HELLO MUNCHKINS! THIS CHAPTER IS UNEDITED - SORRY!

Third Person's POV

"You got this man, you're so close," Felix encouraged, slapping Ajax on the back. 

As usual, it was harder than necessary. 

Ajax sent him a glare, rubbing the stinging skin. 

"Aw, did that hurt?" Mila teased.

He rolled his eyes, not phased by her full 180. One minute she's pale as a sheet, the next minute she's attacking him. 

Yes, it did hurt. Would he admit it? Hell no. 

"Alright you shitstains, time to check in," Adam called from the door. 

Mila groaned, she regretted teaching him the word shitstain. 

Ajax gave her a weird look. She simply grinned, rubbing her hands together. He tried to run down the hallway but didn't get a chance to before her hand slapped his arm. The exact same spot Felix had. 

"Ah shit," he hissed, wincing. 

"Ha, take that," Mila said triumphantly, holding her head high. 

"I didn't even do anything!"

"Well, you must've done something sometime," she retorted.

"Remind me why I put up with you."

"Well,  you see there's plent-"

"Shut up."

"Alrighty then."

Mila then proceeded to pull at the bracelet strings on Ajax's arm as she sat beside him. Her leg bounced anxiously as her eyes darted around the room. 

Ajax stared at her hands as they played with his bracelet. Her nails were painted a pure white. He thought they looked nice, but he didn't dare comment on them. Last time he asked about her lashes, he ended up wearing them himself. God knows, Mila would probably end up painting his nails while he was sleeping. 

His eyes traveled up to her face, scanning her features. He could make out the light coating of mascara on her lashes. Her canines were sharp as they bit down on her lower lip, catching his attention. 

"Hey Mila," he began, taking her hand and intertwining their fingers. She hummed in response, tilting her head up to look at him. 

"I've been wanting to tell you," he continued. 

"Oooh yes, tea," she said, turning to give him her full attention. 

"I-"

"Why are you still sitting here? Get up, you guys are next. Russian team's almost done," Adam scowled, shooing them from their seats. 

"Tell me later alright?" Mila said, tugging his arm towards the stage. 

"I have to pee," she whispered as they waited. 

"Again? What is it with women peeing so much," Ajax rolled his eyes. 

"Hey, my bladder has to relieve itself periodically," she huffed, crossing her arms. 

"Like every other human."

"Sure. Whatever."

"Alright, curtain in 5,4,3,2!"

Then, the curtain opened. 

"What the heck, what happened to the one? Does one not exist anymore?" Mila whispered as they walked onstage together. 

"That's the least of our worries right now," Ajax replied, his eyes shining with amusement. 

Mila could hear the blood rushing in her ears as the chatter quieted down and the lights dimmed. When they had been practicing, she'd messed up this opening move so many times. This time, there would be no room for error. 

Every step, every turn, every lift, and every pointed foot would be scrutinized.

^dance up there - WOD Charity and Andres (perfect score) :)) 

You let your feet run wild

Right of the bat, cheers erupted from the crowd. 

"That's a good sign right?" Mila thought to herself. 

She could feel Ajax's warm calloused hands on the exposed skin of her neck as he spun her around. 

The stage was cold and hard as she lay her back against it. 

Do you dare to look him right in the eyes? 

"Hell yes I do," Mila smirked, staring right into his green eyes. 

Her breath hitched as Ajax yanked her to his chest. He fought back a smirk at the surprised expression on her face. 

She could feel his biceps tense as he leaned her backwards making the room spin. 

The two dancers parted ways, creating a good distance between them. They shared a determined look before running towards each other. 

Mila held her breath, bending her upper body back.

"Please don't knock my head off," she thought.  A whoosh air breezed past her as Ajax leaped over her. 

Ajax held back a smile at the crowds reaction. 

And they will run you down, down 'til you go

Mila covered her face with her hands as Ajax did a front flip, landing so that she was positioned between him. 

The storyline was that two heartbroken souls found each other in an attempt at finding peace. The relationship turns toxic and abusive. The girl can't help but keep coming back to him, only for him to hurt her even more. They both end up leaving broken even more.  

This part of the routine had been a real struggle. 

They had to time their movements with the beat of the song and make each move clean and precise. 

