ღ Finding Cinderella- 10 ღ
-Tristan-
"A round of applause for the participants of the Fate Dance!" the host announced over the microphone and a ripple of clapping washed across the gym. "As this night's program comes to a close, we would like—"
While everyone else prepared themselves for the real party to start, all I could do was stand there and watch in disbelief as the beautiful girl escaped my hold and disappeared into the crowd in a blink of an eye.
No, I can't let her get away like this!
I began to dash after her, but then a girl stepped in front of my way.
"Tristan, hey!" Ronnie said with a fervent smile. "Um, wanna dance?"
"No, sorry. I gotta go."
As I darted past her, I could hear Ronnie's groans behind me, but I ignored her. Finding that mysterious girl was my number one priority. To be honest, I couldn't understand myself. Why was I drawn to her this much?
Then, just as I was reaching the gym door, someone from the right yanked on my arm and pulled me to the side.
Stumbling, I came face to face with another girl, this one with dark hair coiffed above her head. She leaned in to wrap her hands around my neck, her ruby lips turned up into a glossy smile.
Great. Another nuisance.
"Tristan," said Fiona in a sugary tone, and I recognized it as the one that so many guys had fallen for before. Even so, I could only respond with a dark glare.
"Fiona, what is it this time?" I grumbled.
Her lips formed a snarl. "God, T. Rude much?" She pressed a finger on my chest, tilting her head to the side. "I just wanna have fun with you tonight. Is that too much to ask for?"
Before she could trap me in her arms, I managed to detach myself from her. "Listen, go have fun on your own or with your football captains. Just leave me alone. I've got business to take care of."
"Aww." She mocked pity. "Did your date ditch you? How sad. Babe, why don't you just forget about her—"
"I don't think it would ever be possible," I cut her off and jogged away.
What a pain, When would she ever stop clinging to me? Whatever Fiona's plans were, she was only embarrassing herself, and I had nothing more to say to her tonight.
As I stepped out of the building, cold wind blasted my body so intensely that I had to hug myself for warmth. Aside from the chirping of crickets and the muffled noise from indoors, there were no other noises around me. I scanned the surrounding area, my hope fading out in an instant. There was no sign of the girl anywhere.
Several students were strolling a short distance from me under the light of the full moon, probably getting some fresh air. I approached them, asking if they'd noticed a masked girl leaving the building, but they only shook their heads.
Was I too late already? I couldn't help but think that she had run so fast even Sonic would be jealous.
A moment later, I found myself standing alone in the middle of the sidewalk, gasping for breath. I kicked a pebble off the path, the disappointment flooding me without an end.
Thinking about everything that had happened, I cursed at myself. The fault belonged entirely to me and to the stupid actions I'd taken tonight. The moment I had seen the girl's shocked expression, I had realized how far I had allowed my teenage hormones to go—I'd almost kissed her!—, and now I knew how badly I had blown my mission to get with her before I had even started.
I figured I must've really scared her to death, but honestly, what other explanation was there? She'd left without saying a word to me. How else was I supposed to interpret that?
I kicked another pebble off the sidewalk again and expected to hear it land softly in the grass. Instead, I heard a dull thud followed by a stream of muttered profanities. I gathered I must have hit something... or someone. When I looked up, a dark figure was approaching me from the shadows.
"Tristan?" It was Clark, and he was staring straight at me, apparently baffled by my behavior. "What are you doing here? Why the hell are you kicking stones at people?"
"I didn't mean to," I said, "but shouldn't I be asking what you're doing here? You're late, bro. Where have you been this whole time?"
"Oh, I drove Lacey home and ended up staying with her for a couple hours."
"Really? Did something happen to her?"
"Yeah, it was bad. She was sick. She fainted in the dressing room so I carried her to the clinic."
I nodded. "I see. That explains the mystery of the King and Queen dance. Do you think she's okay now?"
I was expecting him to sound sympathetic because this was Lacey we were talking about, but he deadpanned, "Guess so."
I furrowed my eyebrows. Something was starting to sink in, and after thinking about it some more, I continued: "Wait, wait, you said you stayed at her house for a couple hours, right? H-how did you manage to do that with, you know, Kylie around? She always goes ballistic every time she sees you with Lacey, so—"
He shrugged. "Kylie wasn't there."
"What?"
"I said she wasn't there. Just their mom. She seemed nice."
"So where was Kylie?" I couldn't help but ask.
