Chapter 177: Seven-Year Reunion: Prom Night [2] I closed my eyes briefly, taking a deep breath before walking back to Candice and standing right in front of her, a hand on my waist. "You know what...?" I deadpanned. "You were always the queen bee. Flashy clothes, hairstyle, and pretty much everything the rest of us could only dream of." Candice smirked cockily. "You sound jealous, Cry-therine." "The bonus was that you were from a decent family who could snap their fingers and get you to one of the best colleges or plan your entire life like a fairy tale. You were a princess." She took a step back when I ate the little space between us. "And yet you were so obsessed with me. I used to think that because I was beneath you, you just had fun poking at my life. You found a doormat to step all over. But I see you now..." She tensed when I took her hand to eye the diamond ring. "I wasn’t a doormat, I was just the girl who you could never be. The one who had actual dreams and worked her ass off to get what she wanted and not have everything handed to her like a piece of cake. You’re bitch, Candice Turner, a sad one who couldn’t move on from that immature attitude." Candice blinked away the coming tears, but I didn’t stop. "Even now you’re still in your fairy tale, and I bet you wish you weren’t." "I-I always knew you had a mouth, but..." Her mouth hung, but she found the strength to speak. "But Jesus, Catherine, what happened to you?" She walked away, making sure she bumped my shoulder. Anna and Lisa rushed over to me. "What did plastic want?" Anna asked, pissed. "The usual," I replied. "To rub her life in my face like she always does." "She hasn’t changed, has she?" Lisa clicked her tongue. "What exactly did you say to her? She looked like she was gonna cry." "Just gave a taste of her own medicine." I say that, but I don’t know what I did. I knew that clearly wasn’t me because I was more in the verbal insults category, but that was some psychological shit I pulled off. Spending time with a roller coaster and insanity has made me become corrupted. Well, at least it warded off that bitch. She’s gonna spend the rest of the night stuck in that simple-minded brain of hers and wishes she had never tried to taunt me. "It’s Tom!" Anna whispered-hissed to me, and I looked in the direction of her gaze. "Is it just me, or has he gotten hotter?" Lisa said. My crush from high school, the boy I was infatuated with for half my junior and senior year. Tom Pierce. He spoke with his friends, ex-football players. His dark hair was thick and full, falling to his shoulders, and his brown eyes were light, appearing more like gold. He looked good in a suit, and he had that lean, strong build going on. Tom caught my stare, and I looked away, or maybe he just saw someone behind me or something. "I remember when you used to obsess over him," Anna teased. "I’m going to have his babies, and they will look like him." "Stop!" I blushed. "We’re gonna get married in Las Vegas," Lisa cut in, and I want the ground to swallow him. "It’s always Tom, Tom, Tom, Tom!" "Anna..." I said through clenched teeth as my heart skipped when I saw Tom coming towards us. "Anna!" Lisa snapped. "What? It’s not a mystery that Cat was obsessed with him." "I didn’t realize I made that impression." God, that accent. I bet teen me would have melted like a puddle, but now? It was just a next-level embarrassment. "He’s behind me, isn’t he?" Anna said, looking at me with an apologetic expression before stepping out of the way. Tom’s brown eyes moved to me, and he smiled. "It’s not what you think..." I blurted. "They were just joking, that’s all..." He came close. "I’m sure they were. Hey, you." "Hey!" "I didn’t think you were gonna come for the reunion." "Why does everyone keep saying that?" "You were the only one who moved far from Rosevale." I scoffed. "But apparently not the only one who moved. Everyone basically jumped the wagon." "You know what they always said then?" "Make it out of Rosevale." He laughed softly, and it made his eyes sparkle in a way. "How come this is the first time we talked?" Because ever since he was transferred to our class, we never did, except when I gave him a pen. We were basically lab partners, but it was all about securing that top score. "I guess fate had other plans," I replied. "I’m sure it does..." he said. "Are you here with anybody?" "No... I came alone, but I have..." I looked to my side and found Anna and Lisa gone. "Maybe I am alone." "You were always alone then, too." "What?" "I watched you. You were always by yourself most of the time." I blinked. "And here I thought you never paid attention to me." "I did... a little bit." The joy I would have had if he said this seven years ago. Maybe I wouldn’t have dated that dick Dan and maybe... I wouldn’t have been locked in a contract with the devil. Sometimes I do this... play out my life and picture how it would have turned out if I made different decisions. Perhaps if I were bolder, like when I made the first move on Dan... Tom, and I could have been together. "What about you? Did you come with anybody? I’m expecting a model of some kind..." I said, doing a little search, awaiting a beauty to step forward and grab his arm. "Actually, I’m alone too." He leaned on the wall beside me, drinking from his plastic cup. "I came here because of the guys, it’s been so long, so I thought I would show." "Exactly! I just needed a chance to see Lisa and Anna again, definitely not here for the memories." "Mine was nice." "Yes, it was, you made captain in your senior year, so I think it’s more memorable." "What if I told you it wasn’t that nice?" I made a thoughtful expression, and he grinned broadly. "I wouldn’t believe you." He pushed off the wall and dropped his cup at the table. "Wanna dance?"