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"Don't go getting involved with that Courtney girl, Robert. She's bad news."
It was like asking a moth to stay away from a flame. There was just something about her that pulled him in, that made it hard to stay away. She'd been a loner for as long as he'd known her, and that was a long time. They'd gone to school together all their lives, he'd seen in her every office in every school building in their area, always waiting to see whichever principal or vice principal was there that day. And every time he saw her, there was a wink thrown his way, gum snapped in his direction, and something in his chest always stuttered.
But now, college was looming, and instead of focusing on his studies like his mother wanted, Robert was finding every excuse in the book to go and see Courtney. It didn't matter if it was between classes and he took the long way around, or if it was before school out by the bleachers. Hell, he would have gone under the bleachers with her if she had asked. Anything to spend time with her without judging eyes nearby.
Senior year at Torrance High School was shaping up to be the biggest year of Robert's life. The Robotics Club was slated to compete in the national league, with his miniature mech being one of the top contenders. He was busy submitting college applications left and right, but the waiting for acceptance letters was the hardest part. Prom was also sitting at the back of his mind, and he wasn't even sure if he wanted to go. He had a few friends to grab a table with: his buddy Herm and Royd from Robotics Club, but that was even if they wanted to go as well. He supposed it couldn't hurt, but there was a question that floated around his mind and refused to go away: Did he ask Courtney to go to prom with him?
Would she even want to go? Did she want to get dressed up and spend a few hours in a stuffy high school gym with food that was probably just above food poisoning status, and dance to music that might not have even been good enough to play at a dance? There was only one way to find out, but he was nervous. He didn't want to make himself look like an idiot in front of her, though it wouldn't have been the first time. Over the years, she'd definitely seen him trip up the stairs, tumble on playgrounds, and nearly slice his fingers off in woodshop back in the eighth grade. Asking her to prom and being rejected was probably the tamest thing he could be caught doing, and she didn't seem like the type to want some kind of flashy prom-posal, either. It could be simple, a question asked at the lockers at the end of the day before they both walked home on opposite ends of the sidewalk. Then again, the idea alone of asking a girl to prom made his palms sweaty, and he could feel his pulse start to race just by thinking about it. He just had to go for it, take the plunge, leap of faith, all that jazz.
Ask her, or regret not trying in the first place.
Robert found her by her locker at the end of the day, shoving loose paper and a textbook inside of her already crowded space. He took a deep breath, rolled his shoulders back, and walked over to her, fighting against the current of bodies like a salmon swimming upstream. He put a hand on her shoulder as she shut her locker door, and she whipped around, first raised like she was ready to throw a punch. But when she saw him, her eyes widened.
"Jesus, Rob, I almost knocked you on your ass," she said, lowering her fist.
"Sorry, I, uh, should have announced myself better. It's just … loud in here," he said, rubbing the back of his neck sheepishly. That earned him a chuckle and a gentle punch to the shoulder instead.
"Crazy excuse. What do you want, it's quittin' time," she said, shouldering her backpack on her left shoulder.
"Well, uh, I wanted to know if you … wanted to go to prom? With me? As friends?" he asked, and he swore he could feel his cheeks warming as he asked her. His heart was pounding in his chest, the blood was rushing in his ears, and he could just imagine her laughing him away from her locker, out of the doors …
"Oh, really? Sure, why not?"
He blinked a few times, and he swore he almost passed out on the spot as his pulse seemed to drop back to where it was supposed to be. A few color splotches bloomed in front of his eyes, but he remained on his feet and he nodded.
"Great! Uh, that's great. I can go pick up our tickets and table stuff soon. And I, uh, guess we should match colors or something, right?" he asked, and she looked at him with an arched brow.
"You've put a lot of thought into this, haven't you?" she asked, a smirk on her lips as she watched him stammer for a moment. "Relax, I'm just busting your chops, don't piss your pants. Just, I dunno, get a tie or something. Matching isn't important."
"Right, not important. Got it. Then, uh, I'll get the stuff to you when I get it." Robert winced internally. Of course he would get the stuff to her when he got it, what a stupid thing to say. But the way she smiled and nodded made him feel a little better about the flub. Most important of all, she had said yes. There was no rejection, no laughing him out of the building, no making things awkward. He had a prom date, and his mom was going to kill him for it.
Robert stood in front of the mirror, messing with his hair. He was meeting Courtney at the halfway point between their homes, neither of their families really wanting to see them off together. It was easier this way, to avoid the disapproving gaze of his mother and the stern look of Courtney's foster father, and he was already feeling out of place in a stuffy suit. It was a simple black, but his tie was a nice shade of purple. It matched the shade of the dress Courtney had sent him a picture of, so he assumed she had changed her mind about the matching thing being important. Point was, he had a piece of her on him to let the student body know that she was his date.
Without a word to anyone, he grabbed his house key and left the house entirely, making sure to snag the box with her corsage along the way. He made his way down the sidewalk, trying to look a bit more confident than he felt. It was nerve-wracking despite the fact that there would be no 'talk to' from her family, and he knew he would have her back at a reasonable time. After all, the dance itself ended at eleven, and they could leave whenever. Maybe they would leave early if things got boring, but then again, maybe it was bad if they left? He wanted her to have a good time, after all.
