m far from good, but I put a lid on my emotions and give her a reassuring smile. “I ate something that disagreed with me, that’s all.” She frowns, but doesn’t press, knowing as well as I do that the scarce amount of food I actually have in my flat is about as likely to make me sick as drinking water would.

“So, ladies and gentlemen, you’ve settled in and met all your teachers, now it’s time for the hard work to begin,” Madame Tuillard says, cutting my conversation with Clancy short. As usual she’s perfectly turned out. Her slim figure is encased in a leotard and leggings ensemble with leg warmers and ballet slippers. For a forty-year old she’s pretty fit. “There has been some animosity between a few of you which I’d like to address now.” She looks between Clancy, Tiffany, and I, but interestingly also Zayn and York. “Over the next year you’ll all be spending a great deal of time with each other and whilst I don’t expect you to be friends, I do need you to at least be respectful of each other if this is going to work. There is no competition, only cohesion, when you’re in the studio together.”

“If what’s going to work?” Tiffany pipes up, her lascivious gaze sliding over to Zayn who is sitting nearest to her. I bite down on my lip, willing myself not to react.

“I haven’t just given you a flat here so that you can take advantage of the studio space outside of the school day. I do have an ulterior motive, one which will be beneficial to you all.”

“What’s that?” York questions. By the tone of his voice he’s as surprised as the rest of us.

“You’ve been chosen to headline an end of year dance production that will be televised before the great British public. It’s going to be quite spectacular.” Madame Tuillard smiles. “Over the coming months, I will be bringing in all the best teachers and choreographers from around the world. You were all picked for your abilities to shine in each of your specialisms… There will be a single, duo, trio, quartet, as well as a group dance with all of you as the finale.”

“What the fuck?” Zayn exclaims, cutting her off and earning a glare from York.

“Is there a problem?” Madam Tuillard asks, narrowing her eyes at them.

“None whatsoever.” York smiles. Madame Tuillard nods, turning her attention to Clancy who is grinning broadly.

“This is amazing, thank you!”

I chew on my cheek, zoning out for a moment as Madame Tuillard goes into more detail about the show and her ideas. Sophie, the girl who I know least, catches my gaze then leans over and whispers something in Tiffany’s ear. They both look at me with calculating gazes. Great, that’s all I need, another enemy. Tiffany has clearly aligned herself with the only other girl in this group. I look away, not in the mood. They’ve no idea about the inner turmoil I feel. Being at the same school as the Breakers is one thing, but dancing with two of the four again, quite another. Not to mention the potential repercussions from David.

“This is a huge deal for Stardom Academy, so I want your full commitment. They’ll be no slacking off. Understood?”

“Understood,” we respond.

A knock on the studio door interrupts Madame Tuillard. “Ah, perfect timing! Come on in.” The door to the studio opens and in walks Xeno followed by D-Neath and…

“Dax?” I whisper. He strolls into the room wearing tracksuit bottoms and a white, V-neck t-shirt that showcases his tattoos and sheer size.

“Whoa!” I hear Clancy say. We exchange looks and I’m pretty sure my shock is clearly scrawled across my face. Swallowing hard, I force my face into a neutral state.

Madame Tuillard greets D-Neath with a kiss on each cheek, nodding to Xeno and Dax before turning back to face us all. I feel Xeno’s gaze burning a hole in my face, but I refuse to look at him or Dax.

“Duncan and I decided that another dancer was required to even up the numbers and enable us to pair you off easier when it comes to the duets. I’d like you all to meet Dax.”

Clancy shuffles closer to me, her hand sliding over mine as she grips it.

Fuck. Fuck. Fuck.

“If you haven’t figured it out by now, Xeno will be overseeing the rehearsals,” D-Neath explains, pitching in. “We can trust him to make sure shit gets done.”

Xeno crosses his arms and jerks his chin in response. Our eyes meet, and I see a flash of challenge in them. This is bullshit. Utter bullshit.

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