Chapter 39

Christi seemed to completely forget about yelling at me and calling me arrogant, trying to make conversation on the plane flight. I was polite, but nothing more. It never made sense to me when adults acted out then expected that kids would just forget about it. I was young, not stupid.

Still, I really didn't want to deal with the drama, so I kept it polite and talked Chloé through the next few days. "It's not too different from a semi-final, except that there's more pressure on the master classes and if you're chosen for the second round, you'll perform your Classical dance again. Good thing you're used to dancing twice."

"I may not make the cut, though," Chloé fretted.

"You definitely won't if you think like that," I corrected her gently. "I think you can. Have fun with the master classes, they're very useful and very valuable. The teachers will be very famous."

"Mom can't be back with me and no teachers are there, how do I find my way around?"

"Excellent question. What I do is find a more experienced friend and follow them around. Everyone's very nice in my experience, and there's great camaraderie among the dancers. I'm meeting up with a friend from last year for breakfast tomorrow, and one dancer from the Paris semi."

"I always thought that you were shy," Christi said unexpectedly.

"I'm quiet sometimes, but I'm actually an extrovert," I replied evenly.

It was a late night and I was still yawning when I met up with Hannah Bettes and Clara Royer over breakfast. Clara was mostly fluent in English, it turned out.

"Joanne! So nice to see you." Hannah stood and hugged me, Clara giving me a French greeting afterwards. "You've made it big. You were so good at the Grammys. How did you manage to perform for an actual Beatle?"

"That was crazy. Adele invited me out for dinner, and I said that I'm a huge Beatles fan, so of course she urged me to sit next to him. He and his wife were lovely and even invited the family present out to tea. He and his fellow performers asked me to dance during their performance the night before, so I just came up with the piece and practiced it quite a bit beforehand. Needless to say, I was very nervous."

"That looked like a professional solo," Clara gaped. "You choreographed it yourself, a day before?"

"I've been told I have a gift. I also watch many videos on choreographing and read books on it," I shrugged. "Most of the time I do best when I harness my emotions, and my body knows what to do. Then I have to have somebody film so I can get the actual moves down. Enough about me, how have you two been?"

We didn't have too much time to chat, and I helped them take a taxi to the competition, with Chloé then joining us.

"Chloé, this is Hannah Bettes, a Senior competitor from the US, and Clara Royer, a Junior competitor from France. This is Chloé Lukasiak."

"You are on television," Clara said warmly and swooped in to kiss Chloé's cheeks. "You are a very good dancer. It's nice to meet you."

Chloé managed to make a connection with a few other Pre-competitive dancers, and I was able to focus on the first master class of the day, which was Technique. It served as a more challenging than usual warm-up, and then there was another masterclass that took up the afternoon.

Braxton and I met up to practice for half an hour before dinner, which a whole group of Junior and Senior dancers attended. I made a few acquaintances and figured out who would be performing around the time I would. The pas de deux was probably the biggest challenge because there was no separation between age categories, so Braxton and I would have our work cut out for us.

"How was your day?" I asked Chloé back at the hotel.

"It was really fun!" She grinned. "The classes were exciting and I made a few new friends. A lot of people recognized me from the show, which is weird."

"I've been getting stared at quite a bit. I'm glad that you had fun," I replied.

"You compete tomorrow twice, right? Classical alone then with Braxton?"

I nodded. "Yeah, it's a tough division so we'll have to be pretty close to perfect. We can do it, though, and it's come together well. Have you thought about trying for a pas de deux?"

"I've talked with my mom about it, and she's for it, but there's no boy in the studio that's around my age and does a lot of ballet. It's probably good that I only have two dances to focus on this year and not four."

Chloé and I shared a room because we had an early morning and Christi and my aunt wanted to get drunk at the bar, probably separately. Back at the ALDC competition, the group got first place, finally.

Braxton's mother, a lovely woman who was also deaf and had a Cochlear Implant, drove me to the venue at six in the morning. We were at the beginning of the competitors with an average age of fourteen. I had a red and black tutu dress and Braxton had a classic men's outfit for pas de deux.

"Entry number fifteen, Braxton and Joanne with 'Don Quixote.'"

I entered first, smiling brightly. This was a very long piece that required a lot of balance and turns on my part and power on his. He had to be totally in control, leading the whole way. It was a Senior-level piece so we would have the difficulty to place well. We made sure to be connected with each other, and left the stage to many cheers.

I was out of breath but pleased at the finish, and Braxton and I shared a warm hug. "That's really hard, great job," he panted.

I changed into my dance sweats and went to the audience to see the rest of the pas de deux competition, then headed to a masterclass with, once again, Natalia Ostipova. She had myself and a few others show the combination she taught, which was fun.

I went backstage early to support Chloé, who was clearly nervous but seemed more relaxed when I spent time near her. She was performing a popular variation, 'Harlequinade,' and looked adorable in her outfit.

"You got this," I told her a few numbers before she went on. "You're a great dancer, and you need to bring all of that lovely genuine emotion that you have. Play the character. You can do it."

