"Piper, at least pretend to be enjoying this." My mother smiles at me from behind a camera.
"Honesty's the best policy, mommy." Sammy tells her.
"Yeah, mom." I chuckle placing one hand on my hip.
"It's your senior prom, not your funeral." She says. "So smile."
I oblige her for a moment while she takes the picture. That's right guys; I made it to my senior prom… which is kind of weird, honestly. It's almost surreal, standing in a prom dress waiting for my date to arrive.
Who'd have thought I'd end up here? Not me, not anyone actually. It's been a year and a half since my life saving heart transplant. And I'm well, for the first time in a while I'm happy and healthy.
"You can stop looking like I'm torturing you now." My mom starts going through the photos.
"For now." I sigh sitting on the couch.
"Well of course it's only for now." She says. "Your date isn't even here yet."
"Do we have to take this many pictures?"
"Honey this is your one and only prom, don't you want to remember it?"
"A party's not good unless you don't remember it." I tease her.
My mom rolls her eyes at me before walking away. Tonight's going to be a good night, I can already tell, everything is just going to fall into place.
The doorbell rings, my dad answers before I even get there.
"Hey beautiful." Jason smiles a toothy grin stepping in the doorway.
"Hey, yourself." I walk up to him.
"Pictures." My mom smiles at me.
"Mother." I sigh taking Jason's hand.
"Hey, I promised his mother some good photos." She tells me. "Get outside, come on now, if you hurry I won't make you late for your dinner."
Jason squeezes my hand, "As usual your family is the best."
"As usual you should stop while you're ahead." I bump my shoulder into his.
"Love you."
"Sure." We all walk out to take more pictures than I ever wanted taken of me, with my dad and my mom in a few of them. Of course my precious little niece and my step siblings before the two of us are off to dinner. Alone.
You know there was this weird transition period for Jason and I. We used to have our illness's in common, when I was in recovery he'd ask me every day if I was alright, if I was taking my medication, what my blood count was. But then when I got better, we were almost at a loss for words. What were we supposed to talk about if we weren't sick?
Lucky us, we got passed it rather quickly. Now that I go to school with him of course, things are a lot easier. When I was still homebound he'd sometimes just sit and watch me breathe, watch me sleep, as if he couldn't get enough of it.
He kept his promise to come visit me every day. That was nice of him, even when I had some hard days, or if I pushed myself too hard and I couldn't get out of bed, he was still there. He told me that if I woke him up from a coma, the least he could do was help me fall asleep at night.
Jason really is a sweetheart; I don't know why I'm telling you this. You already know.
We sit down at our table for dinner.
"You know what I noticed?"
"What?" I ask.
"Sammy's so big now."
"I know, she's going to be taller than me someday."
"Can you imagine the day Seth is taller than you?" Jason chuckles.
"That's not going to happen."
"Have you met his father?" He asks.
"Oh shut up, Seth's my baby."
"I thought America was your baby."
"Her too." I chuckle, "But she'll be my height… hopefully."
"How did you end up so short?"
"Genetics clearly hated me Jason. Gave me a shitty heart and stunted growth."
"Your growth was not stunted." He teasingly gives me a once over.
"You are despicable." I laugh involuntarily. He blows me a kiss. "I don't accept."
"Yes you do, you love it when I talk about your body and you know it."
"Shut it sparky."
His eyes gleam with a sudden nostalgia, "You haven't called me that in years."
"Well a year and a half but who's counting?"
There's a short comfortable silence that settles between us. He speaks up first. "Do you remember when you and Annabeth deep throated a breadstick?"
I nod. "Do you remember that time that we baked gingerbread cookies and Nico started singing?"
He chuckles, "Of course. And that time Leo showed us how to burn ants with my glasses."
"Or when Reyna tried to kick his ass for walking in on her?"
"Remember when Calypso suggested a three way between you, her, and Annabeth?"
