Start Loving Me

Chapter Six: Plom not Prom

It's the evening, and Ariel has been texting Eshan for a while now. They've been talking about all sorts of things, and she feels like she can really open up to him, finally they end the conversation. And then, there's a knock on the front door,she leaves her room and goes to open it.
Ama and Ana are standing at the door, holding their stuff, and asking if they could come in and get ready for prom.
She lets her friends in, they come in, carrying their dresses and bags, and they head to her bedroom. Ama and Ana are smiling and trying to act upbeat and cheerful, but they're worried about their friend. They try to get her to sit down and talk about how she's feeling. Ama says, "You know we just want what's best for you, right? We're really worried about you."
Ariel looks at her with a confused expression. She doesn't understand why her friends are so worried. So, Ama continues, "It's just, since we left the hospital that day, you've been so different. You're not the same person. You're not smiling, you're not laughing, you've not been active online, I know it's hard for you now but please don't shut everyone out. You've not even cried in our presence or called us to comfort you since Adara died. It's like you're just going through the motions of life." Ana nods in agreement.

At the mention of Adara's name,Ariel feels broken once again but doesn't show it,she didn't want to worry her already-worried friends.
"I'm fine" she says and quickly adds "Did you guys come here just to dress or sympathize with me" she says with a half smile.
Ama and Ana share a glance,they know she was trying to act cheerful but they didn't talk about it since she wasn't comfortable with it.
Instead, Ama the talkative one says
" Ariel! We know you said you weren't going to prom, but we actually came by  to see if we could change your mind."
"Ama!!!" Ana yells throwing her a look
"I'll go"
"What?!" Both girls yell in unison
"I'll go" Ariel repeats
"Really?" Asked Ama
"Yes"
"Then let's get dressed" Ana squeals

Ana grabs the bag they brought, and pulled out the black dress Ariel had picked that day in the mall alongside heels she and Ama bought for Ariel.

Ariel looked at the dress,it has a special significance for her, since it was the one she picked out on that day,the same dress she had been super excited trying on before she witnessed her little sister's death. The dress now held a special significance for her, a reminder of the tragedy she had experienced.

As Ama and Ana helped Ariel get ready for the prom, she felt a tinge of sadness every time she looked at the black dress she was wearing. But she tried to push those feelings aside, not wanting to ruin the mood for her friends. She could feel them looking at her with concern, but she kept on a brave face and smiled, determined to make the most of the night.

Ama and Ana finished helping her get ready and got dressed, before they all headed to the prom together. Ariel felt a mix of emotions as they drove there, the sadness of her sister's death mixed with the excitement of going to the prom with her friends.

When they arrived, the music was playing already.
As Ama and Ana led the way into the prom, Ariel was hit with a wave of noise and movement. People were dancing and laughing, and the music was loud and thumping. She felt like she couldn't breathe, like the world was closing in on her. She stood still, feeling frozen in place. Feeling overwhelmed by the noise and the crowd, Ariel makes her way to the drinks table. She grabs a few shots and starts chatting with some of the people there. They seemed friendly and welcoming, and they ask her to join them for a dance,but she turns them down and watches them dance their way to the dance floor.

From the corner of her eyes,she sees Bryce coming in her direction, she felt guilty facing him because she rejected him earlier but her butt remained stuck to the chair.
He approached her at the drinks table, asking if  she wanted to have some shots with him, and she agrees.
They each down a few shots, but then Bryce starts to get worried about how much she was drinking. He tells her to slow down, but she ignores him and keeps taking shots.

"Ariel, you've had enough" he yells at her, but still no response.
"Ariel I know you're affected by your little sister's death, a lot of people has heard of it,no one wants to talk about it so you wouldn't think of it. I know it's hard for you but don't take it out on-" his face had turned to the other side before he could complete his sentence.
His left cheek hurt a little, Ariel had slapped. He realized he had said too much and even mentioned her sister's death but he couldn't apologize because she already staggered her way out.

Ariel feeling weird staggered out of the hall to a classroom,she wanted to be alone,Bryce had mentioned her sister. Thinking about it annoyed her,he deserved more than the slap but she was so weak now. She thought of Eshan and decided to send him a picture, In her drunken state, she accidentally calls Eshan instead of sending him a picture. When he picks up,she was confused,she never knew people could now appear in your camera.

Eshan: Hey
Ariel: "You can *burps* talk?" she asks, eyes widened
Eshan: Why not? Why'd you call?
Ariel: "I called?" Not giving him a chance to respond,she continues. "I wanted..*hiccups* to..to send.. send you a plom picture"
Eshan: "Prom?" He asked not sure
Ariel: Plom! Plom! Not Prom
Eshan: "Ariel you're drunk" finally realizing that she was drunk.
Ariel: No, I'm not,I want to tell you.....you something.
Eshan: Where are your friends, why are you alone?
Ariel: I love you Eshan,I always did*hiccups* I..I lo..lov-
He cuts her off before she can finish her sentence
Eshan: Look, you're not thinking clearly right now. You're just drunk, and you're saying things you might not mean. I don't think it's a good idea for us to have this conversation when you're like this. Maybe we can talk tomorrow, when you're sober?
Ariel: No, no, no! I'm not drunk, I'm just telling the truth! I love you. Please believe me!.
Eshan: I can't take anything you're saying right now seriously. I know you're not in your right mind. I really think we should talk about this later, when you're feeling better. Try to relax and get some rest.
Ariel: But... but...
Eshan: I'm hanging up now. We'll talk later. Get some rest.
Ariel: *in a small voice* Okay. Bye.
Eshan hangs up the phone. Ariel looks at her phone, and then stares off into space, thinking about what just happened. She felt sad and confused,she started crying.

In a daze, Ariel makes her way out of the classroom. She finds Ama and Ana on the dance floor, laughing and dancing with some of their friends. Ariel stumbles up to them, and they immediately noticed something was wrong.
Ama asks "Ariel! Are you okay? You look like you've been crying."
Ariel: *sniffles* I want to go home. Please, let's just go home. I don't want to be here anymore.
Ana: Okay,let's go.
Ama: But prom king and queen will be announced soon
Ana: We're going,help me hold Ariel up
Ama: *sighs* Why did she drink so much anyway?
Ana: I thought I saw her with Bryce
Ama: Really?!
Ana: Yeah, we'll find out why she drank so much when she's sober.
They helped Ariel into the backseat and laid her down, covering her with a duvet that was under the car seat. As soon as she laid down,she dozed off, it seemed like everything that happened today didn't. A teardrop fell from her right eye as she dozed.