Page 57 of 10 Things I Hate About Prom
“She asked me. I said yes. She wanted to keep it low-key. She’s gotten enough proposals already anyway. But…” Anna trails off, a faraway look in her eyes and a smile playing at her lips. “We spent the past four years ignoring each other. We can’t make up for lost time, but we can make new memories while we can.”
I nod, weighing my next words carefully. “So…what happened between you two? Before high school, I mean?”
She sighs, her silver nails tugging at a loose piece of string at her hemline. “It’s a long story,” she replies, and I’m prepared to drop the topic when she continues. “We fell for each other before we even knew what it meant to love someone the way we did. And aside from her dad, we weren’t ready for it then. Her especially.” Anna’s smile blossoms as she tugs at the end of her star charm bracelet one more time. Suddenly, I make the connection. That was why Tessa’s seemed so familiar—they’re part of a matching set. “But I think we’re both ready now.”
A dozen emotions rush through me, each one punctuated by another dozen questions. I still want to know every detail of what led Anna and Tessa back to each other, but for now, I pull her into a hug. She’s stiff in my grip at first, arms locked at her sides for a few seconds before wrapping loosely around my middle.
“I’m really happy for you,” I whisper into her shoulder.
Her sniffles are muffled against the fabric of my sweater. “Thank you for everything.”
“Don’t thank me yet,” I reply when we pull apart. “I could still blow this whole thing up. I’m kind of a pro at the whole sabotaging promposals thing.”
She shoves my shoulder as we both break out into giggles, my body feeling lighter with every breath. It feels good to laugh about it, even if a part of me aches from the guilt.
But it sounds like I have one last shot at making sure a promposal for Tessa Hernandez doesn’t end in catastrophe.
“You ready for showtime?” I ask as I crack my knuckles and limber up like I would before any performance.
Anna inhales sharply, nodding before throwing open the storage closet door. “Let’s do this.”
Once Anna’s texted me that she’s reached her mark, I set things into motion. With the push of a button, the entire gym is flooded in darkness. Screams echo through the room at first, along with a few cheers at the prospect of privacy. We only have a small window before tonight’s chaperones—Coach Mills and Mr.Cline, who’s surprisingly alert tonight—spring into action to shut us down. I move as fast as I can in the darkness, hanging the centerpiece of Anna’s promposal on the hooks we’d spent the entire morning installing. With everything in place, I get out of the way and text Anna that she’s clear for takeoff.
“Hey, Tessa,” Anna calls out into the darkness.
Panic in the room mellows out. Now that we’re past the height of promposal season, the fatigue of constantly witnessingromantic spectacles has worn off enough for there to be genuine excitement buzzing through the room.
Once Anna has everyone’s full attention, I reach into my pocket for the remote that brings the neon sign hanging on the wall behind her to life, her declaration written out in cursive hot-pink lights.
It’s Always Been You
“You free next Friday?” Anna finishes once the sign has flickered to full brightness, bathing the gym in a soft rosy glow.
Tessa steps out of the crowd and into the light, wearing a light pink slip gown, her hair weaved into an intricate braid crown. The sound of her footsteps against the waxed floor echoes through the dead-silent room, and my heart pounds louder with every step she takes toward Anna. I can barely make out the eager faces surrounding them, but what matters is the way Tessa stares at Anna like she’s the only girl in the world.
“I think I might be free that day.”
And Anna, defying everything I’ve known about her for the past four years, beams so wide she could light up the sky with her smile.
The entire auditorium erupts into cheers that could be heard in Antarctica as the overhead lights flip back on, Coach Mills already barking at everyone to control themselves. In the midst of the chaos, Tessa pulls Anna in for a sweeping kiss. To avoid getting caught red-handed near the light switch, I rush into the crowd for cover, clapping and shouting until my throat startsto protest. I jump onto the balls of my feet to get a better view of them, accidentally stepping on the foot of the person besideme.
“Sorry, I—” My apology cuts short when I realize I’ve locked eyes with Joaquin, skin damp like he just finished a workout. He must’ve just come from baseball practice. “H-hi.”
It’s the first time I’ve seen him up close since senior skip day. I’d run away if I wasn’t stuck in the middle of a crowd. I half expect him to do the honors of leaving, but he stays, as rooted in place as I am, neither of us finding the courage to look at each other directly.
“Hey,” he replies quietly, glancing over his shoulder at where Danny is loudly brainstorming what Tessa and Anna’s couple name will be. Tessanna seems to be the front runner.
“I didn’t know they were together. I swear,” I say without thinking. Very smooth first thing to say post-argument. I’m pretty sureno oneknew they were together, but I can’t have him thinking he and Tessa couldn’t get their happy ending because I was trying to protect someone else’s. Things fell apart because I wasn’t honest with him, but this isn’t something I ever would’ve hidden from him.
“I don’t think anyone knew,” he says with a shrug before turning back to look at them. “Makes sense, though. Theywerebest friends.”
Despite my best efforts to stay in the moment, my mind starts to scour my recent memories for signs I could’ve missed, anything that could’ve explained how I didn’t see this coming. But maybe that’s the point. Love is unexpected. And I know aswell as anyone, that falling for your best friend—even an old one—is easy.
When I turn back to Joaquin, he’s been whisked away by his friends. Gone before I could even wish him luck on the championship game tomorrow. Watching him disappear into the crowd hurts more than not seeing him at all. But watching Anna and Tessa hold one another in the soft pink glow, Tessa cradling Anna’s jaw like she’s the most precious thing on this earth, it’s impossible not to believe in second chances.
Chapter Nineteen
At approximately 3:30 inthe morning, an idea comes to me.
