With a smug expression on her face, Stacy takes a hefty step backwards and admires the magic she's done to my face. "Boy, am I good or what?"

I peer around her and gasp when I see my face. Somehow, I convinced her to do my makeup for my appearance at Dante's prom.

"Wow!" I stand up and inspect her handiwork in my full length mirror. She's used a lot of gold and silver, sprinkling my eyelids with a pale peach which really brings out the depth of my eyes. My favourite part is the highlighter she's used – I look like a shiny apple. "Stacy you're a wizard!"

The smugness never leaves. "I mean, if I'm not getting some tonight, I'm glad you are,"

I throw a pillow at her, embarrassed by her comment. She just laughs, with the pillow obviously doing minimal damage and causing her to laugh even harder at me.

"Could you shut up?" I ask, fed up. Of course she doesn't.

Since she's not letting up with her laughter, I decide the best thing to do is to ignore her and put on my dress. It's a strappy rose gold full length dress with lace detail around the neckline which is surprisingly easy to put on and makes me look a lot graceful than I actually am. I attempt to zip myself in by Stacy comes to help me out when she sees me making chicken-esque movements with my arms.

"You look really pretty Kenny," She says and then sighs longingly. "What an outfit,"

"Thanks, Stace. It's totally down to you," I say, checking my hair to see if it's still looking okay. It's almost seven thirty which is the time Dante said he'd pick me up. Apparently his prom starts at eight.

She puts her hand to her chest and grins. "Well, I know, but I'm still inclined to tell you how good you look."

I roll my eyes but before I can say anything, my phone vibrates on my dresser a few times. Stacy picks it up, chuckles at the screen and then throws it at me. I catch it effortlessly and check the screen.

do u know how to tie a tie

BIG HEAD♥♥: 7:21PM

Yes

Is your tie pink?

YOU: 7:21PM

Of course

it's like kind of golden pink though is that okay

BIG HEAD♥♥: 7:21PM

Perfect!!

YOU: 7:21

By the way, I'm outside your front door

BIG HEAD♥♥: 7:22PM

I gasp and sit down. "Stacy how do I look?"

She's tidying up all my makeup stuff now. "Great, thanks to me. Why?"

"Dante's almost here, I've gotta –"

My mom enters the room with a flourish. "Kenny, your boyfriend's waiting for – oh my goodness! You're so pretty!"

She comes over and reaches for me with both hands widely outstretched. I sense one of her big squeezed-into-her-bosoms hugs looming, which kind of sucks because I really want a hug for my nerves but she might rub my face off entirely. Luckily for me, she realises that I'm wearing a full face of immaculate makeup and brings the hands to her chest instead. I give her a weary smile.

"Thanks mom,"

"I did the makeup, Tina!" Stacy pipes up and receives the hug meant for me with pride. A big part of me is jealous but somehow the nervous part of me overcomes it.

I put on my pastel pink chunky heels, pick up the matching clutch and steady my nerves before shooing the two of them out of my room. They're enthusiastically talking about the benefits of doing eye makeup before the rest of the face and I, an amateur truly cannot relate.

Dante's standing next to David, discussing something with a bright smile on his face. His suit is a dark grey and is very nicely fitted. There's a pale pink tie peeking out of his pocket and I just can't help but take a mental note of how nice he looks.

Wow. I really have a great taste in boys.

"There she is!" David says when he sees me carefully coming down the steps. I avert my eyes to avoid Dante's reaction but by the big aww Stacy releases, I can tell it's probably a good one.

He's waiting for me with a big grin on his face when I get to the bottom of the stairs and it's literally making me feel like jelly. "Wow, Kennedy. You look absolutely gorgeous," 

I'm totally melting on the inside. "Thanks," I tell him lamely and look down at the floorboards, just completely abashed. "I mean, you clean up good too,"

"But compared to you? Whoa," I see him put his hands in his pockets and just imagine the enormity of the smile on his face, making my heart flutter like a newly born butterfly.

A camera shutter goes up, forcing me to look up once again. My mom has taken a photo with her Polaroid camera straight from '92 and is waiting for the film to develop.

"Mom," I say plainly. Dante chuckles.

"Look how cute they are!" She shows David and Stacy who look like they're ready to cry before showing it to the two of us.

I'm not gonna lie, it's a cute photo. I didn't realise I was smiling at all, but I am at the ground while Dante looks at me with this spellbinding grin on his face. It's so pure, like he's not even trying to hide the fact he may be shy or shocked because it's all there on his face.

