Jenny examined her dress in the full sized mirror in her bedroom. It was a rich royal blue that matched her eyes. There was a feeling in the moist air. It was prom night and she had been planning this night ever since Ben had asked her to be her date. Who would have thought that the popular, handsome, top football player from North Highlander High school would go out with a girl like me, she thought. She was tickled to death about it. She had her hair halfway up and halfway down, with curls that bounced several inches below her bare shoulders. She had a sparkling jeweled necklace that hung around her pale neck. Her high heels were silver and simple, and her nails were glossy with metallic blue paint.
Ben told Jenny he would pick her up around eleven forty, since the doors at the Hall would close at twelve. She glanced impatiently at the digital clock on her nightstand. It was eleven thirty four. Just six more minutes, she thought to herself, and Ben would pull up that driveway in his sports car. She imagined her dancing with him, twirling around the ball room floor, other girls looking in jealousy. The thought of it made her smile as she gazed out of the window pane.
The sudden ring of her cell phone made her snap out of the fantasy. Could that be Ben? She grabbed it and flipped open. “Hello?” she said as quick as she could.
“Hey Jen,” said a deep voice that rang through her ear.
“Oh,” Jenny said, when she realized it was only her best friend, Pete Gardy, also known as Pepper.
“That was a warm welcome,” Pepper said. “Where you expecting someone else?”
“Well, actually, Ben is suppose to pick me up anytime to take me to prom,” Jenny replied. “Are you going?”
There was a pause, then Pepper said, “No, it just slipped my mind to sign up.” Jenny found it hard to imagine forgetting to sign up for prom. “When is he suppose to pick you up?”
“Eleven forty,” Jenny replied.
“It's eleven forty two.”
“Just two minutes,” Jenny said. “Oh, Pepper, I'm so nervous! I don't know if I'll be able to actually dance with him. My knees are shaking.”
“Don't worry about that,” Pepper said. “As long as you have fun. That's all that matters.”
“Thanks, Pepper,” Jenny said, smiling to herself. “I'm gonna have to let you go. Ben may try to call.”
“Alright, Jen,” he said. “If you need anything you know my number.”
Pepper hung up and stared ahead of him through the truck windshield. He rubbed his hand across his face as he pictured Jenny dancing with another boy. He started seeing her more as a best friend, but he did not want to cause any awkwardness between their relationship as friends, so he kept his mouth shut about it. This night bothered him, not only because Jenny was going with someone else, but because it was Ben. Pepper didn't like Ben. He knew he had cheated on numerous girlfriends in the past. Once Pepper tried to tell Jenny, but she was too blinded by her fantasy of being with the football that she overlooked the true side of him.
With an entire Saturday ahead of him the next day, Pepper had nothing to do tonight. He went to the gas station, filled up his old ford truck, drove around the small town for a while, and stopped at McDonald's to get himself a small fry. Usually on Friday nights he was hanging out with a bunch of his friends, including Jenny. But tonight everyone was at prom, but him. When he returned to his farm right outside of the town limits a half hour had passed. He tiptoed into the kitchen, careful not to wake his parents, and grabbed one of his dad's beer bottle from the back of the refrigerator. He returned outside to the barn to drink it. He sat up on the hay loft and listened to the crickets sing their summer song. He heard the munching sound of wood bees working their way through the wooden boards on the stall walls. Just before he was about to take the first sip, his cell phone rang. It was Jenny. When he answered, he found out that it was not her, but her sister, Adelle, who was about three years younger.
“Sorry to disturb you so late at night, Pepper,” she said, “but you're the only good friend of Jenny's that's not at prom.” She sounded worried.
“No, I was just...” he looked down at the beer in his other hand, “having a midnight snack. Is there something wrong?”
“Yeah, kinda,” Adelle said shyly. For the many times she had seen Pepper around she had never spoken to him on the phone until now. “Jenny's ride never showed up and she won't come out of her room. I was wondering if you could try to talk to her.”
“I'll be right there,” Pepper said, and hung up.
All sorts of things ran through his mind as he drove his old ford truck on the way to her house, which was only a few miles away. He was half furious, half sad for his friend. He was furious at Ben for ditching her, and half sad for Jenny because of how exited she was over this night. When he approached the front door her mother was standing there, looking pitiful for her daughter.
“Hello, Pete,” she said, welcoming him in. She looked concerned. “She's upstairs. We can't get her to come out.”
Pepper climbed the stairs to her bedroom. When he approached the door, he knocked on it. From there he could hear her cry. “Who is it?” she said.
“Pepper,” he replied. He tried to open the door, but it was locked. “Can I come in?” He heard a shuffle of fabric and high heels on the hard wood floor in her room as the door was unlocked, but not opened. When he slowly opened the door, he saw her sitting on the foot of her bed, looking gorgeous in her royal blue dress. She looked like an angel, but a sad one. He didn't say anything at first. He strolled over and just sat there beside her, looking down at his boots.
