The Fall Ball

39.Chase

Monday morning felt like a breath of fresh air. Despite the school losing the baseball game last Friday, the spirits were still high thanks to fall ball. Banners were being hung up, ticket stands were popping up in every corner, and you could hear chatter about proposals happening left and right. This was all before school officially even started for the day, I made it early to catch Lucy before her monday morning choir rehearsals. I had a surprise for her.

I made my way through the hallways, and into the music room. The gentle melody of the piano came to a halt as I stepped inside. Lucy's face lit up with a radiant smile as she spotted me from where she sat at the piano. A smile that reached her eyes in a way that it had never before.

"Hey," I said warmly, returning her smile and crossing the room to give her a quick kiss on the cheek. "So, how was your weekend?" I asked. I was particularly curious about how lunch with Della and her folks had been like. I dragged a stool to sit by her next to the piano.

"It was wholesome," Lucy replied with a wide grin.

"I'm guessing everything went well last Saturday."

"You can say that." She said with a soft sigh of relief. "Eli was the center of attention for most of the time, other times our parents had a lot to talk about," She went on, gently running her fingers over the keyboard, "We went down memory lane, looking at old pictures of Della and I together. My Mom spoke kindly with Della, asking her about how she likes sisterhood so far...She was trying to help me bridge the gap. I know it."

"Did it work?"

"I'd like to think so. But there were still things Della and I were uncomfortable to bring up, alone and with our parents. I guess there's no way you can take back what you said, change the past but I got the feeling Della will be trying harder as I to forgive each other and start fresh."

"The way I see it, that's all that matters," I said, reaching out to give her hand a gentle squeeze. Inwardly, I heaved a sigh of relief. The fact that I was partly responsible for the strain in Della and Lucy's friendship had nagged at my mind, but I hadn't realized how much until now. When the knots in my head finally loosened, it was with Lucy's words.

Lucy leaned to rest her head on my shoulder, her eyes fixed on our intertwined hands. I take the opportunity to gently kiss her forehead. I was reminded of how perfectly her head fit in the crook of my neck, how the hum of her breaths put me at ease and made me feel grateful for every passing second with her. In that quiet moment, I realized how much she meant to me.

"Ready for the fall ball?" Lucy asked, in a playful tone.

"Ready as I'll ever be." I held her tighter

"Kacey, Della and I are going shopping for a fall ball dress afterschool."

"Sounds fun. Della said she'll come?"

"She did."

"I'm glad—oh and I got you something." I said, suddenly remembering.

Lucy lifted her head, startled as I reached for my backpack. Unzipping it I pulled out a small container, handing it to Lucy."

"For you."

She squinted at me with a coy smile, running her hands over the lid of the box. It was colored so she couldn't see what was inside.

As she opened the container, her eyes widened in surprise. It was a slice of cake I had carefully nestled within a fold of tissue paper.

"It's... cake!" Lucy gasped, "And it looks like it has Oreos on it."

I chuckled nervously, feeling a flutter of anxiety at her reaction. "Yeah, I... I tried my hand at baking this morning. It's an Oreo cake. I know how much you love Oreos, so I wanted you to be the first to try it."