"I look like a dork," He says and then chuckles again. "I don't even have my tie on,"

"It's adorable!" I say. My mom hands it to me and I can't stop grinning at it. "Photography skills down pat mom,"

She flips her hair. "Well... what can I say? That class I took back in high school really paid off, huh?"

I laugh and then turn to Dante. "Do you want me to put your tie on?"

The charming smile on his face doesn't waver as he pulls out the tie and gives it to me. "If you could,"

I take it from him and lift up his shirt collar, only slightly aware of the fact that my mom is taking another photo and put the tie around his neck, pulling him closer. He doesn't stop smiling at me as I tie the tie and it's making my butterfly heart morph into a bat. I'm pretty sure it's audible at this point.

"You really do look pretty, Slugger," He says once more. "Pink really suits you,"

I tighten the tie a little and pretend not to take notice of him. "Your tie is just plain pink by the way."

He isn't even fazed by the fact I'm probably going to choke him in an attempt to get the perfect knot. "Nah... it's definitely got some gold hues and undertones in there,"

"When did you take a class on colour theory?" I mutter sarcastically and do the final pull, taking a step away from him.

"Actually, in tenth gr-"

"Oh shut up," I grumble and he laughs a little before pulling something out of his trouser pocket. "Wait, what's that?"

"Your corsage," He says simply and presents the box.

There's a large singular pink rose surrounded by green leaves, pearls and silver ribbons. Dante takes it out and gestures for me to lift my arm so I do. He begins tying it around my wrist and then holds it up, inspecting his work with a smile. I actually think I might cry.

"Pink roses, huh? Nice touch, kid," David says, looking impressed. I turn away from everyone under the pretence of fiddling with my corsage but really I'm trying to stop myself from crying. This is really sweet and I don't think my tear ducts can take it.

"Kenny, you okay?" Stacy asks me.

"Yeah, I'm just checking my eyelashes," Somehow I manage to sound normal, but I get the sense that they're getting a bit suspicious so I turn around anyway. "So! Photos?"

*-8*-8*

"That was fun," Dante says as he puts his seatbelt on. I fan my face, feeling all the heat dissipate along with my embarrassment.

We had been taking photos for about five minutes and were about to leave before Tyler got back from hanging at a friend's house and turned it into a photo shoot. Seriously, he had us doing the most ridiculous poses together and took perhaps a hundred photos with his professional camera. As taxing at it was though, I'd still really like to see how they turned out.

"Tyler is so extra," I say and sigh. I wave at everyone in as we pass the house and watch as Stacy goes into her car, ready to go home.

"He really is," Dante looks me up and down once more before biting his lip. "Pink really suits you, Kennedy,"

Suddenly my corsage has all my attention. "You said that already,"

"Well, it is the truth,"

"Wait to you see the better dress," I deflect and shuffle until I'm more comfortable. "Next time you'll be telling me that red is my colour,"

He laughs. "Why do you have two prom dresses anyway?"

Oh dear. "Um, it's a long story,"

Dante shrugs, obviously not getting my telepathic waves telling him I don't want to talk about it. "We've got time, we'll probably reach the venue in another half an hour,"

I wince but he doesn't notice. "Well, there was... this guy,"

His face furrows slightly. It probably wouldn't have been noticeable if it wasn't for the fact I was passive aggressively staring at his face while pretending not to. "A guy?" I nod. "Go on,"

This is so embarrassing. "We like... you know," He keeps silent. "We were kind of a thing and he asked me to his prom because he was a senior."

"So... you went to his prom with him?"

"No, I didn't. But I got pretty ready to go," I sigh and look out of the window as I think about how much of a flop I was last year. "He kind of 'cheated' on me, with this girl - remember Isla?"

He squints at the road. "The girl who dyed her hair blue in eighth grade and used to hiss at people and say she was part cat?"

"That's the one – she's blonde now and is a cheerleader,"

He gasps. "No way! When did that happen?"

"Like, three years ago! It was like one of those teen fiction stories, she stole the head cheerleader's boyfriend and everything,"

I lean back in my seat and recall how shocking the whole situation was. Isla was a friend but we weren't that close and we got distant when she became a cheerleader. We got even further apart when she stole my sort of boyfriend. Nicole always said she was a bitch, I don't know why I never listened to her.