It bothered him to see her cry, her shoulders heaving in sobs, her pale face turning flush with red, and tears flooding her eyes. When her cries died down, he leaned in closer to her and whispered, “You look beautiful.”
She sighed heavily and took her hand away from her eye. “Thank you,” she croaked. “Why didn't he show up?” she finally asked.
“I don't know,” Pepper said. “You know what? I could take you there. They may still let you in since you're on the list.”
“No,” she said. “I couldn't do that. Even if they let me in how would I face everybody? They'll know I've been ditched. They all will. And Ben would be there. I couldn't stand to be in the same room!”
“Hey,” Pepper said softly. He looked into her blue eyes. “I don't want you to give a crap what everybody else things. I want you to remember this day for something good. Never end a day on a bad note. And today ends...” he paused to look at the time on her digital clock, “in about thirty five minutes. And you look stunning.” He was slightly relieved when he saw her show a weary smile. “Now come on, Jenny. I'll drive you.”
“I wish you'd go,” she said. Pepper gave her his signature crooked smile and looked around the room.
Reluctantly, Jenny agreed to go. The truck ride on the way to the Hall was quiet, but less stressful than staying in the room. To keep her from tearing up again, Pepper turned on the radio, which was drained with static, but it helped shatter the silence. When they pulled into the parking lot, Jenny started to get nervous again. She grasped the side of her dress in her hand like a wadded up tissue and took a short gasp. But Pepper's calm smile eased her. “Go on,” he said. “Have a hell of a time.”
“I'll try,” she said. Many what-ifs ran through her mind as she climbed out of the truck, walked across the parking lot, and approached the door: What if Ben couldn't pick me up? What if his car broke down? What if...
Her heart sank as she tried to open the door. It was locked. It was past twelve. She looked back at Pepper, who was still in the parking lot. Perhaps someone would see me through the window, she thought. She pressed her face against the thin glass window on the heavy metal door to see if she could see anyone. It was hard to see because it was so dark, but she could see that there was a lot of people there, dancing, socializing, and just having a good time. Then Jenny seen Ben. Her eyes brightened and she smiled and started banging on the door. “I'm out here!” she said, almost to herself. Her pleading at the door diminished when she saw Ben confronted a girl in a wine red dress and started holding her tight, kissing her. Jenny's fists slid down the side of the door. She stood there, frozen, staring into the window.
Suddenly, the door was sung open and Jenny jumped. It was one of Jenny's friend's parents, a chaperon, who was in charge of guarding the entrance. To much of her daughter's embarrassment, the mother insisted on driving her and her date to the prom in her minivan. “Oh, Jenny, You look so stunning!” she said. “But you're late. I'm not suppose to let anyone in after midnight, but...” she smiled and opened the door wider to let her through, “I think I can make an exception.” Jenny took a small step, then stopped. She remembered what Pepper had said to her. I want you to remember this day for something good. She turned and looked behind her at the old truck in the parking lot, which had just started up. It grumbled like a faint growl of a grizzly bear. She longed for her heart to follow the right path. “Well, aren't you coming in?” said the chaperon, breaking the silence.
“No,” Jenny said decisively with a smile. She gathered up the bottom of her sleek dress, and made her way back to the parking lot. Surprisingly, she found herself running towards the truck.
Pepper felt as if he left part of his heart there on the pavement when he pulled out of the parking space and headed through the large parking lot. He did not want to leave her there to be heartbroken by Ben again. But it wasn't for him to decide where her heart should lead her. It began to rain harder now, so he turned the windshield wipers on high. He could barley see out of the rear view mirror, so he reached up and adjusted it. When he did, he saw a figure standing in the reflection, running down the pavement. It was Jenny. He slammed on his breaks and the truck slid sideways and jolted to a halt. He jammed the truck in park, slung the driver's door open, and jumped out of the truck. Out of the rain and mist that splattered in his eyes, he could see her running down the lane in the parking lot. They collided together and embraced. “What was I thinking?” she whispered, her soft hands gently on the sides of his face.
All this time, Pepper had been there for her. Throughout the years of pain and sadness, and years of laughter and happiness. He had been there to dry her tears, carve a smile on her delicate face, and lifted her up when she fell. For the first time in the many years that they have known each other, they kissed. Jenny leaned against him and gazed into his eyes. They found each other slowly stepping into the beat of a love song from the truck radio.
This is such an adorable story! And you wrote it when you were thirteen? That's some good writing! I'm not sure if you want a serious critique since you wrote it so long ago, so I'll just mention that there were some grammar issues and there might have been some misspelled words, but nothing serious enough to be distracting. I really genuinely enjoyed reading this, and if you ever write anything else, I'd love to read it too!
