Chapter 3

Preparations For the Dance

For the past couple of days, Molly and Libby have been practicing for the school dance. They both got better every day and kept practicing until it was the day before the dance. After several hours of school, Molly had lunch with Libby as she sat down next to her.

"So, how are you feeling about the dance tomorrow, Libby?" Molly asked as she took a bite of her lunch.

"If I'm being honest, I think I'm feeling more confident than ever about tomorrow!" Libby beamed.

Molly smiled, knowing that her friend is now comfortable with the dance. "That's great! So, would you like to have dance practice with me one more time before tomorrow?"

"I would love to, Molly, but I can't. My mom is taking me shopping to help me pick out a dress for the dance." Libby explained. "You might want to get ready for the dance too!"

"Libby, relax! I have everything completely under control!" Molly said with confidence.

Despite how calm she appeared, Molly felt a little nervous about tomorrow. After all of the practice sessions she had with Libby throughout the week, she completely forgot to prepare for the dance. Once she gets back home from school, Molly knew that she would need to make as many preparations as possible for tomorrow night.

After school ended, Libby's mom drove her to the store to find the perfect dress for tomorrow. Libby didn't want to get just any dress. She wanted to make tonight special for Molly. As she walked through the store with her mom, Libby wondered what dress she should get.

"What kind of dress do you think I should wear for tomorrow?" Libby asked her mom.

"I think you would look perfect no matter what dress you wear, but I know how much this means to you, Libby! I think there might be some dresses over there you can try out!" Mrs. Stein Torres suggested.

Libby then spent the next couple of minutes in the fitting room, trying on the different kinds of dresses her mom found. While they all looked nice, Libby didn't think that they looked good enough for the dance. Just when she thought she wasn't going to find the perfect dress for the dance, Libby took notice of one more dress. Curious, Libby decided to put it on. She soon took a look at herself in the mirror and liked how she looked. That was when she decided that this is the dress that she wanted.

After buying the dress Libby wanted for the dance, Libby and her mom made their way back to the car. Libby took one look at her dress with a smile before turning to talk to her mom.

"Do you think I made the right choice with picking out that dress?"

"I'm sure that you did! I know that you and Molly are going to have a fun time at the dance tomorrow!" Suddenly Mrs. Stein-Torres sniffed as she started to get emotional.

"Mom, are you okay?" Libby asked, upon noticing how emotional her mother was getting.

Mrs. Stein-Torres nodded. "I'm fine, Libby! I'm just so proud of you! You are growing up so fast! What happened to the little girl I once knew?"

"She is still here, Mom! She just got a little older!" Libby smiled before she gave her mom a comforting hug.

Once she felt better, Mrs. Stein-Torres hugged her daughter back. She then started the car before she drove back home.

Later that night, Molly was making sure that she was prepared for tomorrow night. Libby was going to stop by her house on the night of the dance, so Molly paced around in her room as she was thinking about what she would say to Libby when she would greet her tomorrow.

"So, what do you think would be a good way to greet Libby tomorrow, Scratch? I was thinking I'd either say, 'Thank you for coming, Libby!' or 'You look lovely tonight, Libby!'"

"I really wouldn't know, Molly! I'm not exactly an expert on romance!" Scratch retorted. "I don't think Libby would care how you greet her."

Molly sighed. "I just want to make tomorrow perfect for her. This is going to be the first time I attend a school dance and I guess I'm just a little scared."

Scratch's eyes widened in surprise at what he heard. "Wait, you're scared? I'm sorry! I thought I was talking to Molly McGee, the most optimistic person I know!" Scratch joked, to which Molly let out a small laugh in response. "Look, I'm sure that Libby is just as nervous about this dance as you are! Just show her a good time at the dance, and I'm sure you'll be fine!"

"You know what? You are right! Thanks, Scratch!"

"Don't mention it, Molly!" Scratch smiled. "Besides, the more time you spend with Libby, the more time I have to myself!"

Molly giggled. "Oh, you don't have to worry about that, Scratch! I will always find time to spend with you!"

Scratch was taken by surprise as Molly hugged him. With a sigh, Scratch gave in and hugged Molly back.

"Alright, Molly! You'd better go to bed soon. You're going to need your sleep for tomorrow!"

"You're right! Goodnight, Scratch!" Molly waved goodbye before Scratch returned to his dollhouse to sleep.

