Linger

T H I R T Y - S E V E N

"I do not want to be here right now." I groaned as I closed my eyes.

We were in the school gym, watching as everyone set up for the formal and performance later tonight.

At seven a.m.

On a Saturday.

At school.

Lovely.

"Well gee, Sonnie, I've never felt so wanted in my life." Tyler gasped dramatically, from next to me, clutching his chest as if he was hurt by my words.

"I didn't mean like that." I laughed. "Wait, are you still going to go to the formal, Ty?"

"Yeah, I still have tickets." He pulled out two winter formal tickets from his pocket. "And I don't think I can use them to get in to an amusement park so I guess I'll have to use them for tonight." He finished with a cheeky smile and I laughed, amazed by his ability to still be able to make a joke about the formal that he had planned to go with his now ex.

I watched as the stage was being set up in front of us as we sat on the bleachers. The lights were being place along the front edge of the stage and the speakers for the music were in the process of being connected.

"Aren't we supposed to be rehearsing?" I wondered out loud. We were ordered to be here at this unreal hour to rehearse, but it didn't seem like that was going to happen anytime soon as most of us dancers were scattered about the gym just lounging or chatting. And the instructor was nowhere in sight.

"Shhh! Just enjoy these moments without Mrs. Never-Satisfied. There's nothing to worry about." Tyler put his hands behind his head and leaned back to relax.

I huffed before a thought struck in my mind.

"Who are you going with?" I turned to Ty.

He froze in his spot, looking thoughtful for a moment. "Well," he sat up. "Like I said before, I have a busy schedule..." He said with a mock sophisticated tone.

I nodded slowly, slightly knowing where he was going with this.

"And with all this homework &  rehearsals, there's hardly anytime to think about the formal!" He exclaimed and I could tell he was stalling.

I raised an eyebrow.

"And now here we are! The winter formal is tonight!"

"And we both don't have dates?" I asked with a smile.

"Yep." He admitted with defeat, popping the 'p'.

I nodded, turning back to see the solid black backdrop now being placed on the stage.

"Well, I do have an extra ticket..." Tyler spoke up. I turned my attention back to him.   "You know, from when I was going to go with her. What do you say?"

"To what?"

"We're dateless, I have an extra ticket, and the formal is tonight. Come on, Sonnie. Doesn't take a rocket scientist to figure this one out." He grinned.

"Alright, but just as friends though." I told him.

"If you say so, but you know you can't resist me." He joked, as he straightened out his grey sweatshirt.

"Oh yeah, totally." I rolled my eyes at him playfully.

"With the performance & the dance, you're going to be the stuck with me allll night." He sang.

"Joy." I said flatly.

"You know, I'm going to the worst date ever on purpose and just hang out by the snack table the whole time."