“All right, twirl,” Lila commanded from the other side of the computer screen. Mack frowned but did what she asked. She had insisted on video chatting with Mack while they got ready since they wouldn’t be driving there together. Rather, Lila told Mack they couldn’t drive together because Mack had a girlfriend now and she “wasn’t no third wheel.”
“The back of your jacket has something on it,” Lila said, leaning closer to the screen. Mack tried to turn and get a good look at it as she blindly brushed at it. “It looks like cat hair. How is that possible? You don’t even have a cat. Are you just that gay?”
Mack shot Lila a look and turned back to face the computer. “Other than the cat fur, everything look okay?”
Mack was just going to wear the suit she got from the little boy’s section again, but when her mom found out that she had a real date to prom, she insisted on taking her to a tailor and getting a real suit and a gold bow tie Beth helped her pick out to match her dress, and she was good to go.
“You look great,” Lila confirmed. She winked and added, “Are you trying to make me realize what I’m missing out on? Because it’s not working. Have you seen my dress?”
Lila stepped away from the computer to show off her red dress that hugged her curves and accentuated her legs. Mack cleared her throat.
“Yes, I have. Very nice,” she mumbled as she adjusted her tie for the fifth time.
“Hey, maybe I’ll snag a cheerleader tonight,” Lila joked.
“Good luck. I have the best one anyway.”
Lila pretended to gag but smiled. “I actually really like Beth.”
“I knew you would,” Mack said as she made sure her shirt was tucked in.
“I didn’t realize she could name all the contestants of ‘Top Model’ since season one,” Lila said, shaking her head and looking impressed. “Like…damn. I might have to steal her from you.”
Mack pointed at the screen. “Don’t even try.”
Lila waved her hand dismissively. “Don’t worry. For some reason that girl is head over heels for you. I wouldn’t stand a chance.”
Mack smiled proudly just as the doorbell rang. “Ah, she’s here. I’ll see you there, okay?”
“Okay, bitch, see you there. Tell your mom to text me pictures of the two of you. I need a new phone background.”
“A phone background of me and my girlfriend?”
“Duh. I’m the biggest Macbeth shipper there is,” Lila said. “Okay. Go get your girl. I’ll see you later. Love you! Bye!”
“Bye!” Mack said just as Lila hung up. Shutting her computer, Mack took one last look in the mirror before grabbing the corsage off her dresser and heading down the stairs. She took them two at a time, only tripping once before getting to the front door. She took a deep breath and adjusted her suit jacket one more time before opening the door.
The air left her lungs as soon as she laid eyes on Beth. Her hair was up and revealed the long lines of her neck. Her dress was strapless and dipped low in the front, the gold material hugging her tightly and flaring off into a skirt at the bottom.
Mack smiled stupidly. “Wow.” Beth blushed and Mack continued. “You’re beautiful. I mean. You’re always beautiful. Just like…you’re extra beautiful and— ”
Beth kissed Mack soundly on the lips. She felt herself relax into the kiss with Beth’s hands framing her cheeks. The sound of a camera clicking interrupted their moment and they turned to see Mack’s mom snapping pictures.
“Mom,” Mack complained as she snapped a couple more photos. Beth didn’t seem to mind, though. She put her arms around Mack’s waist and kissed her cheek so that her mom could snap a few more.
“What? I’m excited for my baby’s first date,” her mom said as she snapped another picture. “Gordon! Get in here! Beth’s here!”
“I’m coming!”
Mack groaned. “I’m sorry.”
“It’s cute,” Beth whispered in her ear. Her hot breath sent a chill down Mack’s spine and she turned to putty in Beth’s arms. “And you look good. Let her take all the pictures.”
Mack remembered the corsage in her hand. “Oh!” She took a step away from Beth and held the flower between them. “Madam.”
Beth held out her wrist and Mack’s hands shook nervously as she slipped the corsage onto it. She adjusted it so it sat just right on her wrist, Mack’s fingers trailing over Beth’s palm as she pulled her hand away.
“Perfect,” Mack said with a smile.
Beth looked at it, a permanent smile on her face, as she kissed Mack’s cheek again. “Thank you.”
“All right, you two lovebirds,” Mack’s mom said, her dad behind her. “Let’s get a couple more pictures and then you can get on your way. And Mackerel, don’t worry, I already texted Lila the picture she asked for.”
Mack sighed. “Don’t you think it’s kinda weird you text my best friend?”
Her parents looked at each other, clearly confused. “No. Why would it be?” her mom asked. “I thought she was going to be my daughter-in-law there for a bit.”
