"Honest to Pete, Raley," Dominic sighed, "shove over! Damn, you got a lotta books up in here!"
"Sorry. Lot's of makeup work."
"Well," Dominic exhaled hard as he shoved the locker door shut, "maybe if you came to school more than two days a week, you wouldn't have that problem. Of course the two mile trek to all your classes over there in Academia Land probably is a bit of an incentive to consolidate your attendance hours." He laughed good naturedly, pulling her ponytail.
"No shit," Dmitri said, "I have a perfectly good locker over there you know?"
"Yes, and it's perfectly too close to the Boden Bowdean and Vivi Vi Show," Aurelia answered bitterly.
"Yeah," Dominic said quietly.
"Sorry, Deborah," Dmitri spoke quietly now too. "Forgive me, my Latin love?" He asked, hugging her.
"Always," she answered giving him a quick peck on the cheek. "And besides, Dom, I have enough credits to graduate even if I quit coming altogether," she said cheerfully kissing him as well.
"Then why do you come?" Dominic said astonished.
"Because I like my job. And if I don't go to school, then I can't go to work. The manager is very strict. She calls the school to check."
"Oh for crap's sake, you're a salad bar girl," Dmitri laughed derisively.
"And two full days of hell, ahem, school, hardly seems like a fair exchange for eight hours of work," added an incredulous Dominic.
"I'm a dining room hostess. Plus I get weekend shifts too. And easy for you say, Dominic, you get sprung at noon everyday for co-op work!" She laughed.
It felt good to tease and laugh with her friends. But it felt foreign as well. She hadn't done it very often over the past four months. She'd practically sleep walked through the musical. It had been a raving success and had earned her and the dirctorial team many accolades. But Aurelia had been on automatic pilot, just trying to get to Christmas break and away from the place that trapped her with Bowden and Vivi.
After the kiss she and Vivi had shared, Boden rarely let Vivi out of his sight in the presence of Aurelia. Suddenly he was everywhere. He met Vivi at the door of Theatre class. He escorted her to rehearsals. He even sat in the corner of the library during Creative Writing Club, pretending to research for a paper. Vivi herself, rarely spoke to Aurelia now outside of neccesary conversation. And when she did, her violet eyes no longer sparkled but seemed dull, even a little dead.
Aurelia felt awkward around both of them now. She wasn't ashamed of the kiss, but she was ashamed for some reason about the aftermath, though she couldn't quite put her finger on why.
"Well, if you hadn't given your own BFE locker to Axl and the Judster, you at least wouldn't have to crowd in with me," Dominic laughed as he hefted his backpack over one shoulder.
"I gave it to Axl, not Jud," Aurelia answered.
"Uh huh," Dominic said now, "and what did he give you?" He smiled mischievously, waggling an eyebrow at her.
"Watch it," Dmitri said in a warning tone.
But Aurelia just gave him an innocent look.
"Why, whatever are you talking about, Dominic?"
"Oh gee, I don't know, Raley, maybe you can tell me why everywhere we go, Axl Blue who used to never speak unless it was about cars, now only talks about you," Dominic said looking at her pointedly.
"Maybe he's grateful about the locker. And we are neighbors too you know," Aurelia answered, her voice trailing off dreamily with the thought of Axl's fingers tangled in her hair as he'd kissed her in the moonlit woods night before.
"Love thy neighbor, I guess," Dominic snorted.
"It's not like that, brah," Aurelia answered dismissively.
"Whatever," Dominic said shaking his head, "hey don't forget to vote for me for Prom King at lunch, 'kay? I voted you as Queen yesterday."
"I won't, wait what? You voted for me? Why?"
"Uh, it's a free country and you're the only girl I'm friends with at this school. What's the big deal?"
"Prom is the big deal," Aurelia answered, feeling suddenly shaky. "I'm not going."
"What! Deborah, that's tragic," Dmitri piped in.
"I'll say," said Dominic. "Then I'm gonna get all my bros to stuff the ballot box with your name. Then you'll have to go, Raley. Come on, it wouldn't be any fun without you!"
"Oh for pitty's sake, Dominic, you make a party wherever you go, you'll hardly miss me. And you," she whirled on Dmitri, "that's rich, you aren't even going yourself."
"Only because it's my Julliard audition! Otherwise nothing but death could keep me from it! And you might as well know that I voted for you too, hmff," Dmitri said, verbalizing the scoffing noise.
"Oh God." Aurelia pressed her fingers to her temples.
"I voted for you too, honey," Jud Bowdean said suddenly bumping up against Dominic, "hey, brah, only fourteen days 'til the next weekend at Avilla!"
"Yeeaaaah!" Dominic and Jud bellowed in unison.
"What? Jud, why? Dude, you're a freshman! You can't even vote!" Aurelia snapped now.
"Never stopped me before, honey. 'Sides I voted for Boden for King and I can't see him going with that prissy little thing, Vivi. You two should go."
Aurelia made a slight gagging noise and Dmitri wheeled her around, dragging her away quickly.
"What'd I say?" They heard Jud call out right before they heard the crack of Dominic's fist.
...
