Mr. Bad Boy

Part 29

"He asked you to prom?" Ashley shouted when I told her.
We were in the mall doing some prom shopping, Andre's request. He had said he didn't want us to miss out on the prom rituals that every girl does and forced us to go to the mall.
"Could you be any louder?" I yelled under my breath.
I scanned racks for a dress that wouldn't make me gag, but all the dresses here were not of my taste.
"What did you say?" Ashley stopped looking at her dresses and looked me in the eyes waiting for an answer.
I shied away and went back to the racks. "I said I'll think about it."
"Think about it?!" Ashley yelled so loud that everyone in the store looked over at us. "What is there to think about?"
I grabbed onto Ashley's wrist and pulled her out of the store.
"You don't have to shout, you do know that right?" I told her as I dragged her to another store.
This store was large. Dresses all around the walls, in every corner was a white doll wearing a large floral dress, each a different color. The racks were filled with dresses, all large and neon colors.
"Ok, ok." She said in a calmer voice. "but why do you need to think about it? It should have been an easy yes."
It should have been. But it wasn't.
When he asked me, I couldn't get my words to come out. I just stood in front of him and just looked at him, in shock.
I couldn't believe he was actually asking me. Out of all the girls that swoon over him, he had chosen me.
I mean I understand that we're friends, but really, me?
"I don't know," I told Ashley after walking away from a rack of yellow dresses , "I just need to know if it's right. I don't want him to get the wrong idea."
"Wrong idea?" Ashley said, following after me.
"Yeah."
"He likes you, Beth. You do realize that, right?"
"He doesn't. And if I say yes, then maybe he'll actually like me. And I don't want to commit to another relationship."
"Do you like him?"
I looked at Ashley. How could she be so ridiculous to ask me that. "That's crazy." I told her.
"That's not answering my question."
As scanning the dresses, I pulled out a pink one and looked at it. "No."
Ashley sighed. "Look me in the eyes and tell me."
I looked up and stared in her hazel eyes. "No."
"No, what?"
"No I do not like Peter." I felt my cheeks burn up and I quickly looked away from her eyes and looked back at the dress.
It wasn't my color or my style. I put it back on the rack and went to skimming through some other dresses.
"You do like him!" Ashley shouted.
"Prove it."
"You couldn't even look me in the eyes for more than three seconds, your cheeks went red when you talked about liking him, and anything we talk about Peter, you try to avoid using his name or even the conversation."
Three points for Ashley.
"That doesn't mean anything." I testified.
"Why won't you just admit it?"
"I can't."
"Why?"
I looked at Ashley. "Because I'm crazy about him."
"So what's so bad about that?"
I sighed. "What if the feelings not mutual?"
"He asked you to prom, of course it is."
"Could be just as friends." I argued back.
"Did he say as friends?"
"No."
"Then?"
I started making my way out of the neon color store and tried to find another store with dresses that weren't as bad as this one.
"I can't put my all in for another relationship."
Ashley took a sip of her water. "You could at least try."
"It wouldn't work out anyways." I told her.
"Why? What's your excuse this time?"
"The school year is coming to an end."
Ashley raised a brow, not understanding what I was trying to tell her.
I pulled her into a quite little dress shop.
"Different schools after this, and long distance almost never works out."
"Almost. There are some that do work."
I ignored her and went looking at dresses. I went through a couple of dresses till one caught my eye. It was beautiful and just what I needed.
"I'm totally getting it." I told Ashley.
"Don't buy a dress if you don't have a date." Ashley sang.
I sighed and pulled out my phone. I punched in Petey's number and called him. He picked up after three rings.
"Do you think you could meet me at the food court? I want to talk to you."