-๐ฃ๐๐ฌ ๐ฎ๐ค๐ง๐
pairings: Moose x Tala (OC)
summary: โi still love herโ
genre: angst (only if you squint)
series; wc: 1.8k
main masterlist series masterlist
๐ง๐๐ ๐๐๐ง๐ฌ ๐ช๐๐ฆ ๐ง๐ข๐ข ๐๐ข๐จ๐
Even in the early mornings, when the rest of New York shouldโve been asleep, trucks still roared past and impatient honks echoed up the sides of buildings like sound ricocheting off steel canyon walls. Tala learned quickly that peace here didnโt mean quiet โ ๐ช๐ต ๐ฎ๐ฆ๐ข๐ฏ๐ต ๐ช๐ด๐ฐ๐ญ๐ข๐ต๐ช๐ฐ๐ฏ ๐ช๐ฏ ๐ฏ๐ฐ๐ช๐ด๐ฆ.
She pulled her hoodie tighter around her head as she jogged across 65th Street toward the Juilliard School entrance. It wasnโt cold, but the oversized gray hood gave her a kind of shield, like armor against the eyes of strangers. The summer intensive program had started just a week ago, and she could already feel the weight of it pressing down like scaffolding being built inside her chest.
She hadnโt spoken more than a few words to anyone in the program, not really. There were the necessary exchanges, of course โ โ๐๐ช๐ค๐ฆ ๐ฎ๐ฐ๐ฏ๐ฐ๐ญ๐ฐ๐จ๐ถ๐ฆโ or โ๐๐ฐ ๐บ๐ฐ๐ถ ๐ฌ๐ฏ๐ฐ๐ธ ๐ธ๐ฉ๐ฆ๐ณ๐ฆ ๐ณ๐ฐ๐ฐ๐ฎ 307 ๐ช๐ด?โ โ but nothing beyond that.
Her classmates seemed eager to form little clusters and sit close on breaks, trading stories about past performances and gossiping about the instructors. Tala kept her earbuds in, even when they werenโt playing music. It was enough to discourage conversation without being openly hostile.
She didnโt want friends.
Thatโs what she told herself, anyway.
๐๐ฉ๐ฆ ๐ฉ๐ข๐ฅ ๐ฑ๐ฆ๐ฐ๐ฑ๐ญ๐ฆ, ๐ซ๐ถ๐ด๐ต ๐ฏ๐ฐ๐ต ๐๐๐ง๐.
At night, in the slim sliver of time between rehearsals and exhaustion, Tala curled up in her dorm bed and answered texts from home. Andie had sent her a video of their old cat pouncing on a plastic bag.
๐๐ก๐๐๐: ๐ด๐ฉ๐ฆ ๐ด๐ต๐ช๐ญ๐ญ ๐ต๐ฉ๐ช๐ฏ๐ฌ๐ด ๐ต๐ฉ๐ช๐ด ๐ฃ๐ข๐จ ๐ช๐ด ๐ข ๐ฎ๐ฐ๐ถ๐ด๐ฆ ๐ญ๐ฎ๐ข๐ฐ, ๐ฉ๐ฐ๐ธโ๐ด ๐๐ ๐?
๐ง๐๐๐: ๐ฏ๐ฐ๐ช๐ด๐บ. ๐ฆ๐ท๐ฆ๐ณ๐บ๐ฐ๐ฏ๐ฆโ๐ด ๐ต๐ณ๐บ๐ช๐ฏ๐จ ๐ต๐ฐ๐ฐ ๐ฉ๐ข๐ณ๐ฅ.
๐๐ก๐๐๐: ๐บ๐ฐ๐ถ ๐ฎ๐ฆ๐ข๐ฏ ๐ญ๐ช๐ฌ๐ฆโฆ๐บ๐ฐ๐ถ?
Tala smirked but didnโt respond. She knew what Andie meant โ Tala was trying hard, in her way. Just not in the way others expected. She wasnโt out here networking or making connections. She wasnโt wearing dramatic thrifted outfits or angling for compliments. She was doing the work. Letting the acting take up all the space that used to be filled by other things.
Like ๐๐ค๐ค๐จ๐.
She hadnโt texted him since the breakup. He hadnโt texted her either. That silence was different than the one she lived in here โ it was sharper. There was history behind it, like glass behind a curtain.
She flipped through her messages. Group chats with Chase and Smiles were still alive and chaotic.
