[Chyld]

Right, the story starts properly taking off about now. Do enjoy...

End of Year Proms are something that happens to everyone. Whether known as balls, dances, parties, they all amount to the same thing. Initially, every couple gives each other a knowing look, every single guy chases after their fancy of the moment like rabid dogs, and every single girl commences making plans with her girlfriends, irrespective of what the guys are doing. But every single one seems to have the idea of a fairy tale ending in mind. And the problem with fairy tale endings, is that they're fairy tales, and no ending is final.

Naturally, my eyes were set on asking Katy from the very nanosecond the Prom was first mentioned. But more fitting my character, I didn't ask her in the end. Me? Asking a girl to the Prom? Talking to a girl? A girl I liked? What if she said no? What if? So no end of goading, from everyone between Mike and Sheryl, and several shades of people either way, was going to get me to open my mouth and actually ask. However, this goading, coupled with her knowing I was going to anyway, lead to her saying yes despite me, so everything turned out all right in the end.

After this inital burst of activity, when the distinctions between "Couples", "Prom Dates" and "Single People" have been drawn, everyone withdraws to start planning what they're wearing. Or, at least, the girls do. I ended up in one of my dad's suit, that made me look like a weatherman. The only things you can customise on a guy at a Prom is the colour of his suit, and what tie he wears. Girls, however, will spend weeks at a time debating length, colour, how they'll have their hair, and thousand of other little dilemnas that don't even cross the minds of the guys.

There are a few stories to be told about the hi-jinks that ensued in my preporation, such as Katy telling me about her dress when I was on the top of the Eifful Tower, and Mike's quest to get a "crosage" for his date, but these are small and scattered, and add little to the story save in-jokes and absurdities. The best bet is to fast forward to the day of the Prom itself. Induction Day for Sixth Form was on the same day as well, and only relevance this had, is that the barbeque caused someone to later throw up all over their suit. After this, I collected my delicate montage of flowers for the missus, armoured myself in expensive suit, gelled my hair again, and set out.

Time flies when you're going somewhere with your friends, even if its only driving to a shabby little nightclub. It continues at a slightly slower pace when you're waiting for your other friends outside the same club. On the other hand, when you're waiting for your date, corsage in hand and expectation making you somewhat self aware, after all your friends have gone in, time makes it a point to drag on as slowly as physically possible. But eventually, as late as it's possible to be, fashionably or otherwise, she and her friends emerged from a singular car, and the evening began.

The end of the fairytale ending always happens in the body of the evening, as no collective of 16 year-olds can withstand suits, women, and gangs of their peers without some disaster occuring somewhere. And besides the aforementioned vomit, Katy, Sheryl and Marissa kept vanishing, much to the bemusment of the assorted dates and boyfriends. I didn't mind - dancing was not a skill that had been afforded me, then or now, and I needed an occasional respite from standing around in a circle with about six girls and their handbags, and being a not-so-drunken mess. Prom or otherwise, they weren't letting a hoarde of sixteen year-olds at the drinks, which doesn't help when your style of dancing is either "done ratted" or "not at all".

But despite all this, the single defining moment of that entire evening, was near the end. In the last five minutes, when all the slow songs were on, the floor was decidedly empty. Just about everyone had given up by then, parents were emerging from the woodwork, overly ostentatious limos were appearing to gather their charges, and all the more normal couples were preparing for a night inside. But alone on the dance floor, clasped to each others like limpets to a rock, spinning helplessly for want of anything else to do, was us.

A snapshot in time, a moment of perfection, an image that never leaves.

You don't get many evenings like this, I thought.

[SimeSublime]

I don't know how things are going to change, but your ball sounds better then mine was. After I asked her, I found out my date had a boy friend. And on the night she reveals that she doesn't like dancing. Things just went downhill. On the upside I wasn't wearing a tie, so the night wasn't a total loss. I hate ties.

[Chyld]

Oho, we haven't even gotten to last years prom. Its well documented in the old Less Is More, if you want a look (try looking in early July), but I won't say what happened, because its going to be part of the big finale...