Now that she was no longer stressing over the dance, Molly slept peacefully that night. The next morning, Molly was woken up as the light of the sun crept in her room. She opened her eyes as she realized that tonight was the night of the dance. Wasting no time, Molly got out of bed as she got ready for school.

It was another normal school day and Molly and Libby have been counting down the hours until the school dance. Throughout the school day, the dance was all they could think about. It wasn't long before the school bell rang, announcing the end of school. Molly and Libby soon met up with each other at the front of the school as they waited for their parents to pick them up.

"Hi, Molly!" Libby walked over to Molly to greet her.

"Hi, Libby! Are you ready for the school dance tonight?" Molly asked.

"I am, and I"m actually really excited for it." Libby admitted. "Thank you for helping me prepare for the dance! I think we might actually have fun tonight!"

"Libby, I can promise you that tonight, we will have the best school dance ever!" Molly promised before taking notice of her family's van! "I'd better get going! I'll see you at my house tonight! I love you!"

Before leaving, Molly gave Libby a quick kiss on the cheek, causing her to blush. Libby got over her surprise before waving goodbye to Molly.

It wasn't long before the sun set and nighttime fell. Molly had to get Scratch out of her room so she could get changed. She got dressed in her dark blue dress that she wore at Libby's Bat Mitzvah. She looked at herself in the mirror and smiled at herself.

"Hey, Molly! Are you done yet? I don't think it should take you this long to get dressed!" Scratch complained from the other side of the door.

"Yes, Scratch! You can come in now!" Molly called out to Scratch before he phased through the door.

"It looks like you are ready for the dance, Moll!" Scratch noticed.

"I sure hope so! Libby could be here any minute."

Right as Molly said that, she heard the doorbell ring. Molly felt her heart beating faster every second as she knew exactly who was at the front door. After taking a deep breath, she walked over to the front door and opened it to be greeted by a beautiful sight.

Molly was surprised to see Libby wearing a bright green dress, complete with white frills, along with a pair of light blue shoes. Just the sight of how beautiful Libby looked was enough for Molly to gazed at her in awe. Even though Libby had already seen Molly in her current attire, she still felt that Molly looked beautiful as well.

Upon noticing how silent the two girlfriends were, Scratch decided to have a little fun with Molly as he began to tease her.

"Well, don't just stand there, Molly! Isn't there something you wanted to say to Libby?" Scratched asked with an amused grin.

It was at that moment when Molly finally found her voice. "Um, you look b-beautiful tonight, L-Libby!"

"Th-Thanks, Molly!" Libby blushed. "You look b-beautiful too!"

At that moment, Molly moved to the side to let Libby and her mother in the house.

"Good evening!" Mrs. Stein-Torres greeted the McGees. "Thank you for inviting us over!"

"It was our pleasure, Mrs. Stein-Torres." Sharon smiled. "We are just so happy that our children are going to their very first school dance."

"Oh my gosh! Sharon, you are right! This is the first dance our kids are attending." Pete let out a gasp of excitement.

"Oh no." Darryl sighed as he knew exactly where this was going.

"Sharon, quick! Get the camera!"

Molly's parents soon returned with a camera as they wanted to commemorate this occasion. Darryl stood at the front, wearing his tux and not looking the slightest bit interested while Molly and Libby were standing right next to each other. Before the picture was taken, Molly and Libby shyly looked at one another before they held each others hand, to which their parents found adorable.

Once they took the picture, Pete started to tear up as Sharon comforted him once again.

"Anyway, I think it's time to bring you kids to the school dance!" said Sharon. "Molly, I'm assuming that you would want to sit next to Libby during the ride to the school."

Molly nodded. "Yes, Mom! I think I would like that!"

"Well, my mom said that she would be more than happy to drive us to the school, Molly!" Libby explained.

With a roll of his eyes, Darryl said, "If you two are going to be together, then I might as well let Mom and Dad drive me to the school. I'd rather not listen to you two flirting with each other throughout the ride."

Molly giggled. "Okay! Fair enough, Darryl! Come on, Libby! We wouldn't want to be late for the dance!"

Once they were ready, Molly and Libby approached the car before Molly opened the car door for Libby. Libby gave Molly a grateful smile as she entered the car. After Molly got in as well, Mrs. Stein-Torres started the car before driving off to the school.