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Robby and Tory were on cloud nine.
The prom after party turned out to be more fun than prom itself which they did not expect because their ‘throwing off balance’ plan succeeding was satisfying enough for them. Another thing they didn’t expect is to be overcome by such euphoria even after getting into a fight minutes ago.
Neither of them knew when exactly they dissolved into fits of laughter but it didn’t matter. It didn’t matter that they technically won the fight judging from the distressed look on their exes’ faces. They were just two teenagers being teenagers spending a blissful night together, which shouldn’t really be an accomplishment but for Robby and Tory it is.
They continued to enjoy the night, swimming and splashing each other in the pool with big smiles across their faces.
Under normal circumstances, they would not have come to this guy’s (who was leaning towards creepy manchild) party at his house nor did they want to at all. But after being persuaded by their teammates they did anyway. Besides, it’s a rare occasion for them to have a night like this where they are just teenagers at prom partying with friends, instead of training so much weekly that it's been ingrained in their brain to keep their focus on winning the tournament.
The pool was getting crowded and they didn’t want to stay longer than they should and possibly run out of who knows how many towels there are in this house to dry themselves off with.
“Hey,” Robby calls out to Tory who is treading water next to him. “Let’s get out of here?”
She nods and follows him as he gets out of the pool first.
“Can you help me out?” she smirks while he offers her his hand. “For real this time.”
The comment made him chuckle as he pulled her up.
They let the water drip off of them on the concrete for a short while before entering the house again. Luckily enough, everyone is too busy drinking and partying over the loud music so no one that knows them interrupted them.
They made their way through the crowd, hand in hand, and up the stairs to look for the nearest bathroom.
For a loser who calls himself “Stingray”, he’s got a pretty neat house.
They come across two rooms which they can only guess are occupied bedrooms as Robby tries to open the door but it turns out to be locked to which the two of them share a knowing look, making their eyebrows raise up.
“I guess everyone has a goal tonight,” Tory remarks and both attempt to stifle their laughter as she lets Robby drag her through the first floor until they find an unoccupied bathroom in the end of the hallway. She’s the first to enter while he stands close behind her, switching on the shower lights and the ones above the mirror.
“Looks like we found the towels.” He says as he shuts the door behind her, turning to Tory.
“First come, first served,” she shrugs.
Robby approaches the tall wooden cabinet right next to the shower and grabs two towels from the stack.
“Hurry up. I’m freezing.” she breathed out, her arms embracing her shoulders. “Thanks to your incredible fighting skills knocking us straight to the pool.”
“Okaay, listen, you pulled me in anyways so we’re even.” he replies in defense while he walks back toward her with the towels.
“Ugh, are we sure these are even clean?”
“Doubt they are ever used at all.” he snorted before wrapping the towel around her.
The towels were warm and fluffy; it's impossible to think someone has used them. Robby was grateful for it but also appalled to realize what that meant for the owner of the house.
Shaking the thought out of his head, he starts running the cloth up and down her shoulders to which she smiles at.
They are both aware of the instant rapport they had developed especially after prom. They have always been closer with each other compared to the other students but something had shifted. Neither needed to say anything for them to know this was different and they’ve never felt it before.
“Your dress seems to be built for these kinds of scenarios.” he teases her. “No usual jacket over it today, Nichols?”
“No, but can I borrow this suit jacket so I can look as cool as you?” she tugs the shiny red suit.
“Yeah. You wanna go back in the pool?” he says, pulling her closer with the towel as she giggles while leaning closer too.
For a beat, they just stand there. Face to face, very close, noses grazing.
“Besides, you can’t wear it since it also got wet. Wonder why,” he whispers.
Robby would be lying if he says he hasn’t taught about it. More than once.
On paper, kissing on the prom dance floor would be a romantic moment that could’ve felt so right but this wasn’t just a regular prom for them. They had a goal. And even if the two of them didn’t care anymore whether or not they were being watched, Robby wanted a moment where it was just the two of them. Where they know that this thing between them is serious. No bullshit.
He doesn’t think a stranger’s bathroom is the ideal place to kiss for the first time.
Well, kissing in a man’s car who he is suspicious of for a while now isn’t any better but.. It is a pretty sweet car. It’s a once in a lifetime experience for the both of them to own it even just for the night.