[J m HofMarN]

Quality stuff, as always, makes me think of the days when I got myself in trouble all the time to avoid having to bother with dances.

[Slade]

I didn't go to my junior prom since I didn't know anyone well enough that was going to bother asking, since I really hate large social gatherings. My senior ball kicked serious ass though, since I was in a white tux with black pants, the only problem with it being there were no tails, I went with one of my best friends, his date, and my date and best friend and also ex-girlfriend too. I don't dance because I have atrocious balance on my right foot, so there is much stepping on of toes.

Keep writing, Chyld. I'm still interested.

[Chyld]

The ending of this chapter's shit, I'm sorry

"Its Papa Roach's new album! Its amazing!" I hollered.

"I wanna my Katy!" I also hollered.

"We know, you've told us, now shut up!" came the reply.

I was drunk and happy, I was eager to enlighten the masses with my rightious tastes in music, and I was as far fallen to love as I've ever been. And it was still only half past midnight on the night of the prom. Hard partying was still not my forte then, even if said party was only a gallon of alcahol in someones back garden.

Sadly, such a night of excess was curtailed by two problems. One, Sheryl had decided to empty her stomach into the ice bucket. Two, the final day of Sixth Form induction was the very next day, a cruel jest by the staff. However, despite the hangovers this was braving, there was a clear oppertunity to talk to Katy. Yes, yes, we had just gone as friends, but had we left as the same? The untrained mind always wonders.

As far as I remember, however, I didn't get a words in edgeways. There was too much of other peoples "day after" stories to recount. Seemingly, Marissa had lured Giles, one half of one of the more renowned couples of the year, away from his missus, and this had been causing all the upheaval which I hadn't noticed, and subsequently received an apology for from Katy. Such shunting aside of my wishes did not concern me very much - youth and optimism do that to a man.

It was therefore still in high spirits that I got home that day, plugged in my phone to charge in my room, and went off for dinner. It was also still in high spirits that I went upstairs after dinner for a short nap. It was in slightly less high spirits that I got woken up by my phone going off half an hour later. The screen had frozen, so I had no idea who it was.

"Whaaar?"

"Hi, did you get my text?"

"Erm, sorry, I've been asleep."

"Alright."

Hmm, 'tis Katy, I had long since noted.

"Well, be seeing you."

"Bye."

Click.

Quickly, I battered some life into my phone, and checked my messages. One message. From Katy.

"Do you still want to be my boyfriend?"

The response was obvious, elated, and sent as fast as my thumbs allowed.

Plans were promptly made - nothing elaborate as a first date, a ramble along the leafier parts of her town, which seemed somewhat of an oxymoron, considering that its a mini(insert ghetto name here). But at that time, I would have followed that girl through the gates of Hell, and held them open for her to go through first. Within a day or two, the credit I'd estimated to last a month had all but gone.

[Just your average movie goer]

There, I've caught up again.

Mate, I don't think the ending of the last chapter is particularly weak. In fact, it sort of suits the mood you were in and it has that kind of spaced-out feeling which you were trying to convey.

That's one of the great things about this... your writing conveys the mood so well that I can imagine I'm really there at any given moment, seeing everything you're talking about, and you're being very open in letting us all into what you were feeling during these occasions.

I have a feeling that this could make a nice movie one day - the kind of movie with the internal monologue narration, with you being acted by the next guy to take after Noah Taylor.

Also, your style is very fluent and it flows beautifully. I also like your use of analogies and poetic description. The drama of going through adolescence can seem epic at times, even if it fades into dust in hindsight, and you capture that desperation and yearning of the young adolescent male beautifully, with all your anxieties, triumphs and tragedies.

I'll be sure to keep up with this thread in future.

[SimeSublime]

Dammit Movie Goer, you took exactly what I was thinking and said it better then I ever could.

[Chyld]

Well, I'm too lazy to put up every new episode before it comes out on Less Is More, so with Chefelf's decree to try and host as much stuff on our own sites as possible, no more chapters will go here, and notification will be given with the regular Less Is More update warning.

I love systems that make me even lazier