The Dream Crashers ✓

25 - Epilogue

It was almost six when I heard someone pounding brutishly on the front door. I barely had a chance to turn the knob before Mara came bursting through, shoving her way past the doorway and almost knocking me over in the process.

"This has got to be the stupidest thing," she seethed, her lips set in a scowl. She looked uncomfortable in a black strapless skater dress and her signature combat boots.

"Really? I think you look nice," I told her.

"I look like an idiot."

"No, you don't. You look grea— wait, what is that?" I said, reaching out towards the sash wrapped around her waist. It was almost the same shade of pink as her hair.

"Nothing. Get your hands away from me, Wade—"

"You're bringing weapons to prom?" I whispered, pulling out the short blade she had stashed in her dress. "Are you completely out of your mind?"

She tore it out of my hands like I had taken her firstborn. "You never know when it might come in handy," she said hotly.

"Mara, give it to me!"

"Back off, unless you want to be stabbed—"

Sheila and Mary poked their heads out of my bedroom to see what the commotion was. They blinked at us curiously.

"Is something wrong?" Sheila asked, glancing between us. Her normally bouncy, dark curls were pulled straight and twisted into an elegant knot at the nape of her neck. "Mara, you look so nice!"

"I told you so." I pulled open the door to the coat closet and chucked Mara's knife inside. She wanted to argue with me, but I pointed a stern finger towards my bedroom. "Let's go. We have to finish getting ready."

"Whatever," Mara grumbled, heading down the hall. "I have two more in my boots anyway."

Of course she did.

The rest of the hour passed without any real hiccups.

At one point, I thought Mara was going to punch out the other two girls for wrestling her down so they could do her make-up, but it went surprisingly well. I could see a vein throbbing in her temple, but she sat there obediently as they worked. But just to be sure, I kept stealing glances at them from the mirror as I applied my own mascara.

"Done!" Mary said triumphantly, capping a tube of lip gloss. "You look so hot. Your date is gonna be blown away."

"Like I give a damn what he thinks," Mara muttered.

"Well, I'm happy that you asked Elijah to prom." Sheila was being kind as she said this. Mara didn't so much ask but commanded him. "Otherwise he wouldn't be able to come since he's a freshman. It's nice for the whole group to go together, don't you think?"

"Also, dating younger guys is totally a thing now. Love can't be defined by numbers, right?" Mary said. She was swaying around in front of the floor length mirror, smoothing down her hair and meticulously inspecting her make-up. Her red hair was curled into tight ringlets that framed her face. "It shouldn't matter that he's a little shorter and younger than you, Mara."

"Don't get any ideas. I only asked him as a 'thank you' for saving me from that bullet."

I nearly rammed the mascara wand into my eyeball as she said that. Both Sheila and Mary stopped what they were doing and looked over at her.

Laughing ostentatiously, I said, "Metaphorical bullet. She means, um, she dodged a metaphorical bullet when... Elijah tutored her for her pre-calculus exam!"