:A Surreptitious Relationship: Chapter Fifty-Two, Part Two

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  Two hours later, I was in a panic, turning my room upside down. It was a complete disaster by the time Casey arrived at my house to get ready with me. I was in the middle of angrily chucking my bed sheets at the wall when she poked her head in cautiously. "Holly?"

             "Hi," I responded distractedly, lifting up my pillows and throwing them on the floor. "Come here and help me."

             "Sure, but I brought a guest."

             Curiously, I turned toward the door, noticing Lexi standing beside her. I smiled warmly. "That's fine. The more the merrier! And the more help!"

             "What do you need help with?" Lexi inquired, stepping further into my room. "Cleaning?"

             I shook my head. "No, actually, I'm trying to find the key to the bangles Chris gave me. He lent me the key the other day so I could clean them, but I can't find it! If I can't find it, I can never take these things off!"

             Lexi made an ooh-ing noise. "Cartier love bangles? Those are expensive!"

             "Please don't remind me," I pleaded, wrinkling my nose. "I don't like thinking about how much money he's spent on me."

             "Do you have to clean them?" Casey questioned. "I mean, no offense, but you hardly do..."

             I made a face at her. "Normally, I wouldn't care but..." Holding up my left arm, I pointed to the sticky maroon substance on one of the bangles. "Put my arm in barbeque sauce..."

             Lexi giggled while a wide grin broke out across Casey's face. "Smooth."

             "Just shut up and help me find the key."

             "Where's your dress?" Lexi asked, peering around my room. "I want to see it!"

             "Sure, it's still in the closet," I responded, dropping to my hands and knees to search under my desk. "Where is your dress?"

             "We left them in the living room," Casey told me, hunting around my bed and side desk for the small piece of metal. "What color is the key? Silver?"

             "Uh-huh."

             "Okay."

             Lexi skipped over to my closet, pulling out the long bag that held my dress. Excited, she nearly ripped it open. "Wow! It's so pretty!"

             "I'd hope so. It took her long enough to find it."

             After shooting a dirty look at Casey, my gaze fell on the sapphire prom dress. It really was beautiful. Unlike the usual, tight-fitted dresses I owned, this one was flowing and loose. It reached just to my knees, being a little longer than usual as well. For the most part, the dress's fabric was pretty much the same— sleek and layered. If I spun, the dress would blow out before me, creating the swishy effect I've always wanted in a dress. The only tight fitting part was at the top though, because it was a strapless dress. The fabric there was silk, fitting skintight with a blue rose placed in the center of the chest. I was pretty proud of myself for finding it.

             "Compared to yours, mine is boring," Lexi complained, pouting. "I got a regular green, fitting cocktail dress."

             Casey smiled at her. "At least you can use it for semiformal occasions as well."

             "I guess, but..."

             "Mine's not as fancy as Holly's either," Casey continued. "It's just short and purple. I think it's a bit too tight, but since it's prom, I decided it'd be fine."

             Lexi laughed. "As long as you're able to take it off after."

             I forced myself to laugh as well. "Yeah..."

             "Well, I'll have help," Casey declared confidently. "I'm going to my boyfriend's house after."

             Surprised, I turned to her. "You are?"

             She nodded. "Yep. Aren't you going to Chris's?"

             "Well, yeah, but..."

             Lexi peered at her interested. "Who's your boyfriend?"

             "Jeremy," she responded easily.

             I opened my mouth to protest, but then closed it. It really didn't matter if Lexi knew anymore. School was over, and she had Lance.

             "Oh, that's cute! So is it going to be your first time?"

             I could have slapped myself in the face. The Lemay twins really were a lot alike.

             "Nope," Casey told her, opening the desk to my drawer. "Ah!"

             "Ah what?" I demanded, hurrying to her side. "Did you find my key—  wait, did you just say it wasn't your first time?"

            Casey held up the condom Jeremy had taped to my back that one time at Chris's. "I found a condom!"

            My cheeks flamed. "Give that back!"

