"Relax, Double D! You're making me nervous," Eddy growled, brushing lint off the back of my tuxedo's jacket. The three of us, Ed, Eddy and I, were standing in Eddy's bedroom, crowded in front of his thin body length mirror, appraising each other and ourselves. Each of us had on a crisp tuxedo, each with their own variations. Ed's traditional tux had a red rose boutonniere pinned to it. Eddy's tux was all black and white, and his sport's jacket had theatric coat tails on it, reminding me of 1900's cocktail parties. My own tux was black and white as well, but unlike my two friend's ties, which were black, mine was a small, purple, satin bow tie. Marie had told me many times what the color of her dress was, and I was going to surprise her with a matching corsage and boutonniere. After seeing that I was going to buy Marie a "pretty flower thing", Ed had followed suit, buying a blazing crimson set for his own date. "The limo's here, let's go!" Eddy shouted, peeking out from his bedroom window.
"Oh dear, oh dear, oh dear," I gasped, tugging and pulling my own ensemble in countless places, hoping it looked…well, dashing. I tugged on my black beanie, ever present, in irritation. I had tried using one of Eddy's flashy fedoras to hide the scars, but you could seeit! I tugged on my hat nervously; had any fool ever worn an old, raggedy ski hat with a tuxedo before? "You look fine, Romeo! Let's go!" Eddy shrieked, yanking me out the back door of his bedroom. The sun was setting, and the cul de sac was aglow in the early spring orange of a late afternoon. As us three pals stumbled across the backyard and to the street, I tried to smooth the wrinkled fabric from Eddy's rough fingers.
We gave the girl's address to the driver, and all shivered with excitement. Eddy had asked Lee to the dance when he discovered that Ed and I were taking the other two sisters out, saying "it just makes sense." Lee and Eddy both knew it was a platonic date, but according to Marie, Lee hadn't stopped talking about going to prom since Eddy asked her.
The limo was a treat between us three gentleman. I doubted any of the Kankers had been treated so well before, and I had suggested spoiling them this eve. I was grinning ear to ear uncontrollably; I couldn't wait to see the look on Marie's face when she saw the limousine pull up to her home.
When we pulled up to the Kanker trailer in the Park-n-Flush, the driver got out of his seat at our request and looked at the grimy mobile home condescendingly. "This the right place?" he grunted with distaste.
"It most certainly is!" I sang, far too excited to contain myself. I ran ahead of the others, and Ed and I raced each other up the steps, laughing. He reached the door first, and pounded loudly. My heart was racing; this was exhilarating! Going on a date, dressing up…surprising someone I cared for.
May opened the door and squealed. "MARIE! LEE! GET OUT HERE!" Her golden tresses were wrapped into an intricate bun on top of her head, and her tight, red dress hugged her body. Some of the beading on it was missing, but when Ed told her how beautiful she was as he held out her corsage, the way her face lit up melted my heart. As she threw her arms around her boyfriend's neck, her joy causing her to wiggle about, you didn't care that her dress was second hand.
Lee strutted past the three of us to Eddy, who waited patiently for his date at the bottom of the stairs. Her gown was dark blue and her red hair was shocking in contrast. The curls had been straightened out, and it fell smoothly down her back, a classy braid circling her head before flowing silkily down with the rest of her tresses. "Lookin' flawless, toots," Eddy smirked, nodding at Lee charmingly. Lee opened her mouth, but her response was lost to me, as Marie peeked out the front door to me.
Dainty pearls adorned her blue hair, gleaming in the sweet orange sunlight. Her dark purple dress wasn't exactly what you'd expect from such a tough, no nonsense girl. The fabric was strapless on top, the corset bejeweled with pearls that matched her hair ornaments. The skirt of the dress was poofy and full, like the princess wedding dress you saw in all the children's movies. She looked sweet, delicate, and extremely feminine.
I hardly recognized her with all the girly additives, but when her eyes met mine, and she smiled, I still saw my Marie beneath all the flashy gems. I wondered when I started thinking of her as mine.
Marie had told me how long she and her sisters had been preparing for this night. Lee and Marie had been working overtime, using the money to buy each of them a second hand dress. If you looked carefully, you'd see a loose thread here, a light stain there, but with the way the three of them smiled, you could hardly look away from their glowing faces to criticize their dresses. Lee had hired a middle schooler in the trailer park to watch Shay for the night, and May had hidden the liquor so their mother would leave to purchase more so they could get ready without her.
"You look… exquisite, no, I mean," my words were clunky and dry, awkward between us as she stepped towards me, smiling expectantly. "I mean, there isn't a word in the English dictionary that could describe how amazing you look."
"Of course I look good," she snorted, fluffing her blue hair in a nonchalant manner. "What'd you expect?" she laughed confidently. When she peered up at me, I could see into her; my comment meant more than she let on.
"Would you guys hurry up?" Eddy shouted over his shoulder as he led Lee chivalrously to the limo.
"You got us a limo?" May squealed as she tugged on Ed's arm, dragging him to the long, black car.
"The best for my sweet," he grinned, helping her into the car. Marie was wordless as I gently helped her into the car, swelling with pride at getting to treat her and her sisters so specially. The guys and I surprised them with a dinner at the local fancy restaurant, and as we poured from the restaurant back into the limo, finally making our way to the dance, the Kankers couldn't stop fawning over the car, the dinner, and every little thing under the sun.
