Destiny Binds (23 page)

The dance was held in our high school gym. Iʼve heard rumor that some schools have prom in swanky hotels. That sounds nice. Unfortunately, there are no swanky hotels near Timber. The only place with a ball room is the state park lodge and no one wanted to fight the roaches for the dance floor.

At Lake County High the Juniors host the prom for the Seniors. They pick the theme, hire the entertainment, provide refreshments, and decorate. My first thought upon entering the gym was that the Juniors hated us. The room looked like Barnum and Baileyʼs had exploded. Red and white awning hung from the middle of the ceiling and cascaded down the walls. Balloon bouquets served as centerpieces for the tables along the edge of the dance floor. I noticed in horror that people were expected to have their pictures taken with a giant cement elephant.

“Youʼve got to be kidding me.”

Charlie was shaking with laughter. “Jase is going to freak.” He pointed towards the center of the floor where the DJ was dressed as a clown.

“Stop it,” Talley said. “Lots of people are genuinely afraid of clowns. Poor Jase. This is going to ruin his prom.”

Charlie and I only laughed harder.

“I guess it could be worse,” Charlie said. “They could have--” I never figured out exactly how it could have been worse because at that moment he recognized the couple sitting at the table Talley was walking towards. My stomach dropped to my knees.

“Joi, you look great!” I said a little too enthusiastically. “That looks just like the dress Megan Fox wore to the MTV awards last year.”

“Oh my God! I totally thought so too!” My compliment caused Joi to literally vibrate with excitement. “Wow! Who is your date? Heʼs super-cute!”

“You remember Charlie, donʼt you?”

“Oh, youʼre Jaseʼs cousin, right?” Joi turned to Alex, who was the very picture of dapper aloofness in his black suit and tie. “Alex, this is Charlie. Heʼs Jaseʼs cousin, but, you know, heʼs not really related to Scout, so them being here together isnʼt nearly as icky as it sounds.” I would have to remember to thank Joi for that later. “Charlie, this is Alex.” Charlie did the guy nod thing and Alex offered a “hey” in response. It wasnʼt the warmest of greetings, but no one was throwing punches. That was a good start. There were only two empty seats, which left me with the option of sitting between Charlie and Alex or allowing the two of them to sit next to each other. As I slid into my chair, I pressed my foot against Alexʼs ankle.

“Nice flowers,” he said, casually glancing where my hand rested on the table. I wondered if he noticed how I kept inching it towards his.

“They are pretty, arenʼt they? I didnʼt know roses came in quite so many colors.” I could do casual conversation, right?

Alex met Charlieʼs eyes with a look of wry amusement. “The yellow flower is an interesting choice.”

“Iʼve never seen one like it before,” I admitted. That sounded better than,
Itʼs ugly and looks
awkward in the middle of all the pretty roses
.

“Itʼs wolfsbane,” James offered timidly from across the table.

Wolfsbane? Seriously? Leave it to Charlie.

“Doesnʼt that like kill werewolves or something?” Joi asked.

“Depends on which mythology youʼre going with,” James said. His voice was more confident as he discussed one of his favorite topics - weird stuff. “Some stories say that it helps identify a wolf, others that it can suppress the change. In one of the Dracula movies it was used to ward off vampires.”

“In
Gingersnaps
it was used to make a cure for lycanthropy,” Talley chimed in.

James beamed at her. It was the first time I had ever seen him smile. It could have been the first time that he had smiled in his life, period. It vastly improved his looks. “Youʼre a
Gingersnaps
fan?”

“My mom would die if she knew, but Iʼve watched it at least ten times.” Jamesʼ enthusiasm was bordering on adorable as he and Talley slipped into movie geek mode.

The smart thing for me to have done would have been to let the wolfsbane subject drop. I considered it before turning to Charlie and saying, “That was so thoughtful of you, but the full moon isnʼt until tomorrow night.”

He didnʼt even flinch. “Wolfsbane, huh? I told them to stick some bergamot blossoms in there.” He reached across the table to gather my wrist in his warm hands. “My flaky ecology professor said that it would put the wearer under the control of the person who gave it to them.

I was going to use it to make you dance with me tonight.” His mouth turned up into a wicked half-smile as one finger traced from my inner wrist to the fold of my elbow. I knew it was all just a show for Alex, but my heart sputtered and goosebumps broke out over my skin just the same. “I guess Iʼll have to find some other way to persuade you.” Joi did her awkward fake laugh thing. “Of course sheʼs going to dance with you. Youʼre her prom date.”

