New Girl ( #1 How I Fell in Love Trilogy)

Foxfire Winter Formal

"...And I totally kill in Fortnite, you should've seen all the headshots I got. My friends suck compared to me, I'm pretty much the best. I..." As Valin continued his speech about his awesomeness, Sophie rolled her eyes at Biana from across the room. 

Sophie was stuck at Valin's greasy friend group's table, while all the rest of her friends gathered at a neighboring table having the time of their lives. I'm not gonna last this night Sophie thought miserably, looking again longingly at the table. Right now, it seemed that Keefe was telling a joke, his hands waving animatedly through the air, eyes dancing with mirth. The group laughed loudly, Linh almost falling over in her chair. Keefe, as if sensing her gaze, looked sideways at her in boyish innocence. Sophie faked a smile, but Valin suddenly elbowed her, forcing her attention back to her boring table.  

                                                                                 *** 

"Ladies and Gentlemen, the dance floor is now open!" a teacher announced. Sophie inwardly grumbled. She got up quickly, holding her stomach. 

"I'm feeling a little queasy, I'll be back," Sophie lied, heading to the bathroom. 

"I'll be waiting." Valin replied, winking while wiping a blob of spit from his mouth. Sophie quickly turned to hide her disgust, running straight into a student. 

"Oh, hey Soph, how's it going?" Fitz asked, holding her shoulders to steady her. Sophie marveled at how his tie could perfectly match his eyes. No way she thought, He's too hot for this world.  

"You okay Sophie?" 

Sophie focused her eyes to Fitz's right, where Linh looked at her with concern. Her heart sank. 

"I'm fine, just a little queasy." she replied. It wasn't a lie now, anyway. Before she could be further humiliated, Sophie walked to the bathroom. Once inside, she made her way inside a stall, sat down, and cried silently. All the pressures of getting ready, tolerating Valin, ignoring her feelings, and acting like everything was fine was way too much. At least I can cry silently she mused, smiling a little. Sophie made her way out of the stall and put cool wet paper towels on her eyes, trying to sooth the redness. The door opened, and Linh came bouncing in. 

"Oh, hey Sophie! Does my mascara look bad? I think I swiped it when-" She broke off, as if just noticing Sophie's less than perfect complexion. 

"Hey, what's wrong? It's okay, I won't tell anyone." Linh crooned, putting her arms around Sophie. You're the problem! Sophie thought sarcastically, thinking how ironic it was that the person who was stealing all her joy was trying to comfort her. 

"It's okay, my eyes are just sweating," Sophie said sarcastically. Linh, being slightly naive, nodded in understanding. 

"Sometimes Tam's eyes sweat too." she said knowledgeably. Sophie inwardly laughed at the thought. 

"You look fine," Sophie said truthfully. "Let's go."  

The two walked out of the bathroom. Linh and Sophie went back to their respective tables. Once Valin saw her, he eagerly pushed through the crowd and started to dance with her. Sophie managed the first five dances by zoning out, eyes glazed over with a smile on her face, occasionally nodding. Even though she stopped paying attention, it seemed to satisfy Valin.

The teacher announced that the next song would be slow. Sophie's stomach dropped; she had been dreading this the whole night. Slow dancing meant she had to get extra close to Valin... and his slobber. She shivered. 

As the song started, she felt a light tap on her shoulder. Sophie turned in surprise. 

"May I have this dance?" Keefe asked, offering his hand and inclining his head. Sophie's mouth bloomed a smile. 

"Yes, you may." 

Valin looked moodily at Keefe, retreating backwards slowly. Keefe put his arms around Sophie's waist securely, pulling her close. Sophie awkwardly put her hands on his shoulders, noticing how tall he really was. She realized she had never been this close to him, their faces only inches apart. 

"I couldn't stand to see you in such agony," Keefe ventured to speak, after some silence had lapsed. 

"Could you tell?" she asked, looking up shyly into his ice blue eyes. 

"Most people probably couldn't tell...but I could." He looked like he was trying to find the right words. "I could almost feel it, you know?" 

Sophie shook her head, puzzled but happy. It was seldom that she saw the vulnerable part of Keefe. She sighed, happy to be finally with a friend, and put her head on his shoulder. She felt his body tense slightly, so she quickly retreated. 

"I'm sorry, I didn't mean to-" 

"It's okay Sophie, relax." Keefe interrupted softly. Sophie tentatively put her head back, but more to assure him she wasn't freaked out. All too soon, the song came to an end. 

"Could you get some of our other friends to dance with me?" Sophie asked Keefe. He nodded a few times. He smirked, winked, and left.  

Valin swooped in on her before she had even taken a breath. 

                                                                                       *** 

Sophie's feet ached as the 30th song ended. Unfortunately, most of the songs played after her dance with Keefe had been peppy songs, which killed her poor feet. He must have forgotten my message she thought, until she saw Dex approaching for the 31st song. Sophie gladly pulled away from Valin and towards Dex. He smiled, dimples showing proudly. 

"Wow, I haven't seen you all night!" Dex shouted over the music. Sophie nodded. 

"Long night!" she yelled back. They both realized a conversation couldn't be held at this time, so they both settled to smile at each other and bob to the music. At the end of the song, the teacher came forward. 

"These will be the last two songs, which will be slow songs. Enjoy." 

Sophie was about to put her hands on Dex's shoulders when she felt a graceful tap on her shoulder. She turned to find Fitz, smiling in the soft light. 

"Care to have this dance?" he asked, but he was already putting his arms around her waist. Sophie sank into his arms. They made small talk, but when she would try to recall their conversation later, all she would remember is the feel of his arms around her, the smell of his cologne, and the texture of his suit. The dance felt like only a blink of an eye. Fitz excused himself at the end, and Sophie watched him walk to Linh and ask her for the last dance. She looked on in jealousy at their happiness. 

Sophie scanned the dwindling crowd. Not even Valin, her supposed date, was there to finish the night with her. I'm such a loser she thought Not even Valin wanted to stay the whole night with me.

Sophie hadn't even finished her thought when she felt a flutter of a tap from behind. She pivoted to see Keefe. 

"Would you do me the honor of gracing me with this last dance?" He said charismatically. She laughed, feeling relieved. He swept her up in his arms. 

"You know what number dance this is?" Keefe asked. Sophie shook her head. 

"Number 33, " he winked. "my number."  

She laughed. 

Aww, how cute! This was one of the most fun chapters I've written in a while. Hope you enjoyed it!