Gen One- Chapter Twenty Four

I gave Sunset a friendly smack on the back when she stepped on my toes for the hundredth time. I should have switched her and Sunflower around. As we modeled through various poses, Sunset got lost in her excitement and kept forgetting she couldn't stand right on top of me as she attempted whatever new position she concocted. If I wasn't careful, my feet definitely weren't going to last me through the night. Sunset gave me yet another amused, apologetic grin before backing up and turning to face the camera Eden had pointed our way. The device that hadn't been touched since I tried to take a picture when I turned white was finally getting a moment to shine.

Besides being mildly annoyed with Sunset, I was also getting irritated with my brother as well. He had been into preparing me for homecoming as much as I had been into it. However, now that the date was here he kept teasingly slowing us down because he didn't want to see me go off and attend my first "big girl" dance, as he liked to call it. Eden had done everything from practically locking himself in the bathroom so I couldn't get ready to seriously hiding my dress and making me go on a scavenger hunt to find it. Now he was fiddling with the camera far beyond what he needed to do to take the shot.

     "Eden. We can't hold these smiles forever. Stop being a prick and take the picture." I commanded.
     "I can't take your words seriously when you say them while smiling so widely." he chuckled in response.
     "Well, you had better take me seriously before I give you a reason to stop your own stupid smiling."
     "I'm sorry," Eden laughed harder, "This is too good- having you threaten me when you look so happy. I'm thoroughly enjoying myself."
     "You won't be if you don't take that picture in five seconds."
     "Ah, sibling love." Sunflower mused wistfully.
     "If you think this is something, you should see me and Vermillion have a go." Sunset added merrily.
     "You have one second, Eden." I warned again.

With a roll of his eyes, he lifted the camera up and took the picture.

Eden took several more pictures of the three of us without complication, and Sunset managed to avoid my feet for the rest of the time. It was then that we decided we had enough pictures of our particular group. It was time to switch things up. Eden hadn't been pleased about it at first, but our house had been chosen as the house where me and my friends met up to take pictures before we left for the dance. Amaranth, Cocoa, Allium, and Frost were waiting off to the side just out of the way. I tried to follow Sunset and Sunflower so that someone else could have their turn for pictures, but Allium instantly rushed over and wrapped his arms around me to hold me in place.

     "Finally! It's our turn. Snap away, big bro!"

A big frown instantly appeared on Eden's face, and he made no attempt to take a picture. Entertained by this, I smiled brighter than I had at any point during that day.

     "C'mon, Eden. You've got to take pictures of us a couple at some point. Might as well get it over with." I teased.
     "You know, I'm still not sure about this whole thing." Eden mumbled as he did reluctantly raise the camera to snap a shot.
     "You had no problem with me and Sap." I pointed out.
     "I had some warning that you two might happen. You two," he pointed to me and Allium, "Came out of nowhere. Besides, I trust Sap to be more responsible with you than this guy here."
     "Oh, please! How can you even say that after what happened?"
     "You know what kind of responsible I mean."
     "You mean you trust Sap not to have sex with Meadow while you think I'll jump up her skirt the first chance I get." Allium said cheerfully.

Our friends burst out into laughter, me included, while Allium received a death glare from Eden.

     "Just clarifying it in case anyone was confused." Allium shrugged, still wearing his goofy grin.

Eden's expression didn't waver, but Allium wasn't the kind to back down. He had the two of us shift into a slightly different position to signify that we were ready for another picture.

     "Hand higher." Eden demanded.

In typical Allium fashion, he lowered his hand down my waist instead. That sent everyone off into a fit of laughter again. I began to fear that Eden's intense glare might actually kill my boyfriend, but he did go ahead and take the picture.

     "Next!" he called for someone else right after.

Telling that Allium wanted to goad Eden more, I pulled him away before he truly pushed Eden too far. We joined our friends as Amaranth and Cocoa took up their position for some pictures. I have to admit, it was still somewhat weird watching them. I figured it was mostly because it was one of the rare occasions where they did look like a lovey couple. Otherwise, the two generally didn't act romantic around the rest of us. Overall, the weird sensation I felt wasn't nearly as bad as it used to be. Amaranth and Cocoa were only growing stronger as a duo, and I had gotten used to that idea.