There could be no sloppiness. 

Ajax grabbed Mila's wrist, tugging in one direction before letting it go harshly. She tried to  grab onto his leg but he moved away, as if he was kicking her. 

Mila fought back this time. She grabbed his ankle and pulled it, sending him into a front flip. 

They had practiced on foam mats many times, but it was guaranteed they would both be bruised from this routine. 

Mila turned her back to him, walking away with a determined look on her face. 

Ajax crawled the other way, flipping so his back was to her. He counted the beats of the song, waiting for the precise moment Mila would launch herself onto his back. 

1.
2.
3.
4.
5.

Just at the right moment, he felt Mila's leg hook over his shoulder as she jumped on his back. He used the forward momentum to flip her off his shoulders so she landed in front of him. 

He was breathless by now, the effort from carrying out all the moves quickly and precisely catching up to him. 

Ajax caught Mila's gaze and she gave him a wink, her eyes twinkling with mischief. 

"Even now, she can be such a tease," he thought, gripping her hands and pulling her up. . Using the force, he was able to get her over his shoulders before letting her slide down. 

Mila tensed as his arms wrapped around her waist. 

She would never admit it, but she loved the feeling of his strong arms holding her close to him. Not missing a beat, she spun away from him and pulled his arm down. Ajax launched himself into a front flip and landed firmly on both feet before sliding to the ground. 

Mila turned to walk away from him, only to have him grab her ankle. Then, she too tossed her body into a spin and landed on the cold stage in front of Ajax. 

Two souls lay broken from one another's love. 

The roar from the crowd was thunderous. Both dancers could feel it vibrating in their chests as they stood up. 

It was done. There was no coming back. 

"We did it," Ajax whispered breathlessly into Mila's ear as he hugged her. She smiled, nodding in response. His breath tickled her ear, making her laugh quietly. 

"You- I- what?" one of the judges stuttered, an amazed look on her face. Mila and Ajax shared a look, failing from holding back their smiles. 

"Alright, since she's so speechless I'll take over," another judge chuckled. 

"I know you two have choreographed your own routines before. All of which were stunning, might I add. Did you two choreograph this as well?"

"Thank you. Yes, we both did," Mila nodded, even though it was only partial. 

"Wow. Okay see, when you choreograph your own dances, you can tell how much potential you have in yourselves. You can go far beyond what another choreographer would allow you to do."

"This choreography was immaculate. Everything about it was perfect. The song choice, the moves, the storyline. Everything was interconnected," the third judge praised. 

"Yes, I noticed there was also lyrics that lined up with some of the choreography. All that, that's what makes a dance perfect. And I think this wasn't just perfect- it was beyond that."

"Thank you," Mila grinned, her cheeks now starting to hurt. 

She glanced over at Ajax who was also beaming, his cheeks flushed pink. 

"What makes this routine even better is that you two have chemistry. There's a connection between you two that not many other people have. You two have a lot of trust in each other and that's very valuable."

"Thank you, that really means a lot," Ajax smiled, wrapping his arm around Mila's shoulders. 

They quickly waved to the crowd before hurrying off the stage. 

"I could hear the crowd from inside the backstage area! That's a good sign!" Pia squealed, jumping up and down. 

"I think that's the best you guys have ever done in the past year," Adam grinned proudly, hugging the two dancers. 

Mila looked around nervously for Carson's family. She hadn't asked them for permission to use the choreography and now she felt guilty even though they made some changes to it. 

Eventually, she spotted Jessica's teal coloured hair moving through the crowd. 

"Why do we always get the back row seats?" I heard her grumble.

"Sis, that was amaaaazing!" Jessica sang, hugging Mila tightly. 

"Thanks," she smiled, her eyes darting to Carson's mother who had tears shining in her eyes. 

"If you don't win, I'm suing," Felix stated making everyone chuckle. 

"Mila, I'm so proud of you. I had one wish and that was to see you dance your heart out one more time. I wanted to see Carson dance one last time. But this, this was more than I could ever ask for," Carson's mother said, tears falling from her eyes as she patted Mila's cheek. 

Ajax glanced over to Mila and his eyes widened when he noticed she was on the verge of bursting into tears. 

