A/N: Thank you for the reviews =] I'm really starting to get back into writing this, much fun to be had. Oh, and I lied last time. This chapter isn't the big action one, it's leading up to some big drama in chapter twelve. Granted, this one has some interesting revelation type things going on. Enjoy!

Disclaimer: Covenant/Romeo and Juliet don't belong to me. As you guys already know.

IN MY DREAMS

CHAPTER ELEVEN – IN FAIR VERONA

For the first time since coming to Ipswich, Rachel had actually had fun. Spending the afternoon with Kate and Sarah had been filled with the kinds of things she used to do with her friends back in California. There was giggling, flirting with the Starbucks guy, gossiping about the boys at school, and sharing fun lighthearted anecdotes. It felt so good to have something like this distract her from everything else that was going on in her life.

"Rachel, the dress you bought was stunning!" Kate exclaimed as the three girls clamoured up the stairs. Weighed down by shopping bags, they made their way up to Rachel's dorm – it was closer than Sarah and Kate's.

The younger girl smiled. Kate was right. The dress that Rachel had charged to her stepfather's account was ten times more glamorous than anything she'd ever owned in her life. Much more flattering than the brilliant orange gown her mother had bought her to wear to the wedding.

The girls reached her dorm room and fell onto the bed, exhausted from the day of shopping.

"You have to try it on," Sarah said.

Rachel chuckled. "I already did in the store."

Kate rolled her eyes. "No, you have to try it on with the shoes we bought. And with the earrings."

Before Rachel could protest, Sarah pulled her dress from one of the shopping bags, pushing it into Rachel's arms and shoved her into the bathroom. She sighed, wondering what she'd gotten herself into. Sarah and Kate were incredibly sweet girls, but they were rather pushy. And more than once, Sarah had mentioned Reid that afternoon. Rachel had tried to ignore it as best she could, but something in the back of her mind told her that Sarah had ulterior motives.

As she was fastening up the back of the gown, Rachel heard a knock at the door. She adjusted the dress around her and stepped out of the bathroom, only to find that the door to her dorm was open. And there stood Josh Snider.

His light eyes went to her immediately and his jaw dropped. "Wow."

Rachel couldn't help but smile and blush; this innocent kind of attention was always flattering. But Sarah and Kate didn't look as pleased.

"I thought you didn't want to go to the dance," Josh said. Rachel just shrugged, feeling more and more self conscious.

"You know, we should get going," Kate said. Sarah looked a little reluctant to leave, but eventually the two girls left with their own purchases.

"So who are you going with?" Josh asked once they were alone.

Rachel stood at the doorway of her bathroom awkwardly. Her fingers played with the soft, gauzy skirts of her gown. "I'm not going with anyone." Mistake. That was a mistake. She knew it as soon as she'd said it.

Josh's face lit up. "Go with me."

"Oh, Josh, I—"

"As friends," he amended quickly. "Aaron mentioned something before about you dealing with a bad ex. Actually, he said that if I did anything, he'd break my kneecaps," Josh added with a chuckle. "But it'd be nice to go there together as friends. We could make fun of the bad dancing together, and try to stop Aaron from spiking the punch."

Rachel laughed. She could actually picture that. The Winter Formal might not be so bad after all.

--

"Tonight is going to suck," Reid muttered to himself. He threw his suit jacket over his shirt, opting against a tie as he usually did.

"No it's not," Tyler said with a sigh. He was standing in the bathroom with the door open, fixing his tie. He turned to Reid, who sat down on the edge of his bed. "It'll be like every other social Spenser puts on. You'll dance with girls, spike the punch and then get into a fight with Abbott."

Reid rolled his eyes at his friend.

"Every time, man," Tyler said. He closed the bathroom door behind him, and grabbed his jacket and his keys. "Let's go."

The Winter Formal was being held in Spenser's ballroom. The ballroom was reserved for special events, parents' days and awards nights. Tonight, every inch of it was decorated with white and gold balloons, streamers and confetti. The junior class really outdid themselves this year.

Reid couldn't help himself. As soon as he entered the ballroom, he immediately began searching for Rachel. It had become a bad habit. He'd never admit it to anyone, but he was a little excited to see what she looked like.

