Okay so I'm updating twice today because I started to write this prompt and I really got into it and I'm actually really proud of it. And I guess I'll give a quick hint about this chapter: Feels.
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Security.
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Bethany watched the pros perform from the red room, ready to go to the stage at any given moment to introduce the couples that were left. She felt her stomach plummet seeing Derek dance so close to Peta. It wasn't even the fact that she suspected they could be an item, she knew Peta and her boyfriend were completely in love, and she knew Derek, well wasn't. She had tried to stop her growing attraction to him but it was useless, she had fallen completely head over heels for him. Just thinking about him made butterflies appear in her stomach.
*
But the butterflies soon died down watching Derek and Peta perform together. It was no secret that Peta was gorgeous. Peta had everything needed in order to be flawless, she was beautiful, she had an amazing body, her personality was great, and she was an amazing dancer- the exact thing that Derek loved more than life itself. She was the perfect package for him. She wondered how they hadn't dated before. She paled in comparison next to Peta, the more she thought about it the more sick to her stomach she felt.
*
Beth sat down on the couch, feeling the sinking feeling in her stomach. Alfonso turned to her, concern all over his face. Alfonso had sort of taken Sadie and Bethany under his wing because they were the two 'babies of the group' as he liked to call them. He sat down next to Bethany, "Beth, are you okay?! You're white as a sheet. Are you sure you can perform?!" Bethany waved him off, using an excuse that she just had a small headache. Alfonso turned away from her reluctantly, going back to watch the performances.
*
There was a war in Bethany's mind, she kept thinking about Derek's past partners, each time comparing herself to them. There was Nicole Scherzinger, who had all around been a perfect dancer partner, she was an amazing dancer, she was confident and talented, and she was sexier than she ever would be. There was Kellie Pickler, who was just about the most gorgeous woman on the planet. There was Amy Purdy, who danced miles better than her, even without two feet. There were all these amazing and inspirational women, and then there was just: her.
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She certainly wasn't the best dancer in the season, and she would never be able to reach the likes of Nicole and Kellie with her beauty. The more she thought about it, the more she hated her flaws. She hated the fact that she didn't have any other talent than putting makeup on in front of a camera. Detested the fact that she had to wear pounds of makeup to look semi-decent. Absolutely hated the fact that she weighed more than any other partner he had ever had, and she knew Derek noticed, not once had he done a lift with her in the weeks they had been in the competition. Bethany was drowning herself in a vast ocean of self-doubt, barely noticing when Derek walked up to her, worry etched all over his features when he saw her about to cry on the couch.
*
Derek started to rush towards her, but was stopped in his tracks by Alfonso. "I know whatever you want to say to me is probably super important but I need to get to Beth." Alfonso didn't move instead opening his lips, "That's exactly what I wanted to talk to you about, What's wrong with Beth?" Derek opened his mouth to answer him but stopped, realizing he didn't know what was wrong, he didn't know how to comfort her. He didn't know what to say to Alfonso, he had pretty much become Bethany and Sadie's second dads, he loved them, and he protected them against everything, he had even gone as far as snapping back to fans that were saying mean comments about the two.
