By the time I'd returned from the bathroom where I had attended to my red stained cheeks, and my almost soaking wet dress, our class president, Sera, was on stage with a mic, holding two index cards and looking authoritative.
"Damn, I can't see anything." Lydia said, grumbling.
"Why do we have to spend our lives staring into the shoulder blades of people?" I ask while accidentally dropping the corsage on the floor. "Ow, Dammit!"
"Are you okay?
"Yeah, I just pricked my thumb on my pin."
"Well don't get blood on your dress."
"Right." I popped my thumb in my mouth.
On a table next to Sera we're a silver crown and glittery tiara, as well as a pile of long stemmed roses to be handed to the female members of the court. Near the dance floor. A quartet of cheerleaders huddled around Lele, prepping her for what she hoped would be her big moment. If not for her gown, and well, the fact that she was a girl, she could have been a prizefighter about to enter the ring. I glanced around to find Justin. He was adjusting his jacket, readying for his coronation, a few of the stuck-ups hovered around him.
He was behind her, and oh god, he was staring at me again. They already announced King and Queen at school so everyone already know's, I guess they're just making it official.
"Did you ever see that movie Before I fall?" I said. "Maybe we could leave".
"Oh, you're bad." She gave me a devilish grin. "But who here needs a bucket of water dumped on them? Lele? 'I'm Melting! I'm Melting'" she screeched á la the Wicked witch of the West.
"Hey, after party at Denny's" Brooklyn said interrupting us.
"Oh great, as if we need more of those people filled with alcohol."
"Ladies and gentleman, for the moment you've all been waiting for... This years King and Queen of East McKinney High...are..." wow this girl was milking it. "Justin Williams and Allie Reynolds"
Cheers erupted from the crowd, along with the same amount of boo's. I tipped my head gracefully to receive the tiara and slightly mouth a 'Thank You'. Doug shrugged his shoulders good-naturedly and wrapped Kristy up in a comforting hug while planting a small kiss on the back of her head.
"Um, hey there." I said into the mic. My voice a little too shaky. "What a night huh?" A smattering of whoops and applauses. "Wow this is really an odd place for me to be standing right now? And why? Why am I up here? Because I take great pictures? Because some of you thought it was a funny prank or something? Why? Why am I up here? It's not that I don't want to be Queen, I just thought that.. Other girls obsess over this tiara. Why? It's just a silly piece of". I fumble with the tiara, maybe a little too much when it snaps, causing a chain reaction of girls gasping. "Plastic".
"Seriously, most girls just take the crown and walk off." Sera murmurs into my ear.
"For all the girls that have been ever made fun of, put down, here's something for you." I break tiny pieces and throw them individually into the crowd.
"Now, we can all be Queens, no matter what society thinks".
I hand Justin the mic and he smiles at me. I walk out the back door of the dining hall where the proms hosted and walk to the bench I was sitting hours ago. It stopped raining so I sit back on the curb.
"Hey." I hear a familiar voice say. "Are we playing tag or something?" Justin asks sitting down beside me. "You're it". He says poking me in the rib.
I have the urge to laugh but somehow I end up crying.
"Was I a total idiot up there?" I wipe my tears from my cheeks.
"Well the most memorable queens are the crazy ones. You know, Bloody Mary, Caligula..."
"Well, Caligula is a guy..."
"I know, I'm saying that if you're a crazy queen, I can be a crazy king".
"Caligula is an emperor..."
"Hey, I'm trying to cheer you up. Can you please hear me out? And besides, can I not be an emperor if I wanted to?"
"Yeah well, like I've told you before, you control your own destiny."
"That's why I'm controlling it now." He takes my hand in his, brushing my thumb with his.
Good thing it was dark outside because I still felt awkward and self conscious, especially after everything Justin said tonight.
"So I'll say it again: you look amazing".
"Thanks."
"Right answer".
"Did you really mean what you said before coronation?"
"I forgot a part".
"Which was?"
"I love you Allie, I'm sorry it's took to long to realize that, and I'm sorry if it's too late, but I love you".
"I love you too Justin". I lean my head on his shoulder and we sit like this for a while.
"There's still another thing I haven't gotten."
"What?"
"A dance with my beautiful Queen."
We go back inside just to see almost everyone gone, still some lingering, and the place trashed in plastic cups, and confetti everywhere.
The lights were still on so we danced alone.
•••••
"I guess everyone went to the after party." . Justin kept his hand firmly in mine. He apparently wasn't concerned about public perception. Not that we caused much of a stir.
"Wanna go?"
"With you?"
"Yeah, with me knucklehead. Who else?"
"But what about Lele?" Justin sighed ruefully and acknowledged I had a point.
"She's not my most favorite person right now, but I'd better try to find her". Figures. Here was the part where he ran off to his real girlfriend, leaving me feeling like a schmuck as we go our separate ways.
But instead, Justin tightened his grip on my hand as we approached a few stragglers. "Anybody seen Lele around?"
"Loose a member of your harem?" Said class comedian Tyler, who eyed Justin and me with some amusement. "Our dear Evil not-so-much-queen of Evilville, Lele was last seen out front, ordering your limo driver to put the pedal to the metal. That lady did not look happy. Think it's impossible to actually die of embarrassment?"
Justin looked back at me warily, as if to say yikes.
"That means I'm officially rideless. How are you guys getting to Denny's?"
"We're going with Elena and Salvatore."
"Got room for two more?"
"No, but when did that ever stop you?"
Published: 4/4/17
Word count: 1106
Last updated: 4/4/17
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Tenacity {COMPLETED}
Random••• After everything we'd been through together, would time, space, and separate lives prove to be more than we could conquer? {COMPLETED}