“You should remove it then so you could dry off better.”
She hides her disappointment, accepting the fact that this might not be the best time or place. All this pining, anticipating, and waiting has Tory’s patience on the brink of dissolving.
Keene better make a move soon, she thought. If not, she would have to take matters into her own hands and make this night even more worth it than it already is.
They shift their focus on their own selves individually as they dry their clothes and hair off whilst sharing comfortable silence.
He watches her as she lets out a little huff that is actually kind of cute while she runs her fingers through her hair trying to untangle it, her curls long gone. It had become a habit of his to admire her and everything she does.
So that’s why he would notice her every move, recognize the change in demeanor, guess what she could be feeling at the moment. And right now, Tory seemed to be deep in her thoughts, which is not something she would do often. Usually, she would have her guard up and Robby is aware of it everytime, and also of how it slowly lowered whenever they were around each other. That means a lot to the both of them.
He can’t help himself as he asks, “Everything okay?”
She glances up at him, surprised by the question, but then forces a smile and nods. “Yeah, fine.”
He’s inclined to accept her answer because he’s not her boyfriend even if he still finds himself wishing that he is, that there was something more between them. If something’s upsetting her, it’s not like she has any obligation to tell him.
So he starts to ring her up, only to pause when Tory takes a deep breath and blurts out, “It’s just,” Robby’s gaze shoots to hers, and she seems to have a moment of contemplation before planting her hands on the counter to lean on.
“Tonight was a blast. I haven’t had this much fun in a while so thanks. For the idea.” she admits as to which he raises his eyebrow playfully, earning a soft laugh from her. He is sure he will never get tired of the sound.
“Thanks for accepting my offer of asking you out to prom to be my date,” she corrects. “Better?”
“Very,” he grins, making her roll her eyes before going back to combing through her hair.
By the time she puts her heels back on, Robby is standing next to her by the sink, his shirt slightly unbuttoned. She swallows hard, trying to ignore him because that was the easiest thing to do.
Things between them have evidently changed the moment they stepped foot on that dance floor. They feel as though they’ve gotten closer with each other by every passing second and will only continue to do so.
He catches her attention again as he runs his hand through his hair. It’s messy and all she wanted to do was fix it. Her body was yelling at her, telling her to stop. But she feels every sense of self-composure dissolve inside her, yearning for physical touch quickly replacing it as she steps forward. “Let me.”
Robby turns to face her with a confused look but she just rests one hand on his shoulder while the other brushes his hair back.
Tory can’t help but drink in every detail of his face while they were in close proximity. His green eyes, defined jawline, light freckles, his lips.
“Thanks,” he says, a gleam in his eyes.
“Don’t mention it.”
“No, not just that.” he shakes his head. “About tonight, I had a great time with you too.”
With you.
That should not have made Tory’s heart skip a beat but it did.
Robby just stands there looking at her with his infuriating amused smile before saying, “Your hair.”
“What?” she asks, instinctively running her fingers through it again to smoothen it out but Robby had other plans and reached his hand out to ruffle it.
“Hey!” she ducked out of his reach to stop him from tangling her hair even further.
After he is done playing hairdresser, Tory glares at him.
“You’re a horrible person.”
He only ignores her as he hangs their used towels and takes his suit jacket in one arm. He then slowly starts walking towards the door.
“Come on,” Robby takes her hand as they leave the bathroom. Neither of them lets go as they make their way through the crowd again while saying their goodbyes to a few of their teammates.
The red car Silver had given them stood out from the others so it wasn’t hard to find it while they laugh, recalling moments that happened hours ago.
Just like when they were on their way to the school, Robby opened the car door for Tory, this time she didn’t make a teasing comment but her smile is enough to show her amusement.
“I think it’s safe to say our prom night is a success, yeah?” he says after getting on the driver’s seat.
“Yeah, but I don’t want it to end just yet.”
“That makes two of us.” Robby replies, starting the car. “What’s on your mind?”
She gives a wry smile. “Wanna go somewhere fun?”
Robby mirrored her smile, agreeing to go wherever she wanted to.
A place only the two of them can be..
They drove off as Tory guided him to the nearest theme park which led to conversations that took them everywhere.