Lane Assignments

Chapter Five

Chapter Five

Senior Prom - May 2011

APOV

Kate and Trent, her new flavor of the week, are putting on quite the show, grinding against each other to the beat of the thumping music. Chaperones, who are freshmen and sophomore dads, are supposed to be preventing this type of thing. But I think a couple of them brought in a flask. I saw them laughing and passing it back and forth outside the restrooms.

Trevor and I never made it past that disastrous first date, and he's here with his new girlfriend tonight. This year, I picked my own date, knowing that Kate wasn't going to let me sidestep prom two years in a row. And, after all, this is it. We'll be graduating in less than a month, all off to find our own futures. So I picked Nathan, who is a quiet and studious senior and an anchor for the 4x800 relay. We've gotten to know each other over the past year, and he's got a great sense of humor. I would even go as far as to say we're friends.

We danced with Kate and Trent for awhile, until they started ignoring us, practically humping on the dance floor. Nathan suggested taking a break to have some punch, and we're sipping it by the bleachers. Nathan clears his throat and takes a step backwards, and then another, until he's obscured in the shadow of the bleachers. Smooth. I take a deep breath, tell myself not to be a pussy... that we're friends and join him. His white shirt is glowing, part of his perfectly-fitted tux with the silver tie and cumberbund. Yep, he checked to see what I would be wearing and he even got me a wrist corsage with a matching ribbon. I nervously finger the corsage as I step closer. Oh, he's nice... and cute... and I know he likes me. A girl could do worse, right? He sets his punch down on the closest riser, then takes my cup and does the same. With our hands free, he reaches for me and pulls me in. I will myself to relax. We're friends... he's nice. It's fine.

I feel his hands slide around my hips, and his thumbs skate across the bare skin of my back. I've heard the saying 'nails on a chalkboard' before, but I've never really understood it until now. It's... grating and I shiver as the sensation sears up my spine.

"Ana, shit, I didn't mean to startle you," he says softly. "I just... you look so beautiful in this dress, and I wanted to..."

"It's fine," I say quickly, "Um, sorry about that... I'm okay."

He gives me a little half-smile, and then he leans in. And his lips feel... good. Soft and not too wet against mine. And his breath tastes of mint and fruit punch... no trace of foulness. I feel his mouth open and he slides his tongue across my lower lip. Hmm... touching is not so great. But kissing? It's not bad. I open my lips just a tiny bit and... FUCK! His hands slide down to my ass and I jump away like he electrocuted me.

"I'm sorry," I say. I should ask him if he wants to try again. But I know it's not what I want. I don't want to feel his hands on me... anywhere. I just want to go home... go home and back into my safety zone. Back to my inappropriate, but all-consuming, hot dreams.

"Um, we should probably just get back out there before someone comes looking for us," Nathan says, his hands in his pockets.

"Yeah, I guess," I say. And we walk out of the shadows, abandoning our half-drunk cups of punch to be cleaned up by the custodial staff. I see the tail end of a figure in a gray tux hightailing it to the bathrooms, one hand over his mouth. Oh yuck... I hope they give the poor custodians some overtime!

Nathan and I make an attempt at dancing, but he's hesitant to touch me again. We duck off the floor when a slow number comes on, standing awkwardly under the basketball hoop. Brittany Miller comes sidling up, batting her long lashes and thrusting her sizable cleavage toward Nathan. She's only a junior, which means she must have come with a senior... or maybe her double D's got her a free ride. In any case, I think Nathan and I are both relieved when she asks him to dance. And that's the last I see of him.