“Leo, I look terrible.”
“No, you don’t.”
“You’re lying.”
“I’m not.”
I stared at my bedroom wall.
“People are going to stare.”
“Let them.”
“They’ll feel sorry for me.”
“Maybe.”
“That’s exactly what I don’t want.”
His voice became firmer.
“You deserve your night, Elena.”
I closed my eyes.
“Not anymore.”
“Especially now.”
I didn’t answer.
“Elena,” he continued. “Just trust me.”
Trust him.
That was easy to do.
Leo had somehow become my favorite person during the worst month of my life.
We’d known each other for years.
He was one of those people everyone liked.
Athletic without being arrogant.
Popular without being cruel.
Handsome without acting like he knew it.
The kind of guy who remembered birthdays and helped teachers carry supplies.
When he asked me to prom months earlier, I thought I was hallucinating.
Now, he was still here.
Still calling.
Still refusing to leave.
“Please,” he said quietly. “Come with me.”
I finally whispered, “Okay.”
The relief in his voice was immediate.
“Good.”
“You’re annoyingly stubborn,” I told him.
“I know.”
“And if this is horrible, I’m blaming you.”
He laughed.
“I’ll take that risk.”
The next evening, I stood in front of my bedroom mirror.
The emerald dress still fit perfectly.
That almost made me cry.
I wrapped a pale silk scarf around my head and adjusted it five different times.
Nothing looked right.
Nothing felt right.
I looked like someone pretending to be herself.
When the doorbell rang, my stomach twisted.
Mom squeezed my shoulder.
“You look beautiful.”
I wasn’t convinced.
But I nodded anyway.
When I opened the front door, Leo was standing there holding a small corsage.
For a second, he just stared.
His eyes softened.
“Wow.”
I laughed nervously.
“That’s usually what people say when they’re trying not to hurt someone’s feelings.”
“I’m serious.”
He held out the corsage.
“You look amazing.”
I looked down quickly before he could see my eyes filling with tears.
“Thank you.”
The drive to prom felt strangely normal.
