6x07

It was a rare day where Piper hadn't been required to be at rehearsal. Emily and Michelle were focusing on the dances for the upcoming Wild Stylz Dance Convention, which Piper hadn't been chosen for, so she technically had the day off. Even still, she'd walked to the studio anyway, desperate to get some fresh air that afternoon. Her mind had been running in overdrive all day with the thought that she had been overlooked for the convention dances because she was the team's weak link. After feeling suffocated by her thoughts all morning while trying to work on her online classes, she had eventually decided the best way to silence them was to go to the studio and work on her aerial.

It was late afternoon when Piper finally arrived at the studio. As she was putting her bag and shoes in her locker, she heard laughter in the hallway and the unmistakable voices of the boys. The voices faded away, and a moment later, Finn entered the locker room. Of course.

She should have known by this point that she couldn't come to the studio without running into him somehow.

"Hey Piper! What are you doing here? I thought you weren't coming in today," he said as he walked over to his locker and pulled it open.

"I could say the same for you," she told him stiffly, shutting her locker and crossing her arms as she faced him. The only people Emily and Michelle had officially called in for rehearsal today were Summer, Richelle, and Jacquie.

"Oh, you know the group dance for the convention?" Finn told her as he rummaged through his locker in search of something. Piper simply nodded, and he continued. "Kingston and Ozzy thought it wasn't fair that we didn't have a chance to audition, so we put together a routine for Emily and Michelle."

Perhaps that should have come as a surprise to Piper, but honestly, it sounded exactly like something the boys would do. In spite of herself, she asked curiously, "Did it work?"

"Nope," he said with a shake of the head. He seemed to find whatever it was he was looking for, his face lighting up as he reached to the back of the top shelf of his locker and pulled out what was clearly his wallet.

"Hey, do you know LaTroy?" he asked suddenly, abruptly changing the subject as he slipped his wallet in his pocket.

Piper nodded slowly, her brows knitting together. "Do you?" she asked, failing to see why her former teammate was relevant to this conversation.

"Yeah, he helped us choreograph our routine!"

"Wait, he's here? Now?" Piper asked in surprise. The last she had heard, LaTroy and Sloane were still on tour with Luther Brown.

"Yeah! We're all going to Shakes and Ladders now if you want to come."

It would be fun to see LaTroy and hear about the tour with Luther Brown, but Piper had come to the studio on a mission that she needed to see through. With a shake of the head, she told him, "I really need to work on my acro."

"Okay," he said with a shrug.

Even though he was smiling at her, she was sure he must be thinking something about how pathetic it was that she still hadn't gotten her aerial down yet. After all, his first impression of her had been that she was the girl who the whole team had to do planks for because she couldn't do an aerial while everyone else on the team could.

But he did say you were an incredible dancer, the voice of reason pointed out in the back of her mind.

He was just being nice, her anxiety piped back.

Dread filling her at the reminder of the worst rehearsal of her life, Piper turned to leave the locker room but stopped when it dawned on her that she couldn't go to Studio One because AcroNation was renting out the space. Would Studio A even be open right now? Reluctantly turning back to Finn, she asked, "Um, is anyone in Studio A right now? Do you know?"

"No, I don't think so," Finn answered as he kicked his locker door shut.

She nodded and started to leave the locker room with Finn right behind her. As they made their way down the hallway, her hands fidgeted restlessly in front of her as she risked a glance up at him. Should she try to make conversation with him? Did she want to? She wasn't even sure. Finn was just weird. He was a nice guy, but he couldn't seem to take a hint. He'd asked her out twice now, and she'd turned him down both times, not only because she barely knew him but also because she just wasn't interested in dating at all. Not after what had happened with Josh.

Finn had taken to staring up at the ceiling as they walked. Piper had just made peace with walking in silence when he suddenly said, "Hey, I heard there's this really cool pizza place downtown." Piper grit her teeth, anticipating his next words. "Do you want to go check it out one night?"

"No," she told him automatically.

As usual, he barely flinched at her rejection, as if it didn't even faze him in the slightest. Gosh, she really didn't understand this guy at all. Even still, she couldn't help thinking of how awful it felt to be on his side of rejection and sighed as she turned to face him.

