Baby Come Closer

Tender Taps took a deep breath back stage, stretching out his lean, wiry body as he waited for the couple on stage to finish. He was dressed in a faux-leather jacket over a white tank top with his purple hair greased back, jeans practically spray-painted on. He looked out across the back stage, hoping to catch a glimpse of Apple Bloom on the other side.

Lights flashed and music blared on the stage drowning out the incessant roar of Las Pegasus slot machines, arcades, and chatter. They'd been fighting for a spot on this stage for years before making it anywhere close to this far. Now, every dance could be their last on the tour.

Tender ran a hand through his hair, trying to get into character as the audience applauded the performers on stage and the lights went down so the set dressing could be changed up.

You don't belong here, a traitorous inner voice told him. You're going to screw up.

Apple Bloom's words from the green room came to mind, slicing through the incessant doubts.

"As long as y'catch me before I fall off the stage again we're golden."

"On in five," the stage manager warned him, holding up a hand and counting down.

At three, the lights went up. At two, the music started.

On one, Tender Taps saw Apple Bloom come out onto the stage, dressed in a poodle skirt, blouse, and socks rolled down to her ankles, her old hair bow topping it all off. He grinned as his world narrowed down to himself, Bloom, and the music, not even seeing the manager tick off the last count.

He was on the stage in a flash, the bad boy making play for the good girl as the music roared around them and dictated the beat. Hands touched, bodies twirled around each other, muzzles nearly met. Through it all, Taps had just one thought.

"Dear Celestia, don't let me get too turned on out here."

As he and Bloom gyrated around each other, their bodies pressing close together before caution made them part again, Taps couldn't shake the self-conscious awareness of just how tight his clothes were, or the TV cameras that were periodically cutting down towards their feet to track the performance. Cameras that would be sure to pick up any bulges that the judges and live audience wouldn't notice or would be too polite to mention.

But that would be picked up in a flash by a certain gorgeous filly's brother and sister.

Tender Taps refocused, fighting to keep himself in the game, muscle memory picking up for the moments he started to slip, but this was more than just moving right. He smiled at Bloom as he caught her hand, spinning her around and into his arms for a few beats before she danced away from him again.

She released his hand, and he followed towards the back of the stage, catching her and literally sweeping her off of her feet and down into a slide between his legs, catching her on the other side and twisting to pull her back in, the two freezing on the last beat, muzzle to muzzle, just barely not kissing each other on stage.

The audience began to applaud, and Bloom grinned at him, leaning up on her toes to give him a quick peck on the nose before they turned to bow, before leaving the stage so the judges could do their jobs.

"Yer thinkin' too much," Apple Bloom told him once they had a moment of privacy. "Ah can see it in your eyes "

"Trying not to show how much I love holding you," he shot back with a grin. Apple Bloom rolled her eyes and shook her head.

"Rarity would have called that line cheesy, babe."

"Actually, I'm not joking," he admitted bashful. Apple Bloom raised an eyebrow, patting his thigh lightly.

"Maybe you'll have to show me what y'all are talking about when we get back to our room," she teased. She let her hand rest on his leg, slowly sliding her hand towards the heat she felt through the denim.

"If I didn’t know any better, I’d think you were trying to get your sister to kill me,” Taps chuckled weakly, pushing her hand to a safer spot.

“You’re up, kids,” one of the managers said after a moment listening to her earpiece. “Good luck!”

“Whatever happens, we already won making it this far,” Taps reminded Apple Bloom, standing up and taking her hand to rush out into the line of performers under the blazing lights, waiting for the judge’s feedback and to hear their fate.

The Grand Equestrian Dance Tour was like a major audition stretched out over three months of agony. Sixteen couples were left at this stage. The top twelve would be sent back after they had been given their feedback. The bottom two would be going home. The thirteenth and fourteenth would know how close they’d come to getting the axe, and have plenty of motivation going forward… assuming the pressure didn’t make them crack, as it sometimes did. Then two more went home the next week, before the top twelve would start being whittled down one by one, until the final three teams went at it to see who would come out on top. Thirteen weeks, praying not to turn an ankle or break down trying to come up with a new dance from scratch with a week’s prep time.

And that nothing happened back home that would call them away before then. Taps hadn’t really thought ahead to what he’d do if they ended up winning. There was no way the Apples could spare Bloom for the winter and spring months they’d be on the road if that happened.

“Avant Guard, Trellis Rose, please step back.” That was one team facing the final review. Tender Taps shifted his focus back to what the judges were saying; he and Apple Bloom were towards the end, but it never hurt to hear what was being said about the competition.

All in all, it was pretty much what he’d come to expect over several years trying out. The three judges each had their own style. Allegro Cabriole was always enthusiastic about the performers, focusing on what they’d done well with just a few criticisms unless somebody had truly screwed up. Chase Tournant was the brutal arch-critic of the trio, decades running his own company having given him the authority to pronounce sentence on any dancer who wasn’t up to snuff. Then, between the tan pegasus and teal earth pony in tone as well as on the panel, there was the lilac-toned unicorn mare Open Cypher.

Taps particularly hoped to hear good things from her; she was the one whose verdict usually swayed the most undecided members of the audience when it came to ranking the teams.

“Eight Count, Gliding Promenade, please step back.”

Crap. Tender Taps exchanged a glance with Apple Bloom; he’d thought they were incredible tonight. If those two were in the bottom four, then they were toast.

