Let the Dance Begin!

[Moth*]

Where?

Celeste suddenly stopped her movements, opening her eyes and staring straight ahead blankly as she drew a bit of a blank. Huh. That was a good question. They certainly couldn't do anything in the school or on the grounds--the teachers were on patrol, and if they were caught...Well, it'd be way too much trouble, far more than Celeste wanted to deal with. For both herself and John. And if they did the smart thing and actually left school grounds, would they be allowed back in? And what about when John's dad came to get them?

"Shoooot..." she grumbled, face turning pink. "That seems to be a little bit of a problem, then, doesn't it?" She supposed they could wait another day...maybe. But now that she'd thought of it, she really wanted to actually have sex. But on the other hand...Better to wait and masturbate later than to get caught having sex in a bathroom...or miss Prom and have to explain ourselves to 'Mister John' when he gets us...We might not get to wait in the same spot, she thought to herself, grumbling internally. With a resigned sigh, Celeste looked back up at John, shrugging her small shoulders and smiling apologetically. "I guess you've got me there, Big Guy...Sorry if I got you excited for nothing. Didn't mean it, honest..." she whispered, kissing him again. "I just can't think of...I'm sorry."

[Ruggahissy]

Isabel swayed and rocked expertly to the music. However, when she turned around she found herself alone.

"Allen?"

In short order she saw her prom date on the floor. Isabel had to cover her mouth to hide her smile.

It's pretty funny, but I don't want him to think that I'm a total bitch.

Isabel looked down at her feet and made sure she had a wide, strong stance that wouldn't yield. It didn't look like the most lady-like thing in her dress, but she didn't really care.

She bent down, grabbed the fabric of one of his sleeves firmly and tried to pull him up.

"What happened, you okay?" she said trying to push down her smile now that she couldn't hide it with her hands.

"You wanna go take a break? Get some punch or something? Though by the looks of some people here I'm not sure the punch will make you more stable on your feet."

[Acelister*]

"Shoooot... That seems to be a little bit of a problem, then, doesn't it?"

John nodded regretfully. With school clamping down on things that teenagers shouldn't be doing in school, they would be suspended if caught. Then no class trip for them. And who knew what kind of places they could have sex when they go there!

"I guess you've got me there, Big Guy...Sorry if I got you excited for nothing. Didn't mean it, honest... I just can't think of...I'm sorry."

"Hey, don't worry about it." he smiled, rubbing her back gently. "If we risk it, we don't get to go on the class trip. And while we're there..."

He winked, letting her fill in the blanks there.

"I totally want it again, but I can wait..." he told her. Of course, he hoped she wanted him and dragged him off somewhere to have him. Or at least go into a corner and dry-hump.

[Solitair*]

Lily waited for Iggy to show up. She waited a few minutes, then a few minutes more. Pessimistic thoughts began to blossom in her mind, and before she knew it, her cell phone came out of her purse and into her hand.

Thankfully she had the foresight of asking him for his number after they made plans; she punched the number into her phone and held it up to her ear. A look of annoyance crossed her face after the third ring, and when she heard Iggy's voice telling her to leave a message, she sighed and began rubbing her forehead. "Iggy, if you're there, please pick up. I'm at Prom right now, and I expected you to be right behind me. I don't know where you are or why you're not here yet, but... get here whenever you can, alright. Just pick up."

The volume drained out of her voice as she talked to Iggy's machine, until her voice became so quiet that she doubted it carried over the phone. She looked down on her phone with sadness and flipped it shut, looking around the room. Everyone seemed to be having so much fun with their dates... and some people seemed perfectly fine without them, too. Could she be part of the latter category?

The answer to the question would have to wait, though, because her phone rang out in her hand again. She hurriedly opened it and practically slammed the inside of it into her ear. "Iggy?" she exclaimed.

"What? No, it's me, Roland." Her brother's voice brought her back down quickly, as it was markedly different from Iggy's. "Why are you asking for Iggy?"

"I'm sure you can guess why. It's really irritating me. Say, why aren't you here? Weren't you going to the prom with Laverne?" Lily leaned against the refreshment table as she tried her best to listen to Roland's voice over the newer, louder song from the DJ.

