Cupcake

The football field lights never shined brighter.

The stadium was packed; current students, teachers, alumni, fans, parents and other family members filled up the seats. It looked like the Honeycomb Trojans were playing for a sold-out crowd. At halftime, our boys were up 37-7, and I didn’t see the other team closing that gap anytime soon. HHS was playing great today, and Rhys looked fantastic.

Like always, I thought.

Ms. Weaver stood with the Homecoming nominees along the sidelines of the field as we waited for everyone to be assembled. I was wearing my dress, though Rhys hadn’t seen me in it yet. He and Zander were still in the locker rooms with the rest of the team. They’d be out any minute.

Looking up into the stands, I saw Rhys’s mom and dad; even Zach was there to support his brother. Mom and Toni were a few stands up from them, and when we made eye contact, they both started waving like mad. I smiled and waved back, glad they were here.

Even if I was planning something kind of reckless.

Okay, for anyone else, it probably wouldn’t have been a big deal.

But for me? It was colossal, a gesture of Titanic-size proportions.

I just hoped it didn’t end in disaster.

My palms were sweaty, my heart beating too fast. I had to grip my hands to stop them from shaking—which they’d been doing since I got to the field. But I forced myself to be calm. Mentally going over the plan for the millionth time helped.

A little.

But I was still nervous.

“Nice dress, Cupcake,” Lana said as she stood next to me. “Where did you get it?”

“A place called Glitter & Glam,” I said, thankful for the distraction. “The staff was really nice, and the dresses were gorgeous.”

“I’ll have to check it out.”

“You look beautiful, Lana,” I said. “Like a queen.”

She sniffed. “Naturally.”

Tessandra readjusted her strapless dress. “I wish we could get started already. My arms are starting to chafe from pulling this thing up so much.”

“Ah, come on, Tess.” Bryleigh smiled at her. “This is it! Aren’t you excited to know who won?”

“Uh, no.”

“Finally,” Lana said in exasperation, “what took you so long? All you did was go into the locker room and come back out.”

Zander came up beside her, running a hand through his hair. “Beauty takes time, my lady. I have to look good if I’m going to have you on my arm.”

She tried not to, but I saw Lana’s smile break through.

“Good answer,” she said.

“True answer,” he said back.

If Zander was out here, I realized with a jolt, then Rhys must be…

I turned around slowly and caught sight of him. Like Zander, he was dressed in the standard Honeycomb football uniform, which had a few grass stains on it. But my goodness. Rhys looked amazing.

He was standing a few feet away, staring at me with this expression of awe on his face, his mouth slightly open. His eyes traveled my frame, and I swear I felt that look all over. When his gaze finally met mine, my heart was pounding. He swallowed, then made his way to me.

“Princess,” he said.

“Rhys.”

When he didn’t say anything else, I started to get nervous.

“Do you like the dress?” I asked.

“I do,” he said, “but I like the girl in it more—even if she thinks I’m some cliché from one of her movies.”

A smile worked its way up my lips as I sighed in relief.

“You happy about that?”

I turned to him, bolstered by his response. “Yes, absolutely. Rhys, I don’t think you’re shallow or a cliché at all. You’re more than that. So much more.”

Rhys looked at me a second but shook his head.

“Pretty words,” he said, “but your actions speak louder, Princess.”

“I know. But Rhys—”

A new voice intruded before I could say more.

“Hey Cupcake,” Kendall called from a few paces away. She was standing in a group with the other cheerleaders. “Try not to fall this time, okay? You don’t want to make Rhys look bad in front of all these people.”

I put a hand on Rhys’s chest when he went to argue.

“Yeah, thanks,” I said, brushing her off.

“That dress is really pretty,” she went on. “It would look better on someone else, but whatever. You obviously tried. But I hope you don’t actually think you have a chance at winning.”

Kendall smirked and shook her head.

“Pathetic.”

The word that put me off-balance before only served to fortify me now.

“I see what you’re doing,” I said. “But it won’t work.”

