Annaleigh shook her hand in the air before flexing her fingers before draping her arm over the bas guitar in her lap. It wasn’t like she could really hear the vibration from the string anyway; the *NYNC music was pumping so loud in the room the wall she was leaning up against was shaking with each pulse.

The rocking bass shook her stomach from side to side, making her feel a little sick. Despite her small headache, she wouldn’t leave the room at all. She was amazed by the five boys’ talent, even Wade’s. She thought it was odd that someone who was around her and Justin’s age was giving them directions and orders, but they took it all in stride. They really had respect for the young teenager.

As Bye Bye Bye, their newest single from their new album, blasted through the speakers, Annaleigh watched as Justin, JC, Chris, Joey, and Lance learned the dance steps and executed them along with the music. She was trying to learn the bass to the song, not that she could really pay attention with the rhythmic stomping of feet and squeaking of the soles of their shoes on the hardwood floor.

She couldn’t believe she was sitting and watching dance rehearsals for one of the most popular boy bands in the world. Forget Lance’s worry about his dancing, he looked great with the rest of the boys. Of course, Annaleigh could see the concentration mixed with worry on her friend’s bright red face as they quickly moved through the dance steps. She could practically see the gears turning in his head as he tried to put the steps all together.

“Keep going,” Wade shouted above the pumping music, clapping his hands together. He slowly swiveled his head from left to right as he watched the five boys dance. He bobbed his head to the music, dancing a couple of the steps on the spot as he watched them. “Lift your knees higher when you run back to your mark, JC.”

JC angled his head slightly in a nod, but never stopped what he was doing. He never lost control of his body as he continued to dance.  “5, 6, 7, 8. Lance stay in time, pick it up just a little bit,” Wade called, snapping his fingers in Lance’s direction. “Knees a little higher, Chris. Justin: great combination. Joey…” Wade trailed off as he let out a small laugh. “Bring the ham down just a little.”

“Actually, ham sounds pretty good right now,” Chris said as he stopped dancing. “Like on a ham and cheese sandwich, maybe?”

“Didn’t you just get done eating, Chris?” Wade asked, pinching the bridge of his nose before walking over to the corner of the room to turn off the music. He lifted the bottom of his shirt to wipe the sweat from his face. “In fact, that would explain why you’re all a little sluggish today.”

Annaleigh pressed her lips together, trying to stop herself from cringing or making a sheepish face, putting her attention back onto the bass guitar in her lap. She could feel the heat from the boys’ gaze in her direction and tapped her fingers on the strings.

“We just got off of tour, Wade,” Justin spoke up between deep breaths of air. “Took us forever to get to sleep. You could cut us some slack at least.”

“If I did that, then your comeback after everything with…him will be pretty lackluster,” Wade commented, rubbing at the stubble on his chin with his thumb. “You need to prove to him that you don’t need him.”

“Wade, just chill out for a sec,” JC said as he walked across the floor and over to his bag. He reached inside and pulled out a water bottle. “This is big for you, but you can lighten up just a little bit. Ace made a great breakfast for us when she didn’t have to.”

“And it was the best thing we’ve had in a while,” Joey added, throwing Annaleigh a smile.

“Which I hope goes for lunch and dinner,” Chris muttered under his breath earning slaps to both his arms from Justin and Lance. “Ouch! I know you’re all thinking it, too!” A thoughtful look crossed Justin’s face before it crumpled and he gave a short nod of his head. “Told ya.”

Wade chuckled, crossing his arms over his chest. His chest swelled as he sucked in a deep breath of air before letting it out through his nose. He twisted his mouth to the side before bowing his head, a smile coming to his face.

“Alright, alright, take five a minute break, you’ve all been working hard,” he said running his hands up over his face and into his hair, droplets of sweat flying into the air. “But, hurry back. We’ve got a lot of work to do.” He clapped Joey on the back as the boys let out sighs of relief. “You’re doing a good job, guys. Really."

“Thanks, Wade,” Lance said, clapping the choreographer on the shoulder as he made his way over to Annaleigh. He reached out and tapped her shoe as he dropped down next to her. “Having fun watching us die?”

“Watching you die, maybe,” Annaleigh replied with a hint of a smile. Her smile slowly faded into a sad frown. “I feel bad ‘cause for a while that’s what I wanted.” Lance gave her a look of bewilderment. “Not to die Lance-A-Snot, just that you’d hurt. ‘Cause I was hurtin’ and you weren’ there.”