As it was, Amaranth had gotten used to the idea of me dating as well. He didn't seem to care nearly as much about me being with Allium as he did with Sap anyway. Allium and I had taken some time and gave it a week after Sap and I fell apart before we started showing the others small signs that we were actually into each other. The hints grew stronger as the weeks passed, and then we eventually came out and admitted that we were going to start dating. I expected many reactions, but Amaranth pretty much giving us his blessing from the get go was not one of them. The truth was though that Amaranth felt much more comfortable with his ultimate best friend dating me than he had been with Sap dating me. Everyone else revealed the announcement didn't come as a shock.

The picture taking lasted a half hour. We cycled through all the combinations of us we could come up with before taking the solo shots. That was when the camera grew full, but it was time for us to leave anyway. My friends were filing out the door, but Eden held me back. He waited until the rest were outside and the door was closed before he spoke.

     "Listen, I know what it's like to be your age," he began, "I know it's going to be tempting to do certain things, and I know it can be difficult to say no when you have someone pressuring you. Don't let him pressure you."
     "Oh my god, Eden, do we have to have this discussion for the millionth time?" I rebuked irritably, for my brother was truly getting on my nerves now, "You've known Allium just as long as I've known him. He may be a goof and highly inappropriate at times, but do you really think he's the kind of person to truly push me about a matter like that when it's not something I want?"

I paused.

     "And that is not something I want to be doing right now. Okay, well, no, it's not that I don't want to..." I admitted with slight embarrassment, "But, at the same time I don't want to do it. I know how fragile our situation is. Do you really think I would do something that could jeopardize our safety like that? Especially when what we're talking about also carries the risk of me getting pregnant? You of all people should understand that's the last kind of dangerous water I'm going to be jumping into considering you know what would be happening to me right now if things weren't the way they are."

Eden stared at me for a good several seconds before sighing in defeat.

     "Alright, I'll give the matter a rest. I do trust you," he said before smiling slightly, "And I'll try not to give Allium too much hassle in the future, if he stops winding me up so much."
     "I'll talk to him," I smiled in amusement, "And thank you."
     "You're welcome. Now, go head out and have fun."
     "Will do."

I gave Eden a long hug before meeting my friends outside.

The drive to the school wasn't bad, but the traffic was atrocious! There was also a game going on at the nearby stadium, so that contributed to the congestion too. What normally would have been a five minute drive down the road the school was on took twenty minutes. Thankfully, we were at least some of the lucky ones who hadn't splurged money on a useless limo service to get a decent parking spot. Getting into the school wasn't nearly as bad after that. Although, I couldn't believe it was the school I was walking into. Amaranth, who naturally knew what everything would look like since he was on the student council, smiled and chuckled at the rest of us as we stared in awe as our stuffy high school had been transformed into something right out of Tinseltown. Flashing signs, bright lights, sparkles, buckets of glitter, and the whole school dressed up in fancy outfits made me feel as if I was attending a movie premiere. The gym was just an unrecognizable. Even though the dance had only just started, the floor was filled with bodies jamming out in front of the DJ. Allium barely gave me any time to put my purse down before he lovingly pulled me forward to join that throng.

Truthfully, I was somewhat nervous that I wouldn't end up having a good time. Such blaring music and such a crowd were things that normally turned my mood sour. I did feel incredibly awkward and uncomfortable for those first few songs. However, mostly due to Allium's infectious attitude, I perked up and began dancing without a care. The tiredness I would normally feel never came. Song after song flew by. It was only when Allium and I took a break after an hour when I realized time was slipping away from me. Then it became my turn to drag him back onto the dance floor.

 Most everyone was dancing normally, but of course there were those couples whose idea of "dancing" was something that involved rubbing a whole lot of body parts together. It made me feel uncomfortable, so I kept my gaze away from them as best I could. It wasn't too long before I found myself getting nervous again though- this time for a different reason than simply being out of my element. I did trust that Allium would respect my boundaries, but as the next half hour went on he moved in closer and closer. He was making my heart race once more, and that sensation had been steadily increasing as the weeks went by.

