geed | clairo

nine

aaron weller, a pledge with shaggy brown hair wearing a navy suit that was slightly too big, took a picture of lara and me, my arm casually around her shoulder. i had spent the morning with him, spencer and another pledge, blane stelly, blowing up balloons, hanging streamers and making sure the catering was in order for the semi tonight.

"hey, you guys mind if i get in a pic?" asked spencer. his brown hair was styled neatly, pushed back and showcasing his sharp features instead of distracting from them. spencer chose to bring sam, who wore a camel blazer, navy pants and a red tie with a white shirt.

spencer and sam got close, spencer wrapping one arm around my shoulder and one around sam's waist. i shifted my arm down to lara's waist, hoping it didn't make her uncomfortable. i kept smiling, until aaron stopped taking pictures and handed my phone back to me. sam dismissed himself to go to the bathroom while i heard the door of the ballroom open and jesse walked in, with joanne following him. the night was officially beginning.

the dance had reached the hour and a half mark and i was having an amazing time with lara. though she wasn't really a dancer, her conversation skills saved her. lara stood by me as i kept my drinking to a minimum for her and helped me make conversation with spencer, sam and j.d., since jesse still felt awkward around lara.

"paul, can i talk to you really quickly?" asked lara, while somehow not interrupting j.d.'s coke fueled ramblings. lara grabbed my hand and led me to a sparsely populated area of the room.

"is something wrong?" i questioned, causing lara to shake her head.

"earlier, i saw the dj and i asked him to play that song you threw up on your prom date to. take my breath away, i think," explained lara.

"are you giving me a prom slow dance redo?"

"it's the least i could do. i wasn't sure if you were bringing me to your next formal, so i figured i could just do it here," said lara.

"when will he play it?"

"in about two minutes, i think," replied lara, checking the watch on her wrist.

as we heard the familiar opening note, i positioned my hands on lara's waist while she positioned hers on my upper back. i felt confident enough to hold her close, as if i was embracing her closely. i closed my eyes for a second, trying to take a snapshot of the feeling lara gave me at this very moment. about halfway through the song, lara buried her head in my chest, her breaths seeming to coordinate with the beating of my heart.

when the song ended, lara slowly pulled away from me and looked into my eyes. she touched the back of my neck and met her lips with mine, her fingers brushing through the lower half of my hair. i resisted going for a second kiss, unsure if it was just a spontaneous reflex or a carefully thought out act.

"i-i'm really sorry if that made you uncomfortable, i just-," began lara, before i interjected.

"no, no. i liked what just happened. that was amazing," i said, placing a hand on lara's shoulder and lightly stroking, my eyes focused on hers.

lara and i left early, giving rushed goodbyes to my brothers and their dates and the promise of a explanatory text to spencer. thankfully, lara drove and the venue was about thirty minutes from her house, the perfect place for us to go since her roommates wouldn't be coming home that night.

i made myself comfortable on her sofa, while she turned on her speakers and soft music began pouring out, lana del rey filling the silence.

"i'll grab something for you to wear so you don't have to wear your suit all night. and, um, i'll fix some wine in a second," offered lara. i nodded and took off my suit jacket and began to untie my tie. i had just finished taking off my shoes and began to take in the song playing: blue jeans.