Clark's mouth twisted in a near grimace. "What's with the questions about her?" he said icily.
"Just answer me. Where's Kylie? Didn't you see her around while you were on your way back here? It's highly unlikely for her to be out this late." I looked at my wristwatch. It was five minutes to midnight already.
"Dude, how would I know?" he answered. "It's not like she's nice enough to talk to me. She hates my guts, remember?" He gritted his teeth. "That damn tomboy is a headache," he muttered to himself. "Just because she's Lacey's older sister doesn't mean she has to dictate—"
"Clark," I interjected. I didn't like how he said those words with such animosity. Yeah, I always made fun of Kylie behind her back, but when the others did that to her, I... felt somewhat uneasy and ticked off.
"But let's be real. She's such a—" He glanced at me and his jaw clenched. "Never mind."
Seeing the look on his face, I let him slide on that one. "Come on, what's the problem?"
He was quiet. The said hesitantly, "I got rejected."
"What?" I exclaimed, placing my hand on his shoulder to make him look at me. "For real?"
He nodded, his face grim.
"Oh shit. Why would Lacey do that? I thought she liked you back?"
"I don't know, man. I'm trying to figure it out. Isn't it fucked up that after all the unconditional care I gave to her, she just rejected me in return? And she did that right after she woke up." He made a dry laugh. "Can you imagine that?"
Shaking my head, I patted his shoulder. "Sorry to hear that, bro. But on the bright side, there are plenty of girls out there, so it's not really the end of the world for you."
He shoved me away, scowling. "Are you for real? That's exactly what she told me! Thanks, Tris. Thanks a lot for reminding me."
"Hey, hey, chill! I didn't know, and I was just trying to cheer you up," I said.
Clark let out an infuriated sigh. "That's just ridiculous. Me, finding another girl? Yeah, I think I can do that—when hell freezes over." His fist clenched. "I don't want everything to end this way. I gotta do something."
"Right." I gotta support him on that one, although his chances were pretty slim.
He jerked his head toward the gym. "Let's cut this and get inside. It's freezing out here."
"You can go ahead." I waved my hand. "I'm just gonna stay here for a bit."
Without a word, he began to walk inside. Man, he was getting touchy.
I had already anticipated this problem ever since I had found out his crush on Lacey in tenth grade. A happy relationship between them would nearly be impossible to materialize since there was Kylie, who had been making barbed wire fences around her sister. Poor guy. I could understand how difficult it had been for him.
Not even I could handle her wild side very well.
Speaking of Kylie, I wondered where she was. I had certainly been troubled when I heard that she hadn't been in her house. (Not because I liked her. Again, no fucking way. I'd just hate to lose the only person who I took pleasure in making fun of.)
Sitting on the staircase, I fished my phone out of my pocket and searched for her number. It took me several tries before she finally picked up.
"What?" That was her usual greeting for me.
"Are you home right now?"
"Why would you ask that?"
I sighed. "Clark said you weren't there when he dropped Lacey off. Where did you go?"
A pause. I noted that she seemed breathless on the other line, but decided not to question her.
"None of your business," she said finally.
I rolled my eyes. "Kylie."
"Ugh. I just went out to buy something, okay?"
"Oh yeah?"
"Yes! Jeez. Why do you care?"
"I was just..." I pressed my lips together. "Forget it. So, what are you doing right now?"
"Oh, actually, I was about to close my eyes and have a good night's sleep when someone ruined it by calling in the middle of the freaking night! Are you drunk or what?"
"I'm completely sober." A smile slowly grew on my face. "Kyles, can I ask you something?"
"Make it quick."
"Are you wearing your white cotton undies right now? You know, the one you always considered as a lucky—"
"Make another one of your perverted jokes, Tristan, and I'll throw a microwave at your face when I see you."
The line went dead. I could hardly stop myself from grinning as I imagined her mortified face.
"Good night, Kyles," I whispered, slipping my phone back in my pocket and getting up from the stairs.
Before I stepped back into the party, I swiveled to face the empty space around me. I could still feel the weight and the warmth of the mysterious girl's body in my arms, and knowing that I could never take that moment back filled me with disappointment once more. A part of me wished to see her again—even a simple glimpse would do—but it seemed it wouldn't be happening anytime soon.
Will I ever have the chance to meet her again?
Then the answer came to me before long:
Yeah. Maybe, someday.
It couldn't be that hard to search for her in the wilds of the school, right?