by Wiley, John
“OK, so there was another reason why my parents came for a visit, other than just IKEA.” He reaches in his pocket and pulls out a ring box, handing it to Rhys.
Rhys opens it and sees a large ring. “Oh Joey…of course I’ll marry you! It figures you ask me right after Liam asks me out, but I guess I’ll break my date with him…”
“It was my great grandma’s,” Joey says, ignoring Rhys. “And her great grandma’s I think?”
“It’s some weird family tradition,” Jeremy explains. “They pass their wedding rings down generation to generation…but skipping a generation…or two. I don’t know. I’m just glad I didn’t end up giving it to Allison; I’d be terrified I wouldn’t pass it down to the right person.”
Rhys hands the box back to Joey. “So you’re proposing? At prom?”
Joey shrugs. “I think so.”
“So when are we doing this? Have you found a location?” Rhys asks.
Joey points to the complex’s club house, just across the parking lot. “There. I’ve rented the rooftop garden.”
“That’s going to be so cool,” Rhys says.
“It’s reserved for the last weekend of August, just before classes start back up.”
“I’m in charge of the balloon arch,” Jeremy rolls his eyes.
“And please invite some people; it’s not much of a prom if it’s just the three of us and our dates.”
“At least Cheryl would win prom queen that way,” Jeremy says.
“Please,” Rhys says. “I’m not going down without a fight!”
***
The next afternoon Rhys is sitting on his bed, staring at his phone, when Joey knocks on his door.
“Hey, I was going to go get a hamburger, wanna come?”
“Sure.” He gets up from his bed and walks toward the door. “Do you think I should invite Erick?”
Joey stops and looks at him. “I hadn’t really thought about inviting him. I guess you could, but do you really think he’ll come?”
“It’s not likely, but it’d be nice if he came.”
“I guess it couldn’t hurt; it’d be a nice gesture at the least.”
Rhys: Hey, hope you’re doing well. I just wanted to let you know that we’re going to have a prom here on August 22 and I wanted to invite you and Annie. I know it’s late notice, but hope to see you.
“OK, let’s go get some food,” Rhys says as he puts his phone in his pocket.
***
“I can’t believe I slept so late,” Cheryl says the day of the prom. “When’s the last time I slept past 10? Thank God summer classes are done and when they start back up my first class isn’t until noon!” She gives Joey a kiss on the cheek; he’s in the kitchen making toast and coffee.
“Want a cup?” he asks her.
“Yes, please.”
“So…I have a surprise for you,” he says.
“What?” she asks.
“Well, I can’t tell you, obviously,” he smirks at her. “Just make sure you’re dressed by 11:30; you and Tiffany are going to go shopping.”
“For what?” she asks in an annoyed tone. “I really wanted to just relax today.”
He hands her a cup of coffee and kisses her forehead. “I can’t tell you. But it’ll be worth it.”
“Well I guess I’d better go get a shower then,” she mumbles as she drags her feet back upstairs with her coffee.
***
“What am I all dressed up for?” Cheryl asks as she comes out of her bedroom. She has on a light blue princess tea dress with a wrap top. Her blonde hair has fresh highlights and is in a loose braid down her back. Her jaw drops when she takes in Joey standing in front of her in a black tuxedo. His hair has been brushed for once, instead of being a spiky mess. “What’s going on?” she asks.
He steps out of the way and reveals the word ‘prom’ spelled out in rose petal going down the stairwell.
“What?” she asks. “Prom? What are you talking about?”
“You always wanted to have another prom so I’ve thrown one for you.”
“Joey…” she can’t find any words to express herself, so she wraps her arms around his neck and kisses him. “Thank you,” she whispers.
“Come on,” he says, leading her down the stairs and to the front door. “Everyone else is waiting for us. “ He opens the door and reveals a huge black limo waiting in the parking lot. Standing outside of it are Rhys, Liam, Jeremy, and Max. The limo driver is holding a camera to take some prom photos for them.
