Breaking Promises (B-Boy #1) Page 22

  With a snort, she reached out and grabbed a pad of paper. “Okay, Battle of the Crews. Does legendary Kickwit have some advice for the Belladonnas?”

  “Oh, yeah. You’ll be serving your own brand of nightshade, that’s for sure.”

  Aurora

  “Should we start a cheer?” Ashley asked nervously. Her eyes darted around, taking in the crowds of intimidating looking individuals who seemed as if they belonged way more than we did. Even with our matching shirts, new “kicks,” and beanies that Winter had so graciously bought us, I felt as if we were a bunch of peewee football players trying to compete in the NFL.

  “Don’t add to the stereotype,” I muttered, glancing around. Annihilation hadn’t arrived yet, but Knight Crawlerz were bunched up by the bleachers staring at us. That was another thing that felt so intimidating. The event wasn’t held in a small club like the others I had attended, but rather inside a local college’s gymnasium. Besides being brightly lit, this place could probably hold my old high school’s entire population. What had we gotten ourselves into?

  As I was turning toward my girls, ready to give a little pep talk, I felt someone walk up behind me. I instantly froze, worried that it may be Craig trying to psych me out. To my surprise—and relief—it was the guy named Nocturnal from the movie theater.

  “Hey.” His cool blue eyes seemed almost otherworldly, but kind. He reminded me of what an angel would probably look like, complete with golden curls.

  “Hi,” I replied cautiously, glancing at my crew.

  “I’m sorry to hear about Mitch. He’s a great guy. I’m hoping he’ll be back soon.” He turned and motioned toward the floor. “This battle won’t be the same without him.”

  The girls watched our conversation with full interest, but with the same amount of trepidation I felt.

  “Thanks…” My voice trailed off. Having only dealt with Annihilation, I wasn’t sure what to expect from competitors.

  He bowed his head slightly and smiled. “I think it’s awesome that you guys are doing this. I’m rooting for you. Hope you kick Annihilation’s ass.”

  The dark cloud over my head instantly lifted. I couldn’t help but smile. “God, I hope so, and thanks for the vote of confidence.”

  He winked. “Don’t mention it.” He turned and flashed a smile at the other girls; his eyes lingered on Clemence for a bit longer. “Hope you guys kill it.”

  “But I’m vegan,” Clemence blurted out nervously.

  The collective cringe and face palms was suffocating. Luckily, Nocturnal only laughed. “Good to know.”

  As he walked away, I called out, “Thanks again for accepting us, Nocturnal. I wasn’t sure anybody else would.”

  He turned at his waist and winked. “You guys got balls. Seriously, that alone earns much respect…and you all can call me Chase.”

  “Bye, Chase,” Clemence murmured dreamily as he walked away.

  Bamboo elbowed her in the ribs. “You are pathetic. You’re also lucky he just broke up with Shelly a few weeks ago, otherwise she’d be kicking your ass right now.”

  Before Clemence could respond, I clapped my hands together, garnering everyone’s attention. “Okay, ladies. We made it this far and we are slowly being accepted, but you know what? We have to try harder to show everyone here what we can do. Are you all ready?”

  “Yeah…” The nervous murmurs almost increased my level of anxiety as well.

  “Ladies, are we ready?” I demanded.

  “Dude, yeah,” Winter replied, stretching her arms out. “You know we were born ready.”

  The other girls shrugged, causing Bamboo to throw her head and groan loudly. “Oh my gosh, grow some balls, you guys.”

  I rolled my eyes. “Stop it, Bamboo.”

  She threw me a look of annoyance, but quickly backed down.

  I eyed the other girls and nodded encouragingly. “Winter’s right. We were born ready. I know we can do this and I’m so proud of us for even making it this far.” I curled my lips into a smile. “Let’s make it even farther.”

  Ashley and Bianca exchanged looks, but quickly nodded in agreement. “Let’s go.”

  We walked toward the back of the gym where all the crews were being corralled. The crowd was growing antsy by this point and I knew that would either fare well for us or bite us in the ass if our runs bored them to death.

