Prom started thirty minutes ago. Elisa has curled and set my hair into a curly updo. I hope her methods work better than mine, because my hair hardly ever holds a curl for more than an hour. My makeup is as good as I can get it and the borrowed jewelry from Elisa is in place.

I'm ready.

At least physically speaking.

Physical on the outside, not inside. My stomach is doing all sorts of flips and somersaults right now.

"Excited?" Elisa asks me.

"Not really," I say.

"Don't go if it stresses you," she says back.

"After you went through all this trouble?"

"It was no trouble. You shouldn't force yourself to do anything for my sake."

"Thank you, but I don't want to disappoint Zach."

She clasps a gold necklace around me.

"Is that why you're going?"

I nod. "I just want to make him happy."

She stands back and looks me over. She smiles but I see tears beginning to well up in her eyes.

"I'm sure he will be," she says. "You look beautiful, I'll meet you in the car."

She leaves me in the room alone. I guess this is it. Time for prom. I grab my ticket and put it in my purse. When I walk into the living room, Zach is standing by the coffee table.

"You look...nice," he says.

"Three hours of work and that's all I can manage? Nice?" I say with a chuckle.

His hue turns peachy.

"You're as gorgeous as you always are," he says, more quietly this time.

I feel my cheeks warm. That's been happening ever since he admitted his feelings. At first I thought it was my illness lingering, now, I'm not so sure.

"I asked my mom to get this for you," he says, pointing towards a box on the table. I pick it up and open it. Inside is a corsage made up of red roses. The ribbon is gold and matches the details of my dress perfectly. I pick it up, but he stops my hands.

"Allow me, please," he says. He knows how to get my hands to do what he wants now. When he holds them, it's like they aren't even mine. He slides the corsage onto my wrist. My stomach isn't flipping anymore, it's filling with butterflies.

"Ready to go?" I finally ask.

He nods and puts out his elbow. I hold onto it as we walk over to the car. I sit in the back seat with him, his cold fingers wrapped around mine. I don't know if it's to comfort me or because of his feelings.

Prom is being held at a hilltop restaurant on the outskirts of town. Winding up the road makes the stomach flips come back. I don't know why. I shouldn't care what anyone thinks of me. They'll all be too busy having fun to notice me anyway. Still, that logic doesn't stop my anxiety.

Elisa pulls the car in front of the entrance.

"I'll be here at 1. Call me if you want me to get you sooner."

"Yes ma'am. Thank you."

I grab the door handle. Elisa begins speaking words in Spanish, but all I can make out is Zach's name and the word for 'love'. I step out of the car and wait for Zach to come to my side. I'm slightly late, but I wanted to be unnoticed. Very quickly, it's looking like that plan is going to backfire.

After I show my ticket to the person at the entrance, I go into the reception area where my prom is being held. The restaurant is one of the fanciest in town, usually serving French and Italian food at a ridiculous price. So of course the inside is nice, with fresh flowers and dark wood and crisp white walls. Chandeliers and purple cloth hang from the exposed beams on the ceiling. Sunset takes up all of the floor-to-ceiling windows, and damn if it's not one of the most romantic things I've ever seen.

I find an empty seat at a small table in the far corner, furthest from the food and the dance floor. As luck would have it, the chair next to me is empty too. At least Zach won't have to stand all night.

"Is this how you pictured it?" I say from behind a water glass.

He surveys the space.

"I never imagined it, honestly."

I smile at that. Everyone is at the buffet that's just been set up, so no one has noticed me talking to myself just yet.

"So what did your mom tell you?"

"Same stuff as always, 'love you always, I want you to find peace' things like that."

I sit back in my chair.

"Oh."

"Yeah, she thinks something is keeping me here. A regret or something. She doesn't realize it's all Fate's doing and not mine."

I turn sharply in my seat.

"You saw her? I thought you were unconscious."

He shrugs his shoulders. "I woke up and you were already gone.She told me about removing the string and some line about being a hero. Not much else."

"Same," I say. Though she called me a mistake instead of a hero.

"So, I'm not going anywhere, much to my mother's dismay."

"I'm sorry."

"Don't apologize. It's not your fault. Not really."

I sigh.

"You say that, but I just think of all of the suffering I put your mother and you through. I can't help feeling guilty for all that's happened."

Zach's cold fingers wrap around mine.

"Don't. I have a say in this too. And honestly, I enjoy the time I spend with you."

I squeeze his hand back.

"You don't mind being dead?'

His head wobbles. "I'd prefer to be alive if that's what you mean. But I'm okay like this. I wish we could've had this time before, but I'm glad I at least get to experience it."

"Do you really mean that?"

He sighs heavily.

"Yes, Alora. I love you that much, in case me still being here wasn't proof enough."

I don't know what to say to that. I want to yell at him, but I can't do that here. How could he say all of that so easily? I guess he has nothing to lose, being dead. He's always been so different that me. Always had his life together. Always made the right choices. Even in death he's better. He's accepted our situation, as awful as it is for him. And here I am, nervous about what people who've never cared about me might think if they see me here alone.

Hell, the only reason I'm here is because of Zach.

Really. The only reason I'm here is because of Zach.

I pull on his hand.

"Let's dance," I tell him.

"What? How?"

"You know how. I saw you dance by yourself in front of my class. You can do that again, but with me."

