It was for the best. I couldn’t hang onto Drake or anything he gave me. Taking a deep breath, I grabbed it and carried it out. I tried to smile, but instead felt sick when she grabbed it with her claw-like fingers, not really, sensible nails actually.
“Maybe next time you’ll think before you wish harm on somebody else.” She shoved the clouds of red silk into my arms and turned to dance out, so graceful and lovely while I groaned and threw the silk across the room. It spooled out in a long swirl, truly gorgeous fabric that would have looked incredible on Wit, blood red with her dark hair and pale skin, like Snow White or something.
I sighed and went to Zach’s door, knocking on it hesitantly. Maybe he was sleeping or gone, or playing video games, or something… He opened his door and smiled at me.
I let out a relieved sigh when I saw that he had a shirt on.
“Hey, Penny. What’s up?”
I wrinkled my nose. “I’m such a lawn chair. Wit confronted me and I folded like a bad poker hand. You know what I need? Video games. Will you play with me?”
He smiled and nodded, grabbing his box of old games and system. He slid on the silk as he walked across the room. “What’s with the red?”
I sighed and curled up in the corner of the couch while he hooked up the cords. “Do you think that Wit’s legs are as good as mine?”
He glanced up from his position kneeling in front of the screen. “Hold on. Let me see if I can guess what Wit wanted. She took the costume Drake gave you and traded it for her little Red Riding hood, right?”
I nodded glumly. “I wasn’t going to the dance with Drake anyway, but I really liked that dress. I thought I could use it for a tea party some time.”
He nodded like that made sense then flopped beside me and handed me a controller. “Your legs are much better. I’m not sure the two of you have the same kind of…” He waved his hands around in a hourglass shape and I rolled my eyes, pushing Zach over.
“The silk is gorgeous even if red isn’t really my color. Maybe if I have the right lipstick…”
Zach shrugged. “There will be hundreds of red riding hoods. Because Drake’s the big bad wolf.”
The silk was gorgeous. I had a lot of black dye and a lot of experience dying things black. I could wear black for one day, right? What was I thinking about? I wasn’t going to the dance with Drake, but maybe I could go with Zach and find his whole heart key in the process. Did I still want to marry Zach even though he was in love with a poster? I liked him much better than anyone else at school, so that was a yes.
I swallowed. “What are dances here like?”
He shrugged. “I guess they’re like people dancing.”
I nudged him over again, his shoulder against mine. Kind of a lot of body contact, but he didn’t seem to mind, just nudged me back.
“Do you have a live band, a disco ball, fancy refreshments, or a dance show?”
He frowned at me. “You’ve never been to a dance?”
I shrugged and shook my head. “Isn’t that sad?”
“So, why aren’t you going with Drake?”
“He makes me nervous.” I tangled my fingers together. “Also other girls make me nervous when I’m with him. Also dancing with him is always a disaster.”
He nudged me. “We could go and hang out for a little while tomorrow, if you’d like.
Not like together, just going there as friends to see the decorations and watch the dancing, and maybe if you’re brave, a dance or two.”
I bit my bottom lip before I gave him my most sincere smile. “Really? I think you’d have to be the brave one to dance with me. Are you sure?”
He grinned and turned back to the video game.
“What’s going on?” Drake’s voice filled the room and me, bringing back my most recent weird stairs dream.
I couldn’t think of anything to say that wasn’t about the dance that I didn’t want to talk about other than, “Viney wants to have a make-out party.”
Zach swung around to stare at me while I blushed and refused to look at Drake.
Drake did not make it easy because he leaned on the arm of the couch directly over Zach’s head to stare at me.
“When?”
I stared at him and forgot to breathe. “When?”
Zach shoved him away. “You know that Viney would be making out with you. We have zero chemistry and you’re the Chemistry captain.”
Drake glowered at Zach. “Well maybe I’d start out with Viney, but eventually…” His head swung to me and I held up my hands, squeezing back into the corner of the couch.
