Detention With Elgort (Ansel Elgort)

Chapter Nine

I think that tonight was probably the worst night ever in the history of proms.

Don't even try to argue with me. It absolutely sucked. I mean, it all started out great. But don't let that fool you.

So it all started two weeks before prom when Hadley came up to my locker on a Thursday afternoon. "Hey Mallory! Have you got a date to prom?" she asked. I shook my head no.

"Ah. That sucks. Anyways, I think we got off on the wrong foot, and I think that we should start over. So, would you like to go dress shopping with me this weekend? I'll even help you pay for your dress if you find something you like," she said, flashing a smile.

I wasn't so sure about all this. Why was she suddenly being so nice?

Then again, if she really was going to help pay for my dress, that would definitely be a boost for me. My mom had refused to take me dress shopping and told me to find something on my own.

"Sure! Were you thinking this Saturday or Sunday?" I replied.

"Saturday, probably in the afternoon. Would it be OK if I picked you up at your house at about 1?" Hadley asked. I nodded in response. We then exchanged phone numbers so that I could text her my address later.

"Alright. I've gotta get to my next class but I guess I'll see you Saturday!" Hadley said, and she headed off down the hall.

That Saturday went a lot like shopping with Stella and Rosemarie. She picked me up, we drove to the mall, and headed into the dress store. I hadn't gone dress shopping in what felt like forever. I hadn't been to any of the dances at school in a couple years so I haven't needed a dress.

"So where would you like to start?" Hadley asked, her platinum blonde hair shimmering under the bright spotlights in the store.

I shrugged. "I honestly have no idea," I replied.

"No worries. I'll help you find something," she said as she started to flip through the color-coded racks.

"Anything in particular that you're looking for?" Hadley asked, eyeing a silky red dress with jewels around the waist.

"Not really. I know that orange really isn't my color and I tend to trip on super long dresses, but other than that I'm open to suggestions," I responded.

Hadley chuckled. "Personally, I think that a shorter, blue dress would suit you well," she said, eyeing my features.

"Sounds good to me," I replied. We then flipped through the racks of blue dresses and picked out several for me to try on.

"Here, you go try these on and I'll go look for something for me. Call for me if you find one you really want to show me," she said, handing me the pile of dresses and heading over to the rack of hot pink dresses.

"K then," I muttered to myself, strolling through the long, dark hall with dressing room doors on both sides. I stepped up to one room that had the door slightly ajar. Before I even touched the door, it swung open on its own and I felt the heel of someone's shoe smash on top of my toes.

Startled, I took a step back towards the wall behind me, and looked up to see Bree MacDuncan standing in the doorway with a rather sour look on her face. As soon as she recognized me, she twisted her face into a sort of fake smile.

"Oh, hello Mallory! Didn't expect to see you here," she said in her usual feigning, high-pitched tone of voice.

"Same to you, Bree," I said as cheerfully as I could.

"Shopping for prom dresses, I see," she said, eyeing the pile of dresses I had in my hand. "Just so you know, these two are really ugly." She pulled the top couple of dresses out of my hands and set them back on the nearby rack.