He had only ever seen Rachel in extremely modest clothes. She was either in her uniform, or in those damned blouses that she loved to wear to Nicky's. Both Sarah and Kate had raved on and on about how stunning Rachel looked in her dress.

And when Reid saw her, something changed. He couldn't explain it, he didn't even know what it was, but something went off inside him. Similar to desire, but touched with regret and warmth. What had he been doing these past few weeks?

She was beautiful. The dress she wore was green and it showed off her shoulders. Reid had never realized how pale her skin was until then. Or how smooth and shiny and dark her hair was. Or how her eyes, a strange colour that was almost green and almost brown, lit up when she smiled.

Reid blinked and the moment was over. Standing beside her was Josh. Reid's mood darkened immediately. Neither Kate nor Sarah had mentioned that Rachel had a date. Anger and embarrassment flared in him. He'd been right: tonight was going to suck.

--

"You look great, by the way." Josh bent down to whisper in Rachel's ear.

Despite the awkwardness of the situation, she thanked him. She felt great, physically anyway. Her dress, from a local designer that Kate loved, was emerald green. It was strapless, with an almost Grecian feel. Rachel felt incredible in it. And the silver earrings and smoky green eye shadow only helped.

"Oh look, there's Kate and Pogue." She grabbed Josh's hand without thinking. "Come on." Rachel pulled him through the crowd.

"Hey!" Kate greeted her with a hug, and Josh with a smile. "Rachel you look amazing."

Rachel grinned. Tonight might just be enough to help her forget about Jason. "Compared to you, I look like a lampshade," she laughed. "You look fantastic."

"I know, right?" Pogue said, kissing his girlfriend on the cheek. Kate was wearing a stunning dark gold and black gown. Everything about her was sexy, powerful and elegant, all at the same time. Rachel envied her; she knew she could never pull off a look like that.

"Where's Sarah?" Rachel asked, glancing around.

"Dancing with Caleb." Kate pointed towards the crowd. Rachel glanced over at the dance floor and found them immediately. It was hard to miss either. Caleb was a little taller than most of the other guys there, and Sarah was absolutely gorgeous in her dark blue empire line dress. But Rachel noticed something else about them.

They were slow dancing, despite the upbeat tempo of the song that rang out over the ballroom. They were completely oblivious to what was going on around them; they just stared at each other, swaying back and forth slowly.

Rachel watched in awe. They were so in love with each other. Even from the long distance, she could see it in their eyes. This moment must have been perfect for them. It must have felt amazing. Rachel couldn't help but think, again, of Jason. How many times had she felt like that? That nothing could ever hurt her, because he was there. That everything in the world was good and warm and light, because he held her in his arms.

Caleb dipped his head down to kiss Sarah, and Rachel looked away quickly. All the trouble that she'd gone through, all the crappiness that she'd had to deal with…was it worth it? To have someone she could depend on like that, to love like that, could it ever make everything okay?

"Rachel?" Josh nudged her slightly.

She snapped back to their little group. They'd been joined by Tyler, who looked just as dashing as the other guys in his suit. Rachel smiled at him in greeting, and he smiled back.

For a moment, the group was silent. There was a strange awkward tension hanging over them. Rachel couldn't bring herself to speak; she was still trapped in her own thoughts. Pogue and Kate were too caught up with each other. Tyler and Josh barely knew each other. They just glanced around the group.

"I…" Rachel tried to speak. But there was nothing. All she could think about was Sarah and Caleb, and Reid, and Josh. And Jason. What was she doing? "I'm going to go to the ladies' room." She left before the others could respond.

She needed to be alone for a minute. She needed to get away from all the couples, away from the memories. Rachel was feeling anxious again. This whole night was a bad idea. Coming with Josh was even worse. How could she have been so stupid?

Things were feeling a little too close now. All around her, Rachel could see couples dancing and laughing together. She needed to get out. She needed fresh air.

She turned towards one of the open doors and bumped into the one person who seemed to dispel her anxiety with just one look.

A/N: I get a little pedantic, and like to have something to refer to when I'm describing things, so there are some links up on my profile for Kate's, Sarah's, and Rachel's formal dresses. Oh, and please review =]