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Proms were a really big deal at East High, something Gina found out near the end of her sophomore year.
It seemed as soon as February came around the corner, everyone went a little prom-crazy. There were flyers and banners all around school, students running left and right to get all the planning done, and Gina had to either talk or listen about the tickets sell every day at the morning announcements. The wildcats clearly took their graduating seniors’ send-off very seriously.
She was in awe with it all. The theme was Winter Wonderland and from the various insights she was getting from EJ, who was the senior year’s class treasurer, everything seemed dazzling. Dare she say... out worldly?
Well, maybe that was a bit exaggerated, but it’s not like she’d had the best track with school dances in the past, so it was not her fault. Gina had never heard of any of those events in real life until her freshman year, though she’d spent homecoming night in her room by herself because all of her classmates were douchebags who thought they were too cool to talk to the new girl. Sophomore year had turned out differently, though probably equally as bad since she had gone to the dance but it had been all a scheme with EJ to help her get the leading role in that semester’s musical, and she had ended up pouring fruit punch all over her date (on purpose) and storming off. So yeah, school dances never went well for her. But now, seeing all of the preparation for it and how dedicated to it all of the students were, she convinced herself maybe this time would be different and admitted she wanted to go badly.
She couldn’t, though. Proms were only for seniors and juniors, so as a sophomore, she wasn’t allowed to go unless an upperclassman asked her to be their date, and there was no one who was willing to do so, which meant she was definitely not going.
Except Gina’s life took strange turns every now and then (like when Ashlyn told her she could stay at her place for as long as she’d like and put a stop to the curly-haired girl’s constant moving), because, in the middle of the second semester, the same guy who had taken her to homecoming became one of her best friends, and a little later, something more. After a bit of miscommunication at opening night thanks to her brother Jamie (who had not escaped her angry call later on), EJ and she sorted it all out and had their first kiss. That same night, they went out for risotto and officially became a couple.
So it turned out she actually would go to prom. She only needed EJ to ask her.
He eventually did, at East High’s gym (the place they first started truly bonding).
He’d made a huge banner that rolled down in the middle of the basketball court, saying “Prom is only going to be a night to remember If you’re there with me. Will you?” and even had gotten the school’s marching band to make a cover of What I’ve Been Looking For (Troy and Gabriella’s version, obviously) for the promposal. She honestly couldn’t had said ‘no’, and she hadn’t wanted to, either.
“So, what do you say,” EJ had asked her as he slightly fidgeted with his fingers. “can I make it up to you for homecoming?” Gina had pretended to think about it, looking up at the ceiling as she crossed her arms.
“I suppose I could allow that.” She’d replied after half a minute, smiling brightly at him. He’d let out a sigh of relief, returning the smile.
“Oh, thank God. I promise you’re gonna love it, G.”
“And I promise I won’t pour punch on you this time. Unless you deserve it, of course.” They’d both laughed at that.
“Fair enough.”
But she ended up not having to do that. EJ was the perfect gentleman, much like he’d been the entire semester, and the whole night was amazing, so no one had to go home covered in sweet fruit juice.
Now, it was Gina’s turn to help organize prom, as she was part of the graduating crowd this time.
Along with Ashlyn, Carlos and Natalie, Gina spent a huge part of her last semester at East High planning, buying, and doing whatever else she had to so their prom would turn out being brilliant (quite literally, since the theme they’d chosen was Starry Night). Summing that up with her theater club’s activities, the finals she had to study for, the college applications she had yet to fill in and the fact that her boyfriend was 2.176 miles away from her at NYU, it was telling she needed some time to unwind.
Prom was only a week away and though everything was already prepared, she was still nervous something would get screwed up, so she lingered around at school after rehearsals like she normally did, just in case. Ashlyn, seeing she was too stressed out, dismissed her and demanded that she got a night off.
Gina protested, but her roommate insisted she had to take a break. Honestly, If the curly-haired girl hadn’t been so exhausted, that discussion would’ve lasted hours (don’t put a Caswell and a Porter on different ends, an advice everybody should take), but since she was, she simply complied.
