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Evan Lorne was top dog at Pegasus High School. Not only was he the Senior Class President, he was responsible for leading Pegasus to the state championships two years in a row, and a shoo-in for Prom King. With his best friend, Laura Cadman, at his side - herself an MVP for Pegasus' basketball team, a champion debater, and probably a sure thing for Prom Queen - it's as if his life had handed Evan everything he wanted.
'Were that only true,' Evan thinks as he finishes getting ready for the dance. Senior Prom was supposed to be a joyful time; the last dance of his high school life. But ever since Lorne had met a handsome, tall classmate named David Parrish that transferred in mid-Junior year, a shy fellow that Lorne caught staring at him a few times from across the cafeteria, Lorne felt as if his life was missing something. Actually, he knew what it was missing, but he was too afraid to reach for it himself.
Pegasus High was in the middle of the Haight-Ashbury neighborhood of San Francisco, and one of the most progressive schools in the city. Even so, Lorne didn't feel as if he could truly be himself. There were openly gay kids at Pegasus, but Evan had wanted his future to include both college and the military - probably the Air Force; ever since his Uncle took him up in a Cessna when he was ten, all Evan wanted to do was fly. But even with the military being okay with openly gay service-members, Evan wasn't.
"Ev?" a voice calls, bringing Evan out of his thoughts. "You decent?"
Sighing, Evan forces a playful smile on face. "Like you haven't seen me in the showers a hundred times before, Stacks." Gerald Stackhouse, Stacks to his friends, was someone Evan had grown up with, the pair being as tight as childhood friends could be. Evan looks over at Stackhouse, decked out in a slate grey tuxedo with a pink cummerbund. "Pink?" he asks.
"Don't blame me, Ev," Stackhouse says. "Mikey picked everything out."
Tossing out a quick laugh, Evan says, "Figures. At least he's got taste." Evan holds back a sigh. Stackhouse and he had always been close, and he was honored that Stacks had come to him first when they were in eighth grade, Stacks announcing he was gay. Evan stood by his friend, all the while secretly jealous that Stacks could be so open, while Evan hid, deep in his closet. Then in their sophomore year, a handsome boy named Michael Markham had transferred to Atlantis from out of state. Stacks immediately started pining until Laura and Evan secretly set them up at a party - and they'd been a couple ever since. (Stacks had jokingly said he was going to kill the pair the next day, but Laura just leaned in, pulling Evan with her into a three-way hug, smiling, and saying, "Hey, it's what friends do.")
"Yeah, well he'll kill me if we're late, so get a move-on, dude!" Stacks replies as he crosses the room and sits on the bed, grabbing Evan's championship football as he sits, tossing it into the air.
Evan fusses with his bowtie - a real one, not a clip-on - that Laura had insisted he wear since it was "more authentic, anyway," he can still hear her voice clearly. "How the hell do you tie one of these?" he asks.
Stackhouse sighs, then gets up from the bed. He steps behind Evan, raising his arms and batting Evan's own hands out of the way. "God, you're such a baby," he says. Evan tries to watch so he can memorize the moves, but Stacks' fingers are too fast, and he's finished in seconds. "Now get your coat. My uncle's waiting outside with the limo." He pats Evan on the shoulder, then heads out of the room.
Looking back into the mirror, Evan checks himself one last time. He closes his eyes and pictures how he'd like the night to go, but is brought out of his daydream by the doorbell. "All right, all right. Lay off the bell!" he calls, hearing Stackhouse laugh, then shut the door behind him a beat later.
Coming down the stairs, Evan sees his mother and gives her his best grin. He leans over, giving her a hug. "Don't wait up, Mom," he says.
Evan's mother's eyes crinkle up as a loving smile covers her face. "Love you, little one," she says, pulling Evan to her. With a sniffle, she lets go, brushing imaginary lint off of his lapel.
"Love you, too, Mom," Evan says. He crosses to the door, turning for one last smile before heading out into the early evening.
Evan joins Stacks in the back of the limousine, and the two talk about everything and nothing as the car winds its way through the hilly neighborhood, finally stopping at Markham's house. Stacks smiles as he bounds out of the car and up the steps, Evan tamping down the slight feeling of jealousy at just how free and open his friend is able to be. He watches as the door opens, and both Markham as well as his date, Laura Cadman, emerge from the house. He gets out, then turns and grabs the wrist corsage his mother had bought earlier in the day for him to give to Laura. "What're you doing here?" he calls as he bounds up the walkway.
"Mikey did my hair. You like?" she asks as he gets close. She turns around, her dress catching on the breeze and fluffing out gently, though her hair didn't budge.
"But don't light a match," Markham offers. "You know how much Aquanet I had to use to get it to hold like that?"
"Mikey..." Laura starts, obviously at a loss for words. She turns to Stackhouse, points a finger at him and directs, "You. Kiss him so he'll shut up about my hair already. I don't want him spreading lies about me having cowlicks or anything."
"Mmhmm," Markham offers, though before he can add anything more, Stacks leans in for a kiss, then drags him back (by the tie) to the waiting limousine, Markham fussing with him to not get too wrinkled before they even get to the dance.
When they're finally alone on the porch, Laura gives Evan a quizzical look. "How you doin', cowboy?"
"'m fine, Laura," Evan says (which was mostly true), automatically giving her a smile.