Kendall frowned. “What?”

“You want me to feel bad or unworthy.” My smile was bright. “But I don’t even want that crown. At least I have a shot, though, unlike you.”

Kendall’s eyes flared. “Wow, I didn’t know pigs could talk.”

“Ken,” Lana said sharply. “Enough.”

The other girl’s eyes shot to her. “Stay out of it, Lana. This isn’t about you.”

Lana gave her a bored look. “Cupcake’s right. You’re just jealous because she’s a princess and you’re not. Stop embarrassing yourself.”

Shaking her head, Kendall said, “I can’t believe you’re standing up for her.”

Lana stayed silent, staring down her friend.

“Well, screw you. Both of you.” Kendall gave us a sickly sweet smile. “Oh, and Lana? That dress makes you look fat.”

With that parting shot, she turned away to gossip with her friends, and I leaned toward Lana.

“You didn’t have to do that,” I said, “but thanks. Also, what Kendall said is crap. You look amazing.”

Lana looked down at herself. “I know, right? I’m so winning this year.”

I laughed as she threw me a grin. “I really hope you do. Good luck, Lana.”

“Like I’ll need it,” she said. “Good luck with Rhys.”

“Thanks,” I repeated.

Turning back around, I looked up at the guy in question. He was staring down at me with a scowl on his face. His displeasure wasn’t directed at me, though, but at what just went down. Rhys made that clear with his next words.

“You okay?” he said.

I waved a hand, touched by his concern. “Oh yeah, I’m used to it.”

“What Kendall said was messed up. You shouldn’t be used to that.”

“But I am,” I said softly.

Rhys clenched his jaw, nodded once, and then looked straight ahead.

“That’s part of what I wanted to tell you earlier,” I said. “But I couldn’t find the words.”

The announcer’s voice came over the stadium speakers, and Ms. Weaver jumped into action, making sure we were all in place.

“Sashes, tiaras, and scepters at the ready, everyone!” she said.

“Rhys,” I said, waiting until he looked at me, “I’m sorry. For getting it so wrong. For getting you wrong. Most of my doubt was about me, not you. I’m confident, but apparently I still have some doubts. I just couldn’t believe someone as wonderful as you would be into me. Sounds unbelievable, but it’s the truth.”

“You’re right,” he said. “That does sound unbelievable.”

Before he could turn away, I stopped him with a hand on his arm.

“Wait. Could you check my tiara?”

I held his gaze as he reached up. He moved the little crown on my head, fingertips brushing lightly through the ends of my hair as he finished.

“Looks good,” Rhys said.

“Thank you,” I replied.

I moved my hand down to grip his, and his eyes followed.

“Careful, Princess,” he murmured. “People can see us. I know you’re weird about that.”

“I don’t care.”

“Don’t you?”

“No,” I said, then shook my head. “Or actually yes.”

Rhys’s face filled with confusion.

The announcer’s voice intruded once more as he called my name followed by Rhys’s. We walked down the fifty-yard line, my arm resting on top of his, doing the slow glide like Ms. Weaver taught us. I was still so focused on the guy next to me, I hardly noticed the grass beneath my feet.

“Which is it?” Rhys said finally. “Do you care or don’t you?”

I smiled, glad that he’d asked, because that meant he was invested. He still cared, even if he was trying not to.

“It’s both,” I said. “I don’t care what they think, but I do want them to see us together.”

“Why?”

“Because”—I took a deep breath—“I want everyone to know you’re mine. And that I’m yours.”

I stopped in the middle of the field. Rhys took a few more steps before he noticed I wasn’t moving. He looked at me in question, but I held up a hand.

“What are you doing?” he asked.

“Showing you how I feel,” I said.

As I lowered my arm and gave the signal to Jon Wu, the drum major nodded. The marching band burst to life, music filling the stadium from every corner. “Can’t Take My Eyes Off of You” had never sounded better. While Rhys and everyone were looking around, Lana walked out onto the field, stopped at my side, and handed me a microphone.