She heard a groan from the other end of the phone. "Laverne couldn't come. She came down with a bad case of food poisoning. I really feel sorry for her, being forced to miss Prom like that."

Lily nodded. "So you didn't see a point in coming here, huh?"

"Ehhhhh. Honestly? I don't really see a point to Prom without a date."

"Roland-"

"Before you say anything, I know that there are people there going stag, and they're having a good time, and I can dig that."

"Roland-"

"But it's not really my thing, and I just caught word of a marathon of The Wire. I didn't even know that was possible. It's a once-in-a-fucking-lifetime event, too, and I'm gonna have a lot more fun with it."

"Why are you calling, Roland, besides defending your choice to stay home?"

"Mostly just cause Mom wanted me to check up on you. And I wanted to tell you that I wouldn't be there."

It was at this point in time that JJ Sturn walked... well, stumbled into the dance hall, looking like he should be halfway to death's door via alcohol poisoning. It was hard to tell if Lily had ever seen a more pitiable sight outside of the local soup kitchen. Roland was still talking about whatever show he wanted to watch at home, but she wasn't listening. She was paying more attention to JJ colliding with a girl reading an e-book, listening to people discuss him, and mostly treating him like a leper.

"Is something going on?" Roland asked, curious about her silence.

"Sorry, Roland. I've got to go for now. Tell Mom I'll be fine, alright?"

"Alright. See you later."

The dial tone sounded, and Lily flipped her phone closed as she walked over to JJ. She reached her hand out as JJ unsteadily rose to his feet, ready to help if he needed it. "You alright, JJ?" she asked him.

[JamesRenard*]

Allen had just finished tightly tying his shoelace, satisfied that it wasn't going to come undone on him again, when he felt Isabel's hand grasp firmly on the sleeve of his jacket.

"What happened, you okay?" he heard Isabel ask. "You wanna go take a break? Get some punch or something? Though by the looks of some people here I'm not sure the punch will make you more stable on your feet."

"I'm fine, I managed to trip on my shoelace," Allen sighed, thankful that the warm sensation on his cheeks was starting to fade away. With Isabel's help pulling him up, he was soon back on his feet, dusting off his jacket, shirt and trousers to rid them of any dirt he picked up when he fell. 'That's good, no one's laughing at me. I guess no one saw that then.'

"Wait, what was that about the punch?" Allen asked, turning round to look at the snack table again. Some of the other students were clustered nearby, helping themselves to food. One guy in particular seemed to be having a hard time remaining upright, and looked to be heavily intoxicated. "Wow, did the punch get spiked already?" he commented, his eyebrows rising up in surprise.

Scratching the punch off the list of things able to be consumed tonight, he turned back to Isabel. "It's okay, really. I'll be fine for a while at least," he replied, starting to get back to 'dancing' in time with the beat. "If you're ready, let's dance the night away," he said, smiling at Isabel.

((Allen Birkman continued in The Dance Must go on!))

[Ruggahissy]

Isabel gave up on trying to hide it and let her smile through. She clasped her hands in front of her and watched him dust himself off.

"That's okay, Allen. I didn't see anything. It never happened," she said, holding a finger up to her mouth.

"Wow, did the punch get spiked already?" he commented, his eyebrows rising up in surprise.

"We'll find out later," she said teasingly.

Isabel could hardly believe it. Here she was, smiling, dancing and making jokes. She was even possibly being a little flirtatious. On a day to day basis those thing were miles away from how she acted. At this realization Isabel became scared.

It's okay. This is what teenagers do. Television sitcoms have led me to believe that I am doing prom correctly. Just for tonight, let go a little. And he's so nice. What a nice guy.

"I was born ready, buddy."

((Isabel Guerra continued in The Dance Must Go On!))

[Moth*]

Hey, that's right, the class trip...Wow, that'd make it even more fun! Celeste couldn't stop smiling, or help herself from giggling a bit. She doubted they'd be the only two to try it, but it sounded...kinda risky. Dangerous, a little. There was that chance they'd get caught, but still! That was what made sex fun sometimes. "Yeah, that sounds good," she agreed, flashing another smile at John. "Real fun, too!"