“I donʼt dance.”

More awkward fake laughter, which was quickly getting on my nerves. “Donʼt be such a Debbie Downer. Itʼs prom. You have to dance.”

Why couldnʼt my parents have raised me church of Christ where dancing was considered the eighth deadly sin? “I donʼt have to do anything,” I snapped. Joi flinched, making me feel instantaneous guilt. My shoulders drooped under the weight of it. “You know I canʼt dance. Iʼm rhythmically challenged.”

Alex hitched up the corner of his mouth, flashing a dimple. “Anyone can dance, Scout. You just need someone to teach you.”

My brief fantasy of swaying to the music in Alexʼs arms was cut short by Charlie gripping my wrist so tightly he may have left fingerprints on the bone.

“Yeah, dancing is easy,” Joi said. “We can show you how itʼs done. Right, Alex?”

“Of course.” He pulled out Joiʼs chair for her, like the gentleman he was. To anyone else he probably looked as though he didnʼt have a care in the world. However, to someone that had obsessively studied every aspect of his physical form for months the pain was obvious.

The desire to go comfort him was almost unbearable. I longed to embrace him and tell him that I loved him, a proclamation I hadnʼt got around to making yet. Charlieʼs hand felt like a shackle on my arm.

Talley and James soon joined Joi and Alex, leaving me alone at the table with Charlie. As my friends danced, he kept a running commentary on the people surrounding us. I barely listened as he made cracks about Ashleyʼs skank-alicious attire and Jordanʼs attempts at doing the robot. I was entirely focused on unravelling the knot in my stomach.

Charlie made several attempts to coax me onto the dance floor, but I kept shrugging him off. I was not in the mood to exhibit my less than stunning dance skills to the entire school.

Instead, I watched Alex as he bounced around with Joi and Talley. I thought he might return to the table after leading Joi to get refreshments, but instead he stood around with a group of Seniors that showed even less interest in dancing than I did. After a couple of songs, he walked out the double doors.

“Where are you going?” Charlie asked before I even realized I was on my feet.

“Bathroom,” I mouthed, weaving my way through the sea of bodies between me and the doors. I pushed through them just in time to see Alex slip out into the parking lot. I ran down the hall and caught up with him just as he was getting into his car.

“What are you doing?”

He jumped at the sound of my voice. “Leaving. Joi and John have reconciled, so there is no reason for me to hang around.”

“You donʼt have to leave”

“Yes, I do.”

“Why?” I reached for him, but he stepped away.

“For the same reason I canʼt let you touch me.” He moved some loose gravel around with the toe of his shiny dress shoes.

“Is it Charlie? Listen, I didnʼt know he was going to do this. He just showed up in a tux with these stupid flowers and--”

“Scout, itʼs not your fault. Itʼs mine. The full moon is too close. The wolf in me is dying to establish his dominance. If I stay, Iʼll attack him, and you wonʼt be able to forgive me for that.”

“I donʼt understand. You do okay being around Jase at school.” Alex looked up, his steely gaze catching mine before dropping ever so slightly to rest on the necklace that lay against my throat. “Charlie is different.”

“Iʼll go home, too. I donʼt want to be here if youʼre not.”

“No, you should stay. Have fun. Explore your options.”

“My options?”

“Heʼs in love you. Heʼll be good to you, take care of you. You deserve something better than I can give you.”

I was silent for a long time, unsure of what to say. Alex was wrong. He had to be. I didnʼt know if I could deal with it if he wasnʼt. “I donʼt want options,” I finally said. “I want you. Youʼre my destiny, remember?”

Alex shoved his hands in his pocket and tried to smile. “I said that you were my destiny, not that Iʼm yours. Iʼve never fooled myself into believing I could keep you.” I blinked furiously to keep the tears that stung my eyes from falling. He reached up and gently traced my jawline. “I shouldnʼt have done that,” he said dropping his hand back to his side. “Itʼs just so hard to not touch you.” He closed his eyes, taking a long, deep breath.

“Please, go back inside, Scout. Donʼt let me ruin your Senior Prom. Promise me youʼll try to have a good time.”

I reluctantly nodded my head. “If thatʼs what you want.”

“I do.” He gave me one last bitter sweet smile before opening his car door. “Goodnight, Scout.”