Lance closed his eyes, tilting his head back until the crown of his head lightly bumped the wall behind him. She angled her head to the side as she watched him, feeling wave after wave of guilt washed over her, radiating from his body.

“What?” she asked him.

“Nothing,” Lance replied after a moment of silence before the corners of his lips twitched upwards. “I’m here now. I’m be damned—“ Annaleigh gave him a pointed look and he chuckled. “I’ll make sure I won’t be gone if something like that happens again.”

“Blaaaahhh,” Annaleigh made a face as she stuck out her tongue. “I don’t know how you can put up with me. I was a jerk to you, and Darren, when all you wanted ta do was help.”

“You’ve always hated it when people wanted to help you,” Lance said with a snort. “That much about you hasn’t changed. Not a lot has. Which I’m happy about.”

“Yeah, well, you still sweat like a pig, which I’m not happy didn’ change,” Annaleigh said with a roll of her eyes, shoving his shoulder. Lance laughed quietly, rolling his eyes. “You and D have been great. I jus’…I worry ‘bout mom and dad a lot. I mean, they were bes’ friends before they got married and you saw how that turned out.”

“You’re not them,” Lance replied with a brief shake of his head. He looked over at Wade as he called the boys back to rehearsal. He bumped her shoulder with his own. “Anyway, for the record, D and I ‘put up with you’ because you’re worth it.” Annaleigh laughed lightly and Lance threw her a wink before getting back up to his feet to start rehearsals up again.

He then turned around and pointed his fingers at her. “I’m having trouble with this dance—“

“I’ve noticed,” Annaleigh commented with a half smile. Lance rolled his eyes.

"Are you going to tease me about it or are you going to help me?” he asked, shifting his gaze towards the ceiling.

“Well, I’d have to check my schedule, I’m a pretty busy person, you know,” Annaleigh replied, with a small laugh.

“Lance, come on,” Wade called, clapping his hands together.

Annaleigh gave a roll of her eyes before she gave a brief nod of her head in Lance’s direction. He broke into a grin before making his way over to his place in the triangle the boys formed around JC. “You’re about a half a beat off, by the way,” she called over to him.

Wade glanced over in her direction, his eyes narrowing slightly before he made his way over to the stereo sitting in the corner. Annaleigh put her hands up defensively before she stretched her legs out in front of her, sighing as she stretched out her legs after a long time sitting Indian style.

"Just do the best you can, Lance,” Wade called. “I know this is fast paced, but, I know you can do it.” He planted his hands on his hips as he stood next to the machine. “You should all have the basics of the choreography down; at least the feet. I’ll do it with you this time. Lance and Chris, look over at me if you get lost, Justin and Joey, over at JC. Got it?”

“Yeah, let’s do it,” Justin said, bouncing on the balls of his feet as if he were getting ready to fight someone. He shook out his arms as he did so. “Let’s go.”

“You ready?” Wade asked, looking over at Annaleigh. “Try and pick out the bass line as best as you can.”

“Sure,” Annaleigh replied with a nod of her head. Wade gave a nod as well before jabbing his thumb into the PLAY button of the black stereo. Four loud clicks filled the air before the music started.

“And 5, 6, 7, 8,” Wade counted aloud, snapping his fingers to mark the beat.

I'm doin' this tonight,
You're probably gonna start a fight.
I know this can't be right.
Hey baby come on

I loved you endlessly,
When you weren't there for me.
So now it's time to leave and make it alone

Annaleigh shifted her gaze down to the bass in her hands. She started finger plucking the strings, tapping her foot on the ground to keep time. The song was pretty face paced and Wade was giving them a pretty impressive routine to dance to. It was a lot of quick steps and sharp shapes and movements with their arms.

The ground shook underneath from the boys’ dance steps. Apart from the music, and Wade’s occasional shouts to keep the boys in time, it was the only sound in the room. Annaleigh’s fingers flew over the frets, moving them as fast as she could to the pace of the song. Her fingers burned, but she knew that the more she played the more she’d build up the calluses to play.

Bye, Bye
Don't wanna be a fool for you
Just another player in your game for two
You may hate me but It ain't no lie
Baby, Bye, Bye, Bye

Bye, Bye
Don't really wanna make it tough
I just wanna tell you that I had enough
It might sound crazy
But, it ain't no lie
Baby, bye, bye, bye

They continued through the rest of the song, pausing occasionally to work out some of the newer movements that they were having trouble with. But, all the boys pushed through. It’s like they’re super human, Annaleigh thought to herself as she watched them. They were just looking so tired and now they look like they could perform at any concert.