            "Uh oh. Naughty Holly," Lexi teased, catching the condom as Casey tossed it to her when I tried to snatch it.

            "Who gave you that?" Casey asked me, grinning. "I highly doubt you went and bought that."

            I scowled at her. "Jeremy, a while ago. Speaking of which, are you planning to have sex with him tonight?"

            She shrugged. "Not really. I mean, I don't know why, but a lot of girls have it in their head that everyone does it on prom night, but that's not true at all."

            "But you said you weren't a virgin?" Lexi said, finally giving the condom back to me. "Who was your first?"

            I stuffed the condom into my pocket, muttering under my breath. "I bet it was Willis."

            "Bingo!"

            "How come you never told me?" I demanded.

            She cocked an eyebrow. "Is that something you'd want me to tell you? I thought it'd just be awkward. Or assumed. We did date for like, two and a half years."

            "I would've never guessed!"

            Giving me a pitying look, she patted my shoulder much like Aaron had done to Chris earlier. "That's because you're you, Holly."

            "Holly's a virgin?" Lexi spoke up.

            "What about it?" I said defensively. "Why is everyone suddenly bringing it up today?"

            Casey laughed. "I told you. Because a lot of people think prom equals sex. It's the idea of it being a special night and what not. I mean, I bet a lot of people do have sex on prom night, but really. It's not like you have to."

            "I wanted to," Lexi told us, frowning. "But Lance and I haven't been dating for that long... Well, I guess maybe two months is okay. But I'm still a virgin."

            Casey and I did double takes at her. "What?"

            She narrowed her eyes. "What what?"

            "Ah, no..." I started uncomfortably. "It's not..."

            "Well, you just flirt a lot so I just assumed," Casey took over boldly. "No offense to you. You don't look like that type of person. Just your personality."

            She smiled and shrugged. "Yeah, I guess. I haven't found the right guy yet... Well, I did. My old teacher. But he was a gentleman and I was only sixteen, so it wasn't ever going to happen."

            "Lucky you found Chris when you were almost eighteen," Casey told me, nudging me in my shoulder.

            I half-smiled. "I'm not complaining, but it would've been easier if he was younger."

            Lexi nodded in agreement. "Fate likes to make things difficult. But since you have a condom, are you going to do it tonight?"

            "Er... Yeah. I think so," I mumbled, embarrassment getting the best of me as I dropped my eyes to the ground.

            "That's so cute!" she gushed, suddenly throwing herself onto me and giving me a hug.

            Casey decided to join too, nearly knocking me off my feet. "It is!"

            "Get off!"

            "My little Holly is growing up!"

            I struggled to push them off me. "Casey, you sound just like Jeremy and Lance and Chris and everyone!"

            "Well it's true!"

            "It's not a big deal!"

            Lexi pulled away, looking offended. "It's a huge deal!"

            I frowned. "Not really..."

            "You'll see," she said, shaking her head. "You'll understand tonight."

            Sighing, I let my head drop back. "Can we let it go? I need to find that key..."

            "Here," Casey called, tossing the metal I was looking for at me. "It was under the condom."

            I unlocked the bangles on my arm in relief, placing the key in my pocket so I knew I wouldn't lose it again. "Okay, now I just need to clean these before I get ready."

            "Are you letting me curl your hair still?" Casey asked excitedly. "Please please please?"

            "Yeah, yeah," I responded, opening the bottle of jewelry cleaner that was on my desk. "Just don't mess it up."

            "I won't!" she promised eagerly.

            Lexi tapped her fingers on her thigh. "Hmm... What should I do with my hair? I wasn't thinking about that."

            Casey grinned. "Just leave that to me."

            As I scrubbed my bangles, Casey and Lexi headed downstairs to bring their dresses up. I glanced at the clock, realizing we only had two hours before we had to be at the school. That was hardly enough time to get ready for prom. It was hard being a girl. When I finished cleansing my bracelets I slipped them back on, putting them on my left wrist again. With a small smile, I realized I'd received two tan lines due to them.

            "Holly, do you have nail polish?" Casey asked as she returned to my room. "I bought you that kit a few years ago. Do you still have it?"

