Jackson

Interestingly enough, prom was the week right before graduation, as well as the week of our final exams. The night after exams ended, as a matter of fact. I wasn't sure why they decided to cram everything into the last two weeks, but I let it go. I was looking forward to going to prom with Kieran, and for exams to be over.

During last year's prom, Toralei and I went as friends...or, well, as close to friends as we'd ever get, anyway.

Frankie, who was on the prom committee along with Draculaura, Cleo and Clawdeen, assured me that they would get a DJ from outside Monster High this time around so that both Holt and I could spend time with Kieran there. I greatly appreciated that and I told her so, before quickly recording a video for Holt to let him know. Holt agreed to it as long as he could email the DJ a list of song recommendations. Since Chad was finally able to get him to listen to more Normie music, a bunch of it was included on that list.

But stress took precedence over my enthusiasm for a while because of exams, which was normal for me. Holt, on the other hand, wasn't the least bit concerned about his since he always passed anything art- or music-related no matter how little he studied.

During the bit of time leading up to the exams, I spent a lot of time studying, usually accompanied by Kieran and Ghoulia. Clawdeen, who had made amends with both of us a while back, occasionally joined us as well.

One downside to me getting as stressed out as I did during exam time was that I had a tendency to snap at people without meaning to, but only on occasion. This happened with Kieran a couple of times, and it definitely bothered him at first until I explained myself. Then he got it completely, which I was thankful for. The last thing I wanted was to start an unnecessary argument with him.

Exams lasted about three days at Monster High due to the number of classes, and Holt had his music exam at night, so once they were finally over I think everyone was incredibly relieved.

Now that they were done, everyone's attention was fixated on prom. A lot of people aside from Kieran and I were paired up by this point, and not just the ones you'd expect to be going together, such as Cleo and deuce. Some of the other people that were going together included Frankie and Neighthan, Howleen and Twyla—who, Clawdeen told us, were now in a relationship—and Clawdeen herself would be going with Thad, the vampire she'd met two years ago at Halloween.

On another positive note, most people at Monster High had finally stopped judging my relationship with Kieran and were now fully supportive of us. And yes, even Manny and I finally started getting along better. He didn't pick on me anymore, and we were able to hold civil conversations just fine. As a result, I didn't dread running into him in the halls between classes.

According to a video message I got from Holt, the DJ apparently approved of the list of songs he provided and would be playing them throughout prom. He'd also be taking song requests while there, which was nice. Additionally, prom would be taking place somewhere outside of, but still close to Monster High. Everyone was still going to meet up at the school, though, and would all be going together in what was referred to as a 'party bus' to the actual venue.

"When Kieran gets here, I want a picture of the two of you together," insisted my mother on the night of prom. He'd agreed to pick me up at 6:30 so that we could drive up to the school together. I'd just finished getting ready to leave, a task that had only taken about 15 to 20 minutes, tops.

"I kind of figured you would," I said, heading into the living room to wait. Both of my parents followed me. It didn't take long at all for Kieran to get here, and my mom rushed to answer the door when he did. Dad stood beside me, my little sister in his arms.

"Hello, Kieran," Mom greeted him, stepping aside so he could enter.

"Hello, Sydney," he replied. In one hand he held a box, decorated with a yin-yang symbol. "How are you guys?"

"We're doing wonderful, thank you," replied Mom as Kieran came over to greet the rest of us. My sister smiled up at him—she'd really taken a liking to him.

"Hey, you," I said once he turned towards me.

"Hi, Jackson," Kieran replied, "Here—I have something for you and Holt." He then handed me the box, which I opened to find something there for Holt and I: Two sets of tickets to see Evil Dead: The Musical live.

That was one of the few interests Holt and I shared, and we discovered that quite recently and even got Kieran into it. So this was perfect for all of us. I figured there were two sets so that Kieran could take each of us separately so we could both experience the entire thing rather than just part of it.

"Thank you so much," I said to Kieran, wrapping my arms around him again, "You have no idea how much Holt and I have wanted to see this live. He'll be thrilled, too, I know it."

"I'm glad," replied Kieran, "Not going to lie--I had a hell of a time figuring out what to get you guys. The idea just sort of popped in my head while I was checking out their website."

"Let me just run this upstairs and then we can go," I said, and he nodded. After doing that, we said a quick goodbye to my family, during which my mom got the picture she wanted, and left for the school.

Most people were already waiting in the entrance hallway when we got to the school, others slowly trickling in as time went on. Once all the graduates were there, however, we were brought out to the front steps to get our graduation photo taken. Obviously, the individual ones were finished by this time—this would just be the group one.

Then, all that remained was to wait for the bus to arrive. As Kieran and I sat down on one of the benches to wait, Draculaura approached us, overflowing with excitement. "Hi, guys! Isn't this exciting?"

"Very," I replied, grinning back. "Where's Clawd?"

"He's over there with Heath and Manny," she said, gesturing to where the three of them were standing near the door. Iris and Abbey were nearby, as well, and I noticed Neighthan and Frankie out of the corner of my eye. "So, who do you think will win prom king and queen?" she asked.

"I'm going to say Neighthan and Frankie, since they're so popular," Kieran answered, "or maybe Cleo and Deuce...although you and Clawd have a pretty good shot at winning, too."

"Aw, thanks!" Draculaura beamed. "But what about you guys? I mean, don't you think one of you might win?"