It was only a rehearsal, but Justin and JC really looked like they were going all out for the dance. And, Wade was even more impressive than she’d care to admit to. She thought he looked like a kid; couldn’t be any older than fifteen or sixteen. But, he knew his stuff, that was for sure. If he showed them any other dance routines that extravagant, their next performance would blow the roof off any stadium.

“Alright, that’s good,” Wade said as the music came to a pulsing stop. He clapped his hands together before making his way over to the stereo, turning it off. “Great job, boys, really. That’s all for today. Johnny will be pleased to see what you’re able to do.”

“Thanks, dude,” Justin said, hands on his knees breathing heavily. Like the other boys, his face was bright red, and sweat dripped down the sides and front of his face. He straightened and lifted his hand to slap it into Wade’s palm. “Moves are sick.”

“No prob,” Wade replied, clapping Justin on the back before doing the same to the other boys. “Now get some rest. We’ll be doing this again bright and early tomorrow.”

“Just kill me now,” Chris groaned, rubbing at his eyes with the heels of his palm.

“I would, but I’m too tired,” Joey joked. Chris let out a sarcastic laugh, rolling his eyes.

“I need a looooong shower,” JC groaned as he stretched his arms above his head as he shuffled towards the door. “I call first up.” He let out a weak laugh of triumph as the other boys groaned. “Ace, I can start helping you prepare for your auditions afterwards if you’d like.”

“So soon?” Annaleigh asked, her eyes popping open as she looked up at him, still continuing to play the bass in her hands.

“Johnny could come asking you to audition at any time,” JC said with a shrug of his shoulders. “You have to be ready to perform sooner or later.”

Annaleigh gaped at him, not because of the words that came out of his mouth, but because of how one minute he looked the most tired she had ever seen him and the next he was in serious business mode. She wasn’t too surprised about it; she had always heard JC to be described as the serious one in the group, it was just different to hear about it and to see it firsthand.

“…Sure,” Annaleigh managed to get out, nodding her head. JC gave a tired smile before making his way out of the room. She blinked a couple of times before going back to playing the song one last time.

“That was good,” Wade commented, walking towards her, adjusting the strap to the bag he put over his shoulder.

"But?" Annaleigh prompted. Wade pressed his lipstogether and she felt a chill rush through her. "What? What's the matter? What’d I miss?”

“Shouldn’t have done that,” Lance commented in a sing-song voice. “Ace is a perfectionist; hates getting anything and everything wrong.”

Wade chuckled, crouching down beside her. “Sorry,” he apologized, giving her a smile. “I was just saying. You’ve got natural rhythm, which is probably why you’ve been playing the drums for so long.” Annaleig hiked an eyebrow and Wade pressed on. “You need to have fun. You’re so tense, making sure you get everything right; trying to force it out.”

He reached out a hand and plucked at one of the strings. Annaleigh watched it vibrate for a few moments before slapping her hand over top of it, cutting the sound immediately. “You dance right?” he asked, tilting his head to the side. “It’s all about the rhythm and having fun. You should know that.”

Annaleigh got to her feet, tightly gripping the neck of the guitar in her hand. “You’re right, I should,” she replied with a small roll of her eyes. “How’d’you even know that I play the drums an’ dance?” She then stopped and looked over at Lance. “Jaaaames?”

“Just wanted to know more about you, that’s all,” Wade replied with a shrug of his shoulders before Lance could say anything. “It’s like Johnny said, we’d be working close together if you get this job. Figured I’d get a head start on that.”

“Bless your heart,” Annaleigh commented, slowly shaking her head back and forth. “You know there’s a chance I won’ get the job, right?”

“You have to be positive about these things, right?” Wade asked.

“Right, jus’ like I’m positive that where I come from, to get any kind of information like that, I’m getting’ flowers out of it,” Annaleigh replied before reaching out a hand to clap Wade on the shoulder. She then jerked her head to the side, and made her way out of the dance studio with Lance following him.

“Think he’s taken a liking to ya,” Lance commented as he fell into step with her.

“He doesn’ even know me,” Annaleigh protested with a shake of her head.

