AllFreeNovel
Share Us
“The prom?” I asked. “It was a couple weeks back.”
His smile crinkled his eyes. “The inclusive prom tonight. Xi and her friends actually helped decorate the whole thing. There’s going to be a professional DJ and everything.”
From behind me, Xi said, “She doesn’t have to go if she doesn’t want to. Especially considering what you’re wearing.”
I raised my eyebrows toward her dad. “What are you wearing?”
Her dad’s cheeks reddened slightly, and he mumbled something about it being Mrs. Muñoz’s idea.
Xi reached into a cabinet, taking out a plastic bag, and filled it withpolvorones“for the road” and then we left the house, her dad and sister waving behind us.
“I hope they didn’t say anything too embarrassing,” Xi said as we made our way toward her car.
“Not at all.” Out of the corner of my eye, I spotted the signs she’d focused on earlier, and they were such a contrast to the bright and cheery place we’d come from.
Following my gaze, Xi said, “I wasn’t expecting to see that. It sucks knowing that they look at my house every day and see something they hate.”
I shook my head, appalled that anyone could hate the Muñoz family. “It’s their problem, not yours.” And for the first time... I believed it.
I’d spent all of high school worrying what people would think of me if they knew who I really was. In reality, if they didn’t like me, they were missing out. Regardless of my sexual orientation, I was fun to be around, dedicated to the things that mattered to me, and loyal as could be. Anyone who wanted to focus on one part of me and hate the whole of who I was had to be missing out.
And maybe I had been missing out too, by not allowing people to love all of who I was. So, I glanced over to Xiomara, the light glancing off her brown hair almost giving it a reddish hue, and said, “Tell me about this prom.”
Fifteen
Xiomara
The wayher amber eyes studied me with a soft smile playing along her lips left me breathless. I was thankful for the distraction of her car so I could open the door and gather myself before telling her about the prom that I’d be attending dateless.
Unless there was a possibility...
No. I needed to stop hoping for things that could never happen in a million years.
I sat in her car, surrounded by the sweet smell of her perfume, and began speaking about the event. “It’s an inclusive prom, and the theme is ‘Under the Sea.’ It’s a cliché, but on purpose.”
“What do you mean?” she asked.
“For a lot of people who have RSVP’d, this will be their first prom ever. They missed out on their prom in high school because they were afraid of being judged, or in some cases, they weren’t even allowed to go.”
Kiyana smiled. “I’m so glad they can go now.” But her smile quickly faltered. I couldn’t tell what she was thinking, and quite frankly, I was afraid to ask. It was like our time together was one of Abuela’s crochet projects, and pulling a single thread could have the entire thing unraveling.
“Thank you,” I said, fidgeting with the mood ring around my thumb.
“Can I ask you something?” Kiyana said.
I braced myself and said, “Okay.”
“What did you think when you saw Stefon and his boyfriend?”
That was the last question I expected. In fact, I never knew people like her or Stefon even cared about the thoughts of unpopular underclassmen like me. But here she was, stopped at a red light and glancing my way for an answer.
“I mean... it was cool to see them at the parade together,” I finally said.
“But were you surprised? Did you expect him to like guys?”
“After dating you for four years? Not at all.” I cringed slightly. “For me, the thought of dating a guy for a week, much less a year, is... not good.”
I felt like I was fumbling over my words, not stringing them together in a way that made me seem interesting or even fun, but Kiyana seemed satisfied.
