The Valentine's Day dance would begin an hour after class was dismissed. For this reason, almost everyone got ready in the locker rooms, where we chatted until the music started to play in the gym.

I sat in the corner with my head down, waiting for someone to leave the stalls, as, I refused to undress in the open.

"Marnie, hey," someone addressed me, and I looked up to find Cornelia, who sat beside me and began to examine her acrylics.

Naturally, she wore a sparkly blush pink skater dress with a clutch purse and heels to match. Diamonds dangled from her ears, and she'd done her hair up with the littlest bit of glitter.

"You look nice, 'Lia," I told her, and she smiled.

"Thanks! Now, about you dating my brother-"

"Woah! Who said we were dating?"

"You're going to the dance together. The sweethearts' dance. By the end of the night I wouldn't be surprised if he gave you a fruit loop and called it a promise ring."

"It's a dance, 'Lia, not a couple's getaway!"

"Details, details. Like I was saying," she began adjusting her mascara in her pocket mirror, "Don't break him, Mar. Or I'll have to break you, and I really like you!"

Outwardly, I chuckled as Cornelia did, but my stomach turned at her threat.

"So what's the plan for tonight? Are we just going to hang at the dance as normal and then start looking for clues after the bus drops us off at camp?" I impatiently watched the stall doors.

"Yes, that's right. Sonia will be here soon, and then-"

"Sonia's coming to the dance?!"

"Um, duh. Her parents are tight with Principal Schaefer so Sonia was allowed to join us for the trip and the dance. I thought I texted you that!"

"I didn't get-"

Suddenly, there was a loud crash across the locker room, and everyone fell silent, turning towards the noise.

One of the rickety stall doors had fallen down, and a protective wall of girls blocked whoever was exposed because of it.

"Damn! You'd think a school suckling on a bunch of parents' teats could afford to repair their stalls," Cornelia snickered, then began applying her perfume.

One of the girls covering the open stall caught my eyes. Rachel Greene.

"Wow, Marnie!" Rachel shouted at me, causing everyone to stare my way, "I knew you were a dyke, but I didn't know you were also a perv! Are you trying to see inside Gloria's stall?"

Searing dread sunk in my gut, and I stammered as I tried to respond, "W-What? No, I-"

"She's not a dyke, and if you call her that again I'm going to hit you with the f*cking stall door!" Cornelia countered after standing to face Rachel, and the locker room erupted into a flurry of hushed gossiping.

Rachel laughed in response. Gloria, then dressed, stepped out of the stall, followed by the other girls who blocked her, to join the crowd. All eyes were on Rachel, Cornelia, and I.

"Please, Lin, save your breath. Don't you remember the spin the bottle game back in middle school? Marnie couldn't get enough of me then, it makes sense her behavior would escalate to creeping on vulnerable girls now!" Rachel rushed across the room until she was staring down at me.

Tears began to pool in my eyes. I knew Rachel was the type of girl whose life revolved around drama, but why had she chosen me to be at the epicenter of it that day?

"That's not...I wasn't..."

"You weren't what, Marnie? Being a f*cking lesbian creep?"

Cornelia's eyes blazed as she retaliated for me, "She's not even into girls, Rachel! Go pick your damn petty fights with someone else!"

Rachel leaned closer to me, barely a breath away. Smirking, she asked, "Oh, so you're not into girls, Marnie?"

I backed away from her, speechless. The walls felt like they were closing in around me. Every pair of eyes seemed to burn through my skin.

"Stop!" I shouted, shoving Rachel away from me and gathering my things before I ran as fast as I could out of the locker room.

At the exit, I bumped into Sonia, who wore a red lace off-the-shoulder fit and flare dress. When she held onto me as I attempted to make my hasty escape, I could smell the burn in her hair from the curling iron she'd used.

"Where the hell are you running to, Marnie?" Sonia asked me, and her expression became increasingly concerned when she noticed my erratic breathing.

The hushed gossiping got louder when everyone noticed Sonia. They knew her to be Kyle's twin sister.

I tried to push past her, tears falling, but she was stronger.

"Show me who hurt you so I can beat their a*s!" Sonia insisted, and Cornelia pointed at Rachel.

"I'm just telling it like it is," Rachel scoffed, "Marnie's a dyke and she always has been."

Sonia herded me into a corner, where Cornelia came to my side. Sonia then stepped forward, eyes alight with fury.

"So. What?" Sonia seethed, fists clenched.

"What do you mean so what? So she shouldn't even be in this locker room!" Rachel put her hands on her hips.

"She shouldn't be in this locker room because she likes girls? Well, guess what, b*tch. I like girls too. But unlike Marnie, I'm not gentle. If I catch you f*cking with her again, I'm going to beat. Your. A*s."

The girls in the locker room shouted and cackled.

"I-Is that a threat?" Rachel asked, her anger faltering.

"Yes. And it's also a promise. Now sit down," Sonia ordered, and begrudgingly, Rachel complied.

•

Sonia insisted that I put on my dark blue high-low dress and heels before she'd let me leave the locker room. I didn't fight her on it, knowing that submitting to her will would make it go by quicker. The moment I pinned the inauthentic white flower to my hair, I zoomed out and to the recess turf, which was deserted, save for the few people who wanted to avoid the excitement of the locker rooms.

Cornelia and Sonia sat beside me on a bench, and Sonia spoke first.

"Why do you let people talk to you like that, Marnie? You can't be showing weakness. They've got to know who's boss!"

I lowered my eyes, "I don't know..."

"See, you're doing it right now! Stand up for yourself for once. It shouldn't matter what other people say about you liking girls."

I tried to counter, "But I don't lik-"

"God, we're still on that? You haven't changed."