“So?” Lance asked with a laugh. “Whenever Joey and Kelly are in their off phase it’s not like he knows a girl from a cup of water before he tries to get in their pants.” He nudged her with his elbow. “Since when do you go for the whole courtship angle?”

“Since always,” Annaleigh replied, with a shrug. Her eyebrow twitched. “Not that any suitor has come a knockin’ on my door. Figured my Ma had somethin’ ta do with that. She’s convinced I’ll marry ya someday.”

“That explains why she didn’t make it a big deal that I climbed in through your window all the time,” Lance commented and Annaleigh let out a tinkling laugh.

“Nah, she had other reasons,” Annaleigh replied, waving her hands in the air. Lance blinked, pressing his lips together, sucking in a breath of air. She lifted her hand and brushed her hair back behind her ear. “She and my dad used ta do stuff like that and sneakin’ out to see each other all the time. Dad’s the more overprotective one.”

“Ma was more laid back and liked ta have fun.” She turned and lifted her hand in a small wave as Wade made his way past them, heading towards the front door of the compound. “Anyway, I think, of anythin’, it was my mom that made things go south with my parents.”

“Ace—“

“I know, I’m not them and I know I’m harpin’ on that topic, but you know what it’s like back home,” Annaleigh interrupted him, setting her guitar down onto the couch as she passed it. She crossed her arms over her chest and sat down on the back. “Your relationship with you family is most important apart from your relationship to God. If I don’ have that, I don’ have anythin’.”

“Yeah, I know,” Lance replied with a sigh. “But, I’m your family, too. How many times do I haveta tell you you’re not alone until you believe it?”

Annaleigh gave a half smile. “Keep sayin’ it, then,” she replied quietly. “I’ll believe you, eventually.” Lance put a hand onto of her head before leaning over to press a kiss to her forehead. “See? You keep doin’ stuff like that and my Ma won’t have any other reason to think I’ll marry ya.”

“Well, we could bypass the courtship phase if we did,” Lance commented, scratching the side of his jaw. He gave her a smile of amusement. “But, then what would that mean with you and D? I mean you’ve had the hots for him for a long time.”

“It’d be tough, but…he was the first guy I kissed,” Annaleigh said, a thoughtful look coming to her face. She then grinned, sticking her tongue out between her teeth. “Can’t beat that.”

“Just forget that I was your friend first,” Lance said, his words dripping with sarcasm. “What does that matter when you’re looking for someone long term.” Annaleigh pressed her lips together and punched him on the shoulder.

“Boy, don’t go talkin’ like that. You are long term, James and don’t you forget it,” she said, pointing a warning finger in Lance’s face. Lance’s green eyes widened slightly, putting his hands up defensively. “There’s nothin’ on this Earth that you could do or say ta change that.”

“R-right,” Lance quietly replied, nodding his head, smiling. “Of course, I put up with you this long, what’s the rest of my life.”

“Thought you said I was worth it,” Annaleigh said, hiking an eyebrow.

“’Course you are,” Lance replied. “So is this.” He lifted his index finger and spun it in a circle, indicating the house and everybody in it. “Doing this with you, when you get in, will be worth it.” He glanced over into the kitchen as the phone started ringing before jogging towards it as shouts of, “Telephone” was heard from down the hall from Justin, Joey, and Chris. Lance grabbed the phone and lifted it to his ear.

“Hello?” He spun around and rested his back against the edge of the island. “Yes, she’s here. Hold on.” Lance gripped the mouth piece of the phone between his hands before holding it out towards her. “It’s Miss Caroline.”

Annaleigh grinned before hurrying over to the phone, pulling it out of Lance’s hand, pressing it to her ear. “Ma?” she asked.

“Hi, baby. It’s so good to hear your voice.”

“You, too,” Annaleigh said, her cheeks aching seconds later. “I miss you. How are you? You didn’ come home for Christmas? Is everythin’ ok?”

“Calm down, calm down. I’m ok, baby, jus’ getting’ my head on straight. I didn’ have a way out to Mississippi for Christmas. I’m sorry, sweetie, I know how important it was for ya. But, I’ve heard great things, not that I’ve had any doubt. Everythin’s jus’ fine.”

“With dad?” Annaleigh pressed, glancing over at Lance. “Everythin’s ok between you and dad?” She heard a heavy sigh from the other end.