"Why'd you bring her up – oh wait,"

I nod when he glances at me momentarily. "Yeah, he took her instead and I was left with this dress."

Dante's mouth is open wide. "That's cold," He finally manages to say. "Weren't the two of you friends?"

"We're not now!" I flip my hair over my shoulder and fold my arms. "Whatever, you look ten times better in your suit than he ever could,"

"Awe shucks." He grins, and just like that, all of my awkward tension begins to dissipate. It's really amazing how much of an effect he has on me. "Well, he missed out on seeing your sparkly pretzel beauty, so I guess you had the last laugh,"

I pause, very baffled. "My what?"

He's whistling now. "Sparkly pretzel beauty,"

"Dante,"

"What? Your cheeks are sparkly because of your makeup and it reminds me of the glazed pretzels at work, so you're channelling your sparkly pretzel beauty right about now,"

This is possibly the greatest and most sincere compliment I've ever received in my life. Nothing else will compare.

"Are you hungry?" I ask him, quite happy that he's given me an Instagram caption.

He winces but still maintains his smile. "That obvious, huh?"

After about twenty more minutes of driving, we arrive at the prom venue. The building reminds me a lot of those old mansions that get renovated into hotels or museums as the architecture has a classic beauty. There must be over a hundred of large airy windows covering the surface too, and even though it's about seventy degrees outside, I'm feeling a little chilly just looking at it. There's a fountain that has the water illuminated with gold and silver lights in the front of the courtyard, probably due to the school's logo.

"My sister had her wedding here," He notes while I'm staring with my mouth wide open.

"She did? Wow,"

"Yeah, it was really pretty, I'll show you some pictures sometime,"

I let out a few giggles. "Did you still have the high top?"

He bites back a smile as he finds a parking space. "I still had the high top,"

"Oh, I am so ready to see those photos,"

We get out of the car and I have to shake my legs out a little because they're dying in these heels. Dante bows with a vaguely solemn look on his face offers me his arm slowly.

"Why do you look so sad?" I ask him, resting my hand on his arm carefully.

The corners of his lip twitch slightly but he manages to maintain his solemn face. "Well, I'm pitying everyone in attendance of prom tonight,"

I frown as we begin walking. "What? Why?"

"Because I'm arriving with the girl who's going to be the most sparkly pretzel and they're just arriving,"

Is it too early to plan the wedding menu? Because shit, sparkly pretzels is all everyone's going to be eating all night at this rate.

"You're really too much," I tell him.

"Well, we must always consider those who have less than us," He says and then smiles properly once he catches the expression on my face. "Honestly though, I don't know if I've told you how great you–"

I stop him in his tracks and tug on his tie until he's low enough for me to kiss him. He's obviously shocked but then melts into it effortlessly, wrapping his free arm around my waist. I'm just pleased that my half assed plan to get him to stop complimenting me worked – if he continues like this I'm really going to cry and I don't think I can afford to do that right now.

"Someone's a bit-" He starts again but I shush him and pull him along. His hand has now settled on my waist and his smile is so wide it's threatening to split his face into two separate entities.

Upon getting inside, we merge with the flow of very well put together students. Dante's grip tightens around my waist and he pulls me slightly closer to him.

I look up at him, slightly confused. "You okay?"

"Oh, so now you want me to talk?" He smirks at me and I roll my eyes. "I'm just trying to keep you safe, that's all,"

Nervous energy I didn't even know I had dissipates after he says this and I poke his nose. In response, he sticks his tongue out at me and then grins, looking like the cutest thing I've ever seen. While I'm staring but pretending not to, someone behind him catches my eye and I begin to feel stressed again.

"Kennedy, are you okay?" He asks as we enter the main ballroom. "You've gone slightly tense."

I'm also breaking out into a sweat. "I'm great! Where are we sitting, is there a seating plan?"

His eyes linger on my face for a few seconds, evidently not appeased with my answer. "Um, I don't know. Oh hey, there's Max and Nicole,"

Dante let's go of my waist and takes hold of my hand, pulling me along until we get to a circular table with eight chairs around it. Nicole and Max are occupying two seats, both with slight smiles on their faces as they speak in hushed tones. They look surprised when they see the two of us and hers dies down a lot faster than his.

