𝐓𝐈𝐍𝐘 𝐃𝐀𝐍𝐂𝐄𝐑 | mileven au.

SIXTEEN...

CHAPTER SIXTEEN
"FOREVER ISN'T LONG ENOUGH!"

the next morning crashed upon eleanor, a flurry of dried tears staining her flushed cheeks if you looked closely enough. she sniffled, her nose tinted a shade of red from the night before.

she groaned as she remembered that it was a tuesday morning, meaning she had school that day.

her senses slowly started to come back, the aroma of her aunt becky's eggs and bacon filling her nostrils as she stretched her limbs across her tossed bedsheets.

el hopped out of bed unenthusiastically, a yawn escaping her plump lips as she lazily made her way to the kitchen. once she sat in a chair, she rested her chin in her hand.

"are you doing okay, sweetheart?" her aunt frowned, scooping some food onto a plate for her.

"i've been better." she responded in a dry tone, stabbing her fork into the meal. the thought of even facing mike at school made her want to throw up.

"that boy is an idiot. what's his name again?" becky questioned as she set the pan back on the stove, sitting across from her niece.

"mike." el croaked. the name itself caused her caramel eyes to tear up, her throat becoming dry as she thought about the night before.

she felt like such an idiot. it was almost as if she had made up an imaginary world in her heard where they ended up together, only for it to come crashing down because of his words. she really thought they had something special, but maybe the feelings weren't reciprocated.

"what about that other boy, troy? he asked you to the dance, right?" her aunt questioned, shoving a spoonful of food into her mouth. el shrugged in return

"yeah, but i don't like him like that. i don't even know anything about him, all i know is that he's a bit of a douche." she grumbled under her breath, a scowl forming on her face as she thought of attending the dance with him.

"it's not about whether you like him or not, it's about making wheeler jealous... giving him a taste of his own medicine." she pointed out, taking a sip of orange juice. el furrowed her eyebrows in response.

"what do you mean?" she asked with a pout on her lips, resting her elbows on the table as she gulped. her aunt rolled her eyes playfully.

"i mean that you should go with troy. it'll make mike realize his mistake." she elucidated, speaking as if it was obvious.

"isn't that mean?" el's voice became quieter, crossing her arms over her stomach as she slumped into her chair.

the thought of potentially hurting mike caused her to grimace. it didn't feel right, anytime he looked upset she would do anything to make him smile or laugh, and then all would feel right in the world.

"if he truly cares about you like i think he does, he'll do something about it." becky promised, before sending her off to her room to get ready.

—

the dancer walked into school with a newfound determination, a sly smirk on her face as she pushed through the hallway of students. she had decided she was going to accept troy's invitation to the winter formal; what's the worse that could happen?

she sucked in a deep breath as she spotted troy harrington with his arm resting against his locker. it was now or never...

she continued to bump into multiple students, mumbling quick apologies as she rushed to catch troy before the bell rang.

"troy!" she exclaimed with a wide smile on her face as she tapped on his shoulder. he turned around, bewilderment laced across his face as his eyes met hers.