Page 129 of Exposed

“Ow ow!” Bee yelled.

“And the Empire High prom queen is…” he tore the envelope.

And I have no idea why. But I had the oddest sensation that he was about to say Isabella Pruitt.

I heard the ticking down in my head louder than ever. A chill ran down my spine and I looked over my shoulder. But there was no one there.

Chapter 37

Friday

Matt

I stared at Brooklyn looking around the room. Like she was expecting someone to be called other than her.

Didn’t she realize it yet? There was no more perfect match than us.

“The Empire High prom queen is…Brooklyn Sanders!” Tanner said with a big smile. “Both of you please come up to the stage and get your crowns.”

Brooklyn still didn’t move. She was staring behind her.

James whispered something to her and it was like the words finally clicked in Brooklyn’s head. She smiled and made her way to the stage. She climbed up the opposite set of stairs as me and we met in the middle.

“I’m pretty sure this was rigged,” she said and smiled up at me. “I barely know anyone here.”

“Me either.” I grabbed her hand and pulled her closer. “But you’re definitely the most beautiful prom queen ever.”

“I couldn’t agree more,” Tanner said as he placed a tiara on her head. He put a crown on mine. “Now the prom king and queen will have their first dance!”

Everyone parted as Brooklyn and I made our way back down to the dance floor. I pulled her in close. “You always dance with everyone but me.”

“Definitely not true.”

“Nigel tried to motorboat you.”

Brooklyn laughed. “Is that what that noise was? I did not ask for that.”

“I know. At least, I hoped that was the case.”

“I kept trying to get back to you,” she said. “I was a little worried you were getting very drunk over at the bar, just like at homecoming.”

I shook my head. “Believe it or not, I was only drinking one drink that whole time.” And I wasn’t getting drunk tonight. I wanted to remember every second of this moment. I lifted her hand in the air and twirled her around before pulling her back in close.

“That’s a shame. I kind of like how honest drunk Matt is.” She reached up and straightened my crown.

“I can be honest completely sober too. What do you want to know?”

She smiled up at me. “Were you upset that I was dancing with our friends?”

“No. I know they all missed you. Not as much as I missed you though.”

She stood on her tiptoes to whisper in my ear. “Don’t tell any of them, but I missed you most too.”

I laughed.

“One more question. Was this better than your first prom?”

“A thousand times better.” I stared down at her. I’d thought about what I wanted to say to her tonight. But staring down at her and the nerves in my stomach made me forget all of it. The music was going to switch soon though. And I needed to get this out before it did.

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