“Mom,” Mack chastised.
Beth shrugged. “I kinda thought you two were into each other for a while too. She always stole your chicken nuggets at lunch.”
Mack covered her face with her hands. “God, why did everyone think that?”
“You guys touch a lot.”
“Okay, well, anyway,” Mack said, “can we get this over with so that we can get to the dance?”
“Fine, fine,” her mom said. They arranged themselves into the traditional prom poses and Mack went along with it. It was embarrassing as these things usually were with her parents fussing over her. But she had to admit, it was kind of amazing that she was getting this “typical” high school moment since Mack didn’t think she’d ever get to experience it. Dressing up and going to prom…sure. But her parents wanting to take a thousand pictures of her and her date as they stood on the stairs and held each other? That was something she never thought would happen.
“Okay, we can be done,” her dad said, carefully reaching over and confiscating the camera from her mother’s hands. Her mom sighed but nodded, tears shining in her eyes.
“You’re both just so beautiful,” she sniffled.
Mack took that as her cue to leave. “Thanks, Mom,” she said, lacing her fingers with Beth’s. “I’ll be home by midnight.”
“Be safe, girls,” her dad said as they walked toward the door. “Hey, Mackerel.”
Mack stopped as she stepped out the door and turned to look at him, worried about what embarrassing thing was about to come out of his mouth.
He smiled and put his hand on her shoulder, shaking her a little. “I’m proud of you.”
Mack looked surprised for a moment before smiling. “Thanks, Dad.”
He winked and handed her a wad of cash. “Just in case. Now get out of here.”
“Thank you.”
Mack smiled as she put the money in her pocket and led Beth out to her car. She opened the door for her, earning her a small peck on the lips before Beth slid inside. Mack practically skipped over to the driver’s side and got in.
The ride to school felt oddly short. Mack let Beth pick the music and they just talked about…well nothing really. But Mack could talk about nothing with Beth forever, as cheesy as it seemed.
It was almost a little disappointing when Mack pulled into the gym parking lot. Her stomach had gotten twisted in knots, and the way Beth was stroking the top of her hand didn’t seem to help.
“Are you sure you want to go to prom?” Mack asked, thinking about food flying at her face and the way her peers had laughed at her. “My dad gave me a bunch of cash. We could go somewhere else. Anywhere else.”
Beth squeezed Mack’s hand. Beth’s soft smile helped a little and Mack couldn’t help but smile back.
“Mack, we don’t have to go if you don’t want to, but I really want to go. And I won’t let the other kids bother you. I promise.”
Mack bit her lip and looked at Beth, wanting to believe her.
“I…They hate me,” she mumbled. “I know they’re going to give me a hard time and they’re going to see you with me and give you a hard time too.”
Beth shrugged. “Then we’ll deal with it together.”
“People are going to think you’re gay,” Mack said softly.
They’d been careful at school the couple of days between her promposal and the dance. They sat out at the bleachers at lunch and only stole glances at each other in the halls. They certainly didn’t go to school the next day holding hands and waving rainbow flags.
The bullying had started to wind down with people more excited and interested in prom than anything else. But this was going to be a kiss of death for Beth.
“Actually, I have something to show you,” Beth said opening her clutch and rummaging around until she found the button for the gay alliance she had started. She pinned it to the front of her dress and Mack noticed a few words crossed out: Friends of LGBTQ (but only friends and definitely not gay) Club.
It took a moment for her brain to process what it said before she looked back up at Beth. “But— ”
“You inspired me,” Beth said. “Before all of this I was pretty sure I didn’t like boys the same way other girls did, but I never really thought about it because it was too scary and my priest told me it wasn’t allowed. I just ignored those feelings and hoped they would go away. Then when I found out you were gay…Well, you’d always been so nice to me and I always thought there was no way that Jesus could send you to hell just because you liked girls. Then when we kissed I knew there was no way I could feel the same way about boys as I did for girls. Well, you, mostly. And you…inspired me.”
“I…no. There’s nothing here to inspire anyone,” Mack said gesturing to herself. “I’m a loser— ”
“You’re not,” Beth insisted. “Think about it. You were outed by a stupid football player and didn’t let that get you down. Instead you told them you were going to get back at them and you…well, you did. You didn’t let them keep you from being yourself and that’s really cool.”
Mack felt her cheeks burning as she stared down at her hands. “I guess I just never thought about it that way.”