Chloé could and did; she danced confidently, accurately, and was charming. She was smiling as she left the stage to applause, and I congratulated her before she ran off to her mother. The Pre-Competitive men followed, then the Junior women.

"Entry number one hundred and three, Joanne with 'Swan Lake.'"

Showtime. I entered the stage in character and began dancing with the music, making sure that I got the character across with every move and extended as much as I could. I left the stage pleased with the performance, and ready to be done with dancing for the day. Clara went on not that long after me and did well, though she was visibly nervous. A bit later, Hannah performed and was just marvelous.

"She'll win Seniors," Clara predicted in French. "She is incredible."

I nodded. "I really look up to her."

Braxton performed excellently after that, and generally everyone there that I knew was pretty pleased with themselves.

I wasn't able to attend as many masterclasses because of the pas de deux, unfortunately, but it wouldn't count against me in the scores. The next morning began with ensembles, then Contemporary pas de deux. I attended a masterclass then changed into my costume and met up with Braxton backstage.

"Good job yesterday," Braxton said. "It was beautiful."

"Thank you, you too," I returned.

"Entry number fifteen, Braxton and Joanne with 'Ghosts.'"

There were some hard lifts in this piece, and it could easily come across as boring if we didn't execute emotionally. Braxton had more to do than just lift and hold me in this dance, as I wanted it to be a more cohesive duet, and from what I could tell we did quite well.

Again, I rushed off to eat lunch then returned to see Chloé perform her Contemporary routine excellently. The only age group competing solos was the Pre-Competitive age group, and their final round would close out the next day, so I was relaxed and there as Chloé left the stage crying happy tears.

Melody showed up with Misty that night and simply shared a bed with me, which Chloé was okay with. We watched some Survivor then went to bed, waking up early for competition the next morning. Aunt Melissa and Christi gave Chloé and I the good news that she'd made the cut and that Braxton and I would be performing again as well.

Clara and I warmed up and chatted together. Soon enough, I was standing in the wings, going up and down on my toes to prepare.

"This is entry one hundred and three, Joanne with 'The Deep.'"

I'd made the Grammys dance shorter and more technically difficult, but poured the same intense emotions as that day into it now. I hit every move aggressively and thought that it was the best dance that I'd done so far. I had a quick turnaround for a masterclass, and was sweating when I got there. The teacher looked at me, amused.

"Didn't you just perform onstage?"

"Yes, sir. I didn't want to miss your class."

"Well, I appreciate the dedication. Take a five-minute break for water and food then come back."

Needless to say that my legs were aching by the end of the day, and I chose to sit in the audience to watch Chloé give an inspired performance in the final round. She was smiling brightly the whole time, and I could see the judges smiling back.

"It's so crazy how she does better with no teacher than with Abby," Christi grumbled. "Joanne, how is it that you were able to shorten your contract?"

"A combination of a good lawyer and just being very annoying," I replied honestly. "Chloé's good, she could make a ballet school in a few years."

"Right, and she's in the show for six seasons. It's about time that I get a lawyer," Christi decided. "Thanks, Joanne. And I'm sorry for lashing out at you, it was unfair and out of line."

"Apology accepted," I said with a small smile.

I got the news that I'd made the final round that night, and went to bed early once again. Braxton and I were just the fourth entry to go in the final round, and we danced even more powerfully through all nearly seven minutes of the combination. Braxton and I spent a bit of time recovering afterwards as we both had final rounds in not too long.

Though my muscles ached, I made sure that the second time I performed my Classical piece was better than the first. I could rest later, now was the time to do my absolute best. Braxton looked great performing for a sixth time, and eventually after a delicious banquet full of chatting and a distinct sense of relief, it was time for awards.

Chloé was delighted to make the top 12 in her category, though she didn't win any other awards. I was also called up for the top 12, and felt the weight of wanting to place well on my shoulders. The expectations were so much higher for me now. Grecía Marian Meza Posada of México was called up for 3rd in Classical, then Juliet Doherty of the US was called as second place.

"First place goes to Joanne Ziegler from the Abby Lee Dance Company, USA!"

I let out a huge breath and smiled, accepting the plaque and telling the other two good job. Once the top 6 and top 3 Junior men were named, I felt the nerves rise again.

"The Youth Grand Prix award this year is going to a rising star in not just the ballet world but the dancing world in general. It's going to Joanne Ziegler from the USA."

I swallowed back tears and took the award gracefully, smiling at my family in the audience.

Braxton placed third in the Classical category for Seniors, and Hannah won the Classical division for Senior Women. Braxton and I tied for third place in the pas de deux category, a huge accomplishment, especially given that we had only been working together for three and a half months. There was more to come for me, as I won the Choreography Award and Outstanding Contemporary Dancer award. 

I was overwhelmed with emotion, but felt like I didn't have anywhere to put it. I drifted off to sleep in Melody's arms that night, Misty curled up against us, still buzzing from the success that I'd had and all the experiences that I had enjoyed along the way.