(Outdated) The King of Elements (part 2)

Chapter 82

They both walked forward, through the plastic, gold and silver streamers draped from the top of the door, and embraced themselves for the enthralled eyes and flashes from the cameras of the audience.

Dre was bursting with energy once he saw the crowd's ecstatic faces. The man on the microphone, their Biology teacher, Mr. Wayland, began announcing the both of them. Dre wasn't paying attention, though. Instead, he was soaking up the adoration from the audience. So, this was what it felt like to have people awe-stricken because of you. It felt odd, foreign to him, and yet, he was enjoying it. Is this what it would be like once the world found out he was the King?

He scanned the audience, trying to look for anyone familiar. Sure, he saw people he knew from town: Mr. Baker, the owner of the gas station down the street from his house, Ms. Witz, the nice elderly lady who'd give Dre and Ian frozen juice in a Styrofoam cup when they were younger. His eyes widened as he saw Michael towering the crowd and the top of Keiko's head. What was shocking was he seemed to be smiling wider than he'd ever seen from Michael. He called something to Dre and Kim, but it was drowned out by the whistles and Mr. Wayland's amplified voice. He turned to Kim, who was smiling as she waved at the crowd. It was even more of a surprise to see that she was enjoying it as well.

Once Mr. Wayland concluded, both Dre and Kim walked down the hill. Most people, parents of the other students, Dre noticed, had turned back towards the entrance, looking baffled by Megumi and Katherine's appearance. The rest of the audience began requesting that they turn towards them for a photo. Some people he knew, family that he hadn't seen since he was younger, Sakura, Loyalty, and Joel, along with McManus, Brianna, Marcus, and Bianka. Dre, unsure of which way to look, turned to Kim, who shrugged, unsure which way to turn either. He turned to the people he knew first and smiled while they took his and Kim's pictures. After enough time, he turned to the other side and smiled. His cheeks were already beginning to get sore, and once he saw both of their parents, Ian, Rose, Kamatsu, and Megumi's family, he knew that it would only get even more sore. His shoulders drooped slightly at the thought of having to smile, after already having to for about two hours. Though he noticed something odd. His parents and Kim's stood together, looking as if they were a group all their own. Coincidence, Dre convinced himself.

"Wow. That suit really looks good on you," Rose said once they reached the bottom of the hill, where the family of the prom goers converged. "And that dress fits you perfectly, Kim," she added, looking to her.

"Thanks, Rose," Kim said with a smile.

"God, my cheeks," Dre heard Megumi say behind them. With a dry look, she massaged her cheeks in slow circles. "This is fun, right? Getting all dressed up just to have our pictures taken? I'm having a blast." Her voice was drowning in sarcasm.

"Aw, stop being such a downer, baby," Katherine grinned. "That was just the grand march. We haven't even gotten to the fun part. They're having the actual prom in the elementary school."

"Oh, boy," Megumi said, still sarcastic.

"Come on, Gumi," Tiffany said. "This actually looks like it would be fun if you'd loosen up. I wish that something like this was happening when I was going to school."

"You mean you didn't?" Katherine asked.

Toney, standing beside his wife, shook his head. "By the time we were your ages, we were too busy with the war to be able to do anything like this."

Dre looked to Megumi with a mocking smile. "See? So you should just enjoy yourself."

"Whatever."