“Not me. I was going to watch Telenovelas while you three got it on. I mean, I’d watch you guys for a little while, but it would probably get boring, you know? No dialogue.”
Zach snorted. “You think it would work to have a make-out party with only three people? It may as well be me and Drake making out. I think that I’m more attracted to Drake than Viney, but it’s a toss-up.”
Drake smacked Zach across the chest. “Don’t give Lollipop ideas.”
“Too late. Would you guys really make out?”
Drake turned to look at me, his eyes narrow. “Of course, if the stakes were right, I’d do anything.”
“What kind of stakes do you need?”
He smiled sharply. “Come on, Zach. Let’s do this.”
“Wait, I don’t actually want to see that. Really. And I’m not being tied to any stakes.”
Drake stood up and gestured for Zach who rose slower, glancing at the controls regretfully. Drake grabbed Zach’s shoulders and pulled him roughly close, but it was more like martial arts practice than anything romantic.
I went over and took Drake’s hand, tugging it off Zach’s shoulder.
Drake raised an eyebrow. “You think the hip is a better hold? You’re right.” He pulled his hand out of mine and put it on Zach’s hip instead.
I shook my head and stepped away, crossing my arms over my chest. “Drake, I was joking. Really, really, really joking.”
Zach looked over at me and grinned while he put a hand on Drake’s back. “Penny, you really blush well.”
I turned away with my eyes squinched closed. “If you insist on doing this, you should do it right. Zach, your other hand should be tangled in Drake’s hair.”
“Give us the count, Penny,” Drake said.
“Count?” I looked up at the two guys and they immediately lunged towards each other. Drake snapped at Zach’s face, sharp teeth flashing while Zach twisted his fingers in Drake’s hair, jerking his head back. I stared with wide eyes for a second before they went down on the ground, twisting and struggling to kill each other.
“Um, guys, I don’t think that’s making out.”
“Sure it is,” Drake said, coming up with Zach in an uncomfortable looking hold between his arms. “Feel free to join in at any time.”
Zach kicked up and knocked Drake over into the little side table. It cracked and shattered impressively.
I took a step away from the struggling pile of testosterone. “Definitely isn’t making out. This is bar fighting without the bar, I’m almost sure of it.”
I perched on the back of the couch to stay out of the way while they rolled around.
Professor Vale came in with a bunch of groceries and I waved at her while she wrinkled her nose at the two boys but didn’t say anything as she went into her room and closed the door with a thud.
When they were directly behind the couch, I put my feet on them like a rocking, violent foot rest. For some reason this violence didn’t bother me at all.
“Weirdly enough, I am kind of tempted to join you guys, but I think you would pull my hair.”
Drake lifted his head and grinned at me, holding Zach’s face against floor with his arms crossed behind him. “You could put it up like in ballet.”
I pursed my lips and shook my head. “I am just going to enjoy the show. I’m so glad you guys aren’t actually making out.”
“We are making out, right Z
ach?”
He grinned at Zach who gave him that wild smile, the crazy one I’d only seen a few times. Zach bit Drake hard and deep in his arm. Drake howled and punched Zach in the face.
“What was that, Zach?”
I leaned forward to put a hand on Drake’s chest to hold him away from Zach. “Biting is completely normal in making out,” I said. “Usually not the kind of bite that leaves teeth marks, but he didn’t break the skin. Good job, Zach. Is your face okay?”
Drake’s chest rose and fell beneath my hand, damp from sweat and smelling so strongly of black cherry that my mouth watered.
Drake said, “His face is fine. It was a love tap.”
I raised my eyebrow and turned to Zach, but Drake covered my hand, pinning it in place. “Drake, I’m checking Zach’s injury.”
“You need to demonstrate to me exactly how biting is acceptable in making out. I think Zach’s disqualified.”
His voice was low, rough while his breathing hard and heavy, heart beating beneath my palm. I stared at Drake then bent down and put my teeth on the side of his hand, the one over mine. I meant to kind of shock him into letting me go, but instead I tasted him and I didn’t want to stop.