As soon as she got home, the girl took a calming bath, changed into her pajamas (which consisted of EJ’s Duke sweatshirt and midnight blue sweatpants full of stars) and decided to watch “10 Things I Hate About You”, as it was one of her comfort movies. She wanted to do as much as she could to tranquilize herself. Sure, graduation was close and she still hadn’t done everything she needed to do, but it was only fair that she had a night off from all the worries.
The universe seemed to be on her side, because just as Patrick started singing to Kat on the school’s stairs onscreen, she heard a knock on the door. Gina got up and answered it, only to find her boyfriend looking at her with the hugest smile, one she definitely replicated.
“You’re here!” She squealed and jumped right into his arms. Thankfully he had already put his bags on the ground, so he easily wrapped his arms around her waist, picking her up and spinning her around as they both laughed wholeheartedly. EJ put her down not too long after and Gina forgot she’d ever been stressed in the first place as her lips found his for the first time in way too long.
“You didn’t think I’d miss your senior prom, did you?” He said in-between kisses, because Gina had to prove to herself that this wasn’t a dream and that he was really there.
“I knew you were coming, I just didn’t think it’d be right now.” She cupped his cheek and counted the colors in his eyes. God, how she had missed that.
“Ow, okay Porter. If I’m bothering you so much I can just come back by prom night, y’know?” She scoffed at him humorously and shook her head lightly.
“You always bother me, but I kinda signed up for this, so... Don’t you dare.” She said jokingly. The mock-offense that was just all over his face was replaced by another smile, because he just couldn’t help but do that whenever he was around his girlfriend. How could you not be happy when Gina Porter was right next to you? It was impossible, really. “But how exactly are you here?”
“I took my exams some days ago so I could come by earlier.”
“Missed me that much, huh?” She teased.
“You have no idea, G.” Her eyes turned soft and she pulled him into another kiss, even sweeter than the first few ones.
“I missed you just as much, Eej.” She removed her arms from around his neck and interlocked her hand with his. “C’mon in, we’re watching a movie.”
“Oh, Ash’s around? When I talked to her, she told me she was still in school.” He said, grabbing his bag from the ground with the hand that wasn’t enveloped in Gina’s and following her inside.
“Actually, she is in school. By ‘we’, I meant ‘you and me’.” Gina sat on the couch, patting at the seat right next to her while she looked at him. He immediately complied to her silent request, plopping beside her.
“Oh, of course we’re watching this movie. How did I not know?” EJ joked after seeing the frozen scene on the TV.
“Hey, it’s a 90s classic based off a Shakespeare play and it has the enemies to lovers trope. What is there not to love?”
“Babe, you are so right.” Gina leaned into his side and the boy threw his left arm around her, tugging her even closer.
They spent the rest of the night cuddling, with some occasional kisses here and there just because they hadn’t been able to do that for a long time, and ended up inevitably falling asleep. It was the most peaceful Gina felt in months.
The week passed by in the blink of eye. Soon enough, prom night arrived and everyone seemed really excited for it. Especially Ms. Debbie Caswell, who was more than eager to take a long photoshoot of Ashlyn, EJ and their dates, as If they hadn’t done that same routine the two previous years, since they had all gone to both EJ’s prom and Big Red’s prom.
Ashlyn and Gina weren’t that far behind on the excitement train though. It was their senior prom, after all. How could they not be thrilled to be going to it?
Ashlyn looked absolutely stunning on her oxford blue above-the-knee length organza dress that made her long, red curls pop and the Prussian blue suit Big Red had decided to wear to match his girlfriend’s outfit was a great look on him, too.
EJ, well... He looked like he’d been taken right out of a dream. Sure, what the boy wore wasn’t anything other than a normal black tux with a crimson vest and bowtie, but he still managed to make it look like it was the most expensive piece of clothing ever made.
It was probably just because he was always beautiful, so naturally everything looked amazing on him (no, Gina was not biased).
“Oh my God, you two are the most fantastic-looking girls I’ve ever seen!” Debbie walked in, holding the camera close to her heart for an instant before remembering she was supposed to use it to take photos. Ashlyn chortled.
“Mom, you say that every year!”
“Only because it’s true every year!” The older woman laughed before a thought crossed her mind, one that had her blinking rapidly at the kids in an attempt to stop the tears of emotion from coming out. “I can’t believe this is the last year I’m gonna be doing this photoshoot with the four of you.”
