Through his lens

Dancing Queen Part 2

'Bloody hell.'

Natalie really had outdone herself.

I'd always been under the impression that school dances were overrated. That the extent of the decorations were some cheap plastic streamers and a few handmade banners. I should've known that with Natalie involved there was no such thing as cheap or overrated.

I'd bet that my eyes looked like saucers as I wandered around what used to be our boring old gymnasium which now looked like the set of a midsummer night's dream.

I would be surprised if the whole town didn't have a power cut at the end of the night with the light set up we had going on. Fairy lights had been strung around pretty much every possible surface, along with random filament bulbs on strings.

Somehow, they'd also managed to get lights up on the ceiling so they looked like stars with the main overhead lights switched off. Some poor kid probably had their life on the line setting them up but even they admit it was worth it, after they got over their new fear of heights that is.

Areas of the gym had been decorated to look like a forest with realistic fake trees, plants and a bed of coloured leaves. Reds, oranges and greens blanketed the ground making it feel like a real woodland floor.

On one side of the gym a small crowd had already gathered around the photo area which had been set up with a night sky backdrop and a 3D half-moon. A table off to the side held props people could use for their photos. You could choose from an assortment of hats and masks which had been made by the art department a couple of weeks ago.

The drinks and food table looked a little Alice in wonderland esk. Colourful bowls in different shapes and sizes held snacks and vases, jugs and bottles were filled with drinks. Any remain space had been filled with moss and an assortment of wildflowers.
Nora was already over there ploughing her way through the snacks. Every time she finished eating something it would reappear on the table again. As much as the thought of all the food being recycled through my sister was weird, I just couldn't tear my eyes away.

Everything was beyond incredible and like nothing I'd ever seen for a school dance before.

Natalie really didn't do anything by halves.

'You're here!' Speak of the devil and she shall appear. Rushing over to us, or as fast as she could in a long dress, she looked like a vision.

Of course, even though she'd spent god knows how many hours on this dance she still managed to find the most gorgeous, perfect dress. The emerald green fabric complimented her strawberry blonde locks and contrasted well with her fair skin.

'Natalie this is amazing!' I said accepting a hug from her.

Taliah circled one of the trees and dodged out the way just in time before getting knocked out by strings of metal moons and stars hanging off a branch above her.
'How the hell did you have the budget for this?'

'Some of it was props from the school play. I just revamped a few things.' Natalie shrugged like it was no big deal but we all knew how stressed she'd been this week trying to make everything perfect.

Natalie always came across as so put together and in control, but as her friends we knew that wasn't always the case. When you were that kind of personality people sometimes seemed to forget there were other emotions hidden by that happy smile she always wore. The more I looked at her the more I noticed the slight bags under her eyes and how tired her smile looked.

I made myself a mental note to ask her later how she was and I wouldn't let her brush me off like usual.

'Now stop standing there like you're all lost and join in.'
Suddenly the tired look I'd caught was masked by a burst of enthusiasm. She linked arms with Harrison and I before pointing out different areas of the gym.