     "Careful. Eden probably installed a hidden camera in my earring or something when he stole my stuff. You might not want to get too close." I joked when the DJ played something quiet enough to allow conversation.
     "Hello, Eden, if you're watching. I hope you're enjoying staring at nothing but my beautiful visage." Allium joked along as he spoke to my earring.
     "Now, now. Don't go winding him up again. He isn't very fond of it." I responded, adding in just a touch of seriousness so I could keep my word to Eden about talking to Allium.
     "But it's so much fun," Allium pouted, "He lets himself get worked up so easily. I can't help but to mess with him."
     "He'll find a way to get revenge on you, you know." I warned with a laugh.
     "That big teddy bear? I'll be fine."
     "He's a teddy bear to me."
     "Exactly. All you have to do is bat your eyelashes and give him a cutesy face for my sake, and I'll be good to go."
     "That's actually a rather solid safety net." I laughed.

Allium and I continued to joke and laugh more until the louder music returned to drown out our words. We lasted another song or two before it was time for another break. Allium ended up chatting with some other friends of his who weren't part of our normal group while I meandered my way to the back of the gym where there were tables littered with cookies, sweets, and even some dinner items. Eden had gotten us an expensive meal from a fancy restaurant before we took pictures, so I wasn't the hungriest in the world. I was picking up a particularly scrumptious looking cookie when someone approached me. All it took was for me to slightly glance in his direction and see his particular coloring to know who he was. I plonked my cookie down on my plate with more force than was necessary and kept my gaze straight ahead.

     "Meadow, I know you're still horribly angry with me," Sap began before I could make my escape, "You have every right to be angry, but can I talk to you for just a moment. Please?"

I said nothing. Instead, I shuffled in the narrow space between the table and wall to head towards the picnic tables so I wouldn't have to go by Sap. I swore I heard him let out a small exhale of disappointment.

Yet, he followed me to the table anyway. I wanted to ignore him, but even him just following me was driving me crazy. I set my plate down on the table with a thud and glared at him.

     "Sap, go away." I growled at him.

He hesitated and almost turned to leave, but he didn't.

     "One minute. Can I just have that?" he pleaded gently.
     "No! You're right in that I'm still furious with you. Seeing you makes me angry, and talking to you only makes it worse. You're not going to do yourself any favors pushing your case when just your very presence sends me boiling! One day, I'll probably forgive you. One day, I might want to call you my friend again. But this evening is not that day. You're public enemy number one to me right now, don't you get that? You're higher than Purity on my list of things I can't stand."
     "C'mon, even Purity? Isn't that too harsh?" Sap asked dismally.
     "No!" I repeated, "From the moment we met, all I've expected from Purity is nastiness. I hate the things she does, but there's no sense of shock or betrayal when she does them. But you were my friend- one of my very best friends! I trusted you with so much! I put my faith in you and told you about the deep pains that haunt me to this day! I believed you when you said you would be sad if you lost me, because you did say that, did you not? I can't understand then why you would go ahead and do something that would cause you to lose me. Did you seriously think there was going to be any other outcome to you pulling me along instead of just being honest?"

Sap shifted timidly. He couldn't look at me just as I couldn't look at him. He had no words with which to respond. The air between us was horrible and tense, and it took a lot of willpower to keep my tears locked away.

I bottled up those tears and my sadness tighter when I spotted Amaranth heading our way with subtle determination. Sap didn't notice him coming until Amaranth not so nonchalantly shoved his shoulder into his to make him stumble slightly as he walked by without a word. He smiled at me as if nothing happened.

     "Hope you don't mind, but Cocoa went ahead and brought up the idea of doing a sort of partner roulette. You in for it?" Amaranth asked.
     "Sure. Who am I dancing with?" I agreed, my cookie having been forgotten about.
     "Yours truly, of course."

Amaranth offered me his hand, which I took. He began to lead me past Sap: again, not even acknowledging him.

     "Excuse me, Sap." I did choose to say, although I said it curtly.

Sap nodded and gave me a weak, strained smile.

     "Yeah. I hope you enjoy the dance, Meadow."

