Right Place, Wrong Time

42. The Day the Dance is Over

For the dozenth time since she put it on, Lauren adjusted the neckline of her dress. Funny how the pressure to look good came on as soon as it was Joey she was going with, even though he'd seen her at her worst. Julia walked into her room to return the lipstick she'd borrowed.

"You look gorgeous," she promised, tugging gently on Lauren's hair, curled lightly at the ends.

"Thanks. So do you," Lauren smiled, still feeling butterflies in her stomach, reminding herself it was just Joey. But the population doubled when she heard the doorbell.

"That'll be him," Julia said, leading Lauren out of the bedroom and down the stairs.

Lauren took a deep breath, messing with her dress and her hair one more time, before opening the door. Joey was practically bouncing in the doorway, holding a bouquet of flowers. His smile faded into a look of wonderment as he looked her up and down.

"Wow," he said, the smile returning to his face as he looked her in the eyes. His hand twitched at his side as if he wanted to touch her, but stopped himself. "You look beautiful."

She knew the cut looked good on her, that the white flattered her skin tone, but suddenly she felt like the most beautiful girl in the world.

"Thank you," she said, her voice coming out breathy. "Are these for me?"

"No, for Julia," he teased, then handed them to her. "Do you like them?"

"I love them," she said, unable to resist bringing them to her nose and breathing in the scent, touched by the thought of him going and picking them out for her.

"I have something else for you too." He reached into his jacket pocket and delicately drew out a corsage of pristine white petals.

"Joey," she murmured. She should have known he'd go to this much effort for what was supposed to be a favour to her so she didn't have to go alone. She held out her wrist to him and he put it on, the brush of his fingers setting her skin on fire even though the night was already cooling and raising goosebumps higher up her arm.

"There," he said, smiling. He squeezed her fingers before letting her drop her arm back to her side.

Julia had tactfully given them the moment alone, but now she came to the door too.

"Let me take some photos of you before we go," she said.

"Us?" asked Lauren.

"Yes, you. You both look great."

Awkward prom pictures had not been on the cards tonight. There was no reason they had to be awkward, though. Joey had already looped her arm around his waist, so she followed his lead, smiling as Julia clicked away. And in that moment it felt right. To be walking into prom on Joey Richter's arm. Forgetting about the pictures, she turned her head up to look at him and he looked down on her, a smile playing up the corner of his lips. In her peripheral vision Lauren saw Julia lower the camera, but she was sure not before capturing that moment. She looked away quickly.

"I can take a couple of you two," Joey offered.

"That'd be great," Lauren said, relieved for the focus to be taken off them.

She and Julia put their arms around each other, Joey crouching to take pictures and ensuring that Lauren's laugh was captured entirely candidly. With that done, the three of them went outside and got in the taxi to take them to prom, where Julia would meet her date.

In that room of all her friends, lights twirling across the dance floor, Lauren forgot about the tensions of earlier in the evening. A crazy amount of pressure was put on prom, but at the end of the day it was no different to any of the other parties they'd had; a chance to celebrate the end of college and going off to start their lives. She had fun with Joey, and it was for that reason that she was glad she asked him.

Any other night she would have preferred to stick with him, but she was compelled to speak to as many people as she possibly could, the last chance she'd get before graduation. She would keep in contact with many of them, she was sure, the years spent together in such a formative time bonding them for life, but everything would be different. These were their last days of the in between area, adults but not. She would have felt bad about leaving Joey, but he had his own goodbyes to say, forming friendships just as close with many of the graduating seniors. It was as hard on him being left behind as it was on them leaving. She tried not to think about her own part in that.

It wouldn't be prom without dancing with her date, though. Plenty of it side by side in the huge group, but it seemed as natural when they danced in each other's arms, turning slow circles. His hand pressed against her back, his thumb resting on the skin above her dress. His other hand wrapped around hers, her fingers totally lost in it. These were the moments that she let herself think, just for a moment, about what it might be like if they were something more than friends. Then something occurred to her that really should have before now.

"Can I ask you something?" she said.

He'd been looking at her the whole time, but the faraway look in his eyes turned into something sharper. "Of course."

Lauren hesitated. "Is your girlfriend okay with this?"

There had been no romantic intentions when she'd asked him to prom, just seeking company from her best friend, but she wasn't sure she would have liked it if she were in his girlfriend's shoes.

Joey looked at her for a long moment. Then he smiled somewhat wistfully. "We broke up."

"Oh," she said, genuinely surprised. "When?"

"A couple months ago."

"Oh," she said again. A couple of months, and he hadn't said anything. "I'm sorry. What happened?"

His smile got sadder, and she regretted asking. "You want the reason I told her?" he said. "Or the real reason?"

Her lungs struggled to take in air. She wasn't sure she did want to know, but she forced herself to say it anyway. "The real reason."

His eyes never left hers as he answered. "I knew I wasn't over you."

She was the one who looked away. If she were a braver person, she might have told him how she felt right then. Told him how relieved it made her feel, even along with the guilt, to hear him say that. How sad she was for him that they'd broken up at the same time as being glad she no longer had to think about him with someone else. She might have told him she was in love with him, had been for a while.

But she was terrified of opening up her heart only to get it broken. Not that she didn't trust him to be careful with it. But they were going to be living different lives, in different states. Starting a relationship now just to have to say goodbye to him might break her, irreparably. And their friendship was too important to risk.

"I'm sorry," was all she repeated instead.

"Don't be. I don't think we would have worked out anyway," he said, misunderstanding her entirely.

But she let him believe that she was sorry about the girlfriend and not sorry that she couldn't return his feelings the way she wanted to.

"This dress really does look good on you," he said.

"Thanks." She smiled bashfully, feeling undeserving of the compliment. "You look really good in that suit too."

"When I tell you about the trouble I had trying to find a tux two weeks before prom."

She laughed. "You really saved my ass."

"I'm really glad you asked me."

"Me too." For all the moments of awkwardness, of longing, of heartache, there was no one she'd rather share this night with in Nick's absence than him.

He pulled her closer so that her head rested on his chest, her forehead against the knot of his tie. "I wish this night could last forever."

"Me too," she said again. Then she wouldn't have to say goodbye to him, wouldn't have to leave, wouldn't have to think about what came next and whether they could hold on to what they had or whether their friendship would drift apart like boats caught in two different currents.

But even the most perfect nights had to end, or perhaps especially those, and as the party drew to a close and everyone piled into cars to head to the afterparty, they came one step closer.