Chapter Three - Getting Even

Hayley pushed at his chest, fuming at his words. “I chose you. So feel honored and let’s get this over and done with. Next time, you might not be this lucky!” Ashton did a double take and gaped at her insolence with disbelief. The little Hayley he knew who used to have a secret little crush on him would never have the courage to look up at him, let alone answer back. Who was this sassy girl? It turned him on more than he would like to admit, and his lips turned up into a heart-stopping smile. 

“I see! So what exactly do you expect of me? Play the doting boyfriend?” he drawled with a lazy grin and a wink. Hayley refused to let her heartbeats give her away, and she forcefully placed some distance between them. She counted his bad habits to keep sane and not blush at his desperately flirtatious ways. 

“No, that would be boring! Just hang out with me, dance a little, and be around, that’s all!” His shoulders sagged melodramatically, and he looked around at the group of giggling girls who just came in, all eyeing him as if he was the tastiest piece of man meat around! 

“I can hang around with them if you’re sure you don’t want me to act like your boyfriend!” he threatened, while Hayley groaned with frustration. Obviously, she wouldn’t like her date to hang around with the most notorious gang of her batch, the ones she hated! They were her arch-enemies.

“Fine, be my boyfriend!” she said, flailing her arms and pulling him towards the auditorium, away from Candy and her gang. Ashton placed his arm possessively around her bare shoulders, all ready to play his part. The touch of his rough hand on her skin made a tremor of electric charge course through her body, shocking her completely. What was that? Her body had never reacted this way to any guy before! Previously, she had always stayed almost two feet away from Ashton, so the opportunity to touch him never arose. 

“You can start when we’re in front of others!” However, it didn’t have any effect on Ashton and instead of removing his hand, he hugged her to his side with a smirk on his face, clearly enjoying her discomfort.

“It won’t look genuine enough! You need to get adjusted to my touch!” She grimaced, knowing that it was true. They entered the huge school auditorium that had been turned into a ballroom with mauve and white tulle drapes and a mirrored disco ball light in the center. There were white strings of lights strung across the ceiling diffused behind the drapes. Pearl ivory and lavender balloons were used at the entrance to create an archway, giving an entirely unique look to the place. 

“Wow! This place looks fabulous!” gasped Hayley, looking around for her friends. With Ashton’s arm sliding down to her waist, she could hardly concentrate on her surroundings. 

“They overdid it!” came his bored drawl, making her glare at him. 

“No, they didn’t. I love it and so do my batch mates. You’re just jealous because you guys didn’t get such special treatment.” 

“I don’t attend such stupid parties!” said Ashton, releasing her and stuffing his hands into his trouser pockets. 

“Why don’t you admit you couldn’t find a date for yourself?” she continued relentlessly while he gave her a pointed look of warning. 

“That’s impossible! No one can turn me down! I didn’t go because, as I told you, I have better things to do than attend such stupid parties,” he muttered. Hayley shrugged and walked away from him. 

“I’m sorry that I asked you out. You can leave after dinner.” She went towards her batch mates who were busy taking pictures against a beautifully decorated wall. They all greeted her, and she easily mingled among them, flanked by Alyssa, Skylar, and Sienna. Skylar arrived alone since her date ditched her at the last minute, while Sienna and Alyssa were with their classmates. 

“Didn’t Ashton agree to come with you?” asked Skylar at seeing her all alone. 

“He’s here, but I dumped him. He feels proms are a waste of time!” Hayley complained angrily. 

“He’s an ass! Don’t mind him. Why don’t you dance with someone else? I’m sure Shaun Peterson will ask you for a dance!” said Sienna, and they all giggled except for Hayley. She hated the sight of the guy who always sought her out. 

“I think you should dance with Shaun tonight. After all, you’ll never see him again!” said Skylar. 

“Yes, you should, Hails!” said Alyssa. Hayley’s eyes sparkled with excitement as a new plot flitted across her mind. This was the perfect opportunity to give Ashton a dose of his own medicine. All his life he had flirted with other girls right under her nose, making her burn with jealousy. So now it was her turn to get even with him. 