"Kennedy you look like a Disney princess!" She coos and then stands up to give me a hug. "Wow! I'm so impressed,"

Once we've released from the hug, I chuckle a few times and look her up and down. "Well, if I'm the princess then you're the villain," She's wearing a black satin mermaid dress that makes her look slimmer and taller than she already is. Her makeup is also quite dark and dramatic, what with her dark red lipstick and black eyeshadow. Nevertheless, she still looks effortlessly gorgeous, per usual. It's great having such pretty friends.

"Thanks, darling," She says and sits down again. Dante pulls out an empty chair for me, next to her and then winks when I put my hand to my chest. "The two of you match very nicely,"

He takes the seat next to me and grins at her. "Could say the same about you guys too," 

Max flashes his eyebrows and pops the collar of black shirt appropriately. "You know black is my colour,"

*-8*-8*

The official prom ceremony thingie begins when dinner is nearing to an end. By then, the four of us have been joined by two guys on the baseball team and Sawyer and his girlfriend, a pretty brunette girl named Heather who is literally the friendliest person I've met in my life. She's so lovely, and it's blatantly freaking Nicole out.

Their principal, a stern looking old man, takes the microphone and starts calling up the royal court thing. I shuffle closer to Dante and nudge him in the side a few times until he takes a hold of my arm and then loops his through mine.

"Are you up for prom king?" I ask. He shakes his head and pouts.

"Everyone thought I was too ugly,"

I gasp and he chuckles. "You're lying,"

"I am," He grins when I pinch his side. "I've been nominated but I don't think I'll win,"

Just as I'm about to boost his confidence, his principal calls his name. Dante winks at me and then stands up and walks quickly towards the front.

"Wow! Kenny, do you think he's gonna win?" Heather asks me from across the table, smiling almost manically.

I shrug. "Doesn't it all depend on how popular he is?"

She nods vigorously. "He's really popular, especially with the girls! When he broke – oh, never mind, they're calling up the girl nominations!"

A few girls begin going up, all of them looking spectacular. Everyone at this school really looks great, I wonder if the same thing would've happened to me if I came too. Would I have blemish free, flourishing skin? Would I be two inches taller? Would my hair be longer? The questions are endless.

"Kenny, you're drooling." Nicole hisses and I turn to look at her instead of staring off into space. She grins at me and then gestures at the stage where a very pretty girl is standing with a big smile on her face. My stress levels maximise when I recognise her to be Dante's ex-girlfriend.

"Isn't that Dante's ex, Tia?!" Heather asks Sawyer. He nods and then clears his throat, avoiding looking at me. "She is so pretty! Like, a total immaculate beauty – why did he break – oh." She seems to remember that I'm sitting at the table with her just ten seconds too late.

"That's his ex-girlfriend? You could beat her in a fight Kennedy," Nicole comments bluntly. "You've really got nothing to worry about."

Wow, what a friend.

"Thanks?" I say, uncertain as to how I'm supposed to respond. She grins at me again, this time showing off her canines and looking quite feline. I sigh and turn to the front where they're crowning the prom king.

A guy that Sawyer explains to be the football team's wide receiver wins prom king instead. Dante pulls a face toward the crowd (me) when he finds out and they place a tiny plastic tiara on his head. Tia wins the coveted prom queen spot and a pretty gold spotlight lights up on her as World Wide Woman by Beyoncé begins to blare through the speakers. It's a pretty cool display if you ask me, especially when rose petals begin falling from the sky and rain down upon her, blocking my view of her face entirely. Oh yeah, according to my jealous ego, it's the best part.

"I wanna be prom queen," Nicole mutters to me.

"Same. Doubt I'd get nominated though,"

She looks at me airily. "I mean, I can nominate you,"

"Please don't, it'd be too embarrassing," I stop her. She rolls her eyes.

"I bet you're glad Dante didn't win now though,"

She really has no idea. Especially since the prom king and queen are now dancing with one another for the school to see. I'd hide underneath the table and cry a little bit. Probably.

"I don't know what you're talking about,"

Nicole tuts and shakes her head. "Oh utterly transparent Kennedy. I don't know how I'd get my kicks if you weren't my friend,"

Their awkward dance is over soon enough and couples start going up to the dancefloor together. Dante comes back to sit down and I take a picture of him when he's close enough, still with his tiara on. It's adorable but the look on his face tells me that he probably won't think so.

"Delete it," He says once he's sat back down next to me.

I laugh. "No way." Then I put my phone in my bra, just in case he tries to steal it from me and delete the photo or something. He looks very confused as to what I'm doing.

