Title: For Now, It's Just the End of the Road
Summary: Zack's journey comes to an end. For now.
Disclaimer: I own nothing but the plot.
Notes: I actually got the idea and typed this up immediately after I posted the last one with Tanya & American Idol, but I had problems with the ending. =(
It is also entirely possible that I am using these ficlets as excuses to rewatch seasons of my favourite reality tv shows. XDHe hated Thursdays.
That much Zack Taylor had decided many Thursdays ago when the first results show had rolled around. It was crazy intense and nail-biting to the end. The agony of waiting to hear your fate, and then that of the many close friends that he had made on the show was excruciating. Give him an ugly Finster produced monster any day. At least he could pound on the poor bastard to work off all the pent up energy.
He shifted his weight nervously from one foot to another and back again as he, Benji Schwimmer and the rest of the studio audience waited with bated breath for the host, Cat Deeley to announce the voting results this Thursday.
“Last night, America voted, and the guy going home is...”
It seemed to Zack that she took just about forever to tear open the seal on the card containing the results.
“Zack.”
Immediately, he could feel his heart take a dive down to his feet. The sound of Cat’s voice announcing his name as the person who was to be eliminated this night reverberated through his mind again and again. He had known that it was a possibility, of course, a three-in-one chance that he would be eliminated tonight, and he had braced himself for it. Yet, nothing could have prepared him for the devastation of elimination.
He tried the best he could to hide the pain as Benji let go of the arm that he had around Zack’s shoulders and covered his face, looking as though he was about to break down and cry from both the relief and the devastation. It seemed like it was someone else who had that plastered smile on his face and congratulating Benji on his progress with a brief hug. Yet the voice uttering those hollow words was his.
Benji moved to the side of the stage to join the rest of the finalists as directed, his face slightly red from the uncontrollable weeping, and Cat stepped forward to wrap a comforting arm around Zack. Dimly, he registered that she was talking to him, and nodded automatically in response to her question.
“This experience has changed my life.” Zack heard his voice echo around the silent studio. But it did not come from his mouth. Startled out of his pity party of one, he looked up to see his farewell video running on the large screen above the stage. He remembered recording the voiceover for that. It seemed like eons ago even though it had only been a few weeks prior.
His audition in New York, where he first showed the judges his Hip-Hop Kido. It seemed like a lifetime ago. He remembered being nearly bored to death waiting for his turn. There had been no nerves, for he had not expected to even get on the show. He just hoped that he would be able to get a cameo to show the world what he can do.
Nigel Lythgoe, the executive producer and judge commenting on his unique style of combining martial arts with hip-hop. That had been a turning point in his life, when the judges had kept him for the choreography round and sent him to Vegas.
Snippets of the different styles he had to adapt to and dance during Vegas Week. Dance had always been something that he loved to do. It had always been a part of him. In Vegas, as he struggled to pick up all the different styles of dance that were thrown at him, he took the determination and perseverance that he had cultivated back when he was a ranger and used that to get through the gruelling week. But in that week, in the company of so many dancers who were so passionate about their craft, he found a passion for dance in him that he didn’t even know he had.
Relief and overwhelming joy he had expressed when Nigel told him that he was in the Top 20. Without even knowing it, dance had become everything to him, and to have been picked as one of the Top 20 was overwhelming. It meant that he could continue on this journey that he had stumbled on and wanted to last forever.
“Dance means everything to me, it’s what makes me who I am.” A clip of his short solo during the first show’s introduction segment. He remembered being a bundle of nerves for the first time in his life.
A shot of him practicing his first dance with his partner, Heidi Groskreutz, a Viennese Waltz, then another of the same move on performance night. He was having such a hard time getting the technique of the waltz right. Thank heavens Heidi was such a fantastic ballroom dancer. He had thrown himself at her mercy and eventually, with her much needed help, got the entire dance down.
The judges’ pleased astonishment at his performance “To me, y’all just became the group to beat,” proclaimed Shane Sparks, a Hip-Hop choreographer and judge on the show. He almost exploded with joy upon hearing that.
Him beating on Heidi’s butt as part of the Cuban Rumba that they had to perform during the third week and their elation when Nigel praised that performance – “The way you beat her bongo was – OH, GOD!” Both Heidi and himself had really enjoyed the Cuban Rumba even though he had initially felt very uncomfortable about handling Heidi’s rear like that.
Snippets of some of his performances from various weeks, some where he was partnered with Heidi, Natalie Fotopoulos or Allison Holker (the latter two also contestants on the show), some from the group dances and others from the solos that he had done over the past few weeks. They were all so much hard work, but the satisfaction he felt when he finally got those dances right was just exhilarating.
“I didn’t realise how important dance is to me until now. It has become my life,” his voiceover said, as a shot of him beaming faded to black.Zack felt a feeling of contentment settle in him as he watched that last. He had had a great journey on the show, and had learnt so much about dancing these past few weeks than in all the years that he had taught himself to dance. Whether or not he won is secondary to the experience that he had gained and the friends that he had made.
Snapping out of his reverie, he glanced over at the judges’ table, where Nigel, Mary Murphy and Mia Michaels were on their feet, cheering him on with a standing ovation. Both Mary and Mia were in tears, causing tears to spring to his eyes as he smiled gratefully at them for their support.
He heard Cat addressing him and turned his attention back to her.
“What are you going to take away from this whole experience? What’s the best thing and the worst thing about it?”
Zack smiled. “The best thing is being able to be here and have had this experience. To have met all these wonderful people who have become like a family to me.” He could hear his voice crack a little as emotion threatened to overwhelm him, but he ignored it.
Turning to the judges, he gave them a small bow. “Thank you guys so much for giving me this chance, this opportunity to have this amazing experience. It means so much to me – more than you will ever know. I have grown as a dancer, and I know I can only continue to grow from here. This is not the end of the road for Zack Taylor. It is just the beginning.”
The cheers from the audience were beginning to grow in volume, and he had to raise his voice despite speaking into the microphone Cat held.
“I want to thank all of you guys who have supported and picked up the phone for me these past few weeks. Without you guys, this journey would not have lasted as long as it did, so thank you all so very much.”
His voice cracked on the very last word and the tears that he had been holding back finally fell.
bouncy
excited
infuriated