Her smile was bright even as she said, “If I lose my crown over this, Cupcake, you are so dead. Now, go get him.” I nodded as she walked away. Sending up a little prayer, I turned on the microphone. I’d enlisted Mrs. Reeve’s help with making sure it was wired into the stadium’s sound system.

“Hello,” I said, shocked by the loudness of my voice. “My name is Ariel Duncan, and I just wanted to say a few things to someone I care about very much.”

My prince’s eyes met mine.

“Rhys, I’m so sorry for misjudging you,” I said. “You’re the kindest, sweetest, best guy I’ve ever known. There’s not ten things I hate about you. There’s not even one. I like everything about you.”

Cheers went up at that, but I wasn’t done. As the song changed to “In Your Eyes” by Peter Gabriel, I took a deep breath.

“And I don’t just mean in a you’re-totally-hot kind of way. I mean in the I’d-stand-outside-your-window-holding-a-boom-box-over-my-head-for-hours kind of way. I’d be doing that now if I could’ve found a boom box on such short notice—do they even make those anymore?—and if I wasn’t wearing this dress,” I added.

I heard a bit of laughter at that.

“My point is I’d want to listen to you say anything.”

I nodded.

“I’d say you had me at hello. But I actually think you had me at Sarah J. Maas. When I found out you’d read my favorite book series, some part of me knew you were the one.”

Rhys’s eyes seemed to sparkle, and I hoped that was a good sign.

“The point is”—I said as the song changed once again to the final selection: “Don’t Worry Baby” by the Beatles—“before you, I’d never been kissed.”

I swallowed.

“But if you accept my apology, I invite you to come kiss me—again. And even if you don’t, I want you to know: I’m pretty sure I’m in love with you. I know now that you could love me back. And I hope you do.”

The band was still playing, the crowd had gone quiet, and I had no idea what was going through Rhys’s head. I didn’t know if he’d gotten any of my movie references, let alone if he’d take me up on my offer. But at least I’d tried. I’d put my heart out there…

And now, I was just waiting to see if he’d accept it.

Rhys was silent a whole five seconds. I counted every one of them and the beats of my heart. It was a hard thing, but I stayed silent. How would he react? What would he say? Would he give us another chance?

“Rhys?” I said nervously, when it became unbearable to wait any longer. “Do you have any thoughts about that?”

“So many, Princess,” he said in a deep voice. “I have so much to say, but I can’t say any of it because we’re on this damn field. I wish we were alone.”

My eyes met his as he walked toward me, and they were filled with fire.

“I don’t want to wait,” I said, heart pounding like a drum in my chest.

Putting my hands on his shoulders, I rose to my tiptoes, gently guiding him down to meet me. My heart flooded with joy as his hands circled my waist.

“Hey,” he said, “I thought I was supposed to be the one kissing you.”

“You are,” I said, unable to hold back a smile. “My whole heart is yours, Rhys Castle. I want you and everyone else to know it.”

“That’s good,” Rhys said as he gazed into my eyes. “Because I’m yours, Princess. All yours.”

“I’m going to kiss you now, okay?”

He grinned. “Well, it’s hard to say no to you in that dress.”

“Rhys.”

“Just kidding. I might kiss you back. Are you ready for that?”

“Oh yes, please,” I said.

My lips met his in a kiss that was like fire touching tinder. I went up in flames right there in front of everyone. And I knew Rhys burned for me, too.

One of his arms went around my waist as his other hand cupped my cheek. My own hands were wrapped around his neck. His mouth danced with mine, moving together with a tenderness that I felt down to my soul. Our lips parted and came back together again and again. I was distantly aware of the crowd cheering.

But I just kept kissing him.

Rhys.

My prince.

Homecoming had thrown us together, but it grew into more than that. It helped me realize my feelings about Rhys—and myself. This experience had made me brave enough to say them.

For the first time in my life, I actually felt like a princess.

And it had nothing to do with the tiara. Or even the boy.

It was all me.