“They grow up so fast.” Dennis, Ashlyn’s dad, left the kitchen just to have this last moment before prom with the teenagers.
Usually, EJ would’ve made a joke about how they were not leaving forever or something like that, but If he was being honest, he hadn’t paid attention to whatever was happening in the living room ever since his aunt announced the girls’ presence. He was too busy admiring Gina and having trouble remembering how to breathe.
After laughing a little with Ashlyn about the situation, Gina gave EJ a look and twirled around, showing off her jersey knit dress that matched his tie just right, before walking towards him.
“You– uh, wow.” He breathed, right before cursing himself mentally, because apparently he’d also forgotten how to speak. His girlfriend’s beauty mesmerizing him wasn’t anything new, but he normally managed to make his braincells work around her, so he didn’t know why he was suddenly like this.
Gina chuckled, nonetheless. “I’m gonna take that as compliment.”
“It is!” He immediately replied. “You– you look gorgeous, G. I mean it.” The girl felt her cheeks burn with the comment. It was nice that even after years dating, they still made each other feel this giddy.
“You don’t look half bad yourself, Caswell.” She teased, smiling sweetly at him.
They would’ve just stood there, looking at each other with heart eyes in silence, If EJ’s aunt hadn’t called them to the photoshoot. EJ scratched the back of his neck, embarrassed that the others had been waiting for them, and the couple quickly walked to the front door.
After a few long minutes and thousands of photos of each couple (and some of the four of them together, too), they were finally free to go. They arrived at prom about twenty minutes later, meeting Ms. Kress, their History teacher, on the entrance to get their tickets.
When they entered the venue, there were golden and white lights illuminating the place and the ceiling was midnight blue and covered in stars, as were the walls (there were three projectors hidden in-between some of the lights to produce that effect), creating a magical atmosphere. There was also a cartoonist moon draped to the back of the stage, stars made of paper everywhere and various pieces of art inspired by Van Gogh’s painting. It looked truly amazing.
The couples quickly found their table, where Carlos and Seb were already sitting at.
“Oh my God, you all look stunning!” Carlos got up as he saw them approaching.
“I can say the same for you two!” Gina replied, hugging her still co-choreographer (as they kept working together in theater in every theater production after Beauty and the Beast). She looked at Seb and noticed he was wearing a black tux covered in flowered embossing with a dark purple vest. “So you finally outgrew the red one, huh?”
“Yeah, finally. Don’t get me wrong, I loved it, but I also really like that my senior prom photos aren’t going to be the same as every other prom pic I’ve taken so far. It’s really exciting!” Seb smiled widely.
“And it’s on the prom that we made happen!” Carlos added.
“Which is even better.” Ashlyn high-fived him before she and the rest of the crew sat down at the table. Steph and Natalie soon showed up, giving each person a compliment before joining the conversation.
After that, the night went on swiftly. The gang spent most of it on the dancefloor, no matter which kind of song was playing, but would occasionally go back to the table so they could breathe a little. Even the prom coronation, which they all thought was the least exhilarating aspect of the dance, turned out to be incredible, and everyone in the table quickly congratulated Carlos and Seb as they got up, in shock, to get their crowns upstage as East High’s official first prom kings.
However, the thing about proms is that it doesn’t matter how magical they are or how good they make you feel, there’s always a point you get to where you know it’s enough (plus, dancing in high heels for hours on end, though not a challenge for the one Gina Porter, wasn’t exactly the most comfortable thing). So of course there was an after-party waiting for the small group at Slices. Jenna Redonovich, Big Red’s loving mother, had let them use the place as long as they promised to clean all the mess (she knew the kids well enough, alright?) before she opened it up the next day.
The limo EJ had rented to go to the event thankfully had enough room for four more people, so no one had to separate from the group. They arrived at the restaurant not much later and it only took Big Red approximately four minutes to find the keys to the front door.
“The place’s all ours, guys.” The redheaded boy happily said, motioning for them to walk through the entrance. There were some balloons of various colors randomly spread around and a banner that read ‘Prom Night’ in gold letters taped to one of the walls. “Sorry for the weird decoration. Between being a freshman in college and training to inherit the family business, it was hard to take some time off and do something special here.”
