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The room was full of people when they walked through the streamers into the prom. Everyone else scattered, and Nick and Charlie were left standing in the entrance together.
It wasn't the triumphant moment of Charlie's dreams, the two of them running in hand in hand to wild cheering … but on the other hand, there was something cool about the fact that no one was paying them any attention. They were just … a couple, like any other couple, going to prom together. Not that long ago, this wouldn't have been possible, and now here they were and no one was batting an eye.
That was something to celebrate.
They looked at each and smiled, and clasped hands. Then they moved off into the prom.
Tao and Elle were already having their prom pictures taken, in all sorts of weird poses. Charlie envied Tao his confidence; he was always himself, no matter what.
Behind him, he heard Harry Greene's obnoxious voice. "I can't believe Nick's showing off his boyfriend, but none of you managed to bring a girl!"
Both of them turned to look at him, neither sure what to do with that. Charlie supposed it was good for Harry that he was accepting of their relationship, but he'd have to come a lot farther before Charlie would want to associate with him again.
The photographer, seeing that Nick and Charlie were distracted, was asking Isaac to step up and have his picture taken. "Oh, uh … I don't want one," Isaac stammered.
"Isaac, why not?" Charlie asked.
"'Cause it's so embarrassing just standing there on my own."
"Right. Come on, then." Charlie grabbed his hand. "The four of us are getting an art-room photo."
"Like the good old days." Elle smiled.
"Yes."
Elle took Isaac's book and hid it behind her, and the four of them posed for the photo.
When they were done with pictures, Charlie looked for Nick, but he had disappeared into the crowd somewhere. He was disappointed at first, but then, if they really needed a prom photo, they could always take one later. He found a table in the corner and sat there fairly contentedly watching the chaos of prom.
The band got started, playing a Cure song. Charlie approved. Over the heads of the crowd he could see Tao and Elle dancing, turning heads, of course. How had they not known all along that the two of them were destined for each other?
Another song was beginning, and Charlie was still sitting at the table alone, watching people gesture in his direction. That kind of attention he didn't want. Where was Nick? Had he gotten lost in this crush of people?
Then a crowd in front of him parted, and there was his boyfriend, the most beautiful guy in the place. Charlie waved and Nick smiled broadly and waved back. Then he came and sat down next to Charlie, putting his hand out on the table for Charlie to place his in.
Somehow, when Nick was holding his hand, all the things that seemed scary or hard felt far away.
"Feels weird," Nick said. "Should we … I don't know … dance, or, like, get a photo or something?"
"Can you dance?"
"Oh, no. Not at all. No."
"Me, neither." Nick smiled at him, and Charlie looked round at the room. Everything was loud, and bright, and it felt stuffy with all these people, and what had he come here to prove anyway? What did it matter that other people saw them together? What mattered was this—him and Nick, holding hands, together. "Can we leave?"
After a moment's surprise, Nick said, "I thought this was what you wanted. I … I'm not worried about people seeing us together."
"But why should they have to see?" Charlie asked. All this time, he'd been so anxious for Nick to come out, so eager to show off his boyfriend, so determined to be out to the world. And now he had it, and it wasn't important, at all, in comparison with … just this. Being with Nick. "We've been so obsessed with the idea of coming out, it's like we've forgotten why we wanted to do it in the first place. It's not for them. I just want to have a fun night with you and our friends."
Nick smiled. "Yeah. I want that, too. I mean … David and my mum are out tonight, so … I do have a free house."
Tao and Elle joined them, sinking wearily into the chairs opposite.
"You two were incredible," Nick told them.
"You got the dance floor going," Charlie added.
"You were throwing some serious shapes out there. Hey, Isaac." Nick smiled at him as he took the extra chair, book in hand.
"Hey, guys."
"Where'd you disappear to?" Charlie asked him.
But before Isaac could answer, Darcy appeared out of nowhere. "Hey. I thought prom was supposed to be vampire themed." She looked … exhausted. Like she had slept in her clothes, or like she was about to cry. Or both.
"Oh, my God," Elle said.
"Darcy, are you okay?"
"Where have you been?"
She looked like she might answer, but looking round the table, she didn't see the face she expected to see. "Where's Tara?"
"She went to find you," Nick told her.
"Oh, no. I have to stop her." Darcy turned to rush out, but Elle stopped her.
"Darcy, what's going on?"
"I need … I just need to talk to Tara."
Nick got to his feet. "Okay, I'll tell you what we'll do. We'll all go to my house, we'll call Tara and have her meet us there. So you two can talk somewhere private, and after, we'll have our own prom, just us. Sound good?"
Charlie met Elle's eyes across the table. She was smiling and nodding in approval. Slowly but surely, these were becoming not just Charlie's friends, but their friends together, as a couple. That was worth a dozen proms.
Everyone else was getting up now, voicing their approval. Elle had to talk Darcy into the plan, because she wanted to rush off after Tara, but Nick convinced her it was too late to stop Tara from going wherever she had gone, and their best idea was just to get to the same place together.
At last, Darcy agreed and came along with the rest of them. On the way, they pieced together the bones of the story—that Darcy and her mum had quarrelled over the suit, and her mum had kicked her out of the house.
Charlie had issues with his mum, definitely, but she would never have gone that far, no matter how much she disapproved of him. He felt terribly for Darcy that she had to go through that, and wanted just to get to Nick's and find Tara and let the two of them be together.