“WHAT THE HELL?!?” Brad yelled.

“What did she just say?” Kelly asked and stopped kissing Arnold.

“I demand a re-count!” A different voice said loudly.

“Yeah!” Someone else said.

The girl on the stage laughed, as did most of the crowd. “Recounts only matter if the votes are close.” She said and waved the paper. “You can't miraculously beat ninety-five percent with a recount, even assuming one person was the other five percent.”

“Then I want another vote!” Brad said as he approached the stage with Heather in tow. His friends were behind them. Not surprisingly, most of them didn't have dates. “It must have been rigged! How the hell did that little twerp get all those votes?”

“That's easy to answer.” The girl on the stage said. “He helped me pass Chemistry this year.”

“Me, too!” “And me!” “Same here!” The voices all rang out with affirmatives to confirm her claim.

“He was the one that gave everyone that simple sentence to remember that crucial formula. It took up a good portion of the final exam and the sentence even explained how to work it properly!” The girl said. “If anyone deserves to be Prom King for helping most of the senior class graduate, it's Arnold.”

A round of cheers answered her and Brad fell quiet. He hadn't known that it was Arnold's idea and he had used that sentence just as much as everyone else had.

“So, where is he?” The girl asked and put a hand over her eyebrows to block some of the bright lights and looked over the crowd. “Arnold! Come on up here and get your crown!”

Everyone started to turn around and look for him, then someone shouted and pointed. A spotlight roamed over the crowd and found Arnold and Kelly off to the side and tucked beside the folded bleachers.

“There you are!” The girl on the stage said. “Come over here and meet your adoring public!”

“No.” Arnold said.

“What?” The girl looked confused. “But... we all voted for you. Don't you want to be King of the Prom?”

“No.” Arnold said and took Kelly's hand. “I'm going to sneak off to the bathroom and kiss my girlfriend as much as she wants.”

“A-Arnold!” Kelly blushed.

Arnold led her through the crowd and they quickly parted for them. Everyone was surprised as the spotlight followed them across the gymnasium, because they all got to see how stylish both he and Kelly looked, with him in his white jacket and her in the fancy dress that matched. They passed by Brad and his friends and walked right over to the boy's bathroom. Arnold held the door open for Kelly, then they went inside and the door closed.

“Oh.” The girl blinked her eyes for a moment when the spotlight turned off. “Um... well...”

“Who's the runner up?” One of Brad's friends asked.

“Yes!” The girl exclaimed and looked at the paper. “The runner up... and now King of the Prom... is Brad Peckerwood!”

“Bwahahaha!” His friends laughed and most of the crowd did, too.

“She said it!” One of his friends said.

“What the hell!” Brad turned on them. “You wrote a joke when you nominated me?!?”

“That's some funny shit right there, Brad!” Kevin said. “You know it is!”

Brad bit his tongue and stopped his scathing remark, let Heather's hand go, then walked up onto the stage. There was a small smattering of applause as he accepted the plastic crown, plastic sceptre, and sash with the title on it. He didn't bother making a speech, even though he had prepared one.

“Congratulations, King of the Prom!” The girl said and was glad that the proceedings were back on track, then she held out another envelope. “Now it's time to find out who your queen is going to be!”

Almost no one reacted with enthusiasm, since they all knew who it was going to be.

The girl correctly read the mood of the crowd as she opened the envelope and pulled out the paper. “It's Heather Bradshaw!” She announced and about half of the crowd applauded, which was most of the girls, since they were the ones that voted. Brad's friends clapped the loudest.

“Thank you! Thank you!” Heather said graciously as she went up on the stage and accepted a more realistic tiara and the plastic sceptre, then the sash and a small bouquet of flowers. “I'd like to personally thank everyone who voted, even if you didn't vote for me.” She said, magnanimously. “I appreciate you all taking the time to...”

The crowd couldn't help but compare Brad's basic black suit and Heather's strapless green dress to Arnold's classy suit and Kelly's vintage dress. They seemed like the poor cousins in comparison.

“...and I hope you all have a great night tonight!” Heather finished and everyone clapped, because it was expected.

“Awesome!” The girl on the stage said. “If you would, please take the floor for the first official dance!”

Brad and Heather clasped hands and left the stage, handed everything off to Brad's friends except for the crowns and sashes, then stood in the middle of the floor and the spotlight turned back on and found them. The slow music started playing and after about ten seconds, other people came onto the floor and danced, too.