“Sweet Pea, it’s goin’ to be a little while until things work out between the two of us. If they ever do. I don’ want to talk ‘bout that. I jus’ wanted to see how things were goin’ down in Orlando. Your father told me all ‘bout your audition.”

Annaleigh squeezed an eye shut, waiting for her mom to start yelling at her, but it didn’t come. As Caroline continued talking, Annaleigh couldn’t help but remove the phone from her ear to stare at it an put it back, surprised to hear her mother sounded….happy? She could practically see the smile on her face.

“I don’ know if you’ve already auditioned yet or anythin’. Might I suggest a Reba song? I know how much you love her.”

“Actually, mom…I was thinkin’ of doing one of dad’s songs,” Annaleigh replied. There was silence on the other end of the phone.

“Your…father’s…? You know about Oathkeeper? But, how? I mean…we didn’ want you to know ‘bout that.“

“Everybody here knew about dad,” Annaleigh replied, scratching at the back of her neck. Lance waved a hand in the air to try and get her attention, a confused look on his face. “Justin said he was thinkin’ bout doin’ an Oathkeeper song when he was on Star Search. Lance said he knew. Was this why you didn’ want me to come out to Orlando? Cause people would be puttin’ pressure on me to be like dad?

“Can I speak to James, please?”

“She wants to talk to ya,” Annaleigh whispered, holding the phone out to Lance. “And she’s pissed. She called you James.”

“Uh oh,” Lance said as he took the phone from Annaleigh. He cringed before slowly putting it to his ear. “Yes, Miss Caroli-?” Annaleigh could hear her mom’s loud tone as Lance pulled the phone away from his ear. He widened his eyes as he looked over at her before putting the phone back. “Yes, I’m still here. Yes, I did tell her about Oathkeeper.”

Annaleigh stepped closer to Lance, motioning for him to lower the phone so she could put her ear next to his, listening in.

Annaleigh watched as JC’s fingers flew over the keyboard that sat in the corner of his room. From what she could tell, standing in the doorway, he wasn’t playing too much of anything, just bits and pieces of something as he waited for her. He occasionally hummed along to the songs; even that was impressive to her. He could be making something up and she wouldn’t know, he was that melodic with his playing.

“You don’t have to stand at the door,” JC suddenly said, causing Annaleigh to jump. He spun around on the stool he was sitting on and gave her a small smile. “You can come in. I don’t bite.”

“Oh, right,” Annaleigh said with a small laugh as she stepped into his, surprisingly, clean room.

“You can put your bass down on the bed,” JC said to her as he got up to close the door. He stopped a couple of steps away before turning back to look at her, shifting his eyebrows upwards into a curious, questioning look.

“Doesn’ bother me,” she said, sticking out her bottom jaw as she shook her head. JC nodded and closed the door.

“We’ll just be working with your voice, today,” JC continued before holding out his hand for the guitar. Annaleigh handed it to him and he set it down onto the mattress. “Especially with your accent.”

“What’s wrong with-?”

“Nothing, Sweetie,” JC interrupted her with a small laugh. “In fact, I think it’s downright adorable, but it’ll be harder for anybody take you seriously if you have a country twang to everything you sing.”

“What’s wrong with-?”

“Nothing,” JC insisted. He then put a finger to his chin. “Justin used to sing country for Star Search, and he blasted Garth Brooks in the MMC dressing room all the time. Country’s fine; it’s who you are.” He tilted his head to the side. “Hmmm, maybe we should work on your confidence, first.” Annaleigh “hmph-ed” as she crossed her arms over her chest. “You’re a spit fire, no doubt.

JC then sat down on the piano bench he abandoned. “So, explain to me your background with music, Sweetie,” he suggested. “Your experiences, what you need to work on. You mentioned that you didn’t get into Showstoppers or Attaché. Just so I know exactly what I’m working with, here.”

“Um,” Annaleigh said, clapping her hands together. “Well, my dad was a guitarist in our church band for as long as I can remember. Well, I guess he was in Oathkepper before that, but I didn’ know ‘bout that as you know. Yeah, I’ve been ‘round music all my life. I danced ballet for a while, then jazz, When I was eleven, my dad got me my first drum kit, didn’ stop playin’ the minute I got it.

