Chapter 20:
Prom Night:
Well, everyone…this is it...this is what we've all been waiting for and what the story has led up to since it began…it's Prom Night at long last!
(Friday May 26th, 2017; 6:40pm)
Jack took in a very deep calming breath and stepped up to the front door of Rita's house, with a small box in his hands, his camera round his neck, his prom tickets, mobile phone and wallet comfortably secure in the pockets of his safe travel bag he was wearing under his jacket and his foot tapping nervously on the ground. It was finally prom night at last, and he was waiting for Rita to let him into her house so he could pick up Carrie.
Taking in another deep breath, he knocked on the front door three times and waited. After a moment, the front door opened to reveal Rita Desjardin wearing a sparkling dark navy-blue dress that hugged her curves very well. Her red hair had been let down and curled, which really helped to bring out her beauty, and she was wearing high heels which gave her an extra inch or so in height.
"Jack, you're here! Come in! Come in! Carrie and the Triplets are almost finished getting ready upstairs, and I must say that you clean up quite well this evening." she said happily, as Jack stepped into the house and into the front hallway.
"Ah thanks, Rita. You look quite nice this evening too. Hoping to drop some jaws on the dance floor tonight?" asked Jack.
"Ha, ha, maybe." she said in a teasing way, and they both laughed at that.
"Hey, is that you down there, big bro?" came the voice of Catherine from upstairs. The Triplets had spent the previous night over at Rita's place, as the said teacher had been made Carrie's legal guardian. And to celebrate that, the Triplets, Carrie and Rita had a girl's night at Rita's house, complete with fast food, popcorn, soda, ice cream and good movies. Jack would've wanted to join but was pleased to see Carrie have a girl's night with Rita and his sisters. So he had some much-needed alone time at his apartment the previous evening, with his own fast-food dinner to enjoy and his favourite YouTube videos to watch on his laptop.
"Yes, it's me. I literally just got here." Jack said, as he looked up the stairs. Then footsteps were heard as the Sullivan Triplets appeared one by one and descended the stairs. All three of them were wearing an identical make of dress, with a strap over their right shoulders and ending just above their ankles, where Jack could see the three were wearing high heels that matched their dresses, with a slit on the left side of each dress which showed a bit of their left legs.
The only difference between their dresses was in their colours; Catherine was wearing bright green, while Grace was in crisp white, which could almost pass for a wedding dress at first glance, and Louise was wearing orange. Their hair had been done at one of the hair salons over at the mall a little earlier on in the day, and they had only the slightest hint of makeup on their faces with their favourite necklaces placed round their necks.
Jack brought his camera up to his eyes and took a few pictures of his sisters as they descended the stairs, before he lowered his camera again. He smiled, knowing full well that his eyes weren't deceiving him at all; his sisters were wearing the colours of the Irish Tricolour, which would, no doubt, make for some very interesting comments and photos at the prom this evening.
"Well, you three…you all do look amazing this evening, though to be honest I really don't know what mom and dad would say about your choice of colours for your prom dresses if they could see you three right now." Jack said with a slight chuckle, as the Triplets stood side by side, green, white and orange forming the Irish Tricolour. Rita smiled; she'd thought the same thing when she'd seen the Triplets in their prom dresses a short while ago.
"Thanks Jack, but we just wanted people at the prom to know that we three are Irish and we all mean business." Louise said, as she rolled her eyes.
"And you know that we can take care of ourselves if we need to." said Grace.
"And that's a nice tuxedo by the way, big bro." Catherine said, as she and her sisters examined the suit their brother was wearing.
"Thanks very much." Jack said, while admiring the smart James Bond style tuxedo he was wearing, consisting of smart black pants, black leather shoes polished to a very high shine, while his upper body was adorned with a smart white shirt, navy blue waistcoat and black jacket over that, complete with a white pocket handkerchief in the left breast pocket, with a black dickie bow round his neck. Jack could almost pass for Sean Connery in Dr. No (1962), From Russia With Love (1963), Goldfinger (1964), Thunderball (1965) and Diamonds are Forever (1971), George Lazenby in On Her Majesty's Secret Service (1969), Roger Moore in The Spy Who Loved Me (1977), Moonraker (1979), For Your Eyes Only (1981), Octopussy (1983) and A View to a Kill (1985), Timothy Dalton in The Living Daylights (1987) and Licence to Kill (1989), Pierce Brosnan in GoldenEye (1995), Tomorrow Never Dies (1997), The World is Not Enough (1999) and Die Another Day (2002) or Daniel Craig in Casino Royale (2006), Quantum of Solace (2008) and Skyfall (2012).
The only things Jack was missing to make himself exactly like 007 was a Walter PPK sidearm, an Aston Martin DB5 laden with all sorts of gadgets - including machine guns, missile launchers, smoke screen generators and oil slick layer - as well as the usual crazy gadgets from Q-Branch, such as a wristwatch with a powerful magnet, an exploding pen, wrist-mounted dart gun, bug sweepers and a portable safe cracker.
"And Carrie's almost finished getting ready upstairs…so you may wanna take a breath when you see her." said Louise.
Then a sound at the top of the stairs silenced everyone, as they all turned their heads and looked up the stairs. Jack felt his jaw drop a bit, his eyes widen a little and the air leave his lungs when he saw his prom date appear.
Wearing a light pink dress that she made herself with a matching flower on the right shoulder, Carrie looked like she was an angel who'd been sent down from heaven, particularly with the way her strawberry blonde hair was framing her face and how her emerald eyes shone brightly. Jack made sure to burn this image in his mind as he wanted to remember it forever.
Going over to her as she stepped off the last step, Jack gently took her hand in his and stared into her bright emerald eyes.
"Wow, you look absolutely incredible this evening." he said, with a smile.
Blushing a little, Carrie smiled back shyly while looking into Jack's eyes. "Thank you, and you look handsome too." Jack's smart tuxedo really did make him look like a handsome prince in her eyes, which made her his princess.
Jack, taking in a deep breath, took out the small box he had and opened it up to reveal a beautiful corsage with pink and cream-white flowers that went very well with Carrie's dress. Keeping as calm and as composed as he could, Jack very gently placed the corsage round Carrie's right wrist as Rita and the triplets watched on with smiles on their faces. Jack was smiling nervously, as was Carrie, since she was as nervous as her date. The triplets pulled out their iPhones from their dress pockets and took some photos of this so they could send some of them on to their parents back home a little later on.
With the corsage finally attached, it was only then Jack and Carrie noticed the triplets with their phones taking pictures of them, as Rita was too with her phone. But instead of feeling embarrassed by it, they turned with their arms round each other and posed for photographs.
For the next five minutes, they took photographs of each other, including with Jack's camera where he and Carrie posed with the triplets, and then with Rita. Then it was just Carrie with the triplets, then Carrie with Rita and then Jack with Rita. At one point, Jack put his right arm round Carrie's shoulder as she put her left arm round his, and then suddenly he reached down, put his other arm under Carrie's legs and lifted her up bridal style. Carrie was a little surprised by that, but at the same time she was really happy that Jack was lifting her up bridal style and she put her arms round his neck and held on. For Carrie, one of her most imagined and hoped for fantasies of Jack lifting her up in this particular fashion had finally come true.
Just as they were finishing up with taking pictures, with Jack commenting on how good the quality of the photos on his camera were, there came a knock at the door. Rita went over to the door and opened it, to reveal a familiar face waiting outside.
"David! Come on in! You're just in time!" Rita said happily, while allowing the detective to come inside.
"Detective Roberts? Why are you here?" Carrie asked curiously, as Jack explained to the triplets who this man was.
"Hey, just call me David...or even Dave if you want to, as I'm off-duty this evening. As to why I'm here…well I'm here to pick up my date for the prom." he said, now that the teens could see he was wearing a classic tuxedo, very similar to what Jack was wearing.
"Hang on…you're going to the prom with Rita as your date?" asked Jack.