"Look, Finn," she started. He nearly stumbled into her as she had stopped walking in front of him and quickly caught himself before looking at her expectantly. "I'm sure you're a great guy and all, but I'm focusing on dance this season, not dating, so can you just leave it alone?"

Was that too harsh? She wasn't trying to be mean, but wasn't it also better to be upfront with him rather than keep giving him some kind of false hope or something?

She wrung her hands in front of her, gauging his reaction. He didn't seem upset, just rolled with it as usual. (Maybe he was just really good at masking his emotions or something.)

"Yeah, sure. I get it. Dance is important," Finn told her, holding his hands up as if in a gesture of surrender.

Piper let out a breath of relief and nodded. "Okay. Good." With that, she continued on to Studio A, leaving Finn behind to join the boys with a sad frown that she didn't see.

Studio A was indeed empty as Finn had said it would be. Piper pulled one of the mats off of the wall and set it up in the middle of the studio. It was easier to practice her aerial when no one else was around. There was no need to worry about anyone watching and judging her, and she didn't have to feel embarrassed about using the mat.

She didn't know how long she practiced by herself in Studio A. At one point, Emily came in to lock up the office on her way out for the evening and told Piper to turn off the lights and lock the studio up behind her when she left. Not long after that, Amy strode into the studio, sipping on a nearly finished smoothie from Shakes and Ladders.

"Hey you," Amy called cheerfully.

Piper smiled in greeting at her best friend. She had just sat down on the mat, sweaty and tired from working so hard. Even after practicing for hours, she still wasn't quite getting it. Her aerial was beginning to feel like a lost cause. Was it supposed to be this hard, or was she just that bad at acro?

Amy joined her in the center of the studio, sitting down on the wood floor and stretching her legs out in front of her. "I didn't think you were coming today," she stated, and Piper shrugged.

"I wanted to work on my aerial, but it's not going very well."

"Do you want help?" Amy asked, perking up and setting her smoothie aside. Of all the people Piper could ask for help, Amy was definitely the best. Not only was she her best friend, but she was also the best acro dancer on A-Troupe (in Piper's own personal opinion).

Piper gave a tired smile and shook her head. "Another day, please. I'm too tired right now."

"Deal. I'll help you get it before Regionals, I promise."

"You're the best," Piper told her gratefully.

Amy smiled and flipped her hair over her shoulder playfully. "I try."

Chuckling, Piper stretched her legs out and asked, "How'd you know I was here?"

"Finn told me. All of the boys are in Shakes and Ladders, and you'll never guess who's with them."

"LaTroy?"

Amy paused and raised her eyebrows. "How'd you know?"

"Finn."

"Ah..."

Piper observed her best friend for a moment, noting the frown on her lips and the way her gaze had gone downcast. Guessing what was running through her best friend's mind, she asked, "Weird seeing him?"

Amy pursed her lips for a moment then shrugged, slowly looking up to meet her gaze. "I just wasn't expecting it." She heaved a sigh then continued with, "I know it's been almost a year since we broke up, and we're kind of friends, but... I don't know. I just feel weird whenever I'm around him."

"He really hurt you," Piper pointed out reasonably. It had been hard to watch Amy get her heart broken at Regionals and then to find out that LaTroy hadn't wasted any time before getting together with Sloane. Time had healed wounds, of course, but Amy's friendship with Sloane had never been the same.

"Yeah, he did..." Amy muttered. She fell quiet for a moment before letting out a deep breath, tossing her shoulders back, and plastering a smile on her face. "But whatever, it's in the past, right?"

"Right," Piper nodded with a small smile.

A mischievous look flashed in Amy's eyes, and Piper was almost certain she knew what her best friend was about to bring up. "So, have any conversations with Finn today?"

She rolled her eyes, shaking her head exasperatedly at Amy. "You're enjoying this way too much."

"Hey, it's not every day a boy asks your best friend out." Amy giggled to herself then said, "Oh wait. Yeah it is."

"Shut up. He doesn't ask me out every day."

"Did he ask you out today?"

"Yes," Piper grumbled, and Amy's face lit up in glee. Ever since Finn had asked Piper out in Shakes and Ladders the other day, Amy hadn't quit teasing her about it. It was certainly a change in pace for their relationship considering it was usually Piper who was teasing Amy about her love life, not the other way around.

