"Y-you know," Jeremy slurred. "Cece rigged the ballots." His alcoholic breath poisoned my nostrils as he moved in closer.

"What?" I asked.

"She rigged the ballots," he repeated, his nose brushing mine.

"What are you talking about, Jeremy?" I grumbled. My hands pushed against his chest, but he didn't move.

"You won the crown." My hands released his chest as my mind raced with a million thoughts, but Jeremy placed his shaky finger to my lips as he spoke again.

"Everyone likes you, Emily, and I love you." His hands trickled down to my waist as he slid his hands against my thigh. Jeremy cornered me against the wall. "You know I like fat, nerdy girls."

"Jeremy, stop," I groaned, pushing on him again, but his hands brutally squeezed my wrists as he moved closer.

"Why don't you like me? You like Brennan. That's why you kissed him." His lips brushed mine as I begged in my head for a miracle. "I want you to kiss me, Emily." Jeremy's head sloped to the side. Another young man blurred my vision, and I tried to focus.

"Leave her alone," the young man cried. Suddenly my hero arrived.

"Go away, dork boy," Jeremy growled, tugging mine. Aaron's eyes furrowed. His hands curled, and he huffed.

"I said, back off, or else," he grunted. Jeremy seemed amused by Aaron's unexpected courage, but Aaron didn't know I could make it from there. My arms yanked from Jeremy's outstretched hands, and as he tried to grab me again, my elbow hit his face, followed by a stomp of his foot and a knee in the balls. Aaron's eyes widened as Jeremy bowed to the floor, cross-eyed, and I shimmied around Aaron.

"Got that from google." Aaron and I wandered down the hall after a thrilled Cece, but her fairytale ending was about to rock like an earthquake as I tapped her shoulder.

"What do you want?" Cece growled.

"I want you to tell them the truth. You didn't win that crown, but I did." Cece's Cheshire grin sunk as she tried to clarify things.

"Was that Jeremy who told you that? You should know he's a liar, sweetheart. He did that for me if he told you he loves you."

Cece suddenly brought the crown down from her head. She twirled it in her hands as she toyed with my patience. "Is this?" she held out the top in her slimy hands as she continued.

"The crown you want? It's just plastic, but if you want it, you can have it." She reached out further as I tried to take it, but she pulled back quickly as a piece of the crown snapped off.

"Oops," she cooed. My nose scrunched as I kept calm, watching her pull off another piece. I sucked in a breath and let it out as I took one last look at the crown.

"You know what, Cece? You're right. It is just a toy. You can have the crown." With sudden confidence, I grinned as I took hold of Aaron's hand and walked off.

"Wait," Cece followed close behind as she tapped my shoulder. "It's not just a crown, Emily Hart. It's the whole reason I live. I'm the queen of this school. I live and breathe the queen. You and nobody else can take that away from me-" Cece trailed as Aaron and I walked further along.

"Wanna dance?" I asked.

"It would be my pleasure," Aaron smiled as he squeezed my hand tight, and we returned to the dance.

✽✽✽

"Somebody cheated," Mr. Bellingham limped out of the ballroom. Jeremy grinned, wiping blood from his nose as he stood up.

"Cece Greenwood," Mr. Bellingham called halfway down the hallway. Cece smiled, though she smeared mascara, telling a different story.

"Aren't you going to congratulate me, Mr. Bellingham?" her high-pitched voice broke.

"No, and I believe the crown belongs to someone else."

"Who?" Cece interrupted with amusement. Her bright eyes widened as she tucked the crown pieces into her bra.

"It belongs to Emily Hart. Now hand it over," his voice boomed. Cece bowed her head and tucked the crown deeper into her breasts.

"What crown?" She played dumb.

"The one you're hiding in your dress. Now hand it over." Cece growled under her breath as she dug through her dress to find missing crown pieces but smiled when she pulled out only a large portion.

"It's broken, but she can have it." Mr. Bellingham groaned as he grabbed the chunks from her hand.

"This is a joke. You're not taking that from me, are you?" Cece sneered, sniffing back tears. Mr. Bellingham ignored her as he walked off back into the ballroom.

✽✽✽

The music paused as students glanced at the stage again, and the mic howled. "May I have everyone's attention?" Clarisa announced. Suddenly, the room was even quieter, and my heart skipped.

"I've received word that one of our Payton high attendees rigged the ballot. This year's prom queen wasn't Cece." The crowd mumbled to one another before Clarisa tapped the mic again.

"Our real prom queen is more like us than we thought, and if you're out there, Emily-" I stared at the students, glancing my way as a spotlight appeared.

"I hope you're listening. My deepest condolences for the mix-up and introduction we prepared for you earlier. May you join us on stage?"

As Aaron and I approached the stage, my heart thumped into the stomping rhythm. Clarisa held Aaron's crown in one hand while her other handed the pieces to mine.
"I believe these are yours," she spoke. My eyes widened as I gripped the broken crown, but Aaron grabbed my hand and snatched his crown. His hand brushed my hair back, placing his crown on my head.

"Our queen," he whispered. We gazed at one another as our hearts beat as one. His hand lifted my chin, and my lips were briefly pressed against his.

Fireworks danced around my head as our lips melted, and butterflies filled my stomach as we swayed. I wished that the day could have never ended.

"You know I was the one who placed your name on the ballot," he whispered, his hands sliding in mine.

"Can I show you a proper kiss, my lady?" but his kiss was worth way more. He smiled as his hand caressed my cheek.

"Well, if it makes you feel any better, I think you look sexy as a nerd," I replied, nearly biting my tongue. Damn, did I say that?

He laughed. "Is that a yes?"

I tried not to smirk, but it just crept up out of nowhere. "Yep. Only if you let me give you a dollar--"

"Babe, I'll do that for free." He grinned wide-eyed at me. His lips crashed against mine again, and I closed my eyes and melted into him.

I suddenly got my fairytale ending, with a dorky boyfriend and a crown on my head, and I committed myself to a new me-some parts old and some new, but entirely in between. I would not lie, things were rocky sometimes, but my life couldn't have changed for the better.