The Fall of the Aftons

154: Elizabeth Afton

Elizabeth sat on the edge of her bed, brushing Ella's hair. Sure, the doll wasn't hers, but it was the least she could do for Charlie while she was gone. So she brushed the doll's hair, also making sure that the doll stayed clean while she stayed in Charlie's room.

A knock on the door startled her out of her thoughts. She turned toward the noise, grinning when she saw Michael standing in the doorway. But he was dressed abnormally well. He had a black suit and dress shoes on. The rest of him looked like a mess, though—his long hair was pulled back into a messy ponytail, his tie wasn't tied, and his shoes were untied.

Beth giggled, gently sitting Ella on the bed. "Do you want some help, Mikey?"

He gave a sheepish smile, fidgeting the tie around his neck. "Yes, please. You're much better with this fashion-y, fancy stuff than I am."

He was correct. Within thirty minutes, she had fixed his bow tie, made his hair look neater, and even found a way to hide his black eye with some of Miss Bishop's old makeup. His tie was tied and centered around his neck; his hair was unknotted and smooth, and she had incorporated a small braid into it to make it look neater; there were no remnants of his black eye, either.

Michael stood in front of the mirror next to Charlie's three closets, admiring his change in appearance. His expression screamed that he was genuinely amazed. "Woah," he breathed, his voice barely audible. "You work miracles, Beth. You're magic." He laughed brushing some of his bangs out of his face. "Thank you so much. I look twenty times better than I did an hour ago."

"What are you dressing up for, anyway?" she asked as she gave Michael a hug around one of his legs. "I've never seen you look so fancy before."

"I'm, um... I'm going to the school dance," he answered, avoiding eye contact as he spoke. "I wasn't going to go at first, but Noah secondhandedly convinced me otherwise." He looked back at the mirror, looking himself up and down with nervous eyes. "Do... Do you think that if I asked, my crush would dance with me?" he whispered.

"Of course!" she exclaimed, grinning. "You're too handsome—he'll certainly dance with you."

He turned to her, his eyes wide with surprise, his face flushed. "H-How did you—"

Her giggling cut him off. "Come on, it's so obvious! I've seen the way you look at him. You look at him the same way Henry did with Daddy."

He chuckled awkwardly, glancing away. "Yeah, I... I guess so."

"I know it's against the rules for a boy to love a boy," she said, shrugging. "Daddy told me when he told me and Evan that he and Henry were dating. But you can't help it, right? That's what he told me, that he couldn't help but love Henry."

Michael chuckled, sighing slightly. "Yeah, that's true."

She grinned and hugged him before telling him, "Have fun! I hope he says yes."