Matt
I really had to start filtering through what I was going to say before I said it because I had sounded like one hell of a babbling idiot, spouting off at the mouth when I had talked to Vanessa earlier. I’m not trying to get in your pants. I cringed, recalling my own words. Who actually said that?
Addison was right. I did act like I was raised by wolves. All those years of self-isolation had failed to teach me how to properly interact with others. I was picking over the leftovers at the food table when Addison approached me. Speaking of little, Miss She-Devil. “Scavenging for food to bring back to the den?” She asked as she leaned one slim hip delicately against the table.
I rolled my eyes looking her up and down. “You know, you better be careful about wearing white; it might mislead others into believing that you’re pure and innocent.”
She smirked at me. “You’re right. I should just put it all on display like you do. How courageous you are to only wear black so the entire world knows you have no soul.”
I clasped her on the shoulder. “How courageous you are to wear your clown makeup outside of the circus.”
She took a step closer to me. “How courageous you are to wear your Halloween mask outside of October.”
I pointed my finger at her and opened my mouth before abruptly snapping it closed again. “I got nothing.” We both burst out into laughter before she held out her fist to me. I bumped it and we slapped both sides of the other’s hand before pulling on the other one’s fingers.
Her shoulder reflected from the body glitter she had slathered all over it as she nudged me with it. Why I wondered, would anyone willingly subject themselves to glitter? It was like the herpes of the craft world; once you had it on you, there was just no getting rid of it. “Listen, Matt, I give you credit. You had some good ones but I still win. So, you know what that means.”
I smiled at her. “Yea, yea. I’ll buy you your fries.” I took a long gulp of soda, the grin never leaving my face as I watched her over the rim of my cup. God, how I loved our little game of back and forth. Neither of us ever tended to get offended and somehow her teasing remarks always seemed to soften the blow of all the cutting ones that I received from our classmates. I set the cup down on the table. “So, what brings you slithering your way up from hell and into my presence?”
She swatted me on the arm. “Well, when I couldn’t find you in your usual spot there, I thought you might be up here posing as a clueless teenage boy with zero fashion sense. Turns out I was right.”
“I’m not clueless.”
Addison arched an eyebrow at me, shuffling me in the direction of where Vanessa was sitting at a table, her head propped up in her hands as she wistfully stared out at the couples embracing on the dance floor. “No? So you’ve picked up on the fact that our friend is just dying for a guy to ask her to dance then?”
I watched as she perked up at a junior boy sauntering his way over to the table but she immediately hunched her shoulders back down when she realized that he was just setting his cup atop the nearest surface. The sight was so sad it made me feel bad for her. Oh, how I could relate to all those times that I thought Scott Barnes and Troy Sullivan were actually trying to make friends with me but all they wanted to do was tease me about my second-hand clothing or how I had cried earlier in the day because you know, my fucking mom was dead so excuse me for being a little upset.
I hated being picked on but at least I understood why it was happening but for the life of me, I couldn’t figure out why Vanessa was being overlooked. She was pretty and even more so in her dress and I failed to see a reason for why no one was making a move on a beautiful girl sitting all by herself.
Addison nudged me with her elbow. “You should ask her to dance.”
I shook my head vehemently, making a face. “No. I don’t dance. I thought I stated that earlier.”
“Come on, Matt. Can’t you just swallow your pride for a few minutes? Imagine if you were a 16-year-old girl and you bought a new dress just for the Winter Formal, dreaming of all the guys that would ask you out on the floor and not a single one does. Do you know what that does to a girl’s self-esteem when she’s already insecure enough as it is?” Oof. Addison had a way of tugging on the heartstrings. She propped her chin on my shoulder as we both watched Vanessa. “Now, imagine if you were that same crushed girl but only this time, the cutest boy in the sophomore class who has all the other girls hoping that they’ll be the lucky one that he sets his sights on, walks over and holds out his hand, picking you. That would make you feel pretty special, wouldn’t it? You could do that for her.”