I laugh, "Those days were good days." I take his hands and smile up at him. "But these days are better."
"What do you mean?"
"We're all happy now."
"Well, not all of us." He reminds me forcing a weight to settle in my chest.
"Do you think… she'll be okay tonight?" I ask him.
"I hope so." He clears his throat. "It's only been two months though."
"I know, but its prom."
"You hate the idea of prom."
"And your point is?" I chuckle before placing my hand under his chin. "Smile darling it only happens once."
He still avoids my eyes. "I know, but he was my best friend."
"And what would he say now?"
"You're eating at a sea food place? Really, Jason? She's a freaking vegetarian you inconsiderate asshole."
The two of us dissolve into laughter, "It's better than last prom."
"You loved last prom."
"I was coughing up the only lung I have so you brought me sonic." True story.
"But it was fun."
I nod, "It was fun."
He leans over and kisses me gently. "Maybe we should have invited Frank and Annabeth. Or Dakota and his girlfriend to come with us."
"Why do you regret being alone with me?" I tease him.
"No, I just, I feel like I'm bringing things up that I shouldn't bring up." He says rubbing the back of his neck. "I feel like I'm messing up."
"You're not, I promise." I squeeze his hands. "It's okay to remember things Jason. And sometimes the fondest memories really hurt us. But we have this great gift. We are gifted with the ability to move on."
He smiles at me. "You were a real Debbie Downer when you were dying. I'm glad that's changed."
"I'm just taking life as it comes. And right now life is telling me, that I have a hunk of a boyfriend taking me to prom. So enjoy it bitch."
"Is that a direct quote?" He asks chuckling.
"Might as well be. Life is the bane of my existence. But I love it. Kind of like drugs. I love them but I hate them."
"Like me?"
"No, I mostly love you. Then there are times when you're an idiot and I think, really, I'm dating this dumbass. But you're worth it."
He kisses me. "I'm lucky you love me."
"I think I'm the lucky one in this case."
We eat our dinner before heading to prom, and it is packed, even though the dance hasn't started yet.
"Guess who!?" Dakota shouts jumping on Jason's shoulders. Only Jason catches him and is suddenly giving him a piggyback ride.
"Boys." Annabeth and Julia, Dakota's girlfriend, walk up behind me.
"Tell me about it." Frank sighs resting his elbow on my shoulder. The four of us walk to a table with the other guys on the football team and wait for the presentation of the prom count. To which I have quite a few choice words for each queen, king, lady, lord, princess, prince, sweetheart and beau.
As soon as the first dance with the court is finished I drag Annabeth onto the dance floor. We spend a good portion of the night dancing, all of us getting our socially awkward groove on. I'm not going to lie, I'm getting really tired, and I should probably sit down. They have a smoke machine running and not only is it making this ballroom incredibly hot, but it's also clogging up my lung, making it difficult for me to breathe.
They start playing a slow song and so I wrap my arms around his neck and start swaying us together. I rest my head on his chest for a moment. My tiredness and erratic breathing getting the better of me. He runs his hands up and down my back, not even noticing that I can't really breathe.
Once the music picks up again he tries to pull away from me, but I don't let him.
"Still wanting me huh?" He teases.
"You bet." I say, breathing so heavily it sounds like a sigh.
"Are you okay?" He asks.
"Uhuh."
"Piper."
"I'm okay." I assure him, trying not to gasp for air. I take in a deep breath, getting in mostly a lung full of smoke, which makes me start coughing, and then makes him pick me up. "What are you doing?"
He says nothing as he carries me out to the lobby where the ticket ladies are chatting and the administration is kicking some drunk kids out of prom.
He sits me down on one of the couches and kneels in front of me. "Breathe."
"I know." I sigh leaning forward a bit.
"Then do it." He says running his hand down my arm.
I smack his arm lightly still catching my breath. "Don't suck."
"I can't win." He chuckles to himself.
"Jason." I hear his coach walk up behind him.