Sure he'd seen Mila cry before and it was never for something small. She sniffled, wiping away the stray tears as the family hugged. Jessica made eye contact with her and the two girls laughed quietly, tears blurring their vision. 

Jessica was so proud of what Mila had overcome. She never knew how much Mila suffered. She was her role model. To her, it seemed like Mila never let the grief overcome her. She handled it like a pro and that motivated Jessica to do the same. It was what Carson would want for both of them. 

"Results are in! They will be displayed on the screen in 3 minutes," the announcer called. 

The two dancers unknowingly moved closer to each other as they fixed their gazes on the screen.

Carson's mother came to stand beside Zoe who sent her a comforting smile. The two had only just met, but had a mutual connection through their children. 

"Your son is a miracle worker," she smiled, watching the young dancers hold hands tightly. 

"I could say the same for Mila," Zoe replied, "He was always in a bad mood, never smiled, never laughed. Then he met Mila and all of a sudden he couldn't stop smiling."

"She's been through a lot. He knows what to say to her to make her feel better. He showed her light in the darkness that life created around her."

The two women stopped talking when chatter rose from the crowd as the screen changed. 

"The judges are here upfront. Can we please have the competitors come to the front as well?"

Ajax shared a look with Mila before they walked hand in hand to the front of the crowd. 

"We've decided to score individually this time. The totals will be from the average of all three scores," one of the judges said. 

"Is that good or bad?" Ajax whispered, leaning down. 

"No idea," Mila replied, shuffling closer to him. He smiled to himself, rubbing his thumb over her hand comfortingly. 

"Leva and Dimitri!"

Everyone was quiet, staring at the screen. 

Score 1: 97

Score 2: 97

Score 3: 98

TOTAL: 97.33

Mila's brows furrowed as she glanced over at the Russian duo who gasped in surprise. 

She bit her lip anxiously, her foot tapping on the floor. 

Ajax was expressionless, his face stoic as he scrutinized the changing screen. They both held their breaths, standing stock still. 

She started to feel lightheaded, her unblinking eyes now stinging. 

Score 1: 100

A collective gasp came from the crowd and Mila almost passed out. 

"Damn," Ajax mumbled, trying hard not to get his hopes up. 

Score 2: 100

Mila's mouth dropped open, and she turned to look at Ajax. He too had a shocked expression on his face. 

Score 3: 100

Cheers erupted from everyone in the room, in shock at the score totals. Nobody needed to see the average. 

They knew it was 100. 

A perfect score. 

Ajax spun Mila to face him, pulling her to his chest into a tight hug. She couldn't stop smiling as he spun her around before setting her down. 

Mila never felt a sense of euphoria and happiness this high.

"We did it!" Ajax exclaimed, his dimple more evident than ever. 

"A perfect score!" Mila spoke in a daze. Ajax shook her by the shoulders in excitement.  

"Congratulations!" Pia cheered, hugging her friend tightly. 

"Can't. Breathe!" Mila gasped and Pia quickly let go. 

Mila's heart felt lighter. 

This was the closure she'd been searching for.

She'd accomplished what she and Carson had set out to do all those months ago. 

They had it. 

The title of the best dancers in the entire world. 

And Mila never felt better. 

Ajax on the other hand- he had one other thing to take care of.  

"Mila," he called, grabbing her wrist gently as everyone began filing out of the room. 

"Yeah?"

"I love you," he blurted before he could back out. 

Mila didn't respond. 

Instead, she pressed her lips to his. 

And then they both got electrocuted. 

LMAO SIKE!

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DUN DUN DUNUNUNUNUN! 

Aaaaand there you have it! This book is officially compleeeete!

(I might add an epilogue idk yet)

Thank you to everyone who's supported this book, I owe you guys my life - literally. I love all of you guys, you're all amazing. 

For those of you who will be leaving my books, I wish you the best for the rest of the year. Stay safe and healthy ❤. 

For others who want more heehee 😼 

I'M WRITING ANOTHER BOOK!!!

The first chapter will be up either tomorrow, or Saturday. Not sure yet. 

I'll be adding the little description here when i have it ready :) 

Stay tuned for that :)

I LOVE YOU GUYS 

- Mia