I groaned. “But Addie, I don’t want to.” I know I sounded whiny but did I mention I didn’t want to? Nothing against Vanessa but I was already criticized enough as it was; I didn’t need to make even more of a spectacle of myself by looking like a spazz out on the dance floor. I glanced over to see Addison pinning me down with that laser beam stare of hers. Yikes. I hated when she looked at me like that. It made me feel like I was a little kid again, being scolded for sneaking that extra cookie after dinner.
I rolled my eyes. “Fine, I’ll ask her but let it be known that I hate you.”
She let out a little squeal. “You love me though and I’m willing to bet so will Vanessa after this dance.”
I gave her a questioning look. “Huh?”
“Nothing,” she said quickly, nudging me again in the ribs with her elbow. “Now stop throwing your tantrum. Off you go.”
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I cleared my throat as I approached Vanessa. Now she was really going to think that I was hitting on her after this one. Only this time, she would probably scoff that I couldn’t take a hint and tell me to just beat it already. Of course, she actually wouldn’t though because she was too nice and timid to say something so bold but she would probably scurry off into the bathroom, leaving me standing there awkwardly and rejected over a dance I didn’t even want in the first place. I shoved my hands in my leather jacket, rocking back on my heels as she looked up at me. “So, uh, you having fun?”
“Loads,” she mumbled.
I nervously glanced over my shoulder at the dance floor. Great. The crowd was starting to thin out which would make it even harder to blend in. “I was thinking that it might be kind of fun to totally embarrass Addison by showcasing to the world how terribly uncool her friend is with some harmless ballroom dancing.” I grinned at her. “Care to join me?”
Her lips slightly parted as she worked to say something. “You mean, like…dance with you?”
I shrugged my shoulders. “Yea, sure. Why not? I can get down to a little Ariana Grande.” I held out my hand to her, my heart dropping as the song switched over to something slow. This was my karma for pranking her with that corsage, wasn’t it?
A flush spread across her cheeks but her eyes sparkled as she nodded her head eagerly. Grinning, she stood up. “Ok, let’s do it.”
I started to lead her out onto the dance floor but Alex Banks came jogging over before we could make it two feet past the table. He held up his hands as he struggled to catch his breath. “Whoa, buddy. Take it easy there. I know you think you can just go around stealing other guy’s girls with your dimple, leather jacket, and that cool guy hair of yours but my little lady here isn’t interested.” My eyebrows shot up as he wrapped his arm around Vanessa’s shoulders, pulling her forcefully against his side. “She’s saving the last dance for me.”
I took a step back. “Hey man, we’re good. Go right ahead. Who am I to stand in the way of true love?” The guy was certainly a buffoon but he was harmless and I’ll admit that I was actually kind of grateful for him cutting in. It saved me from the embarrassment of making a fool out of myself while still allowing Vanessa to get her dance with a boy. With that settled, I turned on my heel to go back to scavenging for food. “Carry on,” I called over my shoulder.
***
Vanessa
Nooooooo. I watched in disappointment as Matt slipped through the crowd, all hopes of getting to dance with him disappearing as quickly as Alex’s nasty teeth if he didn’t start brushing them. I shuddered as I turned to shove him away. “Get off me, you moron. He was going to dance with me.”
Alex scratched his head, sending dandruff cascading down his shoulder as he stared at Matt, who had stopped to chat with a seething Addison. “Yea, I suppose you could dance with a stud like that, or you could experience some loving from a real man. A guy like that is only just his looks but baby, a guy like me will make you moan.”
“Ew! Go away.”
He grinned at me and I nearly gagged at the sight of yesterday’s lunch stuck between his teeth. “I like my women a little feisty.” Before I knew what was even happening, he planted a smooch on my cheek. “You like that, sugar? There’s plenty more where that came from.”
I looked at him in disgust. “Tell you what; I’m going to the ladies' room to freshen up. Why don’t you go wait for me by the punch bowl and I’ll let you have that dance when I come back?” He scurried off to the table and I beelined it for the gym door, accepting my fate that losers like him were all I was capable of ever attracting.
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