She hands me the phone, and sure enough, it is Paul on the other end. “Have you been calling me all night?” I ask, determined to know who’s behind the calls. An awkward silence grows between us, but quickly changes when he says, “No, this is my first time calling.”
“Why?”
He chuckles nervously. “I guess… I was… mmm. Would you go to prom with me?” I wait for the butterflies to take flight, for excitement instead of frustration to pour over me. None of it happens, so instead, I reply flatly with three letters, “Yes.”
“Really?”
“Yes,” I respond before I hang up and glance over at Trish who looks so fucking pissed as she slips on her jacket.
“You know…” she begins, before closing her mouth again. Curiosity piques and I step closer, desperate to know what she’s about to say, but she doesn’t say anything. Not until she steps out of my house and climbs on her bike. “I wanted to take you to prom.”
My heart sinks to my stomach and my lips part. “You did?”
She nods bitterly. “I did, but have fun with Paul. I’ve heard he likes getting fucked in the ass.” With that, she throws on her helmet, kicks the bike off its kickstand, and leaves.
LACEY
Another One Bites The Dust by Queen
“Shit!” I cry out as I kick the pipe beneath the sink. Pain radiates through my foot.
This blue glitter will not stay stuck to my eyelid. It’s all falling out all over my under eyes, making me look like I have black eyes. This fucking sucks. I was able to find a replacement dress last minute, thank God! It’s not the exact same, but it’s still teal and has more tulle than even Cyndi Lauper wears. If only I can get this glitter to stay on my eyelids instead of under them.
With a final swipe of tissue under my eye and a fluff to my hair, I head out of the bathroom. The hallways are eerily quiet. I hate this school when no one else is around. It’s cold and stale and creepy as fuck.
“Stacey?” Icall out. “Whitney?”
No answer.
We’re supposed to get here early to set up all the decorations, but so far, I’m the only one who’s arrived. Fucking bitches.
Taking a left down the next hallway, I re-enter the gym. The blue lights shine down on the glittering decorations, bathing everything in a sapphire glow. Streamers and shimmering decor fall from the ceilings. It totally looks like an undersea wonderland. The gym is completely silent as I take in the fruits of our labor over the last several months. The only sound comes from the small rustle of craft paper blowing beneath the air streaming in from the air conditioner. It might still be cold outside, but we made sure they turned on the AC so that the dance floor didn’t get disgusting. No one needs to have their prom memories tainted by Jay Kelley’s bad BO.
“Cannot believe they left me to do all this by myself,” I mutter as I grab one of the remaining posters and some tape. Climbing up on the ladder, I reach to position the poster against the wall, when the sound of a metal door slamming shut echoes through the empty gymnasium.
“Hello?” I ask, spinning around and dropping the poster. “Is anyone there?”
No answer.
I turn back around. A dangling piece of steamer, which is supposed to be part of a jellyfish, gets stuck to my fake eyelashes. “Shit,” I mumble as I attempt to pull the paper out of my eye.
And then I hear it—slow, steady footsteps.
My heart riots in my chest and my mouth goes dry. Images of aperson looming over me, a disgusting pig mask covering their face, and a knife waving in their hand rush through my mind.
“Stacey, this isn’t funny!” I call out, hoping that it’s just my friends playing a joke on me.
The steady whir of the air conditioner blasting cool air into the room is so loud I can barely hear anything else. Slipping from the ladder, I step down onto the hard floor. The sound of my heels clacking against the wooden flooring echoes through the empty space. Creeping as quietly as possible, I make my way back towards the open doorway leading to the darkened hallway beyond. Everything is eerily quiet, eerily still.
“Boo!” someone shouts, grabbing me around the waist.
I spin and scream, flailing my arms out as I desperately try to get away.
“Fuck, Lacey, chill,” Stacey grumbles as she lets go and takes a step back.
My heart is racing, its beat pounding in my ears. My breaths come in short, choppy gulps as I try to calm myself back down.
“What the fuck?” I blurt out between gasping breaths as I hold my chest.
