Page 33 of The Prom Queen Project
Elliot pulled his car in front of my house and put it in park, pulling the keys out of the ignition. He flicked the cigarette butt out the window as he looked at me. My nerves were raging as I waited for a response.
Was the idea of dating me so scary that it left him speechless?
“I’m flattered at the offer, Princess, but you’re pretty shit-faced right now. Also, you’re not really my type.”
“Dude, I’m not even that drunk.” I pouted while crossing my arms defensively. “If you don’t want to fake-date me, then just say it.”
“Okay fine. Clarke, I don’t want to fake date you.”
“Ugh.” I rolled my eyes and practically body-checked the door to open it. “Whatever. I was just joking anyway.”
I got out of the car and shut the door forcefully. As I walked across the lawn towards my house, I heard Elliot rev his engine and roll down the car window.
“You’re welcome, by the way.”
“Already said thank you earlier.” I waved, dismissing his comment. “Not saying it again.”
When I stepped onto the porch, I clumsily opened my purse and blindly fumbled around for my keys. I jammed them into the front door and twisted the knob.
Hearing the sound of Elliot’s car still running behind me, I turned slowly to look at him as he sat gawking at me from his car. I extended my arms outward as if asking,“Why the fuck are you still here?”
“Just making sure you’re not too drunk to get inside your own house!” he shouted from across the yard.
Even though he couldn’t see it through the darkness, I narrowed my eyes at him. One gesture I could be sure he saw, though, was my hand shooting up to the sky as I flipped him off.
Without saying goodbye, I tiptoed into my house and kicked off my shoes. It wasn’t all that necessary, seeing as how I made the conscientious call of wearing my Nike Air Force 1sneakersas opposed to the platform heels most girls wear, but it was just the safe play to make sure I was as quiet as possible. I slowly crept up the stairs, holding my shoes while trying not to wake my parents. The whole thing felt akin to doing the walk of shame. I collapsed onto my bed without even bothering to change out of my clothes. The room was spinning.
Damn, if I had stayed at that party for one minute longer, who knows what the hell would’ve happened. Despite what I had told Elliot, I wassuperdrunk.
God, if I’m drunk, I hope Meredith is okay.
She waswaymore fucked up than I was. I hope she got home okay. I guess I had Elliot to thank for getting me home safely. The guilt began to set in after the way I left things with him. As much as I hated to admit it, the fact that Elliot drove all the way out to a party that he wasn’t invited to just to come get me was very Prince Charming-esque in a non-cringe way. I clicked the lock button on my phone, causing the screen to blind me as itilluminated the room. I typed out a quick text before hitting the send button.
The last thing I remembered was setting an alarm to make sure I woke up at the butt crack of dawn in order not to arouse suspicion from my parents. I told them I’d be back from Meredith’s by 9 a.m.Plus, I still had to pick up my damn car.I couldn’t have them think I was hungover, or else bye-bye to every other party I wanted to go to this year.
Nine
Somehow, the next morning, I managed to get up before midday. No idea how, considering my head felt like someone had dropped an anvil on it. Just before sunrise, I quietly slipped out of the house, walking over to where I had parked my car and pulling it back into the driveway.
When I got back, I roamed the hallway feeling like a zombie, all while the ear-splitting shouts of Gordon Ramsay assaulted my ears. I pressed the noise-canceling headphones tightly against my face. A pair of tinted sunglasses was perched on the bridge of my nose as I tried to keep my head down to avoid the light streaming down from the skylight. After grabbing a quick smoothie and narrowly avoiding my parents, I walked up the stairs as fast as I could, which was agonizingly slow. When I finally made it to the library, I creased the spine of my AP Lit textbook and relaxed the muscles in my neck, dropping my head and smushing my face against the pages.What the hell happened last night?Flashes of memories forced their way into my mind.
Kendra bailing on the party.
Meredith ditching me for Mason.
Elliot saving me from making a complete fool of myself.
Wait…did I ask him out?Ugh.My head throbbed. I stayed with my head buried in the comforting embrace of the crisp white sheets as the sharp tang of fresh ink wrapped around me until—
“Hey.”
I hit my knee on the underside of the table at the sound of Elliot’s voice.
“Ow.” I grimaced while removing my headphones.
“Well, aren’t you just a picture-perfect image of being hungover? Whatcha listening to?”
“No music. Just quiet,” I mumbled.
