Everlance Academy

Chapter 34

The ceremony is nothing unusual, besides maybe Chrystal's gown. It's white and mermaid-style, and she has a veil on the top of her head. There are four people walking behind her at all times, making sure that the white fabric is laid smoothly. According to Louise, it is exactly 9 meters and 57 centimeters long.

My dad doesn't cry when Chrystal walks down the isle. I couldn't describe his facial expression. Excited, maybe. Hungry. It's better than indifference, at least.

After they exchanged rings and gave each other a cinematic kiss—my father cupped her ass with his hands, ew—all unwed women were asked to the dance floor for Chrystal to throw her bouquet.

I stand at the far end of the dance floor, wanting to avoid this whole situation altogether, but Juliette drags me with her to where all the other women are standing.

"My dad says he wants me to participate in these wedding traditions to make the bride happy, and if I have to suffer, so do you," she whispers, and I grin, letting her take me.

In my heels, I tower over almost everyone on the dance floor, which means I have a perfect view of Nikolai, who is still sitting at our table, grinning at me.

I raise my eyebrows. What?

He chuckles to himself and then tabs his fingers against the table without making a sound, using Morse code like we so often do. I can't hear the noise his finger is making, but I can make out the time his finger lingers on the white tablecloth each time. You hate this.

I want to give him the finger but think better of it since it wouldn't be exactly polite given all the people watching me. Instead, I look at Chrystal, right as she throws the flowers in a quite impressive arc.

At first, I think it's flying directly towards me and internally sigh, but then I realize it's aiming at Juliette's head.

I turn to her to see if she's going to catch it or duck, only to find her having a staring contest or something with her boyfriend.
"Juliette," I whisper as the bouquet comes flying towards us, "Juliette!"

But she seems completely oblivious to her surroundings, and the flowers keep swaying through the air, about to hit her in the face, and so I catch them instinctively, just to protect Juliette of the embarrassment of having a bouquet thrown at her.

The crowd around me erupts in loud cheers, and I smile at Chrystal, who looks both happy for me and worried for something else, something I can't quite put my finger on. The crowd dissolves, letting my dad and Chrystal have their first dance. After that, some people join them, while others walk back to their tables.

Nikolai pulls me back onto the dance floor and wraps his arms around me, so we're swaying to the sound of a slow song.

"Do you remember the autumn ball? We danced to that exact same song," Nikolai mumbles in my ear, his thumb caressing my back.

My face breaks into a grin at the memory. "You're right! God, I miss that moment. That was, hands down, one of the best nights of my life."

He swallows hard, and I could swear that he's shaking a little.
"What's wrong?", I ask.

"Would you kiss me now?", The words come out quickly, his voice barely a rasp.

I look up at him, my eyebrows drawn together in confusion. "What do you mean?"

"That night. When we were dancing. I asked you to kiss me, and you said no, that you weren't ready. If we were at Everlance Academy right now, at another ball, dancing, and I asked you again. Would you kiss me now?"

He's looking me in the eyes, and it's a ridiculous thing because I realize that he's actually waiting for my answer and that he's not sure if I would. Which is stupid because I would do anything he asked me to in a heartbeat.