  “Hey, ladies.” The most annoying sound in the world cooed behind us.

  “Crap,” I muttered, spinning around. I lifted my chin in the air once I spotted Craig and his crew of hooligans stalking their way toward us. I still could not believe that Mitch was affiliated with them. It was like night and day. “Hi, Craig. What do you want?” I asked calmly.

  “Just wanted to tell you all to break a leg. Literally.” He chuckled and narrowed his eyes at Winter. “Nice to see you finally found a crew, Winter.”

  “Shut the fuck up, Craig. You know you don’t care about me or anybody else past your mirror’s reflection.”

  His mouth twitched slightly, but he kept his expression neutral. “I’m serious. Glad to see you were willing to scrape the bottom of the barrel. It’s admirable. Really.”

  Bamboo looked as if she wanted to say something—or at the very least punch something, but I held her back. “Why don’t you stop wasting your time trying to psych us out and just save the rumbling for the floor?”

  “Rumbling?” He made a snorting sound from his nostrils and as if speaking to a child, added, “Okay, Aurora. I’ll see you on the floor.”

  He turned away, revealing a cowardly looking Anthony hiding behind him. Winter’s face immediately paled, changing expressions from shock, an utter need to run away, and pure anger.

  “Hi, Winter.” He dropped his gaze as his cheeks flushed a pale pink.

  “Don’t, ‘Hey, Winter’ me!” she growled.

  “Well, I said ‘hi’ technically.”

  Winter’s nostrils flared. “You know what I say ‘technically’? Go shove that fucking—”

  A loud horn sounded over the speakers. It was that really annoying horn they play in between songs at clubs. Our heads all snapped up toward the direction of the D.J., where Julian was getting ready to address the crowd.

  Winter whipped back around, smacking Anthony in the face. “Like Aurora said, see you on that floor, dipshit.”

  I couldn’t help but snicker, given that I used to call Mitch that exact same name. Of course, my amusement wavered when I realized the battle was about to start. Clemence even looked as if she had fallen victim to Medusa’s stare.

  I tugged at her arm. “Clem, are you okay?”

  She turned and stared up at me with wide, frightened eyes. “I can’t do this, Aurora. I just can’t. You, Bianca, Bamboo, and the rest can do this without me, okay?”

  I felt a guilty pinch in my gut, worried that she had only gone along with this idea to appease me from the start, but I soon realized she’d also be pissed off at herself if she didn’t take this one shot. I grabbed her from both shoulders and shook her gently. “You know why they dubbed you bird seed, right?”

  “Because I eat like a pigeon?” she whimpered, unable to meet my eyes.

  “No. It’s because you’re as free spirited as a bird…and yeah, you eat like a pigeon.” I smiled sincerely. “We only got this far because we stuck together—all of us. We need the whole team here to make it all the way.”

  “Yeah, Clemence. We need you.” The collective murmur brought a grin across her nervous face.

  “Don’t you have some breathing exercises you can do to calm yourself down?” I asked curiously.

  “If you do, please let me know.” Bianca glanced around nervously. “This is all out of my comfort zone.”

  “Ladies.” I paused and looked at each of them. “We can do this. Just imagine we’re back at the gym and things will be okay.” I noticed Craig making crude gestures at us and added, “Or, imagine beating Craig so bad that he’d cry. Whichever works for you.”

  Winter raised
an eyebrow. “Oh, he is going to sob and he is going to bleed.”

  “Wow, that took a pretty violent turn,” Clemence murmured.

  “Hey, Aurora, you didn’t tell me that Mitch was coming.” Katy beamed and waved at my boyfriend who, poor soul, walked stiffly toward me. He hated the neck brace more than anything but it made the fact that he showed up for the battle even more touching.

  I grinned and waved in his direction. “Hey, we needed more people in our cheering squad, right?”

  Ashley opened her mouth, but I quickly cut her off. “No cheers.”

  Mitch

  It felt odd attending a battle and not competing. It felt even weirder having the whole gym turn their heads and gawk at me as soon as I entered the room. Aurora had told me it was because I was the living embodiment of Regina George, but way nicer. I have no idea what that meant. Maybe she was talking about that Twilight thing or something?

