I slammed my locker shut, furious at Jeremy -- and myself a little. As I walked through the hall, everyone stared at me, and I felt like everyone could see into my mind, revealing all of my thoughts and life story.
I hurried past the classes wing of the building and into the dorm wing. People lazily unlocked their doors, exhausted from school. I reached my dorm, and reached for my wallet in my back pocket. Before I had chance to pull out my card, James was calling my name and running down the hall toward me.
"Luna! Wait up!" I froze in place, turning and waving at James. He looked eager, and was practically dancing.
"So?" He asked slowly, ending it in question. "Are you going to the dance tonight?" He grinned and held my hand. "Please say yes!"
I sighed and looked down, fiddling with my card, then looked back up and shook my head 'no'. Disappointment in his expression, he dropped my hand and frowned. I took the opportunity to unlock my door and enter. But before I could close the door, James caught it and followed in after me. I sat down on my bed, removed my shoes, then kicked back and relaxed. James sat down next to me, begging me to go.
"It's going to be so fun!" He tried. I nodded in objection. I was bound to see Roy there. Or Jeremy. Or Michael.
James was silent for a moment, as I stared at the ceiling in thought, of all the pain going to that dance could cause me. There's already a ton of drama in our every day lives. Take lunch for example. No one's safe.
"I'll be so alone, Lu." I gasped and my head snapped up to look at him. What did he just call me?
"What?" He asked, confused. I sat up, determination filling me quickly. I had to talk to Michael, and Roy. I had to fix everything I had broken. I looked at him, and with a quick nod from me, James was as determined as I was. He took me by the hand, standing me up.
"Let's go make you look gorgeous." He said seriously, which made me giggle slightly. He led me to my closet, shoving it open. He searched frantically through the mass of shirts and jeans.
"W-where are all your dresses?" He asked, bewildered. He stopped and stared at me for a moment. "Don't tell me you have no dresses."
It was true. I didn't own any dresses, and I'd never really worn a dress before -- aside from going to my grandmother's funeral, of course.
"Well then." He said, staring at me in thought. A small grin crept upon his face. "I guess we'll have to buy one." He looked so excited, it made me laugh. Even though shopping wasn't one of my most favorite things ever, I let him lead me by the hand outside. He led me to a red Mustang GT convertible.
"Here we are," He said, politely opening the passenger door for me. I smiled at him and got in, closing the door behind me. Since there was no roof, he hopped in over the car door. I stared at him in amazement; I thought people only did that in the movies. He grinned at me and winked, making us both laugh all the way to the mall.
After a dozen dresses and shoes, I was ready to give up. None of them looked as perfect as I had wanted it to be. James searched frantically for dresses, his choices piling up on the dressing room door.
"Here, try this one!" He commanded. Dress after dress, shoe after shoe, nothing looked good. I walked out in my normal clothes, demotivated. James took one look at me and frowned.
"Don't give up, honey, we only just started." He looked at his watch. "We have four hours left. Let's get moving!" He tossed me a black strapless dress. I sighed and reluctantly headed back to the dressing room to try it on. It fit perfectly!
I examined myself, modeling in the mirror, really happy with this choice. The strapless top wasn't too showy, and I liked how it was tight on top, showing my curves, and loose on bottom, layering to look like a black wedding dress. The ribbon in the middle added to the look, and I decided that this one was absolutely perfect. I grinned.
Suddenly, James' hand was extending over the top of the door, holding a pair of black shoes.
"These will go great with that dress!" He called. I could tell he was excited, but not as excited as me. As I slipped on the black heels, I looked at myself in the mirror. Was this really me? I looked... gorgeous. I unlocked the door and walked out, smiling at James nervously. I hoped he would like it.
His eyes practically popped out of their sockets as he stared at me. I could tell he liked it.
"I think I just turned straight." He joked, grinning large and proud. He clasped his hands together. "I am good at this!"
He twirled his finger, motioning for me to turn around so he could see a 360 view of the dress.
"Perfect." He sighed. "Simply perfect." After I got dressed, he drug me to the checkout line, laying the dress and shoes carefully on the counter. The lady rang it up.
"Forty-two dollars and ninety-nine cents." She stated in a raspy voice. I almost choked on the air in front of me. Forty-two dollars and ninety-nine cents?! Was he trying to be broke?
"Don't worry," She placed a hand on my shoulder. He could tell I was close to hyperventilating. He waved a credit card in front of me. "My parents aren't exactly poor."
He was rich? Why didn't he tell me before? That explained the expensive-looking car...
