Answering Ascension

by Amy Proebstel

  “What was wrong with doing that?” he asked. Jon had inquired about the racing, and the girls had taken so long to come downstairs he thought it was a brilliant idea to keep them entertained until their dates were ready.

  “Do you imagine having the boys so engrossed with watching you race that they didn’t even notice the girls entering the room would make them feel special and appreciated?” Amanda crossed her arms as she pointed out the obvious.

  “I hadn’t thought about it that way.” Riccan paused and considered the situation from the girls’ point of view. It had been rather insensitive of him to distract the boys’ attention away from the event for which they had come over. Suddenly he realized one other thing, and he accused, “You turned off the TV using your power, didn’t you?”

  “Yes! And I’d do it again in a heartbeat!” Amanda replied heatedly.

  Riccan walked carefully toward Amanda and held out his hands in a placating manner until they were resting on Amanda’s shoulders. “I’m really sorry, honey. I wasn’t thinking. I’m just another dumb boy who doesn’t know the right thing to do all of the time. Can you forgive me?”

  Amanda had a hard time keeping the smile from curving her lips at her husband’s ridiculous speech. Finally, she relented and said, “No more showing races until after the special events are over. Deal?”

  “Deal!” Riccan replied and leaned down to kiss Amanda in apology. The kiss turned passionate just as Riccan had hoped. He leaned forward and scooped Amanda up into his arms and turned. He carried her as she giggled all the way up to their room. He kicked the door shut behind them and set her gently down on the bed. Their evening consisted of Riccan making amends for his gross error in judgment.

  Amanda was thoroughly convinced of his sincerity.

  Chapter Twenty-Two

  THE GROUP HAD a great time at dinner. They ordered their dishes and talked animatedly until the server brought their meals. An awkward silence fell on them all as they concentrated on eating their food elegantly. Even though they ate lunch together every day, there was something different about being all dressed up and trying to maintain the formality of the occasion.

  Juila decided she preferred casual to formal. They would have had more fun if they had simply opted to go to dinner and then the movies. She mentally sighed and thought, I asked for the Earth experience. I guess this is one of them.

  Jena smiled and added, I’m glad you’re finally seeing this my way.

  Not even. I just wish we could be more relaxed, she replied heatedly.

  I just hope this whole evening doesn’t backfire on both of us, Jena said with a scowl.

  We’re supposed to be having fun tonight. Try to do your part, Juila admonished.

  Jena grinned unnaturally at her sister and Juila could not help but laugh at her sister’s comical expression.

  As if the laugh had allowed the tension to dissipate, the kids began to relax and become more casual. They told stories to one another about their previous school experiences and enjoyed each other’s company. The dinner took almost two hours with all of the laughter and discussion and yet nobody seemed to notice the passing of the time. It was fun to be in a large group outside the constraints of the school structure. They would have to do this more often.

  Eventually, they requested the bill and then spent the next five minutes figuring out how much each boy would pay for themselves and their dates. Juila had to keep her mouth shut on the whole matter. She had only needed one glance at the receipt before she had tallied everybody’s totals including their fifteen percent tip.

  The group trouped back out to the waiting limo. The girls giggled as they stumbled over their dresses while they found their seats in the car. It was unanimously decided that the idea of a limo was much more elegant than the actuality of one. The hump in the middle of the floor caused the long-legged boys to have to sit in an awkward position. There really was no elegant way to get to the seats furthest from the door. In spite of it all, the kids still managed to have fun.

  The drive to the dance hall was only about seven minutes. The driver pulled up in front of the venue and came around to hold their door open. The kids exited the vehicle with as much grace as they had entered it.

  As they walked up the path to the entrance, the girls straightened their skirts and checked their hair both with their own hands as well as the opinion of another girl in the group. The boys tugged on their jackets to get them to fall just right and then stuck their fingers in their collars to try to ease the strangulation they were experiencing with their ties. It would have been obvious to any casual observer that these kids were not used to the types of clothing they were sporting on this occasion.

