I hesitated, biting my lip.
"I've got someone in mind," I said simply.
"Someone I know?" she asked, her eyebrows lifted.
"Yeah, I guess so," I said carefully. "She's important to me, Sasha."
"Someone I know?" she asked, her eyebrows lifted.
I knew how... cagey I was being. I knew that, in some way, I'd just hurt one of the people I'd cared about the most. But like I'd told Sasha, this was important to me.
"Right. Well... good for you," Sasha said. Her mouth pulled into something between a smile and a question.
And after that? Sasha didn't bring prom up again.
I knew how... cagey I was being.
The night of prom, Gran stood in her bathroom, holding up the floral dress she'd last worn to my cousin's wedding.
"I don't know, sweetheart," she murmured. "I'm not sure this even fits right anymore."
"You look beautiful, Gran," I said.
"I'll be standing on the side, right? I don't want to embarrass you. I can just stay home, Lucas," she said. "The school hired three cleaners for the night so that there'd be no trouble during prom. I can have my night off, right here, in front of the couch."
"I don't want to embarrass you. I can just stay home, Lucas."
"Gran, you're not going to embarrass me. I promise. Other than graduation, this is the last school event of my life. I want you to be there!"
Gran looked at me through the mirror. I knew she was hesitant about coming to prom. But this was... I needed her there.
I helped her with her earrings — little silver leaves she'd worn for every special occasion since I was seven — and smoothed the collar of her cardigan.
I needed her there.
She looked nervous, like a guest at a party she hadn't fully been invited to.
"Breathe, Gran," I said as she straightened my tie. "This is going to be great."
The gym was transformed. White string lights hung in loops across the ceiling. There were silly paper awards and a makeshift photo booth with props.
"This is going to be great."
Sasha won "Most Likely to Publish a Banned Book," and I got "Most Likely to Fix Your Car and Your Heart."
I rolled my eyes, but she laughed. Even at the back, I heard my grandmother's warm chuckle.
After the last award was given out, the lights dimmed, and the music picked up. Couples started forming, and the dance floor filled quickly.
"So... where's your date?" Sasha looked over at me.
"Most Likely to Fix Your Car and Your Heart."
"She's here," I said, scanning the room until I spotted Gran near the refreshment table.
"You brought your gran?" Sasha asked, her voice soft and curious — not judgmental.
"I told you, Sasha. She's important."
Then I walked away, crossed the floor, and stopped in front of Grandma Doris.
"You brought your gran?" Sasha asked.
"Would you dance with me?" I asked.
"Oh, Lucas..." she began, her hand flying to her chest.
"Just one dance, Gran."
"I don't know if I remember how, sweetheart," she said, hesitating.
"We'll figure it out," I said, doing a shuffle with my feet.
"Would you dance with me?" I asked.
We stepped out onto the floor, and for a few seconds, it felt like a perfect moment. Until the laughter started.
"No way! He brought the janitor as his date?"
"That's... gross."
"Lucas is pathetic! What the heck?!"
Someone near the snack table laughed loud enough for it to echo over the music. I could hear sneakers sliding on the gym floor as a few heads turned in our direction.
"No way! He brought the janitor as his date?"
"Don't you have a girl your age?" another voice shouted. "This is seriously messed up."
"He's actually dancing with the janitor!"
I felt Grandma Doris tense beside me. Her hand, warm in mine just a moment ago, went still. The corners of her smile pulled downward before she could stop them. She stepped back just slightly, enough that I felt the space between us shift.
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