Dev Dreams, Volume One by Ruth Madison Page A

a table in a ballroom
watching people dance. He was already in a bad mood because they'd
had to fight to use the elevator to get to the ballroom where the
prom was being held. “I'm not trying to look like a pimp with this
fucking thing,” Jake had said to the person at the front desk,
holding up his cane, “I can't walk right, you idiot.” Alex took
over and convinced the man to let them use the elevator.
    “I can't believe you talked me into this,”
Jake said now.
    “I just thought you might have a good time,”
Sophie said.
    “Watching Lucy dance. That's a real good
time.”
    “Shut-up, Jake. You don't have the monopoly
on misery here.”
    “You seem to be having a fine time.”
    “Seem.” Sophie looked out across the dance
floor away from him, but he still saw her eyes and knew that
something was bothering her. Still, he wasn't ready to let go of
his own pain.
    “What are you all upset about? Nobody asked
you to the dance?” he said.
    Sophie stared at him and just as guilt began
to prickle his skin she spoke, '”Fine. I don't know why I talk to
you. I can see you're too busy feeling sorry for yourself to
consider the strain this night puts on other people besides
you.”
    “This was your idea,” Jake said, but she was
already gone, shoving her way through the crowd. He knew she didn't
leave the dance, though, because he saw her a while later standing
on the other side of the room.
    Sophie thought about calling her dad to pick
her up. She didn't know why she had thought this would be fun. Most
of the time it didn't bother her that she wasn't a popular kid, but
she could really feel how different she was here. And time was
running out for her to do what she had promised she would. Tonight
was the perfect opportunity and she was fighting it.
    She didn't have a cellphone, as she found
phones scary, but she could use the phone downstairs at the venue.
It was an emergency, she could get through one simple phone call to
her dad. She started to walk that way, but tripped on the hem of
her dress. She was powerless to stop the forward momentum and
landed in an embarrassed heap on the floor. Her face flushed and
her vision began to blur with tears. She would never be the
graceful, elegant, mature women that Jake dated.
    She hardly felt the energy to get to her feet
again. The night could not get any worse. This was going to be her
memory of her senior prom. It was ruined.
    Then a hand presented itself in her periphery
vision, through the veil her own hair was creating across her
face.
    “Thank you,” she muttered, grasping the hand
and standing up. She found herself standing in front of Jake, less
than two inches from his face. “Sorry,” she said, “You shouldn't be
having to rescue me all the time.”
    He smiled. “If I don't do it, who will?
Sophie, you are such a walking disaster that you may be the only
person left on earth that I can still help.” He pulled her close
and hugged her with one arm, while leaning on his cane with the
other. “Why don't you come back to the table and make fun of people
with me?”
    She started to smile and agree when she
noticed something over his shoulder. “Oh my gosh,” she said, her
mouth hanging open in surprise, and Jake slowly turned to see what
she was looking at.
    It was his brother. A slow song was playing
and Alex was swaying while holding Paul. They seemed unaware of the
rest of the room, looking only at each other. People nearby stopped
dancing, looked around at everyone else to see what they should
think or say. Jake stared. And then Alex leaned forward and kissed
Paul on the lips.
    A chaperone arrived and pulled Alex by the
arm until he had to drop his hold on Paul and both began to laugh.
Jake turned back to Sophie with wide eyes.
    “I guess you were right,” he said, “Something
is going on with my brother.”
    “Looks like they held up their part of the
pact too.”
    “That just leaves you, Sophie. What will it
be, pencils? Telephones?