"Of course, Jack. I asked him to accompany me to the prom after he helped with the documentation so I could become Carrie's legal guardian. I felt it would be a very good way for me to show my appreciation for his help." Rita said, as she went and gently took David's arm. "Anyway, you lot, I think it's best if we all get going. After all, we've got Sue and Tommy to pick up over at Tommy's place before we head over to the prom."
"Yeah, but what about Norma, Freddy, Heather and Roy?" Catherine asked.
"I expect that they're already over at the school by now, Kate. They all live quite close to it. Besides Norma's one of the prom's main organisers this year, so it's her baby and I expect that she wants everything tonight to be...just so." Jack said, as he gave the OK gesture with his right hand.
"Okay, let's get going then." Louise said, as they gathered what they needed and headed out the door, as Rita switched off the lights and made sure that the front door was securely locked up.
Standing on the street outside in front of the house, there was a stretch limo waiting for them, its silver paintwork having been cleaned and thoroughly polished to a very bright shine. At the door in the middle of the limo, which opened up like a bird's wing, the driver stood waiting in his smart chauffer's uniform.
"Wow! Now THIS is THE ideal way to go to a senior prom…in style!" Jack said, as he looked over the limo.
"Indeed! Let's go!" Louise said, as the teens clambered into the limo first, with Rita and David following behind. Jack and Carrie were very impressed by the limo's stylish interior when they got in; bright multi-coloured lighting, a soft carpet with a long couch on one side, shorter ones at the back and front, all of which were covered with the finest leather in grey and white, bright and shiny woodwork and a mini bar complete with a selection of drinking glasses and drinks, including a large bottle of champagne in a bright silver ice bucket and soft drinks in a small refrigerator. There were also a number of small TV screens built into the interior as well.
After Rita and David got aboard and everyone had their seat belts on, the driver started the engine and they set off.
They soon picked up Tommy and Sue over at Tommy's place not too long afterwards. Sue was wearing an eye-catching crimson red dress, complete with red high heels, while Tommy was wearing a very smart tuxedo, except that his dinner jacket was crisp white with black lapels and a pink boutonniere on his right lapel. Were it not for the fact his dinner jacket lapels were in black and not white, Tommy could have almost passed for Sean Connery in Goldfinger (1964), Roger Moore in The Man with the Golden Gun (1974) and Octopussy (1983) or Daniel Craig in Spectre (2015).
After they got aboard and were comfortably seated, they were on their way again, heading straight to Ewen High School and the prom. Jack was very thankful that they didn't need to pick up Norma and Freddy or Heather and Roy too, as the limo was already full enough with everyone in it as it was.
They were chatting excitedly as they came nearer to the school, and Jack had taken a few more pictures of them all on his camera. Then the limo slowed down and, opening the electric windows to have a look outside, everyone could see they had arrived in front of the school. There were already other students, all dressed up in their finest suits and gowns, going into the entrance to the gym, where an arch had been set up outside with brightly coloured balloons filled with helium and bright twinkling lights, which could almost pass for Christmas lights, fixed to the arch.
"And here we are, everyone. And remember, we're here to have a good time tonight, so please be responsible…okay?" Rita said.
"Yes ma'am" or "Yes, Rita" the teens said, and they stepped out of the limo one by one and went up towards the entrance to the prom. After they stepped off, Jack and Carrie linked their arms together, with their prom tickets in their other hands, and joined the line outside the entrance where the other teens were entering the prom.
As they waited and moved up in line, Jack looked at Carrie. She seemed to be a little nervous, as she seemed to be looking over at something else.
"Hey...are you okay, Carrie?" asked Jack, as he looked over his date. Carrie turned her head and looked up at him.
"Yes...I'm fine...I'm just a little bit nervous, that's all." Carrie said.
"Don't worry about a thing, Carrie. Everything's gonna be okay." Jack said, as he smiled at Carrie in a reassuring way. Carrie smiled back at him, feeling a little bit better.
Soon they reached the front of the line. After handing over their tickets to those who were sitting at the desk outside and taking everyone's tickets and ticking the names off, and then having their picture taken by the professional photographer who was standing by the entrance, they went inside the school building with the others following closely behind not long afterwards.
(Inside the school gym hall)
As the group stepped inside, they could see the prom was in full swing, and it seemed like all the stops had really been pulled out for this prom; the students, all of whom were dressed up in their best suits and gowns and with the girls having their hair done up, were dancing to the music, being played by a DJ at his DJ station setup near to the stage, on the dance floor in the middle of the hall. A large disco ball slowly turned on the ceiling scattering its reflected light all over the space.
Along one of the walls, a number of tables had been set up in a line and loaded with a large variety of refreshments, both hot and cold. Not only that, but a very good drinks selection was also sitting in large tubs of ice and punches in bowls had been set up as well. There were brightly coloured balloons floating from weights on the floor and from drapes set up overhead, and large bunches of brightly coloured flowers sat in the middle of all the tabletops at different points round the space, while secured to the walls of the gym hall were veils of brightly coloured silk hanging with twinkling lights.
At many of the tables set up within the hall space round the dance floor, groups of teens of various sizes were laughing and chatting together, while enjoying the food sipping, drinks and occasionally posing for pictures with their friends.
For the Sullivan Triplets, this scene immediately reminded them of their 15th birthday party back in late March. The only difference was that this event was MUCH more impressive in its overall scale, the number of people who were in attendance and in the formality of the clothing that everyone was wearing. Already, ideas were flowing through their heads on how they could make their Sweet Sixteenth next year a more impressive event than their fifteenth birthday had been nearly two months prior.
For Carrie, this entire scene was a little bit overwhelming as she and Jack strolled in together amongst all the Glamour that surrounded them. The women were dressed in fine evening gowns of all different colours, with brightly coloured lace, silk and chiffon with high heels on their feet. Many of the backs of the gowns were low enough so that many of the girls were showing much of their backs. On the fronts of some other dresses, the gowns were low enough so as to expose some cleavage on other girls. Many of the boys were also dressed in smart suits, some of which were James Bond style tuxedos like Jack's, others had ties in the place of dickie bows. Some of the dinner jackets were crisp white, some had black lapels and others were cream white, which made it difficult to see them against the whiteness of the jackets. And all the shoes the boys had on were smart black leather shoes that had been polished to a very high shine.
When the air was smelt, it was a mix of hot food at the buffet tables, as well as of perfume, hairspray, hair gel, cologne and deodorant from the many young teens socialising together in the large space, as well as the bunches of flowers on the tabletops. Carrie hoped that the smell wouldn't get too overpowering.
"Hey, are you all right, Carrie?" asked Jack, and snapping out of her daze of looking round at everything, Carrie turned up to see the concerned eyes of her date.
"Oh, y-yes, I was just a bit surprised by all this." Carrie said, as she looked round again.
"Well, come on…let's get this party started." Jack said, as he gently led Carrie through the sea of young people over to one of the vacant tables with the others from the limo following close behind. Occasionally, they would stop to pose for photos or would speak to other people they knew for a few moments before they arrived at the vacant table assigned to them.
(A little while later)
Tommy and Sue were dancing together on the dance floor, while Jack's sisters were dancing together and showing off their dance moves. Some of those round the dance floor, especially the boys, were watching the Sullivan Triplets dance. And, just as Jack had predicted a little earlier on, many of those watching the three girls were quietly commenting on their choice of dress colours and some even took photos when the Irish Tricolour formed when the triplets were alongside each other in the right order. Yet, many boys didn't dance anywhere near them as they didn't want to get a beating, either from the triplets or from their older brother, who had easily defeated Billy Nolan and his two lackeys without suffering a single scratch.
Jack and Carrie were sitting at their assigned table watching everyone dance, while enjoying some of the hot food that was on offer at the buffet tables, including chicken wings, mini burgers and slices of pepperoni pizza, while washing it down with cups of punch.
"Well, good evening you two!" came a peppy voice. Jack and Carrie turned and saw Norma Watson standing before them; she was wearing a black dress with thin white straps over her shoulders and had white gloves over her hands. Her hair had been done up in a bun behind her head and she was wearing silver earrings on her ears.
