Penelope’s entire world is ballet—every bruise, sacrifice, and heartbeat devoted to earning the spotlight. But as pressure mounts, her relationship begins to crack and one mistake threatens everything she’s worked for. Then she dances like never before, awakening something fierce inside her. Now the question isn’t whether she’s talented enough… but what she’s willing to lose to win.
“It was…” I search for the right words, brushing past a group of freshmen clustered like confused ducklings by the trophy case. “Weird at first. I thought Madame Loretto forgot to add my name to the roaster. I panicked for a good thirty minutes.” Tyler chuckles under his breath. “Classic Penny drama.” I elbow him…
It’s just… irritation. Annoyance. Mild existential despair. He was supposed to get pizza with Just me. That was the plan. And now I’m stuck watching him laugh and joke with a bunch of people who couldn’t even pretend to like me if their lives depended on t I sigh, digging the tot of my sneaker…
Penny tilts her head back, smiles that polite, brittle little smile she’s been wearing since the second she decided to get off the bleachers. “I think I’m just gonna head home,” she says. “Still sore from auditions,” She says it soft. Easy. Like shes making excuses for herself before he even gets a chance to.…
Like she belongs there, And maybe that’s the problem. Because somewhere along the line, in the short time I’ve known het, she stopped being just another stupid, reckless girl who needed a reality check. Somewhere along the line, she became something else entirely. I sit cross-legged on a heat-up metal chair, the kind that wobbles…
I grin, kicking my foot lightly against the dashboard. “Favorite movie?” He grunts actual verbal acknowledgment. We are making progress. But before he can answer, I hold up my hand dramatically. “Wait. No. I already know all the answers.” I drop my voice into the lowest, gruffest tone I can manage, trying to mimic him..…
Not that it stops her. She keeps going – firing off compliments, fake questions, stupid laughs and I answer the bare minimum required to avoid being a complete asshole. Barely. Beside me, Penny shifts a little, and for a second I think maybe she’s uncomfortable too. Or maybe that’s just wishful thinking. Because then, like…
I stare down at my plate, wishing it would swallow me whole. Then, without warning, I feel Asher shift. He leans forward, elbow on the table, his voice low and so dry it could burn. “You’re not my type,” he says, straight at Rebecca. The entire table freezes. There’s a beat a breath where nobody…
I don’t even have time to pray for a miracle. Because of course, Rebecca and Zoe immediately abandon ship, laughing as they skip toward Tyler’s car. Because why not. Tyler tosses the keys at Asher. “You drive?” Asher catches them one-handed, effortless. “Sure.” Short. Sharp. Like he doesn’t care either way if we live or…
I grunt something that could pass for “no problem,” though it feels like lying. Tyler leans forward between the seats, still texting with one hand, grinning like we just came back from the best night of his life. “So,” he says, “what’d you think of my friends?” I snort under my breath. “Fine.” Short. Flat.…
“Here,” he says, gently tugging me down onto the couch. I blink at him, still caught somewhere between consciousness and whatever half-dream state I was in. Tyler kneels down, unlacing my sneakers like he’s got all the time in the world. He pulls one shoe off, then the other, tossing them neatly beside the couch.…