“Hi! You must be Alex!”
“Yeah, hi.”
“I’m Sutton. I’m the choreographer.”
I look back at the team. If this is a hazing prank, they’re really going all in.
But my gut is telling me that’s not what this is.
Dammit.
“Nice to meet you. I should warn you, not only can I not dance, I had no idea there would be choreography involved with…this.”
She casts a glance at the group behind me. “I’ve heard all of that before,” she assures me. “It will be okay. When you can’t dance or lip sync very well, it actually makes it even better. Provided you can laugh at yourself.”
My brows arch. “Lip sync?”
“Yeah, it’s too hard to get mic-ed up and some people…” She glances behind me again with an exasperated look. “Seem to think they’re not good singers and don’t believe me that people would like that even more.”
My sister has some explaining to do.
“Can I ask why we’re doing choreography and lip syncing?” I ask. “I know I’m late to get here and should maybe know all of this, but someone needs to catch me up.”
“Nora didn’t tell you?” Sutton asks.
Nora. Just hearing her name makes my pulse beat harder. Damn.
“Nora should have told me? Not Astrid?”
Sutton laughs. “Well, Nora sold Astrid on it, so she’d be the best one.”
Interesting. “Neither of them told me anything.” Nora was a little busy dodging kidnappers. And telling me about Rougarou. And completely enchanting me.
But seems there were a few additional details I could have used…
“Can you give me the short version, and I’ll ask Nora about it later?”
I will definitely be asking Nora about this later.
“Well, there’s this baseball team in Georgia that does something like this with baseball. They play the game, but it’s mixed with choreography, different rules, fan involvement, and just fun.”
I frown. “The ones that dress in all yellow? They’re a minor league team or something, right?”
“Yes, the yellow ones. They’re not even minor league. They’re in their own league.”
Oh…no…
That team is wildly popular and all over social media, that’s true. But it’s definitely not straightforward, “real” baseball. It’s over the top and chaotic.
Does it look like fun? Sure. I guess. If you’re into rambunctious shows that look a little like sporting events.
“Can you…” I clear my throat and glance over my shoulder. “Fill me in on these new rules and things?”
Sutton smiles. “Oh, you’ll have a binder. Nora will get that to you.”
The binder.
I sigh. I clearly should have looked through it more thoroughly.
“Yeah, bring it to the Rec,” Beckett says, clapping me on the shoulder. “We’ll go over it with you.”
“Bring my binder to the Rec?” I repeat. Do I need to go buy highlighters at the bookstore too? “Where’s the Rec?”
“Below your new apartment.” Beckett grins. “It’s the bar half of Perks and Rec.”
Right.
I blow out a breath. “Great.” The bar where they vote that they hate me more than the most disgusting vegetable on the planet.
“But for now,” Sutton says, addressing the group. “You all need to line up. We are getting this choreography right today and yes, we are keeping the song from Princess and the Frog. It’s not up for debate.”
Beckett elbows me as Sutton skates to the center of the ice, and everyone starts moving into position. “That’s a movie set in New Orleans and on the bayou.”
“I’ve heard of it.” Though I’m not sure how I’ve heard of it.
“I’ve got a solo.” He grins.
Of course he does.
I nod. “It’s a cartoon, right? Frogs and a big alligator?”
“Yep.” He chuckles. “Just let Sutton know if you want a solo, too. She’s had to bribe and threaten everyone except me, Zeke, and Josh.”
“I’m good.”
He laughs and skates off to get into position at the front of the group.
I hang back and wait for instructions on where to go.
But I have a bad feeling that I might end up at the front eventually. Because that’s where the star, the leader, the big name should be, right? Even on a dancing, lip-syncing hockey team.
I groan internally.
Astrid owes me an explanation and a fucking raise.
I don’t even know what she’s paying me.