*

Kelly wasn't quite sure what was going on. She kind of blacked out when Arnold had sat her on the sink and then disappeared under her dress and made her orgasm. She had never felt anything like it before and it was a little too much for her delicate and heightened emotions to handle, even though she had played with herself on occasion and came.

Arnold's tongue tasted every little bit of her special place and it was nothing like Kelly had imagined, not at all, and she floated in a fog of bliss and a slight disconnection with reality. When she stopped moaning, Arnold stopped licking her and quickly cleaned her up and put her underwear back into place. When he untucked himself from under her dress, he saw the blissful smile on her face and a far away look. There was a heavy knock on the door and Arnold went to check who it was.

“I think that's enough alone time.” The vice-principal said and waved at the group of guys waiting for the bathroom. “They need to use the bathroom.”

Arnold nodded and put Kelly on her feet. She clung to him as if she really needed the help standing up, and he put his arm around her waist and slowly walked out of the bathroom with her.

The vice-principal saw her blissful face and laughed. “What did you do to her?”

“Just some oral sex.” Arnold said. “She really liked it.”

“I can see that.” The vice-principal said. “Take her over to the refreshment table and let her sit down for a while.”

“Okay.” Arnold said and led her through the crowd. If he had bothered to notice, he would have seen a lot of envious faces on the girls as he passed. They all saw that Kelly's make-up wasn't messed up from making out, which meant he had been kissing her somewhere else, and they all knew it.

“Hi, guys!” One said and waved to them, then dragged her date over. “That was something, wasn't it?”

“Oh... yes.” Kelly almost moaned when she found her voice.

“She needs to sit down.” Arnold said and they went over to the refreshment table and sat Kelly down on one of the chairs by the wall. Soon, all of their friends were there around them.

“You were smart to turn down being king.” Two said. “Heather was voted queen.”

“Boy, that would have been awkward.” Her date said with a laugh and pointed. “I'm glad you weren't stuck having to spend a good portion of your night with your ex-girlfriend.”

Arnold turned and looked over to where Brad and Heather were currently dancing. It was a fast song, so they were moving around a lot.

“We were all thinking of heading over to Max's for something to eat after the dance.” Three said. “Do you and Kelly want to come along?”

“Sure.” Arnold said, and they were all happy about that. After about ten minutes, Kelly gave a little bit of a jump and blinked her eyes as she looked around.

“What... when did we come back out here?” Kelly asked, and the girls laughed.

“That must have been some kiss.” One said with a smile and Kelly blushed.

The music changed and Two jumped up and down. “Ooo! I love this song!” She said and grabbed her date's hand. “Let's dance, everyone!”

They all moved towards the middle of the floor and everyone except Arnold started to dance. He looked around at the guys and saw that they were barely moving, while the girls were moving around excitedly and were enthusiastic about it. When he looked at Kelly, she stepped close and put her arms around him.

“Everyone dances differently.” Kelly said. “Some like to shuffle from side to side, some like to jump around, and some like to move their arms and legs to the music.”

“What do you want to do?” Arnold asked and put his arms around her.

“I want to hold you in my arms just like this.” Kelly said and he nodded.

For the rest of the dance, all they did was waltz together and stare into each other's eyes, no matter what kind of music played.

*

Heather and Brad had slipped away from his friends and were currently in the backseat of his car. Heather was bent over with her face pressed into the bottom of the seat and Brad was currently ramming himself into her from behind. He hadn't even bothered trying to take off her dress and had just lifted the bottom of it up to her hips instead.

Brad's hand was dug into her hair and he had a tight grip on it to hold her steady and had his other hand braced on her lower back. Heather was actually enjoying it and kind of liked that he had taken control. She could hear him whispering something as they had sex and it took her a few minutes to make it out.

“I'm fucking the prom queen. I'm fucking the prom queen. I'm fucking the prom queen.” Brad continuously whispered as he plowed into her as hard and as fast as he could.

Heather wasn't sure why tears came to her eyes and she started to cry.

*

Half an hour before the prom was over, Arnold and Kelly rode in Three's car as their friends went to Max's place. That wasn't what the place was called, it was the guy who ran it. They all piled in through the door and Max let out a boisterous laugh.

