Every girl fantasizes about finding her Prince Charming. But if that Prince refuses to come a girl has to take matters into her own hands.
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Becca squeals as she approaches the lunch table and sits in the empty seat beside me that I've left for her.
"Elijah asked me to prom!"
The girls mimic Becca's giddiness with similar squeals. I smile.
"Told you," I sing picking an olive out of my salad and plopping it into my mouth. I've been bugging Elijah to ask her for over a week and now he finally has.
"You didn't say anything to him?" She questions, doubt in her voice.
"No!" I lie, shaking my head. "Didn't have to."
I see the corners of her mouth twitch upward slightly as she turns her attention back to her food; it makes me feel good. Her little crush on him is adorable.
"What about you Harper?" Sara asks.
"What about me?"
"Have you decided, like, who you're going with?" She asks carefully. I'd specifically asked them all not to ask me anymore about Holden. I don't want to think about him or talk about him. I'm trying my best to pretend he doesn't even exist, which is pretty fucking hard.
I shrug. "No one wants to go with me, I guess."
"Harper, I don't know if you, like, forget this sometimes, but everyone loves you," Becca says obviously.
"Everyone does not love me," I roll my eyes.
"Oh they do," Alejandra refutes. "And if they say they don't, they really do. And if they really don't, they'll pretend they do. Either way they do."
Becca tilts her head slightly and purses her pink lips like she's trying to do the calculations.
"The point is you need to pick someone to go to the prom with," she shakes her head. The two of them have mourned my breakup with me, but they'd forbid me from staying home from prom. I knew they'd bring up this date situation eventually.
"I don't just get to pick," I say, pushing around the lettuce with my plastic fork. "People have to ask me."
"They're nervous!" Becca rolls her eyes.
Nervous?
"I mean, who wants to take Holden Frasier's ex to prom right after they broke up?" she shrugs, dipping her fry in ketchup.
I sigh and rest my head in my palm, glancing at Holden for a second, who sits across the cafeteria smiling at Jake. My heart clenches and I close my eyes for a second trying to clear my mind.
"So, then I don't have a date."
"Listen, Harper, you're wrong. You absolutely get to pick. Just tell us who you want to go with, and we'll get them to ask you," Alejandra shrugs. "Anyone."
I lick my lips and shrug. Who do I want to go with? I don't know? Holden? No. No, I don't know. Prom is in 8 days. I have a dress from when I was with Holden, but I will not go by myself.
"What about Grant?" Alejandra asks. I glare at her. I never told them the specifics of what happened with Grant at his party. I just said it would never work out.
"Who cares if you like him or not?" She rolls her eyes. "He's cute and--"
"No," I say sternly, setting my fork down.
Alejandra glares at me a second then rolls her eyes. "Fine, whatever."
I look around the cafeteria absentmindedly; a poster to come out and support the boys basketball team Thursday catches my attention.
"What about Trevor?" I say after a minute. The girls exchange looks and I shift in my seat thinking about the basketball player. "Is he still with that girl? Amber?"
I don't really know Trevor. Usually he's with this blonde in my AP World History class. He's in my soc class and we were partners for a quick project once, but I've barely noticed him until attending the last basketball game. Going to school sporting events has never been our thing but Becca insisted I needed to stop sulking and we couldn't think of anything else to do. Everyone was going; it was the playoffs or something. Trevor scored the winning basket and his smile was literally to die for.
Alejandra shrugs. "Who cares? If they're together we'll just break them up."
"No," I frown at her. "Find out if they're dating. If they are, I'll think of someone else," I assure them.
"Sure thing," Becca smiles.
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Trevor slings his practice bag over his shoulder and drags his feet out the locker room, exhausted. He wipes the sweat off his forehead with the back of his hand as he walks out the front of his school. He furrows his eyebrows, approaching his car slowly in confusion.
Becca leans against the hood of his silver BMW nonchalantly, tapping away on her phone while Alejandra stands beside her eyeing him down.
He recognizes the two girls as would anyone else that goes to Lockwood. The sight of them by his car waiting for him after basketball practice unnerves him. He shakes his head a little. Why is he unnerved by a couple of girls half his size?
"Can I help you?" He asks strongly.
