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THE FIRST HUG - HEATH
(S8 EP26 - 09:48)
As he stared at her from the short distance he was away from her, bo staff in one hand and a huge smile on his face, all he wanted to do was hug her.
Daisy hadn't always been the best duet partner, and they'd definitely had a bumpy ride on their way to Nationals, but somehow, she'd become one of the people he trusted the most on the team.
And whilst doing this duet with her, he'd gotten to know her, as well. She was really funny, and she was really smart, and she didn't have her license and she actually liked pineapple on pizza and she actually had naturally straight hair, she just liked to curl it.
And on top of all that she was also really pretty, as well.
So, as they finished their duet, he couldn't help the huge smile forming on his face. He broke character first but she did the same soon after, and the both of them headed towards each other, culminating in a side hug due to the bo staffs still held in both their hands.
He could've sworn their bodies fit together like jigsaw pieces. His arm around her waist just felt right, and so did hers around his shoulder. He grinned wider, absolutely over the moon to have done that well at their duet, and to have shared the stage with someone like her.
"We did it," he allowed himself to tell her as the crowd cheered and their team in the wings did the same.
"Yeah," she grinned, turning to him. "We did."
He felt a weird, fuzzy sort of feeling in his stomach as she smiled at him, blessing him with the way her whole face transformed when she did. She was always pretty beautiful, but when she smiled? Forget it.
That was the first time he'd ever worked up the courage to hug her.
But he hoped it wouldn't be the last.
THE VICTORY HUG - DAISY
(S8 EP26 - 10:10)
"But, don't forget the extra five points Richelle got for winning pro division, which brings The Next Step's total up to ninety three, tying with Ultra Elite-"
Before the rest of Giselle's sentence could even be spoken, the audience went up in cheers.
But for Heath and Daisy, they might as well not have existed.
Daisy turned to him, a smile already forming on her face, to see he was already looking at her, a grin lighting up his own.
She felt her mind pausing to just admire his face for a second. To be fair, she'd never thought he was bad looking, just that he'd betrayed his whole team and that she couldn't trust him. Now, however? She'd trust him with her life.
His face lit up when he smiled. His brown eyes, which were already full of life, got even more animated, and his whole face just shifted. He looked alive. And she just loved it.
She was too busy looking at him, admiring him really, that she almost missed him diving in for a hug, holding her body close to his with the one arm not holding his bo staff. She caughf herself quickly, however, and hugged him back with her free hand, too.
His body against hers felt... nice, almost. She felt a fuzzy feeling in her stomach at the realisation, smiling wider. They'd never hugged like this before. In a way where she could smell is cologne, a minty, fresh smell, and tuck her chin into the crook of his neck, which she found warm and comforting.
And she was afraid to say it, but she wanted them to do it again.
Why had she ever not trusted him?
THE SECOND VICTORY HUG - HEATH
(S8 EP26 - 10:25)
The team were screaming and cheering and jumping around them, and he just couldn't resist.
Whooping himself to register his happiness, he slung his arm around Daisy's waist again and pulled her in for a second hug, briefly glancing at her to make sure she was okay with it. She smiled in response, wrapping her arm around his shoulder again as they both raised their bo staffs in triumph.
It was real. They were in the finals of Nationals! And he didn't care what anyone said, they were going to win.
Heath felt a weird kind of happy as he held Daisy and the team celebrated around them. A peaceful kind. He hadn't felt this way since way before becoming the mole, and he really liked it.
One of her curls was tickling his face, but he didn't choose to tell her, or move it. He could still smell her coconut shampoo from when they'd hugged a second ago, and as soon as he'd breathed it in he'd decided it was his new favourite scent. She was becoming one of his favourite people, as well.
(And he was falling hard. But he just couldn't see it).
THE NATIONALS WIN HUG 1.0 - DAISY
(S8 EP27 - 17:04)
"And the winner is..."
She was squeezing his hand like her life depended on it, finding comfort in its warmth and the way it fit into hers perfectly.
"...THE NEXT STEP!"
The crowd screamed, and so did the team. Daisy was in shock, her eyes wide and a scream of joy tearing from her mouth.
And the first thing she did was turn to him.
Which was kinda lucky, because the first thing he did was turn to her.
They were hugging before either of them could think about it, both arms free this time, wide smiles on both their faces. His body was qarm, and comforting, and everything she needed right now.
She'd seen him do backflips off other people's hands, five forties for days and weild a bo staff, but shd decided in that moment that this version of Heath was her favourite. Ecstatic over their Nationals win, turning to hug her first.
She hugged back tightly, wanting to show him how much she trusted him, how she'd never ever doubt him again, how thankful she was that he was here, and that she'd done this with him.
She hoped he knew all that, though.
And if he didn't, she'd definitely try to tell him.
THE NATIONALS WIN HUG 2.0 - HEATH
(S8 EP27 - 18:20)
"So, we did it!" She said, brown eyes bright and face practically glowing when he found her again, the sleeves of her dress flapping slightly as she talked.
