Page 98 of The Kissing Booth
And there was me, dateless. I’d be showing up alone. I couldn’t ask any of the guys to go as friends because they all had dates. I must’ve been about the only person in the school who didn’t have one.
‘We can all go as friends, though, right?’ Lisa said Friday lunchtime, when I had a twelve-minute break to grab some lunch. She was going with Cam. Dixon and May were going. Warren was taking a girl from his history class who I didn’t really know too well.
‘Yeah,’ Lee agreed. ‘That way you won’t show up alone.’
‘It works out fine, Elle, see?’ Dixon tried convincing me.
‘Well... you did turn down a lot of offers,’ Cam said tentatively.
‘I didn’t, actually.Heturned them down for me just about every time.’ I didn’t need to clarify who I was talking about, of course.
‘Hey, speaking of, is your brother going to the dance, Lee?’ Rachel asked him.
‘I don’t know. I couldn’t care less if he does or not.’
Rachel and I exchanged a look, both knowing that Lee did care. But neither one of us said anything.
Even though we were all renting out the limo together and going together as a group, I’d still be alone.
I kneaded my forehead. I could try blaming Noah, try being mad at myself for letting him tell everyone who asked that I wasn’t going with them.
But I knew why I hadn’t put up a fight. I knew why perfectly well – because I’d assumed I’d be with him, given that it was a masquerade. I’d hoped he could be my date. He’d even asked me, that afternoon in the garage – not in so many words, but in his own way.
But no, that was not going to happen now, no way. And what were the chances of anybody asking me now, when the dance was tomorrow?
Zero.
My hair was blow dried and straightened to perfection, soft and sleek and shiny. My nails were done in the most immaculate French manicure. I’d spent the last half-hour on my make-up, following the ‘professional’s guide I’d found online.
Not that there was an awful lot of point: my mask covered half of my face. It was only for the sake of it, really.
My dress looked wonderful now I was dressed up properly. The dark apple-green color seemed to make my skin glow and my brown eyes sparkle from under the mask. The material swished gently when I moved, floating around my thighs. My silver kitten heels matched the beading on the dress and mask perfectly.
I looked great. Hell, Ifeltgreat!
I hadn’t felt so normal in ages. It was almost as though the entire Noah situation had never happened.
Well, if I’m going to show up alone, I’ll look pretty damn awesome doing it, I thought firmly. Then I remembered what usually happened at the Summer Dance: yes, I was sharing the limo with the others, but I wouldn’t get a photo in the ballroom with my date, I wouldn’t have my dad taking embarrassing photos of us...
I might have looked the part, but suddenly I didn’t quite feel it.
I sighed and the doorbell rang. I picked up my silver clutch and checked myself one last time in the mirror. They were early, but at least I was ready.
‘Elle, they’re here,’ Dad called up as he went to answer the door.
‘Yeah,’ I answered.
I went downstairs to meet them all and get into the limo. On the landing, I stuck my head in Brad’s room. ‘See you later, then.’
He paused his game to look at me. ‘Wow. Took you long enough.’
‘Long enough to what?’
‘To go from troll-butt-ugly to not half bad.’ But he smiled in his sweet ten-year-old way with his missing tooth, and I had to smile, ruffling his hair.
‘Ugh, get off! God! You’re so annoying!’
I laughed again, and said goodbye.
