SOTF Archive/SOTF Classic

((Rutherford "R.J" Roger Jr. continued from Celebration))

R.J. was walking alongside Veronica when a particular Black Eyed Peas song was fading away at last.

"Tonight's the niiight..let's live...up.............."

Ah, bliss. Bliss all up in this joint. At least it was there for a while.

"I FEEL SO CLOSE TO YOU RIGHT NOW"

"No..."

"IT'S LIKE A FORCE FIELD"

"Nonononononononononononononononononononononono"

"I WEAR MY HEART UPON MY SLEEVE, LIKE A BIG DEAL"

"Goddammit, Calvin Harris, why don't you leave me alone? I though I got rid of you!"

Ah whatever, R.J. wasn't going to let an incredibly catchy song ruin what was suppose to be one of the greatest nights he may or may not remember. Something else would probably ruin it instead. No matter, he was here to enjoy himself as long as possible. He looked around at all the little stars spread across the wall, and all the little paper lanterns strung up. It one of those instances where doing less was more.

"Hey, where do you feel like sitting? I'm fine with wherever." R.J. said to Veronica, looking at her golden dress. He felt lucky, getting to take a beautiful girl to prom.

(Veronica McDonald continued from Celebration)

The Prom Committee really outdid themselves this year. The whole 'Moonlight Serenade' theme was cleverly pulled off, and the paper lanterns flickered on the faces of her classmates and their companions. Speaking of which, her companion wanted to sit down somewhere, anywhere really. Ruth didn't seem to care.

"Oh, er, let's get some food first. I'm starving." Veronica said, turning around and searching for the place where the food was. Veronica was never really good at finding her way around places, but not enough that she gets hopelessly lost every time she goes to the mall. She eventually decided to wing it and made a beeline to the left side of the building.

R.J. followed Veronica to the abnormally large snack bar. Pizza, punch, weird foreign cuisine. All of it was here and ready to be barely consumed. He gazed around at the food, his head bobbing side to side, scouting out for food that seemed edible. R.J. didn't really feel like eating, but a little grub never hurt anybody.

"Maybe just a little bit of this and that...and some more of this and that..."

He looked back at Veronica. R.J. was suppose to be extra polite on this day, or at least that's what been forced into his brain ever since he knew what prom was. Alas.

"Um...What do you feel like eating? I can grab it for you, and you can look for a table for us...I mean if you don't mind that is..."

Luckily, they managed to stumble onto the food table without actively finding it. It was well stocked and for a good reason: this table had to feed at least 200-odd high school students. Veronica grabbed a slice of pepperoni pizza and a cup of Pepsi while Ruth awkwardly asked her to find them a table. "Sure," Veronica replied. "Wait here and I'll wave you over to one."

Finding a table proved harder than finding the food, which was surprisingly easy. All of the tables seemed to be occupied by lovers or next to people she hated. The one she settled on was on the far edge of the room, and she was unable to pick out Ruth from the crowd. She halfheartedly waved and sat down, nibbling on the edge of her pizza and glancing around. While she was waiting for the magic to begin, why not watch other people's nights?

Veronica might have missed the part about R.J. grabbing the food for them. Now it looks like he just sent her off to get a table while he was busy preparing his own plate. Oh well, it probably didn't look as bad as he thought it did. He grabbed his entree and set off to find Veronica in this holy clusterfuck of people. He saw someone waving and determined it was Veronica. Trying not to bump into anybody, the boy slithered his body around the room to find the flailing arm.

R.J. pulled up a chair and sat down. Resting his plate on the table, he tried to start a conversation. Except he couldn't really come with anything to say. He curled his hair around his index finger while thinking of what to say. Their was an awkward feeling in the air.

Well, it looks like Veronica's classmates were having a much more romantic night then hers. Then again, they had just gotten here, and the night was technically still young. Ruth slipped into his chair and curled his hair around his finger in the usual adorable way he does when he feels awkward. This night was having a rough start, but it will be the best Senior Prom ever!

"So, it's already Senior Prom, can you believe it?" Veronica asked, trying to break the ice. "It seems like yesterday that It was the first day of Kindergarten, huh? Graduation is coming up soon, and college is just up the road. What do you think you're going to do for a living?" She leaned back in her chair and waited for his answer. A pop song was blaring over the speakers, and classmates were dancing. Soon enough, they'd be dancing, once the ice is broken and a better song gets on.

"So, it's already Senior Prom, can you believe it?"

