No Matter What

Prom Night

I couldn't wait to spend my whole prom night in the girls' bathroom. The narrow, graffiti-littered stalls and chipped wall tiles were calling my name. I had a bag of salt and vinegar chips from the vending machine and my phone set up on the toilet paper holder, just like I did every day at lunchtime. All was right in the world.

"Ah, this is the life," I said, stretching out as my navy-blue prom dress slid across the floor under my feet. Connor got it for me. It had an overlay of white glitter, so it looked like the stars against the night sky.

I watched my favorite livestream while people came in and out. The bathroom door opened again and let in a blast of cheesy pop music, which was then muffled out by the door closing.

"Ayla, are you really still in here?"

I looked down at the gap between the beige tile floor and the door of my favorite stall. There was a pair of shiny black dress shoes, and one of those shoes was tapping impatiently.

"Sir, this is the girls' bathroom," I said.

"Ayla, it's been thirty minutes."

"And your point is—"

"My point is..." He pushed the door open. Curses. The one time I forgot to lock it. "My point is that we're at prom. You said you would come with me."

"And here I am! I'm at prom. I put on the dress and even took pictures with you. I did the whole shabang. Just go have fun with Chris and the rest of the gang, and I'll be here until it's time to leave," I said, trying to shut the stall door.

Of course, he stopped me. Connor put out his big, strong, quarterback hand out and pushed that door right back open.

"Sensory overload?" he asked.

"No. Anxiety about possibly getting a sensory overload," I said, letting out an over dramatic sigh. "Look, you know proms and noisy things like this aren't my cup of tea and that I'd much rather be up on my roof looking at the stars."

"Hang on. Who said it has to be your roof?"

My eyes narrowed, because Connor was giving me that smile. That perfectly devilish smile, which always meant we were about to go and do something we weren't supposed to be doing. It was the part of him I loved the most.

"You and me. The roof of the school. Let's go," he said, holding out his hand.

"Connor Midnight, you can't possibly be telling me that you know how to get to the roof of this building." He raised an eyebrow, and I smiled. "You do know? I don't want to know how you found that out."

"Follow me," he said, taking my hand.

"But I still have half a bag of chips left!"

"Knowing you, there's sure to be plenty of room in that bag of yours."

I stuffed the chips into my magenta void of a purse, washed the grease off my fingertips, and we were onto our next adventure.

Connor led me by the hand through hallways of paint-chipped lockers, leaky water fountains, and dark classrooms full of empty desks. The sight of all these rooms reminded me that while I loathed school, there was only a little over a year of it left. Then, we'd be off to college and separated. I'd have to go through my life without him. The thought of that much change was a lot on me.

No more of Connor's crazy antics. No more conversations on my roof under all the stars. No more pain-stakingly trying to teach him the names of every constellation I could see with the naked eye.

No more of those nights where I'd be hunched over at my telescope and he'd come up to kiss me from behind. Which of course, would sometimes scare the bejeezus out of me and I'd stab myself in the eye with the lens of the scope. Good times. Perfect times. Times I never wanted to end just because we were getting older.