“You just want to see Bryan.” Her eyes gleamed at me. Was I that obvious? “And why not? You look great. That’ll show him. I’ll get Brooke. You find Laura.”
I huffed out a breath, practicing my best runway strut past the decorations in Shanda’s super-high heels. Sometimes, I wished I hadn’t told her about that night, the elevator. But of course she’d insisted she just “had to know” why we were acting like awkward middle-schoolers every time we saw each other between classes or in the dining hall. At least she never teased me in front of anyone else. That girl was proving she could really keep a secret.
I found Laura with a trash bag in her hands and my Shanda-tude kicked in. “Girl, the night’s only begun. Let’s enjoy this while we can. You can clean up tomorrow. Right now you’ve earned some well-deserved bragging rights.”
“Maybe you’re right.” She giggled at me, grabbing her purse. “I’ll get pictures of third floor Denby and put them next to mine in the Brewster family scrapbook.”
“There won’t be any comparison.” I pushed her toward Shanda and Brooke.
She paused at the end of the hall to tell Monica the judges had been by. Our gorgeous blonde RA was decked out in a red taffeta ball gown, a strange shadow slithering around her feet. When I blinked, the image was gone. Weird.
“Don’t you clean up nice?” Shanda eyed Monica up and down. “Like one of those girls who hands out the statues at the Oscars. How perfect are you?”
“Thanks, I think.” Monica smoothed down her dress with a frown. “Someone had to be the belle of the ball.”
“Don’t mind her. You look gorgeous.” Laura tried to drag Shanda out the door, but the poor little red-head didn’t have enough strength.
“That’s always you, isn’t it?” Shanda flipped her hair over her shoulder and flounced out the door.
I clicked down the stairs after her, with Laura and Brooke tumbling through the front door behind me.
Once we hit the night air, she finally turned around. “Before you say anything, I know, I shouldn’t be so catty. But I saw her flirting with Kevin yesterday. She just gets to me.”
“Can’t say I blame you there. For some reason she’s always seemed just a little off to me.” A gust of cold wind blasted us, so I wrapped the scarf tighter and picked up the pace.
“Right? Thank you,” Shanda said, pumping her fist in the air like she’d finally been vindicated.
Laura rubbed her shoulders and edged close to me, while Brooke huddled against my other side. My teeth chattered as I tugged down the hem of the tiny dress Shanda had talked me into. It barely came down to my knees.
Shanda didn’t seem to notice the cold. Blind rage probably kept her warm.
“Maybe it’s not what you think. It could’ve been a misunderstanding.” Laura’s tiny voice almost got lost in the wind.
“I know you’re probably right. I should just let it go. He’s my boyfriend, not hers.” Shanda rubbed her arms. “Wow, it’s cold out here.”
“No kidding.” I turned my head to Laura and Brooke, rolling my eyes.
Our heels clacked against the pavement, a hollow sound on the almost empty sidewalk. We scurried for the warmth of the boy’s dorm.
The third floor of Denby screamed its superhero theme at us. Lenny had decked the place out with giant paper-mache versions of Spiderman, Batman, and all the comic book heroes. He also had painted life-size versions onto plywood and cut out holes in each face.
“C’mon, let me get a picture.” Laura practically shoved my head into Wonder Woman. Shanda peeked through the Captain America cut-out, scowling as Laura snapped the shot. “Now get me and Lenny.”
She handed me the camera, then hollered down the superhero tunnel. “Lenny, get down here.”
A bright orange head peeked out of a doorway.
“Nice costume, Lenny. Are you wearing PJs?” Brooke cracked up as he shuffled toward us in his black cape and faded Batman t-shirt.
“It’s not as nice as your lovely outfit, I must say.” He eyed the purple flowy dress she’d borrowed from me.
Her ears and neck pinked up. Not from the cold this time.
“Nice, Lenny. Smile now.” I held the camera to my eye, stifling a giggle.
“Wow.” Bryan’s whistle carried up the tunnel as he approached. “You look amazing.”
I snapped the photo, and then the world stopped for a second. Camera spots flashed in my eyes, gradually fading until I caught him staring at me.
“That’s the idea.” Shanda twirled in the ivory Marilyn dress that contrasted perfectly with her chocolate skin. “You should see Laura’s Hollywood set designs. It totally blows this out of the water. She could go on Broadway with those babies.”
Laura’s blush highlighted the emerald green of her A-line dress. Made me wish I’d raided her closet instead. As if I’d ever fit into any of her doll-sized clothes. I toyed with my silver sequined hem again.
Tony sneaked up behind Bryan, eyes glued on Shanda. “So what, I got to use a chainsaw for these cutouts. How cool is that?”
“Don’t do your victory lap yet.” Lenny edged us out the door and into the stairwell. “Kevin’s creation is ten times better than ours. You’ve gotta see the fourth floor. You’ll freak out. Literally.”
Chapter 20
We trailed Lenny up the stairs, straight into a long black dungeon. The lights glowed red. The walls were covered in black plastic, and skeletons dangled from the ceiling. Ghoulish sounds echoed off the cement-brick walls. The creepy, sweet smell of dry ice fogged up from the floor in a misty cloud.
Shanda batted at the little skeletons. The movement triggered a net of cobwebs that dive-bombed us from the ceiling.
I flung my arms over my head as the sticky gauze swooped over us.
“My hair.” She shrieked, and the boys laughed.
Goosebumps popped up my arms in a wicked tingle, sending all the butterflies screaming away. The