By the time we got back to the dorm, we had two hours to get ready. After he put on his tuxedo and did his hair in 30-minutes time -- impressive -- he went to work, readying me. I sat down in front of Miranda's vanity, frowning disgustedly at the thought of sitting where she had once sat.
James examined me for a moment, deciding what to do. He sighed.
"Your hair is absolutely perfect. All I have to do is your makeup."
And with that, he went to work.
"Are you ready?" James asked me as we stood in front of the door to the gym, where the dance was being held.
I took a deep breath and nodded, and James reached out and pulled the door open, allowing me to walk in first. I smiled nervously and walked in, the music loud and upbeat. People were laughing and dancing, talking to their friends, et cetera. James linked his arm with mine and guided me through the crowd. People stopped and stared at me in astonishment. Girls tried desperately to direct their boyfriends' attention back to them, some even slapping their guys.
I blushed and headed toward the center of the floor. James and I danced like best friends would, occasionally requesting our favorite songs. I was laughing and smiling and having fun. For once in my life, I was having fun.
With my parents, I never had fun. They were all obsessed with manners and proper etiquette and behavior, that they never really got to know their daughter, me. My parents weren't there. And I was glad that I didn't have to see them now.
Suddenly, James looked slightly distracted as he glanced quickly over my shoulder, his eyes locking onto something, causing him to frown. When I began to turn my head curiously, he grabbed the sides of my face and faced me back to him. This made me even more curious.
"Nothing, nothing, just... Let's just dance." He said with a friendly smile. I laughed as he grabbed me and twirled me. But as I twirled, I looked to where James had been staring, and that's when I understood what he was trying to keep me from.
Simply put: A couple dancing. Pressed together tightly, sucking face.
The bad part: The couple was Miranda and Michael. My heart dropped into my stomach and I felt as if I had been punched numerous times. I let out a small gasp. James looked alarmed and began to apologize frantically as if it were his fault.
"You don't need to see this, or worry about it." He insisted.
I don't know why I was so hurt. I shouldn't be. I'm over him.
Don't lie to yourself. You know you still love him.
Then what was Roy? Nothing?
Precisely.
I shook my head and forced a fake smile, the sides of my mouth quivering. James' apologetic look was killing me. I didn't need a pity party.
Turning away from Michael and Miranda, I ran out of the gym as fast as I could in heels, throwing open the doors. My face slammed into something warm and hard; a body. With a loud thud, I was knocked on my butt, onto the floor. I groaned and rubbed my face, where it had hit. A hand extended in front of my hand, its fingers beckoning for me to grab them. I looked up at the person I had run into, and my heart rose a little, beating faster and coming to life. Roy.
He smiled slightly at me, as if amused, but also admiration was hinted in his eyes. I stared up at him, my eyes fluttering and my lips parted.
"Well? You gonna get up, or are you comfortable down there?" He asked, smiling bigger and winking. I smiled and laughed, grabbing his firm hand and being lifted up. Still having hold of my hand, he pulled me closer to him, placing his other hand gently on my waist.
"So. What's a pretty lady like you doing at a dance alone?" Roy asked. I rolled my eyes. He was so cheesy, but adorable at the same time. I looked side to side. There was no sign of James. But, deciding it didn't really matter since I had Roy with me, I directed my attention back to him. His smile faded slowly to a slight frown.
"So... About that night..." I was hoping he wouldn't bring it up. But I should've known this conversation was inevitable. "Did you mean it? About liking me too?"
Not thinking, I immediately nodded and smiled. Then I stopped and thought about it. I had meant it at the time, that much was true. But did I still mean it? Maybe I hadn't completely gotten over Michael (even though we weren't really dating, but then again, neither were Roy and I).
Roy smiled, looking relieved.
"Good," He said, pulling me closer. "Then I shall have this dance." He said as he pulled me to the center of the dance floor, where I had been standing when I caught sight of Miranda and Michael. I stiffened, quickly looking to see if they were still standing there, making out.
They weren't. But they were laughing and moving across the dance floor to an empty space, dancing closely and placing their hands on each other's butts. Michael glanced up from Miranda. I held my breath as our eyes met. He seemed shocked for a moment, blinking a few times and looking down at Miranda, saying something absentmindedly. Miranda looked toward me, following Michael's gaze. She scowled and slapped him on the cheek, yelling something I couldn't really hear. She stormed off. Michael hesitated for a moment, frowning at me and Roy, then took off quickly after the drama queen.
Roy sighed and drew me into an embrace as we danced.