The Youngest Manager

Chapter 14 Graduation Day and Happily Ever Afters

Rosemary-

"Ready?" Drake asks me as we both stand in the lobby waiting to go inside.

"I guess." I answer looking outside. "I wish my parents were here."

Drake wraps his arm around me his cap and gown on a hanger over his shoulder, the honor and athletic cords already around his neck. I have my cord, but since my cap and gown went missing, I haven't been able to find it, and Drake and I tore through the entire house. I don't have a cap and gown to graduate in. I don't even know if they'll let me walk.

"Don't worry Rosie." Drake says. "I've got a plan." We walk into the main room up to the stage.

Drake drops his gown somewhere out of sight and we walk to take our seats. He picks up something from the seat. Matching varsity jackets. One is his well loved varsity jacket, the other a new one, an academic pin on the letter. He also picks up two caps. The tops designed with our initials in the heart like on our phones. "Miss Rosemary McAdams, this is your graduation present." Drake grins. I slip into the varsity jacket, and it's like it was made for me. "I got my dad's tailor to make it." He admits. "I know how much you love mine."

"This is really sweet." I smile. I notice that on both jackets is a patch with the same design as our caps and phones.  A heart with our initials inside.

"Brighter than the sun." I promise him softly.

"Deeper than the oceans." He whispers back smiling.

"Miss McAdams." A teacher interrupts us. "Mr. Collinsworth, where are your gowns?"

"They've been stolen." Drake says. "So we're improvising."

"You're aware that you're both due to present speeches and should be uniform with the graduating class, correct?"

"We are Sir. But I've turned my dorm inside out and back, tried ordering a new gown, and nothing." I explain.

"And yours Mr. Collinsworth?"

"My what Mr. Woodley?" Drake's dad walks up to the stage where he's sitting as the head of the school's board of directors.

"Your son seems to have misplaced his  gown for graduation and Miss McAdams gown was stolen."

"Then I guess it's good that I picked these up on the way here." Mr. Collinsworth pulls out two gowns. The one Drake had 'misplaced' is one of them.

"Thanks Dad." Drake says. He throws the gown on over his jacket and I do the same.

"Thank you Sir." I tell him before putting on my cords and my cap.

"Get to the hallway." Mr. Woodley says ushering us out of the room and off the stage.

"Are we really about to do this Rosie?" Drake asks.

"I don't know sometimes I feel like everything's been one heck of a dream." I tell him.

"If it is a dream, don't wake me up." He says.

"It'll have been one long dream." I tell him.

"Every day with you is a perfect dream." He whispers. "Ready?"

"Let's do it." I tell him smiling. He gives me a quick kiss on the head before going to his spot in the line up.

~~

"McAdams, Rosemary." Principal Dunbar calls. I walk from my spot on the stage next to Drake and receive my diploma. I look out to where my parents would've been sitting, their seats empty, and labeled with their names. I smile and sit back down. Drake reaches over and squeezes my hand. Principal Dunbar finishes reading the names and I hype myself up to deliver my speech. "And our Valadictorian with a perfect 4.0 GPA. Rosemary McAdams."