CHAPTER FOUR #4
"I'm embarrassing myself in front of everyone."
Her voice broke completely.
"Because losing you..."
She shook her head.
"...hurts more than any of this."
Melissa squeezed her eyes shut. For one terrible moment... She wanted to run to Amanda. To hug her. To tell her she was wrong. That none of this had ever been about replacing her. That she'd missed her every single day.
Instead... She forced herself to stay exactly where she was. When she finally opened her eyes... They were filled with tears.
"Then..."
Her voice trembled.
"...stop."
Amanda blinked. Melissa looked directly at her for the first time since the argument had begun.
"Stop calling me."
Each word seemed to hurt Melissa just as much as Amanda.
"Stop texting me."
Amanda's breathing became uneven.
"Stop trying to interfere..."
Melissa instinctively touched the promise ring wrapped around her finger.
"...with my relationship."
Amanda shook her head desperately.
"I'm not trying to—"
Melissa interrupted before she could finish.
"I don't need you anymore."
The words echoed through the gymnasium. Amanda stared at her. She searched Melissa's face. Looking for any sign that she didn't mean them. Any sign this was anger speaking instead of truth. She found none.
"...Melissa."
Her voice was barely a whisper now. Melissa looked away.
"...Stay out of my life."
Silence. Not a single cheerleader spoke. Even the music had long since been turned off. The entire gym felt frozen in place. Amanda slowly looked around. Every face seemed blurred by the tears filling her eyes.
Then... Her gaze found Michael. He'd been standing only a few feet away the entire time. Watching. Waiting. Hurting right alongside her. "...Michael."
His heart broke at the sound of her voice. Without saying a word... He crossed the gym floor. He gently took Amanda's trembling hand into his. His thumb brushed softly across her knuckles.
"Come on."
Amanda couldn't move.
"...But..."
She looked back toward Melissa one last time.
"...she needs to know."
Michael's own eyes drifted toward John, who had quietly stepped closer to Melissa during the argument. Then back to Amanda. His voice was gentle.
"You warned her."
Amanda looked at him helplessly.
"I know."
He squeezed her hand.
"What she does with that warning..."
He swallowed hard.
"...has to be her decision."
Amanda stood there for another moment. Looking at Melissa. At the girl she'd grown up with. The girl who had once promised they'd be maid of honor in each other's weddings. The girl who used to finish her sentences before she could.
Now... She couldn't even look at her. Amanda slowly nodded. Not because she agreed. Because she had nothing left to say. Michael quietly wrapped an arm around her shoulders. Together... They began walking toward the gym doors. Amanda never looked back. She couldn't.
Across the gym... Melissa watched them leave. The confidence she'd worn throughout the argument slowly disappeared. The smile she'd forced... Vanished. She stared at the exit long after Amanda had disappeared into the hallway. A painful ache settled deep inside her chest.
"Go after her."
The thought appeared before she could stop it.
"Run."
"Tell her you didn't mean it."
Her fingers tightened around the strap of her cheer bag. She took one small step forward. Then stopped. Her eyes dropped to the silver promise ring resting on her finger. She closed her hand around it.
"...Melissa?"
Theresa's quiet voice pulled her back to the present. Melissa quickly wiped beneath her eyes before turning around.
"...Yeah?"
Theresa studied her carefully.
"You okay?"
Melissa looked down at the ring again. For a long moment... She couldn't answer. Finally... She forced the smallest smile.
"...I'm fine."
But as the words left her mouth... Even she didn't believe them. Later that evening… The formalwear boutique buzzed with excitement. Soft music drifted through the speakers while mothers, daughters, and groups of excited friends wandered between endless rows of sparkling gowns.
Everywhere Melissa looked... There was glitter. Sequins. Satin. Tulle. The entire store looked as though someone had bottled up prom night and scattered it across hundreds of hangers.
Maria stepped out of one of the fitting rooms in a dramatic emerald gown. She spun once in front of the three-way mirror, watching the skirt fan out around her.
"Well?"
Loren didn't hesitate.
"Perfect."
Theresa laughed from the couch near the fitting rooms.
"You say that about every dress."
Maria placed a hand against her chest dramatically.
"Because..."
She struck another pose.
"...I look perfect in every dress."
Loren applauded.
"I mean..."
She shrugged.
"...she's not wrong." The girls laughed. Even Melissa managed a small smile. She sat quietly at the end of the waiting bench, her own dress bag resting beside her. She'd already found her dress.
Now she mostly watched everyone else. Her fingers absentmindedly twisted the silver promise ring around her finger. Her phone vibrated. She glanced down.
Amanda
Her smile faded.