๐ฆ๐ ๐๐๐๐ฆ: ๐ธ๐ฉ๐ฐ ๐ธ๐ข๐ฏ๐ต๐ด ๐ต๐ฐ ๐ฅ๐ณ๐ช๐ท๐ฆ ๐ต๐ฐ ๐๐ฆ๐ญ๐ข๐ธ๐ข๐ณ๐ฆ ๐ง๐ฐ๐ณ ๐ค๐ณ๐ข๐ฃ ๐ค๐ข๐ฌ๐ฆ๐ด?
๐๐๐๐๐: ๐บ๐ฐ๐ถ ๐ด๐ข๐บ ๐ต๐ฉ๐ช๐ด ๐ฆ๐ท๐ฆ๐ณ๐บ ๐ธ๐ฆ๐ฆ๐ฌ๐ฆ๐ฏ๐ฅ
๐๐๐๐ข: ๐ชโ๐ฅ ๐จ๐ฐ ๐ช๐ง ๐บ๐ฐ๐ถ ๐ข๐ค๐ต๐ถ๐ข๐ญ๐ญ๐บ ๐ธ๐ฆ๐ฏ๐ต
๐๐๐๐ฆ๐: ๐ฉ๐ฆ๐บ ๐, ๐ฉ๐ฐ๐ธโ๐ด ๐๐ณ๐ฐ๐ข๐ฅ๐ธ๐ข๐บ ๐ฃ๐ข๐ฃ๐บ ๐ด๐ค๐ฉ๐ฐ๐ฐ๐ญ๏ผ
๐ง๐๐๐: ๐ฏ๐ฐ๐ต ๐ฐ๐ฏ ๐ฃ๐ณ๐ฐ๐ข๐ฅ๐ธ๐ข๐บ. ๐ข๐ฏ๐ฅ ๐ช๐ตโ๐ด ๐ฏ๐ฐ๐ต ๐ข ๐ฃ๐ข๐ฃ๐บ ๐ด๐ค๐ฉ๐ฐ๐ฐ๐ญ๏ผ
๐๐๐๐ฆ๐: ๐ต๐ฐ๐ฎ๐ข๐ต๐ฐ ๐ต๐ฐ๐ฎ๐ข๐ต๐ฐ
Tala laughed softly into her pillow, enough to startle the girl in the bed next to hers. The dorm was shared, though Tala never bothered to remember the other girlโs name. She didnโt ๐ฃ๐๐๐ to.
Hair sent her a playlist โ โmoody as hell,โ he titled it โ and Monster posted a meme in their group DM that made Tala snort. Fly texted her random photos of clouds and fire escapes, things she thought Tala might like.
๐ฝ๐ช๐ฉ ๐ฉ๐๐๐ง๐ ๐ฌ๐๐จ ๐ฃ๐๐ซ๐๐ง ๐๐ฃ๐ฎ๐ฉ๐๐๐ฃ๐ ๐๐ง๐ค๐ข ๐๐ค๐ค๐จ๐.
And that was fair. Sheโd ended it. Sheโd said she didnโt want to do long distance, that she couldnโt handle the separation. That she was scared things would change too much between them, become toxic.
But she hadnโt realized until now that part of her still wanted him to chase her. Or at least โ ๐บ๐ถ๐๐ ๐ต๐ฒ๐ฟ.
Sometimes, on her way to the black box theater tucked behind Juilliardโs main hall, she would scroll all the way up their old thread. Pictures from the winter โ ๐ฉ๐ฆ๐ณ ๐ช๐ฏ ๐ฉ๐ช๐ด ๐ฉ๐ฐ๐ฐ๐ฅ๐ช๐ฆ, ๐ด๐ฏ๐ฐ๐ธ ๐ช๐ฏ ๐ฉ๐ฆ๐ณ ๐ฉ๐ข๐ช๐ณ; ๐ฉ๐ช๐ด ๐ง๐ช๐ฏ๐จ๐ฆ๐ณ๐ด ๐ญ๐ข๐ค๐ฆ๐ฅ ๐ธ๐ช๐ต๐ฉ ๐ฉ๐ฆ๐ณ๐ด ๐ฐ๐ท๐ฆ๐ณ ๐ข ๐ค๐ข๐ง๐ฆฬ ๐ต๐ข๐ฃ๐ญ๐ฆ. Voice notes, jokes, the dumb stuff they used to say when neither of them could sleep.
The silence between them now felt ๐ถ๐ป๐๐ฒ๐ป๐๐ถ๐ผ๐ป๐ฎ๐น, not ๐ฎ๐ฐ๐ฐ๐ถ๐ฑ๐ฒ๐ป๐๐ฎ๐น.