Sonia stood, making her way towards the gym at the sound of the music starting. Watching her walk away tore my heart in two. Had I ruined yet another chance to make amends?

Conflicted, Cornelia looked between the two of us. Eventually, she settled on following Sonia, leaving me alone.

I would stay alone for several more minutes, until finally I joined the dance, head cleared.

*

After the initial drama, the evening was able to wear down into something fun. Couples danced merrily across the waxed floors, throwing glow sticks into the air in time with the beat of booming songs. Chaperones reclined at the edges of the gymnasium, sipping the party punch slowly as they made pleasant small talk.

I found myself in the thick of the festivities, attempting to convince everyone that the sprinkler was still a viable dance move.

"Lame!" Sonia heckled teasingly, chuckling as our group swayed and bobbed to the music.

"You're just jealous you can't do it as good as me!" I rolled my eyes, and Sonia shook her head.

"Watch me!" she said, then did the dance perfectly.

"Ha! You've fallen victim to Mar's master plan of getting us to join her!" Holden yelped, and upon realizing the truth in his words, Sonia crossed her arms and huffed.

Cornelia twirled around elegantly, swooping me along with her. We spun and laughed and cheered, and for a few precious moments it was just like old times.

Cornelia let me go to pull Holden and Sonia into the dance, and my gaze fixated at the entrance of the gym, where Persephone had just come through. In a neon orange bodycon dress with dangling white feather earrings and her hair done up, I couldn't help but think that she seemed absolutely ethereal.

My legs were carrying me towards her before my mind could register what I was doing, and soon I stood in front of her, beaming.

"You look beautiful, Seph," I said quietly, and she blushed, wary of the lack of hair near her cheeks she had to hide behind.

"O-Oh! Thank you!" she stammered at first, then recovered, "And you look gorgeous, Marnie..."

Suddenly, the group surrounded us. Holden came to my side, cautiously draping his arm over my shoulders. Though he was officially my date, he couldn't seem to completely break through the barriers.

His closeness was so conflicting. I equal parts delighted in it and wished it away.

"Oh, it's you," Cornelia rolled her eyes in disgust, and whatever joy was left in Sonia's face faded away.

"You're Hades's wife, right?" Holden joked to ease the tension, and Persephone only awkwardly chuckled.

"Never heard that one before..." Persephone rocked on the balls of her feet.

Unintentionally, she met eyes with Sonia. Even as it played out in front of me, it was like watching talons eject.

"Was that the only dress you had?" Sonia asked Persephone seriously, to which she shook her head.

"No, it's not. It's my favorite, though."

"It's not doing a lot for your...figure," Cornelia chimed in, and Sonia attempted to cover her chuckle with a cough.

The color began to drain from Persephone's face.

"Please don't be mean, guys. You wouldn't want someone to comment on your bodies like that," I tried, and they scoffed.

"If I ever step outside the house with fat rolls and a tight dress on it's a cry for help," Sonia insisted, and Persephone snapped at her.

"Well I'm sorry that you're so insecure in yourself that you can't accept the different bodies of even other people, but you don't need to project that onto me."

For half a second, Sonia was silent. Then, she retaliated, "Sorry I'm not into glamorizing obesity."

"First of all," Persephone defiantly stepped closer, "I'm not 'glamorizing' obesity just by existing in the body I grew into. Secondly, why is it such a bad thing that I want to enjoy the same clothes on me that you can? We're both people so we're equal, right? I'm not lesser than you for being in a bigger body."

Sonia rolled her eyes, "Whatever."

Cornelia countered, "It's not whatever. Flaunting how unhealthy you are isn't the hill I'd want to die on."

Persephone scoffed, "Forgive me, I wasn't aware you were a medically trained professional. Thanks for the unsolicited comment, doc."

"...so why'd you show up so much later, Seph?" Holden tried, and Persephone fell back and sighed.

"...was just being fashionably late..."

The remainder of the dance was undeniably tense. Try as Holden and I might have to ease it, the inexplicable grudge Sonia and Cornelia both had for Persephone drove a wedge between us once more.

*

The music was cut off, and Principal Schaefer stepped onto the podium at the front of the room, tapping the microphone.

"Ladies and gentlemen! Please seek out your nearest chaperone for a field trip wristband. They're color-coded to each chaperone, because who you collect from will also be your guardian at camp. We'll be boarding the buses shortly, which will be sectioned off according to your wristband colors. And no running across the gym for a different chaperone!"

After complying with the instructions, I felt my anxiety beginning to grow. The eye of the storm was swiftly fading away, and soon I'd be facing the place that haunted my nightmares with the people who haunted my thoughts.

To my utter surprise, Sonia sidled up to me. She tapped her nails against her thigh before speaking, and I noticed she had the same color wristband.

"Sit with me on the bus?" she said, though I wasn't sure if it was a request or a command.

In any case, it didn't matter. I would take any chance to get back into her good graces.

"Of course! But...are you sure?" I asked her meekly, instantly regretting it.

Sonia gazed at me searchingly, the semblance of admiration in her eyes.

Was I excited because she was being decent and I felt indebted to her, or because her eyes on me made my heart skip a beat? Or was it both?

She glared at Persephone, who began to approach from across the room but was promptly ushered back near her chaperone.

"Yes I'm sure, Marnie," Sonia said finally, and when the crowd started to move towards the exits, she held my hand to keep track of me.

In the moment, I feared more than anything that my palms would begin to noticeably sweat, or that she'd suddenly decide against her closeness to me.

When we mounted the bus and began to see the scenery of our small town flow past us, I smiled.

Finally, answers for Kyle, I thought.