“Biggie, it’s okay.” Ashlyn kissed her boyfriend’s cheek and smiled. “We understand. Decorated or not, we can still have a good time, isn’t that right Wildcats?” She yelled the last part, to which the rest of the group responded by shouting excitedly. Even EJ and Big Red joined in, despite neither of them being at East High anymore, because once a Wildcat, always a Wildcat.
“Oh, before I forget. Red, can you give me that box I left here earlier today?” Gina asked.
“Sure.” He walked towards the counter and came back with the package. It turned out there were flat shoes inside it and Gina quickly replaced the heels she’d been wearing with them.
“A girl has to be prepared at all times.” Was all Gina said to her friends’ inquisitive looks.
The whole gang sat at one of the tables of the pizzeria in a way that reminded Gina of the Beauty and the Beast opening night’s after-party and it made her feel warm with the memories from that night. Ashlyn went behind the counter to choose the background playlist for the party and Big Red had already gone to the kitchen to prepare a giant size margherita pizza with extra cheese, pepperonis and black olives so everyone would get a bit of what they liked the most.
“So, have any of you heard about Nini or Kourt lately?” Natalie asked curiously. “I’ve barely talked to either of them since they graduated.”
“Well, my brother is Nini’s producer so I feel like I have a bit of advantage when it comes to her latest news.” Gina joked. “Seriously though, I called her last week and I’m pretty sure her gap year has been great from what she told me.” She paused to remember exactly what the other girl had said. “I mean, living in LA, having her first album produced, meeting new people... Sounds like her dream is coming true.”
Gina almost mentioned Zoey, the girl Nini had met in one of her visits to the Santa Monica pier and who she always ended up talking about in every videocall they made, but she managed to keep the information to herself. She knew Nini would tell their friends about her new girlfriend when she felt comfortable doing so and it wasn’t anyone’s place but hers to do it.
“Wow. Good for her. She deserves it.” Steph said, making everyone nod along. “What about Kourt? Any news from her?”
“I think I can answer that one.” Seb said. “She texted me a few hours ago to know all about prom and maybe, just maybe, to see If I had any gossip to ease her headache.” The blonde boy laughed. He was really happy that the girl still had time to talk to him, even all the way in New York, since she’d become one of his closest friends after his sophomore year.
“Is she okay?” Ashlyn asked what everyone was thinking as she got back to the table, drink in hand.
“Oh, totally.” Seb waved them off. “It’s just the exams making her go crazy because, apparently, the theoretic part of fashion is nowhere as fabulous or fun as the practical part.”
“Well, she was born for that so I’m sure everything is gonna turn out alright.” Carlos said.
“Definitely.” Gina nodded.
“Hey Ash, what’s that?” EJ said, accidentally changing the subject as he pointed to the red cup his cousin was holding.
“Just juice... with a little alcohol.” Ashlyn replied slowly. “A little more than you think, maybe.”
“Where did you get it?” Natalie questioned.
“I’m the chef’s girlfriend, I know where all the good stuff is,” the girl joked. “and there’s a pitcher back there. I can get some more for you all. I mean, If that’s what you want.” The round of loud cheers was the only response she needed, so she walked into the kitchen, laughing at how dorky her friends could be.
She got back with a jar of what seemed like orange juice but was most definitely more of what had been in Ashlyn’s cup minutes before, and EJ helped her by getting cups for everyone. The taste wasn’t too strong, meaning it was safe to drink a few cups and still go home well enough so that Ashlyn’s parents wouldn’t notice anything weird with them.
“Aw, I can’t believe you guys started drinking without me.” Big Red complained as he brought the pizza carefully towards the table. The group directed their attention towards the boy, taking in the marvelous smell of the greasy food on the skater’s hand.
“Don’t worry, there’s plenty of juice left.” Ashlyn said, lifting the container of the mix of juice and rum. Before he could say anything, Big Red was bombarded with compliments from his friends, who had already taken a slice of pizza for themselves.
“Wow, this is really good, Red!” EJ stated after swallowing the first bite he’d taken.
“Oh, it’s amazing!” Gina agreed.
“This is the pizza of all pizzas.” Natalie held her slice above their heads, praising it as she tried not to mess any of it up. Everyone else laughed and seemed to agree as they continued to talk about it.
Big Red poured himself a cup of the drink and sat on top of the booth, beside his girlfriend.
