Page 55 of Forged Forever

The principal interrupts to announce this year’s king and queen. The queen is Gabby’s friend from cheerleading, and Seb wins prom king. We all holler and clap for him as he steps onto the stage to get his crown. In typical Seb fashion, he gives an exaggerated bow. He escorts the queen to the center of the dance floor for a slow dance after pictures. They dance only about half the song before Seb gestures to a guy standing off to the side. Once he hands the queen off, he jogs over and pulls E onto the floor to finish the song. I snap a pic on my phone before the dance floor fills up with other couples.

Surprising me, Jake stands, holding out his hand to dance. “Are you sure?” I’m worried about his strength waning.

“Come on, Sum. We’ll just shuffle.” I take his hand as we step onto the dance floor, moving a few feet from the table. Seb and E quickly dance over near us as Holly and Jaxon twirl into position on our other side. Wrapping my arms around Jake’s neck, he pulls me against him as we shuffle our feet. All those times we talked about prom growing up, and it happened, despite all odds. We’re dancing together at senior prom. I rest my head on Jake’s chest and close my eyes, contentment filling my soul.

By the end of the song, we are swaying, not shuffling, but I couldn’t care less. I grin up at Jake as the song ends to find him smiling down at me. Magical. Jake leans down as I reach him on tiptoes for a sweet but romantic kiss.

We retake our seats as the music picks up. I sit out the next several songs, chatting with whoever isn’t dancing. When the next slow song comes on, Alex asks Jake for my hand to dance. Jake is grinning at him, nodding, knowing that will piss me off and make me smile. When Alex stands and offers me his hand, I quirk an eyebrow and cross my arms over my chest, unmoving. “Summer, care to dance?” Alex asks.

“Better,” I nod, taking his hand as I hear Jake chuckle, so I turn my head to wink at him.

Alex holds me as if we are waltzing, but we just shuffle our feet. “Enjoying your evening, Summer?”

“I am, thank you. How about yourself?”

“Yes. I keep looking at the stars through the dome.”

“Me too. That can’t be regular glass; it’s magnifying the view.”

“You are correct. It leads to a spectacular sight.” We dance in silence for the rest of the song, which leads into a second slow song. I check on Jake to see he’s chatting with Bay. I’m so glad Bay joined us for a little while. Although he hasn’t spent as much time with Jake as the others, they enjoy talking about engineering together.

I stay on the dance floor with Seb, Bay joining us, as Alex and E take a seat. Gabby sashays over for a song as well. We stay for several more songs before my feet need a break. When I sit down, I notice Jake is getting tired, so I signal to the others that it’s time to go.

Seb leaves to tell Gabby as I say goodbye to Holly and Jaxon. We make our way around the room single file, with Seb leading, followed by Jake, then me. Alex and E offer to pull the car up for us, so we wait at the bottom of the steps. They’re back quickly as we help Jake into the back seat. I settle in beside him, resting my head on his shoulder.

We initially discussed staying at Alex’s house tonight or going to a party, but Jake wasn’t ready to stay somewhere overnight, worried he would need help. I didn’t want to do anything without him, so we're going our separate ways and getting together tomorrow. When we get to my house, I let Jake lean on me as we shuffle him over to Alex’s SUV, and then the guys step away to give us some privacy. “Thanks for being my date, handsome.”

“Welcome Sum. Wouldn’t have missed our prom.” I lean in to give him a kiss before shutting the door. All three guys will escort him home and make sure he gets into bed, and E has his wheelchair in the back of his truck to use when they get to the condo. I give each guy a hug goodbye and then unlock the front door. Waving, I step inside and lock it, walking to the kitchen for a drink. Zander's on the couch watching tv. “Hello darling. How was your night?”

“Really nice. Jake even danced a slow song with me.”

“That’s wonderful. I’m happy the two of you have that memory.”

“Me too. I’m gonna get into my pjs. Goodnight Dad.”

“Night darling. Sleep well,” he smiles.

Chapter 33

The next morning I call Sue, then Dad and I bake cupcakes and muffins before I drive to Alex’s house. It’s a drizzly, dreary day outside, but warm. I chose to wear a sundress to help me combat the humidity.

Stopping at Jake’s condo, I unlock the door to find everyone in the living room watching tv. “Hi all,” I greet.

Hellos are returned as I walk over to kiss Jake’s cheek. “Are you okay today, handsome? We didn’t wear you out last night, did we?”

“I’m good, Sum. No issues,” he smiles brightly. I think it'll take time for me to stop worrying about him overexerting himself.

Will hands me Jake’s walker as he gets into his wheelchair on his own. After saying goodbye to Ray, Will follows us downstairs to my Jeep, Jake pushing himself. I drive us to Alex’s house, parking beside Seb’s Jeep.

Alex greets us at the door, asking us to follow him down a hallway towards the pool house. He stops at a door on the left and opens it, and I’m surprised to find a small elevator inside. “This will take you to the second floor, Jake. That will leave only one set of stairs to climb.”

“I didn’t know you had an elevator, Alex,” I say. He shrugs, explaining that since it hardly ever gets used and does not reach his apartment, he never thought to mention it.

Will and Jake get inside, and I promise to meet them on the second floor. Alex takes the walker from my hands, as I follow him upstairs. I don’t think I’ve ever explored the second floor before. He tells me it’s all bedrooms and bathrooms on this floor as we hear a chime. Will opens the door and walks into the hall, followed by Jake, who is looking around the hallway.

It’s beautiful, with a rich runner covering hardwood floors, elaborate trim gracing the cream colored walls with antique paintings illuminated by golden sconces. I count 8 doors, not including the elevator. “Alex, I never noticed before, but this hallway is longer than your apartment, isn’t it?”

“Yes. There are storage areas at either end of the third floor.”