Page 129 of Fraternizing with the Enemy
“We’re not in charge of counting the votes,” Mom said knowingly, and Mrs. Diego laughed. “But it was a nice try.”
I gave her a pointed eye roll.
“No Logan?”
“Nope. He, too, couldn’t be bribed with flattery. But we might do something after.”
She raised a challenging eyebrow. “You mean after ten-thirty?”
“You’re my principal here,” I rushed out, passing my math teacher my five dollars admission. “Not my mom. Thanks, Mrs. Diego!”
“Enjoy the dance, Madison,” Mrs. Diego called after me, a smile in her voice.
“That girl,” I heard my mom mutter under her breath, but I was already stepping through the double doors that led into the darkened gymnasium, transporting into a different world.
Despite how bad the acoustics were in the space, the music pulsed so loudly that I could feel it humming in my chest, a second heartbeat. There was a black tarp down throughout the entire gymnasium to protect thefloors, taped down flat so no one tripped. I blinked at the colored strobe lights that flashed in time with the beat, swinging around the crowd and ceiling in an almost crazed swing.
A hand coasted its way down my arm. “You look stunning, Madison!” A voice all but yelled in my ear, but when I turned, the girl who’d spoken was already walking by.
“Madison, beautiful dress!” another girl told me, but she didn’t stay to chat, continuing to pass me by.
Without Jade, I felt untethered, without somewhere to belong. So many people passed me by with equally passing phrases, but no one stuck around. I’d climbed my way up to the Top Tier, but no one felt comfortable to stop and have an actual conversation with me. In all honesty, I couldn’t remember the last time it’d happened with someone outside of the cheer squad. That someone stopped and actually tried to chat.
Reed’s sister, I realized. On the first day of school, she’d stopped and talked to me. It hadn’t happened since then.
“There you are!” I didn’t realize the person was talking to me until they reached out to touch my wrist, and I turned to come face to face with Babble girl.Ava. Her pink hair was in a loose braid over her shoulder, a few pieces twisted back out of her face to expose her wide eyes. Her dark-painted lips began moving. “I’ve been looking for you. Gosh, your dress issostunning up close!”
“Thank you,” I breathed, the tension in my chest loosening. “I love yours.”
Her dress was a clean white with a bit of lace along the bust, and it made her pink hair, pop even more. Iwondered if she had freshly dyed it for the dance. “Thanks!” Ava’s eyes sparkled with the strobe lights. “Can I snap a photo for Babble?”
“Sure,” I called back, grateful for more than a second of conversation. Ava took two steps back, nearly bumping into Reed, who had silently come up behind her. He placed his hand on her waist to steady her—and kept it there.
Ava didn’t even bat an eye, like it was a commonplace occurrence.Wasit a commonplace occurrence? Was this another thing I missed? “Okay,” Ava said, positioning her phone camera at me. “There will be a flash!”
I put one hand on my hip and smiled at her, and a second later, the flash blinded me.
“Is Jade here?” Reed asked me, and Ava twisted around to shoot him a look. He raised his shoulders. “What? I haven’t seen her.”
“I don’t know,” I told him somewhat awkwardly. “I haven’t talked to her today.”
He seemed to understand how big of a deal that was, and why Ava gave him such a scolding look. Ava wiggled her phone with an awkward chuckle. “I’ve got some more people to photograph,” she said, giving me a bright smile in farewell.
Fear of being left alone spurred me forward. “I—” Now it was my turn to reach out and grab Ava’s wrist, keeping her from turning away. “I really loved your article. About Maisie and Connor.”
Ava’s face lit up. “Oh my gosh, thanks! Maisie hated the attention, of course, but I told her she’d better get used to it. That’s what she gets for dating Brentwood High royalty!” Then Ava shrugged. “Or, well, probably.We’ll find out in a few minutes when they announce king and queen, won’t we?”
Someone called to Ava then, and there was no grabbing her again to regain her attention. She merged into the crowd, but Reed hesitated. The lighting was dark, but his lips looked dark—as if he had lipstick smudged on them. “I didn’t realize something happened between you two,” Reed told me, slipping his hands into his pockets. “You and Jade.”
“You thought she’d be forgiving after I helped Connor?”
“I didn’t know that you’d helped him, I guess. I didn’t piece it together.” Reed tilted his head. “I didn’t think you’d try to help Lacey Thursday night, either.”
If those things surprised him, I wondered what he’d say if I told him I kissed the Jefferson High quarterback in my living room a half hour ago. “Here’s to turning over a new leaf, I guess.”
By the way Reed’s eyes lightened, I liked to think he agreed with the sentiment.
A slow dance kicked up in place of the rapidly pulsing music, and one by one, people began splitting off into couples. I stood on the outskirts of them all, eyes bouncing from face to smiling face. I saw Landon’s little sister, Gemma, first. She was easier to spot since she was so short. Her teal dress came down to her knees, and it swished with each slight step they took in their dance. She was dancing with a blond boy in a dark-colored shirt, and they both seemed engrossed in conversation, as if nothing else existed to them. The blond boy smiled at her, and it transformed his whole face.