Still, she couldnโt let herself reach out. Not after sheโd made it so clear. She told him she needed space. And Moose, ๐ฆ๐ท๐ฆ๐ณ ๐ต๐ฉ๐ฆ ๐ฉ๐ฐ๐ฏ๐ฐ๐ณ๐ข๐ฃ๐ญ๐ฆ ๐ฃ๐ฐ๐บ, had given her exactly that๏ผ
In acting class, the instructor was a woman with short silver hair and sharp, actorly cheekbones. She gave notes like daggers. โMore breath,โ she told Tala during a scene. โLess control. I donโt want to see your thinking โ I want to feel it.โ
Tala nodded, took the notes, did it again. That was the rhythm of her days: ๐๐๐ฉ, ๐จ๐ฌ๐๐๐ฉ, ๐ฉ๐ง๐ฎ, ๐ก๐๐๐ซ๐.
Sometimes, she lingered in the city after rehearsal. Not with people. Alone. She would walk down Columbus Avenue with no destination, just wandering past bookstores and bodegas and jazz bars. New York was beautiful in a raw, dirty way. The way you could be completely invisible in the crowd โ unseen, untouched. A kind of relief, after the closeness of home.
The difference between Maryland and New York wasnโt just the buildings or the noise. It was the way Maryland ๐ ๐ฃ๐๐ฌ her. People there had expectationsโof what she would say, how she would laugh, who she loved.
Here, she could be new. Not better, not worse. Just something else.
And maybe thatโs what she wanted.
Still, that night, she opened her texts again. The group chats buzzed with nonsense. Someone sent a pic of a broken skateboard. Someone else was planning a movie night.
She found Mooseโs name buried beneath notifications.
She stared at the empty chat box for a long time. Then she typed a single word.
โ๐๐๐ฎ
Then deleted it.
Typed again.
โ๐๐ค๐ฅ๐ ๐ฎ๐ค๐ชโ๐ง๐ ๐๐ค๐๐ฃ๐ ๐ค๐ ๐๐ฎ
Deleted.
Then, finally, she just closed the app.
She wasnโt ready. Not yet. And maybe she never would be. For now, sheโd sit with the loneliness, learn how to mold it into something useful. Use it in her scenes. Breathe into it.
The city didnโt care either way. It roared on, indifferent and alive.
And Tala, hoodie pulled tight and heart sealed shut, walked into the noise like she belonged there.
๐ฉโ๐ช
The days in Maryland were warmer now. Sticky and loud with cicadas, just like every summer before, but somehow ๐ฒ๐บ๐ฝ๐๐ถ๐ฒ๐ฟ this year. Moose sat on the roof of Camilleโs garage, his feet dangling over the edge as he sipped lukewarm soda and squinted into the sun.
โShe hasnโt texted you either?โ Camille asked. She was lying flat on her back, her arms flung out dramatically like she was trying to soak in every ounce of sky.
โNope,โ Moose said. He tried not to sound bitter. โNot once.โ
Camille didnโt say anything at first. She just let the fizz from her soda can crackle into the silence.
โSheโs in New York,โ Moose said finally, like it explained something. โJuilliard. Acting thing.โ
โI know,โ Camille said. โI follow her ๐ฎ๐บ๐ด๐ฑ๐ค๐ข๐ฆ.โ
Moose blinked. โYou follow her ๐ฎ๐บ๐ด๐ฑ๐ข๐ค๐ฆ?โ
โEveryone does, Moose. Sheโs not hiding. She just doesnโt post anything withโฆ people. Itโs just like, theatres and dance studios. Very theatre kid.โ
That sounded about right.
He hadnโt followed Talaโs account since the breakup. Not out of pettinessโhe just didnโt think he could handle seeing her move on in real time. Even if it wasnโt a new guy. Even if it was just a picture of her boots next to an empty coffee cup, it would hit like a punch.
They hadnโt said much the last night they talked. She hadnโt cried, and neither had he, but it still felt like mourning. Like something being buried, slow and gentle and permanent.
He told her heโd give her space.
He didnโt expect it to stretch this long.
Camille sat up, brushing her hair off her forehead. Her curls had started to frizz in the humidity.
โYou still thinking about NYU?โ she asked, almost casually.
โYeah,โ Moose said. โEngineeringโs solid. Good program. I like the city.โ
โYou like ๐ต๐ฉ๐ฆ ๐ค๐ช๐ต๐บ,โ she repeated, teasing. โ๐๐ฐ๐ต ๐ต๐ฉ๐ฆ ๐๐๐ง๐ก ๐ธ๐ฉ๐ฐ ๐ฃ๐ณ๐ฐ๐ฌ๐ฆ ๐บ๐ฐ๐ถ๐ณ ๐ฉ๐ฆ๐ข๐ณ๐ต ๐ข๐ฏ๐ฅ ๐ง๐ญ๐ฆ๐ฅ ๐ต๐ฐ ๐ฉ๐๐๐ฉ ๐๐๐ฉ๐ฎโ
Moose gave her a dry look. โThatโs not why.โ
Camille raised a brow.