“Come on!” Rhys yells. “I’m starved!”
“This is amazing,” Cheryl says as she comes down the stairs. “You all knew about this?”
They all nod their heads.
“Wait for us!” Tiffany yells from the front door. She’s in a pink floor length gown with her hair in twists cascading down her shoulders. Behind her is her prom date, a dark-skinned guy in a blue tuxedo (because there always has to be at least one blue tuxedo it seems).
“Where are we going?” Cheryl asks as they pose for pictures.
“We have dinner reservations at Mario’s and then the dance will start around nine.”
“Where’s the dance going to be?” she asks Joey.
He gives her a cheeky grin while shrugging. “I’m not going to ruin the surprise.”
***
“This is the surprise?” Cheryl asks as the limo driver helps her out of the car. “You brought me home? What, are we going to dance in the living room?” It’s dark out, and the only lights are from the street lights, which are illuminating everyone’s faces with shadows usually reserved for telling ghost stories around a camp fire.
“What’s wrong with the living room?” Joey asks as he slides out behind her.
“Nothing; it’s a lovely living room, but it’s hardly suitable for a prom.”
“Do you hear that?” he asks.
“What?” she stops and listens. Music is coming from behind their apartment. “Prom is in the parking lot?”
“You’re sure being picky about the location of this prom,” Rhys says, the last one to exit the limo.
“Let’s go,” Joey says. He grabs Cheryl’s hand and leads the seven other people around their building and to the clubhouse.
Noticing the fairy lights on the roof of the club house, Cheryl gasps – her hand covering her mouth. “Up there?” she looks at Joey with wide eyes.
“Yep,” he nods. There’s a smile of a ‘job well done’ on his face.
She lets go of his hand and runs to the wood staircase that starts at the side of the building and wraps around to the back before reaching the top. Cheryl slowly walks up the stairs, taking in all of the lights wrapped around the banister and the electric votives on the edges of the stairs. The top of the clubhouse is surrounded on all sides by a tall fence for safety, but the fence is hidden behind ornamental grass; fairy lights have been strung throughout the grass and along the fence. Standing at the top of the staircase, Cheryl sees a DJ to her left; in the corner to her right is the balloon arch with a camera on a tripod set up in front of it. All of the usual picnic tables have been pushed to the sides of the rooftop to make a dance floor in the center of the roof.
Cheryl spins around; Joey is standing right behind her. “Oh my God,” she says, teary eyed. “This is beautiful.” She turns around again and takes mental pictures of this magical scene.
“Shall we dance?” Joey asks, reaching for her hand.
“But it’s just the two of us.”
“It’s your prom, you get the first dance.” Joey takes her hand and nods to the DJ who starts playing “Angels” by the xx. As they slowly dance to the song the lights around them pulsate like a mirror ball (since it was too hard to hang a mirror ball from the sky). As they dance she rests her head on his shoulder and sniffs her nose.
“What’s wrong?” he asks in a concerned voice. “Is something wrong?”
She shakes her head. “No,” she whispers. “It’s perfect. I never thought I’d get another prom
, and I was OK with that, despite the fact I love prom. Just the fact that you would do this for me makes me feel like a princess.”
Joey kisses her forehead but doesn’t speak until the song nears its end. He steps back from her and for the first time she realizes that he has tears in his eyes too.
“What?” she asks, feeling uncomfortable with the way he’s looking at her; like he can see in her soul.
He smiles to himself and lowers himself onto one knee.
All of the color immediately fades from her face and she takes a couple steps back to steady herself on a chair before deciding it best to sit so her knees don’t give out.
“OK,” Joey smiles. He stands up and takes the few steps toward her and lowers himself again. “Cheryl…having you in my life the last couple of years have made me feel alive in a way that I didn’t even know was possible. I always knew that I would marry you one day and hardly seeing you this summer made me realize I want that day to come as soon as possible.