Beth’s hand on her cheek made her turn her head toward her. “Well, it’s true. You’re inspiring. Like Kate McKinnon or Captain Marvel.” Beth scrunched her nose cutely for a moment before she amended her statement. “Or like…Lizzie Borden.”
“The…murderer?” Mack asked with a raise of her eyebrow.
Beth shrugged. “Have you ever read about her? She’s super interesting. And probably gay.”
Mack chuckled. “You’re cute.”
She leaned forward to kiss her just as there was a knock on the window. Mack groaned and turned to see Lila waving at them.
“Stop making out and let’s go in!” she said. Mack flipped Lila off and leaned over to kiss Beth quickly on the lips before she practically ran to the other side to open the door for her.
Beth looped her arm through Mack’s and squeezed gently as all three of them walked toward the gym. The closer they got, the more nervous Mack felt. They had passed a few people on the way and a couple gave them a double take, but each time Beth’s hand just squeezed Mack’s arm a little tighter.
Mack put her hand over Beth’s and ran her thumb over her knuckles. They stopped right before the balloon arch that was over the entrance to the gym. Mack turned to Beth, hand still covering hers.
“It’s not too late to go as just friends,” Mack said, licking her lips nervously. It would break her heart if Beth decided to keep up the friends charade, but she felt like she owed her the option.
Beth shrugged. “Even if they make fun of us, we only have two months left of school. Then it’s college where no one cares. I actually checked and USC has a bunch of queer student groups.”
Mack blinked. “You’re going to USC?”
Beth waved it off. “They begged me.”
“I didn’t even know you applied. USC is super hard to get into.”
“I know!” Beth smiled proudly. “I think my cheerleading plus all the time I spent volunteering at the vets’ offices helped. Now let’s go.”
Mack and Lila shared a look before Beth laced her fingers with Mack’s and pulled her into the gym. It was done up with a stage at the far end, balloons and colored lights everywhere. It wasn’t anything special, but it was still amazing. The dance floor was already flooded with students moving to the beat and Mack could feel Beth’s excitement radiating off her. It was contagious.
In the dimmed lights of the room, her nerves had started to dissipate. Maybe tonight wouldn’t be as bad as she thought.
“Let’s dance,” Beth said, squeezing Mack’s hand and leaning close to her. “Please?”
Mack looked over at Lila who was already shooing them away. “I’m going to find the spiked punch bowl. Have fun and save room for Jesus, you two!”
Mack rolled her eyes just as Beth pulled her out to the middle of the dance floor. Her hands were sweating and her hips moved awkwardly, so Mack just swayed along with Beth.
“See, this is nice,” Beth said, fingers raking through the hair at the back of Mack’s skull.
“Yeah, it is,” Mack admitted, her hands tightening on Beth’s waist. The song changed to a slower one and Mack swallowed thickly when Beth stepped closer to her. She glanced around and no one was looking at them. Even the teachers patrolling the dance floor seemed more interested in the straight couples practically humping each other rather than them. Thankfully.
She noticed Veronica dancing nearby with Chad, her forcing him to stay an arm’s length away. Veronica looked up, her eyes meeting Mack’s, and she smiled awkwardly. Mack smiled back, offering her a small wave before putting her hand back on Beth’s waist. The song ended and Mack reluctantly moved a little further away from Beth.
There was some feedback with the microphone on the stage and everyone cringed. They looked toward the stage and Principal Berkley was standing there sheepishly. He cleared his throat and smiled out at everyone. Lila pushed her way through the crowd and popped up next to Mack.
“Why do they make us suffer through this king and queen bullshit?” she muttered, lifting a cup of juice to her lips. “We know who’s gonna win. Chad and fucking Veronica. Boring.”
“Hello, students. Now is the portion of the night you’ve all been waiting for.” The principal paused in what Mack supposed was meant to be dramatic. “The announcement of your Prom King and Queen.”
Lila gagged and made a jack-off motion with her hand. Mack snickered and bumped her shoulder into Lila’s. She offered Mack a sip of her drink and she took it without thinking, sputtering when it just tasted like pure alcohol.
“I see you found the spiked one,” Mack said, wiping off her mouth with the back of her hand.
“Girl, I spiked this shit myself,” Lila said taking another sip.
“First! For Prom Queen we have…” The principal revealed the envelope with a flourish and opened it. He took a deep breath as he read the card and leaned into the microphone with a wide smile. “Veronica Ryder!”
There was a lot of applause, Mack and Beth included. Lila clapped slowly. “Oh my god, I’m so surprised,” she said sarcastically, making Mack laugh again. Veronica went on the stage and got her sash and crown, standing behind the principal with a wide smile.