“What are we talking about?” He said before taking a sip from the mixture.
“Oh, just about how the rest of the gang’s doing out in the world.” Gina told him.
“Kourt is stressed about her tests in New York and Nini is busy getting famous in LA.” Steph summarized what the redheaded had missed.
“Oh, okay.” He was slightly confused but didn’t think the crew would want to fill him in about all the details. He’d just have to ask Ashlyn later. “Who’s left?”
“Uh... I guess just Howie and Ricky.” Carlos answered, shrugging.
“Didn’t Ricky take a gap year, too?” Seb questioned. He was sure he’d heard something along those lines a few months before, but maybe it was just a rumor.
“Yeah, he did.” Big Red confirmed. Okay, so it wasn’t a rumor. “And he actually just wanted to stay here and try to find where he belonged or If he at least had any profitable skills, but his mom wanted ‘a bonding time’, or whatever she called it, with him. So now he’s taking a vacation with her in Cali.” The boy noticed his friends’ concerned looks and honestly, understood them, too. Ricky had hurt deeply throughout his entire high school career and Ms. Bowen had a lot to do with it, as their relationship was a real rollercoaster. But he knew his best friend better than anyone and it actually seemed like he was doing okay, so he wasn’t worried (for now). “It’s alright guys, I think he's really having fun there.”
“That’s a relief, to be honest.” Gina said.
“Definitely.” EJ nodded to his girlfriend’s statement. “Let’s just hope it stays that way.”
An uncomfortable silence settled between the teenagers. It was kind of a heavy topic and there was not even a point on touching on it since Ricky wasn’t even there to tell them how things were going.
Carlos cleared his throat. “How about Howie? Does anyone know anything of him?”
“Oh, actually yes.” The gang, except Gina and Ashlyn, looked at EJ like he’d grown a second head. “What?”
“You’re friends with Howie?” Carlos raised a brow, confused.
“Uh, yes? He also got into NYU and since I had already been through the tough phase of the first semester, I helped him out when he got there. Turns out we have a lot in common and we became good friends.” Gina smiled at her boyfriend, feeling really proud of him. EJ 1.0 would have never done that and this was just a reminder of how far he’d come (though she didn’t really need any, she had no doubt the boy beside her would never go back to his old ways, just like she wouldn’t either). “Did I not mention that?”
“You did, babe. To me.” Gina laughed.
“And me.” His cousin raised her hand slightly. “But yeah, it’s news to everyone else.”
“Oh. My bad, then. But the guy’s really nice and he’s doing alright there.” EJ took another slice from the pizza.
“We really are growing up, huh?” Steph spoke up after a beat passed, making Ashlyn teasingly groan.
“You sound just like my dad.” The redheaded girl chuckled and poured more “juice” onto her cup. “Are we here to have a collective existential crisis or are we here to have fun?”
“I always thought parties were the perfect place for both, but...” Gina said jokingly. “I think since this is the last after-party we’re all having together, we should just enjoy ourselves.”
“Now that’s what I’m talking about!” Ashlyn exclaimed loudly, making everyone in the room snicker. “How about we go with a classic and do some karaoke?” She suggested.
And that’s exactly what they did for the rest of the night. Carlos and Gina improvised a little “stage” in the middle of the restaurant and the gang took turns on who was singing next, leaving an opportunity for everyone to get up there and sing whatever they wanted.
It was super fun and they all had a good time, though that was not actually a surprise considering they were all theater kids. The songs’ list varied from Ariana Grande and Ed Sheeran to Paramore, Against the Current and much more (though If they’d to choose a winner, it’d have to be the cover of Shut Up and Dance the group decided to sing together).
Between all the drinking, singing and unashamedly dancing, everyone decided to call it a night way earlier than they’d initially wished to. Steph and Natalie were the first ones to leave, since the latter had gotten so drunk she could barely walk without tripping over air and the other girl had promised herself she’d be taking care of her for the rest of the night.
Carlos and Seb left next, not because they wanted to stop the party at all, but because Seb’s farm was really far away and he needed to get there soon so his mom wouldn’t freak out. Carlos would be going with his boyfriend there, just to make sure he would get home safely, and wouldn’t be coming back since he was beyond tired.
