Northern Lights

Chapter 7: Feelings Bite

My alarm goes off. It's six in the morning, and I can barely find the strength to open my eyes. I know I need to hurry and get up so I can get ready before Avery comes over. It's the day of Mahdi's graduation. Today is going to be a long day. The graduation is at eight and I need to shop for a dress after. Mahdi is having a party bus that he invited me and Avery on tonight for celebration. I'm really excited, because I've never been on a party bus or know what to expect. I'm also nervous, because it's been a week since I last seen Rome and basically asked him to marry me. I'm so embarrassed by the things I said that night, the thought of them makes my skin crawl. I also hate that he had to babysit me that night. But a few nights after that night he was extremely drunk snapchatting me. He said some wild things also, so I guess I can't feel too bad. He was asking me to go over and take care of him, but got upset when Mahdi told me no. He mentioned that he wanted to be next to me and it made my heart sink, but I knew they were just drunk words. I need to stop thinking about him and get ready.

After an hour I finally am ready and Avery had gotten here about thirty minutes before. "So after graduation I need to get a dress, I need shoes, and we need to get our nails done." I tell Avery as I combed my hair one last time. "Sounds good to me, can we get chicken and waffles for lunch?" Avery asks. I nod and agree. When Avery and I get in my car I ask her, "So why did you leave early the other night?" I still haven't gotten an answer from her since that night. "Honestly I was tired, I wanted to go home. I really did have an early morning." She replies. Before I can respond to her she asks, "So did you and Rome have a good time?" I smile at the mention of his name, what a loser I have become. "He had to babysit me for part of the night because I was so drunk. I felt bad the next morning." I say. I then tell her the details of the night and we discuss how funny and embarrassing it was. Before I know it we are at Mahdi's graduation. We hurry and find seats before it starts. When we sit down we can see Mahdi sitting in his chair in front of us. He sees us and we both wave at him. I'm so proud of Mahdi and his accomplishments. He is graduating with a degree in chemical engineering. When Mahdi walks across the stage to get his degree I hear people cheering loudly and chanting his name. When I look over I see it's Mahdi's family and Rome. Rome is in a navy suit with his hair pulled back into a bun. This is the first time I've ever seen him dressed up. He looks so handsome. I can't help but to keep looking in his direction.

After the graduation is over me and Avery walk outside to congratulate Mahdi. I give Mahdi a huge hug as I tell him, "Congratulations." I walk up to Rome and hug him. His cologne overtakes my nose and he smells addicting. He smelled rich. "You look snazzy today." I say as I break away from his embrace. "What does snazzy mean?" Rome asked. I forget he is new to English slang. "Look it up!" I tell him as me and Avery walk out of the way of the crowd of people. I can tell I left Rome wondering what I meant by the look he gave me. I know he will be contemplating the meaning until he finally knows the definition. Mahdi asked us to take a picture with him, so I handed Rome my phone and purse to hold. After we take the picture and I reclaim my possessions from Rome, he grabs my arm and asks, "What does snazzy mean Miley?" I know he wont let me go until I give him an answer. "It means you look classy, handsome, and sexy. It's slang." I say as he undoes his grip on my arm. He smiles and says,"Well thank you." I can see the relief in his face. But I can also see his pride level up a notch. "Mahdi text me when you want us to go over, we are going to get lunch and shop for outfits." I say as I hug the guys bye. "Make sure you wear something tight and short." Mahdi jokes and Rome nods. I shake my head in disappointment and tell them to "Shut up!"

Avery bought a tight hot pink dress that made her tan skin glow. She looked like a goddess. I found a tight, short maroon colored dress. I normally wouldn't wear maroon because my hair already has a lot of red in it. But this dress made me feel like I looked like a goddess too. It gave the illusion that I had curves. I paired my dress with rose gold heels that were covered in sparkles. Rome has never seen me this dressed up before, so I hope he will be impressed. I do intense makeup that will hopefully make me look a little older and more matured. I put my hair half up and let my side bangs wrap around my face. I chug a truly before I head to Mahdi's apartment to get on the bus. My nerves are bad, because I don't want to seem stupid or boring. My selfish hope is that Rome looks at me tonight and thinks maybe we can be more.