Amanda:
Please... just ask John yourself.
Melissa stared at the message. Before she could decide whether to respond... Her phone vibrated again.
Amanda:
I'm not trying to ruin anything. I'm trying to protect you.
Melissa closed her eyes. For just a second... She considered answering. She imagined typing:
"I know."
Or maybe...
"Can we please stop fighting?"
Instead... She locked her phone. The screen went dark. Theresa quietly sat down beside her. She'd noticed the change in Melissa's expression almost immediately.
"...She's still texting?"
Melissa sighed.
"She won't stop."
Theresa nodded thoughtfully. "Maybe..."
She hesitated.
"...she really is worried."
Melissa looked at her so quickly it surprised them both. "...Whose side are you on?"
Theresa didn't answer right away. She reached over and gently nudged Melissa's shoulder.
"Yours."
Melissa's expression softened just enough.
"Then why would you say that?"
"Because..."
Theresa shrugged.
"...that's what friends do."
She smiled gently.
"We ask the hard questions."
Melissa looked away.
"John loves me."
There wasn't a hint of hesitation in her voice.
"Amanda just..."
She sighed.
"...doesn't understand him." Theresa watched her quietly.
"...Do you?”
Melissa's fingers instinctively found the promise ring again. She turned it slowly beneath the boutique lights. The silver shimmered.
She opened her mouth to answer. But... Nothing came out. Before the silence could grow uncomfortable...
Her phone buzzed again. Melissa glanced down. A smile immediately spread across her face.
John
She opened the message.
John:
I'll pick you up tomorrow night.
A second message appeared almost instantly.
I have a surprise for you.
Melissa couldn't help smiling. She looked over at Theresa.
"See?"
Theresa raised an eyebrow.
"What?"
Melissa held up her phone.
"He's picking me up tomorrow."
Maria looked over from the fitting room mirror.
"...Tomorrow?"
Melissa nodded. "He said he has a surprise."
Loren immediately gasped dramatically.
"Oh my gosh."
She pointed toward Melissa's hand.
"Maybe it's another ring." Melissa burst into laughter.
"One is definitely enough."
Maria smiled.
"I was about to say..."
She looked at Loren.
"...the poor boy's going to go broke."
The girls laughed again. For a moment... Everything felt wonderfully normal. Melissa looked back down at her phone. John's messages still filled the screen. She smiled.
Then... Almost without thinking... She noticed the notification sitting just above them. Two unread messages.
Amanda.
Her thumb hovered over the conversation. She stared at it. Long enough that Theresa noticed.
"You gonna answer?"
Melissa looked down at the words one last time.
"I'm trying to protect you."
A painful ache settled inside her chest. Slowly... She swiped left. The notifications disappeared. Not because she'd stopped caring. Because she didn't know what else to do. She slipped her phone back into her purse. Then stood, forcing another smile onto her face.
"Come on."
She looked toward Maria.
"Let's find you the perfect dress."
Maria grinned.
"I already have."
She struck another dramatic pose.
"I just need everyone else to catch up."
Loren groaned loudly.
"There she goes again."
Laughter filled the boutique once more. But even as Melissa laughed with them... A part of her couldn't stop wondering what Amanda had been trying so desperately to say.
The following morning... Westbrook High had somehow grown even louder.
Prom was less than twenty-four hours away.
Hallways overflowed with excited conversations as students hurried between classes carrying garment bags, tuxedo rentals, and last-minute decorations.
Amanda's argument with Melissa had become yesterday's gossip.
Today's entertainment... Was wondering who would be crowned Prom King and Queen.
Michael barely noticed any of it. He stood quietly at his locker, mechanically switching out textbooks.
His mind wasn't on chemistry. Or history.
Or prom. It was on John. The locker beside him slammed shut.
Michael didn't have to turn around. He already knew.
"We need to talk." John's voice was calm. Too calm. Michael slowly closed his locker before facing him.
"I figured."
For a moment... Neither of them spoke. Students streamed around them, completely unaware of the conversation unfolding only a few feet away. Finally... John broke the silence.
"You told Amanda."
Michael didn't pretend not to understand.
"Yeah."
John's jaw tightened.
"You told her what I said."
Michael met his eyes.
"She deserved to know."
John laughed once. A short, humorless laugh.
"It wasn't your business."
Michael folded his arms.
"You made it my business."
John frowned.
"How?"
"You said it to me."
Michael's voice remained steady. "You trusted me enough to brag about it."
John's expression immediately darkened.
"I wasn't bragging."
"No?"
Michael stepped a little closer.
"You told me Melissa would never leave because she owed you."
"I never said that." "You didn't have to."
John shook his head.
"I said..."