“Who wants burgers and fries?” Max asked and nearly all of them raised their hands. “Great! That's all I have!”

They all laughed and moved over to a big booth, then a couple of the guys grabbed chairs from a nearby table and they all sat together.

“This was the best prom ever!” One exclaimed.

Two laughed. “It's the only one we've been to!”

“That's why it's the best!” One said and they laughed.

The food and drinks were served not long after that, and they all talked about what they were going to do for the summer and then for the fall. A few of the guys weren't going to college and were taking a year off to work and to save up some money. All the girls were going, though. Almost none of them had the same classes and they would probably only see each other during lunch and at the end of the day.

“That's the same as us.” Kelly said. “We'll be in the same building for a few classes; but, other than that, it's going to only be the occasional lunch and after classes end for the day.”

“Well, at least you've got the whole summer to...” Three started to say and then gasped. “Oh! I'm sorry.” She said. “Arnold's working at the college all summer, isn't he?”

Kelly nodded. “He starts work in the morning.”

“WHAT?” One yelled. “What are you doing here? You need to get home and sleep!”

“We came out to eat with our friends.” Arnold said, which surprised them.

“We appreciate that, Arnold. We really do.” Two said. “You should go home right after this, though. It's going to be a long drive to the college first thing in the morning.”

“We have to pack the car, too.” Kelly said and took out her cell phone. “I'll call for a drive right now.”

Arnold reached over and stopped her. “Call my mom.”

“Huh?” Kelly looked where her thumb was about to push. “Oh! Ha ha.” She said and moved the list down from her mother's number and touched Annie's name instead. “That could have been embarrassing.” She said and put the cell phone to her ear.

Everyone looked from her to Arnold.

“Her parents are out on a date.” Arnold said. “Having fun.”

Three caught her breath. “Yep! Definitely embarrassing!” She said and everyone laughed.

“Shh!” Kelly waved at them. “Hi! Yes, it's us. We're at the restaurant on Manner Street. Okay, thanks.” She hung up the phone and tucked it away. “She'll be here in twenty minutes.”

“It was really great to get out and do this.” One said. “I wish we could have done this a lot sooner, instead of it being the last time.”

Two nodded. “Things are going to change from here on out.”

Three sighed. “I'm going to miss this, too.”

“Why?” Arnold asked. “It's only a two hour drive. We'll be back here every weekend on the bus.”

They all looked at each other in surprise for a moment, then they all laughed.

“Is once a month good enough for everyone to get together here?” One asked and they all nodded. “Let's exchange numbers and we can text each other to confirm next month.”

They all did and then waved for the checks. Max came over with the small stack of paper and looked at the crowd of friends.

“Who do I give these to?” He asked with a grin. The tall guy took the stack and put it on the table, then spread them out.

Arnold quickly did up the total and took the money his mother gave him out of his pocket. He quickly counted out the right amount and tossed the money onto the spread out bills.

“Arnold!” Kelly exclaimed.

“Mom said to take my friends out to eat.” Arnold said and stood up as he handed two twenties to Max.

“Damn kid. You've got style.” Max said with a laugh and took the tip as well as the money on the table. “Thanks.”

“Wow.” One whispered, completely surprised. No one had ever treated her before, not like that. She looked at her friends and their dates, and they had the same surprised looks on their faces. A horn honked and lights passed by the window.

“That's our ride.” Kelly said and stood up. “See you guys later.” She said and took Arnold's hand and walked towards the door.

“See you later!” “Thanks for coming!” “Bye!” Everyone said at the same time and it was difficult to make out who said what. Kelly waved at them and then she and Arnold were out of the restaurant and climbed into the car.

“Who knew he was such a great guy?” Two's date asked as the car drove away. No one answered.

*

“I'm going to go hang out with the guys for a while.” Brad said when he was done. He cleaned up a bit, tossed the used condom in the small plastic bag he used for trash in the back seat, then did up his pants. Heather didn't look at him and only nodded, so he got out of the car and walked back towards the school.

Heather sat in Brad's back seat for several minutes and didn't know what to do with herself. She had sex and it felt great, and yet, it felt bad at the same time. Her mind was perturbed at her conflicting emotions and she didn't even try to stop her tears. Not that she could, since she didn't know why she was crying. There was a single gentle knock on the window she sat beside and she looked out to see a grey suit. She rolled down the window and leaned out a little to look at his face.

