Slowly, I inch the truck forward as the car line moves. I’m not sure what to say to Jaylen. The pressure has been building up all week to this moment. It’s just the two of us in my truck, and I feel like that rambling teenager who told her he loved her.
Finally, we make it to the front of the line. A person with half their face painted like a skeleton opens the door. This event really went all out. Maybe I should be taking notes for Stella. Another person on the staff opens the door for Jaylen. She turns toward the backseat, but I wave her off. “I’ve got these.”
“Thanks.” She closes the door and comes around the truck. With her wings in one hand, I give my information to the valet driver and he hands me a ticket.
“When you’re ready, just bring us the ticket and we’ll get your vehicle for you.”
Nodding my agreement, I turn toward Jaylen. “Are you ready to go in?”
“Um, actually, we have to wait for Hannah and Kelly to get here. They have our tickets.”
“Oh.” I wish I’d known that. We wouldn’t have left her house so early. “Maybe we should move over here to the side so we’re not in anyone’s way.”
“That’s a good idea,” she moves outside of the entrance, and I follow her. Let’s be honest, I’d follow this woman pretty much anywhere. “Can you help me with the wings while we wait? It’s a two-person job.”
“Of course.”
She turns around, facing the wall and holds her arms out to the side. The wings are bulky, and I slide an arm loop around both arms at the same time. It’s probably easier to do it this way than to bend her arms at odd angles to get the wings adjusted. Once I’m sure they won’t slide down, I move in front of her and move the wings further up her arms.
My fingers glide slowly across her skin with the movement, and I’m pretty sure she just shuddered at the touch. Taking a step closer to her, I adjust the straps of material. Untwisting them so they lay flat across her shoulders. This is the closest I’ve been to her since the reunion. I move my hand to her cheek, my thumb caressing her glitter covered skin.
“You look beautiful.” I haven’t even seen the full effect of the costume, but I know without a doubt she’s going to outshine everyone there.
“Th-thanks.” Her breath catches on the words. On this crowded street, with people waiting to get into the event, it feels like it’s only the two of us here. Everyone else fades away. A replay of the night I told her how I felt about her, but this time…this time she’s on the same page as me.
I close the distance between us, her body flush against mine. My lips are a mere inch from hers. Her eyes close and suddenly there’s light shining from above us. “There you go.”
Pulling back, I glance over Jaylen’s shoulder. Kelly and Hannah are standing behind her beaming. Jaylen groans as she turns around, and I have to shuffle to the side to avoid her wings. “Seriously.”
“I added lights to the halo as well. You’re welcome.”
With their appearance, the moment is ruined. “Uh, thanks.” I watch Jaylen eye her best friends. “Y’all really didn’t think I’d like to dress up as my childhood favorite doll?”
“We knew you might have other plans.” Hannah blurts out and covers her mouth. So, they orchestrated this whole thing. How many people knew? Is that why my friends were constantly bugging me about coming to the reunion? No, they don’t even talk to Hannah and Kelly if they don’t have to.
“Speaking of,” Kelly turns toward me, “what are you supposed to be?”
My back stiffens now that the attention is on me. “Um, a cowboy.”
Kelly opens the small bag looped over her shoulder. She pulls out a few things and draws on my face. “There, now you're an injured cowboy.” She slides the makeup back into her bag. “You can’t show up in the same thing you used to wear in school.”
“It’s the best I could do with short notice.”
“I know, and I made it slightly better.” She grins. “Jaylen is the angel sent to help you on your way.”
Out of the corner of my eye, I watch Jaylen shake her head. I think she’s as exasperated with her friends as I am. “Do you have our tickets?”
“Yep.” She pulls two small rectangles, and a key card, out of her bag and hands them to the woman beside me before leaning in and whispering something in her ear. She steps back and waves at us. “You two have fun, and definitely do everything we would do.” With that they turn around and leave.
Jaylen’s cheeks are bright red. “You, okay?”
“Absolutely,” she grins up at me, “let’s get in line to go in.”
“Let’s do this.” I take a deep breath and hold out my hand. This whole thing is so far outside of my comfort zone, I don’t know what to do with myself.
“Hold on.” She pushes some of the fabric away, pushes something, and her entire skirt lights up. I didn’t even realize there were lights on it. They shine through the feathers, making her literally glow. “Now I’m ready.”
“Yep, definitely out of this world.” She grabs my hand and we move toward the line of people waiting to get in. “If we get separated, I’ll be able to find you.”