"Alora..."

I stand up and pull him with me to the dance floor. He stares at me, horror spread over his face.

"Make me like you," I tell him.

His hue burns a bright enough red to match my dress as he moves to stand behind me. His left hand grabs mine and his right goes to my waist. I close my eyes, trying to relax myself so he can move me as he wants. All I can sense is his coldness and the bass from the speaker behind us. We may as well be the only ones here.

Zach begins moving, taking me with him as he moves my hips for me, slides his feet forward, and makes me spin. I open my eyes to see him and smile. I've never seen him so happy. His fuzzy edge is almost invisible, like he's truly here with me. By the time the song ends, I have tears running down my face.

"You should eat," he says. "I have to go to the bathroom."

He doesn't but I don't push him to tell me the truth.

I make my way to the buffet line and stack my plate with what's left before returning to my seat. Even though this restaurant is upscale, the food is nowhere near as good as Elisa's.

"Hey, are you into interpretive dance or something?"

I look up to find a trio standing next to my table. All of them are dressed as if they made the clothes themselves, that's not to say they look bad, just eccentric. Like they might be theater kids.

"No, I'm not."

"Where did you learn to dance like that? It was amazing." One of them says.

"A friend showed me," I say, since that's all I really can say.

"You're that girl, Alora, right? You came alone?" The other girl, one with blue hair says.

The guy in the middle elbows her.

"Yeah, I did."

Zach appears behind them and shifts past them to sit in the chair beside me.

"You can join us at our table, we have an empty seat."

I look over to Zach. "Thanks, but I'm okay."

"Suit yourself. If you want it later, it's yours."

I thank them again and they head back to their rambunctious group on the other side of the dance floor.

"Why didn't you go with them?" Zach asks.

"Because I want to be here with you. I'm not going to leave you alone to be surrounded by strangers."

He smiles at me gently.

"Want to go outside?"

"Can we?"

"Yeah. I found out the school rented out the whole restaurant, patio and fire pits included."

"Well then, lead the way."

I follow him out a side door. The sun has set, and everyone not into dancing is hanging around the firepits. Without the music blaring like it is inside, it's not like I can talk to Zach without being noticed. Though, I have to admit, I don't really care.

"You don't want to sit here?" I say to him.

A girl turns towards me, but I ignore her to look at Zach.

He shakes his head.

"I'd rather not be around so many people."

I nod and continue to follow him as he winds around the building. We cross a small bridge and end up at a small patch of grass with white chairs set up. A wedding must be planned for this weekend. Zach passes the rows of chairs and steps into the white gazebo. I follow behind him to stand at his side.

"Are you okay?" I ask him.

"Just a little upset."

I fold my hands in front of me.

"Should I call for us to be picked up?"

"Do you want to leave?"

"I'm fine either way. I think I got the prom experience, the dressing up, a dance with the person I wanted to dance with, mediocre food."

"You really wanted to dance with me?"

"I wouldn't have asked otherwise."

He chuckles slightly.

"Wish I would've known that a year ago. Maybe then I would have actually asked."

I open my mouth.

"Don't say you're sorry. I know. You didn't know me back then. I hardly even knew you."

"I would've guessed you were too focused on studying to go to prom. I didn't know it was because of me."

"It was because I was a coward, not anything you did. I just wish I could be alive for this, to really be here."

I turn towards him and sweep my hand across his cheek.

"You are here, I wouldn't be able to touch you otherwise."

"I don't know if you can really call that touching."

"Well, how about this?" My heart is pounding past stomach flutters as I lean forward and kiss him. His lips are cold and soft, like freshly fallen snow. His hands wrap around me, pulling me closer, until my whole body is encased in the feeling. I'm used to this cold, it's not like ice. Instead, it's like dipping into a cool pool on a hot summer day. Refreshing. Comforting.

He pulls away and stares at me closely.

"Don't do this because you feel sorry for me. Please."

"I'm not. I'm pretty sure I kissed you because I love you."

He drops his hands.

"You can't mean that. Are you dumb or something? You can't love me, I'm dead, remember?"

Now that was a bucket of cold water.

"Right, you are dead, so there's no way you could love me too, is there?" I ask.

"That's different. I liked you before."

"But you didn't love me, did you?"

His eyebrows furrow, but he doesn't say anything.

"And I love you now," I say.

"You can't. How will you live like that? Loving me?"

"I wouldn't be alive if it weren't for you. And we're already stuck together forever. It's not as if I was ever going to be able to have a normal relationship, right? I don't have parents waiting for grandkids. You're all I have. And all I want."

"That doesn't make any sense."

"I've never been known to make much of it anyway."

He chuckles and leans on his elbow.

"No. You haven't."

"So...I just spilled my heart out, is that all I'm going to get in return?"

He stands up, cups my cheek, and kisses me again.

"I'm afraid that's all I have to offer."

"Then you're lucky my standards are so low."

"Ouch."

I nudge him with my elbow. "Come on. I'll call your mom to pick us up. I think we'd both prefer to play games or watch anime right now."

He nods eagerly.

When the car pulls up, Elisa looks run-down. It's barely 11, but maybe she's tired from her shift yesterday.

"Is he still with you?" she asks.

"Yeah," I say and open the door.

We both get in and once my seatbelt is buckled, Zach laces his fingers in mine. We stay like that until we get home.