“Are you okay?” Eric asked, concern in his voice.

“I... I don't know.” Heather said, honestly.

“He didn't hurt you, did he?” Eric asked, his voice had a touch of anger this time.

“What? No, of course not.” Heather said. “I just... I don't know what...”

“I think you need to go home.” Eric said.

“I... yes, I should.” Heather said and didn't move. “Um... Brad drove me here.”

Eric let out a sigh and opened the back door. “Come on, I'll drive you.”

“What about Brad?”

“He's gone already.” Eric said. “Kevin drove them over to the bridge to spray paint their names on it.”

Heather opened her mouth to comment on that, then gave him an odd look. “Why didn't you go?”

“I don't feel like trying to kill myself by hanging off the side of a bridge in the middle of the night.” Eric said and held a hand out to her. “Let's go.”

Heather hesitated before taking the hand and he helped her out of the back of the car and shut the door. She didn't say anything as he led her across the parking lot to his car and helped her into the front seat. She still didn't comment and Eric drove them out of the parking lot and down the road. It wasn't until ten minutes later that she spoke.

“Eric.” Heather said and looked at him. “Why are you doing this?”

Eric gave her a quick glance. “Can't I just be a nice guy giving you a ride home?”

Heather barked a laugh. “No. Try again.”

Eric let out a sigh. “I actually came outside looking for Brad to tell him what Kevin was planning.” He said. “I didn't find him until I looked for him at his car.”

“You saw us.” Heather said in a bland tone.

“Yeah.” Eric said and fell silent.

Heather waited for a minute before she spoke again. “Did you enjoy see me with my ass up in the air like that?”

Eric gripped the steering wheel. “Fuck.” He said. “Yes, dammit. You got me rock hard.”

Heather smiled. “You really liked seeing him pound me into the backseat, didn't you?”

“I loved it.” Eric admitted angrily. “I also fucking hated it.”

“Wh-what?” Heather blinked her eyes at him.

“You looked so sexy like that, completely exposed and enjoying yourself, and it was the hottest thing I have ever seen.” Eric said. “Then... then I saw how he gripped your hair and was holding you down against the seat so that you couldn't move.” He shook his head. “That wasn't right.”

“I liked it.” Heather said.

“Yeah, you liked it so much that you cried afterwards.” Eric spat and she winced. “No, I... I'm sorry.” He took a hand off the steering wheel and took her hand. “I'm not blaming you, okay? You might have liked it; but, you knew what he was doing.”

Heather didn't respond for a moment. “What was he doing?”

“He was using you.” Eric said. “You could have been anyone, anyone at all, and he would have treated you the same way.”

“No.” Heather said. “Not just anyone.”

“Then who?” Eric asked and held her hand tightly.

“The prom queen.” Heather said and her tears started again. “He wanted to fuck the prom queen.”

Eric pulled the car over on the dark street and parked. “Heather, I'm so sorry.”

“Are you?” Heather let his hand go, reached for his crotch, and felt how hard he was. “Are you really sorry?” She rubbed him a little. “This says you're just like him.”

“No, I'm not like him.” Eric said and stopped her hand.

Heather smiled and used her other hand. “You want to fuck the prom queen, too.”

“No, I... I didn't see the prom queen in Brad's back seat.” Eric said and used both of his hands to take the plastic tiara off of her head and put it on the dash. “All I saw was you.”

Heather's heart went pitter-patter at his words and she slipped off the sash and let it fall to the floor. She opened up his dress pants and pulled him out, stared at it for a moment, then plunged her head into his lap.

“Oh, god!” Eric gasped and Heather did her best to make him go as quickly as possible. It didn't take long. For the very first time ever, she didn't avoid it and stayed there with him in her mouth to make sure there wouldn't be a mess when she sat up. When she did sit up and looked into his eyes, she saw complete shock there.

“I've never done that before.” Heather admitted. “I always moved away. Always.” She said and hiked her dress up. Her underwear was still on Brad's back seat and Eric looked down at her.

“Oh, god.” Eric said and she eased down to touch herself to him. “Heather, I... I'm... I haven't...”

“I know.” Heather said and carefully sat down, because she was still tender from before. “Guess who isn't a virgin anymore?” She asked with a smile, wrapped her arms around his neck, and kissed him.