I lingered until I saw his tail lights grow dim in the distance. I went back inside, determined to have fun despite the battered state of my heart in order to keep my word to Alex. One look at my table, however, made me realize that was going to be easier said than done. Charlie was slumped down in his chair, staring a hole in the wall while Jase glowered at the dance floor.

“Where have you been?” Charlie asked without looking up when I sat down beside him.

“I told you, I had to go to the bathroom. Not an easy task in this dress.” Charlie started to say something, but Jase cut him off. “What the hell is she doing?” The “she” he was referring to appeared to be Talley, whose hips were keeping perfect time with the Rick James song pouring from the speakers. “I think they call that dancing.” Jaseʼs glassy eyes swung towards me. “I mean, what is she doing with that loser?” He gestured wildly towards James. “If I had known she was that hard up for a date I would have made one of the underclassmen on the team ask her out.” He leaned towards me as he spoke.

The smell on his breath almost knocked me out of my chair.

“Youʼre drunk.”

Jase poked his nose three times with his index finger. “Nope. I can still feel my nose. Iʼm good.”

Well, at least I understood Charlieʼs mood. Charles, Sr. was an alcoholic, and not a very nice one. As a result Charlie had developed some rather strong feelings about liquor and drunks.

“What is this all about?” I asked Charlie. Jase had resumed his nose tapping intoxication test, adding in the occasional “beep-beep”.

“Apparently the clown was too much for him to handle.”

“What are we supposed to do with him?”

Charlie regarded Jase, who had moved on to air drumming along to a drum-free hip-hop song. “I think our first step should be to deny knowing him. Just say that heʼs a random stranger that started talking to us.”

“Not what I meant.”

Charlie sighed. “Heʼs fine. Tinsley is driving him to Tylerʼs and promises not to let him drink anything else.”

I know this sounds like an Adam Ant confession, but I donʼt have much experience with drunk people. Charlie has always sheltered me from his father, and I never had the desire to go to any of the wild parties down at the cove. When Talley and I got together our drug of choice was chocolate. Jase tried to get me to drink a beer in the tenth grade, but I refused on the grounds that it smelled like horse pee. Without my willing participation, he had also given up on the endeavor. Seeing Jase so obviously not himself was upsetting. “Have you been drinking water?” I asked him.

“Walker? No. No Johnny. Jack. Jackʼs a good olʼ Tennessee boy.” It would almost be funny if he wasnʼt so pathetic. “Not Walker.
Water
. Have you been drinking
water
?”

Jase looked at me like I just asked if he ate kangaroo for breakfast.

“You need to drink lots of water to keep from getting sick. Come on. Letʼs go get you a bottle.”

Jase, of course, argued with me. As I tried to explain the whole concept of alcohol and dehydration, Charlie slipped off, promising to bring back some Aquafina. I was grateful when Talley and James, who looked very sweaty but happy, came back to the table.

“Thank God, sober people.”

“Oh, itʼs you,” Jase said to James. “You know sheʼs too good for you, right?”

“Yeah, I know,” James said, his face seemingly stuck in this new smile thing he was trying out. “It helps to know that youʼre not good enough for her either.”

“Oh gross! Talley is like my sister. We used to take baths together.”

“We never took baths together.”

“Yeah, we did.”

“No, we didnʼt. Now get down before you fall and break your head.” Talley moved to take hold of Jaseʼs arm, but he jerked away from her.

“Donʼt touch me!” he snarled, stumbling off the table.

James stepped between Talley and my belligerent brother. “Donʼt talk to her that way!” Jase pushed James back a step. “Are you wanting to start something with me, freak?” James was weighing his options when a pair of hands grabbed Jaseʼs shoulders. “Did anyone ever tell you that youʼre kind of an asshat when youʼre drunk?” Charlie asked.

“Screw you.”

“Funny you should mention screwing, Dude, cause thatʼs what it looks like Jordan and your date are doing.”

Sure enough, Jordan and Tinsley were on the corner of the dance floor, grinding together in a fashion that only the most lenient of definitions would consider dancing. I had never actually watched a porno before, but was pretty sure some of them were less graphic than what I was seeing.

“That son of a--” Jase took off through the throng of bodies, pushing anyone who dared to get in his way.

“Should we do something?” I asked Charlie, my eyes glued to Jaseʼs retreating form.