“You all are right. I’ll dance with Shaun tonight.” They all cheered her and after the photographs, headed towards the buffet tables to have their dinner. Hayley searched for Ashton and found him laughing with a group of volunteers who were members of the prom committee. Flanked by two girls on either side of him, he didn’t look like he needed her company. Hayley seethed with jealousy and grabbed a plate and served herself absent-mindedly. 

“Don’t let him spoil your mood. He won’t change. Why don’t you just enjoy your special day with us?” said Alyssa, whose date, the class clown, Frank too, was busy with another girl. With Sienna’s date busy helping himself to the food, it seemed she too was stuck with them. A dashing man wearing a dark blue business suit walked inside the auditorium, stealing all the attention. He came to a stop before a wide-eyed Skylar, making her stop dead in her tracks. 

“Hello, Skylar! I’m sorry for being late. I was held up in a meeting!” he said in his husky tone that sent goosebumps all along Skylar’s arms. 

“And you are?” she asked, totally dumbfounded by the stranger. Caleb had told her that his friend would love to accompany her to her prom, and she hadn’t argued further. It was useless anyway because Caleb’s words were unbreakable rules. Being ten years older than her, Caleb was more her guardian than just an older brother. Since he trusted only his friend around her, she didn’t have the courage to protest. She had expected someone older, but the drool-worthy man in front of her didn’t look ten years older! How could he be Caleb’s friend?

“Christian St. James,” he said with a charming smile, extending his hand for a shake. Skylar’s jaws dropped, realizing who the guy was! She looked around at the jaw-dropped curious looks of her friends and others around her. Grabbing his hand, she pulled him to a corner to give him a piece of her mind! She knew what an as*hole he was! 

“Who was that?” whispered Hayley after she left with the man. 

“Don’t know! Never heard of him!” said Alyssa, looking equally perplexed. 

“We’ll ask Sky later. Let’s grab some dinner before it all disappears,” suggested a worried Sienna, watching their classmates attacking all the food like they hadn’t eaten for ages! 

“Oh, my God! The food’s almost finished!” exclaimed Hayley, rushing to serve herself. She could see Ashton being fed by the volunteer who was with him earlier, and her blood boiled with jealousy. He was such a man-who*e! To her immense embarrassment, he looked at her at that precise moment, raising an eyebrow at her with amusement. Hayley scoffed and looked away, pretending that his flirting didn’t affect her. He could rot in hell with those bit*hes for all she cared! 

She enjoyed her food with her friends, turning her back towards him to block him out of her view. However, after a few minutes, she found him right in front of her with the girl. Disturbed, Hayley walked away to join her friends. All their dates had returned, and they were animatedly discussing where to go for the after-party! Christian had already whisked Skylar away somewhere, and they were all dying of curiosity. 

“Who will you dance with, Hails? Your date has ditched you for Sylvia Francis,” said Alyssa with a scoff. Sylvia was a clingy type who chased all the good-looking senior boys, and they hated her! 

“I’ll go home!” said Hayley, feeling upset. 

“Wait, Shaun’s coming this way. I think he wants to ask you for a dance!” whispered Sienna. The rest of their batch mates made their way towards the dance floor where the DJ was churning out popular dance numbers. “I’m out of here. Are you planning to dance with me or not, Mark?” she glared at her partner and pulled him along to the dance floor. 

“Frank, let’s dance,” said Alyssa, rushing to grab hold of her partner. Hayley rolled her eyes at her friends when Shaun approached her. 

“Hi, will you dance with me? I’ve been looking for you the whole evening,” he said breathlessly. Hayley grinned at him, checking his tall frame encased in an expensive tuxedo. He looked quite dashing tonight with his blonde curls and cute dimples. 

“Sure, let’s hit the dance floor!” she said with a smile, discreetly noting Ashton’s jaw-dropped stare. It was time to get even!