Monticlaire was overjoyed when I told her the news. She gave a great big hug and then whisked me away for another walk. We talked about what we would wear, what music we would dance to (and ones we wouldn’t dance to), and so on. It had gotten me excited just planning it.
“So, I’ll meet you at the front of the school before prom starts?” Monticlaire questioned with excitement in her voice.
“Yes, I’ll have my parents drive me. It would be my grandiose appearance after all!” I giggled, beaming at Claire.
“Oh yea, that’s right! No one at my school knows about you, so it’ll be their first time meeting you!” she explained, but then paused. “But… I don’t have any friends to show you off to, honestly.” I put a hand on the girl’s shoulder.
“That’s fine, Claire. We’re still going to have a great time. I promise you.” “Thank you, Novella. You’re the greatest friend that I could ask for.”
“Oh, I know,” I responded jokily. Monticlaire playfully hit me on the shoulder. “Hey! I didn’t mean it as a compliment that much!” Monticlaire laughed. Prom was only two weeks away.
And I couldn’t wait for this magical event to occur.
-~-
I actually could wait. Y’know, I kind of had to. The passage of time doesn’t stop for anybody. However, the blocks were slowly falling into place.
A dress that I ordered online? Check.
Jewelry that my mom let me borrow? Check.
Fancy makeup that I hastily dug out of my dresser? Check.
Finally, the day came. I was ready. I was happy with myself. One could even say that I was finally normal for once.
I slowly trotted down the stairs in my long, silk-like dress. My mother covered her mouth in amazement, while my father rolled his eyes and crossed his arms.
“You look so… beautiful, sweetie,” my mother cooed, pulling out of her camera in a flash.
“I agree. Orange is a warm color, isn’t it?” he chuckled to himself, the flame in his irises bouncing along with his chest. “I’m glad you chose something close to my color.”
All I could do is blush. My mother punched my father in the arm, realizing my color choice as well.
“Yeah, hey! Why didn’t you go with a blue instead? You know that color is more gorgeous anyway,” she said teasingly.
“Well, I am wearing your jewelry, Mom,” I uttered, raking my fingers through my hair. “Ahaha, that is true as well,” she self-proclaimed to make herself feel better. I snickered at the statement.
“Should we get going? We don’t want Novella to be late now? Heaven forbid that we would make you late…” Mr. Nook stated, pulling up his watch.
“Sure, but why not some pictures? C’mon Novella, pose for me really fast.” I did so, doing numerous amounts of poses just to get the perfect picture.
“Look at my stunning daughter. Oh, I’m so proud of you. Let’s get going!” my mother hastily grabbed my purse and fled out of the door. My father was already in the car as the two of us filed into it.
I was off to have the best time of my life.
We arrived shortly, pulling up to the already-crowded front parking lot. I exited the car and fiddled with my dress before pacing over the building. There were a few people strewn about, but they weren’t the person I was looking for.
As I got closer to the front doors, I could hear a familiar voice off to the side. I treaded over to her with a big smile on my face.
“Novella! You…” she was so amazed that she couldn’t finish her sentence.
“Thank you, Claire. I love your look as well,” I gazed at her own blue dress that sparkled in different places. It looked so attractive that it even startled me a small bit.
“Yea, it’s not like we planned this out or anything,” she snorted. I giggled at her remark. When I looked up, I could see her right prosthetic hand outstretched towards me.
“May we enter?” she asked me with all of her might. I didn’t hesitate, despite my powers.
Despite me.
“Of course, Claire.”
Monticlaire led me up the stairs, opening the door for us to go inside. Suddenly, eyes. Lots and lots of eyes. I took a deep breath.
We’re here to have a good time.
In the darkened ballroom (which was conveniently the humongous gymnasium), Monticlaire guided through the both of us to a table that was topped with small bits of chicken and different types of sauces. There was also fruit that we could enjoy. I nabbed a few grapes and popped them into my mouth. Claire looked at me with slight suspicion.
“Look, I had to put on makeup and jewelry for two straight hours. That’s not even mentioning the shower and getting dressed. I’m hungry, okay?” the girl giggled in response.
“I totally understand, you can get more if you want. I’ll be right here,” she said, still holding my hand. I started to blush at the thought of it.
I finished politely stuffing my face, making me turn to the dance floor. It had been about twenty minutes since we arrived, so the dance floor was just now gathering mass. It looked like fun.
“D-Did you want to dance?” Monticlaire yelled into my ear. The DJ started to play some dancing songs, specifically popular ones that everyone knew if they listened to the radio. I nodded at Claire, as it was now my turn to drag her someplace.
Once we got there, she spun around to grab my other hand. I gulped as I started to think about my powers.
Breathe, Novella.
Though the lights were off, I gazed into Claire’s glimmering silver eyes. They were standing out more than usual.
She’s here with you. She’s here.
She’s someone who cares about you a lot. She’s your friend.
My right hand, which was holding her left hand, was starting to get hotter. I sighed, but kept my smile on.
“Does it feel a little hot in here?” I desperately yelled over the music. Claire shook her head no. She leaned in closer to me, nuzzling her head against my neck. I blushed immensely.
She’s… confiding into me a lot…
I pulled myself closer to me, grasping her waists lightly. She didn’t seem to mind that much. We swayed to the music happily, generally enjoying each other’s company. Every other people was just about doing the same. Some were getting wild, however.
We danced like this for a couple of moments until the music got slower. Abruptly, everyone paired up and danced with another person. Claire and I were already doing that, but now we had to dance fancily.
Claire placed both of her hands on my shoulders, while mine remained by her waist. “You know how to slow dance, right?” she inquired. I simply shook my head no.
“It’s not that hard. First you move your feet like this,” Monticlaire gestured. “Then like this.”
Claire steered me through the steps, and we were moving in no time. I was quite enjoying myself.
“Are you having fun?”
“Of course, why wouldn’t I be? I’m with you.”
“Ahaha, alright. Just wanted to check.”
We danced. And ate. For once, I felt like myself. I could be myself. It certainly was the best night of my life.
-~-
Claire and I stopped in an empty hallway, laughing to ourselves. The girl bent down at a water fountain, quickly quenching her thirst.
“Claire, I just wanted to say… thank you for inviting me to this. It felt really nice to get out of my comfort zone.”
“Oh? Well, I’m glad,” she uttered, leaning up and spinning over to me. “You really had some great dance moves.”
“Don’t flatter me, they weren’t all that great,” I laughed again. I sighed, looking at Claire. The girl ran over to me, wrapping her arms around me tightly.
“Thank you for being you, Novella. I… I love you.”
The girl backed a few steps away from me, then cupped my face with her hands.
With one swift move, our lips gradually intertwined. My eyes widened for a few seconds, but slowly lowered and eventually closed.
This is what she really wanted.
We parted away from each other, blinking at each other for what seemed like days. “Monticlaire…” I began. “Before you even say anything, I have to tell you something.” I told her about my hands.
My horrid, unnatural, and putrid hands.
But then she grinned the same grin as always. “Novella, I’ll love you no matter what.” Those were all of the words I needed to hear.
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