"And good evening back, Norma. I must say you look quite exquisite this evening." Jack said.
"Thank you, Jack." Norma said, before turning her attention to Carrie. "Carrie, you look SO different this evening! I-I can't believe that! She's glowing, don't you think?" Norma said, as Carrie smiled and blushed a little.
"Yeah, she is. She really has got that bright glow on her. And I'm very happy to see her with it." Jack said, as he smiled at Carrie.
"Thank you." Carrie said with a smile, as she looked at Jack.
"And Jack...that's a very smart suit you're wearing tonight." Norma said.
"Thanks, Norma...oh, and eh...the name's Bond...James Bond." Jack said, as he tried to do the best impression of Sean Connery that he could. And Norma and Carrie laughed for a moment.
"Anyway, can I just say Norma, this is one fantastic event you've put together. It really looks like everyone's having a real good time tonight." Jack said, as he looked round the hall.
"Thanks Jack, and after all this is the final major event of high school for all of us and I just really wanted to make sure that it was really something special that everyone here would remember." Norma said.
"Oh, I'm sure, but where's Freddy got to?" asked Jack.
"Right here, Jack." Freddy said, as he stepped up to the table with a cup of punch in his hand and his camera round his shoulder. Freddy was wearing a fine dark suit complete with white shirt and a red tie.
"How's your evening been so far, Freddy? Have you taken many photos?" Jack asked.
"Norma and I have been having a great time, Jack, and yes I've taken quite a few pictures." Freddy said, as he held up his camera proudly.
"We're gonna be handing out the ballots for people to vote for the prom king and queen very soon, and I'm really looking forward to seeing who's gonna be the winners of the titles this evening." Norma said.
"I'm looking forward to it too." Carrie said.
Then Heather and Roy arrived by the table, arm in arm with cups of punch in their hands.
"Good evening you lot." Roy said as they arrived.
"And good evening to you both as well." Jack said.
"Are you having a good time?" Heather asked.
"Yes, we are, so far." Carrie said.
"Oh Carrie, I love you dress! Where did you get it from?" Heather said, noticing the fine pink prom dress Carrie was wearing.
"Thank you. I actually made it myself." Carrie said.
"No way! Did you really?!" Heather said, having not expected to hear that.
"Yes, I did make it myself. I like sewing and it's a really simple pattern." Carrie said. They talked for a few minutes more before Heather and Roy went out to dance.
"Hey Norma, do you wanna dance?" Freddy asked, as he put his empty cup on the table.
"Sure, Freddy." Norma said, as they took each other's hands and walked onto the dance floor, leaving Jack and Carrie alone at the table.
Carrie felt herself smile as she watched her fellow students enjoy themselves by dancing to the music, laughing fondly about things that had happened in the last four years of high school and having cups of punch and plates of food. While Carrie's confidence had greatly improved to an all-time high over the last two months, she was still feeling a little bit shy about dancing in front of her fellow students.
"I'm sorry, Jack." she said, as her gaze turned to Jack.
"For what, Carrie?" asked Jack, raising one eyebrow. Carrie looked towards the people dancing together on the dance floor. Jack immediately understood.
"It's all right, Carrie. Do you remember what I told you about how I wouldn't force you to do anything you weren't comfortable with?" he asked, as Carrie looked at him and nodded. She felt her heartrate increase a little when she remembered him telling her that.
"Well, we could just sit here and talk with each other and other people here for the whole evening, and I still would have the best prom night. And do you know why? It's because you're here with me, and that's more than enough." Jack said, as he gently put his right arm round Carrie's shoulders.
Warmth filled Carrie as she listened to Jack tell her that her presence alone was enough to make prom night memorable for him. But making up her mind, she took a deep breath and gathered together all the courage she could muster, before she took his hand and stood up.
"Come on…let's dance." she said.
"Are you sure?" Jack said, as he stood up too. The young telekinetic teen nodded while smiling and they went out onto the dance floor.
"Hey, we've been wondering when you two would show up." Catherine said, as Jack and Carrie stepped out onto the dance floor.
"Yeah, come on you two, let's dance!" Louise said, as she and Grace danced among the other students. Carrie paused a moment, unsure of what to do next. Looking round, she noticed a few other students glancing in her direction and wondered deep down if she made a mistake. Then Jack gently took hold of her hands and she looked directly into his eyes.
"Hey…don't worry about them, Carrie. Just look at me and dance to the music." Jack said. So, Carrie did and began moving to the beat of the music and she was soon smiling widely as she and Jack danced together, not worried about anyone staring at her and really enjoying the night with her boyfriend, his sisters and her closest friends. For the first time in her life, Carrie could really and truly let go of what fears she had before and feel just like a normal teenage girl instead of the shy, awkward outcast she'd been a few weeks earlier.
For about half an hour or so, they danced away on the dance floor, with Jack pausing to take pictures now and then. At one point they switched partners while a tango style music was being played; Carrie danced with Tommy while Jack danced with Sue and they were able to dance quite well together, having a great time in the process, and once that piece of music ended, they went back to their original partners.
(A short while later)
They arrived back at their table, their feet tired from the dancing and drinks in their hands, either cups of punch or cans of soft drinks from bowls filled with crushed ice.
"Well, that was fun." Jack said, as he took a sip from a can of Coca Cola. The others also took sips or gulps from their drinks to cool down as they'd been dancing so much for the past half hour, and some were sweating a little on their foreheads.
"Yeah, it was fun." Carrie said, as she opened her can of 7Up.
"Hey, you guys…check out Ms Desjardin and the detective dancing." Heather said, indicating out onto the dance floor. Looking over, they could see Rita and Detective Michaels moving round the dance floor, just as if they'd been dancing together for years. The smiles on their faces clearly showed they were enjoying themselves.
"Wow…they both seem to be having a good time tonight too." Roy murmured.
"Hmm…I never knew Ms Desjardin could dance like that." Freddy said, his eyes being drawn unconsciously to the gym teacher's swaying hips.
"Hey…" Grace said, while giving Freddy a light smack on the back of the head. "…that's our big sister you're looking at. And watch your mouth, you're beginning to drool a bit." Blushing a bit, Freddy kept his head down as the others laughed at his predicament. Then, as the song ended, Principal Morton appeared on stage and stepped up to the microphone and coughed a bit to get everyone's attention.
"Okay everyone…may I have your attention please." and everyone turned to look towards him, "Thank you. Now I just want to let you all know that we'll be handing out the ballots for the prom king and queen in a very short while. Thank you very much." he said, before he stepped off the stage.
"I wonder who'll be on the prom ballots tonight." Jack said, as he wondered.
"Be patient, Jack. I'm sure you'll be quite surprised." Norma said, with a smile.
"And I'm wondering who'll win the Prom King and Queen titles this evening." Sue said, as everyone gazed towards the two thrones set up on the stage.
"Well, regardless of who wins the titles tonight, it's very likely that this year's senior prom will be the very last time that there'll be a prom king and queen ceremony in this school." Norma said.
"Really?" asked Tommy.
"Yes, a lot of the girls think it's a bit sexist to have a prom king and queen. And many of the boys think it's just a stupid unnecessary thing. So, because of those views, it'll be very likely this year's prom king and queen ceremony will be the last one." Norma said. Sue smiled a little and then turned to speak with Jack.
"So, Jack, do you have anything similar to a prom over in Ireland?" Sue asked.
"Yes, we do...but it's called a Debs back home." Jack said.
"And how similar is it to a prom?" Heather asked.
"It's incredibly similar to a prom in almost every respect, especially in the way that everyone dresses up in their best clothes - just like here, but there's a few differences between the two; first one is there's no King or Queen ceremony, like over here, and the second is a Debs usually takes place after the Leaving Cert results are announced, usually in early September and the third is it's almost always held in the ballroom of a hotel instead of in a school gym like here." Jack said.
"And how do you know all that?" Norma asked.
"Because we have two older cousins back home who had their Debs just last year, and they told us everything about it." Catherine said.
"Oh, of course." Norma said.
