Oxygen

Chapter 33 - Today's the day

I wake up feeling drowsy, and wipe the sleep from my eyes. Today's the day, I realize. I get out of bed and walk slowly to the shower. I can feel the dried tears on my face from last night. I feel sad that Alice, my only true sister, isn't here to wish me luck. But there's nothing I can do to bring her back. I just need to enjoy this day, because I'll never have another formal.

I washed my hair thoroughly, and scrubbed my apple scented shampoo into the routs. Once I was clean, I stepped out and wrapped my towel around me. I got changed into underwear and a dressing gown so that I didn't have the dress on too early. It was eleven o'clock already, and I was starting to get nervous. I had an hour until Evelyn arrived, and then we were getting ready together.

I towel dried my hair and left it hanging down my back. The nerves were definitely kicking in. I walked downstairs with my phone in hand. According to Evelyn, I wasn't aloud to talk to Jordan the day before prom, so I texted him to organize the limo time. Jordan was so organized he managed to get a limo for the four of us, so we could ride around before the formal.

I entered the kitchen and started making pancakes. They were Evelyn's favourite, so I knew it would start our day off well. I plated them up in the middle of the table with maple syrup and waited for Evelyn. I had nothing to do until she arrived, so I sat at the dining table nervously, trying not to bite my nails.

I played a million games on my phone while I waited, and listened to some music. I was singing along to Heart lines by Florence and the Machine when there was a knock at the door. I ran to the door in my gown to open it.

"Hey Fern!!" Evelyn shouted, wrapping me in a tight hug. I squeezed her back as I closed the door and we went to the table. As soon as she saw the pancakes her eyes popped out of her head. "Oh my god, you didn't!" she yelled, and I laughed at her excitement. She must be drunk or something.

We both ate the pancakes quickly while dancing to Adventures of a Lifetime. After cleaning our plates, we went to the lounge and watched Twilight. It probably wasn't the best choice of movie, but we watched the entire saga anyway. After eating all the popcorn we had, and brushing our teeth again, we were ready for hair and makeup.

I sat on the kitchen stool in front of a wall length mirror as Evelyn brushed through my hair. Once she was finished she straightened it, and then curled it into perfect ringlets. My hair was never too good with heat, so it needed the double treatment.

I sat in silence listening to music as Evelyn pinned the curls into a bun on my head. Once she was finished I looked at my hair in the mirror in awe. It looked amazing. The curls framed my face perfectly and made me look just like me. At the back there was a blue clip to match my dress.

Next Evelyn moved on to my makeup. I never really wear makeup. I only use mascara on the odd occasion when I'm in the mood for it. She started with foundation, spreading it perfectly on my face. The colour matched my skin tone well, and as she slowly applied the blush, eye shadow and mascara, I looked like the most fierce woman in the world. My neutral blue eye shadow was blended with a silver one, and there was matching liner under my eyes. My bold black eye lashes made my eyes look big, and the pink on my cheeks completed the look.

Once Evelyn was happy with my makeup, she moved on to her own. "Go and put your dress on" she instructed, so I went upstairs to get it. I heard Bonnie come in the door just as I reached the stairs.

"Hey, Mum" I said, smiling as she closed the door behind her. "Oh, wow, you look beautiful Fern" she said, wiping her teary eyes. "You can give me credit for that" Evelyn said, rounding the corner with her makeup done. She gave Bonnie a hug and they both headed up the stairs with me.

I put my dress on in my room, while Evelyn put hers on in the bathroom. Bonnie stood outside the door waiting for me. As I slid the long dress over my ankles, and past my waist, it began to feel real. I looked in the mirror at my unzipped dress. I held up the top of it as I stared into the mirror. The blue gown flowed perfectly to my feet, and the waist glimmered as the diamonds sparkled.

"Bonnie, can you zip up the back?" I asked through the door. She came in and stared at the dress. "It looks even more beautiful on you" she said emotionally. I looked up to see her smiling at me, her pale eyes shining with happiness. Sometimes it was hard to tell if she really cared about me like a mother should, but when I looked into her eyes, I knew she loved me just enough.

Evelyn interrupted the moment as she came out of the bathroom. ""Fern, you look stunner!" she said, standing behind me in front of the mirror. "You look beautiful too" I said, sniffing. "No crying now girls, your dates will be here soon" Bonnie said, and we nodded as we had a group hug.

"I'll take some photos of you girls together before they arrive" Bonnie suggested, so we stood in front of the window to pose. We stood there smiling, with an arm around each other's shoulders as she snapped the picture. This day was going perfectly.

After a thousand pictures and a few near-tears, the boys arrived in the limo. We watched them approach through my window and screamed together. Bonnie laughed and went downstairs to answer the door. Evelyn organized for her to answer, so that we could make our grand cliché entrance down the stairs.

I rolled my eyes as I heard Bonnie giving both boys the 'take care of them and don't do anything stupid' talk. Once she was finished she called for us to come downstairs. Evelyn opened my bedroom door slowly as she gripped my hand. We stayed together as we walked down the stairs.

Every step made my knees wobble. My heals shook under me as I gripped the hand rail, trying not to fall. I kept my eyes on my feet to ensure I wouldn't fall or get distracted by what I saw when I looked up.

Evelyn reached the bottom first, and gave Nik a hug. I heard them whispering to each other as they all waited for me. Once I reached the last step, I looked up, and saw a handsome man in front of me. I nearly tripped as I walked towards him, watching his eyes bulge from his head. His gaze traveled up and down my body, and rested on my face. I was immensely impressed with his control.

I smiled as I stood inches from Jordan, and held his sweaty hands in mine. He leaned down and kissed my hand, then handed me a blue rose to go on my wrist. I slid it on and looked at his attire. He was wearing a basic black suit, with a shimmering navy blue tie to match my dress. How did he know? I lifted my gaze to his combed back hair and bright blue eyes.

"Ready to go?" Evelyn asked, breaking the silence. "Uh, yea" I said nervously. Jordan squeezed my hand as we headed to the limo. Bonnie took several pictures of us all, making sure she didn't miss anything. Once she was finished, Jordan opened the door for me to get in, and Evelyn got in the other side.

We shared a look of excitement as Jordan and Nik got in and closed the doors behind them. "We're going for a drive through the city first, then we'll go to the formal" Nik said happily.

We sit excitedly in the limo as Jordan passes me a lemonade. We've all agreed that no one would drink any alcohol tonight, mostly because I wasn't old enough and I don't want to be sober alone.

Once we reach the city I look out the window at all the bright lights. It's a beautiful view. The tall buildings sparkle as the sun lowers towards the horizon. I lean my head on Jordan's shoulder and smile to myself. This night is already perfect.

We drive for a couple of hours through the city, watching the other cars go past, until finally we pull up at school for the formal. The assembly building is covered in silver and baby blue streamers, tinsel and a big bright sign with 'Senior formal '16' on it. I smile, feeling excited to go in. Tonight is going to be a big night.

************************************

Hi everyone,

Thanks for reading!
I hope you enjoyed reading this chapter, I loved writing it and couldn't wait to finally post it! I hope it's good enough, but the best part will come next chapter!

What do you imagine the formal being like? Who's been to a formal?

Don't forget to vote and comment!
Alice xx