Page 83 of The Year I was Almost Prom Queen

Once my outfit is decided by a group of complete strangers, I turn the camera on myself again.

“Thank you guys so much for your help! I promise I’ll post some pictures and an update of my date with Austin tonight. Bye, Steve.”

I close the stream. My hands are shaking a little. I don’t know how people do this! That was terrifying! And vulnerable! And now I feel completely exhausted.

Mom helps a little with my makeup and hair. She pulls my hair up into a fancy pony tail with little whisps of hair framing my face. I didn’t even know there was such a thing as a ‘fancy’ ponytail, but when she’s done, I quickly realize how much nicer it looks than my typical, everyday ponytail.

Austin comes to the door and picks me up. My stomach twists with excitement. I smile at Austin as he opens my door before climbing into his own seat.

“Are you ready?” he asks, slipping his sunglasses into place.

“Ready for what exactly?” I ask.

Austin’s smile widens. “You’ll see.”

“Before we go, we need to take a selfie,” I say.

When Austin looks surprised, I add, “I promised.”

We take one quick picture, leaning close to each other. Then Austin begins to drive.

My eyes scan over Austin’s outfit. He looks pretty casual in a pair of jeans and a flannel shirt with the sleeves rolled up. But his shirt makes the green flecks in his eyes take center stage.

I glance down at my own outfit, comparing the two. I’m wearing some sort of lavender shirt, or blouse, or whatever. I don’t know what to call it. It barely reaches the top of my pants. Every time I raise my arms or twist or even move, the shirt rises up, showing a thin line of my stomach beneath. I thought maybe the shirt had shrunk, but Mom assured me it’s supposed to fit this way.

I’m wearing a pair of somewhat raggedy looking jeans that my audience unanimously voted for, to go with the shirt. These jeans were labeled as high rise and oh boy, are they high! I keep trying to pull them down a little, but they just keep riding up to uncomfortable depths.

I feel like I’m dressed in someone else’s clothes. I should have just put on my regular old baggy jeans, a T-shirt, and a baseball cap. After all, this is Austin we’re talking about.

“Am I dressed okay for where we’re going?” I ask. I can hear the nerves in my own voice and I try to calm them by clearing my throat.

“Yeah, you look fantastic by the way,” he says. He starts to reach over, but then pulls his hand back, and grips the wheel.

“Thanks,” I say. The compliment causes my heart to race.

“I hope you’re okay getting a little dirty though.”

“Dirty?” Now I’m intrigued. My enthusiasm dips, however, when Austin pulls his car into the parking lot of an old park. We used to ride our bikes here when we were kids. We rodepast two other parks to come to this one. It was about as far away from our families as we could get on our bikes.

I step from the car and stand up slowly. The yellow paint on the giant, twisting slide is chipped and faded. There’s a swing dangling from a broken chain that keeps clapping against a rusted post, each time the breeze blows. I stretch my neck and glance across the yellowing grass toward the duck pond. I can’t see past the weeds to tell if there are any ducks on the water.

“Are you sure we’re in the right place?” I ask.

“Don’t you recognize it?” Austin says. He pulls a bulging backpack onto his shoulders and slams the trunk closed.

“I recognize where we are,” I say nodding. “But why are we here?”

Austin laughs mischievously before taking off at a dead run across the park. “Last one there is a rotten egg!” he yells over his shoulder.

“What, are we five?” I say, laughing. Then I realize he’s serious. And I’m losing. I pump my legs as hard as I can, sprinting across the grass, toward a giant oak tree on the other side of the pond. When I reach the tree, I double over and sprawl out on the ground. I look up from my panting and see Austin, red-faced and out of breath, leaning against the tree with his arms folded. The backpack lays on the grass at his feet.

“Couldn’t you…have given me…a warning?” I say between each breath.

Austin wipes his brow and laughs. “Where would the fun in that be?” he asks. He glances up into the huge branches above us. “Come on, let’s go,” he says.

I sit up, my feet still spread apart. “Now?” I ask.

Austin shrugs. “Yeah, what are we waiting for?”

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