Page 42 of Part of Forever
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The themefor this year’s Valentine’s Dance is “Black and White Ball.” The tickets have strict instructions about what colors we’re allowed to wear (black, white, and red) and how if we wear anything else, we’ll be turned away at the door.
My dress is black and goes to my knees. There’s a band just above my waist and a bow on my right side. I’ve got my favorite red high heels to wear and Tucker will be in all black with a red tie.
I relax onto Grace’s mini sofa as Nathan does my makeup. I’m grateful for an excuse to keep my eyes closed, even if only for a few minutes. I’m still tired from my surgery and tonight is going to be a long one, but everyone has promised to keep an eye on me, and I’ve promised to take it easy.
Yesterday, Doctor Barker checked my scar and said that I was healing nicely, but that didn’t mean I could return to all my normal activities, especially other activities. I am grateful she said I could go to the dance.
“Okay, who do you think is going to be crowned in the Rose Court this year?” Grace asks and I open one eye to look at her. Each year, at the Valentine’s Dance, six couples are crowned to the Rose Court. They get crowns and flowers, so it’s basicallyjust another excuse to crown someone like a prom queen, only this time, we have no say in who gets picked. Teachers and staff randomly (or maybe not so randomly?) pick people who are at the dance. But seeing as we’ve never been, we’re still unsure of how it works.
“Close please,” Nathan commands and I snap my eye shut, but not before I see Grace standing in front of the mirror in her shiny white dress. Our dresses are essentially the same, except for the color. She still hasn’t told me who she’s going to the dance with though.
“It’s definitely going to be Serena. Or maybe Victoria,” Nathan says as he uses a brush against my eyelid.
“My vote is Libby,” I say. “But it’s not like we have a say in it.”
“Ooo, she’s a worthy contender,” Nathan says and I almost laugh. “You are right though, we have no say, but it is always the popular people who get picked.”
Grace is friends with a lot of the popular crowd, but she’s not exactly in it. She doesn’t mind though, because she has always been her own person, ready and willing to do her own thing. I always had ballet and was completely fine with my circle of friends including Nathan, Garce, and eventually Tucker. Nathan might care about all of this more than we do, but only because Emmett could also be picked for the court. They may have broken up, but there’s no way Nathan’s over him yet.
“I would vote for Libby,” Grace says. “She’s nicer than Serena and Victoria.”
“That’s true,” Nathan and I say at the same time.
“But she’s dating Shawn, are you okay with that?” Grace asks with a strange lilt in her voice. We never really talked about my breakup with Shawn, because it was over so abruptly and then I was with Tucker almost immediately after.
“Why would you even ask that?” I ask. “I don’t care at all.”
“Just checking.” Grace lifts her shoulder and then looks back to the mirror tofinish her makeup.
“Why? I’m dating Tucker.” Sometimes her logic and questions and ideas about how you should feel about relationships, even after they’ve ended, confuse me.
“Done,” Nathan tells me, stopping Grace from whatever she was about to say. I open my eyes and look in the mirror in his hands. My makeup is what he would call understated, but it’s me. I love looking at all the people, including him, who go all out with their makeup, but when I do that, I just don’t feel like myself. I like a little glam and sparkle, but not a ton. He used silver, white, and a light shade of red on my eyes.
I give him a hug. “Thank you!”
“Of course.” Nathan squeezes me back and announces it’s time for both of us to get dressed.
“There’s something you should know,” Grace tells me as she hands me my dress bag.
“What?”
She holds up her free hand that is covered in glitter. “The fabric of the dress is glittery, right… well, it… kind of gets everywhere.”
“Oh my gosh,” I say, but then I just start laughing, because of course our dresses would shed glitter. “Tucker might kill us, but I don’t mind.”
Her eyes go wide. “Crap, I didn’t even think about his truck. I mean, I noticed the glitter when I was making the dress, but I assumed it was just because I was moving the fabric around so much.”
“But it just gets everywhere?” I’m still laughing.
“It just gets everywhere,” Nathan confirms, careful not to touch any part of Grace’s dress as he moves around us to grab his own tux. “I’m getting dressed downstairs. I love glitter, but not on me tonight.”
Grace starts to say something, but Nathan shoots her a glance and I look back and forth between them, trying to figure outwhat I’m missing.
“I’m gonna get ready,” he says, and then he’s out the door.
Grace and I come down the stairs together, possibly leaving a trail of glitter behind. Mom cries as she takes our pictures and Tucker waits patiently for our moms to stop dotting on us.