  They checked in at the front desk and then entered a second door inside. The room had been decorated in the theme of a nineteen-seventy disco hall. There were several mirrored balls hanging from the ceiling sparkling light in every direction. The refreshment tables were covered in tie-dyed cloth, and the plates and napkins carried the same theme.

  The dance was well on its way. There were over five hundred kids their own age already on the dance floor. It was a different experience to see all of the same people as they normally would in class except now they were all dressed so elegantly. They were like different people.

  Juila could well understand as she felt special herself just because of the clothing. Only Jena would know how altered they would feel since they had been wearing dress-up clothes since the first day of school. None of the clothes they had originally brought from Tuala had been worn since they had toured the school and Sofia had commented on them. It made them both slightly home-sick to not have any reminders of their heritage.

  Juila chided herself for such thinking. Earth was as much their heritage as was Tuala. They just had not experienced the ways of Earth until now. Their father had spent much more of his childhood in both places, so he had not had to feel as out of place as they did.

  Again, Juila had to shake her head to stop thinking about their home in Tuala. This evening was supposed to be all about the here and now. She smiled up at Behn and asked, “Do you want to dance?” She had seen enough of the dancing to realize the kids were just moving around to the beat of the song. There did not seem to be any formal types of movements, so it seemed safe enough just to wing it.

  “I’d love to,” Behn answered with a smile. He took her hand and led her out to the dance floor.

  Just as they were beginning to dance, the music shifted to a slow song. Behn moved forward and put his hands around her waist, drawing her close to his body. She had not been expecting this and swiftly looked around her to see what the other girls were doing. Only a second late, Juila put her arms around Behn’s neck and leaned in to rest her head on his shoulder. This was much nicer than the fast dance. She liked how Behn felt and smelled.

  As they turned slowly in a circle, Juila saw that each of the other couples from their group had joined them out on the dance floor. Jena seemed particularly stiff in Luke’s arms. Juila hoped Jena would relax or else Luke would think there was something wrong with himself. Of course, Jena would not be able to tell him she was already betrothed. It was just not something done here on Earth anymore.

  Behn interrupted her thoughts as he whispered, “You look very beautiful tonight, Juila.”

  “Thank you,” Juila managed to reply while she blushed. “You don’t look so bad yourself.”

  “Thanks,” Behn said as he chuckled. “Is it just my imagination, or does Jena seem uncomfortable?”

  Juila winced. She had hoped she had been the only one to notice since she and her sister were so close. “Jena’s never been on a date before. She’s just nervous.”

  “What about you? You don’t seem nervous. Does that mean you’ve been on dates before?” Behn teased.

  Juila was grateful for the low lighting since she knew her cheeks had begun to blush violently. She shook her head slightly and replied, “No, you’re my first date ever.”

  Behn smil
ed and thought Juila was teasing him. Surely this beautiful girl had been dating for quite some time. “I find that very hard to believe.”

  Juila looked up at him earnestly and said, “You really are my first. Jena and I have always been in a private school, and dating was not allowed.”

  “Well you don’t seem nervous, or maybe you just hide it better than your sister,” Behn suggested.

  “That must be it because I feel terribly out of sorts when I’m around you,” she admitted shyly.

  “You don’t have to be nervous. It’s just me under all these fancy duds,” he teased again.

  Juila continued to blush. She could just imagine what was under his fancy duds and the idea made her miss a step in the dance. She accidentally stepped on his toe, and she instantly apologized, “Sorry!”

  “I guess I should have opted for the steel-toed version of these dress shoes,” Behn joked.

  “Do they really make those?” Juila thought it sounded like a great invention.

  “No, I was just kidding. These shoes are so stiff I doubt I’d feel you even should you stand on top of them.”