Bloom squeezed his hand lightly, not saying anything. He wasn’t sure what she was thinking, but she didn’t look as concerned. Maybe she’d seen something from her angle that he hadn’t.

Somebody came out from backstage and whispered to Chase.

“Well, one of you lucked out tonight,” he observed. “Double Etendre suffered a leg injury backstage; she and Rising Glide will be dropping from the competition.”

Taps hadn’t even noticed that they weren’t in the line ahead of them, too focused on his own concerns. There were hushed whispers and sounds of sympathy from the audience and the other teams.

“With that in mind, Eight Count, Promenade, congratulations. You’re back in the top twelve.”

The two Manehattanite earth ponies both winced; it was one thing to make the cut, but another to know it was because somepony got hurt. Still, they gave polite nods before stepping back up to the line, and the judges continued down the row, providing feedback, each team not told to step back ratcheting the tension higher for the ones who were left.

Tender Taps was just noticing that Apple Bloom was tapping an extra finger against his palm with each team, like she was counting something off, when the next possible cut came up.

“Foxy Trot, Lance Turner, please step back.”

This time, Apple Bloom was the one to tense up, crossing her fingers against his hand. He gave her a reassuring squeeze as the next teams were reviewed... and all of them kept making the cut. When the team ahead of them wasn’t told to step back, he thought he felt Apple Bloom’s shoulders drop slightly before their critique began.

“Apple Bloom, Tender Taps,” Chase started, glancing at his notes. “I’m surprised the two of you did so poorly.”

“You have to be kidding me!” Allegro scoffed. “Listen, the two of you have excellent footwork, phenomenal technical skills -”

“And they both look scared that the other is electrified and going to shock them when they’re up on stage together,” Chase cut him off. “You’d think they just met!”

“What they’re trying to say,” Cypher sighed, “is that you dance wonderfully. But you don’t look comfortable with each other! Next week, if you make the cut, you’ll be doing a samba. You’re going to have to work on staying in the moment, in the mood - or you should consider how you choreograph your dance to work around it.”

“You’re a cute pair,” Chase allowed. “It would just be nice to see more of that on the dance floor. Apple Bloom, Tender Taps, please step back.” Well, that was it. They were out. Tender Taps felt strangely at peace with it as he and Bloom stepped back. The advice wasn’t very helpful though - ‘work on being more comfortable with each other?’ What, were they supposed to - well, okay, with a samba coming up they were practically supposed to have sex on the dance floor. Still, he could work around what they’d said, he was sure.

As he went through how to try and balance on the knife’s edge of their comfort levels, the teams that weren’t facing the cut left the stage, leaving the three remaining condemned to hear their fate. The audience went through their side of the scoring, marking down the order of preference as the hot stage lights beat down on the six ponies waiting for mercy.

Finally, the votes were all tallied, and factored in along with the judge’s numbers.Stage hands worked frantically behind the scenes to get everything in place for the big reveal.

An envelope was passed out to Allegro, who opened it and nodded as he read the contents.

“Foxy Trot, Lance Turner… congratulations, you’re coming back next week!” The audience cheered as the two pegasi both let out their breath, visibly relaxing even as the last two teams each tensed up.

Cypher took the message from Allegro, reading the next line before she stood up.

“Tender Taps, Apple Bloom.” Her voice wasn’t reassuring at all. That, along with the fact that they usually alternated the cuts and keeps, and Tender was convinced they were going home. It was a good run though. They’d get another chance next year, maybe.

“Congratulations, you’re coming back next week!”

Taps blinked as the audience cheered, and the final team of Avant Guard and Trellis Rose lowered their heads, knowing what that meant for them. Apple Bloom pulled Taps into a hug, then they both bowed respectfully to the judges before making their way off stage while Chase let down the final team.

“I was sure we were gonna get the cut,” Taps admitted once they were backstage.

“You were,” Foxy Trot told them point-blank. “Do the math.”

“Eight and Promenade were definitely going to make it - they were the safest team,” Apple Bloom agreed. “So Double getting hurt saved our flanks. What happened, by the way? Is she okay?”

“She will be,” Lance said easily. “She was taking a smoke break out back and got in the way of some delivery guy taking a shortcut through the alley. He went right over her foot and didn’t even stop.”

Taps and Bloom both cringed at the thought, and what that could do to the dancer’s career.

“Lucky it was just a jackass on a moped,” Foxy agreed. “It’ll be easy enough to fix, but she’ll be out of action for weeks unless she can figure out a way to dance on broken metatarsals without the doc coming out to break the other foot to stop her. So hey, whichever one of you ordered the neighponese, good idea!” She winked at them.

“Come on, Foxy,” Tender Taps snorted. “We’re from Ponyville, not Manehattan - Bloom would have had her brother use the truck!”

The four of them shared a laugh before Avant Guard and his partner came back. Apple Bloom held her arms open, patting Trellis’ back when the rose-red unicorn took the offered hug.

“Gonna miss you guys,” Avant Guard said grudgingly. “Guess Mom was right, I am more cut out for the military.”

“Don’t be a stranger - and don’t give up,” Taps told him. “Bloom and I? We’ve been trying out for five years now and we only just made it. Heck, we almost didn’t this week.”

“Well, you’ve got another chance to wow them,” Trellis smiled, wiping a few tears away as she straightened up. “Good luck, everypony - knock ‘em dead for us!”

With that, the crew started to break up, each team heading their own way to get dinner, get drunk, or just get somewhere quiet to relax.