I sank my teeth slowly into his skin, scraping it while I slid my tongue over his flesh. I bit down a little bit harder, feeling his skin stretch taut between my teeth before I sucked on his skin and tasting black cherry.
Zach’s hand on my shoulder broke me out of my reverie and I pushed away from Drake, blinking up at him while my tongue tingled and lips trembled.
Drake’s eyes were wide, pupils dilated as he stared at me, his chest still rising and falling rapidly. He bit his bottom lip and I bit mine, hallucinating his teeth on the soft pad.
Drake inhaled deeply and grinned at me. “You win. Biting is absolutely allowed. Zach just isn’t very good at it.”
Zach snorted. “I must need more practice. Come here, Drake, let me practice on your leg.”
I laughed and edged away from them, my eyes straying to Drake, the way he cradled his hand to his chest and stared at me like he knew what I was thinking and wanted.
Chapter 34
The red silk was indeed slashed to pieces. The bodice was rather skimpy with spaghetti straps, but the skirt was full and flowing while the red cloak had five times as much fabric as it needed. It would be beautiful in a spin.
After I’d dyed the entire thing a rich and perfect pitch black, I deepened the bodice slashes and inserted panels of cream silk in gathers that gave the top a bit more breadth than I would naturally have. Instead of patching, I put in more slashes, more inserts of cream silk, dramatic against the black.
I finished in time to make a little aphrodisiac perfume to wear with Zach. I did my makeup carefully, darkly smudged eyeliner, and almost black lips with a purple tint, like black cherry. I winced and pushed the thought away. It wasn’t black cherry but almost indigo or maroon, burgundy, merlot, anything besides Black Cherry.
I stood in front of the mirror and didn’t want to look away. I hadn’t worn black in such a long time. Even if my hair was in neat strawberry blond ringlets, I still looked dramatic, dark, dangerous and moody with my makeup and the dress that clung to me, like midnight slashed with moonlight. I closed my eyes tight and felt Drake’s arms come around me as he danced with me, clothed in darkness and anger that matched my heart.
I opened my eyes wide, smiled brightly at my reflection—a fairly terrifying sight—
and whirled around to the door.
“Zach?” I said as I closed the door behind me then stopped when he looked at me from his position on the couch in jeans and a t-shirt.
His eyes widened as he sat up, staring at me with a weird look on his face. “Penny? I thought you were going as Red Riding Hood.”
I shrugged. “I had some dye. Do you like it?” I swished the skirt and it swirled around my ankles like black water, feeling delicious against my legs.
He coughed. “It’s nice, but what are you?”
“I’m the wicked witch, of course. Either that or the woods in the moonlight. I’m not sure if Rosewood is ready for that much subtlety.”
He stood up and smoothed down his shirt then glanced down like he just realized what he was wearing. “I’m not dressed.”
“It’s okay. I just like getting dressed up, so if you don’t want to, we’ll just hide under a table, steal some punch and come back here for video games.”
He laughed and shook his head. “No, I will definitely get dressed. Give me a second, actually fifteen minutes. I’ll shower. Okay?”
He vaulted over the couch and left me standing there feeling kind of, suddenly so excited that I had to spin around, and the dress spun so gloriously, and the cloak, and if black lipstick was all it took to make Zach look at me like that, then everything would be okay.
When Zach came out, he was wearing leather pants, no-nonsense boots that laced over his calves, and a jacket as sharp as the edge of a katana.
“That jacket is beautiful.” I went to him and ran my fingers over the fabric, the extremely fine wool. I looked up and realized how close I was to him. I cleared my throat and backed up. “Sorry. I am kind of into fabric, and jackets, and really handsome boys wearing jackets in great fabric.”
He grinned widely. “That’s good because I’m a sucker for a girl who has a thing for fabric. You smell really good.”