My encounter with Sap was the beginning of the shift that changed the mood of the rest of the evening. I liked the song the DJ was playing. Amaranth was a perfectly fine partner. All around me my friends were having fun. However, having the pain of Sap's rejection brought up punctured a massive hole in the ship that was keeping me afloat. Then the whispers came.

     "Oh, there she goes. The hussy is playing the field again." the first one came.

I nearly jumped when I heard it, for it felt as if someone had been speaking right in my ear. Amaranth thankfully didn't notice my little twitch, and when I shifted ever so slightly to see who the speaker had been I couldn't find anyone appropriate. It couldn't the boy closest to me since I definitely would have caught him moving that close, and Amaranth would have heard him say it too.

     "It didn't take long for her to move to a new target, did it?"
     "I bet she's only start 'dating' to make it seem like she can stick to one guy."
     "Who do you think she's going home with tonight?"
     "I'll put my bet on all of them."

The taunts kept coming. I had no idea how I could hear them. The words Amaranth spoke to me were barely audible over the music, and he was the one right in front of me. From the way he acted, it was clear he wasn't hearing the same things I was hearing. Part of me wondered if it was all in my head, but too many of the voices were the familiar ones of my classmates.

I made it through two songs with Amaranth. I should have switched to dance with Frost next, but I needed to get away for a moment. I made the excuse that I needed to use the restroom. There was some truth to that excuse for I did need to go, but mostly I craved a moment to myself. Unfortunately, I soon discovered that would be a tall order considering the main restroom by the gym was overflowing with girls. Even the line to get into it was ridiculous. I waited in the line for a minute or two, but then I changed my tactic. The halls were dark and silent once one broke away from the gym and decorations. They gave off the impression that we weren't allowed to wander, but there were no chaperones or blockades to signify that the hallways were off-limits. I chose to move through those dark hallways, despite the creepy atmosphere and paranoid sensation that someone was following me, in order to reach one of the smaller bathrooms. The lights were blessedly on, and there was not a single other person in there.

I did what I had to do in a stall before positioning myself over one of the sinks. All of a sudden, I was beginning to shake. My legs threatened to stop supporting me, a cold sweat tickled my arms, dizziness crept into my head, and my stomach churned with nausea. Almost forgetting to take my gloves off, I got the water running in the sink so I could dab some on my face as well as wash my hands. The soft sensation of the water calmed the worst of my unexpected symptoms, but the shaking, sweat, and dizziness took their sweet time in vanishing. I couldn't believe the words of the lingering rumor of my supposed sexual exploits were affecting me so greatly. What I had heard was nothing compared to the abuse I received on the day the rumor first started. I did consider for a brief moment that I might just be sick again too, but the symptoms came on too fast even for me. Besides, as I kept calming myself down with the cooling water those symptoms kept on diminishing. It took several long minutes, but when I turned the water off and put my gloves back on I felt normal once more.

It was mere seconds after the gentle rush of the water stopped when I heard the unmistakable sound of the lock on the bathroom door click. It was so loud it was more an echoing snap, and the silence that followed afterwards was eerie and sent more undesired chills up and down my spine. Wanting to believe I was imagining it in my head, I rushed to the door. It was, unfortunately, quite locked. Frowning, I grabbed the knob with both hands and turned and pulled hard. The door wouldn't budge. Slight signs of movement and then one quiet but distinctive giggle from outside caught my attention.

     "Purity!" I cried.

I heard her giggle louder before the sounds of several pairs of feet quickly flittered away from the door and down the hallway. Sighing heavily, I grabbed the knob harder and gave opening the door all my might again. It was no use.

     "How did she even lock it?" I mumbled to myself, "I thought you needed a key..."

There I stood before the door, not having the slightest clue as to what to do.

     "Where's Snowbell to open a door when you need her?" I spoke softly again, grinning a wry grin, "And of course my cell phone is in my purse. No one's going to hear me if I bang on the door, and it's going to take forever for someone to come looking."

I sighed once more and rested my forehead against the glass. I lazily tried jiggling the handle for a moment.

     "I wonder if I can pick the lock..."

Pulling a pin out of my hair, I squatted down to give it a try. I most likely wasn't going to be successful, but trying was better than doing nothing. Imagine my surprise after several minutes of jamming and twisting the pin in every which direction when the lock clicked and the door swung open at a light touch! A massive, smug grin spread across my face.