The voice breaks Becca out of her concentration of responding to her Instagram comments and she tilts her head down, peering at Trevor over her Gucci sunglasses. She smiles and slides her phone into her back pocket but remains leaned against his car.
"Trevor Macintosh?" She asks.
"Yeah," he says, eyebrows still furrowed, adjusting his bag on his shoulder.
"I'm Becca and this is--"
"I know who you are," Trevor cuts her off with a wave of his hand.
"Great," Alejandra smiles. "And you know Harper?"
"Everyone knows Harper."
"Well she wants you to take her to prom," Becca tells him.
Trevor's eyebrows raise and he tilts his head in suspicion. Harper Caldwell wants him to ask her to prom? Holden Frasier's ex girlfriend? The girl that replaced Lydia O'Connell? The girl that walked in New York fashion week?
"Harper?" He asks skeptically. "Me?"
They barely know each other. They were partners a month or two ago for a sociology project, but other than that they haven't spoken to each other more than twice.
Trevor lips his lips and shakes his head, remembering Amber.
"I was planning on taking Amber," he murmurs running a hand through his hair.
They've been on and off since sophomore year. He took her to prom last year and even though they've been fighting they both figured he'll take her again, he just hasn't asked yet since they're currently off.
"Change of plans," Becca shrugs. "I mean, honestly, this is Harper Caldwell."
Trevor sighs. Amber has been a bitch for the last few weeks. They aren't even dating right now. It's not like he's obligated to take her, right? She's the one that said she was done. And Becca's right. This is Harper Caldwell.
But what about Holden?
Trevor shakes the thought out of his head. Fuck Holden; they're broken up. Just like he and Amber are.
"Alright," he says. "I'll take her."
++++++
Since I first arrived Manhattan I've had plenty of firsts.
Some of them have been amazing, some have them have sucked ass, but nothing has been more painful than my first breakup. My first heartbreak.
There's a dull pain in my heart. It sounds corny, and I'd never say it out loud, but it's fucking true. There's an aching in my chest when I think about him or hear his name.
I hate seeing him in the hall. I hate that I had to break up our lunch table to avoid him. I hate trying not to make eye contact at school, and staying hidden at work so I don't accidentally bump into him.
I'm over crying my eyes out. It's been 2 weeks. How pathetic am I? Crying over someone that probably couldn't care less!
I can hear his laugh down the hall, standing out--at least to my ears--over Elijah and Jake's. I groan into my pillow.
I love his laugh.
No--I hate it.
Ugh.
He laughs again. The sound makes my heart clench.
Elijah had asked me earlier if it was okay if he invited Holden over. What was I supposed to say? No? How could I tell him he couldn't invite his best friend over to his own house, after I'd been hogging him for months?
My stomach growls and I roll over onto my back. Looking up at the ceiling, I debate leaving the room. I swore to myself I'd stay in here until Holden left, but he's been here for 3 hours now, and the smell of the pizza they'd ordered has been killing me slowly for 23 minutes.
I text Elijah and ask him to bring me a slice, but after 3 minutes of him not responding, I can't take it anymore. I jump out of bed and look at myself in the mirror. A mess. A makeup-less, frizzy haired, puffy-eyed mess.
Rolling my eyes at myself, I open up my bedroom door and peek out the hall to make sure the coast is clear; it is.
I trot down the stairs and make my way to the kitchen, stomach growling again. There's 2 boxes of pizza stacked on top of each other sitting on the island. I open the first one: empty. I roll my eyes and push it aside to get to the second box.
"Seriously?" I mutter, sneering at the sight of another empty box. Living with Elijah has been an experience. Teenage boys eat more than anyone I've ever seen. Even me. And I eat a lot.
"Microwave."
I jump, and look up to see that Holden has silently entered the kitchen.
His hair is a little shorter. I thought I'd noticed that, passing him in the hall the other day, but I refused to look long enough to be sure. Now that I'm standing in front of him, I can confirm he must've cut it.
He eyes roam over me intently as he takes a few steps closer. Self-consciously, I pull at the hem of the t-shirt I'm swimming in.
The hairs on my arm stand up and I hold my breath as he walks past me to the refrigerator.