The reminiscent of the group ended up having to clean the place by themselves, completely understanding the situation their friends found themselves in. The two gingers were cleaning the kitchen (Big Red wouldn’t let anyone else have that task), and Gina and EJ were taking care of the costumers’ area. Thankfully, the mess wasn’t huge. Sure, there was spilled drink in various parts of the floor along with pieces of the jar Seb had accidentally broken (though they’d been isolated in a corner to avoid people getting hurt) and there were grease stains on the tablecloth, but they were aware it could’ve been much worse.
They silently cleaned the few tables the small group somehow managed to get dirty and just enjoyed the calm background music playing, sometimes even taking opportunities to softly gaze at each other as they worked.
“What a night, huh?” EJ said after a few minutes as he picked up the broken glass on the ground.
“I know right?” Gina wiped the last drops of orange juice with rum off the floor. “For a second, I was sure Nat would pass out in one of the tables.”
“Pretty sure she did, but you know her. As soon as she hears Lady Gaga she’s wide awake again.” They laughed together as the boy tied the bag he’d been filling with what was left of the jar and left it on the counter.
“I had a lot of fun.” Gina rested against one of the booths, sighing as she looked down. EJ squinted at her, sensing something was off.
“Did you? ‘Cuz... your face is saying otherwise.”
“No, I did.” She let out a deep breath. “I guess I’m just... sad, that it was the last time we did this. You know, all together.” The boy walked over to her and took both of her hands in his, making her look at him.
“G, this might be the last prom but that was not the last time we all hung out. They’re still our friends and even after there’s none of us left at East High, we’re gonna keep seeing them. Maybe not as frequently, but everyone is still gonna be here for us, and we’ll be there for them.” He gave her a gentle kiss on the cheek, which made a small smile appear on her face. Then, he went back to where he was seconds earlier and looked her in the eye. “We’re all in this together, remember?”
An unwarned chuckled escaped her lips, making EJ sillily smile from ear to ear.
“You had that one in the back of your mind, didn’t you?” Gina’s mood was already brighter and she knew that was the effect EJ had on her. Whenever she was down, he’d go out of his way to make feel better and always ended up succeeding. He really was the sweetest guy she’d ever met.
“Nah, but I saw the opportunity and took it.” They chortled once again. He then noticed his girlfriend had already finished cleaning the floor and promptly offered to take the mop she’d put aside to the back of the restaurant, along with the rest of the cleaning products. She just nodded and watched him as he left her sight with everything they’d used to leave the pizza place spotless (or the closest to spotless they could).
In the few seconds she knew she’d be waiting for him to come back, she found the heels she’d worn to prom near the entrance and put them into the box where her flat shoes originally were, so she could take them home. After that, she was ready to Uber home with her boyfriend (knowing Ash would be staying at Big Red’s place that night).
Except EJ didn’t come back in seconds like she thought he would. It took him nearly two minutes to leave the other part of the restaurant, which was odd because he already knew where he had to leave everything.
“Well, there you are.” Gina smiled as EJ finally walked towards her. “What happened? Don’t tell me you got lost.” She teased him.
“No.” He chuckled, letting a sweet grin break into his face. “I was just making sure the last dance of your last prom night would be something special.” EJ shrugged. Gina cocked an eyebrow at him and chuckled confusedly.
“Eej, we already had the last dance. We’re not even at prom anymore.” She interlaced her fingers with his and slowly leaned her head on the boy’s shoulder.
“But it’s still prom night, and I insist that the last song we dance to is the one I chose.” He made a gesture to Big Red, who apparently had been waiting for that so he could go back into the kitchen, and an instant later, Daylight by Taylor Swift started playing and the lights dimmed a little. Gina lifted her head to give her boyfriend an amused look and he beamed, offering his free hand for her to take. “May I have this dance, m’lady?” He asked in a horribly-faked British accent, causing her to laugh.
“Why yes, of course you may, sir.” The girl matched his faux-accent with one of her own, taking his hand in an exaggeratedly delicate movement. The couple broke character soon after, laughing as they made their way to the middle of the now empty pizza place.
Gina wrapped her arms around EJ’s neck and his hands found her waist with ease. They both wore wide smiles on their faces and got absorbed in each other, the only background sound being the music that filled the room. The boy’s eyes were glinting the same way they had back when she first told him she loved him and Gina couldn’t really say hers weren’t mimicking them.