However, I wasn't smiling when I made my way back to the gym. I found Purity standing alone near the back of the room doing something on her phone. I knew I should have learned by now to leave her alone no matter what, but I couldn't help but to stride over to her. She gave me that fake smile of hers.

     "Hello, Envy. I'm surprised to see you here." she greeted me with a mischievous glint in her eye.
     "Yeah, I'm sure you are what with you planning to keep me locked in the bathroom all night." I rebutted back.
     "Whatever are you talking about?"
     "For once, can you just stop it with your pathetic lies? We both know you locked me in the bathroom. What point is there in denying it?" I grumbled.

Purity rolled her eyes and shook her head in annoyance.

     "You really do have a thing for trying to blame me for all these nasty things I never do. You're lucky I'm so patient, or else I might begin to think that you have a grudge against me or something."

Purity was working me up quickly. My face was already flushing with rage.

     "You're the one with a grudge. I did absolutely nothing to you! Even when you were horrible to me, I gave you chance after chance to prove that you could be different. I believed that one day you could come around, but you're only getting worse with age! I'm the one who's losing my patience with you! I've taken the abuse you've sent my way and just dealt with it, but if you keep this up I'm going to have to start fighting back!"
     "And there you go with your nonsense again!" Purity spat at me, "You're as petty and pathetic as the day I met you. You're either too stupid to see the truth or that envious as to blind yourself towards it. How can you not get yet that I'm who you want to be? That my perfect life is everything you ever wanted?"
     "Your 'perfect' life?"

The statement had me bursting out into laughter, which made Purity's scowl darken.

     "Oh, please! That's hilarious! You're life is not perfect, and you're the blind one if you think it is. Do you think no one can hear the constant screaming matches going on in your house? Cocoa is complaining to us all the time about how your parents are going at it every day now. It seems like your dad has lost it. What happened? Has he finally had enough of you and your mother and the hell you put him through?"

I definitely struck a nerve with that one. Purity's scowl transformed into something truly ugly, and she lunged at me with a cry. I should've planned that she might come after me, but I was too slow to react. When she began wrapping one hand around my neck I feared she was actually trying to strangle me. I was blessed, truly blessed, that she was merely pushing me back. I stumbled, but didn't fall. Purity didn't try anything else.

     "You don't know anything!" she simply shouted at me before turning on her heel and stomping out of the gym.

I glared daggers at her retreating back. It was so tempting to shadow her steps and throw at her the ammo I now knew was her weakness, but I kept myself under control. The back of the gym wasn't even crowded compared to how it was near the DJ, but that meant everyone nearby had caught the last of our confrontation anyway. So many eyes were on me, and I wanted to be careful not to attract the attention of the teachers roaming about the room too.

I stomped around the back of the gym for a while and fumed. I could never make it through one school event without Purity doing something or causing some kind of trouble. Did she not realize how much better both our lives would be if she seriously just left me alone? I wouldn't be so angry, and she wouldn't have had someone she hates throw the fact that her parents' relationship is very clearing falling apart disastrously in her face. Part of the reason I was so angry was because I did feel a little guilty about what I had said. Not for Purity's sake, mind you, but because I did feel terrible about the change that had come over Mr. Waters. It was true I didn't know him that well, but I could only imagine that he wasn't the type to battle Mrs. Waters day after day like Cocoa had indeed revealed to us like he was for no small reason. Things had to be horrible for him if he was now being pushed so far so often.

     "Geez, Meadow, there you are!"

Allium found me when I was still pacing about with vigor. Instinctively, I turned away in guilt and embarrassment. I had been so riled up that I had completely forgotten about him.

     "Whoa, what happened? You look like you could smash this place to pieces with only that stare of yours." he asked almost in amazement.

     "Purity happened, that's what," I responded stiffer than I intended, "She locked me in the Science hallway bathroom, and I would still be there now if I hadn't miraculously gotten myself out by opening the lock with a bobby pin."

     "So that's what was going on. You just up and disappeared," Allium said, "Do you know where she went? I'm pretty sneaky. I should be able to drench whatever fancy white dress I'm sure she's wearing with a nice, staining red punch."

