Hi lovely friends! I'm rolling out this quick creativity challenge today April 3, 2020 in an effort to give you more exciting things to do as we all #StayAtHome in the weeks ahead. The main goal of...
Mystery and masquerade is the theme of Copperdale High’s senior prom. It’s a chance for all the students to dress up in disguise and get to know their fellow classmates all over again. Everything’s a mystery at the masquerade - each food a different flavor, each song a different genre, all of it meant to keep the students (and even the chaperones!) on their toes. The theme of the night? Expect the unexpected!
“I don’t think I recognize you, beautiful. Are you some kind of prom crasher?”
Emily blinked out of her reverie of watching the other masked dancers. That voice, it sounded so familiar. Could it be-?
“No, I… what makes you think I’m beautiful? You can’t even see my face.”
“I can tell. Join me for a dance?”
She glanced at his over the top get up. “Are you trying to play the role of my knight in shining armor? I’m not a damsel in distress.”
“Let me guess your type,” the masked stranger started, taking a seat beside Emily. “You’re the nerdy bookworm who has never gotten anything below an A in her whole life. If you weren’t here right now you’d have your face buried in a book. You’ve got yourself a full ride to Britechester. Am I right?”
Emily felt her face burn, and she was glad he couldn’t see her.
“And you’re the jock everyone loves who expects everyone to fawn over you because you can throw a football.”
He laughed, a big, confident sound that filled the room. “Touché.”
“And you’re wrong, by the way. Foxbury. To study robotics.”
He whistled. “Impressive. Was I right besides that?”
“…maybe. Why don’t you go back to hanging around with the friends you came in with?”
He shrugged. “I’m enjoying talking to you. Why? Do you want me to go away?”
Yes. No. Emily wasn’t sure.
“Come on. One dance and I’ll leave you alone for the rest of the evening, if that’s what you want.” He stood up again, holding his hand again to her.
Emily didn’t have the heart to turn him down. What she didn’t know was how much it would hurt to be close to him again.
Making a flash decision - something quite rare for Emily - she gave him her hand. Emily could almost see the big smile on his face as he pulled her up, leading them to the dance floor.
https://i.imgur.com/wE0lqYh.png
Emily couldn’t tell if it was her own heartbeat pounding in her ear or the music. Just focus on not stepping on his toes, she thought.
“You know, it’s a lot easier if you breathe,” he said, squeezing Emily’s hand gently.
“It’s hard to breathe when it feels like everyone’s watching you. I guess you’re used to that, huh? Captain of the football team. Future prom king.”
“Hmm,” he hummed. “How’d you figure out who I was?”
“You didn’t exactly make it hard on me.”
“I almost forgot. Foxbury brain.”
“It doesn’t take a genius to recognize someone’s voice.”
He paused the dancing for a moment to take a step back. Emily could almost feel his eyes through the mask.
“That’s true. But that kinda defeats the whole masquerade thing, don’t you think?”
“What do you mean?”
“I mean the whole point of this was to make new friends out of people you thought you knew, right? Take a chance and talk to a stranger, you never know what kind of person they are.”
Emily didn’t know how to respond to that. She hadn’t given the theme that much thought, if she was being honest.
He began dancing again with her, and Emily found it was easy to slip back into a pattern with it. Like she had been doing it with him all night, not just for this once dance.
“Is that what you’re trying to do with me?” Emily asked. “Make a NEW friend?”
If he picked up on her emphasis, he didn’t draw attention to it. “Yeah, I guess. Would that be so bad?”
“Not bad, just-“ Emily realized the music had cut out, quite some time after everyone else stopped swaying. She removed her hand from his, taking a step back. Her head was getting kind of heavy, she felt like she needed a deep breath. “I… song’s over.”
“I know you only promised me one dance. But can I have one more?”
The music started up again. This time there was no hesitation, Emily started dancing with him again. Maybe her head being full wasn’t such a bad thing.
“You know, if you know who I am,” he started, dipping her just slightly. If Emily’s heart wasn’t racing before, it was now. “…It’s only fair you tell me who you are.”
“Here’s a new deal. If you figure it out, I’ll confirm it.”
“That’s not fair. There’s a lot of students at Copperdale High. You can’t expect me to know all of them.”
“I don’t.”
“Can I at least have a hint?”
“We were in two classes together.”
“Uh…”
“The hint didn’t help at all, did it?”
“Not really. Why did we never talk?”
