The Distance Between Us

All Hell Breaks Loose

Megan smiled as she taped the last poster for her campaign. On it was her favorite picture of her and Xander. They were dancing together at the Homecoming dance, arms around each other. Above it, words were printed in gold and silver, "Vote Xander and Megan 4 Prom King + Queen!"

Just then, she felt a tap on her shoulder, and turned around to see Barbara standing behind with her laptop. "I just took a survey, and both you and Xander are in the lead by like, twenty percent!" "That's amazing!", Megan cried, ecstatic. As she squealed, she overheard the sound of a kuchuck right her to her. She looked to see Amber, holding a stack of posters and a stapler.

She glanced over at the two girls before going back to her work. Right next to Megan's poster, she stapled one of her own. In it, she was dressed in a glittering gown and wearing a rhinestone tiara. She posed at the camera and blew a kiss. She looked like a princess herself. In sparkling lettering, it read, "Don't be a loser! Crown Amber Vaughn Prom Queen 2016! The Obvious Choice!"

Megan smiled at her. "Nice poster, Amber." Amber forced a smile on her face. "Aw, thanks! Yours is great, too!" Megan beamed. "I'm glad that both of us running for Prom Queen hasn't affected our friendship." She held out her hand. "May the best woman win!" Amber accepted and shook it. "The best woman will win." "That's the spirit!"

Megan walked with Barbara at her side. The phony smile on Amber's face melted off like a snowman in summer. She took another one of her own posters and stapled it over Megan's. "The best woman will win...me."
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Megan opened her locker and started getting all her stuff in and out for the rest of the day. "Megan!" She looked up to see Conner running down the hall towards her, the biggest, goofiest grin on his face. Megan couldn't remember the last time he had smiled like that. He bounded over to her, holding both hands behind his back.

"Conner! What are you smiling about?" He jiggled his eyebrows. "Guess what I have behind my back?" Megan pretended to be thinking very hard. "Cheerleader pom-poms?" "Nope. Guess again." "A new football?" "Nope. One more time." "I know! An autographed photo of Kermit the Frog!"

Shaking his head, he pulled his hands out from behind his back to reveal two strips of paper clenched in his fist. "Its two tickets to see the greatest band ever—The Super Heroes!" Megan gasped. "The Super Heroes?! You got tickets for the Super Heroes?!" He smiled as he handed one to her. "And one's for you." She looked at the slip. "Wow! Fourth row seats! How did you swing that?!" "I saved up for months in case a chance like this came up.", he said. "I even camped out at the box office overnight."

The Super Heroes were the hottest teenage band in the world. They had millions of fans, seventeen triple-platinum records, and they had gone on a record-breaking thirty-five world tours. All of their concerts sold out in literally less than one hour every time. Getting tickets at all, let alone such good seats, was a incredible feat for anyone.

As for Conner and Megan, they had been huge fans of the Super Heroes since before they had hit it big, back when they were just a local garage band playing Fridays night at their favorite pizza parlor. They were their biggest fans when it seemed like they'd never be more than a small-town gig, when they had finally been discovered, when they released their first album, when their fanbase blew up.

Megan smiled brighter than the rays of the sun. "Conner, you are amazing! I can't believe you..." She trailed off as she looked closer at the tickets. Conner found himself growing more and more nervous at her silence. "What's wrong?" "This says the concert is next Saturday." Conner shrugged. "So?" "So, that's the same night as the Prom." He froze. "Oh..."

Megan shook her head. "Well, it was sweet of you to get these tickets, but...you're going to have to ask someone else." Conner shook his head. "What? But...But its our favorite band." "What do you want me to do? Blow off the Prom and ditch Xander?" She looked at him fidgeting and shuffling his feet. She furrowed her brow and shook her head. "Are you kidding me?!"

"I'm just saying,", he went on. "You're going to pass up a once-in-a-century chance to see the greatest band ever, just to stand in some stuffy room with people who'll never call after high school, to make small talk and drink flat soda. Which of us sounds crazier?"  Megan placed her hands on her hips.  "Excuse me?  I have been dreaming of my senior prom ever since I was little!  I have the perfect dress, the date of my dreams, and I'm nominated for Queen!  I can't sacrifice everything I've ever wanted for a last-minute date to see some stupid band!"

Conner scoffed.  "Some stupid band?  You didn't think it was some stupid band two minutes ago!"  "That was before I found out it was the same night as—"  "What's so special about Prom, anyway?", he cut her off.  "Its just another dance!"  "Just another dance?", Megan cried.  "Try THE dance!"  "Oh, of course.  The dance.  The dance where you play around with your 'perfect' boyfriend."

Megan's hazel eyes narrowed into slits.  "Again?  What is your problem with Xander?"  "He's a total jackass!", Conner exclaimed.  "Maybe you don't see it because you like that he's popular!"  "You think that's all I care about?  Popularity?"  "Yes!"  Megan took a step closer towards him.  "That's rich coming from you."  "Me?"  "Need I remind you, you were that way in seventh grade.  The day you became popular, you decided poor little loser me wasn't good enough for you!"

"That was five years ago, Megan!", Conner shouted.  "What do you want me to do?  Turn back time?"  "I want you to be happy for me now!", she pleaded.  "That's what a friend would do!  Be happy for me!"  He looked her dead in the eye.  "I'll tell you what a friend would do!  A friend wouldn't blow me off for her jerk of a boyfriend and go to the concert with me!"

All emotion left Megan's face.  The tension between them was so thick, you could cut it with a knife.  Finally, she spoke.  "Well, than I guess we're not friends."  Conner's eyes went wide as she turned back to her locker.  "What?"  She turned back to face him.  "You can't be happy for me, and I can't go to the concert with you.  So...if we can't do that stuff as friends, than we're not really friends."

Conner held his hands up in defense.  "Whoa, whoa whoa, slow down.  Look, Megan, let's talk over this—"  "There's nothing to talk about, Conner!", she snapped at him.  "I am not going to blow off Xander!  You have had it out for him since day one, and I'm starting to think that the only reason that you don't like him is because you're jealous!"  Megan regretted those words the moment they left her mouth.

Conner just stood there, eyes wide, gaping at Megan like a fish, feeling as if he had been stabbed right in the heart.  Megan struggled to find her voice again.  "Conner, wait, I-I didn't mean—"  He put a hand up to stop her.  "No...no, don't apologize.  Maybe you're right...maybe we're not friends after all."

Megan choked, trying to ignore the wetness coming into her eyes.  "Conner, please listen—"  "No...no, its fine."  He leaned in so that their faces were mere inches apart.  "Go ahead.  You can wear your stupid dress, to your stupid prom, with your stupid date, and get your stupid crown.  But just remember, that I won't be there for you...ever again."

Before Megan could utter another sound, Conner spun around and stormed away, disappearing into the crowd of students, leaving Megan alone at the side of the road, clutching the concert ticket that he had not taken back.