"Well, the way I see it, I don't have a snowball's chance. Jackson, maybe, but definitely not me."

"Yeah, but you'd vote for me because you're biased," I interjected, "Not many other people will."

"I may be biased, but I still think you have a much higher chance than I do," replied Kieran, "you and Holt both."

"You'd vote for us both if they let you?"

"Hell, yes."

I kissed him on the cheek. "Thanks, Kieran. What if they have us listed separately or something, though?"

"I don't care; I'll mark them both anyway."

Draculaura looked like she was trying not to squeal. "You guys are adorable together, you know that?"

"If I could have everyone's attention," Mr. Rotter's voice interjected, "the bus has arrived. Given the number of students here, we will have to send half of you first and then have the bus come back to pick the rest of you up."

Kieran and I were among the first people to board the bus. The inside looked pretty cool, more so than I expected. Someone had attached balloons to the inside of the bus, on the bar at the top of each of the windows. The seats were actually really comfortable, except for the fact that the balloons were directly above our heads.

The driver played music throughout the entire trip, albeit not loud enough to trigger Holt, and a bunch of us ended up knocking some of the balloons down and batting them back and forth at each other. That continued even after one of them popped closer to the front of the bus.

The venue itself was pretty nice, and the decorations used were in our school's colours - black, white and pink. As of now, 'Dance the Fright Away' was playing through the speakers and the DJ was getting the rest of the music ready at the back of the room. At this point, the music was quiet enough that I didn't need earplugs or anything yet.

The plan was for everyone to eat first, and the actual dance part would come after that. The tables were fairly large and each one was set for about six or seven people. At our table was Kieran, Clawdeen, Thad, Draculaura, Clawd and I.

"Yo, dudes! This place looks awesome!" Heath called over to Clawd from the table next to ours. He and Abbey were sitting with Cleo, Deuce, Frankie, Neighthan and Avea.

"I know, right?" Clawd called back, "This is going to be epic."

Soon enough the food was brought out, and I had to say I enjoyed most of it. While the food they served appealed more to monsters for the most part, that wasn't exclusively the case. For instance, one of the dessert options was white chocolate cheesecake, which I had personally never tried before and found I quite liked.

It was around the time the DJ started playing the song 'Party like a Monster' that people began to get up and start dancing. Heath was one of them, Clawd and Deuce not far behind. Kieran and I didn't join in quite yet, but we were having a lot of fun watching the others.

Soon a slow song came on, which Kieran and I did dance to. The song was 'Thinking Out Loud' by Ed Sheeran—someone I had never heard of personally but a lot of people seemed to enjoy his music, both monsters and Normies alike.

About halfway through the prom, I decided to let Holt out. "Hey, Kieran, when they announce the prom king and queen, could you do me a favour and record it for me?"

"Of course I will," said Kieran, giving me a kiss just before I slid the headphones on.

Holt

I awoke to the sound of 'Hips Don't Lie' by Shakira playing through the speakers. Kieran stood in front of me and I grinned when I saw him. All the other students were dancing along to the music, and I was quick to join in. Kieran wasn't very into that kind of dancing, so he mainly observed. But we were both okay with that, and I could tell he was still enjoying himself. Other songs that played throughout the next couple of hours included 'Shooting Stars' by Catty Noir, 'Fright Song', 'September' by Earth, Wind and Fire (which we all had loads of fun dancing to), 'Witching Hour' by Casta Fierce, 'Party Rock Anthem' and 'Thriller'. There were a good number of Justin Biter, Ghouly Gaga and Jaundice brothers songs requested too, which I couldn't really say was shocking. 

The ones that stuck out to me the most were requested by the students, particularly Ghouly Gaga's 'Must Dance' and 'Monster'. At some point someone even requested the Chicken Dance, which a lot of people participated in. And finally, the song 'Enter Sandman' by Metallica was played. That one surprised me since it was a rock song being played at prom, but I loved it at the same time. Kieran and I both sang along, and it was right after that song ended that the king and queen ballots were handed out.

"Who do you wanna vote for?" I asked Kieran as we both read the names. I noticed he'd already checked off mine and Jackson's names for prom king, which I thought was sweet.

"Hmm...how about Draculaura?" suggested Kieran.

"Sounds good to me," I replied, checking her name off. Naturally, I checked off Kieran's name as well.

A few more songs played while everyone finished voting, and when they were sure all of the ballots had been handed in they counted them up and the winners were announced.

"Ladies and Gentlemen, the votes are in. Your king and queen of this year's senior prom are Gil Webber and Lagoona Blue!"

"Whoo! Congrats, guys!" I called to them, and Gil responded with a thumbs-up as he and Lagoona went up to get their crowns, a gold one for Gil and a silver one for Lagoona. As their picture was taken in front of a starry backdrop, I noticed Cleo was real disappointed she didn't win. She didn't do much about it other than complain to Deuce, but still.

Gil and Lagoona also lead the next dance as prom king and queen, and soon everyone was on the dance floor along with them. It was pretty lucky for us that at prom they played more than one slow song since that meant both Jackson and I got to dance with Kieran at least once. After it was over, I sat down with Kieran at our table, partly because my feet needed a break, and we had fun chatting and watching the others dancing while the music continued to play.

To say prom was over too quickly was an understatement for me, because it really was an awesome night. And I could tell Kieran felt the same way.