“It’s an aphrodisiac.” I blinked at him while his smile grew wider.
“Really? Are you trying to seduce me?”
I shook my head laughing while I knew my face was pink. “I was just trying to get in the mood, you know, dancing and dresses and stuff.” I bent close to his neck and inhaled deeply while he stood stock still. I pulled away and looked up at him going for sultry. “You smell incredible. Is your base musk with a hint of jasmine and a tone of cinnamon? I want to make Zach flavored lollipops.”
He pressed his lips together and held out his arm. “Wow, Penny. You should wear that dress more often because I think it brings out your…”
I raised an eyebrow as I slid my hand on his jacket sleeve. “My what?”
“Temptress.”
I shrugged. “That makes sense. It was Wit’s dress.”
He scoffed. “That dress never belonged to anyone besides Penny Lane. I am honored to be your guide on tonight’s adventure.”
That’s what I wanted, a companion on life’s adventure, a little more than friends and a little less than something too much. Maybe after tonight we would be over that line and I wouldn’t have to worry about Drake stirring up my insides like an overdue volcano.
We walked down the wide corridors lined with pillars, and I felt like a princess in my enormous skirt beside a handsome prince. When I looked at Zach, he met my gaze and smiled, his blue eyes slightly mischievous.
“I can’t get over how different you look. I feel a little bit nervous.”
I gave him a demure smile, gazing at him beneath my eyelashes. “I’m still the same lollipop girl, but I am kind of excited to pretend to be something else for a little while.
You look like a prince charming. What would the wicked witch do with one of those?”
He scowled darkly, startling me before he flashed a smile and resorting once again to his glower. “I am a huntsman. Can’t you tell? Leather pants.”
“But the jacket…” At his renewed glower I pressed my lips together. “Yes. Definitely a huntsman. The lack of axe threw me off for a second.” I gripped his arm tighter and
leaned into him. “I’m not sure if the wicked witch and the huntsman should be seen together, no, the huntsman did go around and collect hearts for the witch or something.
That’s disgusting.”
He shrugged. “Anything for my queen.”
“Oh, that’s right, that was the evil queen who was also a witch. Wasn’t she the most beautiful woman in the world?”
He glanced at me, and something about his expression made me nervous. “You’ll hold yo
ur own against the other evil queens that will be there tonight.”
We climbed the stairs lined with men dressed in black like the men who had climbed the platform with the lightning in their hands. I pressed closer to Zach as we passed them, their eyes directed forward as though we were invisible.
I lifted my skirts high in my hand that didn’t hold Zach’s arm so I didn’t trip on them.
“It’s like Cinderella.”
He laughed. “Now you’re Cinderella?”
I shrugged. “I don’t have a curfew and I didn’t come in a pumpkin.”
We stepped out on the balcony at the top of the stairs and I paused because spread out below us was a crowd of swirling dancers dressed in elaborate gowns and dancing
intricate steps. The music was a waltz, but these people waltzed like they’d been doing it their whole lives.
“What do you want to do first, Penny?”
I blinked while I walked forward, leaning against the balcony instead of walking down the steps on either side immediately into the dancing. Instead of cheesy cut-outs dangling from the ceiling with pompoms and balloons, it was like the woods had spilled into the room, mist curling along the ground between dancers, silver trees stretching long arms above, dripping with leaves that glowed and sparkled. A moon hung from the ceiling, and stars twinkled in the distance. A breeze rushed past my cheek that smelled like grass and dew and fallen leaves. Two walls were glass doors, open to let in the night.
I spun around to grip Zach’s hands. “Thank you. This is more beautiful than I imagined. If you want to go back, I’ve already had my fill of perfection.”
He smiled widely and shook his head. “No, you haven’t tasted the bubbling cider or coconut silk. Come on, there is so much to taste.”
Zach held my hand as he led me running down the stairs to the left, and I laughed as my slippers barely touched the marble steps, my silk gown rippling around me until I felt like I was flying.
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