Prepare
"Do you wanna go somewhere more private, and…play…with me? I promise you'll have a great time…"
Heaven forbid, it was back. He groaned and shook his head in refusal as once again, hazy blackness met his vision, the blur in everything making it impossible for him to clearly view his surroundings. It almost seemed as if his own subconscious mind was jouncing the pictures and images that soared through his head, taunting him because he had no choice but to endure through the showings. Long, dark-colored curls dangled before the range of his sight, tickling his cheek and the area above his nose where his eyebrows were separated. Warmth caressed his earlobe, curling inside, making him shiver in reflex, while a voice whispered words of suggestions that awestruck him when they were met with his naïve innocence.
Bodily contact pressed extremely tightly against his, in a possessive and suffocating way, he somehow was able to acknowledge a faint presence slithering down his back, and the teenager recoiled slightly. He strove to open his mouth and refuse the bold, unwavering action, but he was in no position to abstract power from this dream that held him captive. Open palms firmly cupped his rear, paying no heed to the denim barrier, while thick, sturdy nails protruding from slim fingers dug into his flesh. The contact was unwanted, as it brought foreign feelings of mutual abhorrence and curious feelings to him, invoking a twinge of inexperienced arousal that immediately irked his defensive system.
He closed his eyes, but it did nothing to block out the fear inwardly devouring his courage; he knew what was to happen next, his dancing partner, presumably Wendy, would lead him to somewhere secluded, or he hoped at the very least with all of his dignity. Their righteous state of minds tainted by the effects of alcohol, they would both throw away all restraints and unleash the primal urge born within every being that just had to be satisfied. There would be no guilt, no looking back, only surging on foreword, and any fracture of regret could not surface until the break of dawn came to open their eyes. Plenty of things in his life the ninja direly wished he had never done, but this was undoubtedly one of the top on his list, giving his virtue to someone he barely even knew.
Here it comes, the moment in which I inanely hand over my innocence to this girl on a silver platter… he grimaced and tried to halt the sequence, but his effort was futile. Must I watch the event unfold…? I don't wish to see myself acting quite the fool…
Then all of a sudden, a strange feeling wracked his stomach, arising the instinct for him to vomit, and unbidden were his lips moving, forming into what he said at the moment not by his own will, "'S-Scuse me… but I think…I think I hafta go outside and barf…"
His first reaction was of bewilderment. It never occurred to him that he could have been sick that night, though he fully acknowledged the fact that it was one of the consequences of drinking alcohol. A low chuckle bubbled in his throat at the thought of himself throwing up at the other girl, and even moreso he was surprised that she would still sleep with him given the situation. Perhaps she had been too drunk to be aware of his current state, and if he had indeed barfed on her, he felt no shame or guilt at the possibility of his action. After all, she'd taken his virginity in return; more priceless than what wastes he would dump upon her, that could have been merely washed off with a thorough, cleansing shower.
A rude noise emitted from his mouth, and he dimly recognized it as a burp, which made inklings of laughter return to his senses, but he immediately silenced himself when he heard her speak, "Riiight… Whatever. You go do that. I'll catch you later when you're better…"
And to his amazement, the body length left him. Sly snickering emitted from between his loosely pursed lips, and he wanted to express the emotion more, laugh his relief in escaping the fate of surrendering to primitive lust. Joy surged through his veins, and he wanted to shout in exultation when he heard himself mumble, "Gull…gullible… Now, ish time to go…"
His voice sounded slurred, and dizziness wracked his consciousness, but he was alone, by himself, with no temptress trying to seduce away his innocence, no one to bother him and he couldn't have felt more elated. The noise and ruckus of the partygoers around him disappeared, and was replaced by a gust of wind that encased his figure in icy coolness. Yet the chilly weather didn't bother him; he was drowning too deeply in a pool of bliss that he had escaped the social event with his morals still intact. A quiet engine noise sounded in his ears, and the mole zoanthrope blinked his eyes, only able to see the blurred forms of red and green circles that periodically flashed before his view.
