Crushes Over Papercuts- A Mid 90s Tale

Epilogue

"Did we save enough seats?" I counted the two open seats to my left. "I feel like we're missing some."

Ben kissed my right hand. "With Lauren performing and Lily and Alex setting up, we're good."

I waved to Lily and Alex who were positioned near the edge of the stage. They waved back until Lily smacked Alex's hand away when he touched one of the buttons on her camera. He shrugged then smiled.

With Ms. Deskin's encouragement, Lily finally agreed to join the school paper a few weeks ago but only on two conditions. One- she only worked with Alex since he was the best, and two- no pep rallies. There was a third condition- no cheerleading events, but since Nicole replaced Courtney on the Varsity squad, cheerleading was in.

I heard through the rumor mill that Courtney and her mom moved to a different school district closer to her father so she could get a fresh start and was being homeschooled for the remainder of the year. Maybe she will be better. Maybe a new environment, where her past didn't have to follow her, would allow her to transform into a new and improved Courtney. It wasn't too late for her...at least that was my hope. If not, her permanent record would follow her to the next school so I doubt anyone would believe her if she tried any of her tricks again. She never apologized or admitted any wrongdoing but I didn't need that from her. Her absence was enough for me.

After the basketball game we explained Kimberly's situation to Ms. Deskin and she called Kimberly's parents to tell them what happened and how Kimberly was also a victim of Courtney. A day later I got a call from Kimberly who told me her parents had apologized and they're even talking about letting her re-enroll at school with us next year.

Nicole dropped into the seat next to me. "Glad we're not late. Tiff's re-enrollment took longer than we expected."

"Aanndd," Tiff drawled. "You're leaving something out."

Nicole rolled her eyes and smiled. "And my super, not-important meetup with Dan Barnard lasted longer than I planned but he was only being polite and entertaining me while Tiff was with the guidance counselor."

Tiff sighed. "If that were true then he wouldn't have asked you out for next weekend."

I leapt in my seat. "I'm so excited for you, Nicole!"

It was the first time I had ever seen Nicole blush.

She rolled her eyes and smiled. "Yes, I have my first date. No big deal."

Tiff announced last week that she was re-enrolling at the university but was changing her major to Criminal Justice. "I'm going to become a detective," she said. "After I finish my degree, I'm going to join the academy, become a police officer, then study to become a detective. Isn't it so perfect for me?"

Surprisingly, it was perfect for her. It wasn't something that any of us could have predicted a few months ago, but no one could have predicted most of what happened.

The lights in the auditorium dimmed and Lauren took the stage. The spotlight radiated around her and her music ignited the room.

#

The four of us girls waited for Lauren outside the auditorium after her competition. We were so happy for her.

She rushed out the auditorium door and threw her arms in the air. "I did it!"

"Congratulations!" we yelled and pulled her in for a group hug.

"I'm so happy!" she said, "And I'm so happy that's finally over!" She showed us the first-place trophy. "Now let's go celebrate!"

Ben, Marcus and Alex were setting up extra chairs around the food court table when we walked up. After we all ordered our ice cream, Lily set up her tripod and got a group photo with all of us. "That's going in the yearbook," she said.

I never believed I'd be in the yearbook for anything but my class photo. I also never believed that my life could be the way it was now. I looked at everyone's happy faces then squeezed Ben's hand under the table.

This can't be real.

We were sitting in the same mall, at the same ice cream place where we planned our first outing to a real party. Everything was so similar but so different. The table had grown...and so had we.

#

I unbuckled my seatbelt and looked at the clock on the Jeep's dash. "I still have seven minutes until curfew."

"Let's not waste them then," Ben said and kissed me with his soft lips.

"Do you think she'll ease up on my curfew by summer?" I said between breaths.

"I'm allowed in your driveway now and your mom agreed to let me take you to prom. It's a start."

Things had improved with my mom but our relationship hadn't been the same since pre-Courtney and if I was honest with myself, I didn't believe it ever would be. The love was there but the trust had eroded and there are some things that can't be glued back together.

She watched me place second at regionals and even invited Ben to join her and the girls in the stands. After meeting with Ms. Deskin she admitted she was wrong about Ben and about the drugs in my locker but was still rightfully hurt by me lying to her. Sometimes there are no winners.

The gears on the garage door began to hum and I had to will myself away from Ben. "She certainly hasn't forgotten my curfew tonight."

"They'll be more time tomorrow," he said.

I gave him one last kiss. "And all of summer."

And hopefully the rest of our lives.