  They were quiet for the rest of the song. They swayed in time to the slow music and held one another close. Every full turn showed them all of their friends. Jena did not ever seem to loosen up. When the music stopped, Juila unwrapped her arms from around Behn’s neck, took his hand, and said, “Let’s go rescue Luke from Jena. I’m going to have a talk with her and see if she can start to have a good time.”

  Behn thought that seemed like a good idea. They rushed to where they had last seen the couple. The area had rapidly become crowded as all of the dancers were taking this break to get refreshments from the table behind where Luke and Jena had just been dancing.

  Juila used her twin link to easily guide Behn through the crowd. Only a few seconds after the music had ended, Juila let go of Behn’s hand and grabbed Jena’s arm and started to haul her away toward the bathrooms. Juila could hear Behn talking with Luke to excuse their abrupt departure.

  “What is wrong with you?” Juila whispered loudly as she kept them moving in the direction of the women’s restroom, which now had a line forming out of the door. “Could you be any more aloof with Luke? He’s going to think he did something wrong unless you start acting like you’re having fun.”

  “I’m sorry, Juila. I’m trying, honest. I just feel like such a traitor to Willian. He never asked for any of this, and I don’t want to hurt his feelings.” Jena looked down to avoid looking into Juila’s eyes. She hoped her sister would stay out of her mind or she would see what she was really thinking.

  Juila could tell her sister was being evasive, so she linked her thoughts and discovered the truth of the matter. Her eyes got big and round, and she gasped, “Jena! You like Luke!”

  “Shh,” Jena looked around furtively to see who had heard her sister’s outburst. “I can’t like Luke, Juila, and you know it.”

  “Whether you want to admit it or not, you have feelings for Luke. And these feelings are quite different than what you feel for Willian. Maybe Willian does have something to worry about,” Juila teased.

  Jena blushed even more as she glared at her sister. “Stop talking, Juila! You have no idea what you’re saying.”

  Juila nodded with a knowing expression. She and her sister shared their minds as if they were each their own. Juila knew exactly what she was talking about. Now she just had to figure out a way to exploit this relationship so Jena would break her betrothal with Willian. The hold Willian had on Jena was abominable.

  In this strained silence, Sofia and Valentina joined them in the line. They were both happy and smiling.

  “This evening is going to be amazing,” Sofia gushed. “Jon is such a wonderful dancer. Never once did he step on my feet.”

  “Ugh,” Valentina said to Sofia. “I don’t know what you see in my brother. He’s always been so annoying as we’ve grown up.”

  Sofia smiled at Valentina and said, “That’s his job as your brother. He’s been very romantic with me.”

  Juila asked Valentina, “How’s your date with Ryan going?”

  Valentina looked away and smiled before she answered, “Better than I had hoped. I think he actually does like me. When he asked me to go, I thought he just did it because he wanted to hang out with the group.”

  “What?” Juila and Jena both exclaimed at the same time.

  Jena piped in, “Ryan is definitely into you, Valentina.”

  “Do you really think so? He’s been so perfectly polite. I thought maybe I was just reading too much into it,” Valentina replied.

  Sofia nodded solemnly and turned the question back onto Jena and Juila, “And how are your dates going?”

  “Wonderful,” Juila answered right away.

  “Fine,” Jena replied at the same time as Juila’s answer.

  Sofia tilted her head and considered Jena’s answer. “I thought you liked Luke.”

  “I do. Maybe a bit too much,” Jena admitted.

  “The evening has just begun. Just relax and let yourself enjoy the music. If you and Luke are meant to be, then it’ll happen. Just have fun,” Sofia offered.

  “I’ll do what I can,” Jena murmured as she stepped into the now-open stall in the bathroom. “I just hope this evening won’t make me regret my choices,” she said quietly to herself.

  After the bathroom break, Jena did try to have more fun. She talked animatedly with Luke, and he seemed to notice the difference in his date as well. He had fun, and they danced with every song for the rest of the evening.