A few minutes later, after the next song came to an end, a few of those in the group went either to the bathroom or over to the refreshment table to get some more things to eat or drink, leaving Jack and Carrie sitting alone at the table with the triplets.
"So, how are you feeling thus far tonight, Carrie?" Louise asked, as she took another sip from her cup of punch.
"I'm feeling great, Louise. In fact, I've never had this much fun before in my life. And I'm very glad that I had this chance before the end of high school." Carrie said, with a bigger smile on her face than Jack or the triplets had seen before.
"Well don't forget, there's still your 18th birthday to celebrate next Saturday, Carrie. Have you decided what you want to do for that day?" Catherine asked.
"I haven't really decided that yet, Catherine, but I'd like to spend some of the day at the mall." Carrie said.
"Well, whatever you want to do at the mall next Saturday is perfectly fine by me, Carrie." Jack said, as Carrie smiled again.
"And would you like us to get you a cake like we did for Jack last week?" Grace asked.
"Sure, thank you. I'd really like that, and could I talk to you about what flavour of cake I'd like before you go and order it?" Carrie asked.
"Oh, sure thing. That'll be no problem at all." Catherine said.
Then Rita Desjardin, fresh from her dance with her prom date, stepped up to the table to check on them.
"Hello everyone, are we having a great time tonight?" she asked as she stopped by one of the empty chairs before sitting down on it.
"Of course, Rita." Jack said.
"So are we." the Triplets said at the same time.
"I'm really hoping that the night will never end, Rita. I'm having such a good time." Carrie said, as she smiled at her guardian as Rita sat down.
"I'm really pleased to hear that Carrie, and Jack…I'm really very proud of you for doing so much for Carrie since you arrived here. If you keep that up, you'll end up going a very long way in life." Rita said, as she looked at her surrogate younger brother.
"Thanks Rita, I'm just very happy I could give Carrie the help she needed and make a real difference to her life. I only wish that I could've come here much earlier in the year than had been planned and thus had a lot more time here than I did...because that way I could've done SO much more for Carrie." Jack said, as he and Carrie looked at each other and smiled.
"I understand, Jack. But you did so much for Carrie in the time you did have, and that's something to be very proud of." Rita said, with a smile.
"Thanks, Rita." Jack said.
"Do you remember what your high school prom was like, Rita?" Grace asked.
"Oh, I can and very well too…and it wasn't that many years back…" Rita said with a smile, as she fondly reminisced some happy memories, "…I went on a date with the captain of my high school's baseball team…he was an old friend of mine…we went to the prom in his pickup truck, and we had a fantastic time that night. We danced on the dance floor for most of the night, and we spent a lot of time together and socialising with our respective friends before we left the school at about 1 o clock the following morning. In fact, we danced so much that night, that by the time prom ended...my feet hurt for a little while. But even so...it was such a magical night for us." Rita said.
"And whatever became of your date from that night, Rita?" Catherine asked.
"Well, he went on to play professional baseball for the Major League Baseball, the M.L.B., and is doing very well in his chosen profession." Rita said.
"I bet he is." Jack said, with just a slight touch of sarcasm in his voice.
"And just remember; nothing that happens up to now will matter after graduation. Just take what you want and leave all the rest behind. You don't even have to see any of these people again if you don't want to. You see those girls over there?" Rita said, indicating to a group of girls standing together by the dance floor, with cups of punch in their hands and laughing with each other and their friends.
"Yeah?" said Carrie.
"Right now, they're at their peak. They'll never be more pretty or popular. And in ten years from now...they'll be fat. And some of the fat girls will be thin...and the cute boys will be bald, and the jocks will have beer bellies. And the ones who are miserable...turn out just fine. And try not to take it too seriously; it'll be over before you know it." Rita said.
"Thanks, Rita." Carrie said, with a smile. And then Rita turned her attention to Jack.
"And Jack…with your time here in the States getting nearer and nearer to its end, and with you and your sisters gonna be heading off home in less than two weeks, how are you feeling about it?" Rita asked. Jack smiled and was quiet for a moment before he spoke.
"Well Rita, I've got this range of mixed emotions inside me. On the one hand, I'll be very happy to be going home again and seeing Dublin, the familiar places in Ireland that I've grown up in and of course everyone that I know back at home…yet, at the same time, I'll be sad at leaving the United States as I've really grown to like this country as well as all the many people I've met and now see as friends." Jack said. Hearing their brother speak like that got the triplets thinking, and they rubbed their chins and looked at each other.
"I'm sure that many people here will miss you too, Jack. You've made a really big difference here at Ewen High in the last two months, especially for Carrie." Rita said.
"Thanks Rita." Jack said before turning to Carrie. "I'm just going over to the refreshment table; would you like me to bring you back anything?" he asked.
"Yes please, would you bring me another cup of that punch?" Carrie said.
"Certainly." Jack said, as he stood up and went over to the refreshment table. Seeing that their brother had gone, the triplets turned their attention to Carrie and Rita and began talking with them about something.
(Outside the gym hall)
As people were enjoying themselves inside, a shadowy figure dressed in black, and making sure not to be seen, was heading towards the back door to the gym hall, where Tina Blake was waiting. Arriving at the door, which Tina quietly opened, Chris Hargensen stepped inside.
"Are they in here, Tina?" Chris asked, and Tina nodded, knowing full well the people that Chris was referring to.
"Yes, they are. They're in enjoying themselves along with the others." Tina said, as she quickly shut the door again.
"Have the ballots been counted yet?" Chris asked, as she headed for the stairs that would lead up to the catwalk over the stage,
"No not yet, Chris, you're a little too early for that, but they'll be sending them out to all the tables in just a minute or two." Tina said.
"All right…just stand by. I'll be waiting." Chris said, as she gave an evil smile before heading up the stairs, ready to unveil the nasty surprise while Tina, also giving her friend an evil smile, went back towards the prom as if nothing had happened.
(At Jack and Carrie's table)
"And are you sure it won't be too much trouble?" Rita asked.
"Of course not, Rita. Don't worry, it'll be no trouble at all, and I'm sure that Jack will be thrilled when we tell him about it." Louise said.
"But don't tell Jack just yet; let's wait and then we'll tell him about it in due course." said Grace.
"All right. I'm very happy you came up with this idea you three." Carrie said, with a big smile on her face.
"Ah there you are, Rita." came the voice of Detective David, as he stepped up to the table.
"How are you enjoying the night, David?" Louise asked.
"It's great and reminds me very much of my own prom night." David said, as Jack arrived back at the table with his and Carrie's drinks in his hands.
"And here we are. Sorry I took a bit longer than I expected, but there was a queue at the refreshment table, and some of those there wanted me to pose with them for a few pictures." Jack said, as he handed Carrie her cup of punch.
"Oh, no problem at all, Jack." Carrie said, as she sipped her punch. Then, one of the boys came round and began dropping off slips of paper along with pens.
"Here's the ballots for you all to vote for the prom king and queen. Good luck to you." he said, and after handing everyone at the table a ballot, he went over to the next table to make his deliveries there.
Jack and Carrie picked up the ballots placed before them and had a look at them; there were six couples to choose from. Among them were Sue and Tommy. And much to their surprise, Jack and Carrie could see their names were on the ballot too.
"Well…what do ya know. We're both on here as well." Jack said to Carrie, as he looked over his ballot card.
"Yeah, I wasn't expecting that. Well…who should we vote for?" Carrie said.
"Hey, you two could always vote for yourselves." Louise said jokingly, as she, Catherine and Grace, while giggling a little, ticked off the couple on their ballots who they wanted to see as Prom King and Queen.
"Now I don't think that would be fair to the other five couples on this ballot, Lou." Jack said, as he marked down his vote on his ballot while Carrie did the same.
(A short while later)
Soon, the ballots had been collected and were taken away to be counted. Then the DJ, sitting over at his mixing station, made an announcement.