Hmm...but they were still here, though, right now. They very well couldn't time-travel, or do anything here, so...Celeste sighed quietly to herself. may as well go back to dancing.

"You know, I just realized," she said suddenly. "I never found out what you plan to do after graduating, and we're so close to it...Any ideas?"

[Acelister*]

"You know, I just realized, I never found out what you plan to do after graduating, and we're so close to it...Any ideas?"

John had to chuckle at that. They knew nothing about each other. As if they had only met to lose their virginities and never meet again...

"I've got a job waiting for me." he told her with pride. "I got an apprenticeship with a landscaping firm, so I'm going to do that."

He felt very proud that he already had a job lined up. His future was certain. There were plenty of things that could happen between now and then, but it wouldn't improve the mood if he brought up the fact that a bus could hit him when he was crossing the street or something.

"What are you going to do?" he asked her. He was enjoying holding her and being with her like this. It wasn't fun in the same way as the last day they spent together, but it was still fun.

[Dr. Nic*]

"Now that's more like it! And don't worry, like I said, I don't drink. And I doubt we'll be the only ones."

Will smiled as Everett excused himself to make a call, and for a moment, William was alone with his thoughts. He was happy, of course, but mostly relieved; After-all, Peter was likely to spend most of the night alongside Maddy, and William definitely didn't want to be a third wheel if he went with them. With Everett going along, at least he would have someone to hang around with, someone to talk to and spend time with instead of standing around and watching the party go on without much chance of joining in.

Nah, I'm sure I would have found somebody to talk to.

Being alone was never fun, and William checked his watch again while Everett made his call. Hadn't changed much since he checked it only a few moments before, but he looked to the doors and then to the people that surrounded him; those out on the dance floor and the others that hung near the snack table. Most of them were couples; long established relationships or last minute dates, friends and classmates and hell, many of them either were or would be lovers. That little thought brought a smirk to William's face. How many people planned on 'going all the way' tonight? After all, it was always expected when you thought of senior prom; Picking up your date, going to the school and spending the night dancing, slipping out and spending the rest of the night in some beautiful spot in the back of the car. With places like 'Make out point' or something like that used the most.

So prom is like an old movie?

Cause nothing says romance like a cramped and stuffy car, awkward fumbling and dozens of other cars with dozens of other people doing the same thing. Or maybe it would be like a newer movie, where the prom going couple sneaks off during an after party in search of a room in someone's home that wasn't already being used by another couple with the same idea.

...Maybe I shouldn't go with them.

"Sounds like a plan then."

William spoke up, dragging himself out of his thoughts as Everett returned and grabbed another glass of punch. Life wasn't a bad teen movie or some horrible romance novel, and William took a moment to shake off any thought that it might be. He also used that moment to finally grab something from the snack table that would be a bit more filling than punch, since standing at the table without a bit of food or drink didn't make much sense to him. He came away from it with a small array of little snacks in one hand, and another plastic cup filled with punch; And, thankfully, a cleared head, free of thoughts of bad movies and bad prom nights.

"Time to make the best of the night then. Standing around here for, what, two hours? That doesn't sound too fun to me."

William turned to look out at the dance floor again, looking around the room for what had to be the hundredth time tonight. He'd long since given up on finding the person he was looking for, and he hadn't brought his cellphone to call either. He hadn't brought much with him besides the essentials, and the cellphone didn't make the cut. His attention turned to Everett again, with only a moment taken aside to realize that Peter still hadn't returned from retrieving a drink. How long had he been gone, anyways? William had gotten so distracted with his own thoughts that he barely noticed that Peter left at all, and only now did he realize how long he had been gone for.

Oh, there he is. Who is he talking to?

A name didn't come up when he saw the young man's face, but that was to be expected; He may have recognized some people, but names were another thing. But he could see that Peter and the other young man were talking, so his attention once again turned back to Everett.

I swear, I have ADD or something.

"So... how do we make the best of the night?"

[Grand Moff Hissa]

Will talked to Everett, encouraging the boy even more. He was actually starting to warm up to the idea of this party thing. Sure, there wouldn't be much to do, but at least there would be interesting people around. Will seemed to be thinking along similar lines, which was good. The only problem now, as Will pointed out, was what to do with the remaining time at the actual dance. Everett considered that. What on earth could they do?