     "No, that won't be necessary," I responded, a small smile breaking through my tense expression, "I already sought her out and dealt with her."

     "Good for you. It's about time that bitch got half of what she's dished out sent right back at her," Allium encouraged before chuckling, "Although, I suppose I shouldn't be prompting you to be like her. Then you'll be like her."

     "Don't worry. I'll only react when necessary, and it won't be anything like what she thinks is acceptable to do." I laughed.

Allium placed a hand on my shoulder, and I found when I turned to face him that practically all my anger was gone. It was then when I realized a big reason of why I was so attracted to him. Just a few sentences from him had melted away an anger that could have ruined my whole night. I forgot about Sap, my rude classmates, and Purity. All I could focus on was Allium and how he made me feel- like in that moment when he slid his hand into mine and smiled.

     "C'mon, the DJ is finally playing some slow songs. Let's forget about mean ol' prissy Purity and just dance." he suggested.

And just like that, we were back on the dance floor having the time of our lives as if nothing had happened.

The slow songs, which had been rare so far that night, played on and on. It was a welcome change from the pounding beats and deep bass. As they went on, I was swept away more and more. To do nothing other than sway and look forward was embarrassing at first. It wasn't that the two of us hadn't had any romantic type moments during our relatively short time as a couple yet, but they had been when we were alone. The gym floor was still very much crowded. I couldn't help but feel as if eyes were watching us from every direction. Allium even had to jokingly tap his face to redirect my attention back to where it should be. Halfway through the song that was playing then was when I began to relax. I forced myself to stop concerning myself with other people, and when I did that they all melted away. There was Allium, me, the music, and the warm bubble we wrapped ourselves in. I didn't even think anything of it when Allium leaned in to place a soft, lingering kiss on my lips.

In fact, we were so out of it that we were one of the last couples to stop dancing after the music abruptly vanished.

It didn't long for us to understand that something had gone wrong with the DJ's equipment what with him squatting down to open some panel and begin fiddling around with the mechanics. Having faith that he would be able to fix the problem, Allium and I waited even as the minutes passed, the lights came on, and the others around us began to trickle out of the gym. We would have waited longer if a problem from before hadn't popped up again. It started out as a light discomfort before a sour scent on the air had me cringing. The return of my shaking, cold sweat, and dizziness signaled that I needed to let Allium know it was time to call it quits, but the intense wave of nausea that lashed through my stomach had me nearly spilling something else out instead.

     "Meadow?" Allium said to me in concern, moving forward to support me instead of backing away.

As humiliating as it is to admit, I had thrown up on him twice in the years we had known each other. Allium had a habit of ignoring the nurses when they told him he wasn't allowed on my hospital bed with me. He had paid for it those two times when he hadn't been able to move away fast enough, although his willingness to continue with the behavior proved he didn't mind all that badly. I was immensely relieved when I was able to quell the urge to lurch that subsided to a manageable level as fast as it had come on. I knew it was only a matter of time before the struggle returned though.

     "Let's call it a night and let Meadow get some fresh air," Frost proposed as he and the others gravitated towards me and Allium due to my condition, "The dance was almost over anyway, and staying here in this hot, sweaty gym isn't going to be doing her any favors."

Allium had me lean on him for support as we made our way outside to the front entrance. The cool, constant night breeze affected me like the best kind of medicine. Granted, I still felt dizzy and weak but the sweat and nausea vanished almost instantly. It was decided after I was sat down on a bench that we would give it a while before we made our departure back to my house. The choice came about half because of me and half because the parking lot and roads were horrible once again with congestion due to everyone leaving the dance. We ended up loitering about even after the roads had cleared though, for everyone was having too much fun talking. I mostly chatted with Frost. He had been very adamant about having no desire to follow his mother's footsteps and become a doctor, but her influence had him being the most medically inclined member in our group. He was the one who sat next to me to monitor my condition.

     "Feeling any better?" he asked for approximately the tenth time already.
     "Pretty much. I feel a little fragile, but that's normal for me."
     "You think you're getting sick?"
     "I don't know? I don't think so. I've never caught anything that's made me smell a sour scent in the air before."
     "Sour scent?"
     "Yeah. It was barely there at first, but it got stronger as I felt worse."
     "Hmm..."