I must be driving, he theorized, then instantly scathed, Wait, am I truly driving?? Drinking and driving?! Good Lord, I can't believe I would something this stupid!
Disgust and repulsion boiled in his stomach at his moronic decision to drive when he was obviously liable of getting into an accident, even though he knew in that state, many people had done foolish things because of the alcohol intoxicating their system. Their judgement was clouded by the tipsy daze that befuddled their consciousness, and his idiotic performance was a clear-cut example of how one could act under the drunken influence. Fully aware that he didn't engage into a crashing incident with another driver, yet he kept anticipating it to happen, Kenji watched and awaited the next scenario to unfold. Where was he going? Would it be a public place, where he somehow would be provoked to morph, and frighten human bystanders by his zoanthrope counterpart?
The car was slowing down just then, no longer came the feeling of wind ruffling through his hair, although he hadn't been too aware of the cold breeze soaking his pores during the drive since he was preoccupied by anxiety. Anticipation pricked his curiosity as he felt his convertible completely stop, which must have meant he'd reached his destination, and would soon step out. But the cobalt-haired teenager still didn't know exactly where he was, and hoped it wouldn't take long for him to reveal that little tidbit of information as he gripped the handle of the door and pushed it open. Tiny rocks and pebbles crunched underneath the weight of his feet as he proceeded along the path of the concrete sidewalk, heading up toward a tall blur that he assumed to be a house.
Am I going home…? He grimaced with shame at the thought. If so, then I will most likely be watching Yugo scold me when he detects the alcohol odor from my clothes and hair.
He ascended the short flight of porch steps with ease, although staggered a couple of times due to his hazy state of mind, and then approached the wide wooden frame of the residence's front entrance. After blinking and staring at the darkened windows adjacent to the door, he raised his arm, and felt his hand curl into a fist as he prepared to knock. Now was the time that the sixteen-year-old could found out where he had driven to, and he pressed his lips tightly together, anxiously awaiting the opportunity of seeing a figure from the house…
*****
"Kenji!! Yo, wake up, brother!" came a voice that breezed by his room and a loud knock on his door that shocked him into awareness. "Alice is cooking bacon for breakfast today, and if you don't hurry up and get downstairs, they're gonna be all gone before you even get the chance to blink!"
Reflexively snorting back a sleepy yawn that threatened to escape his mouth, the dark-haired ninja adjusted his facial features into a scowl of annoyance at his sibling's awakening call. Just a mere few more seconds and he would have discovered the destination he'd gone to, and could possibly hypothesize on what following might have happened. He had been so close and now that he was in the world of consciousness, his bodily habit of not being able to go back to sleep meant one more night had to pass before he could realize where he'd driven to! His brother interrupted his dream just to inform him of the breakfast's contents; he turned over and buried his face into his pillow, releasing a shrill snarl of frustration.
"Kenji!! Did you hear me or what??" Yugo persisted from the other side of the wooden structure blocking the room's entrance.
The teenage male lifted his head and shouted with a twinge of irritation in his tone, "Yes, of course I did; I am certain that even deaf people would be able to hear such a clamorous wake-up call as yours!!"
"You're saying that I was loud, right? Hahaha! I'm too good!" He heard his brother laugh, then footsteps began to walk away while his voice grew faint, "See you downstairs!"
Kenji rolled his eyes in exasperation as he cast aside the blanket, and reluctantly climbed out of bed, slowly trudging toward the bathroom just a few feet away. It would take more than a good breakfast to distract him from pondering over the events of his dream, although when he realized the prom event would take place that night, he swayed a bit from the scenarios unraveling during his slumber. The prom… nervousness pricked at him, invoking insecurity, once again making him wonder what he was supposed to do at such an important event. But as he stepped into the lavatory, a sense of pride and redemption soaked his consciousness like warm honey - he was still innocent, did not cast away his virtue as he'd thought so a couple days before.
