Page 16 of Love in Development

We found a hidden corner and danced.Charisse danced like an abstract painting come to life.I had no other way to describe it.It was graceful as expected of her, but seemed impossible.Lin was once again a bit of a surprise.She wasn’t a hidden dancing star, but the girl had some moves.Time flew.Who knew I would actually have fun at a dance with them?I danced like I didn’t care—because I didn’t.It was just me and them, with everyone else’s attention on those in the center of the floor.

The mood shifted especially when the music changed, and the volume lowered.Lights pointed to the stage set against one wall.An announcer’s voice broke through the gathering, amplified by a microphone.

I blotted away some sweat with a napkin and gulped down half a bottle of water in one go.

“Well, it’s that time of the night, folks.Can we get all of our Winter Royalty candidates up here?First, we will announce the king and queen.Then, after their dance, we’ll announce the rest of the court.Ready?”

The crowd screamed “Yes!”Ni was already up on the stage.Everyone else kept their gaze forward, smiling vaguely into the crowd.Ni’s eyes scanned the gym as if looking for someone or trying to make everyone feel special.His gaze found me and widened.I glanced over my shoulder.

“And your king is...Nigel Galbraith!”

He stepped forward to accept his crown and sash.

“And his queen is our darling Stephanie Hall!”

Of course she was.They were a perfect couple if you were going by looks alone.But he was handsome all the way through.She was just fake.

“Ugh.I hate her.”

Had I said those words aloud?No, shockingly, they had come from Lin.But I didn’t have time to delve into it because my chest became compressed as if a dragon were sitting on it.

It was suddenly way too hot.I was suffocating, and I couldn’t take the darn shawl off because of the dress.Ignoring whatever Lin had done to my hair, I nimbly French braided it while weaving through the dancers to get to an exit.Both actions let some air move across my neck and shoulders, easing the tightness.

Escaping into the hall, I had a sudden urge to kill mobs.

ISTOOD UP ON THE BIKE, pulling the hem of the dress out of the danger zone and pedaling as hard as I could so the bracing wind could dry my tears.I breathed in the last of fall as the setting sun rested on the road before me, as if lighting my way.It felt like I was trying to get to sanctuary.

It wasn’t like I really expected Ni to like me and want to be with me.He was just a pretty face that had been kind.Maybe it was because I was like my dad.The minute something shiny came along, I tossed all my principles out the window.

I skidded to a stop, locked my bike up and rushed inside.“Buzz.”I panted indelicately.I’d pushed myself hard on that ride.“I’ve got a power supply.”

“I take a look at it.See if I can fix,” Buzz said.

I handed him my laptop and the box with the precious power supply, as if Buzz were some sort of sorcerer that could castResurrectionon its mangled body.I rather hoped he was.As much as I liked spending time here, sometimes I wished for the privacy of my home, especially after a crying jag.

“Especially since you came all dressed up to ask me.”Buzz gestured at all of me.

I looked down.The dress.I’d almost forgotten I was wearing it.It really was perfect for me.A testament to my friends’ understanding.And then I touched my face—the makeup.I raced to the bathroom to escape Buzz’s judgment.The mirror-mirror-on-the-wall reflected my face, and the tears welled again.Charisse was a genius with makeup.I looked...beautiful.

The light brown of my eyes almost glowed golden in the bare bulb light.All because of Charisse and Lin’s efforts.I suddenly wished I could’ve seen the full effect before turning my hairstyle back into a French braid.The bike ride had finished it off.People would look.I took a deep breath.There wasn’t much I could do since I’d left my clothes back at the school.I chastised myself for remembering the box but forgetting to change.

I considered scrubbing Charisse’s handiwork off in the sink, but if the sweating and crying hadn’t damaged it, I would probably need some big guns to remove it completely.I touched the shawl’s knot on my collarbone.Magically, the shawl had stayed, so my modesty was intact.

To regulate my ups and downs, I went and logged in to number twelve; it was almost never in use—tucked away upstairs—where no one would notice the fancy me.

A momentary pang of sorrow went through me.Stop that, brain!Ni hadn’t hidden the fact that he was kind to everyone.On the other hand, Dad and RogueStriker had both taught me hard lessons about guys.And Ni, who used his charisma on every female within his aura, would be even worse.

Sliding on the headphones took me away from DragonByte and into the world of magic, swords, and a fight between good and evil—something I could understand.I left behind the Molly in a dress and makeup, becoming ScarlettSaber in all his armored glory.

I ignored my inbox and any messages.Searching through my quest list, I found one that I could handle myself but would be challenging enough to work out my emotions—I hoped.Not like the last one that had killed me again and again.

I’d been playing for at least an hour.I was well past the mobs and had just found the sorcerer’s hidden tower when IvoryKnight messaged me.My hackles rose.I wanted to ignore it, but I must’ve been part cat because curiosity had my finger clicking the mouse button.

IvoryKnight: Hey.Want to add me to your group?

Seriously?He had stolen my tourney win, almost stole my kill the other night, and now he wanted to join up?I wasn’t going to let it go.

ScarlettSaber: What was with the ghost necromancer?