Grace Xiu

Jasmine was in the front, then Ashley, then me. We had a little formation going on, like we were making a small fashion show of our own.

The music from the inside stopped seconds after we were seen walking in, then changed to a song that's easily catwalk music.

The chatter stopped suddenly too.

Cameras were stopped, then turned to us to start taking pictures and videos.

Mumurming began as soon Jasmine revealed herself.

People stopped dancing, stopping drinking, stopped talking, probably even stopped breathing, and backed up to give our Cinderella entrance space.

Jasmine went to the left, Ashley walked in and stood on the right. Their bodies swaying and posing, showing off their confidence and of course, their dresses.

I walked in next.

Hands on my hips.

Hair beautiful laid on my shoulders.

Dress moving obediently with me.

The audience in front of us stood shocked. Some mouths dropped. Some eyebrows rose. Some eyes widened.

Our dresses sparkled under the flashes from the many cameras pointed at us, giving the scene more of a breathtaking, jaw dropping sight.

The Cinderella Entrance succeeded.

I turned my head to give the cameras more angles and I see Cathy and Hannah sitting at a table.

Cathy's face was bruised and cut. She had crutches by her chair and her arm was in a cast.

Hannah, across from her, didn't have crutches, but had a beaten up face.

My girls did what they had to do.

They deserved it.

I couldn't help, but smile wider when I saw the vengeance all over their bodies.

That should teach them to NOT mess with anybody else ever again.

Jasmine and Ashley came closer to my side and we walked forward, making the crowd separate to make our path.

As we were walking, I caught Seokjin ALMOST DROOLING at the sight of me and my besties.

I sent him an evil smirk, letting him know that I know exactly what I'm doing and that I'm satisfied with the reaction.

I turned my head and saw Jasmine making eyes with the one and only....Caleb.

They're going to get together.

Girl senses.

Ashley was sending flirty kisses to the group of hotties on the left, making them swoon.

I looked forward and saw Jimin standing in front of me.

Dark, floral button up with a black tie. Black dress pants and black dress shoes. His hair was up and wavy, making him look like a full prince. His lips look redder, his eyes looked darker, and his skin looked brighter.

He didn't look like that cute, soft, and innocent Jimin from these past days. No, my good friends, this is Jimin Park, the man who knows how to contradict oneself by acting cute and sexy at the same damn time.

As I was walking towards him, his eyes grew delightfully. He was enjoying every part of my attention and I was enjoying his.

It was like walking down the aisle to be given to him.

My heart raced and I felt like running to his arms, but not in these heels. I don't want to have my face imprinted on the floor.

My cheeks burned as I got closer and closer to him. My insides tingled and I felt my breathing slow down.

Time really felt gradual in this very moment.

It felt like a dream.

So unreal.

Jimin was looking at me like his priceless masterpiece. He just wanted to pin me against his wall and enjoy me so much.

He looked so mature and sexy right now that I couldn't stop thinking about kissing him.

But....

I couldn't.

We.

Are.

Not.

Together.

I suddenly stopped in my tracks.

Smile fading.

His too.

What am I doing?

What am I saying?

We don't have to be together for me to approach him?

Right?

People are going to think I am a slut.

That I am a hoe that jumps from guy to guy.

That I can't stay away from boys.

That I can't be single.

That I always need a man with me.

My breathing stopped too and I didn't realize until my mind stopped and let reality return to my senses.

I saw Jimin again and he was walking towards me.

Jasmine and Ashley were still by my side, but the crowd around us weren't paying attention anymore, which I'm thankful for.

I just blanked.

I looked down.

My self-esteem.

My ego.

My insecurity?

I sucked in a breath.

I didn't have time to think much about it. Jimin was already in front of me, smiling.

I looked at him with slight fear.

Slight.

Jasmine grabbed my arm and Ashley furrowed her brows.

They know.

They sensed it.

I opened my mouth, but nothing came out. Not even air. I couldn't speak. I couldn't talk to Jimin.

What's happening to me?

I'm blanking.

I'm getting scared.

I'm scared.

What's happening?

What will everyone think of me?

They will think I'm a hoe.

They will think I can't be independent.

They will blame me forever.

They will blame Jimin forever.

I will be called "slut" and "whore" forever.

They will see that I jumped from Seokjin to Jimin.

Sh*t. Why am I freaking out about that?

I NEVER worry about that kind of stuff.

Especially what other people think. I never care! My confidence is high....I always had high confidence.

Why am I losing it?

Did I lose it?

I lost it.

I'm changing.

I'm different.

I'm panicking.

"Grace. Grace? Grace?"

Jasmine's voice seemed so distant, but she was right next to me.

"Are you alright?" Jimin asked.

He tried to touch my arms, but I flinched.

I didn't mean to flinch. I didn't try to flinch.

That wasn't me.

Jimin looked scared to see me scared of him.

Jasmine and Ashley didn't speak.

I started to feel sweat forming all over my face and I couldn't ruin the makeup. I was terrified of all these concerned eyes on me.

"I-I am going to g-go take a st-step out." I stuttered badly.

Jimin immediately stepped back.

Jasmine and Ashley both grabbed my arm and gently led me outside.

They brought me to an exit that was sort of hidden, so we didn't have to draw any attention towards us.

Once we were outside, the fresh air hit me and I was finally able to let out a huge breath and breathe in the oxygen.

"Grace, are you feeling alright?" Jasmine asked, stroking my hair.

I looked at my girls in completely shock.

"What the hell happened to me in there?" I asked in a quick breath.

"You were doing fine, making your way towards Jimin....then, all of a sudden, you froze." Ashley said, still gripping my arm.

"Grace, you froze. Actually froze. You weren't moving, you didn't blink, you looked terrified." Jasmine added, extremely worried.

"And once Jimin went up to you, you looked at him like he just got shot or something. Then you looked down with the same face frozen there. You looked out of there, like your soul just went to a different place."

I brought my hands to my head. "Oh, my gosh. I totally freaked!"

"About what?"

"I-I....all these things started coming at me. My loss of confidence. My low self esteem."

"What do you mean?"

"I started getting all these thoughts on how if I interacted with him, people would think I really am some slut!" I panted. "And I never-"

"You never think like that." Jasmine finished.

I nodded.

"Damn that Cathy, I wanna-" Ashley cracked her fingers. "I want to...AHHHHSJSNA!"

Breathe in.

Breathe out.

"I'm alright now." I sighed. "I got this. I don't give a f**k. I don't give a sh*t. It's just me and what I want. I don't need those stupid, irrelevant thoughts keeping me down. This is my NIGHT! I WAITED FOR THIS NIGHT!"

"YEAH, YOU DID!" My girls screamed.

"I AM GOING TO HAVE FUN!"

"YEAH, YOU ARE!"

"I GOT THIS!"

"YEAH, YOU DO!"

We high fived each other 90 times and went back inside.