"All right everyone…we're now gonna slow things down for you all with a romantic tune. So, for all the lovebirds out there amongst you…the dance floor's all yours." and the DJ turned on the romantic tune. Almost at once, many of the couples gathered round the dance floor stood up from their tables, hand in hand, and went out onto the dance floor and began to dance to the slow, romantic music.
"Come on, Carrie. Let's go dance." Jack said, as he and Carrie stood up, took each other's hands and went out onto the dance floor, where almost all of the other couples were holding each other close and swaying to the slow romantic music being played. Once in the middle of the dance floor, Carrie put her arms round Jack's shoulders and he put his hands round her waist, and they began to sway with the music too.
Carrie felt her whole body begin to heat up; she was being gently held in the arms of the boy she was in love with and dancing to a romantic song on prom night. If this was a dream, she wanted it to go on forever.
Looking down at Carrie, Jack felt as if they, in that very moment, were the only people in the world right now. When Jack first arrived in the United States nearly two months before, he had no idea that he would meet someone who would help change his life so much and that it would be someone he cared for more than everyone in the world. Right then, as they danced away, he knew he had to tell her exactly how he felt about her.
"Carrie?" he said softly.
"Yes?" she answered, looking up into his warm eyes.
"There's something I…I need to tell you. Something I've been feeling deep inside for a while now." Jack said.
"What is it, Jack?" Carrie asked, hoping deep down that it was nothing bad.
Taking a deep breath to calm himself down, Jack spoke. "When I first arrived here, I was expecting many things. I expected to be amazed by everything I saw and I was. I expected to make enemies, and I did. I also expected to make friends and I did…I made great friends. But the one thing I never expected to happen…was to fall in love."
Carrie gasped, and her hopes went sky high when she heard him say that.
"Right from the moment when I first laid my eyes on you, Carrie…I was entranced by how beautiful you are. In the past few weeks, spending time with you has made me realise how joy and happiness you've brought to my life and how much you mean to me." Jack said, as he slowly brought his right hand up and cupping it very gently upon her left cheek, he stared deeply into Carrie's bright green eyes.
"I love you, Carrie."
And Carrie felt her heart was about to explode with happiness as her eyes opened wide and a smile drew across her face. She gently placed her hand behind Jack's head.
"I love you too, Jack." she answered back softly, and slowly their faces moved closer until their lips meet together in a gently, heart-warming kiss.
Jack felt as if he was on top of the whole world; he'd confessed his love to Carrie and was overjoyed to his core when she said she loved him back, and now they were finally sharing their first kiss.
For Carrie, this was something that she'd never ever felt before; Jack, the foreign exchange student from the Republic of Ireland, had come into her life and had made her feel a much more special person and loved than she had ever been in her life before. She knew he could've had any other girl in the school, but he had chosen her instead. He had protected and defended her when she had needed it and had just confessed his love to her. He made her feel like she was the only girl in the world, and she couldn't have been happier.
After a few long seconds, they pulled away from each other and looked into their eyes, a little breathless but happy.
"Wow…that was…" began Jack.
"…amazing." finished Carrie.
"Was that your first kiss." asked Jack.
"Yes, it was my first kiss." Carrie said, blushing a little.
"Mine too, and it was the best of my life." Jack said, as he gently caressed Carrie's cheek and smiled at her.
"So…does that mean we're a couple now?" Carrie asked.
"I guess so, Carrie. I guess so." Jack said, he pulled her in close for a loving hug which they held for what seemed like ages.
Then after a few more minutes, the song came to an end, and the couples on the dance floor stopped dancing and clapped and cheered with everyone else before heading back to their tables. As Jack and Carrie approached their table, the triplets were watching them approach.
"Soooo…" Catherine said, with a grin as the new couple sat down
"Soooo, what?" asked Jack as he and Carrie sat down by the triplets.
"Ah come on, don't play dumb with us, big bro." Grace said.
"Yeah, we all saw you and Carrie on the dance floor and were watching what you were doing, so did you stop wasting time and tell her?" asked Louise.
"Yes, I did. I told Carrie how I feel about her, and we're a couple now." Jack said, as he and Carrie held their hands together and lifted them into the air. And everyone at the table, including Rita and David, smiled and clapped for them while giving them a hearty congratulations, saying they both deserved to be with each other.
"Well done, you two. I'm really very happy for the both of you." Rita said, smiling at her two favourite students.
"I think you both make a perfect couple." Norma said, feeling joy for her two friends.
"And just wait until we tell mom and dad about this." Louise said, as she and her sisters giggled.
"Hey…let me do that, Lou. But for now, let's just enjoy the rest of the night." Jack said.
(About an hour and a half later)
It was getting very close to the time to when the crowning of the winners of Ewen High's Prom King and Queen of 2017 would take place. All the votes had already been collected by now, but unbeknownst to everyone at the prom, the votes had been quietly rigged to ensure that two certain individuals would win the titles.
Tina Blake was by a student who had an old laptop with him, and she had a USB key in her hand. It contained Chris Hargensen's cell phone video of Carrie's period incident in the lady's locker room nearly two months earlier, and when Carrie was on stage Tina would play the video the moment Carrie and Jack got dunked in the bucket of pig's blood mounted in the rafters above them. Tina had an evil smirk on her face; she could hardly wait to see what the results of this prank would be.
"What are you doing, Tina?" came a voice from behind her. Tina turned and saw the Watson twins, Nicki and Lizzy, standing near her, each with a cup of punch in their hands.
"Oh…I'm just planning a little surprise for "Creepy Carrie" and her boyfriend. Trust me, it's gonna be good." Tina said with an evil smirk and chuckle, knowing that she would finally have her payback on those who had humiliated her and made her, Chris and the other "Ultras" Ewen High's laughingstock.
Both of the Watson twins stared at her in disbelief; had she not learned her lesson? Messing with Carrie White was now a death wish, and both of them clearly knew that. After Jack had exposed all of their dirty laundry, their parents had given them each a very good talking to and told them that if they ever hurt or bullied anybody ever again, they both would be punished severely for it. The thought of that had made their nerves shudder.
"What on earth are you doing this for? Jack has already exposed all our secrets for messing with Carrie!" Nicki said, in deep fear.
"Yeah, and what do you think he'll to us all do if we ruin the whole prom for her?!" said Lizzy, in desperation.
"Hey, I don't care what he'll do to us! That Irish bastard ruined everything for me, you two and the other Ultras as well. Well, now it's time to have some much-needed payback! Chris and I are gonna make sure that both Jack and Carrie get what they deserve." Tina said.
"You and…Chris?" Lizzy said quietly, as Tina then spoke to the student with the laptop.
"Well, I'm glad to be giving this old laptop one last hoorah before I start using my new one tomorrow." The student with the laptop said.
"It's an old laptop, you say?" Nicki asked.
"Sure, everything that was on this old one, including my schoolwork, personal files and photos, saved websites and so on have all been transferred over to my new laptop at home...which means there's nothing to lose if anything should go wrong." the student said, just as Tina was about to hand to him the USB drive. But Nicki quickly rushed forward and "accidentally" splashed some of her punch on the laptop's keyboard. The laptop immediately short circuited and briefly lit up with a quick flash of sparks before dying. The poor student damn near fell out of the chair, as Tina gave the twins a murderous look.
"What the hell?! Why the fuck did you two do that for?!" Tina said angrily, as she moved menacingly to her former friends. However, the twins quickly threw their cups of punch into Tina's face, ruining her makeup and hair in the process. Tina, shrieking in embarrassment from being hit with the cold liquid, spluttered and ran off to the bathroom to clean up as other students nearby who saw what happened laughed at her. Putting their near empty cups on the nearest table, the Watson twins moved quickly over towards the table where Jack and Carrie and everyone in their group were sitting and enjoying themselves. They had to warn them of what Chris was up to.
(At Jack and Carrie's table)
"How many pictures have you taken so far this evening, Jack?" Heather asked.
"Well…according to the counter on the digital screen…525 pictures." Jack said.
"That's a lot of photos. Could we see some of them when you put them on your laptop?" Sue asked, as she and Tommy finished off a plate of brownie squares.
"Sure, I see no reason why not." Jack said.
