Into the Darkness

She said goodbye and headed back home to get ready. As I sat there staring at myself in the mirror, I wondered how tonight would play out. This wasn’t how I envisioned senior prom, going with some jerk when the man I was so desperately in love with sat at home with his wife. Several times I wanted to back out of it but I was so frightened someone would catch on. No, I needed to go tonight and act as if there was no Alex. Pretend I was an ordinary girl participating in the normal rituals of being a teenager.

I walked down the stairs slowly and found my dad sitting at the dining table with Debbie, his girlfriend although he loathed that word. He turned to look at me and did a double-take.

?

??Wow, Charlie. You look beautiful,” he said followed by a scowl. Debbie slightly smacked his arm as he pretended to smile. “So this Carter kid. I’ve heard rumors about him.”

“That he has a small penis?” I joked. Debbie laughed out loud, much to Dad’s disappointment.

“Dear God, no! But shame for the boy. I heard he has the quite the reputation.”

“Please Dad, this was strictly a business deal. He helped me out with geometry and I agreed to go to prom. Don’t worry, I’m not the slightest bit interested in him. Plus, Logan will be there.”

“What about that Edwards kid?”

I froze, not expecting him to bring up Alex. Why the fuck would he bring up Alex? I panicked, trying to find my words… “Who, Adriana?” I answered, playing dumb. Debbie made a slight snicker and bowed her head to hide the smirk that formed on her face. FUCK! She must have known.

“No, her brother. The other Edwards kid.”

“Why would Alex be at prom? He’s twenty-three, not a senior.”

“I thought he might be chaperoning Adriana.”

I snorted, amused by the image. “Yeah, Adriana would die attending prom with her brother. Besides she has a boyfriend, Elijah.”

“Oh yeah, the Morrison kid. Good, never liked that Edwards boy.”

“Why on Earth would you not like Alex, Dad? You don’t even know him,” I said defensively.

“Well, Alex as you refer to him was quite a troublemaker back in the day when he went to Carmel High. Got into all sorts of trouble.”

“How do you know that? And what trouble?” I asked. Alex never came across as a law-breaker type but then again he also didn’t seem like the ‘I’ll have an affair with my sister’s best friend’ type either.

“Oh you know, the usual, wreckless behavior, drugs and alcohol. Your sister used to talk about him all the time to Mom…” He trailed off.

“DRUGS?” I repeated, surprised how raised my voice was.

“Geez Charlie, would you keep it down? Yes, caught smoking marijuana at a local party.”

My sister spoke about Alex? I didn’t remember any of these conversations but this was years ago and most likely I also didn’t give a rat’s ass about it but fuck, talking to Mom? I wanted nothing more to call my sister and ask her about him but then I remembered she was travelling in a remote part of Africa so there goes that idea.

“Honey, I think Carter is here,” Debbie said as the doorbell rang. Thank God for the interruption. Alex smoking pot wasn’t something I really cared about, unless of course he was still doing it which would be hypocritical since he was an intern at the local hospital.

Making my way to the front door, I pulled it open to be greeted by an enthusiastic Carter eyeing me up and down. Gross.

“Charliiieee,” he whistled.

My dad cleared his throat, and immediately Carter regained his posture and extended his hand for Dad to shake. He put on his fake smile, not that it went unnoticed by my dad. “So anyway, I was thinking of driving you guys to the prom.”

“Seriously, Dad?” I groaned. Like I would fucking let Carter feel me up in the car.

“That’s fine with me, Mr. Mason,” Carter agreed. What a fucking douche.

Dad kissed Debbie goodbye and headed to the car. Just what I always dreamed about, strolling up to my senior prom in a pickup truck. The drive was an awkward silence, the arrival even worse. Kids were pulling up in fancy cars, limos, the works. To add insult to injury Dad spoke to Principal Sinclair to double check there was no alcohol on the premises. After their combined search came up empty, he decided to leave but of course he warned Carter where his hands should remain the rest of the night.

The gymnasium was immaculately decorated. Adriana was part of the decoration committee. Actually, head of the committee as she referred to herself. The theme was A Night in Paris. The room was strung with fairy lights that sat amongst the artificial trees creating a warm glow. Street signs scattered the room replicating famous Parisian streets. Parisian paintings covered the walls; the attention to detail was astonishing. The most impressive part was the Eiffel Tower. It looked amazing, drawn to perfection. Spotlights were positioned in front of it highlighting its beauty. They did such an amazing job and for a moment you could easily forget you were in the Carmel High gym, not roaming the streets of Paris, the most romantic city on Earth.

I sighed as I watched couples entering the hall, carefree, fun, enjoying themselves and probably here with someone they actually liked, while here I stood wishing that I had my prom date, my prince charming to dance and be silly with. To create memories that would last a lifetime. That’s what prom was right, but instead I was here alone, not even on good terms with Alex after our huge fight. I was determined to have a good night. One day I would look back on this night when I’m older and senile in a nursing home and want to smile about it because it was a night to remember. How I would make it a night to remember was beyond me.