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I focused on the music, feeling the thump of the bass in my bones and trying to do as he said. After a few minutes, I relaxed and my muscles loosened. My hips swayed just the slightest bit in what I hoped was the same casual stride as Thorne’s.
“There ya go,” Scarlett said from her perch on my bed and clapped.
“Now keep going,” Thorne said, stepping to the side, so he could watch me.
I didn’t know how long I walked like that—maybe twenty minutes, maybe an hour—while he played the song on a loop before he paused the music and we walked without it. We strutted until my feet ached and I felt confident I could do the same without him there. Until I felt like Thorne looked, and when he paused to watch me one last time, his face broke out into a grin and he clapped. “Barry Glick, you suave son-of-a-gun. You’ve arrived.”
After trying on a myriad of suits and tuxedos Dracco—Tattoo Guy—had prepared for me, I settled on one. Though I wanted to blend in with the others, I also wanted to stand out, so I chose a navy-blue suit with black piping, gold buttons down the front, and gold, silver, and black epaulets on the shoulders, reminiscent of a prince's formal jacket in an ode to Prince Charming.
It was perfect.
“It’s a nice choice,” Dracco said as he looked me over. He stepped forward and tucked a little silver hankey into the front pocket so it barely peeked out.
As the others waited in the living room to give me a little time and space, I finished getting ready. I rinsed the remaining self-tanner from my skin, being careful not to ruin my hair, re-dressed in my tuxedo, and spritzed a bit of the cologne Thorne referred to as his secret weapon onto my neck.
By the time I’d finished, a bundle of nerves tightened my chest. I had yet to see myself, since the crew removed all the mirrors from my room, and the anticipation was killing me.
I hovered in front of my bedroom door, preparing to head down into the living room where my friends and possibly my mother and Bat Man would be waiting, with zero clue as to how I’d be received. All I knew was that I’d endured more primping than I had in all eighteen years of my existence.
But Ella was worth the effort, I thought. Especially if it helped me sweep her off her feet. And if it didn’t, well . . .
“Barry?”
Penelope’s muffled voice trickled through the door.
Another breath wheezed through my lungs.
“Are you coming out, man?” Thorne asked.
I closed my eyes and took a deep breath, remembering how much I’d changed over the course of the last couple months since I met Thorne. I wasn’t the same kid anymore. I had more confidence. I was more than the nerdy, quiet boy that liked to secretly gaze at the stars.
I could do this.
Exhaling, I blinked my eyes open, and the boa constrictor released its grip on my chest. “Yeah. Be right there.” I wiped my sweat-damp palms on the seat of my pants, then smoothed my lapel before I crossed the room and gripped the doorknob and turned.
“He’s coming!” someone hissed among the pounding of footsteps on the stairs.
I stepped out into the hallway where Thorne’s beauty crew waited, lining the walls, smiling. I received a fist bump from Dracco. “Knock ‘em dead, man.” An air kiss from Pink Hair, and much to my astonishment, Megs, the esthetician that painted on my fake tan, grinned and said, “If she doesn’t want you, call me.”
With more confidence than ever before, I descended the stairs. The din of chatter grew closer, and I rounded the banister at the bottom, turning into the living room where my friends waited.
I scanned their faces for a reaction. Scarlett’s eyes brightened, her smile wide. Penelope gasped and covered her mouth with her hands, while Topher grinned and nodded. When my gaze finally found Thorne, his face was an expressionless mask as I spread my arms out and asked, “Well, what do you think?” Weirdly enough, his stamp of approval probably meant the most. He’d seen more beautiful people in his short lifetime than he could count, so if he thought I looked good, I must.
Thorne stepped forward and reached a hand out to grip my shoulder as he warily assessed me, a crease forming between his brows. “Dude, I better watch my back or you’ll be the next hottest face in Hollywood.”
Awash with relief, the tension in my muscles vanished. “Seriously?”
“I don’t know, Scar.” He smirked. “What do you think?”
Scarlett sidled up beside him and crossed her arms over her chest, eyeing me from head to toe in a way that made me blush. “Seriously. You look . . .” She whistled and flashed me a thumbs-up while Thorne scowled.
“You don’t have to lookthathard.”
Laughter burst from my chest, and everyone joined in.
Once we were breathless, I held my arms out. “So do I get to see myself now, or what?”
“Wait. You mean you haven’t seen yourself yet?” Penelope asked.
