Ethan and Jules
It was prom night. As much as she tried to ignore it or pretend otherwise, it was impossible. Her friends had been texting her all day, begging her to come. She had been asked at school by four different boys, all of whom had slunk off, dejected, after Jules had merely stared at them in response. It wasn’t that she was trying to be a bitch. She just didn’t have it in her to coddle them during the rejection. The last thing Jules wanted to do was go to prom with someone who barely knew her, who only wanted to show up with Jules Cooper and maybe see if they could get laid at the end of the night. And she missed Jasper. But that was just part of her life now. They were supposed to be going together and having fun and getting ready to graduate.
Jules lay in bed now, wearing her sweatpants and a long-sleeved t-shirt. Her hair was piled up into a messy ponytail and she wore thick socks. It was May but there was still a chill in the air when the sun went down. She was on her phone, scrolling through Instagram where her friends were posting pictures and stories. There was jealousy and a bittersweet regret lingering inside of her. An ache she knew was shallow, considering everything that had happened. Maybe Vic would win prom queen. Jules supposed that would be okay.
As she was mindlessly liking photos on her phone, a soft knock came at the door. Jules looked up just as her mom opened it and peered inside. Her expression was unreadable but Jules knew Margaret Cooper was as disappointed in Jules’s decision to stay in tonight as her friends were.
“Come downstairs for a minute,” Margaret said, a small smile curving at her lips.
“Oh my god, mom.”
“Come downstairs.” She shut the door before Jules could protest. Huffing, Jules tossed her phone on the bed and laid there for a moment, stubbornly refusing to get up. If her mom was going to try and do the whole rom-com and popcorn night thing, Jules was going to scream. Finally, she slid out of bed and padded across the room to open her door and head downstairs. Honestly, she was kind of wishing she had texted Logan to drop off some pot for her. Then she could just get high and hide in her bathtub until the night was over.
As she hit the landing and started down the last set of stairs she slowed, her hand gripping the banister tightly. Because Ethan was there and he was… dressed up. Jules stared at him, happy, of course, for the visit and the company, but… confused as to why he was wearing a tux.
Ethan was well aware that Jules didn't intend to go to prom, but he also knew that that hadn't always been the case. The abilities that he'd always been so excited to have had literally ruined her life and she was still recovering, even months later. But that didn't mean she should miss out on prom. He wasn't sure if she was staying home to punish herself or because the person she wanted to be with wasn't there, but he didn't want her to look back years later and wish she'd gone. He also knew that if he'd told her what he was planning, she'd have told him not to. It wasn't as easy when he was there, dressed in a tux, and ready to go.
"I know you don't want to go, and that it's really last minute," he said, walking closer to the stairs. "But you've gotta have something in your closet that'll fit. And I promise it'll be better than whatever you have planned tonight. So go get dressed, and let me take you to prom." Maybe it was a little cocky on his part, but he didn't want to ask and give her the option to say no.