"Oh my God, I think I threw up everything from last week," Aurelia groaned as she shoved her whole face into the water fountain.
"Sounded like it too," Dmitri said, smoothing back her bangs from the flow of the fountain. "You're okay, right, Deborah?"
"Yeah. Sure. Now." Aurelia drank deeply from the cool waters.
"I mean everything is alright with you, physically? This is just an emotional response, right? You're not..."
"Not, what?" Aurelia stood up straight now peering pensively into Dmitri's face.
"What I mean is, well, uh all the absences, focusing on work, and now the hurling," he trailed off again, giving her an uncertain look. "I'm just worried, Deborah, that's all. I just wanted to make sure you're okay and don't, uh, have a little Blue bun in the oven or something," he finished, exhaling quickly, looking at her nervously. "I mean, 'cuz it's okay if you do, I'll stick by you no matter what," he added.
Aurelia gave a tense gasp.
"Well it's nice to know you have such a high opinion of me."
"Deborah, love, you know what I mean," he answered, taking her hand, "never any judgements here." He placed her hand over his heart.
Aurelia softened.
"No, sweetie, of course not. I told you I don't sleep with him. We just make out."
Dmitri looked noticeably relieved.
"Okay, good. But how often is this making out happening? I know about the first time, and the time you went with him to Avilla, and the day you hid out with him in the woods over Spring Break. Has there been more?"
Aurelia looked down, blushing.
"Oh lord," Dmitri sighed. "So how often?"
"Almost every Friday and Saturday night for the last couple months, and again last night."
"Wow, Deborah. Are you in love with him, then?"
"No. Maybe. I don't know. We don't talk about that kind of stuff."
"Well do you talk at all?" Dmitri gave her a serious look.
"Not really," Aurelia said, blushing again.
"But it's hot though, right? It's not just a thrill or a way to get back at Boden and Vivi and," he sucked his breath in, "uh Gabe? You're not burying your heartache and feelings of rejection about all the things they didn't give you in what Axl Blue will give you, are you? I mean it's hot, and you're into him?" He put his around Aurelia's shoulders.
"No. It's hot. It's really hot," she breathed heavily, leaning into his side as he held her closer.
"Hmmm, well maybe you should go to Prom after all."
"What, with Axl?" Aurelia looked up at Dmitri in surprise.
"Why not?"
"Because it's not like that. We're not like that. I don't know. He doesn't bring it up. And he works nights on weekends. He's going to go full night shift after graduation."
"Okay, okay," laughed Dmitri, "it's obviously not an option."
"No," Aurelia laughed then too.
"You gotta admit though, it'd have to be better than going with Boden Bowdean and being crowned Queen."
"I just as soon would see myself going with Vivi and being crowned co-Queens," Aurelia giggled.
"Strangely, Deborah, I could actually see that myself," he answered. "Come on let's ditch and go to Grub's Subs. I've got quarters, you can play Pac Man," he said kissing the top of her head and leading her out a side door and into the spring sunshine.
...
Umm, okay, Raley's Dad's Voice, I will leave a detailed message... 'Kay Raley, this is Dominic, and I've been thinking. I don't have any special girlies at school, and I was gonna go stag to Prom, but then I was thinking why not go with you instead? Now, now, don't hit delete, yet, 'kay, please? Hear me out, Raley? I know you don't want to go and since those dang jocks all stuffed the box for that cheerleader with the boob job and she won Queen, my plan to make you have to go obviously didn't work out. But, but Raley, it is Senior Prom. I know school doesn't mean much to you, and you know I get that. But Raley, what if you change your mind twenty years down the road and you start thinking back and what if... You know what if you start wishing you'd taken the chance when you had it? Don't live with regrets, Raley! Now I work at a florist for crap's sake and I get wholesale. I can make you anything you want. BEEP...Uh hey again, Raley's Dad, anyway, I was thinking wrist corsage, because they're hot right now and a new trend, and expensive. Only the It Girls will have them. But I get the wholesale, so it's nothing for me to whip up something nice, classy. Dmitri says you like pink and that you even looked at some pink dresses down at Wedding Traditions last spring. So I'm saying maybe you revisit that and make a purchase, you know invest in future memories...and don't forget to get me a swatch of the fabric so I can match my tux. I'm thinking soft gray with a vest, cumberbunds are so gay and vests are coming in big. We could really do this in style, Raley! BEEP... Oh! Oh, I forgot to mention the eats! We could have dinner at the golf club, my dad said he'd give me the cash and we can get the shrimp or even surf 'n' turf, 'cuz you know I love farm girls 'cuz they know how to enjoy a good steak! Yeah, and my mom said she'd buy the really good photo package and split it with your mom. Honestly Raley, we'd have a good time and you'd have nothing but the best memories to keep...BEEP...Sorry, Raley's Dad, but I just gotta say one more thing. Raley, go with me, 'kay? Just say, yes. I promise to show you a good time, and hey it's something I can do to thank you for helping me all the time with my homework and for well, just being a good friend to me. Come on, Raley, what cha say? Let me be a good friend to you too, huh? I adore you, Raley, please go to Prom with me? BEEP
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