The moment was very dream-like, and the fact that the guy of Gina’s dreams was the one who had made it happen only made everything better. She felt the urge to freeze time right then and there, so this could last forever. No graduating problems, no long distance, just EJ and Gina enjoying themselves.
“I love you, Eej. So, so much.” She said, breathily and low. Somehow, the huge beam on his face got even wider and he leaned in to gently kiss her.
“I love you even more, G.” EJ told her as they pulled apart.
“God, how did I get so lucky?” Gina said after a beat, giggling, though she meant every word. He opened his mouth to say something, but she interrupted as she started talking again. “I’m serious. My entire life, I just... watched moments, experiences, people even, pass me by. I’d never find in myself to truly interact with any of that because I knew it wouldn’t last. I knew I’d move away soon enough and would have to leave everything behind, and it would hurt.” She paused for a bit, but EJ didn’t say anything. He knew she had more to say and he didn’t want to interrupt her. “That was until I came to Utah, to East High specifically, and now look at me: I’ve lived here for two years now with my incredible bestie, I’m about to graduate and go to college into Dance, I have an amazing group of friends and I happen to have the most wonderful guy in the world as a boyfriend.” She let out a deep breath, smiling. “I am so lucky now.”
EJ brought her even closer to him and made sure to look right into her eyes as he said the next words.
“I’m even luckier, because of all the cities you could’ve ended up on, it happened to be Salt Lake. I can’t thank the universe enough for that.” And he really couldn’t. She was the best thing that had ever happened to him and he tried to show her that every day.
“Well, we’ve already established you have exhausting good fortune, so that’s not a fair comparison.” She joked, as If that would make the butterflies going crazy in her stomach settle, and they both laughed.
“That’s true. Not exhausting anymore, though. I could never get tired of you.” She could tell he was being sincere and it made her heart melt. It’s not that he’d never said things like that to her, but every time he did it managed to catch her off guard and leave her speechless, even If she already knew how he felt.
She responded by resting her head in the crook of his neck, a happy sigh escaping her lips as she did so. EJ used the opportunity to press a kiss on the top of her head and her eyes fluttered shut.
The couple continued dancing around the room as the song came nearer to its end.
I once believed love would be burning red
But it’s golden
EJ smiled to himself. He still remembered the exact moment these lyrics finally came to life for him.
He’d just picked Gina up from the airport because she’d gotten back from visiting her mom in Atlanta, one of the many places the older woman had been moved to through the years. Gina had been really tired on their trip back to Ashlyn’s place, so he’d told her to choose one of her playlists to listen to as they drove. She’d ended up choosing the one with all of her favorite Taylor Swift’s romantic songs and put on shuffle.
Gina fell asleep halfway through Speak Now, not because she didn’t like the song but because she couldn’t keep her eyes open anymore.
Daylight came up only a few minutes away from their final destination that night, and while Gina hadn’t been able to appreciate it from dreamland, EJ used it to reflect on their relationship. When they finally arrived home, the bridge was starting and the boy found himself thinking about everything that had happened, from the beginning of his senior year to where he was at, now.
Back in the summer of his last year in high school, he’d thought Nini was the one for him. He’d gone terribly too far to try and prove that right when it just couldn’t be. They were never meant to be.
But then, Gina appeared into the picture and what he started to feel for her was stronger than anything he’d ever felt for anyone else. It was still quite unbelievable that she felt the same way, but as he looked at her, sleeping peacefully and leaning her head against his car window, he was reminded that she did and that this was all real.
The lyrics of the song suddenly started making sense on a much more personal level to him and it was then that he realized this was it. What he had with Gina was golden, and EJ was jolted wide awake with the striking realization.
It must have been so electrifying that it affected Gina too, because that was the moment she chose to slightly open her eyes and show she’d woken up.
“Eej,” the curly-haired girl yawned. “are we home yet?”
With a whole new perception of their relationship, the boy’s heart swelled at that. Home. Yeah, that was precisely the word.
He should’ve been surprised at the way his girlfriend knew exactly what he was thinking without even knowing what she was doing, but he wasn’t. She was Gina Porter, after all, fantastic in every sense.