“I joined the church band the year after and sat on drums ever since. Wasn’ until a little while ago I started on bass. I was jus’ bored one day, helpin’ out at a choir rehearsal and started pickin’ it up. Had a member of the congregation start showin’ me the ropes. Hadn’ thought of makin’ it something I wanted to stick with. I sing a bit, was in church choir for a few years, and thought I was good enough for Showstoppers; this singin’ group at Clinton’s agricultural museum, and Attaché; city’s best show choir. But, didn’ get in to either.”

“They say why?” JC asked, his eyebrows knitting together slightly.

“Didn’ have a strong voice, despite doin’ vocal trainin’ for a little while,” Annaleigh replied. “Granted, I never really practiced all that much. So…”

“Mmmm,” JC said, nodding his head. “Well, if you want to make it here, you’re going to have to practice a lot. You saw what Wade had us doing today.”

“I haven’t seen anything like that, you’re all amazing,” Annaleigh said to him.

“Thanks,” JC replied, “but we wouldn’t be anywhere without our music producers and Wade, and our fans. It’s not all on us.” He pressed his lips together, rubbing his hands together. “Just like your audition isn’t all on you. We’ll all help any way we can.”

He closed one eye slightly. “Now, I know how to play the bass a very tiny bit, so that part will really be up to you, but everything else—“ he put a hand to his chest, “—we’ll help. Any friend of Lance’s is a friend of ours. We want success for you just as much as he does.”

“You probably want my cooking, too,” Annaleigh commented.

“…I’m not ruling that out,” JC said with a small laugh. “Seems to me like you’ll be able to pick things up pretty quickly, it’s just following through that’ll be tough for you, Sweetie.”

“Could you not call me that?” Annaleigh asked, moving to sit down on the edge of JC’s bed.

“I apologize,” JC replied, putting a hand into the air. “It’s a habit. Mind if I ask why?”

Annaleigh was silent for a moment, looking around the room. She had been called 'Sweet Pea' by her parents for as long as she could remember; even, embrassingly enough, having been dressed up as flower a couple of times for Halloween before she had a say in the matter. Any variation of that name just reminded her of everything that had happened. Being in Orlando was like the start of a new life for her, a new name, a new identity.

“My parents name for me is Sweet Pea,” Annaleigh replied after a moment of silence. “Things aren’t goin’ well between ‘em lately.” She let out a small laugh. “Haven’ seen my mom since August, actually. She called today but…wasn’ long ‘fore she was off callin’ home to chew out my dad ‘bout the Oathkeeper thing.”

“I don’t know how you didn’t know about your dad,” JC commented, the confused look intensifying. “I know this isn’t my business, but I’m a little surprised.”

“I’m not,” Annaleigh replied with a shake of her head. “I mean, I am, but I’m not. I’ve always felt like they’ve been keepin’ secrets from me. I mean, I get it, most parents do, to keep their kids safe but…I think there’s more.”

“What do you mean?” JC asked.

“Well, Lance knew about the Oathkeeper thing and never told me about it,” Annaleigh replied and JC nodded his head. “There could be a lot of reasons for that, and I could jus’ be makin’ excuses for him, but I wonder what else he knows ‘bout my parents.”

“Ohhhh,” JC said, nodding his head. “I’m sorry all of that happened. I know I’ll sound like a jerk when I say this, but you can’t dwell on that. Not right now. Family stuff…it can suck, but they’re still your family. They still love you and they always will love you.” He was silent for a moment. “Right now, you need to focus on your love of music and to do everything you can to let it take you as far as it can.”

“Thanks, JC,” Annaleigh said quietly.

“You’re welcome…Ace? Can I call you that?” JC asked.

“Ace is fine,” Annaleigh replied with a nod of her head.

"So, what makes you think you’re good enough to get into the *NSYNC band?” JC asked, clapping his hands together. “What quality do you think you have that makes you stand out against the others that want to audition for the band?”

"Because, despite everything…I’ve kept going,” Annaleigh replied. “I mean, yes, I can mope and over analyze, and dwell on things, but I think the more I do it, the better it is to move on from it. I’ll always remember my mistakes, and make damn sure I won’ do it again.”

“It’s ok to make mistakes sometimes,” JC reassured her. “Just want to make sure you know that.”

“Do you want to know why people call me ‘Ace’?” Annaleigh asked him and JC nodded his head. The left side of her lips curled up into a smile. “First it was because of my soccer skills, but it’s adapted over the years. People call me ‘Ace’ because, when I finally get something right…I ace it.”

"That’s what I like to hear,” JC said with a grin. “So, if you’re up for it, let’s get started.”