(The dress he'd seen in the thrift store and instantly knew she'd look amazing in, insisting on her buying it and wearing it as her costume. Now, looking at her, it was clear he'd been right. She looked so beautiful it was almost making his knees weak).
"Yeah!" He said back, smiling widely, trying not to think about how the sparkle in her eye was making her shine even brighter on this stage.
"Turns out, you're not such a bad teammate after all," she said hesitantly, looking down for part of it.
And something in him just melted.
Like, seriously. Because she was stood there, looking like the most beautiful girl he'd probably ever seen, and saying something like that. He didn't know why, but his heart felt like it was gonna explode, and he just knew he had to hug her. He could already feel whatever magnetic force they had drawing him to her.
"Aww," he managed to get out, hugging her tightly to him. She let out a small giggle, hugging him just as tight.
He allowed himself to breathe her in for a second, smelling that coconut shampoo and the rose perfume he'd seen her applying earlier, the scent so dizzying and intoxicating that he wanted to stay in this moment forever.
He didn't know what on earth he was feeling right now.
He just knew he wanted it to last.
THE COMMISERATION HUG - DAISY
(S9 EP4 - 17:48)
She'd known this was going to happen ever since she'd found out her bo staff was missing.
But now, it was real.
She actually wasn't on A-Troupe.
And to be honest, she didn't know what was going to happen next.
But as she turned to Heath, her feelings of disappointment, anger and sadness only deepened. He was looking at her with a clenched jaw, as if he was trying to stop himself from crying, and her heart just broke.
Without another word, he leaned in to hug her, and she moved closer to him, closing her eyes to avoid her own tears.
They'd hugged many times now, as best friends, but that still didn't change how she felt when he was close to her. Like she was on a roller coaster, her stomach swooping and falling. A magical kind of crazy.
She couldn't help shiver that ran down her spine as he gently rubbed her back, his fingers grazing the bare skin not covered by her cropped dance top. She knew it was meant to bring her comfort, and it did, to an extent, but not really.
"I'm so sorry, Daisy," he murmured to her, not leaving the embrace for a second.
She sighed, biting her lip, unable to think of anything else to say other than what came out her mouth.
"I'm sorry, too."
She knew this was partly her fault. She should've tried harder to find the bo staff, or a different prop. But regardless, she shouldn't have been sabotaged.
And now, she wouldn't go to Internationals. She wouldn't be part of A-Troupe. And perhaps worst of all, she and Heath wouldn't get to do the duet.
Actually, there was no 'perhaps' about it.
THE GOODBYE HUG - HEATH
(S9 EP4 - 20:26)
For a moment, when his hands were on her hips, lifting her up, he could pretend she wasn't leaving.
But then he lowered her back down, still in his arms, and without another word she leaned in fo hug him, and he just couldn't.
He closed his eyes, breathing in the scent he knew well now - coconut shampoo mixed with rose perfume - the scent he wanted to bottle and take with him forever and ever. When she was in his arms, everything felt right. But he may never dance with her again after that night.
He held her so tight, tighter than ever before, because he didn't want her to slip away like he knew she would.
He didn't know what would've happened if she was staying. But he liked to think that they would've danced the duet, and he would've maybe, actually told her how beautiful she looked when dancing.
So many possibilities. None that would play out.
She didn't curl her hair anymore, so none of them tickled his cheek as she hugged him. But to be honest, he kinda liked her with straight hair. Well, to be honest, he'd like her no matter what she had her hair like.
As she pulled back, looking into his eyes with a small smile, he wanted to draw her back in again, and hug her more.
He hadn't done enough. He hadn't hugged her enough, hadn't appreciated her enough, hadn't told her she was an amazing dancer enough, hadn't told her he liked her laugh enough. Hadn't looked for her bo staff enough.
And he hated himself for it.
His only hope was that maybe, someday, they'd meet again in this studio, and dance together again.
But he didn't know about that.
(Little did he know, his prayers were already getting answered).
THE BRAWL DUET HUG - DAISY
(S10 EP15 - 19:47)
"If I can get it together, I can tell you how much it is that I loved Heath and Daisy's duet, and I would love love love for that duet to represent us at The Brawl."
It wasn't the best time to celebrate, but Daisy was pretty happy.
Actually, she had never been this happy before.
Their duet had been amazing, and she was honestly really proud of it. Both she and Heath had worked hard in the time that they'd had, and getting to actually perform their duet at The Brawl was going to be amazing. She couldn't wait.
But Pete was officially dropping out of Team Brawl following his injury, so now wasn't the time for jumping or shouting.
So instead, she just looked to Heath, who was already smiling at her, and the both of them side hugged, his arm going round her waist and hers going round his shoulders.
Daisy was feeling so many things right now, it was unbelievable. Sad for Pete, happy about the duet, tired from dancing, but... most of all, she was just feeling excited.
She didn't know what had happened in that duet, but in that last section, when Heath's hands had been on her hips and they'd been slow dancing, everything had just changed.