โItโs not ๐๐ช๐จ๐ฉ why,โ Moose admitted.
She laughed. โI mean, it wouldnโt be a bad reason. Tala always did make things feel bigger. She made you want to keep up.โ
He nodded. That was the thing about Tala โ she lived like she was trying to outrun something invisible. And somehow, it made you want to chase her, even if you knew youโd never catch up.
Camille sipped from her can and stared out toward the trees. โIโm still going to NYU too,โ she said. โDifferent program, though. Digital media. I want to do documentary work eventually.โ
โI thought you were aiming for film school in California?โ
โChanged my mind,โ she said, shrugging. โMaybe I got tired of the idea of reinventing myself somewhere that far. Maybe I like the idea of familiar faces.โ
He glanced at her. โIs that your way of saying you want me there?โ
โMaybe,โ she said, grinning. โOr maybe I just want someone to suffer the L train with.โ
They sat in silence again, a softer one this time. The kind that didnโt itch at the edges.
Moose let his thoughts wander โ past the roof, past the trees, all the way to New York. He imagined Tala walking down some crowded street, earbuds in, face unreadable. Probably not thinking about him. Or maybe she was, just a little.
Enough to feel that same strange ache he felt every time her name popped up in conversation and then disappeared again.
He hadnโt blocked her. He hadnโt deleted anything. But he also hadnโt looked at their messages in weeks. It felt like turning the pages of a book he used to love and realizing he didnโt recognize the words anymore.
โYou think sheโs lonely?โ he asked suddenly.
Camille didnโt answer right away. โMaybe,โ she said. โBut Tala always liked being lonely a little bit. She turned it into something. Poetry. Acting. Whatever. You remember how she used to talk about characters like they were people she knew?โ
โYeah,โ Moose said, smiling faintly. โShe said they were ๐ฒ๐ฎ๐๐ถ๐ฒ๐ฟ than real people.โ
โExactly. Maybe she just needs to figure herself out before she figures anyone else out.โ
Moose leaned back on his elbows and stared at the blue sky fading into dusk.
โ๐ ๐จ๐ฉ๐๐ก๐ก ๐๐๐ง๐ ๐๐๐ค๐ช๐ฉ ๐๐๐ง,โ he said.
โI know,โ Camille said, gently.
โ๐ ๐จ๐ฉ๐๐ก๐ก ๐ก๐ค๐ซ๐ ๐๐๐งโ
โYou always will.โ
Neither of them said it, but both of them wondered what would happen when fall came and the three of them ended up in the same city again. ๐๐ค๐ช๐ก๐ ๐๐๐ก๐ ๐๐ซ๐๐ฃ ๐๐๐ง๐ ๐ฉ๐๐๐ฉ ๐ฉ๐๐๐ฎ ๐ฌ๐๐ง๐ ๐ฉ๐๐๐ง๐? ๐๐๐ ๐ค๐ฃ๐ ๐ฌ๐๐ค ๐ง๐๐๐ ๐ก๐๐ฃ๐๐จ ๐๐ง๐ค๐ข ๐๐๐ฃ๐ฃ๐๐จ๐จ๐๐ ๐๐๐ก๐ก๐๐๐ข๐จ ๐ฌ๐๐ฉ๐ ๐๐๐ง ๐๐ฎ๐๐จ ๐๐ก๐ค๐จ๐๐ ๐๐ฃ๐ ๐ข๐๐๐ ๐๐ซ๐๐ง๐ฎ ๐ฌ๐ค๐ง๐ ๐จ๐ค๐ช๐ฃ๐ ๐ก๐๐ ๐ ๐ ๐จ๐๐๐ง๐๐ฉ?
Maybe not.
But Moose would be there anyway. Not just for her. For himself.
Because whatever happened next โ whoever Tala became โ ๐ฉ๐ฆ ๐ธ๐ข๐ฏ๐ต๐ฆ๐ฅ ๐ต๐ฐ ๐ฃ๐ฆ ๐ค๐ญ๐ฐ๐ด๐ฆ ๐ฆ๐ฏ๐ฐ๐ถ๐จ๐ฉ ๐ฉ๐ค ๐จ๐๐ ๐๐ฉ.
author:
sorry for the small update, as you noticed updates are slower but its finals give me like 2 weeks and iโll be more active, but i will be posting still in these two weeks, just not as often.
This chapter is an introduction chapter for step up 3D, next update will start the movie storyline.