“And now, for your Prom King…” Principal Berkley pulled out a second envelope. “Your Prom King is…” He squinted for a second, holding the card closer to his face to read it again. He cleared his throat and smiled stiffly. “Your Prom King is…Mackenzie Gomez.”
Mack felt her stomach drop to the floor. This must be a bad dream. It had to be. There was no way that this was actually happening to her. Stuff like this never happened in real life.
“Oh god,” Mack breathed out, barely feeling Beth squeezing and tugging on her arm. “Oh…god.”
“Mackenzie Gomez,” Principal Berkley repeated.
All eyes were on her, including Veronica’s—round like saucers. The gym had gone weirdly quiet and Mack swore she could hear herself breathe.
“That’s you,” Beth said before frowning. “Actually…is that your full name? Mackenzie? I thought I heard your dad call you Mackerel.”
“Mackenzie, can you please come up here?” the principal said a little desperately.
Mack grabbed the cup from Lila’s hand and quickly downed the contents, the punch burning the back of her throat and warming her stomach. She shoved the empty cup back at Lila as she looked back up at the stage. She felt a small push on the small of her back, Beth squeezing her hand one last time as her legs moved seemingly on their own accord toward the stage. She licked her lips, mouth suddenly dry, mind racing. Don’t trip. Don’t trip. Don’t fucking trip.
Standing on the stage, she looked at the principal, who looked just as confused as he put the sash and crown on her head. She turned to look at the audience, a sea of students staring back at her. The spotlight was hot and she was sure she was sweating through her suit shirt.
Mack’s eyes caught Veronica’s and she shook her head. “I don’t know what’s happening,” Mack whispered.
Suddenly, someone started clapping and she heard Lila cheering for her, Beth joining shortly afterward. There was a smattering of applause and she could hear the principal say something, but everything sounded like she was underwater. She could feel the hot press of embarrassed years behind her eyes as she just waited for the moment to be over, but each second dragged like hours.
She felt someone grab her hand and her instinct was to yank it away, especially when she saw it was Veronica. Her eyes widened as she looked at her and Veronica offered a small smile, leading her off the stage to the middle of the dance floor that had cleared out.
“Just dance with me,” Veronica said, putting Mack’s hands on her waist and her own around Mack’s neck. “Okay? Ignore everyone else.”
“What the hell is happening?” Mack whispered as they began to sway to a slow song that Mack couldn’t hear over the sound of blood rushing through her ears. “I promise I didn’t do this on purpose—”
“I know,” Veronica said with a stiff smile. “Is this ideal? No. Because you look like you’re going to barf all over me. Which…don’t, by the way. But just try and relax okay? I know you didn’t do this on purpose.”
Mack shook her head. “It’s just— I’m sorry I—”
“I know,” Veronica said. She rolled her eyes but her smile made Mack relax a little. “I get it. Plus, it was actually a sweet way to ask someone to prom. I’ve had a lot of bad promposals. I’m sorry I didn’t stand up for you.”
“It’s fine. I never expected you to. I get it. It’s high school and you’re popular with a popular boyfriend.”
Veronica shook Mack a little bit. “No. You made me realize there’s more to life than that. I applied to Harvard and I’m on the waitlist, but that’s further than I was before.”
Mack smiled genuinely for the first time since her name was called. “I’m glad. That’ll be good for you.”
“We’ll see,” Veronica said with the hint of a blush.
“Hello!” Someone practically yelled over the microphone. Mack looked up and saw Suzan standing on the stage with a manic smile on her face. “Doesn’t anyone see what I see? Veronica is a total lezzie!”
Dread overcame Mack, and she stepped away from Veronica, but Veronica stopped her, tightening her arms around Mack’s neck.
“Don’t,” she whispered even as Mack shook her head.
“She’s a big ole dyke! Just like Mack!” Suzan yelled, pointing at the two of them as whispers started to break out around them. “She’s not fit to lead the cheer squad to Nationals next weekend—”
“Are you kidding me?” Mack blurted louder than she expected. “This is some serious teen movie bullshit!” Anger bloomed in her chest as she looked at Suzan. “Have you watched too many movies in your life?” Mack asked, frustration leaking through in her voice. “This isn’t supposed to be a real-life thing. I’m guessing you rigged this shit so I would win?”
Suzan’s face was red and blotchy, hands in fists at her sides as she stared down Mack. Her mouth was thin as she spoke again. “I don’t know what you’re talking about.”