            Nodding, I opened the bottom left drawer of my desk and produced the almost untouched kit of nail polish. "You know me. I don't throw away gifts."

            "Good," Lexi breathed, "because I didn't bring any."

            "Let's start with that and then do our hair," Casey suggested, plopping herself onto my bed. "So, Holly. I'll start with helping you."

            I smiled sheepishly, bringing the paint over to the bed. "Thanks. Don't drip any of my sheets though."

            "I won't. I'm pro, remember?"

            Lexi grinned at me. "Well, now we know how girly Holly is."

            I waved her off. "I like having clean nails."

            "Okay," she responded skeptically. "That or you're lazy."

            "Maybe a bit of both," I admitted. Painting my nails really was never my top priority. In fact, I couldn't remember the last time I'd painted them. I always messed them up and they always chipped the next day. It was a waste of time.

            Casey clapped her fingers together. "Okay. Let's do this."

            By the time all three of us were dressed up and pretty— our makeup done, hair curled, nails painted, teeth brushed— we were five minutes behind schedule. After I grabbed my overnight bag, we rushed to Lexi's car as fast as our heels would carry us. Since Casey was going to Jeremy's, Lexi had offered to drive since Aaron was getting a ride with James. My stomach was twisting in excitement and anxiety and she sped to the school. It was going to be one unforgettable night. A good night. A trouble free night.

             As we pulled up to the tavern slash country club where prom was being held, I noticed quite a number of students had decided to take limos. There were at least ten of them in the parking lot, and two more pulling in behind us. I was kind of jealous that we hadn't taken one, but I was more than happy that we saved the hundreds of dollars it would've cost.

            "This place looks fancy," I commented as we staggered up to the main entrance, prom tickets in hand.

            "You've never been here?" Lexi asked, surprised.

            I shook my head. "Nope."

            "I swear for as long as I've been living here my grandpa had every single one of his birthdays here. They have awesome food."

            Casey patted her stomach. "Mm, food."

            I shook my head at the pair. "It's prom and all you two can think about is food?"

            "They have a potato bar," Casey stated slyly. "I know you like potatoes, Holly..."

            "I—"

            "Well, don't you all look ravishing tonight?"

            All three of us glanced behind us to see Jeremy standing there, all dressed up in a black tux with a purple tie. His blonde hair was combed back and tamed, giving him a resemblance to a rich bachelor. Fortunately for him, the look worked.

            "Very sharp," I commented.

            "Yeah, not so bad yourself, Mr. Ross," Lexi added, checking him out. "Have you seen Lance?"

            Jeremy nodded; gesturing toward a group of boys huddled around the front entrance. Lance was among them, fiddling with his tie nervously. His suit, along with almost every other guy's, looked like a clone of Jeremy's. The only difference between his and Jeremy's was instead of a bold black jacket, his had wide stripes.

            "I'm going to go say hi," Lexi told us, waving briefly. "See you in there."

            "I guess I should go find Aaron," I grumbled, shielding my eyes as I glanced around the students idling outside of the country club. My main reason for finding him was so that Casey and Jeremy could talk alone.

            Casey shot me a grateful look as I stalked away. "So, Casey," I heard Jeremy start. "Was that dress painted on or— ow! Wait! Don't hit me! I was kidding! It looks nice!"

            Rolling my eyes, I carefully made my through the flock of excited students chattering loudly, my eyes peeled for Aaron. I passed James, who greeted and complimented me, and then Ellie, who was with a handsome stranger. I felt awkward walking around by myself, so when I found Aaron, relief washed through me. Like Jeremy, he had combed his pecan colored hair back. Immediately I hooked my arm through his suited one. "Found you."

            He raised an eyebrow. "What are you doing?"

            "Being your date."

            "I was kidding."

            I shrugged. "It's not like I have a date anyway. Being in the picture together is better than being alone, isn't it?"

            A small smirk crossed his face. "I suppose. But I bet the real reason you want to be my date is because you're secretly in love with me."

            "Definitely."

