Candy POV 

Summer has come, and passed... And school was mostly normal. A lot of folks seemed to be afraid of Alex now, and not just because he put on a LOT of muscle over the summer. Also, Apparently word of my Sudden Ascent into the wealthy had gotten around, and now the Preppy Rich Girls were trying to befriend me... And THEM being NICE? Disturbing. 

The Rich Guys were ALSO trying to Approach me, But Red Seemed to always be nearby... And made it quite clear that I was taken. Id never been kissed in public before, at least not around folks I'd know... it was embarrassing as hell... but kinda hot, honestly. Then people started clapping, and it was JUST embarrassing.

Red Whispered something in my ear then... And I was shocked. I'd forgotten it was September... and the School Event that took place this Friday... 

And, well... I panicked. When I got home, I ran to mom for help... Only to find out she had been prepared. So I could relax...

Which brings us to Friday night... And Red showing up at the door in a SUIT. He looked... businesslike, I suppose... but in that Jim Bind:770 way... I was Wearing a Sparkly Amethyst Gown... my hair was styled to look like Cascading Water, with Glitter combed into it. 

"Holy shit, I'm dating A Constellation!" Red, Trying to be funny,  Shouted when he saw me. It made Katie laugh, at least. She'd been In a poor mood lately... She'd had nightmares all summer long, and still wasn't sleeping well... so it was nice to hear her laugh.

So... Red Pinned A little Flower thing to my Dress, A Corsage, I think it's called... then took my hand and led me outside... where a fuckin Stretched Limo waited... driven by One of his moms.

We were Made to Pose in front of the Car, And Photos were Taken... Then we got in... And after five minutes we arrived... at the school, which is In walking Distance from my house. It's literally two blocks away.

Red got out, then turned back to Help me... He bowed like A butler. "Milady. Allow this humble Servant to escort you."

"Pfft. Nerd."

"Made ya laugh though, so I win... my Beautiful Little Nebula." He kissed my hand. I'll repeat that... he KISSED. MY. HAND. 

And my insides got all Fluttery.

"I don't know if I can do this, Red. I'm Nervous."

"Hey... Don't count yourself out yet. We can take it slow, You've got this. It's just a Dance."

"But it's NOT just a dance. It's Senior Prom. Do you know how many times in the past week my mom talked about how PERFECT her Senior prom was? Her and dad, The Perfect Couple, Showing up all the Jerks on the dance floor... I mean, this is supposed to be a once in a lifetime Thing, A beautiful memory... what if I mess up somehow?"

"Then it'll be a Beautiful Memory of a Beautiful Failure."

"But... I... I... Sigh. Red. I can't dance. I don't know how."

"Lucky for you, I Do. I uh... I took lessons for a few weeks. Because, well... I really wanna Make tonight perfect. So let's go in there, and make everyone jealous."

"I... Okay."

I took his Arm, And we walked into the school gymnasium. And the music was incredible. 

Easy Itinerary, Lincoln Preserve, Brown Night, Hexpenny, Fletcher, YesBelieve, Motto, Walrus, Quarterfront, lighterpackage 10, the Babyspeak Toys, JohnnyAteEarth, Locomotive, and more. There were also some faster paced songs, and Even One Hard Rock hit by Liplock and a Metal/Punk Song by DeityPunch.

Speaking of Punch, Someone Spiked it, and most of the Chaperones  got drunk. Luckily, We saw it happen, and didn't drink any... we told the Coach, Who refuses to drink anything artificial, so was drinking water... And got a Band-guy named Raul Stevens in trouble... He's a Funny guy, but his Date, Margaret, Didn't find it funny when she learned he was trying to get her drunk.

Everything was going great... And then the Final Dance... A soft, Familiar song started playing... Advin McStaff's Ah'll Be. And Red Pulled me In close... we danced... And following Reds lead was Easy... 

Then he whispered in my ear

"You look so beautiful, Candy... I feel like the luckiest person alive... And I Really Wanna kiss you right now..."