The desserts had been brought out and placed onto the buffet tables. There was a very good selection to choose from, including rich fudgy chocolate cake, different flavours of cheesecake, a selection of pies, pastries, rice crispy cakes, cupcakes topped with frosting and rich fudgy brownies topped with a rich chocolate frosting as well as a three-tier chocolate fountain complete with marshmallows, cake cubes, pretzels and fruit, including cherries and strawberries.
There was even a large selection of mini desserts, such as different flavours of macarons in bright colours, shot glasses of different mousses, including chocolate and lemon, and even cake pops, basically small balls of cake on a stick, which were decorated on the outside to represent tuxedos and prom dresses.
Even an ice cream station had been set up too, with two women standing at a table with two large electric mixers on it and preparing lots of pre-prepared ice cream mix of a number of different flavours using special containers filled with blocks of dry ice broken up into very small pieces, to quickly freeze the ice cream mix to produce the creamiest ice cream possible for the guests. This created a spectacular theatre display for all to see, with the bowls with ice cream mix with different toppings that steamed a very cold icy mist as dry ice was added into the mix to make really creamy ice cream. Once the ice cream was mixed, and the cold fumes from the dry ice had dissipated, it was served out with a variety of different toppings and sauces to choose from.
"You must have thousands of photos taken of your time here, Jack." Tommy said.
"Absolutely Tommy, but just remember...my time here isn't finished just yet." Jack said.
The triplets had just finished what desserts they had chosen when suddenly they noticed two girls heading towards their table, and from the looks on their faces they knew it was urgent. After excusing themselves from the table, they went over to see what was going on. As they came closer, they recognized these girls as the Watson Twins, two of the "Ultras" who had tormented Carrie.
"Hey, what do you two want over here?" Catherine said, as she suspiciously looked over the twins.
"Yeah, seeing as you two bullied our brother's girlfriend." Grace said, bringing her fists up.
"If you're both here to ruin the prom for Carrie and our brother, then you'd better ready yourselves for an arse kicking you'll never forget!" said Louise, as she and her sisters moved round the Watson Twins, fists raised and ready to take on the twins if they tried anything. But the twins held their hands up in surrender.
"Whoa! Whoa! Hold it, hold it! We're not here to try anything. We're here to warn you." Nicki said, anxiously.
"We've just stopped Tina from playing something that would've humiliated Carrie, and we need to tell you that Chris is up to something too!" said Lizzy.
Yet the triplets looked at them quite sceptically.
"Ha! Why should we believe you two?" Catherine asked.
"Yeah, for all we know, this could be some sort of trick that you and the other girls in your group have concocted up." said Louise.
"Look, we're telling you the truth. We wouldn't be here if we were lying." Nicki said.
"Please, you have to believe us!" Lizzy said, desperately.
The triplets studied the twins for any kind of deceit or trickery on their faces, but could find none. They looked at each other and nodded their heads.
"Okay, we believe you…" Catherine said, much to the relief of the older two girls. "…but do you know what Chris plans to do?"
"No, we don't, but knowing what she's like, she'll want to humiliate Carrie in front of everyone here. Where there'll be no place to hide." Lizzy said.
"No place to hide?" Louise said, thoughtfully.
"The only place that I can think of would be…up on the stage." Grace said, as the realisation hit her full force.
"On the stage?" Catherine, Louise, Lizzy and Nicki said. Then the realisation hit Louise too.
"Of course! It's the perfect spot. Carrie and Jack would be in front of everyone and whatever it is Chris has planned will be seen by everyone."
"Hang on, you're right. But how would Chris get Carrie up on stage!" Nicki said. Then suddenly, the DJ made an announcement.
"Okay everyone, it's very nearly time to crown our Prom King and Queen!" he said, as everyone in the hall cheered loudly.
Everything fell in place for the Watson Twins and Sullivan Triplets. "That's it!" they all said at once. Looking up to the stage, the triplets looked for anything that was out of place but initially couldn't see anything. Then Catherine noticed something and pointed it out to her sisters; it was the bucket sitting in the rafters over the stage. Whatever it contained was bad news.
"That bucket up there...do you see it?" asked Catherine.
"Yes, I see it!" Louise said, as the realisation hit her that Chris planned to dump whatever was in that bucket on top of Carrie and their brother.
"Come on, you two! Quickly, we've gotta stop Chris before they announce the prom king and queen!" Grace said, as she and her sisters ran as quick as they could through the crowds towards the stairs leading up to the catwalks. Nicki and Lizzy anxiously watched them go, and hoped they could stop Chris in time.
(On the catwalk over the stage)
Chris felt herself smile evilly when she heard the DJ make the announcement. She was so looking forward to the moment when she would have her revenge on the ones who had humiliated her and ruined her perfect life and her school reputation. Her hands gripped round the rope and she lightly bit her lower lip as she watched everyone looking towards the stage in intense anticipation. She could just imagine the look of horror on Carrie's face, and she couldn't wait to see it. However, she was so intent on taking revenge on Carrie and Jack once they were under the bucket, that she didn't notice three girls in prom dresses rushing down the catwalk towards her.
The triplets ran as quickly as they could to the stairs leading up to the catwalk, and when they arrived, they quickly ran up to the top, where they saw Chris crouching in the shadows looking down at the stage. Determined to stop her once and for all, they ran towards her. Catherine and Louise grabbed hold of Chris, Catherine on the left and Louise on the right, and threw her against the back railing, holding Chris in a strong grip as Grace stood in front with a grim look on her face. Chris had been taken by surprise, so much so that she dropped the rope to the bucket.
"What the…?! Who the fuck are you three?!" she asked in surprise, furious that her revenge scheme was being interrupted. The triplets all chuckled an evil chuckle.
"Oh…we're your worst nightmare." Louise said, and Chris' eyes widened and mouth dropped in shock when she heard the Irish accent and saw their dress colours. "Oh, no…. it can't…they couldn't be." she thought.
"And we're here to stop YOU from ruining prom night, and not just for everyone else who's in here this evening." Grace said.
"But also, for our older brother AND for our future sister-in-law." Catherine said, as she brought her fist up and then slammed it into Chris' stomach, knocking the air out of her lungs and forcing her onto her knees, as Chris's arms broke free and she held her stomach in pain. She was silent for a moment before she spoke.
"Y-you little b-bitches!" she growled, in pain and anger. The triplets looked at each other and smiled before looking back down at Chris.
"Oh, we've been called a lot worse than that...believe me." Grace said, as she raised her fist and delivered a blow to the left side of Chris' head and then Louise gave a blow to the right temple. Then Catherine gave the knockout blow right between Chris's eyes, and the bully fell to the floor, knocked out cold. The triplets breathed a sigh of relief; they'd made it in plenty of time to prevent Chris ruining prom night.
"Phew! Just in time, I think!" Grace said.
"All right…Grace, you make sure the rope she was holding on to is thrown well clear of here so she can't reach it. Lou…get that reel of cable just over there." Catherine said, pointing. As Louise went to get the cable sitting at the other end of the catwalk, Catherine rolled the out cold Chris on her side against the railing at the side of the catwalk and Grace tossed the rope connected to the bucket over another of the rafters out of reach of where Chris had been standing.
Bringing back the reel of cable, the triplets securely tied up Chris to the railing with the cable so she couldn't get away when she came to.
"And there we are! That should keep you there for a while...at least until we can tell one of the other teachers and they come up here to get you." Louise said, as Catherine secured the cable round Chris' legs to the railing and tied the knot.
"Come on you two, let's get back down before someone notices that we're missing." Grace said, and they left, leaving Chris securely tied up where she was.
(Back on Stage)
On the stage, unaware of the scuffle that had just taken place above her a few short moments before, Norma Watson, a smile on her face, stepped up to the microphone with the results of the prom vote in her hands.
"Okay everyone…this is it!" she said, as the drumroll started, and everyone in the hall looked towards her, waiting to hear who the lucky winners would be.
