Vanilla

Bonus Chapter: JCPenney's #DreamPromposal

Hi, guys!

I am so excited to have been selected to write a bonus chapter for Vanilla on behalf of JCPenney's #DreamPromposal Contest. I knew the idea of prom would fit these characters so well, and it would be just like Daniel to plan a huge surprise to make sure Flo has a night to remember! Be sure to check out the contest over on the @TeenFiction profile and write a 500-word story with your own take on a #DreamPromposal!

***

There was something in the air on prom night.

A kind of breathless anticipation, a sense that anything could happen, if that was where the night took you.

Unfortunately, tonight wasn't taking me anywhere.

I was curled up on the window seat in my room, losing count of the times I'd checked my phone so far, every time faced with a blank screen. I knew everyone was busy getting ready, but even Daniel was suspiciously silent.

We'd already had that conversation—where prom came up by chance, and he was too deep into a rant about how silly and forced and unnecessarily expensive the whole affair was for me to speak up and admit I actually liked the idea. Sure, it was kind of cheesy, but what girl didn't secretly want to go to prom?

I should've told him straight up. But embarrassment got the better of me, so here I was. Alone. And bored.

I was about to check my phone again when a knock sounded downstairs. Knowing it wouldn't be for me, I waited for Gram to answer it—but her voice soon sailed up the stairs.

"Flo... I think it's for you."

Who would call here tonight? Everyone I knew was preoccupied. But as I headed downstairs, I was faced with an unexpected sight.

Daniel.

Scrubbed and polished in a full suit, with his hair slicked back and something slung over his shoulder.

I stood completely stunned. "What's going on?"

"I'm taking you to prom."

"But you said—"

"You don't really think I'd let you sit at home on prom night?" he asked, and the smile on his face made me want to kiss him. "I wanted it to be a surprise."

Surprise was an understatement. But I was also thinking about practicalities—namely that I was wearing sweatpants. "I don't have a dress."

He lowered the item slung over his shoulder: a garment bag, which unzipped to reveal a full-length, midnight blue dress and a pair of silver heels. "It's beautiful," I said. "Did you choose that?" 

He looked sheepish. "I may have had a little help from the sales assistant at JCPenney."

When I went upstairs to try it on, it fit perfectly—and after applying a light layer of make-up and curling my hair, I was ready. Emerging again at the top of the staircase, Daniel looked like I'd taken his breath away. "Wow. You look beautiful, Flo."

He took my hand and led me to the porch, which was when I noticed the vintage car waiting for us on the street. Daniel moved to open the door. "Your carriage awaits."

"You really thought of everything, didn't you?"

"Maybe." He smiled, and once we'd climbed into the backseat together, took my hand and squeezed it tight. "I wanted to make tonight special."

The feeling was in the air again. And as the car set off, I wasn't sure where the night would take us, but I knew it would be one to remember.