Page 71 of Becoming Cinderella

I don’t respond, my attention back to my game.

“Carter,” Penn grabs my phone from my hands.

“Hey!”

“Did you hear me? Our last Homecoming!”

“Did you hear me? Grounded.” I emphasis each syllable.

Penn groans and tilts her head back so she’s staring at the ceiling.

I use this distraction to take my phone back and wiggle into the pillows on my bed.

“I didn’t want to pull this card,” Penn looks back to me. “But I know what today is.”

“Which is?” I ask, but continue playing my game.

“Tuesday.”

“Good job, Penn. Now do you remember what comes after Tuesday?” I smile at my own joke.

Penn flops down next to me, taking my phone again. “Ha-ha. No, you know what I mean.” She waits for me to say something, but I don’t, resting my head against the pillows. “It’s the last day of filming for a certain movie.”

I try to push myself further into my pillows in hopes they’ll swallow me up. I’ve been trying not to think about it all day. Olivia never messaged me to tell me how Liam took to the Banoffee pie I anonymously left him and I was too scared to ask her.

“You need something to get your mind off everything happening in your life. A good ole-fashion high school dance can do the trick.”

“It can?”

“Yes! And I know a ton of people going without dates, you won’t be the only one.” Penn grabs my hands, pulling me up so I’m sitting. “Come on, say you’ll go. Please, please, please!”

“Penn, once again, I’m grounded.”

“Talk to your mom. I’m sure she’ll be okay lifting your sentence for a night.” She reaches over and starts to shake my arms. “She already lets me come over! And it’s our last Homecoming Dance, Carter!”

“Fine,” I reach out and hold her arms so she’ll stop shaking me. “I’ll see what I can do. No promises though.”

“Ask her now.”

“Now?” I glance at the door like she’s standing there. “Oh, I don’t know. She’s probably busy and-”

Penn jumps off my bed and pulls me up. “No excuses. Ask her now. Go on,” she shoos me towards my door. “The dance is this weekend, we don’t have time to kill.”

I slowly trudge down the stairs. I really don’t want to go and be a third-wheel but I know Penn won’t take no for an answer.

“Hey, Mom?” I walk into the kitchen to find her making dinner with help from Dad. “Oh, and Dad.”

“What’s up sweetie?” Dad glances over his shoulder as he puts spaghetti noodles in a boiling pot of water.

“I know I’m grounded, so please, no obligations to say yes…” I trail off. Just weeks ago I would have been devastated if I wasn’t allowed to go to the dance. “Can I go to the Homecoming Dance this weekend?”

Mom and Dad exchange a look with each other. “Let us discuss it, okay?”

I give Mom a nod before going back upstairs to where Penn is waiting at the top of the stairs.

“So?”

“They’re going to ‘discuss it’.” I put air quotes around the words my mom said.

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