The Badboy, the Catfish & Me

Twenty-Six

"Oh." Ameena stared blankly.

Mrs. Asaka walked into the room and went straight to the front to start attendance. I couldn't help but feel a pang of coldness noticing the empty seat beside me. Did the boys still have soccer practice, even when the last game of the year was already played?

As Mrs. Asaka began her annual goodbye speech, the room was flooded with waves of excitement and also hints of sadness as the students realized that this was one of their final days of high school. Salah immediately bolted out of her seat when Mrs. Asaka finally dismissed the class.

"Bye, girls, talk to you soon, okay? We have each other's numbers, so don't go crying that your wonderful Salah has left you!"

Ameena and I chorused a laugh and waved goodbye. Ameena then stood to go as well. She walked around the desk to give me a hug.

"Bye, Inaya," she said. "I'll let you know what colleges I get accepted into."

"Wait." I didn't let her go. "I convinced my parents I could go to prom," I whispered. She gasped. I released my friend and felt a blush creep up my neck. "Can we go together? I have to go with a girl."

"You should've told me earlier, Inaya! We could've spent some time together shopping for a dress."

I felt my chest pinch at the thought of Ameena wanting to hang out with me outside of school. I'd been so absorbed in school and CrusadEon that I forgot I had friends.

"Don't tell Salah yet. I'll surprise her with pictures. I also have the start of an outfit in my head."

"Well, alright. I'll try not to. Do you want to go there together?"

"If you're going with your fiancé...it might be a bit awkward."

Ameena blushed. "Oh, right. Let's meet there at eight, then. How long are you staying?"

"However long you are? I haven't thought about it."

"Fill me in, okay?"

I nodded and waved at her before settling back into my chair. I didn't know why I lingered since the class was already dismissed. Probably because I was expecting Valentino to walk in through the door at the last minute so I could see him one more time.

Elsa, Jamie, and Clara were still here, too, and as soon as Ameena walked away, Elsa approached me. My stomach lurched.

"So, I heard you can't go to prom because of your religion?" Elsa said.

Not this again.

"That's so weird," she continued, snickering. "Makes me think if it's only a cover-up for something."

"A cover-up?" My eyes narrowed. "For what?"

"Everyone knows Valentino still hasn't asked anyone to prom yet," Jamie cut in. Elsa crossed her arms over her chest, slightly annoyed. "You know something about it, but you're not telling us."

"Yeah, a cover-up for, oh, I don't know," Elsa continued while looking at her lengthy acrylic nails, "maybe to play hard to attract a certain guy's attention?"

I couldn't believe my ears. "That's crazy!"

"C'mon, Inaya," Jamie rolled her eyes. Clara opened her mouth to say something but was talked over. "No way could a religion dictate your life. We all know Ameena is going to prom, and she's Muslim. Salah even posted a message saying she would've gone if it weren't for her parents."

I bristled at the torrent of words. I was able to stand up for myself when I was talking to Clara last week. But with Elsa and Jamie ganging up on me like this, I didn't know what to address first. They were interrogating me about prom, my religion, and my innocence. Plus, Salah had all the smarts to sneak out to prom even without her parents' approval. But she was choosing to listen to them out of respect for them and her religion.