“I appreciate you for everything that you do for me, and I appreciate you for being you; one of the kindest and most pure people I have ever met. Cheryl, will you marry me?” He pulls the ring box from his pocket and opens it for her.
Her face explodes into the world’s biggest smile. “Even if that wasn’t the most beautiful ring I’ve ever seen, I’d say yes.” She stands up and looks down at him, still on one knee. “Yes, Joey. I will marry you.”
Without breaking eye contact he stands up, his smile getting bigger with every inch he rises. He slips the ring on her finger and embraces her in a tight hug and kisses her on the mouth. “I love you,” he says.
“I love you too.”
Taking a cue from the positive reaction to Joey’s proposal, the DJ plays an upbeat rock version of Nothing’s Gonna Stop Us Now, and everyone comes up the stairs applauding for the happy couple.
Cheryl looks up at them and can almost see the love radiating from her friends (and Tiffany’s date that she just met). “Come on, guys!” she yells, “let’s get our prom on!”
The evening progresses for about an hour with just the eight of them before more people start to show up, turning it into a full blown party.
Rhys decides to take a break from dancing and is getting a refill from the keg (perk of having a prom while in college) when someone behind him starts to tap their foot impatiently. “Sorry,” he sighs. “I’m crap at working kegs.” He turns his head and sees Cindy standing there, tapping her foot while smirking at him. Her black hair is up for once, and she has on a short black dress with a skirt similar to a tutu with Converse boots. “What are you doing here?” he yells. He puts his cup on the table and hugs her.
“Erick told us about this and we decided to come check it out.” She tilts her head toward Chloe and Jennifer at the balloon arch.
“Is Erick here?” Rhys asks, his voice more hopeful than he wanted to let on.
“No,” she pulls a regretful face. “He’s got too much going on at work. I got off though - perk of working retail!” she makes an exaggerated happy face. “He did ask us to give you this though.” She hands him a piece of paper.
“Come on, Cindy!” Chloe yells from the balloon arch. “You’re holding up the line!”
Cindy rolls her eyes and walks across the roof to the balloon arch. “There isn’t even anyone else waiting!”
“Well, there could be!”
“Did you even say hi to Rhys?” she asks as she joins the girls.
“Hi Rhys!” Chloe and Jennifer yell in unison.
He waves at them before sitting at one of the tables and opening the letter from Erick.
Hi Rhys, I just wanted to say that I’m really sorry for how things ended between us (even though I think we did end on fairly good terms, right?). Sorry I couldn’t make it to your prom…it was something I was always excited about when you and Cheryl would talk about it (not that I’d ever admit this…probably shouldn’t admit it in writing for sure! lol). Hope all is well with you and that we can see each other again one day soon.
Have a wonderful night.
Your friend, Erick
Rhys smiles down at the note, tears beginning to well behind his eyes.
“Hey,” Liam says, sitting next to Rhys. “What’s going on?”
He hands Liam the note. “It just made me feel really good.”
“That was really nice.” He hands the note back to Rhys.
“It still hurts, though, how it ended between us,” Rhys sighs.
Liam shrugs and leans into Rhys. “Yeah, but if you hadn’t left LA, you wouldn’t have been able to go to the super cool prom with me and possibly date me afterwards,” he says smirking. “Now let’s go request some Kylie Minogue and, as Cheryl says, ‘get our prom on’.”
Rhys slips the paper in his pocket and follows Liam out to the dance floor.
***
The next morning Rhys goes to breakfast with Chloe, Cindy, and Jennifer while everyone else is sleeping the prom off. The waitress brings four waters to the table, two orange juices, an apple juice, and a chocolate milk before taking their order to the kitchen.
“I still can’t believe you guys are here,” Rhys says. He puts a straw in his chocolate milk and passes the apple juice to Jennifer. “How’d you afford it? Is that rude?”
“No,” says Cindy.
“Yes!” Chloe corrects.
“My parents treated us to it,” Jennifer says.
