"Kyla, hurry up! The bus is about to leave, we have to hurry!", Yuna urged me, pulling me along by the elbow while I was still with my hands in my gym bag - looking for my wallet. "Yeah, yeah, yeah...! It's okay." "We can't be late! Not today! We've trained too hard for this!" The worry and hecticness in her voice made my own nervousness before tonight continue to rise. We rushed along the sidewalk through the people, our eyes on the bus stop ahead. My lungs were beginning to burn, but I couldn't let up. Because the bus was just reaching its stop. "Oh fuck, damn!" I cried, panting, trying to run a little faster with the gym bag. "Go, Yuna!" With only 20 meters separating us from the bus stop, I watched helplessly as the doors of the bus closed. "No!" I shouted in frustration. Yuna's and my steps slowed hopelessly. But apparently the bus driver had still noticed us, because suddenly the front doors slid open again and he waved impatiently at us. Yuna and I ran the last few meters until we finally reached the bus.

"Thank you so much!" yelped Yuna as she walked past the driver. "Thank you so much!", I gasped and nodded at him, whereupon he nodded back. Completely out of breath and catching our breath on the side, Yuna and I dropped onto the back seat with our bags. "Whoa, that was a close one," she noted. "It sure was," I agreed with her and glanced out the window. The bus started moving and in the dim evening light, I watched the brightly lit signs of the bus stop pass us by. "Ty, Ed and Elli are texting, they're getting on in a few stops," Yuna announced next to me and I spun around to face her. My hand landed on her shoulder and then I waited for her to look at me. "Yuna?" Her eyebrows lifted questioningly. As a grin stole onto my face, one appeared on hers as well. "Tonight's the night!" I squealed excitedly, and she joined in the cheering. "Dancebattle Classics, baby! Woo!"

The Dancebattle Classics were the highlight of the late autumn. All kinds of dance groups of different sizes and constellations met here in a duel for the best dancers. The winner of the event - which would last for 2 months until the finals - would receive a prize money of 50,000 dollars. For months Yuna, Ed, Ty, Ella, Zayn and I had been preparing for this event with different choreographies, duets, trios and solos and tonight we were finally allowed to show what we were made of.

"Did you pack our mixtapes too?" asked Yuna suddenly, and in response I fished the burned CD out of my gym bag. "Check. Did you take care of our shirts?" Yuna waved it off. "Pff, already two weeks ago." "Then hopefully nothing can go wrong now." Reassured, I dropped into the seat and watched the passing neon signs, more of which were now glowing.

Sure enough, after three more bus stops, Ty, Ed, and Elli got on and joined us. We were all pretty pumped up because of the upcoming performance. Now it would have been good to have had Zayn on board already, but he wouldn't meet us until we got to the venue, as he still had to unload his little sister at one of her friend's houses. Ed and Elli were twins. However, it was very hard to tell that from the looks of the two of them. Seriously now: twins could not have been more different. Externally, they were vastly different. Elli was small and petite, Ed tall and just a little gangly, otherwise well built. She impressed everyone she met with brown curls and brown eyes, while he, on the other hand, had almost naturally straight white-blond hair and green eyes to go with it.

"Guys, we're getting real today," Ty put in, scratching the back of his neck. Ed nodded in confirmation. "I can't believe it's really tonight already." "Think about it," Yuna put in. "...People are coming from all over to watch the event live or to dance in it themselves. It's insane!"

Calmly, I listened to the others, trying to control my excitement. Failure was out of the question today. My parents always smiled at me when I told them I wanted to earn my living by dancing. Today I knew why. Nevertheless, I had never let myself be dissuaded from looking for a group, at least as a hobby, and doing with them what we were all burning for: Dancing.