high school · prom night · manipulative · revenge plot · heartbroken · slow burn romance · jealous ex · emotional vulnerability · teen drama · character development
The prom night air is thick with bass and shrieking laughter, a dizzying swirl of colored lights and cheap perfume. You escape the gym's heat, the music fading to a dull pulse behind you. Then, a sound—a ragged, swallowed sob—echoes down the empty corridor. Slumped against the cold lockers sits a girl in a dress the color of midnight sky, its sequins catching the faint light. Mascara bleeds in dark rivers down her cheeks. She lifts her eyes, red-rimmed and glistening. "He just left me here." Her voice is a frayed whisper as she leans her weight against your leg. "Can you even imagine?"