Page 65 of The Prom Queen Project
The girls and I jogged toward the locker room just as Elliot screamed,“Yeah, Clarke. Fuck shit up!”
Disingenuous happiness shifted into amusement as I chuckled at his enthusiasm, waving to him as I ran to catch up with theother girls. I allowed my face to fall flat once I was away from the prying eyes of strangers. Placing one hand on my heart, I exhaled calmly.It was over.I walked over to where I had left my bag, scrunching my eyebrows as I peered down at the ground. It was gone.
“Clarke,” Meredith beckoned. “You left your bag on the floor.”
I snapped my neck in her direction, spinning around to face her. She held up my duffel bag with one hand, eyeing it suspiciously. While leaning to hand it to me, the contents of my bag spilled onto the floor through the open zipper. The fluttering in my chest ramped up.
Did she do that on purpose?
Meredith frowned as she knelt down to pick up the fallen objects. Her hand froze when she went to retrieve my journal.
“Umm, what’s this?” Palming my journal in her hand, she plucked out the small piece of paper tucked between the pages.
I leapt forward, snatching my journal out of her hands, but she still had Elliot’s drawing.
“What’s with the weird anime drawing?”
Some of the other girls walked over to her, glancing over her shoulder and inspecting the paper suspiciously.
I pursed my lips, nostrils flaring as I glared at her. Yanking the drawing out of her hand, I slipped it back inside my journal while crouching to pick the rest of my stuff off the ground. I angrily shoved my belongings back inside my purse while fuming. “None of your business.”
She cackled, her laugh full of animosity. “Did Elliot draw that?”
“Yeah. So what?”
“If you think some lame drawing is gonna win you Prom Queen, then you’re even dumber than you look. And was that a diary? Come on, Clarke. How old are you?”
I slowly rose to my feet while grinding my teeth. Cocking my head to the side, I sneered at her. “Me, stupid? Have you seen your grades?” I spat. “And last time I checked; I won Homecoming Queen which means I have a better shot at winning Prom Queen than you, so how about you worry about yourself and stop touching my shit?”
I pushed past the girls, barreling out of the locker room and through the gymnasium as I rushed into the hall. My chest was heaving as I stood alone in the empty corridor, dropping my bag onto the floor and kicking the lockers with my foot. The metallic clink echoed off the walls. The sun faded, leaving my world devoid of color as the light diminished to gray. My breaths were labored, coming out short and uneven as I cupped my face with my hands. I paced back and forth, trying to remain calm, but as my thoughts heightened, so did my heart. Then everything slowed to a stop. My steps faltered as an idea hit me like a semi going ninety. Throwing the strap of my duffel over my shoulder, my feet picked up speed as I ran past several rooms until I saw the one I was looking for.
The computer lab.
I swung open the door and walked up to the printer, grabbing Elliot’s drawing and placing it on the scanner. I jabbed at different buttons, turning on the machine and hitting the copy button.
“Princess?” Elliot was standing in the doorway. “What are you doing here?”
“Showing Meredith I’m not ashamed of you,” I said, my eyes still glued to the printer.
“What?”
“Meredith!” I screamed. “She saw the drawing you gave me and started to…she was making fun of it and she was making fun of me. I can’t—Iwon’tlet anyone bully me!”
“Hey, it’s okay.”
Elliot placed his hand on my shoulder, calming me with his touch. I clasped his hand with mine and took a steadying breath. My eyes drifted shut.
“You don’t deserve that,” I whispered. “And neither do I.”
“So, what are you gonna do about it?” he asked, his words sounding like more of a challenge.
“She thinks these drawings won’t help me win Prom Queen, but maybe they can. I’m going to put them up around the school.”
“That’s my girl,” he spoke in a hushed voice, the corner of his lip curling upward. “Want some help?”
“Yeah.” I breathed a sigh while clutching the printer. “Yeah, I would.”
He moved his free hand to my waist, spinning me around to face him as the other cupped the side of my jaw. His eyes flicked toward my lips, and mine followed as I stared up at him.What was going through his mind?Because I knew what was going through mine.
