His Safety Net

Chapter 40

Chapter 40

       I looked back and forth between the two dress shirts laid out on my bed, trying to decide which one I should wear to the school dance tonight. I've never been to a school dance before, let alone any kind of dance so I didn't even know which one I should wear.

       Maybe I shouldn't even go to the school dance. It was probably going to be extremely crowded, and I hated crowds.

       But... I wanted to start getting out of my comfort zone. Not only that, but this was the last school dance before Jerome graduated. Well, there was prom too but I was only a sophomore so I probably wouldn't be able to go.

       I continued to stare at the two shirts before deciding to wear the one I liked the most. I shouldn't worry about what I should wear at the dance. I should just wear what I liked the most.

       So I went with my yellow dress shirt, since I loved the colour yellow. It always made me feel happy and joyful, which was definitely something I needed recently.

       I mean, I have actually been happy, a lot more happy, than I was at the start of the year, but there was nothing wrong with trying to be as happy as I could be.

       Once I was dressed, I hesitated before heading downstairs where Jerome was already waiting. It didn't take him long to get ready so he decided to wait downstairs with me so, in his words, he wouldn't make me feel uncomfortable because he would just be checking me out.

       I mean, I wouldn't be uncomfortable by it but I would definitely feel very flustered.

       I was flustered too easily...

       When I got downstairs, Jerome looked up from his phone and smiled at me. "You look... amazing."

       I looked down at my outfit before looking back at Jerome. "It's just clothes..."

       "Yeah, I know," Jerome said, walking closer to me and placing his hands on both sides of my face. "But you always look amazing."

       I smiled as he leaned down and pressed his lips on mine. It felt so good not trying to hide my relationship with him anymore. I wasn't trying to hide who I really was. I was just being me. I was happy. Genuinely happy.

       "Oh, I have to take a picture of you two before you leave," Mom said.

       I pulled away from Jerome and looked over at Mom, who was getting the camera ready on her phone. "What? No, you don't. This isn't prom or anything."

       "Yes, I know," Mom said. "But it's your first school dance."

       "Still not a big deal," I said.

       "Oh, shush," Mom said. "Just let me take the picture."

       I knew Mom was going to stop asking until she actually took my and Jerome's picture, so I let it happen. After all, it was good to know she was happy for me and supported my relationship with Jerome.

       After my mom took a few dozen photos, Jerome and I finally left the house to head to the school dance. We were a bit late to the dance because it took me a while to figure out what I was going to wear, but Jerome assured me it was fine to be late. Rarely anyone showed up on time.

       "Is what I'm wearing good enough for the dance...?" I asked.

       "Yeah, of course it is," Jerome said. "The theme is Summer in the Spring, and what you're wearing definitely fits the theme. Even then, not everyone follows the theme of the dance. Also, I know you're iffy about crowds so if you ever want to leave the dance, just tell me."