Frost was in thought for a while before he spoke again.

     "You think maybe it was the smoke from the smoke machines that was affecting you?" he proposed.
     "Oh my gosh, that might actually be it. Once everyone stopped moving, more of the smoke that was blocked before reached Allium and I. That's when the symptoms started growing. Now I'm out here where there's no smoke, and I'm almost back to normal."
     "Sounds like we have our culprit then. With the way paints and those kind of odors affect you, it's no wonder the light chemicals in the fog would get such a reaction out of you."
     "Ugh, this stupid body can't handle anything..."
     "Hang in there." Frost smiled as he gave me a pat on the back.

A minute later or so, it was finally time to head out. The others began shifting to walk away, so naturally I did the same. However, I made the terribly stupid mistake of forgetting that I couldn't just jump right up like I pretty much did. I wasn't even standing fully on my feet yet when my legs gave way. I would have taken a nasty tumble to the ground had Frost not been right there probably expecting such a thing to happen. He had to have been expecting it, otherwise how fast he was able to grab me to keep me somewhat up was amazing and somehow scary. A chorus of "Meadow!"s resounded from my friends, and Sunset dashed forward to help Frost help me up.

     "I'm fine. I'm fine," I reassured them, "I just wasn't thinking and stood up too fast."

Even when I regained my footing soon after, Frost refused to let go until I was safely sitting in the car. I was at least allowed to walk into the house on my own. We kept the incident quiet from Eden as there was no real need to send him into his overly protective mother hen mode. I did go ahead and cave to my friends' request that I change into something more comfortable that I could move easier in. So, I sat on the floor in my pajamas and played with Button while everyone else sat around in their formal wear as we started a movie. Hanging out at my house after the dance had been the plan from the beginning. It was mostly a way to keep Eden quiet. I would have had to play Twenty Questions with him about where we had been and what we, specifically Allium and I, had been doing if we had gone somewhere else. Making it very clear that there was no naughtiness going on between me and my boyfriend by having everyone gathered in our living room was the lone way to save me from that torment.

The conclusion to that night would not come with some friendly friction between Allium and my brother though. Frost left with Amaranth and Cocoa when the movie was done. Allium, Sunset, and Sunflower were all walking home since their houses were so close. Sunset and Sunflower left right away since they were exhausted, but Allium lingered just long enough. Eden was hanging about in the kitchen getting himself a snack. I knew he had perched himself there to make sure Allium didn't try to sneak upstairs with me or anything. Ignoring Eden, I said my goodnight to Allium and even placed a small kiss on his cheek. Of course, he had to repay the favor ten times over. Allium wrapped his arm around me and kissed me on the cheek so long that I was near hysterical in giggles by the time he pulled back.

     "Good night, m'dear. All this night I shall fondly recall you, and me, and that long time we spent together in the janitor's closet." he enunciated, drenching on the drama.
     "You're lucky your mother made me promise not to kill you when she alerted me that you were going to be a handful like this." Eden warned teasingly and seriously, although I was confident he was holding back a smile.
     "Handful? Me?"
     "Don't even bother. Now, go ahead and get your sarcastic little butt outta my house."
     "Sarcastic? Me?"
     "Goodnight, Allium Damson Charm." Eden said more firmly.

Allium shrugged his shoulder and got the last 'word' by giving me another kiss that was more him pressing his mouth into my face as hard as he could. I tried to leave him with one last goodbye, but I was laughing too hard. Eden began walking our way, and that caused Allium to bolt out the door.

     "I thought you were going to talk to him?" Eden asked amusedly with a raised brow, still hiding a smile.
     "I did...sorta. Not really."
     "Eh, I doubt it'd make much of a difference even if you did do it properly."
     "Probably."
     "Did it really have to be him?" Eden laughed.
     "Yup! So, you're just going to have to like it."

Eden let out a sarcastic groan. I rolled my eyes, gave him a kiss on the cheek this time, said goodnight to him too, and was off to my room to lure myself out of my giddy mood and into a peaceful sleep.