"Well," he said, "we could always try finding people to dance with." He laughed quietly at that. No, that was one thing that was off the menu tonight. Everett had no intention of complicating his life like that. Besides, he was sure to be a terrible dancer. "Seriously, though," he added, "if you see someone you want to ask, go for it. I don't mind hanging out alone for a bit. Otherwise, I guess we could try to find some more cool people to chat with, or something. I don't know... I've never been much for school dances."

That was the polite way of saying he'd never been to something like this before, had come planning to be bored, and couldn't see too much of a way out of it. Whatever. It was two hours or so. There were always worse things to do than nothing. Of course, there were better ones too. He continued to think, watching the dance floor. Some people seemed to really be getting into the spirit of things. Some a little bit more than was exactly... proper. It was Prom, though, so he couldn't bring himself to disapprove too much.

[Solomir*]

Peter hadn't really expected Brook to take him up on his offer. It was half a joke, half a polite gesture; it seemed a bit petty to not share even a little bit. Now he had to own up to it. He wasn't bitter about it or anything, but there was still that nagging feeling in the back of his head that felt like hoarding all of his vodka. Understandable behaviour, maybe, but it still felt shamefully selfish.
Justification is for the weak willed. Accept the weakness and aim to be stronger.
"There are some stories that people have died from a little bit," Peter said conversationally as he reached out to pour the vodka into Brook's outstretched cup. The utter inappropriateness of the comment hit him a split second after he said. "I read it on some urban legend site though, so they're probably lying," he said quickly to avoid an awkward situation. He really wanted to hit himself for his stupidity now. As he tipped the flask to add a little spike to Brook's punch, he threw another glance around to make sure no authority figures were close enough to catch them.

The weight of the flask tipped it over a little more than Peter had intended, as his attention was not wholly focused on careful pouring. He caught himself as quickly as he could, but the damage had been done: he'd poured probably about a half shot too much.
"F-" Peter was about to swear, but then realized it would be better to make it look like he had intended to pour that much. Brook might not notice if he didn't make a big deal of it.
It's actually more telling that I can figure out exactly how much extra I poured.
"Don't stand around all night and mope, man," Peter said as he capped the flask and slipped it back into his pocket. "And don't let Bishop stop you. Just stop over, say hi. Tiffany's not the kind of girl to just brush people off." Peter took another cup and filled it with punch for Maddy. It wouldn't be very gentlemanly of him to not bring something back for her after all. "I gotta get back before Maddy decides to jump me and steal my stash. If you really need more later…." Peter shrugged as he trailed off. Brook would probably be fine.
Great. Now I'm a drug dealer too. Well, kinda a drug dealer.
Picking up the two cups, he walked back over to where Everett, Will, and Maddy were still standing. He had seen Everett walk off for a short moment while he had been at the punch bowl, but he had returned. At least Maddy hadn't been left standing all alone. He handed the cup of punch to Maddy as he rejoined the small group. "Back. What'd I miss?"

Wait. Had the cup of spiked punch been in his left hand or right hand?
It was the right one. Everything's fine.

[MK Kilmarnock]

"What... whatever you say, right?"

Brook looked down at the filled cup in his hand. That was quite a bit of liquor to be going into a small amount of punch, but he didn't really feel like worrying about it all too much. This was prom, and prom only happened once in a lifetime! Nodding so give Peter a fair send off, Brook began to mosey on back to his table, lifting the cup to his lips.

He didn't take a drink just yet. What if one of the teachers saw him swaying a bit? Especially Kwong; it wasn't like Brook had a major problem with Mr. Kwong, as he recognized him as being a good teacher who just had a problem with kids being disrespectful, imagine that, but he still WAS a hardass, and wouldn't take kindly to flagrant rulebreaking.

Well... let's think about it. I'm going to be a whole lot let obvious than JJ, because I can actually hold my liquor. And if they breathilize me or something, I'll claim that somebody must've spiked my drink or something. Bonus points, 'cuz it's not lying!