All of a sudden, she couldn't look at his face without getting butterflies, and everytime he touched her she felt sparks flying.
Which was what was happening now, as they hugged. Everywhere his arm was touching felt like it was on fire, and the sensation was so amazing she just felt like she could burst, right now.
She didn't know what on earth this feeling was, but she was absolutely enthralled by it, and she wanted more.
More than ever, to be honest.
THE BRAWL ROUND ONE HUG - HEATH
(S10 EP17 - 21:32)
"Team TNS!"
Okay, so he still had no idea whether she actually had feelings for him, but still, being hugged by her felt amazing.
The first thing she'd done when she'd heard their name was jump into his arms, and that felt pretty amazing in itself.
She was glowing, a huge smile on her face, and all he could be was thankful to whoever it was that decided someone like him was worthy of sharing this earth with someone as radiant and vibrant and amazing as her.
She'd been worried, earlier, and he could see it. He knew her old troupe had tried to sabotage them by attempting to drop that sandbag on him, but that wasn't her fault and he needed her to see it. Right now, watching her be so happy, it just felt like he'd won.
Everyone was cheering around them but for a second, Heath just felt as if the two of them were in their own little world. All he could think about was her, and the way she was holding onto him so tightly was making butterflies swarm his stomach. His heart thumped so loud in his chest he feared she'd hear it, and he didn't care.
He needed to stop running from the way he felt about her.
"We did it!" She shouted as she pulled away from him, her face so close to his he'd only have to move a few inches to kiss her.
He was in awe of her.
And to be honest, who wouldn't be?
THE PRE-KISS HUG - DAISY
(S10 EP19 - 03:06)
They hadn't hugged last time.
In fact, they'd been in a slow dance position.
But right now, as he pulled her in, a smile on his face, Daisy couldn't help but go in further, wrapping her arms around his torso and dancing about with him in a hug, instead.
She knew she loved him.
And the thing was, she knew he loved her, too.
And she'd never felt more happy in her life because of it.
She could feel his heart beating fast in his chest, and she knew it was because so was hers. She was nervous, to be honest, but also excited. Because she loved him and he loved her and to be honest, this moment had been building up ever since their Nationals duet, only they'd been too blind to see it then.
She did truly love him. I mean, he got on her nerves like crazy sometimes, but apart from that, she loved him. He was kind, and funny, and she'd trust him with anything, despite not thinking so when they first met.
She wished she could go back in time and tell that Daisy where she was now, in love with the boy she'd once declared she'd rather dance with a donkey instead of. She supposed life was crazy like that sometimes, but past-her would've never expected this.
But she'd never been more glad of it.
Because loving him was one of the best decisions she'd ever made.
THE WIZARD OF OZ HUG - HEATH
(S10 EP19 - 18:27)
When she jumped into his arms the second after they'd taken their bow, he caught her without hesitation.
They'd hugged so many times before, but still, her body in his arms made something inside him completely melt, wrapping his arms around her even tighter.
She was grinning, he could feel it against his body, and her hair was all fluffy so it was tickling his cheek again, but he didn't care. She was absolutely everything to him.
He'd seen her sat across from him, telling him plainly he didn't trust her. He'd seen her weilding a bo staff until she had callouses on her hands. He'd seen her happy, he'd seen her sad, he'd seen her excited.
But right now, he decided that this version of Daisy, grinning widely, laughing, and wrapped up in his arms, was his favourite.
And as they pulled back, he just decided to go for it.
They'd kissed, after all.
So, as he met her eyes, he just told her.
"I love you."
She stared back at him, still the most beautiful girl in the world, looking at him with wide, happy eyes.
"I love you too," she told him, smiling gently.
Heath felt his heart was going to burst, diving back in to hug her again because he was in love with her and she was his favourite person in the whole world.
And she was his.
THE BRAWL VICTORY HUG - DAISY
(S9 EP19 - 20:02)
"Team Micheldon!"
The second their name was announced, people started screaming and clapping, and everyone started jumping up and down.
But Daisy only had eyes for one person.
The first thing she did was turn to Heath, and she found him already looking at her. He dived forwards without a second thought, hugging her tightly, his strong arms wrapping round her.
She felt butterflies in her stomach, not just from the way he was holding her, but from even just thinking about the way he'd told her he loved her a mere few moments ago.
When thinking about everything they'd been through, she couldn't have been more glad that somehow, they'd ended up here.
She loved him. She'd never been more sure of that fact. He was everything to her, just seeing him smile could light her whole day up.
She still remembered meeting him, Kenzie excitedly introducing them and her being disgusted that she had to work with a traitor. She remembered thinking she was just going to do a duet with him and leave.
But from the second she'd decided to work with him, he'd intertwined himself in her life.
And to be honest, she'd never been more glad of it.
"I love you," she murmured to him again, squeezing tighter.
He had only one reply. "I love you too."
The butterflies she felt in her stomach were unmatched, and she couldn't stop smiling as she held him tighter.
They'd shared many hugs over their time knowing each other.
But in that moment, she decided this one was the best.
Just like him.