"What?" I ask softly, turning around to face him. I don't even know how to talk to him. The last time we spoke was with so much anger and hatred.
"I figured you'd want some, so I saved you 2 slices. They're in the microwave," he says, pulling a can of Pepsi out of the fridge. "There's olives on them," he adds.
"Oh," I choke out awkwardly. Olives. He always teased me about liking them, telling me they were gross. He specifically had them order the pizza with 2 slices of black olives. The thought gives me an unwanted warm feeling inside.
"Thanks," I say quickly, tucking a loose curl that's fallen into my face behind my ear. He watches me keenly as I do so. I miss his fingers in my hair.
He nods once in response, then without another glance, turns and leaves to go back upstairs.
The warm feeling I had leaves and my heart aches as I stand in the kitchen alone.
He barely looked at me. He talked to me monotonously. He's completely over me, and I can barely contain how much I miss him.
++++++
"This is fucking boring," I tell Becca rolling my eyes.
"No, listen! This is fun! We're having fun, right?"
"No," I shake my head. "Since when do you even like basketball?"
"I don't," she pouts.
I look at her incredulously. After I called her basically crying and vented to her about Holden she picked me up and dragged me to this game.
"So then why are we here?" I ask exasperated. She couldn't have thought of anything better than going to another playoff game?
"The energy!" She smiles, throwing her hands up. "The cheering! The energy is fun! Fun energy makes you happy!"
I roll my eyes and put my head in my hands. I watch Trevor jog down the court, shouting something inaudible to the guy with the ball. The buzzer sounds loudly and I jump slightly. Halftime. The players jog off the court and and I sit up.
"I'm hungry," I tell Becca, standing up. "Do you want anything?"
"No!" She says frantically grabbing my wrist. My eyebrows furrow and I look down at her bewildered. "You'll miss the cheerleaders!"
"Who cares?"
"Give me a P!" They shout, mimicked by the crowd loudly.
"Sit down!" Becca hisses and I oblige, rolling my eyes.
"Give me an R!"
"R!"
I sit silently. Head in my palm, bored to death. We're the sharks. What the hell are they even spelling?
"Give me an O!"
"O!" Becca claps her hands and shouts loudly. She nudges me trying to urge me to participate.
"Give me an M!"
"M!"
I narrow my eyes. Prom?
I see Trevor appear from the sideline, a bouquet of roses in his left hand and a microphone in his right.
"Oh my God, he's going to ask Amber to Prom!" I hear the girl behind me coo to the person beside her.
"That's adorable," she responds.
Eyes still narrowed, I quickly glance at Becca who's beaming at me.
I look back at Trevor who's scanning the audience intently. When his eyes land on me he smiles widely and my heart skips a beat.
"Harper?" He asks. Everyone's eyes in the packed gym turn to me. My eyes widen as I stare down at Trevor. "Harper can you come down her a second?" He asks.
I look at Becca who gives me a look for to hurry. I stand up and bite my lip, jogging down the bleachers as everyone's eyes follow me. I can hear them whispering as I pass them.
When I reach Trevor he looks more nervous than he did from the middle of the bleachers.
He hands me the bouquet and I smile. He takes my free hand in his and exhales.
"Harper, will you go to prom with me?"
A chorus of awww sounds through the gymnasium and I lick my lips. Trevor raises his eyebrows at me bites his bottom lip in anticipation.
I purse my lips but ultimately smile.
"Of course."
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I hate this chapter I'm so sorry it originally wasn't going to end like this but I separated it into its own chapter because the next one is going to be lengthy and I didn't want it to be like 7000 words so ya I'm sorry but I'll make up for it with the next two chapters they're already planned out and I've started on them so yeah.
I missed you guys I'm sorry I've been slow but life ++ just an update on me I have the biggest crush rn like I've never experienced this emotion it's disgusting and also I joined the boys lacrosse team woo
And somebody else is so beautiful listen to it okay every song by the 1975 is beautiful but this one in particular makes me feel something idek???
But anyway the amount of drama that's in the next 2 chapters is going to be through the fucking roof like more than ever before so I hope you enjoyed this chill chapter bc the chill is officially gone after this ok
DONT FORGET TO VOTE AND COMMENT SND SHARE 💗💗💗<3