I pulled his head in closer... "Then what are you waiting for?"

And the World Vanished... This was different than before, than any other time... Reality Pulled into a tiny point, Time Stood Still, And All i could Feel, all i could see or smell, All that existed in that moment... Were Red's lips, And mine... His arms around me... And A deep, Comforting Warmth.

Then it was over, and i was left gasping for breath...

"Holy Shit! That was... intense."

Understatement, Red... 

"Oh fuck. I think... Holy crap, I think I might..." my eyes were wide...

"Whats wrong?"

"I... I'm not sure. I need to talk to my mom. Can... Can you take me home?"

"Of course. But first... We should Really Adress the attention we got."

I was confused... then realized people were Shouting, cheering, and One gut even Wolf-Whistled...

Then The coach Started YELLING into a microphone.

"ALRIGHT, THATS ENOUGH! YES, THAT WAS ONE FIERY SMOOCH, BUT YOU ARE ALL OLD ENOUGH TO ACT LIKE ADULTS. DANCE IS OVER. GO HOME. UNLESS YOU ARE IN THE PUNISHMENT ROOM, RAUL. YOU GET TO WAIT ON YOUR MOTHER."

"NO! NOT MAMA! SHES GONNA KILL ME!" A despair filled Cry.

"YOU SHOULD HAVE THOUGHT OF THAT BEFORE YOU SPIKED THE PUNCH. YOU GOT THE PRINCIPAL, THE NURSE, AND YOUR FATHER DRUNK. YOU SHOULD BE ASHAMED, YOUNG MAN." Raul was the son of the Shop Teacher. Who was the Coaches Younger Brother.

Ignoring the drama, We left.

_______________________________________ Still Candy POV 

Red dropped me off at home, insisting on escorting me to the door... And I was increasingly nervous. He kissed me again, abd said good night. Then I went inside. Mom was waiting.

"SO? How was your night?"

I Looked at mom... and started crying.

"Sweetie, what's wrong?"

"Nothing..." Mom wrapped me in a hug.

"Then why are you crying?"

"Because... I... Mom, I think I might Love Red. I knew I liked him, but... tonight... When he kissed me, it felt... Sigh... And now I just want him to do it again, and never stop... but... He's not here right now, and my chest feels... empty. I... I... I don't KNOW! But I'm worried i messed it up. I couldn't put my thoughts into words, ahd asked to come home, and now he maybe thinks I'm upset, and I don't know what to do, and i..."

"CANDY! Calm Down! Breathe!"

I took a deep breath.

"Mom... I Can't live without him... the thought of Red not being here HURTS... And I'm Scared... I'm scared of feeling like this. It's like My heart is on fire."

"Yep. Sounds like Love Alright... And you got it bad. SO... You know what you have to do, right?"

"Ignore it and hope it goes away?"

"CANDY."

"I know, I know.... I have to tell him how I feel... and hope for the best."

"Exactly. Now... Let's get some Hot Cocoa and you can tell me about the rest of the night."

"Okay, mom!"

_______________________________________

Excerpt from Reds Secret Diary.

Oh god, Her face! Her lips, her eyes, her voice! That adorable nervousness when I kissed her, that panic afterward... I KNOW she felt it too... Like we were the only two in existence... and now... She WILL be mine. Because i love her. Thats right... I LOVE HER. And I'm gonna make her Mrs Candace Scarlette someday! I just need to save up for a Ring. A beautiful Diamond for my Beautiful, Sweet Candy... 

And Mom, Mama, if you two are reading this, I'll know. I trapped the cover to leave Fingerprints on the page via ink coating.

Across the bottom of the page are Two Sets of Smudged Fingerprints, from Two Different Women... and the small house Was filled with "EEEEEEEEEE! OH MY GOD, THATS SOOO CUUUTE!" And one young man sighing... "I KNEW they were reading it. Damnit. Ah well. They would have known eventually anyway."