"Did you just – Your – okay," He clears his throat and then takes off his tiara, twirling it in his hands with expertise. "I won this,"

"I saw. Are you sad that you didn't get prom king?"

He shrugs. "I mean... Yeah and no. Like, it would've been sick to have won, y'know, but considering who got queen..."

I fold my legs and clear my throat. "What about her?"

He keeps on twirling the tiara around but pauses to take a deep breath. "She was... my ex-girlfriend."

I gasp loudly and it sounds totally fake. He doesn't pick up on it though. "No way!"

"Yeah way," Dante risks a peek at me and I keep my face as straight as I can. "We dated for a while but broke things off about a year and a half ago,"

"Wow. Really." I say lightly, wondering how he'd react if he knew that I knew all of this already. He might just think I'm weird but I'm not letting him know, just in case his reaction is a bit more extreme than I can truly handle. Imagine him running away and leaving me here to walk home in my clunky heels at his prom. I'd never be able to show my face here again.

"Um, I don't know if I should be telling you this but..." He interrupts my train of thought. I look up, slightly more interested than before. "She actually asked me out again like a week before we met up again."

Next to me, Nicole begins to choke on her drink next to me and I spiritually relate.

"Oh," I say slowly. He's biting his lip and looking at nothing in particular. "Well. I mean... okay. Yeah, that's... wow,"

"Obviously I said no but - Yeah... so if she comes over and says hi or whatever, she might be a bit hostile, I guess. I don't know, I just –"He sighs loudly. "I should shut up. Kennedy, do you wanna dance?"

Though I am still greatly considering what he's just said to me, I try to relax and think up something that will diffuse this suddenly awkward tension between the two of us. It's really unnatural.

"I mean, I'll dance with you but only on one condition." I say and tilt my head a little so I'm looking at him through my eyelashes. He seems so stressed out, it's kind of cute.

"What's that?"

"You've so gotta give me your tiara,"

The corner of Dante's lips quirk upwards into the familiar smile I've been seeing for most of the night. "First of all, it's not a tiara, it's a crown," He places it carefully on my head and I begin grinning, quite happy that he's relaxed a little now.

"Keep telling yourself that," I stand up and he takes my hand.

"Second of all," He ignores me and the two of us begin making our way to the dancefloor. "I was going to give it to you anyway,"

"Sure you were,"

He bops my nose and puts one of his hands on my waist as we begin swaying to the generic slow song playing out loud. "If you weren't so sparkly tonight, I swear,"

I stick my tongue out at him. "What would you do if I wasn't sparkly?"

The wicked grin on Dante's face and the fact he lowers me slightly before answering really is enough for a shiver to travel down my spine and for me to be putty in his hands. He leans a little closer to me, until his mouth is just above my ear.

"Wouldn't you like to know?" He whispers.

"I mean, I did ask," I retort back and he laughs.

"It's a secret," Dante straightens up and smiles at me softly. I pout and he bites his lip. "What's wrong, my sparkly pretzel?

"You're such a tease," I say.

He laughs. "After you just stuffed a picture of me down your bra? I think that you've won that title, Slugger,"

My face heats up just a tad. "It wasn't just a picture of you, you narcissist,"

"Okay," He says and then smiles at me. "What are you going to do with that picture anyway? I bet I look horrible,"

He has never looked bad in a photo ever, so I don't know what he's talking about. "You do," I say anyway and he gasps but it's totally overshadowed by the huge smile on his face. "I'm kidding, you look like the pretzel prince,"

"Wow. I've honestly always wanted to be the Prince of Pretzels, thank you so much for this honour,"

"The Sparkly One is happy to bestow such an honour upon you." I curtsey the best I can, considering the circumstances.

Dante laughs. "How did I ever survive without you, Kennedy?"

At first, I can't bring myself to say anything to that so I just try and hide my very cheesy grin by staring at the floor. I don't know if he realises what such a throwaway statement has done to my bodily functions right now – my pulse has increased at an alarming rate, my mouth won't relax and my brain is telling me that the only thing I can do right now is either kiss him or melt in a puddle at his feet.

"I don't know how you did it either," I say. He pulls me just a little bit closer to him and even though I can't see his face, I can imagine the smile. It's probably underwhelming, a bit like a warm day in mid spring: nice, subtle and quietly beautiful.

"Let's hope I never have to again," he whispers.

I think I just died.

a/n:

it's 2:46am