"Really?" I ask myself.
"Is everything alright?"
"Yup." I manage before coughing heavily.
"Not sure yet." He tells his coach.
"You need me to get the nurse?"
"No." I try to say.
"Give her a minute; the smoke is overwhelming in there."
"Oh, I get it. I can't even breathe in that stuff and I have two good lungs."
Jason helps me figure out my breathing before our friends join us outside.
"Is everything alright?" Annabeth asks sitting next to me. On instinct I lean on her, and I assume that her instinct has her feel my forehead for fever.
"Yeah, she just needed a break."
"And as usual didn't tell anyone." Dakota teases me.
"Fuck you." I smirk up at him.
"See, she's fine."
"You'd think having been as sick as you were, you'd have learned your limits by now. But no, always the rule breaker." Frank rolls his eyes at me.
"I hate you, every last one of you."
"No you don't. You love us!" Frank sits down next to me and hugs me tightly.
Annabeth's chest starts filling sporadically and I look up to see her smiling softly. "You know, last year at prom… Percy and I. Well by this time we'd left to go visit you Pipes." She's about to cry again, she's been crying on and off ever since Percy died.
"Annabeth-"
"He told me he was tired, and I offered to take him home. But he said he wanted to be with his friends." I start wiping her tears away. "I hope they're having a prom too. Hazel, Leo, Calypso, Percy, Bianca, and Reyna."
"Maybe they are." Jason says.
"They deserve it... more than any of us." Frank assures her.
"Yeah." She sobs a bit. "I hope they're happy now... where ever they are." Annabeth squeezes my hand and lets a silence settle over us.
"Anyone up for sonic?" Frank asks.
"Hell fucking yeah!" Dakota claps his hands."Let's go in the party wagon."
"So your mom let you borrow the minivan?" I ask.
"You bet your sweet ass she did. Come on! Slushies for all!"
The six of us dogpile into Dakota's minivan blasting a radio station that only seems to play the top forty but I don't even give a shit. Frank has got everyone singing along, which only surprises me because he even gets Annabeth excited.
When we arrive at our destination, we order our slushies and gather around a table.
Dakota drums on the table, "Attention all! I would like to propose a toast! On this sacred night of senior prom, I would just like to thank you all my friends, for making this year a hell of a good time. Cheers mates!"
Laughing manically we clink or cups and take a swig of slush.
"Jason, my man, you next!" He claps his shoulder before sitting down.
"Well guys. I guess all I can say is… We freaking did it. For some of us, living was even a challenge. But we kicked life's ass. Go team!"
Another swig and another nomination, our table starts chanting for Frank to give a speech at this horribly disgusting sonic table.
"Friends… Thanks. I mean, you all really mean a lot to me. And I'm really happy we're having slushies instead of some mixed up alcohol crap."
The guys demand one more speech which Annabeth and Julia both decline so I'm left to take the final stand.
I pause for a moment, mostly for dramatic effect. I then hold up my styrofoam cup and say. "In loving memory of the life we used to live." I get a few snorts from my friends. "Because while you rocked sometimes, ultimately you sucked and I'm kind of glad you're in the past." Looking right at Annabeth I say. "With every death a new life begins, with every night a new day will come. And I know that because of the past's passing." I pause again for laughter. "We'll all find a much better place."
"Here, here!" Annabeth smiles at me before we all take another drink.
Silence settles over our table and for a short while all that can be heard is the occasional slurping.
"So…" Annabeth says. "We're really graduating… huh?"
"Yeah, it's scary." Frank says. "But I think I'm ready to move on."
Jason slips his hand into mine. "I am too."
"Look out world." I squeeze his hand. "Here comes the future."
And that's where this story ends. The one where I'm sick and stuff, believe me there is so much more. I wish I could share everything with you, but that's not really practical is it?
I guess I just wanted to let you guys know, I feel good. Really, really good. And I hope that you do too.