We walked together down to the party, and once we were close enough, he stayed back so I could make a re-entrance, and he slip in a bit later. I watched all afternoon, making sure he was having a good time, but also that he andNona never got close to each other. Thankfully, she was more than happy to be entertaining all her dancer friends well into the afternoon and, hopefully, evening.
I did all the things I was supposed to for my quinceañera. I thanked everyone personally for coming. I opened my presents and ate lunch. Nona wanted to have my party early, as she had a hard time staying up late these days. I didn’t mind, as none of my guests were truly my friends. I didn’t have friends; I had family and company members.
Past formalities, none of them requested dances or conversations with me during the party. It didn’t matter though, because the only one I wanted to dance with was the one I couldn’t.
The party was still going on at night, however, the fairy lights made it hard to see, and all of the adults were far, far away from sobriety. I shared a look from across the dance floor with my favorite person in the whole wide world, and quickly, we exited. We met outside the garden and ran back into the house.
“One day, we won’t have to hide like this,” I declared, shutting the door behind us. “And our house will be five times this size!” I shouted into the entryway.
“Oh yeah?” He laughed.
I spun around, letting my dress flare. I laughed. “Of course, my Gatsby, darling. We can’t be Daisy and Gatsby without the mansion. Would you like to see my room?” I took his hand and gave him a tour as fast as I could.
“This is where Nona sits and gossips with her friends all day when she’s not yelling at me to practice more. And this is where we’d watch TV if she let us have cable. It only plays the news. The library is where I spend my time when I’m not dancing, but you already know that.”
“Woah, hold on! You’re going too fast!” He laughed as we continued up to the second floor.
“We’re not going fast enough!” I exclaimed. “I don’t want to wait three more years to be a grownup. I want to be one now!”
I kept my smile, but inside, my spirit wilted some. There was more truth to that statement than I wanted to admit. I was ready to turn 18, not just to be a grown woman who could do grown woman things, but so that I could leave.
Escape.
I took him to my at-home studio. It was nothing fancy, just a bedroom that had been given wood floors, a giant mirror, and a barre.
“So this is it, huh?” Gatsby stood in the doorway as I entered and spun again. I reached out my hand.
“May I have this dance?”
“I’ve been waiting all night.” He joined me in the room and put one hand on my waist while holding onto my hand with the other. “There’s no music,” he said as we spun.
“Oh yes!” I went to the small stereo with the MP3 player attached. I ran through the music and clicked a song and returned to him.
“What’s this?”
“‘Time after Time’ by Cyndi Lauper,” I said as we danced. “I found it on a CD in my mom’s collection. My Nona doesn’t like me to go through my parents’ stuff, but I sneaked her music. My mom had good taste."
“I like it. Do we have a song now, Daisy?”
“I think we do, Gatsby.” I grinned.
“Now, back to our Gatsby mansion. It’s going to be huge. What do we put in it?” he asked, twirling me.
“Let’s see, a giant library, of course, and so many rooms you get lost, even if you’ve lived there forever. I want a room that’s all pinks and golds, and the wallpaper and art and furniture is all art déco everywhere!” I exclaimed.
“You’ve got such an imagination, Daisy.”
“You’re the only one I can share it with.” I grinned. “What about you? What do you want to put in our mansion that rivals all other mansions?”
“What about a winding staircase that takes you from the bottom all the way to the top? And a personal elevator, so you don’t have to use it.”
“Yes! And a bathtub that’s shaped like a swan.”
“A swan?”
“Yes, like inFlowers in the Attic, but not a bed. I want a bath. The beak can be the spout!” I giggled.
“You got it.”