"And the winner's of this year's Prom King and Queen are…JACK SULLIVAN AND CARRIE WHITE!" Norma said excitedly, as the drumroll ended.
For a few seconds, there was silence and then all the students and staff started clapping and cheering for the two lucky winners.
Carrie couldn't believe it; both she and Jack been voted Ewen High's Prom King and Queen of 2017. As the spot lights shone on them, she and Jack, after looking at each other in a surprised shock for a moment, stood up and began walking over to the stage to claim their prize through a crowd of cheering students. Jack was just as shocked and surprised as Carrie was by this unexpected win, but regardless of that he linked arms with Carrie and they made their way up to the stage to be crowned Prom King and Queen. They came upon Rita and David, Sue and Tommy, Heather and Roy as well as Freddy standing near to the stage cheering for them. Jack handed his camera to Rita and asked her to take pictures, and she readily agreed as Jack had already shown her how to use the camera.
As they stepped up onto the stage, Jack noticed his triplet sisters standing a little off to his right, clapping and cheering for him and Carrie. He was as yet unaware that they'd just successfully dealt with Chris Hargensen and prevented her from playing her nasty revenge prank on them both.
After stepping onto the stage and being sat down on the thrones, Jack and Carrie were decorated with a crisp white sash with bright gold writing over their right shoulders, Carrie's said Prom Queen and Jack's said Prom King, and they each had a shiny crown placed on their heads, Jack's crown was in gold and Carrie's tiara was in silver. Just after they had the crowns placed on their heads, Carrie was handed a large bouquet of beautiful red and pink roses while Jack was handed a gold sceptre which was studded along its length with bright diamonds and emeralds, though not real ones obviously.
Many flashes from cameras from the crowd before them filled their sights, including from Jack's camera, the pictures from which were being taken by Rita.
"Ladies and gentlemen, your king and queen of senior prom!" Norma Watson said excitedly, still standing at the microphone, and everyone cheered loudly. Then the school band struck up and began playing Ewen High's school song.
From the catwalk above, Chris, having at last come to from her altercation with the Sullivan Triplets, tried to get up but found that she couldn't as the triplets had securely tied her up to the railing with the cable. She was stuck. Then she looked down below her with a growing bitter rage as both Jack and Carrie were crowned prom king and queen in the ceremony as bright flashes from camera and iPhones filled the scene before the stage. Then after three minutes or so, both Jack and Carrie stood up from the thrones and walked off the stage again and into the crowd of applauding students. Seeing them walk away from her trap unawares and so easily, Chris growled with a deep rage; her revenge plan had totally failed.
(After Prom; 12:00am midnight)
"She tried to do WHAT?!" Jack asked in a stunned disbelief, unsure of whether or not to believe them, as the jaws of the others dropped in surprise too. The group of friends were standing outside the gym, now that the prom was over, where the triplets told them all about what Chris had set up right over the stage. They were all very shocked and angry by what the "Ultras" leader had attempted to do to spoil everyone's evening.
The triplets had already informed David and Rita, as well as Principal Morton, of what Chris had tried to do and they had just gone up to the catwalk to get Chris, who was still securely tied up there.
Suddenly, Carrie pulled Louise and Grace into her arms and hugged them. "Oh, thank you, thank you. You three stopped her from humiliating me in front of everyone." Carrie said, before then going to hug Catherine. "If you three hadn't done that…I-I don't know what would've happened." she said. And then, visions of the school building on fire and filled with bloody, dead students, as well as visions of immense carnage, chaos, havoc and mayhem being wrought upon the town of Chamberlain filled Carrie's head, causing her to shudder deeply at those disturbing visions. But then she suddenly felt a pair of strong arms wrap round her and Catherine, before Grace and Louise joined in the group hug too.
"Thanks for saving the night, you three. Really, I mean it. Thank you." Jack said, as he hugged his girlfriend and three sisters.
"It's no problem, big bro. We were just quite happy to teach that big bully a lesson." Louise said.
"Yeah, we really enjoyed kicking the ass of that overzealous whore!" Catherine said, sounding quite pleased.
Then they heard something from the open door to the gym; they all turned round and saw David and Rita coming out with Chris and Tina restrained.
"Don't worry you lot, I've already called the dispatch centre and they've sent out a cruiser. It should be arriving here any minute now." David said.
"Glad to hear it, sir. Hopefully a little time behind bars will teach those two a lesson." Roy said, as he and everyone laughed while Chris and Tina gritted their teeth in anger.
Catching his breath after a moment, Freddy spoke to the Triplets. "I'm glad that you three were able to stop those two from doing what they were planning to do. If you hadn't done that, then things tonight could've gone very differently."
"Well, we wouldn't have been able to, or even have known about it before it took place, if the Watson Twins hadn't told us beforehand." Louise said. The others were surprised to hear that, but Grace and Catherine nodded to confirm what Louise had told them.
"Really? Nicki and Lizzy warned you about what Chris was going to do?" asked Sue, in some disbelief.
"Of course, Sue." Catherine said, and then she and her sisters explained everything that had occurred before the announcement of the prom's king and queen and how they managed to stop Chris. Then, as they finished explaining, Principal Morton stepped out with the bucket in his hand, keeping it as far from his good suit as possible so as not to spill any of its contents on his suit. He had a disgusted, rather sick look on his face.
"What on earth is in that bucket, sir?" Jack asked.
"It's pretty disgusting actually, Jack…" Morton said, his face wincing in utter disgust as he exhaled heavily, and trying not to be sick at the same time, while he placed the full bucket onto an old table sitting by the outside of the doors leading into the gym hall before he quickly took a few steps away from the smell, "...it's pig blood." And everyone close by who heard the answer groaned in disgust.
"It's obviously been sitting up there for quite a while…oh god, it absolutely stinks! You can smell it from here!" Norma said, as she gagged a little bit and her face went a tad green while holding her nose. Sue, after picking up a bit of the scent, turned her head away and, gagging a bit, dry heaved as Tommy held onto her and gently patted her on her back. The reason the smell hadn't been detected inside had been due to the extractor fans on the roof of the gym, which had helped to extract the warm air while pumping in fresh cooler air to keep those at the prom cool, and the extractor fans, as well as taking away the warm stale air, had also carried away the smell of the blood too.
"What in the world were you two…idiots(!) thinking of by trying something like that? Huh?!" David asked as he and Rita frowned big time, but Tina and Chris, both furious and sour about their prank having completely failed, said nothing.
"Catherine, Grace, Louise...did you three actually tie up Chris to the railing on the catwalk to prevent her escaping?" Rita asked, as she then looked towards the Sullivan Triplets.
"Yes Rita...we did." Louise said, proudly.
"We know how to tie good knots, and we were able to use those skills to tie Chris up and keep her there." smiled Grace.
"You certainly did a good job at that. Dave and I did some difficulty in untying them." Rita said, as she smiled at the Triplets.
Then the sound of a police cruiser pulling up to the kerb drew their attention. The cruiser stopped and two police officers stepped out. But then, suddenly, Chris Hargensen wrenched herself free from Rita's grip and charged towards the group, aiming for Jack.
"LOOK OUT!" Carrie cried, in fear and shock.
However, Jack saw Chris coming to him and was able to get out of the way with two or three seconds to spare. Bringing his fists up and bracing himself, he readied himself for the next assault. Chris turned and charged at Jack again, but Jack was ready for her; with his fists up, he managed to catch Chris on the right side of her head and forced her down to the ground. He then quickly jumped a few steps back.
"You can't win, Chris!" Jack said defiantly, bringing his fists up again and readying himself for another attack.
"I'm gonna get my revenge on you! One way or another!" Chris screamed, as she got up and charged at Jack again, her hand just lightly brushing against Jack's forehead. She tried again, but Jack brought his hand and slapped her very hard against the side of her head and almost forced her down, but Chris quickly charged again and raised her right arm up but Jack caught her arm, pushed it down and slapped Chris hard again on the other side of her face.