“Aww, I’m going to have to call Janie and thank her,” Rhys says.
“She’d appreciate it,” Jennifer smiles at him. “She’s worried about you.”
“I’m fine,” he says. “It was really stressful before I left, but I do believe it was for the best. Maybe I’ll be able to go back out there again one day and give acting another stab, but for now I’m happy just getting my life back in order.”
“Well, I for one am glad you left,” Cindy says. “If you hadn’t left we wouldn’t have met Annie. She’s a lot cooler than you.”
“I know,” Rhys says. “Her nickname is Fannie Pack, you know? Wait…how did my leaving get you to meet her? You mean at my going away breakfast?”
“She’s living there now,” Cindy says after gulping her orange juice.
“Where’s Gene?” Rhys asks.
“Living with his girlfriend,” Chloe says. “I’m surprised Erick didn’t tell you any of this.”
“We haven’t talked since I left,” he says with a shrug.
“So you don’t know that me and him are going steady?” Jennifer asks.
“No one says ‘going steady’ anymore,” Cindy sighs.
“And that’s terrible grammar,” Chloe chimes.
“You’d think they’d be a little nicer after my parents bought their plane tickets,” Jennifer sticks her tongue out at the girls.
“This is nice,” Rhys says. “I’ve really missed you guys.”
“Well, don’t expect many return visits from us,” Cindy says. “Janie just felt bad for you. Of course, maybe if you get raped again she’ll buy us another ticket to check on you.”
Everyone glares at her.
“What? Too soon to make rape jokes?” she asks innocently.
“YES!” the other three say together.
December
“Why did I think it was a good idea to graduate in December?” Cheryl asks, her teeth chattering. She’s standing on the steps of Alumni Hall, waiting for her parents to find her. “You did it for me,” Joey says, leaning in to kiss her cheek.
“No!” She dives away from him. “I don’t want you to get stuck to my cheek like that kid that got stuck to the flag pole in A Christmas Story. Oh thank Jesus!” She runs across the quad to the giant squirrel mascot and huddles against it. “I don’t care if this costume hasn’t been washed since 1960, please keep me warm!”
“That’s a great picture,” Joey says, taking a picture of her and the squirrel with his phone.
“You better have got me a really good present for graduating early fo
r you,” she says as she walks over to him. She wraps her arms around him, inside his coat.
“I already proposed to you.”
“So?” she says, looking up.
“Well, you know the old saying about buying the cow?”
She raises her eyebrow.
“I’m not going to buy the cow twice.”
“You could buy the cow a nice new bell though. Wait…did you just call me a cow?” She slaps him from inside his coat. “Did I just call myself a cow?”
He kisses the top of her head. “Look, there are your parents,” he says, turning her toward the hall. “Let’s go.”
***
“So I decide to enroll here and you move away?” Marion yells, punching Rhys. He’s sitting on the sofa, watching Scrubs and she’s just come over to visit.
“What are you talking about?” he asks, dodging her.
“Mom just told me that you all are moving to New York.”
“Yeah. I know I told you that,” he says.
“You didn’t!” she hits him again.
“OK, well you didn’t tell me that you were transferring here. What happened to HCC?”
“Too close to mom and dad, had to get away, oldest story in the book.”
“So you’re starting in January?”
“Yeah. And I was hoping I could stay here for a while.”
“Good news!” he says. “You can! If you pay rent.”
She rolls her eyes.
“I was looking for someone to sublease. You’ll get to live with Tiffany, Jeremy and someone called Earl. He seems nice.”
She flops on the couch. “So when are you leaving?”
“The 29th.”
“Oh, that’s a while yet. She said it was you, Joey, Cheryl, and Liam?” she can’t help but to exaggerate Liam’s name a little.
He nods. “Liam and Joey got a job at a gallery. They hope to learn enough to be able to open their own one day.”
“What are you doing?”
“Odd jobs…trying to act…same old.”