In a way, he really couldn't. R.J. realized these were his last days of his childhood. He would be an adult sooner then he prepared for.

"Yeah...it's almost all over."

Veronica's next question was jarring, mostly because it didn't have an answer, not a good one in any case. Sure, he had been accepted into the same university as Veronica, on an art scholarship no less for all his disbelief of those odds, but he wondered if he could keep up to those expectations thrown ahead of him because of that, if he could be able to stay with Veronica for much longer. Of course, there was always the alternative...

"I might join the military like my dad, if this college thing doesn't work, although I'm not really sure at this point. But we're going to Arizona, so I guess I can figure that out soon...But you're going to work with animals right? I think that's really cool."

He finished that last sentence with a little smile towards Veronica, and then went back to staring at his shoes.

(Jesus, have been banished from computers for a while. Regular access to come soon. Better post coming soon.)

Veronica nodded and replied. "Yeah, I guess I'm going for a veterinarian career, or possibly a scholarship of some sort. I'm not sure that that's what's going to go down, but things are looking up." She smiled and stood up. "But stop the chit-chat. Let's enjoy ourselves." She twirled around and held out her hand, beckoning him to follow.

"Yeah, I guess I'm going for a veterinarian career, or possibly a scholarship of some sort. I'm not sure that that's what's going to go down, but things are looking up."

It was nice to know somebody had their shit together. A future, or at least a plan for said future. A plan that was better than his at the very minimum. R.J. had no idea why this girl was still with him now, or why she was even with him before. To him, it didn't make any sense, but then again, it didn't have to. Veronica seemed happy to be spending with him on what is suppose to be one of the greatest nights of a young adult's life.

"But stop the chit-chat. Let's enjoy ourselves."

That sounded nice, something that would take his mind off things. Enjoy the present night for once. Her hand outstretched to him, R.J. curled his fingers into hers and stood up close to her.

"I'm pretty sure I'm not that, um, great of a dancer though..."

"Aw, I'm sure you'd me fine!" Veronica cooed, smiling at her Prom date. She honestly didn't care about his dancing skills. As long as tonight was going to turn out fine, a fireball could incinerate South Korea for all she cared. Veronica and Ruth were going to have a good time, even if it killed them.

...not like that would happen. What are the chances that a serial killer would target an innocent high school senior prom? Next to nothing, Veronica assumed.

Veronica walked off, half-dragging half-leading Ruth through the crowd of seniors. She recognized a few faces from school, but kept her mouth shut. There had to be a small spot where they could dance. Dancing in the middle of a crowd was hard, especially when the room was jam-packed with rowdy high school students. She didn't need to elbow some chick in the face and start a fight with her macho boyfriend.

Finally, towards the wall, there was some elbow room to dance. It was a shaded corner of the area, to the left of a couple making extremely public displays of affection. Veronica smiled, let go of Ruth's hand, and began to dance. It wasn't too shabby, but it was hard to peg down a single style. To put it best, it was a mixture of the Charlie Brown and the Macarena.

As R.J. was hauled around by Vernoica, he could feel his palms getting cold and his head getting hot. It shouldn't be a big deal but it was. It's not like he was drunk and goofing off with his friends at some party where he didn't care what people thought about him, no one to judge or be judged. But there is a certain time where it's okay to make a fool of yourself, and it wasn't now.

"Okay, I'll be fine just as long-"

They were in very dark corner, where even the strobe lights had a hard time penetrating the shade. To the left of them was a couple who were very...affectionate. He tried to pay no mind to them, and focused his attention to Veronica. She smiled at him, and it made him feel more light-hearted. Her dancing wasn't too bad, and he tried to follow suit, doing his best 'not too bad' dance.

Eventually the swings and the spins would have ended, and sure enough they did. The dances themselves seemed kind of tired. R.J. held Veronica as long as he could for the final slow dance, and even tried to slow down the ride home as much as he could. This night was over, but it didn't feel complete. But as long as Veronica was happy, R.J. thought everything was A-OK.

((Rutherford "R.J." Roger Jr. - Prom - continued in Content))

This was surprisingly fun.

Sure, the area they were in was so dark that Ruth looked like a disturbing creature and the affectionate couple in the corner looked like a pulsating monster, but all that mattered was that she and Ruth were having fun. It suddenly occurred to Veronica that this relationship might not last long, so she began to slow down and hug Ruth. It was good to savor her last minutes as a high school senior.

Eventually, Prom ended. They packed up and the students went home, and Veronica McDonald was a very happy girl.

(Veronica- Prom END)