  Anyway, it didn’t help that Julian basically called me out and announced my arrival the moment I walked in. Nothing was worse than being made to look like some martyr for landing wrong on a move that I knew I would have been able to do successfully.

  Ignoring the crowd, I pressed on until I reached my girlfriend. Wrapping my arm around her waist, I addressed her crew. “I just wanted to say good luck.” I smiled at the Belladonnas, who were in both looks and, according to Aurora, skill, an official b-girl crew. “Remember, don’t think so hard and you’ll be fine. I promise.”

  “It’s probably why Craig keeps winning. He has no brain,” Bamboo quipped.

  The girls laughed instantly, easing the anxiety within the crew. It literally looked like night and day.

  I glanced at the makeshift stage at the edge of the gym, which made this battle seem more official somehow. It was definitely a far cry from the tiny linoleum floors we were used to. Julian walked toward the center of the stage, tapping his mike. I turned back toward the Belladonnas and shot them each looks of encouragement. “It looks like the battle’s going to start. You guys got this. Don’t worry.”

  Aurora rubbed her hands together and nodded. “We’re not worried, are we, ladies?”

  “No!” I was both surprised and pleased at how confident they all sounded. It was definitely step one to winning the battle.

  After a quick peck on the lips, Aurora and the rest of the Belladonnas headed over to where the other crews had posted up. I turned and started to make my own way toward the bleachers when I heard Craig call out to me.

  “Yo, Kickwit.” He held his arms in the air. “What’s the matter with you? Get your ass over here.”

  I pointed to my neck brace. “I ain’t battling.”

  “Well, you still need to support your crew.” He snuck an angry look toward the Belladonnas, who were in the middle of some sort of weird cheer.

  The familiar surge of annoyance rushed through my core. Sneering slightly, I said. “I’m already supporting my crew.”

  I walked toward the bleachers, right across from where the Belladonnas were sitting, and shot a loving grin at my girlfriend. Under my breath, I mumbled, “They’re my crew now.”

  ***

  The battle was unlike any other I’d ever attended. From the houselights to the stage set-up, Battle of the Crews really went all out. Of course it was a double-edged sword. As awesome as the place looked, it caused the event to lose the grittiness one would come to expect from a real b-boy battle. I snuck a peek at the Belladonnas, who were buzzing with energy. “This is plenty gritty for them.”

  Like the Bragging Rights Battle, each crew was randomly selected in lottery style to battle one another. As luck would have it, the Belladonnas were one of the first to go, competing against a veteran crew called DND.

  “That totally wasn’t random,” I muttered, looking over at Craig, who was smiling wildly. I immediately glanced toward Julian, who of course would not meet my gaze. “Son of a bitch. They want the Belladonnas to get kicked out first. Shit.”

  If I wasn’t worried before, now I was deathly afraid. B-boy politics had once again taken over everything.

  My heart pounded as the girls stepped onto the stage. “Come on, you can do this. You can do this.”

  It was like one of those moments that you wanted to watch whole-heartedly while simultaneously covering your face. I did believe in the Belladonnas, I really did. However, a lot could happen in a battle. As with anything else in life, nerves have the ability to jar and screw you up.

  “You can do this.” I repeated my silent cheer as the crews set themselves up. The girls were all visibly stiffed neck and at the edge of their toes, but then I saw something that made me relax instantly.

  The fire.

  There was the unmistakable flame lit in each of their eyes. They were ready.

  BA-DUM-PSSST.

  The echo of the snare drum echoed through the gym, marking the official beginning of the battle. As expected, DND opted to dive in first, most likely to intimidate the awkward looking b-girls.

  B-boy Rollz was the first to jump in, doing all his signature footwork. Regardless of how flashy he was, his flow was a bit choppy.

  Aurora could do better, I thought.

  Sitting out during a battle really is a surreal experience. Being able to watch each round objectively really did help mefeel the battle a bit more. I’d always wondered how the judges were able to keep such a level head, but now I knew.