  Before they knew it, midnight had arrived, and the music finished for the night. They did not want to end the evening, so they asked the limo driver to take them to an all-night diner. They pushed two tables together, and all sat around it talking about the other kids they had seen at the dance.

  There had been some excitement in the middle of the evening when two boys got into a fist-fight over the same girl. The boys had both been banned from the hall for the rest of the evening. The two girls, who were best friends, did not seem to care much and they ended up spending the rest of the night together on the dance floor, laughing and having a good time even without the boys.

  Each couple had ordered milkshakes and French fries. They dipped the fries in the shake and laughed at each story being shared. Jena accidentally dropped her napkin and leaned over to pick it up. Her necklace came free from under the bodice of her dress and came to rest outside the concealing cloth.

  Sofia leaned forward to look at the gemstones. She suddenly said, “Jena, I could have sworn your necklace was black. In this light, it looks almost purple.”

  Jena placed her hand over the birth crystal and tucked it back into her dress. “It changes color with the lighting,” she said nervously.

  With almost everyone looking at Jena, nobody saw the look of confusion which passed between Behn and Valentina. They would be discussing this later.

  Almost casually, Behn turned to Juila and asked, “I noticed you also wear a necklace. Is it the same as your sisters?”

  “Not exactly. The chains are the same, but my crystal is red,” Juila said. This line of questioning was making her nervous. Nobody had ever mentioned their necklaces before, and now they were both under scrutiny, it seemed.

  Behn pressed on, “Can I see yours?”

  With no other choice, unless she wanted to appear rude, Juila pulled the pendant up from under her dress and held it out for Behn to look at it.

  He leaned close and inspected it from a couple of angles. Finally, he sat back in his chair and smiled as he said, “It’s a beautiful pendant. Did you get it as a gift?”

  “Yes, both of our necklaces were gifts,” Juila answered honestly. She was not about to admit she could never remember a time without it. She wished someone else would come up with something else to talk about.

  As if on cue, Valentina said, “It’s getting late, and my feet are killing me. I think we should probably call it a night and he
ad home.”

  Juila agreed wholeheartedly. She had not wished the evening would end on such a note, but she was also tired. She flagged the waitress down and asked for the bill. This time, when the bill was presented, Juila told each boy the amount he would have to pay so they could get going as soon as possible.

  The limo dropped off Behn, Valentina, and Jon first as their house was the closest to the diner. Behn had leaned in and kissed Juila swiftly before he got out. Juila had not been expecting it, but she could still feel the tingle on her lips from where his had touched hers. Her fingers rose to her lips as she sat in wonder at her first kiss.

  A few minutes later, the limo stopped again, this time in front of Luke’s house. Luke kissed Jena on the cheek and told her he would see her at school on Monday. Ryan got out as well since he had driven over to Luke’s house and his car was still there. Ryan said goodbye to everyone left since his date had already been dropped off.

  The next stop was at Sofia’s house. The girls had never been to her house and were excited to see where she lived. From what they could see in the dark, the house was quite small, and the neighborhood was not all that decent.

  “We’ll see you Monday,” Jena and Juila yelled out at the same time as Sofia walked up her walkway just before the driver shut the door. The girls refrained from speaking until the driver opened the door for them at their own house.

  “Thank you,” Juila told the driver as she exited the vehicle. “I’m sorry we kept you so long.”

  “No problem. Your father expected as much.” He smiled and tipped his hat at the girls. He walked around the front of the limo and drove away.

  The girls watched him go and then turned to go into the house. Their parents had left the porch light on and the door unlocked. They expected to walk into a quiet house, but their parents had waited up and were sitting in the living room.

  “How did it go?” Riccan yelled across the distance.

  Juila jumped since she had not anticipated the question and then turned away from the staircase to go into the living room instead. She pulled off her high heels as she walked through the foyer and sighed with relief at finally being free of the terrible contraptions. It was beyond her comprehension why women would choose to wear the torture devices for more than special occasions.