I glanced at the wall clock in front of me. Tick. Tick. Tick. I groaned as the seconds dragged. He was supposed to be here five minutes ago to pick me up. I tapped my heeled stiletto on the wood floor, keeping in time with the clock.
My parents sat on the couch in the living room, waiting for my Prom date to arrive. Every once in a while, they would glance at me, then the door, then the ever so annoying clock. They were thinking the same thing too: I just got stood up.
I waited for another five more minutes. I had been waiting for this day for weeks! I spent my weekends finding the perfect dress and shoes to go with the perfect date. My date that just stood me up.
Another five minutes went by. I glanced at the clock again. Well, there goes being on time. I imagined the scene: Limos and fancy sports cars pulling up to the country club that my class rented for the night. Girls giggling as they showed off their colorful dresses and their hot dates. Couples taking pictures in front of the beautiful backdrop that I worked on for hours. And here I was. Sitting at home waiting for a date that will never come.
Tears started to swell in my eyes, and I quickly wiped them away before they could mess up my perfect makeup.
"Honey, I'm starting to think-"
"That he's not going to come?" I scoff, cutting my mother off. "Yeah, I already figured that."
"Sweetheart," my dad begins, "I can let you borrow my car so you can drive there."
I shake my head. I wouldn't be caught dead driving my father's beat up pickup truck, nor would I voluntarily ruin my shoes in the inch-thick dirt pile on the floor. Plus, I didn't have the golden ticket that granted my entrance into paradise.
"I'm going to bed." I mutter, stomping up the stairs. My parents call up to me, trying to cheer me up. But it didn't matter.
I plopped on my bed, still in my dress. I didn't care if the blue, shimmering fabric got wrinkled. It wasn't like anyone would get to see it. I curled up, still fully dress and cried.
I woke up without realizing I fell asleep. The light was out and the room was filled with a soft glow from my alarm clock. I sigh and roll onto my back. Prom was already over, but I knew there were multiple after parties.
I stared at my ceiling, my eyes adjusting to the dark. The darkness was quiet and calm.
Then I heard a small tap. I sit up in my bed, listening for the source of the noise. But it was quiet. I lay back down; imagining the sound. But once I laid back down, I heard it again. A soft tap came from the window. But when I heard it again, I realize it wasn't the window. It was the mirror.
In the corner of the room hung a floor length mirror, reflecting the darkness. I get up and hesitantly walk towards it. As I came closer, a hazy image appears. I appear in the mist. The self in the mirror beckons me.
My hand passes through the glass like water, my reflection rippling away. I push myself through the haze and soon, everything falls away.
I land in the middle of the dance floor at the country club. Around me was a sea of students, my classmates, but none of them recognizable with their masks.
I pick myself off the floor, my blue dress standing out in the ocean of red and black. Everything, everyone, was covered in red and black. Ladies wore red masks, covering half of their faces and their dates in black. They waltz around me, making it even more strange. Does anyone in my school even learn how to waltz?
I glance at the faces, trying to find someone that I could possibly distinguish. But there was no one.
A flash of white caught my attention. I glanced across the room and saw my reflection, running away in a simple white dress. She looked anxious, as if she was late for something. She ran out the double doors to the rose garden outside.
Pushing my way through the crowd, I followed her out, curious to see where she had to be in such a hurry. But it was like she vanish into thin air. And left Thomas Waters in her place.
Thomas sat at one of the many empty tables. He looked around the garden, his eyes rapidly scanning the surroundings. When he sees me, he laughs maniacally. "Oh, hello!" He says in a wild tone. "You're just in time for the tea party!"
I approach him nervously. "Thomas?" I ask warily. "Are you okay? You're unusually... hyper." More like you just took a hit of crack.
He waves me off. "No. I'm mad. But that's okay. We're all mad here."
I stay where I am. "Have you seen.... me?"
"Of course! You're over there, there, there, there and there." He points in random directions. "You're everywhere!"
I brush off his comment. "That's not what I meant." I growled, frustrated with his jokes.
"Then what did you mean?"
Out of nowhere, a young boy appeared. He sat on a tree branch, his feet dangling from the air. He smirked at my ignorance.
I blink. "Um, how did you-?" I shake my head. "Never mind. I want to know where myself went. Only it wasn't me. It was my reflection. Only she didn't look like me. She was wearing a simple white dress. But she did have my face and body and-" My own head was spinning from my words.
The boy thinks, then grins widely. "Why yes." He purred. "I believe she went off that way." He points down the cobble stone path that wasn't there before. I glance at him and his far-from-normal grin and dash away down the path and away from their madness.
I found her stopped at a well. She still looked anxious but at least she wasn't running away. Now for some questions.
She suddenly jumps up and runs away. Frustrated, I chase after her, the bottom of my dress ripping as it snags on the edges of the stones. My shoes were no destroyed but it didn't matter anymore. I had to find my reflection.
She was quick and I soon lost sight of her. Tired and exhausted, I rested by a tree and tried to caught my breath.
"Just can't keep up with her, can you?"
I jump up and scan the area. "Where are you?"
The boy from earlier appeared above me. He still had his wide grin, which taunted me. I wanted to wipe it of his face.
"Why is she always on the run? I need to talk to her!" I cried. My feet were hurting and I was pretty sure I had a few blisters.
"She's running late. And for that, the Queen will have her head."
"What?" I put a hand up to my throat. "What kind of Queen does that?"
He continues to grin. "You'll see." And with that, he faded away into the dusk.
I heard a celebration going on down the path. Following the noise, I make my way to an uncharted part of the country club garden. It was a huge area that was surrounded by huge red rise bushes, their fragrance filling the air. Multiple people were clustered in a circle, surrounding someone. A screech came from the middle and the crowd parted and revealed my best friend Leslie.
"Where is that girl? She is late! I want her head removed from her body!" She yelled into the sky, stomping around in a black and red ball gown. People stepped out of her way, afraid to get crushed.
"Leslie?" I called out to her.
She stops and looks around. "Who dare address me by that name?" She questions the crowd. She turns and sees me.
"You! You're very late and now you address me by that mundane name! And for that, I will have your head!"
The crowd starts to chant "off with her head' over and over.
"Leslie! What are you doing? I'm your best friend!"
She gasps. "Guards, she has committed treason. You know what to do."
The school's football team, all cladded in armor, march towards me. I start to run away but they catch me. "Please!" I beg. "Don't!"
But the chanting gets louder. "Off with her head! Off with her head! Off with her head!"
I'm brought to a small stage, where the gallows sits. I'm locked down, forced into an uncomfortable position. "No!" I cry, tears streaming down my face. "Let me go!"
But my pleads were drowned out. With a nod, the quarterback releases the rope and its all over.
"Sweet heart?"
I jolted awake, my heart racing a million miles an hour. It was now light and I was still in my prom dress, wrinkled and fully intact. I felt all around me neck, assuring myself that I still had my head. I sit up and my mother stands in the doorway, a look of concern on her face.
"Are you okay?" She asks. "I know you're upset about not going to Prom, but there's always next year."
I brush off her words. "No, it's fine." I caught my breath.
She raises an eyebrow. "Oh? Well okay. When you're ready, come down for breakfast I guess." And she leaves, closing the down behind her.
I crawl out of bed, my dress rustling. I checked my mirror and all that dared stare back was my true reflection. My tear-stained, raccoon-eyes reflection. I cringed.
Grabbing a fresh pair of clothes, I make my way to my bathroom. But not before I hear my name.
"Alice."