After flicking on the light switch, the mole zoanthrope tilted his chin up, and glanced at himself in the mirror; without even realizing it, his lips had curled into a smile.
*****
"I'm kinda nervous…"
"You're nervous! Girl, I've been nervous since the moment Joseph asked me to the prom! Even though you and I bought our dresses like, a month ago and I've been preparing to go, I've still got these big moths flying around in my stomach!"
"That's… a lovely picture, Erika…" Uriko crinkled her nose slightly at the thought, and then grinned as she spoke into the receiver, "Relax, the prom isn't as scary as you might think! It's really a lot of fun, if you go with someone you really like, such as you and Joseph, hehe."
"Easy for you to say, Ms. I've-Gone-To-The-Prom-Since-Freshman-Year; this prom is the first for the rest of us lowly acolytes," her friend's tone was teasing, "Sorry, I'm just afraid that I'm gonna hyperventilate or something…"
"Come on, chill out! Don't freak now, wait until after the prom night to do that."
"Hey, Uriko, are you really going with Cronos Dakinasha?" Erika asked, a bit of disbelief in her tone.
The feline zoanthrope sighed. "How many times have you asked me that?"
"A million?"
"And how many times have I said, 'yes'?"
"A million?"
Her brows knit together in a slight frown. "And you still don't believe me or something?"
"No, no, it's not that, really!" her fellow school peer assured quickly, "It's just… well, I kinda thought you would be going with Kenji this year, that's all."
While gritting her teeth a bit, she felt the beginning sensations of cat ears tipping out from atop her head. "We're just friends. Buddies. Pals." Not at this moment though…
"All right, all right! Don't get defensive on me; hey, you asked, and I was just telling you the answer!" her friend seemed wounded. "Anyway… it's like eight twenty-five right now, didn't you say that Cronos was going to pick you up at around eight thirty?"
"Yeah," Uriko confirmed, "We're going to dinner, and then downtown to the hotel where the prom's being held at, hopefully a little after nine so we won't be too late. Maybe I should get off the phone now since he's coming soon."
"Okay," the other girl agreed, "Have fun at dinner! See you later at the prom, girl!"
"Uh huh, bye," she said before hanging up.
Arising from the chair next to the phone that she was sitting in, the auburn-haired teenager stretched her arms out before her face and started strolling toward the front door. She stopped momentarily when she passed by the length-long mirror in the hallway, peering at her reflection and making sure there wasn't anything atrocious defiling her profile. What looked back at her was a deep crimson dress that fittingly clothed a slender, hourglass form, with only a thin strap attached to two spots in the front near her shoulder blades, curving around the back of her neck to hold up the attire. The satin material ran along down just inches up from her ankles, dangling above a pair of black low-heeled sandals with thin belt buckles keeping the formal footwear intact.
Turning around, she saw her own naked flash, since the apparel she donned was back-less, and revealed a portion of her skin bared, ending when it circled to her waist. Her long brown hair was tied up into a tight French braid, but she still left quite a bit of her bangs to bob over her forehead, the bottom tips grazing against her chin when her head made a forward motion. Pivoting to face the mirror once again, the Kenpo student absentmindedly picked at the nylon material of the pair of white gloves covering her hands. A light layer of foundation powdered her cheeks, and her eyelashes gleamed while the dark red shade of her lips suggested her further use of cosmetics.
I'm ready. She decided, and puffed her hair up a bit just as the doorbell rang, which caused her to stiffen. H-he's here!
Shaking herself out of the stationary position, the feline cast a quick glance in the direction of her house's entrance, and then heaved a shaky sigh as she turned and proceeded towards it. Reaching out her arm, she snatched up her black kitten mini-purse that was lying atop a small table nearby before grabbing the knob with her other hand and pulling the door open. Uriko was immediately greeted with a large, decorative and colorful corsage that practically thrust into her face, inches away from her nose, startling her into stepping back a-ways. Behind the showy floral revealed the grinning face of her school peer and prom date, the pleased sparkle in his eye clearly evident as he gave her the once-over.