“We did.”
This time he stopped the dancing. “I’m sorry. You must think I’m some kind of llama hole.”
Emily shrugged. “No, I don’t think that. I think we’re two very different people who never had a chance.” Her face burned as she realized she may have said too much. “I, nevermind, I-“
“We’re not that different.” His voice was quiet this time, just barely audible over the pounding music. “We’re both Copperdale students. Both seniors. Both about to embark on the next journey of our lives.”
“That’s everyone in this room.”
“We also both really really want to kiss the other person right now.”
She laughed, surprised. “Do we now?”
“Yup. We do. I’m sure of it.”
“Well, if that’s the case-“ She stood on her toes and planted a quick kiss on the grates of his knight mask, where she thought his lips would be. It was the closest they had been all evening. He stopped breathing, looking down at her.
What did I just do?! Emily stepped away from him, feeling like everyone in the school was watching them. Her breath was shaky. “I’m sorry, I-“
Not giving him the chance to respond she took off running, ignoring his cries to get her to stay. She needed to be far away from here, never to be seen by him again. Emily ripped off her mask, tired of feeling it on her face. Stupid mask. Stupid prom. Stupid Copperdale High. Stupid, stupid-.
https://i.imgur.com/V4Oq5u6.png
“Hey, wait up!”
“I don’t want to talk. Just leave me alone, Jordan. You’re quite good at that.”
“I’m sorry.”
Emily paused, back still to him, out of breath. “You don’t need to apologize. It’s okay. You grew up. We both did. You became this jock, and I-”
“Am still the same Emily I was back in middle and elementary school.”
Emily froze, realizing he figured it out.
“That’s what I like about you.”
“Yeah, you liked it so much that you ditched me back in freshman year,” Emily said bitterly.
“Hey, you ditched me, too!”
“What?” Emily spun around to look at him, prepared to give him a piece of her mind. It threw her off to be confronted with his face, and not the mask. Still, she gathered all the words she’d been turning over in her head for four years. “I’m not the one who stopped replying to the text messages and phone calls, Jordan. I’m not the one ignored you in the hallway.”
“Oh yeah? Well. I-“ Jordan fumbled with his words.
Emily sighed, suddenly angry no more. What was the point? What was done was done. “It’s okay. I get it. You got popular. I’d just taint your presence with my ‘nerdiness’.”
“I’m not just a jock, and you’re more than just a nerd, Emily. I know I haven’t made an effort to reach out and that’s on me. But you and I were best friends when we were kids. I miss that. I miss you.” Jordan took a step closer to her. Emily wondered if he could hear her pounding heart.
“Listen. If this is about guilt, or some kind of prank, or-“
“I-“
“Hey, Jordan!” Said an unfamiliar voice. “Come on back inside. They’re crowning prom king and queen.”
“Go,” whispered Emily. “Your people await.”
“My people are right here,” Jordan stated definitively.
Emily felt her ever-working mind short circuit. What? “It’s prom king. It’s a once in a lifetime-“
“You hate mixing mustard and ketchup. You hate dyeing your hair because it takes forever, but you’re still good at it. Your favorite color is blue - like the sky, not navy blue. You’re a horrible singer-“
“Hey!”
“And a wonderful piano player. You probably still have the blarffy from your grandma on your bed.”
Jordan took another step closer to her, Emily could almost feel his body heat coming off of him.
“You’re also the perfect mix of brains and beauty. Looking in your eyes now, I…” Jordan shook his head. “I’m no poet. If I could go back in time and smack my freshman self for being such a llama hole to you, I would.”
“You can’t.”
Jordan looked dejected, nodding.
“All you can do is change how you are now.”
“In that case-“
https://i.imgur.com/eWe5ehl.png
Jordan closed the distance, kissing Emily gently. Not for the first time that night, Emily felt her brain short circuit. Maybe it wasn’t such a bad thing.
“Okay, that was-“
Jordan gave her a cocky smile. “Everything you hoped for and more.”
“Oh, shush,” Emily shoved him playfully. “Should we go back inside? Maybe you can still claim your crown.”
Jordan shrugged. “I think I’m prom’d out, you know?”
“I did enjoy the dancing, though,” Emily admitted.
“In that case,” Jordan held out his hand. “Will you do me the honor of another dance out here under the moonlight?”
“I will.”
So the two spent the rest of the evening together, unsure of what the future would hold, but happy to have each other even if just for the night.