EJ smiled softly at the girl in front of him. “Yes G, we’re home.”
And that feeling had only grown.
“What is it?” She asked, having heard a silly chuckle he’d accidentally let out.
Maybe it was time to let her know.
“Uh G,” EJ cleared his throat. “I– I don’t mean to scare you, but...” He paused. What If she didn’t feel the same way? What If they weren’t ready for this yet?
“But?” She encouraged him. He sighed deeply as he searched for the right words to express his thoughts, knowing there was no escape from the truth anymore.
“It’s just, I could spend the rest of my life like this.” A small smile appeared on his face, one he only ever had on when he had something important to say, something that came from the bottom of his heart. She learnt that not even two months into their relationship, when he shared with her he was thinking about going into directing and getting a degree in Fine Arts at college. “With you.” His voice was barely above a whisper now.
EJ didn’t know how he expected Gina to react to this, he truly didn’t. All he knew was that he needed to get that off his chest, even though it was something scary to say. After all, it was a huge deal for both of them.
Sure, they knew they loved each other and had said it many times, but this meant going to the next step (and it was a big one).
She pushed him only far enough for her eyes to meet his and beamed.
“Are you– EJ, did you just propose to me?” She chuckled, taking it as a joke.
“I– uh, not intentionally. But kinda.” A nervous laughter escaped his lips. Gina’s eyes widened for a few seconds before they softened and she cupped his cheek, surging forward to kiss him deeply.
He gasped, not having expected that, but caught up to the moment quickly. She pulled away from him a few seconds after, though he didn’t complain (just having her with him was enough to make him endlessly happy). Gina sighed contently and started playing with the collar of his shirt as she responded him.
“For the record, this is not a ‘yes’. It’s– it’s a ‘maybe’, okay? We’re too young for that, you’re a sophomore in college and I still have to graduate high school this year. You know I love you, but it’s not the right time to be thinking about this.” She gently grabbed his hands and caressed his fingers with her thumb. “Ask me again in a few years, when things are calmer and more certain, and we’ll see how it goes.” At this, EJ smiled from ear to ear. He wouldn’t have been upset If she just outright rejected his kind-of-maybe proposal – he knew it was crazy to think about getting married at the time –, but the fact that she could see it happening someday made his heart pound so loud he was sure she could hear it.
“Oh, I will.” He said before going in for another kiss.
And he meant it. Four years and nineteen weeks later (not that he’d counted, obviously), on the calmest morning the couple had in years (with Gina being finally free from her final exams and EJ being on his day off), he proposed to her again. For real this time.
It happened in a park, in the middle of a picnic EJ had prepared to celebrate Gina’s nearing college graduation. He hadn’t prepared a speech beforehand because it had been as spontaneous as the first one, but it was perfect regardless (and the boy was thankful that he’d finally been able to give her the ring he’d been carrying around for three months already).
The situation went much better that time around, and not even fifteen minutes after they got back to EJ’s apartment, Ashlyn was already running through the front door, practically buzzing with excitement, and spreading about thirty magazines full of wedding dresses on the living room’s table. EJ faked annoyance at his cousin and told her maybe it was too soon to already be thinking of the wedding planning, but was met with a roll of eyes from the redheaded (“It’s never too early for this, Eej. Actually, I think it’s a little late. G has been part of this family for almost five years, it’s about time you made it official”).
The couple told all of their friends and family about their engagement that same day, and only received congratulating responses. Some were a bit surprised, others not so much (especially Carlos’ and Nini’s), but all were happy, and everything was great.
It was a little scary, of course, as all important things are. EJ was nervous all the time and couldn’t help but overthink every little detail for it was probably one of the biggest moments of their lives, but deep down he knew there was no logical reason to do so.
They were EJ and Gina, after all. Team Wonderstudy and the love of each other’s lives. The future may be unsure but they were each other’s only certainty, and that was enough for both of them to know they could and would undoubtedly make it through anything, no matter how many obstacles came their way.
They were ready to begin a new chapter in their journey, and no worry or fear could ever get in the way of that. There was even a lesson they had learned about during EJ’s freshman year in college: Love would always be stronger than all else, as long as it was right.
And EJ doubted there was anything that felt more right in the universe than what he and Gina had.