Read Out of the Ashes for Free Online Page B

torture chamber from which there might never be an escape.
    â€œSorry.” I rolled my eyes while looking at Greg. “She’s not usually this weird.”
    â€œI think she’s sweet. I wish...; ”
    His voice trailed off without finishing the sentence, but it wasn’t hard to figure out what he’d been about to say. It hit me with a jolt that his mother was dead and that he’d probably give anything to have her there fussing over us and taking pictures.
    â€œOh, Greg. I wasn’t thinking. I didn’t mean...;” It was my turn to be unable to go on.
    â€œIt’s okay,” he said, “it’s easy to forget how lucky we are sometimes and to take people for granted.”
    I have to say that I was able to tolerate the picture taking session without being annoyed after that. Even though Mom was still flitting around and saying embarrassing things, it didn’t bother me any more. I even told Greg that she’d made my dress and didn’t mind that she tittered and giggled when he complimented her on it.
    It seemed that Mom was more excited about the dance than I was. But then, she didn’t have any guilt to deal with, and I did.
    I was just about to start fretting again when Dad arrived at last, apologizing for the delay. He explained that he’d gone to have the car cleaned.
    â€œA man has to take his chauffeur duties seriously,” he said jocularly, then broke off and stared at me. “My, my,” he sounded all choked up, “just look at you.”
    After he’d stammered a few comments about me being “all grown up” and told me how nice I looked, we finally headed out, arriving at the same time as some other couples were entering the school. The auditorium was decorated with streamers and balloons and what looked like thousands of flowers made from coloured tissue. It had been transformed into a fairyland. The lights were covered in crepe paper, which gave the room a soft blue or purple glow, depending on where you were standing.
    I was trying to keep the butterflies in my stomach under control, but it was my first formal dance and I had started to get flutters as soon as we walked in. I saw Betts across the room, and she beckoned us over to where she and Graham were standing.
    We made our way through the growing crowd, pausing every few feet to say hello to other kids. Most of the guys looked kind of sheepish in their suits, but the girls were all squealing in admiration over each other’s dresses. Of course, as soon as someone complimented someone else’s dress, the other person gushed the same thing back, each insisting that the other dress was nicer. I looked around for Jane, wondering if her dress was going to be the big hit she’d claimed, but she was nowhere to be seen.
    Then I saw Nick, standing with a couple of other guys. I figured Jane was in the girls’ room, probably fixing her lipstick or, I thought unkindly, maybe just lookingin the mirror. I’d seen her doing that before, just staring at herself as though she couldn’t tear herself away from her own reflection.
    Annie Berkley was there with Todd Saunders. They’re both in my class, and it was quite a surprise when we found out Todd was taking Annie to the dance. Todd is a good-looking guy and quite popular, but Annie is chubby and has curly hair that always seems to want to fly in the wrong directions. She has a nice smile and is friendly and all, but she’s no beauty. No one could figure out why he’d asked her.
    Annie’s dress was the worst possible design for her figure. It was pale yellow, tied at the waist with a wide sash that made the rest of the fabric bulge out around it. Big balloon-style sleeves puffed out over her shoulders like oversized football pads. Instead of flattering her figure, it made her look twice her actual size.
    Naturally I told her the dress was beautiful. She thanked me with her eyes averted and then