Page 79 of Evil Queen

Nikita

My heart was beating significantly faster than I expected.

I looked in the mirror with my hair down, loose from its braids, and smiled. Ever since Colette and Avery talked me into wearing it down for prom, I’d been doing it much more. It had a certain luxurious look to it that I didn’t often associate with myself, but I was growing fonder of it. Braids always felt much more muted, but I found that I didn’t necessarily think I needed to do that anymore. I could just relax and be myself more lately. It was nice.

Colette walked into the dressing room where I was and smiled. “Here you are. Hiding from us?”

“No,” I replied. I smoothed down my graduation gown and liked the look of it on myself. “Just taking a few minutes.”

She walked over and set her head on my shoulder. “I love your hair down. It’s kind of weird, but it just feels like it’s more you.”

“I was just thinking that,” I said. “Although it’s a little too long. I might cut it soon.”

“Oh, that’d look cute.” She grabbed the edges and tucked them under so that it was closer to being shoulder length. “Oh yeah. We’re doing this, like, first thing this summer.”

Maybe that was why there were so many butterflies in my stomach. It was graduation day, and after the wild ride I’d had with The Royal Court, it felt like a definitive ending to a story, but Colette’s words reminded me that it isn’t the end for us, just the end to this part. It was the end of a chapter. Starting tomorrow, we’d be on to what the rest of our lives would hold, and even though things weren’t finished with Nathan or his dad, I was excited to get to the next stage for us, even if it was a little scary.

I looked at Colette and smiled. She somehow made her graduation gown look fashionable. Her typically pixie-cut hair was starting to grow out more, but it didn’t really matter how she wore it. It always looked good. She’d finally made her way back to professional-grade makeup application and looked like a goddess. I almost didn’t want to stand near her.

“You look amazing,” I said.

She knocked her hip out to one side. “Naturally.” Then she winked. She looped her arm through mine and started pulling me out of the dressing room. “Come on. We’re going to line up soon.”

Colette pulled me out of the room and into the bustling lobby of Postings Proper High, a packed room filled with graduates. Everyone was giggling, chattering, and cheering in their individual groups while teachers circled the space and made sure everyone looked presentable and ready to go. Principal Hix stood at the front of the room in a suit and tie, talking to D.J. Motley and a couple of other teachers while they waited to be called in.

We made our way through the throngs of students and over to where The Royal Court was standing, save for Brayden, who was still a junior. He had already made an appearance and was somewhere out in the stands, cheering us on. I reached down and laced my hand into Nathan’s, and he brought it to his lips and kissed it.

“You okay?” he asked.

“Yeah,” I said. “I think I’m just shocked that this day is finally here.”

“I know what you mean,” Kyle said. “It really feels like we got here by the skin of our teeth. In January, you two,” he said as he pointed to Avery and Colette, “were a mess. You,” he said, pointing to Nathan, “were in that pit of self-loathing. You two,” he said as he motioned to Alistair and me, “were exhausted by trying to keep the rest of these guys together. I thought to myself, ‘Well, at least they’ll all flunk together, so they’ll have each other next year.’”

We all laughed, and Nathan gave him a light punch on the arm. “You held yourself together surprisingly well. I mean, we had some shit going on, like some shit going on, and you kept your head up and served The Royal Court way better than I ever did as king. You got us through this shit, Kyle. I’m serious. We would not be standing here without you.”

I nodded. “I have to agree. You’ve been our rock. Thanks for remaining so level-headed.”

Kyle grinned. “Hey, I couldn’t just let you guys crash and burn.”

“Nathan, is the party ready for after we’re done?” Avery asked. “I told my parents not to expect me back home tonight.”

A huge smile crossed Nathan’s face. He had apparently prepared the surprise he was working on, but I’d been to his house a couple of times in the week between finals and graduation and hadn’t seenanything out of the ordinary. “Oh yeah. It’s all ready. I was just staring at it before coming here today. You guys are gonna love it. I can’t wait.”

Not long after that, Principal Hix called for the students to line up alphabetically, which effectively pulled all of us apart. We gave our final hugs and kisses and congrats before lining up, and my stomach rumbled with anticipation. Only about five spaces in front of me, dressed in a gown and with a look of anxiety on her face, was Cherri. Her hair had been curled, looking similar to how it used to look when she was with The Royal Court, though it was still shorter and dyed. Beneath the base of her gown, I could see that she was wearing heels, similar to something I might have expected to see her in a year ago as opposed to the tennis shoes or combat boots I was expecting from her in the past six months. She had makeup on, again similar to what she used to wear, and though she was fidgeting back and forth, I could see that her nails were done.

It seemed that the members of The Royal Court weren’t the only ones getting back to normal, but if she was finally coming down off her high and mighty attitude, did that mean she’d try to get back into The Royal Court?

Almost as if she sensed me looking at her, she turned her head, and our eyes locked. My gut reaction was to look away, but I held her gaze, and to my complete shock, she lifted a hand a little bit and waved at me. My lips parted in surprise, but nothing came out, so I just lifted a hand and waved back. After that, she looked away from me, and I glanced around to see if anyone else in The Royal Court had seen it, but everyone seemed tangled up in conversations with the people who were nearest them in line.

Then the call came. Principal Hix and the teachers walked out first, and then after a short welcome from Principal Hix, the processional started. Pomp and Circumstance boomed over the sound system as we filed out onto our football field under the cheers of our friends and family. I spied my foster mom, Sistine, my foster father, Charlie, and my grandmother, Hannah. They started to jump up and down and cheer as our eyes met, and I chuckled and waved a hand at them.

A few seats down the way was Brayden, and he was frantically trying to wave at each specific member of The Royal Court as they passed. When our eyes met, he held up a thumbs-up and screamed, “Congrats, Nikki!” It made me feel good to see that he seemed to be in high spirits, and I waved at him as I passed. We all took our seats, and I turned and looked into the row behind me, where Nathan was sitting almost directly behind me. He stepped out of line briefly to kiss me and then returned to his spot, winking at me as he did so. I turned to face forward again, and then we were seated so that the ceremony could begin.

I was grateful that Principal Hix committed to keeping things short and sweet. The longest part of the ceremony was Colette’s speech. Though she’d missed her final chance to be Valedictorian and Class President, no one took the positions in her wake, so when she applied for the chance to be the Class Speaker at graduation, she snagged it without issue. Her incredible skills for writing showed in a moving and emotional speech that she ended by calling out each member of The Royal Court, Cherri and Sicily included, and saying, “Thank you for making me who I am.”

Walking across the stage left me lightheaded and buzzing. The screams of my family from the stands and of The Royal Court from amongst the students rang in my ears long after the ceremony had ended. I wished I could have recorded it for when I felt sad in the future, but the memory would have to suffice. I found my family after the ceremony and enjoyed the flowers they gave me along with their hugs. It was nice to see my grandma again after almost a year.

“Um,” my grandmother said softly. “Where are Nathan’s parents?”

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