When he spotted her a little ways down the road, his jaw practically dropped. In front of him was Courtney, but she looked … different. She was wearing a floor length gown in a deep purple, the same shade as his tie. The dress was covered in golden swirls and purple gems, and the straps were thin on her shoulders. She had on a beautiful silver necklace with a pendant that rested on her collarbone. The gem in the center was a pale purple, and it just made her eyes stand out.
"Quit staring," she said, her arms folded over her chest. But the sparkle in her eye made him think otherwise. He could stare at her all day, and it was a struggle to keep his jaw off of the floor.
"Sorry, you just … you look great," he said, and he held out the box with the corsage. "I picked this up for you."
It was a purple orchid with pink calcynia and Italian ruscus, all tied together with white ribbon. With her permission, he gently slide the ribbon over her wrist and tightened it gently, just to make sure it didn't slip off. Courtney extended her arm to admire it, then she slipped her hand into his just to see if he would flush. To her surprise, he didn't, but instead, he squeezed her hand and fell into step beside her, walking the rest of the way to Torrance High School.
When they made it to the gymnasium, it was surprisingly well decorated. The theme had been 'Sunset on the Beach', a bit cheesy if you asked Robert, but the room itself did resemble some kind of island paradise. It was the best the planning committee of teenagers could do, and he had to admire the effort. Along the back wall were tables with small finger foods and several bowls of punch, there was a photobooth towards the back, tables set up for guests, and the DJ on the stage who was already playing music.
"Not too bad, I've definitely seen worse," Courtney said as she looked around.
"Yeah, I think Herm helped with set-up. Poor guy was sweating over it for days," Robert replied, and they walked over to the back tables so they could grab some food before deciding if they wanted to dance or take pictures first.
The whole room was lively and bustling, and Robert was feeling a bit more confident as they filled their plates and grabbed some plastic cups for punch. They found their table, where Royd and Herm were already seated, and they sat beside one another.
"Hey, glad you could make it!" Royd said, clapping Robert on the back.
"Yeah, so are we, right, Court?" he asked, looking to his date.
"Actually … yeah. It's nice to get out of the house for a change," she replied, nudging Robert's arm with her own. He smiled at her, then took a sip of his punch before eating a bit of his food. The music helped to soothe his nerves, and he found himself enjoying the dance a lot more than he thought he would, even if he was just sitting, eating, and drinking eith his friends. When their plates were empty, Courtney simply pulled him up from his seat, and she tugged him towards the back, where the photobooth was waiting. The line wasn't as long as it was when they first arrived, so it didn't take long for them to get in.
"Come on, they do it in all the cheesy rom-coms. We need some of our own!" she said, tugging him behind the curtain. They got situated in the booth, tucked snuggly against one another, and the camera snapped the first photo. Their second one, Courtney wanted to make faces, so he obliged. The third, she gave him bunny ears, with her fingers making a peace sign behind his head. And the fourth had her planting a kiss on his cheek while his eyes went wide. They left the booth and grabbed their prints, and before he could say anything, a slower song started to play, and she seemed to light up.
"Oh, we have to dance to this, come on!" She took his hand and led him towards their table so they could drop off their photo strips, and then they made their way to the dancefloor.
"I'm not much of a dancer, Court …" he said, raising his voice a bit so she could hear him over the music.
"Then let me handle it. Follow my lead."
Robert didn't argue, he simply let her guide his hands to her waist, and her arms wrapped around his neck. They began to sway slowly, with Courtney leading the dance like she said she would. He had no idea what song was playing, he just knew that their moves mirrored the others around them, and he felt more at ease. Though he swore his heart nearly exploded out of his chest when she let her head rest against him. In that moment, it felt like they were the only two people in the room, that the song was playing for only them. They were in their own little bubble, and he wouldn't trade it for the world.
"Thanks for asking me to come with you tonight," Courtney murmured, her head still resting on his chest. He glanced down at her, and his lips curled into a soft smile.
"Thanks for agreeing to come with me tonight," he replied, that smile still on his lips as she tilted her head up so she could meet his gaze. Her eyes sparkled in the dim light of the dancefloor, and he realized just how easy it was to get lost in her eyes. They were that shade of brown that felt warm, like hot chocolate on a cold winter's night. They put him at ease in a way nothing else ever had. It was like being pulled in, closer and closer, until he realized he was leaning in closer, and so was she.
Her lips met his in a gentle kiss as the song swelled around them, and they continued to sway on the dancefloor. A chaperone could have come by to break them apart, reminding them that it was a school event, but he didn't find it in his heart to care. The moment was perfect, she was perfect, his first kiss was perfect.
When they pulled apart from one another, he couldn't help the grin that had plastered itself to his face, and he spun her around gently so she didn't bump into anyone else.
"You're nothing but trouble, you know that?" he asked her, pulling her in close as the song ended.
"You know, I do get that a lot," she said, her arms settling around his midsection. "The question is, though, do you wanna stick around a bit longer?"
How could he say no to that? He would do anything to see that smile on her face, that sparkle in her eye. He wanted to see her happy, he wanted to be the one to make her happy.
"I think I do. But I also think some more punch is in order," he said, and she laughed with a shake of her head.
"Lead the way, Romeo. We've got a few more hours of dancing ahead of us, after all."
That was all he needed, and he pulled her along, knowing that the night was only just getting started. Or … maybe the rest of their lives were only just getting started. Wishful thinking for high schoolers, but something about it just felt right.
And he was determined to see it through.