            Chuckling, he tugged on my arm, pulling me out of the crowd. "Shall we head inside then? I'm starving."

            "You and Casey would be good friends..."

            "What?"

            "Nothing," I said, smiling. "I bet Chris is already in there."

            Aaron grunted noncommittally.

            "Remember, he's wearing a suit..."

            Aaron elbowed me. "Stop that. Unless you want me to make a move on your boyfriend."

            I stared at him flatly. "You already have, remember? Multiple times. I'm actually starting to find amusement in it."

            A wicked grin flashed onto his face. "Should I kiss him again?"

            "I wouldn't..."

            "Maybe I'll do it at the after party."

            "After party?" I echoed.

            Aaron frowned at me. "Did I forget to invite you?"

            "Yes!"

            "It's not a prom after party. It's a graduation after party. So, Monday night. You'll be there, right?"

            Hesitating, I shrugged. "Maybe. Remember what happened last time I went to one of your parties?"

            He grimaced. "Yeah. I was a dick."

            I snorted. "Yeah, you were."

            "Can I apologize for that?"

            "I suppose so," I responded, squinting into the distance. We were in the main hallway of the building now. It split off into two different sections— the party area, and the tavern. Some teachers I never had were guiding all the students entering in the direction of the party area. Aaron tried sneaking off to the tavern, but I grabbed him by the cuff of his suit, dragging him the other way with me.

            "Party pooper," he complained.

            "I'm saving you from getting kicked out."

            He folded his arms over his chest grumpily. "It's not like I was going to order anything. I don't have a fake ID."

            I studied his face for a moment before messing up his gelled hair. "You look better with it normal."

            "Hey!" he protested, slapping my hand away. "I was trying something new!"

            "Do it later," I told him. "We have to get our picture taken. Make sure to smile. Show teeth."

            "Okay, Mom."

            I made a face at him before stopping in the line for the photographer. Grumbling beside me, he pulled out his wallet. "What are you doing?" I asked.

            He pointed to a sign on the wall. "It cost five bucks."

            "What? It does? I didn't bring money!"

            "I did," he stated, waving his wallet in my face. "Are you blind?"

            "You shouldn't have to pay."

            "You're my date, aren't you?" he asked with a crooked grin.

            I couldn't help smiling back at him. "You know, you're actually a really good person. What college are you planning to go to?"

            "Ah, well Lexi is going to WNEC so I might go there. Or Boston."

            "You should go to Western."

            "Why?"

            "So we can continue to be friends!" I said brightly, stating the obvious. "I really do like you now, Aaron."

            To my surprise, a blush crossed his face. "S-shut up. I won't go there."

            My mouth fell open. "Eh? Why not?"

            "Because!"

            "You should go!"

            "Move up, it's our turn for the picture."

            "But Aaron—"

            Ignoring me, he wrapped an arm around my shoulder, grinning at the photographer. I stopped talking and smiled as well, noticing for the first time Aaron was wearing an emerald tie. It didn't match my dress, but at least the colors went well together. After the lensman finished snapping pictures of us, we headed into the main room where at least fifty round tables were set up. In the middle was a gigantic dance floor with two enormous speakers and the disc jokey stand at the front. On the perimeter of the entire room were many food stations, ranging from meat to ice cream to snacks. At the far left corner was the bar.

            "There's Mr. Heywood."

            My gaze followed Aaron's pointing finger all the way to the left wall, where a red-curtained photo booth was set up. A wide smile crossed my lips as I took in my boyfriend's handsome face. His hair was completely disheveled and damp, making me think he'd just hopped out of the shower before coming here.

            "What the hell is he wearing...?"

            I did a double take when my eyes dropped lower. Aaron's question was valid. What the hell was he wearing?

            Instead of the joining the majority of the men by wearing a black tux, Chris had opted for a completely white one. The shirt under his white jacket was the only black thing on him. I couldn't take my eyes off him, not sure how to feel about his clothing choice. Part of me wanted to laugh, but another part of me thought he looked incredibly attractive all in white. Sexy, even. His

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