In an effort to wipe the gleeful expression off of her best friend's face, Piper added, "And I told him to leave it alone because I'm focusing on dance this season."

Amy frowned at that, giving her an exasperated look. "I think you should go out with him."

"Why?" Piper asked in surprise. Amy couldn't be serious. Could she?

"Piper, come on! He's cute, and Henry thinks he's really cool."

"If you think he's so cute, why don't you date him?" Piper suggested sarcastically before giving her a pointed look and adding, "You can go to the batting cages together."

Amy rolled her eyes at that. "Oh, give me a break. I was just trying to ease the tension after you turned him down."

"What tension? He never even reacts when I tell him no. I don't get it."

"I'm not interested in Finn like that," Amy continued as if she hadn't heard Piper. "But he's clearly interested in you. You should give him a chance."

"I barely even know him," Piper protested.

"But you could get to know him!"

Amy was grinning at her as Piper gave her a dumbfounded look. "Why would I want to do that?"

Her shoulders deflating dramatically, Amy sighed and asked pointedly, "Have you ever even been on a date before?"

"No, and I don't want to," Piper grumbled, averting her gaze.

Amy frowned at her, but her expression softened as a thought seemed to strike her. "Is this because of what happened with Josh?"

Piper sighed and shook her head. "No," she said seriously, but of course that wasn't true. Josh was the first boy that she had opened herself up to, and she'd just gotten hurt by him in the end. The wound he'd left on her heart was still healing, and she honestly didn't know if she'd ever be interested in another guy again. How could she when she could just end up getting rejected again?

That didn't seem like a risk worth taking.

"Piper, you can't let what happened with him control you for the rest of your life," Amy told her seriously.

"I'm not!" Piper snapped defensively.

Amy pursed her lips skeptically then shrugged and said, "Well, if you want my opinion, Finn is way cuter than Josh."

"Amy."

"Am I wrong?" she asked, raising an eyebrow as if challenging Piper to disagree.

Piper rolled her eyes and looked away from her. "Josh was cute, okay?" she mumbled. But she supposed Finn kind of was too. Considering how amusing Amy found this Finn situation, however, there was no way she was actually going to admit that to her.

Regardless, Amy smirked as if she knew exactly what Piper was thinking anyway. In an attempt to change the subject, Piper asked her how her day had been. Letting the subject of Finn go, Amy shrugged and said, "It was... good?"

Piper raised her eyebrows at that very underwhelming answer. "Are you sure?"

"Emily and Michelle wouldn't even consider me for the solo," Amy admitted. Piper started to apologize, but Amy continued before she could finish. "But Thalia asked me to fill in for a trio at AcroNation, and it went surprisingly well."

"Really?" It was surprising that Thalia would ask a dancer from another studio to fill in for one of her dancers, but then again, it wasn't like AcroNation was a competitive team.

"I actually had a lot of fun! The routine was all acro. I had a blast with them."

"Wow, that's great!" Piper told her excitedly. Maybe filling in for AcroNation was exactly what Amy had needed to get her spirits up. It had been a difficult season for her between all of the drama with her mom and feeling overshadowed by some of the other dancers recently.

They talked in Studio A for a little while longer before finally deciding it was time to head home for the evening. Amy helped Piper put her mat up then they walked out to the lobby together. As they went, Piper asked if Amy would want to hang out over the upcoming weekend.

"Oh, I can't. Lainey's soccer championships are on Saturday, and then I'm hanging out with Henry on Sunday," Amy told her. Lainey was her little sister, who preferred playing soccer to spending her days in the dance studio, much to their mother's absolute dismay.

Piper was disappointed by her answer since they hadn't had much time to see each other outside of rehearsals, but she supposed it was okay. "Maybe next week?" she suggested.

"Of course!" Amy agreed, slinging an around her shoulder excitedly.

Piper grinned, resting her head against Amy's as they walked out onto the street together. She sincerely hoped that they would actually be able to make plans for the next weekend. Amy had been so busy recently that Piper was starting to feel like she saw Finn more than her these days, and that was not a trend that she wanted to continue.