None of the regular cast would be surprised, of course. It was always a tango or a foxtrot second. The only question would be what other elements the challenge would entail.
“This week, you’ll all be preparing your very own take on… the Argentine tango!”
From experience Finn knew that postproduction would add dramatic music to this “revelation.” Blah, blah, blah. Get to the part where you add in the program requirements.
“This week’s dance should be three and a half minutes long. You will incorporate one moving lift and a thirty-second in-synctouchingstep sequence. That means you and your partner will be touching during those thirty seconds.”
Finn would’ve thought that was self-evident, but some of the ice-dance terms really did need to be explained for viewers at home. Not for him, though, which was great, because after yesterday, his brain was stuck on what it was going to be like to have people watch while Robbie put his hands all over him and moved in perfect sync with him and—
Yeah, he should stop thinking about it, actually. Good luck with that, Finn.
“And now for the moment you’re waiting for. This week, Emily and Alonzo… you were in the bottom two. That means you have today and tomorrow to prepare for what might be your final ice dance.”
Finn blinked in surprise. That team had done well, he thought; their program was engaging and fluid, considering the short period they’d been skating together and the fact that Emily was a hockey player. Then again, that didn’t always matter—especially since the male players probably had bigger fanbases.
“Joining them in the bottom two for our first elimination episode will be… Kevin and Linsey.”
Both teams stepped off to the side, where they met up with Stef, and then exited the gym to get started. After all, they only had one day to put their new program together. For the first elimination round, most teams would reuse their first program with a few updates based on the criticism they’d received. Sometimes, if a pair were really skilled, they’d be ready to do the next week’s challenge ahead of time.
“The rest of you are safe—which means you’re off to the ice to practice for the group number.”
Holly was definitely watching Finn and Robbie as the remaining eight teams headed for the dressing rooms. She was doing a sudoku on the couch when Finn came home yesterday. Her eyes had flicked up to him for only half a second before she forced them back to her page.
Finn had opened his mouth.
“Nope,” Holly said.
“I—”
“Get a better poker face.” She scribbled out one of her guesses.
She was looking at him now too—she caught his eye and nodded toward the wings of the gym, where an older white guy in business casual was half observing, half absorbed in something on his phone. Producer Paul, or whatever his name was—Holly’s boss.
Finn stepped out of the flow of bodies and sidled up to her. “What’s he doing here?”
“Protecting his investment, I guess. That’s the word, anyway.”
Shit. That kind of thing usually meant potential cuts. “Think this might be our last season?”
She shook her head. “No idea. Just—extra discretion, please. Any negative publicity is not going to help.”
“Don’t know what you mean. There’s nothing to be discreet about.”
“That’s what I like to hear.”
It put Finn on his guard, either way. Fortunately he had years of experience focusing on the physicality of something at the exclusion of whatever was going on in his head.Unfortunatelythat focus meant he was so in the zone he more or less ignored Robbie completely except when they had to interact as part of the dance.
To make things worse, Robbie wasn’t the only one who noticed. When rehearsal ended, Finn felt multiple sets of eyes on him. One belonged to Robbie, who looked—not worried, exactly, but not happy either.
The other belonged to Chad. He looked like a shark who smelled blood in the water.
Afterward, the pairs disbanded to work on their assignment for the week.
Finn led Robbie first to food—where they snagged Gatorade and snacks—and then to one of the quieter corners of the arena. The building was full of meeting rooms/greenrooms that the production made use of every year, and in his first season, Finn had found a north-facing windowed room that managed to stay cooler in the summer heat.
Finn entered the small space and headed for the two comfy chairs with the small coffee table in the corner. Finn placed his haul of food on the table, settled into a seat, and pulled out the company tablet. Robbie followed him in, shut the door behind himself, and settled opposite Finn.
In the quieter space, they could talk about their plans for next week.