  When you’re dancing it’s war, but when you’re watching it really is a sense of peace…and I was at peace knowing that the girls had the ability to smoke DND.

  The music changed tempo, marking the Belladonna’s entrance into the battle. Clemence was the first to go out, and judging by the look of pure terror on her face, she wasn’t as ready as the rest of them. Surprisingly, the moment her foot hit the center of the semi-circle, something clicked within her. Her chest rose and fell in a way that reminded me of a sonic wave.

  Quick. Slow. Quick. Slow.

  Then all of the suddenBAM—she hit us with moves we’d never seen before.

  My mouth dropped open as I watched her thread better than most of the b-boys I’d come in contact with in all my years of breaking.

  It was almost as if watching an illusion. Her arms and legs melded together in a graceful, terrifying fashion. It was awesome.

  I turned my body slightly so I could keep Craig in my periphery and sense his growing surprise and even anger.

  It was the defining moment when I came to terms with what I already knew deep inside of me—I was no longer a part of Annihilation. I could never roll with those guys again.

  Aurora

  I had never felt any more prouder of my team than right at this moment.

  DND definitely brought their A-game. It was obvious that they hadn’t initially taken us seriously, but after Clemence’s turn, they were definitely on their toes.

  One after another, my girls killed it. Katy shocked the crowd with her freezes, Bianca’s graceful movements far outdid any of our competitors’ flow, Ashley’s footwork was so quick and precise that I was sure even Mitch was envious.

  Then there was me.

  My combination of gymnastics and dancing got the crowd riled up. It was awesome hearing the audience’s yells of appreciation, which were definitely a lot rowdier than those during my old gymnastics competitions. As Mitch and I agreed, I wouldn’t pull out my best moves until the very last battle…if I made it that far. However, judging by Mitch’s proud grin, I knew that we would, in fact, make it further than most people thought we would. I’d flick them all off once we did.

  Panting, sweating, and bursting with a newfound energy, we waited for the judges to announce their decisions. I sucked in my breath and watched in amazement as each judge pointed in our direction.

  Clemence was trembling next to me. “What does that mean?”

  Winter raised one hand and snapped quickly in the air. “It means we move on. Good job, ladies!”

  We consciously had to stop ourselves from jumping
up and down and squealing. There was a certain persona to keep up…granted, it was really hard, seeing as we wanted nothing more than to do cartwheels all the way off the stage.

  As we walked back to our seats I looked over at Craig, wanting to see the look of disappointment on his face. I had a feeling that he had pulled some sort of strings to get us to compete first. Of course, what I couldn’t have predicted was the arrogant look on his face.

  He was plotting something.

  I just knew it.

  Mitch

  After being a part of something for so long, it is really hard to fully separate myself from it. Once Annihilation hit the floor I couldn’t help but feel a mixture of pain that I wasn’t there along with them and pride at how well they were doing. These “friends” I had for years, despite obviously only using me for my practice space, were hard to shake off.

  Then again, they really weren’t genuine friends at all and I had to remind myself of that. That reminder was easy once Craig stepped on the scene. The control-freak who was oddly obsessed with our love lives—most likely since nobody would love him—made it easy to recall that there was never any going back to Annihilation. Sure, it sucked to quit something you worked hard to start, but it only meant something better was out there for me.

  “Yo, man. Glad you’re here.” Nocturnal sat down in the space beside me and kept his eyes focused on Annihilation’s set. Dylan was next to the floor and I could sense Nocturnal dissecting every move.

  “Couldn’t stay away,” I admitted.

  “No true b-boy can.” He pointed toward the Belladonnas, who looked as if they were ready to jump into the battle and rip Annihilation’s heads off themselves. “Your girl is doing really well. You taught her?”

  “She’s a gymnast, so she had raw talent from the get go. I just fine tuned it.” I sighed, feeling sick of the formalities and small talk. “What do you want, Chase?”

  “Have you reconsidered? Word on the street is that you cut ties with Annihilation. Is it true?”

  I grunted. “Well, word travels fast. Yeah, it’s true.”