Page 32 of The Prom King & The Ice Queen

I narrow my eyes, just waiting to call him out on a smirk or a scoff. But he just looks…excited.

Oh great.

Callie is a sucker for enthusiasm. She’s nodding excitedly. “Yeah, it’s been a tradition for years.”

“Really,” he says, his tone all interested, and Callie is helpless to resist.

“Oh yeah, it’s loads of fun,” she says.

I inwardly wince. Callie’s idea of a fun party and Leo’s idea of a fun party are worlds apart, and I will murder this boy if he even thinks of mocking her.

Luckily she moves on. “But, unfortunately tonight we had to bail. Sunday nights are no fun for parties to begin with. Plus, Willow’s parents are home and Finn’s away and Isla’s got something with her aunt and…” She pauses to take a deep breath, her smile a beam as she aims it at Leo. “You’ll have to come to the next one though.”

I groan before I can stop myself. There is no universe in which I want my two worlds to collide. Ever. And especially not like this. It was bad enough when Maverick first started to hang, but he’s cool about it all. He never mentions it in front of our friends at school, and he thinks Callie hung the moon so if she says our parties are cool, they’re cool.

There are times, like Friday night’s birthday party for Addie, where I cannot stop the worlds from overlapping. But a full-on collision?

This I can avoid.

“I’m betting Leo has other plans,” I say, stepping between them to end the conversation. I start to push Leo away, but apparently he’s made of brick.

Something I suppose I should have guessed considering his status on the football team, but I’m getting a lesson in rock-hard abs as I press my palm against him. To no avail, mind you. He just stands there, cocking an eyebrow as if he’s amused that I’m even trying.

“How do you know he has plans?” This from Willow who’s joined us with an armful of broken pinata, which Leo takes from her. “We don’t even know when the next party’s going to be?”

I open my mouth and come up blank, but luckily Callie’s latched on to party planning and intervenes. “Probably this Thursday, right? I mean the Barons are having one of those boring dinner parties, right?”

We all go silent and Callie flinches as she looks up to Leo. “Um…sorry.”

He laughs. A genuine laugh. “You think I like attending those dinner parties? Trust me. I am more aware than anyone how boring those parties can be.”

Callie slumps with relief and I take a brief pause in hating him because I’m always grateful when people are kind to Callie and Willow.

I care about all my troupe-mates, past and present, but these two have a sort of innocence about them that makes me feel ancient.

And overprotective.

And lucky.

I’m lucky that they’re so sweet because that’s the only reason they put up with me and my split life. Finn jokingly refers to me as Clark Kent and Superman because of my split personalities between the Princess Troupe and Lindale High.

It’s never been clear to me which version he prefers.

I’m not sure I’ve ever been clear on which one is really me. I’ve been pretending for so long that I no longer know what’s real and what’s fake.

At least, I’ve never been sure..until today. Or maybe it’s been since Friday night. But right now, I feel that split in personality right down to my core.

I feel like I’m coming apart at the seams.

And if there’s one person who I really don’t want to witness me falling apart, it’s Leo.

Willow waits until Leo walks away to speak again, but not long enough. “Maybe one of the parents can give you a ride.”

I try to smile. She means well. “Thanks, but I think I’ll just walk to the school and—”

“What is wrong with you?” Leo interrupts so suddenly, Willow and I both jerk back.

“Excuse me?” My snotty voice is on autopilot, apparently, because I sound righteously annoyed by his interruption even though my heart is thundering in panic mode.

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