"You look exquisite, madam. Beautifully exquisite," Cronos drawled smoothly, bowing his head a bit, the light from her porch making a few strands of his jade-colored hair gleam. A raven black tuxedo served as his attire, blending into and making his skin seem darker, and matching the same ebony-colored shoes he donned as footwear. Stiff cuffs encircled his wrists, but he showed no signs of discomfort from them, and the collar of a white undershirt peeked out from his neckline. He gently took a hold of her hand with his free one, and bent down to press a kiss upon her knuckles before resuming his straight-up stance, still holding her in his grasp.
With an obviously pleased look displayed upon his expression, he shifted to fasten the corsage around her wrist, admiring his work when he finished. "Is this not one of the loveliest things you have ever laid your eyes upon?"
"Yeah, it's… really pretty," she fumbled her answer, at a loss for words as she wondered how heavy the object was since it certainly laid weight on her. "…Thank you."
"Only the best for the best," her companion smiled dazzlingly and crooked his elbow. "Come, my dear, for our chariot awaits us."
The sixteen-year-old nodded and accepted, slipping her arm through his, hoping that if he had rented a limousine to go to the prom, it wouldn't stand out as much as the huge corsage he'd given to her. But any hopes of that diminished when she caught sight of the stretched-out vehicle aligning the driveway of her home; it had to have been more than the size of two convertibles put together. However, it wasn't the length that made her eyes widen; she gasped in shock when she saw that the limo was painted a shade of faintly shimmering gold. There were multiple black windows adjacent to one another and small bulbs curved around the bottom edges of the car, in which she presumed they would light up when the vehicle was in motion. She stood there for a couple minutes, stunned by the view before her, while her prom date allowed a partial smirk to grace his lips at her silence.
"Impressive, no?" he spoke, shattering her comatose state.
"What, huh?" Uriko quickly shook her head and blinked in awe. "That limousine… it's… it's gold…"
"I am fully aware of its color, yes." A grin tugged at the corners of his mouth. "I gather by your silence that you are amazed by the vehicle."
So much for not wanting to stand out… "Well, that sure is one way to put it," she voiced, twitching her nose. "…Anyway, let's get going." I just want to run back into the house… Everyone will be staring at us when we arrive at the prom… Eek, I don't want to be at the center of attention with such showy things…
"Yes, we shall proceed," Cronos agreed with a curt nod, and crossed the pathway over to the driver's window, where he rapped upon the slick black surface. In response, a tall man dressed in ebony-colored formal attire stepped out, walking to the passenger section in the middle of the limousine, and held open the door for his employer and his lady, waiting for them to comfortably sit down inside before shutting it close. A few minutes later, the Kenpo student felt the engine start after the driver got back into his own seat and the vehicle slid out of the driveway to smoothly roll into the street.
"Where shall we go to dine, my sweet?" her date inquired, sitting directly across from her, his jade-yellow eyes meeting hers intently.
"…Um, I'm not really that hungry, actually." She admitted, offering him a weak smile as compensation. "Do you mind if we just go straight to the hotel downtown?" Maybe if we go early enough, not many people will see the gold limo and I could use a politeness excuse with my arm to hide that huge corsage behind my back…
He bowed slightly. "As you wish, milady." Pressing a button on the ceiling, he transferred the instructions to the driver through the speaker, and then leaned back against the cushions. Gazing at the girl before him, he grinned widely; "This shall prove to be a night to remember."
You got that right… She thought, chuckling lightly in reply as she glanced out the window at the twinkling stars, and made a wish upon one of them that the pair would be the first to arrive at the hotel to avoid attention.