Brook tilted the cup up and allowed the alcoholic drink to enter his mouth. There were the usual bits of punch flavor, but it now had that delicious, stinging bite to it. This wasn't the first time he had ever consumed alcohol, coming from an Irish family. His family had lots of reunions, reunions with liquor. It wasn't unlikely for the kids to snag a few drinks, get together in a secluded spot, and enjoy the over-hyped stuff. This WAS his first time drinking outside of such occasions, however.

He walked around the tables for a little bit, letting the stuff kick in and really sink into his system. His balance was beginning to be affected a bit, but it was nothing unusual, at least from what Brook had experienced. Peter had his hands on some gooooood stuff, though.

Once he had given himself a while for the liquid happiness to take hold, Brook thought back to something Peter had said. Ha... yeah, maybe he's right... who fuckin' needs her? I should pay ol' Bishop Boy a visit, congratulate him, have a grand ol' time! You only have prom once, they always say! With a foolish smile etched into his face, Brook began to seek out Bishop and Tiffany, having no idea what he might get himself into.

[xylophonefairy*]

Maddy was jolted back to life by Peter handing her a cup of punch which she gratefully accepted and immediately took a swig from. She'd been enjoying a slightly bizzarre daydream that mostly involved the Coach being chased from the room by all of the seniors who had somehow got their hands on pitchforks, and who were yelling that they didn't want to run the cross country route any more, because the Mall had opened early and they wanted to go shopping instead. She had always thought daydreams were meant to be more logical than night time dreams, but that seemed to put that little theory to test.

"Thanks," she said after her gulp, guessing that she must have been thirsty.

"What'd I miss?"

"Well, I think we convinced these guys to come to an after party of some description!" Maddy said triumphantly as though it was her victory, even though she'd only played a little part of it. "So now I'm probably going to hell for being a bad influence on my peers," she joked, though feeling the little twinge of guilt she always got when she poked fun at her religion. Really she should stop doing it, but it was just too easy.

[Moth*]

Celeste's eyes widened. "You already got something lined--You've got an apprenticeship?!" she squeaked. Wow, that was awesome... "That is so cool," she added, a large grin appearing on her face. Wow, Big Guy really had something else going for him too...she didn't even know what she was really going to do...Hell, she hadn't even looked at colleges yet, or even bothered to apply for scholarships! They were all going to the smarter, richer kids, who likely had dozens of special achievements under their belts, so why b other anyway?

"As for me...I really don't know," she admitted frowning a bit. She shrugged. "I never really thought too hard on it...didn't really have any grand dreams or schemes...Figure maybe I can go freelance, be a web designer...Failing that, get a regular job as a cashier, waitress, I dunno." As she said those words, Celeste felt her face heat up in embarrassment and...a bit of shame. Damn, John had a job lined up with a landscaping firm, and what did she say she would do? Freelance or be a waitress? How embarrassing!

"But..aheheh..." she laughed nervously, trying to brush it off. "But hey, I can always make it big later, right? Maybe I'll just be a late bloomer, so to speak."

[Dr. Nic*]

William listened as Everett spoke, picking up mostly on the mention of asking someone to dance. He certainly had someone in mind when it came to dancing or spending the night with, but it wasn't exactly going to happen. But William lowered his voice anyways before speaking to Everett.

"Well, just between the two of us, I'd rather like to da-"

William stopped talking immediately once he noticed Peter rejoining the group, asking what he had missed. He listened for a moment as Maddy told him that Everett and Will would be going to the after party, and then a quip about her influence on her peers.

Trust me, I'm a far worse influence.

"Please, it's not like you'll be volunteering us for keg stands."

...Probably not a good idea to give her ideas. Just in case.

William smiled idly before starting in on one of the snacks held in the napkin he was holding, taking a sip of the punch between bites as he took a moment to ponder the night. Dancing might be fun, but he would need to find someone to dance with. Most of the people at the dance now were couples, and he doubted that would get much better later on; After all, prom was something that mostly appealed to couples, and if you were at prom then you were likely with someone.

"So, what shall we do now?"

He had an idea, something to pass the time until they could head to a party, if there was one; But he'd rather see what everyone else had in mind before mentioning it.