“Bullshit,” Mack said, earning a gasp from a few teachers standing by. Chad came out of the crowd, grabbed Veronica’s arm.
“What is going on here?” he hissed to her. “Is it true? Are you gay?”
Veronica scoffed and pulled her arm away from Chad. “Are you serious right now?”
The principal pushed Suzan away from the mic. “I don’t know what’s going on here, but everyone needs to remain calm.”
Veronica dropped her arms from Mack’s neck and took a step towards Suzan and the stage, fury apparent on her face. “You know what. So what if I was gay? Who cares? Leave Mack alone. She’s never done anything to any of you, and you should all be ashamed for making her feel bad for who she is! She’s been way nicer to me and more encouraging than any of my boyfriends ever have been, and you should all be thrilled if she even decided to talk to you.”
Mack blinked herself out of her shock long enough to shake her head and lean a little into the microphone. “I’m not…all that.”
Lila interrupted to pump her fist in the air and yell, “Yeah!”
The rest of the auditorium was in a stunned silence as they looked between Mack, Suzan and Veronica. Chad looked like a bull who had run ten miles, chest heaving and nostrils flaring. There was a tug on her hand and she looked over to see Beth who looked more confused than anything.
The principal cleared his throat into the microphone to get everyone’s attention again. “I would like to remind you all that any sort of same-sex romantic relationship is strictly prohibited in the student handbook.”
Mack felt her entire body chill again. She was definitely going to be sick now.
“Any student found to be participating in homosexual behavior will be dealt with and expelled. So, Mackenzie, please speak with me first thing Monday.”
“Fuck,” Mack breathed. She felt a squeeze to her hand before Beth shouted.
“I’m gay too!” Beth said, arm raised and a proud smile on her face. “You’ll have to talk to me too, Principal Berkley.”
“And me!” Lila said, stepping up next to Mack, taking her other hand. Mack looked at her best friend and smiled, tears in the corners of her eyes.
“You don’t have to—”
“I do,” Lila whispered, squeezing her hand again. “Ride or die. Remember?”
Principal Berkley had pulled a small notebook and pen from the inside of his blazer and was furiously writing down names.
“They can’t expel all of us,” Beth said.
“And me!” Veronica said, hand high and smile wide. “I’m gay!”
Suzan fist pumped in triumph. “I knew it!”
“And me!” another student said, stepping forward with their hand raised.
“And me!”
“I’m gay too!”
“Me too!”
Principal Berkley looked like he nearly strained his neck with how quickly he kept looking up and down from his notebook as more hands flew into the air.
Even Ms. Inklebam threw her hand up in the air. “Me too! I am also gay!”
Soon it was a chorus of students raising their hands, all claiming to be gay. Principal Berkley looked around confused, face getting redder with each hand that went into the air. With a final huff, he threw his notebook over his shoulder and stormed off the stage. Mack felt two sets of arms close around her, Beth on one side and Lila on the other. Only then did she let the tears of relief leak from her eyes.
“This will be addressed on Monday!” Principal Berkeley bellowed from somewhere deep in the auditorium. Suzan stalked off the stage, face redder than Mack thought humanly possible. The music started again and everyone cheered, going back to their dancing.
“I love you guys,” Mack said, voice hoarse. “Fuck you both for making me cry.”
“Love you too, dumbass,” Lila said, kissing Mack’s cheek. “Even if it didn’t work out between us.”
Mack jokingly pushed Lila away, wiping away her tears and putting her arm over Beth’s shoulders. “You’re the worst.”
“Hey,” Veronica said, taking a step closer to Mack and smiling brightly. “If anyone else bothers you, let me know. Okay?”
Mack nodded. “Thank you.”
Veronica shrugged. “Think of it as an apology.”
Mack smiled and Veronica winked at her before she turned away and disappeared into the crowd of students. Chad had gone somewhere, probably to affirm his masculinity. Lila was dancing again and Mack just stayed standing there with Beth, hugging her from the side.
“You’re very brave,” Beth said, kissing Mack’s cheek.
“Nah,” Mack said softly, turning and kissing the end of Beth’s nose so that she giggled. “I’m just…doin’ my thing.”
Beth hummed. “Well, can you do your thing on the dance floor?” she asked, swaying her hips a little. “And then maybe later you can do your thing in the back of your car? With me?”
Mack felt heat rise in her face before it stretched into a grin. “It would be my pleasure.”
Mack leaned forward and kissed Beth straight on the lips, not caring anymore who was watching.