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“Oh.” My eyes open wide. “Hi, it’s so nice to meet you.”
“Yes, it’s nice to meet you too.” Maya holds out her arms to give me a hug. “Beau said you were beautiful, but he’s going to be in awe when he sees you,” she says, making me blush. “I was so happy when he told me he offered to escort you. He’s such a sweet boy.”
Her face beams with pride, and I can tell she thinks very highly of her son.
I can’t blame her.
“Yeah, I was excited when he offered too.”
“Everyone, we’re going to take pictures of the girls first to give the guys who were playing time to get ready. Then, we’ll get everyone with their escorts tonight,” the principal announces as he guides us where to go.
I turn to her. “It was nice meeting you.”
“You too, sweetie,” she replies with a smile.
I head toward the other girls, who are standing next to a backdrop for photos.
When the guys finally arrive, Aaron is the first to walk through the door. I have to admit, I’m a little taken aback by the way he looks in his tux. He fills it out way more than I thought he would for sure, or maybe I’ve just never noticed him this way—like an actual guy and not just my friend next door.
His eyes are on me as he heads toward us group of girls for a few seconds before he notices Joy standing there too. I watch as his eyes move from hers and back to mine, then back to her.
It’s just then that Beau enters the gym. The way his normally unruly, dark hair is slicked back makes my heart pound uncontrollably. I’ve never thought anyone could look so good in a tuxedo, but he does.
His shoulders are broad, and the midnight black of the suit brings out the darkness of his features. It’s also in the way he walks. So sure of himself with one hand in his pocket and the other like it’s leading the way in his strut.
His eyes lock on mine, and all I can see is the smile that covers his face when he sees me.
He heads straight to where I’m standing, and it’s only then that I notice his hand wasn’t in his pocket, but rather behind his back. To my surprise, he pulls out a small corsage for me to wear on my wrist.
I cover my mouth with my hand in surprise. “Really? Is that for me?”
“You’re already beautiful enough, but I thought you’d like this too,” he says, and my entire soul melts at his words.
I hold out my hand, and he slides it on my wrist, then leans in to give me a kiss on the cheek. “Thank you for letting me be a part of your big night,” he whispers.
I run my hand through his elbow and lead us to where the other couples are standing. “Thank you for offering.”
After photos, they show us out to the field, where convertible cars are waiting to drive us around the stadium to where the main stage is set up in front of the fifty-yard line.
Beau holds out his hand to me as I get in, and then he climbs in next to me. When we’re alone, he reaches to grab my fingers. “You really look amazing tonight.”
I blush. “Thank you.”
The driver hops in the car and slowly drives us past all the stands, where seemingly everyone from our small town cheers us on.
Once we’re onstage, I notice that Beau and Aaron haven’t said hello or even acknowledged each other. It’s weird because they’re friends. I’ve seen them hang out at my house all summer and since school started. Everyone around us, even the guys they aren’t friends with, have acknowledged one another, but there seems to be this big divide between them, almost like they are purposefully avoiding each other.
The festivities begin, and excitement races through me.
My entire life, I’ve sat in the stands every year and watched them call out the girls of homecoming, hoping I’d be standing there one day, and here I am!
“Please welcome our freshman class homecoming representatives, Aaron Thompson and Sadie Zeeman!” the announcer calls over the loudspeaker, putting the hugest grin on my face.
Hearing our names called together makes me laugh as I turn to Aaron, who’s looking at me with the cheesiest grin. I step out of Beau’s hold and slide my arm through Aaron’s elbow that he’s holding out for me. We both wave, enjoying our moment, then move back to our initial spots.
Before I let go of his arm, he leans down, giving me a kiss on the cheek, then goes to where his date awaits him.
When I turn back around, I can’t help but notice the way Aaron is looking at Beau with this smug expression covering his face. I scrunch my eyebrows for a second in question, only to have Beau wrap his arm around me in a possessive way while I step back in place next to him.