Reaching out, Jack managed to punch his fist into Chris' forehead, which stunned her momentarily, and then he grabbed Chris, lifted her up and threw her towards the wall of the gym. She landed against the wall beside the table where the bucket of blood sat. Then, just as she was about to get up and charge at Jack again, she heard a "clank" and then suddenly she was dunked all over in a wet, slimy, and very smelly, substance.
Catching her breath, Chris then gradually realised it was the blood that had been in the bucket she'd planned to dump on Jack and Carrie, and now it was completely covering her instead. She screamed as the others in the group, including quite a few other students who were nearby watching had just happened, were laughing at her. Carrie was laughing the hardest, quite enjoying the sight of her main enemy being humiliated instead of her. She had seen the golden opportunity for some much deserved revenge of her own, and had used her telekinetic powers to dump the bucket of blood right on top of Chris.
Seething with fury at being made the fool with her own weapon instead of Carrie, Chris was just about to get up and attack again, when the two police officers quickly stepped up and pointed their guns at her. Seeing those gun barrels pointed at her, Chris knew she was finished, and she gave up.
Catching his breath, after the fighting and then from laughing at Chris after she got humiliated, Jack turned to face Carrie and she threw herself into his arms and hugged him tightly.
"I thought something would happen to you…I'm so happy to see you're okay." Carrie said, a sense of relief and thankfulness clear in her voice.
"It's all right, Carrie. Well, she did launch an attack on me, so I had to fight her off." Jack said.
"And you don't need to worry about anything at all, Jack." Detective David said. "We all saw her try to attack you, again and again…and you did what you had to do to protect yourself from her attack."
"Thanks Dave." Jack said. After Jack and Carrie pulled away, he looked down at his tuxedo; there wasn't a single scratch or mark on it at all.
"Looks like you came out of that fight like James Bond…not a scratch at all." Louise said.
"Indeed, and I'm very lucky at that." Jack said, as he looked down at his suit again.
"And Carrie…a very good job on using Chris' weapon against her with your powers, by the way." said Catherine, as she, Grace and Louise looked at Carrie with amazed smiles. Both Jack and Carrie were surprised to hear that; Carrie's telekinetic powers was meant to be their little secret.
"But…how, how did you…?" Jack said.
"Hey don't look too shocked, big bro. After all, a full bucket doesn't just suddenly move and dump its contents on top of someone without someone to do it." Catherine said.
"Don't you worry at all, Carrie, your secret's safe with us. But you've totally got to show us what else you can do with your powers later." Grace said, as she and her sisters smiled at her.
"Deal." Carrie said with a smile, as Jack rolled his eyes at his sisters.
(A few minutes later)
It wasn't long before a police van arrived and a handcuffed Chris, still covered in the blood, was led to the back of it by one of the officers. Other students still around were taking pictures of her on their phones, laughing and still making jokes about her new look and sarcastically saying that it suited her. She was soon loaded into the back of the police van and, after giving everyone laughing and mocking her a final angry scowl, the inner and outer doors were closed and she was taken down to the police station, with Tina following in the cruiser just behind.
Then, after a minute or two, a familiar silver limo arrived and stopped along the kerb near to the group.
"Well then, come on you lot. I think it's time for us all to go home for tonight." Rita said, and so with that, and after saying their goodbyes and goodnights, Jack and Carrie, the Triplets, Tommy and Sue along with Rita and David headed to the limousine and climbed aboard while Norma and Freddy headed off to Freddy's car and Heather and Roy went off to Roy's car.
"Wow…that was some night, huh?" Rita said to David, as the limo headed down the quiet streets to drop them off home.
"Absolutely, and much more exciting than I remember what my prom night was like when I was in high school." David said. On the long couch, Jack had his arm round Carrie and they were talking with Tommy and Sue and the Triplets of how the night had gone.
"Goodness, I'll be glad to get to sleep tonight." Tommy said, as he yawned for the umpteenth time that evening.
"Yeah, me too. I've never been up as late as this before." Carrie said, as she yawned too.
"Well, we're a bit more used to it in our family. We've been up as late as this, and even later, on more than a few occasions, including at our cousin's wedding last year in Vienna. The reception party that followed the wedding ceremony went on until about three in the morning." Louise said.
"Oh, my goodness...that's a late time to be up." Carrie said, slightly astonished.
"Yeah, well...I suppose that's just something to be expected at when you're at something like a wedding." Sue said.
"All right everyone, just make sure to get a really good night's sleep tonight. You've earned it after all the partying you've had tonight." Rita said.
They soon dropped off Sue and Tommy in front of Tommy's house and then, after bidding them goodbye and goodnight, proceeded back to the apartments near the mall to drop off Jack. His sisters would be spending the night over at Rita's house.
"Okay, and here we are Jack. Your stop." Rita said.
"All right, Rita." Jack said, before he turned to Carrie and gave her another kiss on her lips.
"I'll see you and the Triplets over at the mall in the morning?" he said.
"Of course, we'll see you there." Carrie said.
"Good night, everyone, Rita…David." Jack said as he stepped off the limo
"Good night, Jack!" they all said, just before Jack closed the door behind him. Making his way up to his apartment, Jack stepped inside and turned on the lights. Putting his camera down on the kitchen table, he went over to the door to the balcony and opened it before stepping outside and looking up into the night sky. The stars, many countless numbers of them, shone very brightly in the clear and cloudless night sky. He was very thankful to his three sisters for preventing Chris from ruining such a good night...for him, Carrie and for everyone else. After a moment of watching the stars, he turned away, went into his bedroom and started getting ready for bed.
(Meanwhile, at Rita's house)
Carrie and the Triplets had just gotten off the limo and had entered Rita's house, leaving Rita and David by the limo alone and in peace for a few private moments.
"Well, you know, all things considered, Rita…I really enjoyed tonight very much. Maybe…we could go out again sometime." David said, being hopeful deep inside. Rita gave him a teasing smirk before she spoke.
"Maybe we will." she said, as they slowly leant in for a kiss. But then Rita pulled away at the last moment and looked David in his eyes. "Not yet, but if you play your cards right…you may get more." she said, before she reached in and kissed David on the cheek instead and they smiled. They looked into each other's soft eyes for a few moments before they smiled and bid each other "Good night." And then Rita turned and walked back to her home, swaying her hips a bit before turning to look back and smile at David, who smiled back at her, before she went inside her home.
"Wow…what a woman." David said quietly to himself, before he closed the limo door and headed off home himself.
(Inside Rita's home)
Carrie and the Triplets were making their last preparations before they turned in for the night. The Triplets were nearly finished dressing into their pyjamas while Carrie was already in her pyjamas and in the bathroom of the guest bedroom, brushing her teeth. She soon finished, had turned off the bathroom lights and was just about to climb into bed when the door opened and Rita stepped inside the bedroom.
"Well...how are you feeling after tonight, Carrie?" she asked. Carrie could only give a smile on her tired face.
"Very tired, but I had a really great time…and…I had my first kiss with the boy I really love." Carrie said, feeling very happy all over as Rita smiled too.
"I'm very pleased to see it, Carrie. Now get yourself a good night's rest. I think you've earned it after this exciting night." Rita said. Then the Triplets, all in their pyjamas, came up to the door too, having finished getting themselves dressed for bed too.
"Good night, Carrie. See you in the morning." they all said, before they turned and went to the bathroom down the hallway. Once they were finished there, they would head off downstairs, where they would spend the night sleeping in the living room on the fold out couch bed and two fold out armchair beds.
"Good night, everyone." Carrie said, and closing the door behind her, she went over to bed. Slipping under the warm and comfortable duvet, she turned off the bedside light before falling into a deep appreciative sleep at once.
And there we are everyone, Prom Night all completed and no Black Prom or destruction of Chamberlain took place on this occasion. It had always been my intention right from when I started writing this fanfic to have the blood get dumped onto Chris instead, thus having her own awful weapon be used against her..."hoist by his own petard", as the saying goes.
From a review left above about how the fight between Chris and Jack played out very similarly to the fight scene near the end of The Lion King (2019), well everyone...I can safely say that was no accident. I like that movie and had to put a small piece of it into this fanfic.