"You're so good to me," May cooed, snuggling against Ed in the limo.
"Yeah, you treat all your girlfriends like this?" Lee asked in awe, looking at Eddy.
"Nope. Just you, sweet cheeks," Eddy smirked, throwing his arm theatrically around Lee's shoulders.
"Oh! My hero!" Lee laughed, leaning against her date with a roll of the eyes. Marie leaned on my shoulder, and heaved a sigh that made me look at her nervously.
"Marie, are you feeling well?" I whispered to her quietly. She looked up at me dreamily and nodded.
"Yeah, just…happy," she sighed. I smiled as she wiggled a little closer. We joked and laughed and shouted until we finally pulled up the banquet hall the dance was being hosted in. Several heads turned at the approach of our limousine.
"Yo! Driver!" Eddy shouted up front. "Come and open up the door for these fine ladies!" As the driver huffed and came around, I berated my pal for his rough command, but May's eyes were saucers as someone else opened the car door for her.
"How charming," Lee mused as we all piled out. "You lookin' for a permanent gal, Shorty?" Lee asked Eddy with a smirk.
"Not now, but you can fill out an application," Eddy grinned, offering his arm to Lee as he led her into the building. The dance floor was dark and for the majority of the first half hour, songs I'd never heard before played loudly, throbbing through my frail body, making my rib cage rattle inside of me. Everyone else around me screamed along to the lyrics, the layering of countless voices making the actual words muddle into unintelligent sounds.
Marie dragged me along with our group into the very center of the dance floor, and at first, I shuddered with the proximity of others, the constant jostling of my body by another's elbow or hand irritating me at being so close. However, as she smiled encouragingly at me and laughed breathlessly with the high that came with feeling so alive, I began to relax, and even enjoy myself. All my life, even after I was wholly accepted by my peers in the cul-de-sac, I felt… a bit on the outskirts of the group. No one did anything to make me feel like I didn't belong, but I knew that as I curled up with my textbooks on Friday nights, that most others were not. Now, in the center of a dark room, pulsing beats, hot bodies hopping together in unison, I felt part of a whole.
Eddy and Kevin hogged the dance circle when the more familiar songs played, and occasionally Rolf would swagger into the center, his traditional dance moves and unique culture making us scream in excitement. Johnny and plank also danced in the center, soaking in the cheers.
When the first slow song of the night played, the mood in the room changed a bit. Those who came without dates or in groups funneled out into the atrium of the building, to gulp water and snack on the food provided. Ed and May instantly swept each other into a formal waltz, their stiff awkwardness forgotten when you saw the dreaminess of their gaze when they looked in each other's eyes. Lee and Eddy walked far from the DJ's booth and spun slowly, their arms around each other, chatting animatedly about something I couldn't hear.
Marie could probably smell my uncertainty, for she gently led me closer to the DJ's stand, just close enough that the heartfelt guitar strums rang in my bones, but didn't hurt my ears. She led the dance, letting me grow use to the feeling of such movements. She slowly slid closer, and together, we spun slowly, a single unit in a dim ballroom, our breaths in tune to both each other and the music. I think I'm the one who leaned in for the kiss, although honestly, my happiness was so great, I can't really remember. In that first kiss, the strobe lights splayed a playful orange light across our bodies, nothing could've been better.
Throughout the rest of the dance, the evening was grand. We six misfits sang the wrong words, pumped our fists when the beat dropped a second later, and struggled to breathe as we jumped in the center of a sea of bodies, not caring if we were making a mess of things. During the slow dances, Marie and I removed ourselves from the tangle of limbs and focused on each other. I gazed into her eyes, my heart and the bass of the music roaring so loudly that I wouldn't have heard her words if she spoke to me. Thankfully, she didn't say anything to me in those moments. Frankly, words weren't needed. Everything we needed to say was said with our eyes.
"Dear God, please take these things off of me before I die!" Marie shouted as we piled back into the limo after the dance, holding her foot in the air, her stiletto pointed to the ceiling. We all talked, and decided just to return to my house for the evening, and not attend either the after prom parties or the post-prom event the school sponsored, all of us just wanting to relax.
At my place, the girls immediately tore at their shoes and hair, getting comfortable after a fancy night. I ran upstairs to my room and returned with some basketball shorts and some of my baggy T shirts for them to change into in the bathroom. When we all had dressed down and were comfortable, we watched a movie that Ed suggested. The shrill screams and blood and gore were lost on all of us, save for May and Ed.
Lee left halfway through, saying she had things to take care of at home. I assumed she wanted to relieve the babysitter of Shay. Eddy went with her, making sure she made it home okay. I don't remember falling asleep, but I must have, for the next thing I remember was a whisper cuss word. My eyes creaked open, and May was trying to slip on her heel quietly. She smiled apologetically at waking me, and Ed held her hand as she stomped the other shoe on. He waved goodbye, and the door closed behind them. This left me alone, sprawled on the couch, Marie breathing quietly on top of me in slumber, and the dawns pure and gentle light filtering in slightly through the blinds.