"Mmhmm," she says, mimicking Markham from just moments earlier. "Okay, so let's get this show on the road." Evan offers his arm, which Laura takes, and he leads her to the waiting limo.
~*~*~
After a dinner at a nearby restaurant, the foursome get back into the limo, Evan and Stacks complaining about being overly full until Laura threatens to blow them up to kingdom come with some explosives she always threatened to steal from her father's construction company. "You know I'll do it, too," she says with a wink. "Besides - after we're crowned King and Queen of the prom, you owe me a dance. Then I get to dump your ass and dance with whoever I want." After a beat, she says, "You can, too, you know."
"Yeah, yeah," Evan says, ignoring Stackhouse and Markham as they make out on the other side of the limo.
The grand ballroom of the Pacific Science Center was transformed into what was supposed to be 'Heaven', after the 1980s Bryan Adams song - but looked more like something Evan'd seen at an elementary school dance. The foursome made their way into the crowd, dancing and hanging out with friends until Laura and Evan were called up to the stage, along with the rest of the "Royal Court" - everyone else who was nominated for Prom King and Queen. Evan looks out onto the crowd, Laura at his side - a ball of nervous energy - and finally spots who he'd been looking for all night. Towards the back of the room, standing alone, was David Parrish, looking dashingly handsome in what looked like an old fashioned suit; dark red, with matching vest and tie, and brilliant white shirt complete with starched collar. Though looked almost antique-ish, it suited David quite well, complimenting both his slender build, as well as his broad shoulder.
Evan can nearly feel the weight of David's gaze, Evan's breath catching as David gives him a broad smile. He watches, entranced, as David suddenly raised his hands, clapping them above his head, his heard nearly skipping a beat when David's pursed his lips together, until he realizes the man is blowing out a whistle.
"Evan... Ev!" Laura calls out, jolting Evan back to reality by grabbing his arm. Evan suddenly realizes that there's thunderous applause all around him, as Laura pulls him towards the front of the stage where Principal Woolsey is beckoning the pair, holding out sashes in one hand, a crown for Laura in the other. "We won!" she says, pulling him forward as Evan settles back into reality. He looks up, but isn't able to catch glimpse of David as Laura jostles him to the front of the stage. She throws the 'Prom King' sash over his head and makes him take the rhinestone-encrusted crown, warning, "And don't mess up my hair," under her breath as she leans down, Evan placing the crown gently on her head, then pulling her into a hug and a chaste kiss on the cheek.
"And now the King and Queen will lead us in a dance," Principal Woolsey says into the microphone, nodding at the AV team to do their thing. A second later, Laura reaches out, Evan offering his arm, and the pair walk down the steps and off of the stage, ending up in the middle of the dance floor, a single spotlight shining down on them. The start of a slow love-song fills the room, and Evan pulls Laura close, though his eyes continue to scan the crowd for David.
Thirty seconds into the slow dance, Laura squeezes Evan's side and leans up. She gives him another kiss on the cheek and looks into his eyes. "You know I love you, right?" she asks.
Evan nods, giving her a smile.
"And you know all I want is what's best for you, okay?" she adds, cheeks barely showing a hint of a blush.
"Laura..." Evan says, a cautious tone to his voice.
Laura leans in, leaning her forehead against Evan's. She looks into his eyes and smiles, then breaks the gaze as she turns and calls to the crowd, "Okay, everybody get in here!" And just like that, couples take to the floor, surrounding the pair.
A few beats later, as everyone sways to the music, Evan brushes against someone, automatically saying, "'scuse me," as an apology. He looks at the couple he'd just run into, seeing Katie Brown, head cheerleader, slow dancing with David Parrish.
"There you are, Katie," Laura calls, then smiles at Evan. "Let's go," she says.
Before Evan can ask what exactly she means, Katie reaches over, separating Evan and Laura's hands, then takes Laura's into hers. Katie and Laura beam at Evan, then look from him to David, then back to Evan again.
Evan is suddenly rooted in place, unable to move. "Evan?" David's voice whispers. It takes Evan a second, but he finally looks up into David's face, seeing nothing but love coming from the man's expressive eyes.
"Would-" Evan says (after Laura breaks her embrace with Katie to bop Evan on the shoulder). "Would you like to dance?" he asks, voice tremulous.
David grins, blowing out a sigh. "I thought you'd never ask," he says, then takes a step closer to Evan. He reaches out, taking Evan's hands in his own, then pulls Evan close to him, David's gentle hands grounding Evan, and the couple stay like that, swaying gently for the next few songs, not changing a thing when an up-tempo contemporary number starts blaring from the abundance of speakers.
After half an hour on the dancefloor, Evan feels a tap on his shoulder. He looks up first at David, then back over his shoulder to see who tapped him, finding Laura beaming, Markham and Stackhouse standing close behind. "You wanna get outta here?" she asks.
Evan turns back to look at David, then back to Laura. "Uhh," he says.
"Duh!" Laura says, smacking him on the shoulder again. "Davey, too," she says, adding, "and Katie," pulling her friend close. "Can't leave my accomplice here, can I?"
The six teenagers lead one another out of the building, each holding on to the next person's hand (Evan blushing when he grabs David's, feeling a gentle squeeze as he does so). "Where to?" he asks when they emerge into the cool San Francisco evening. He looks up at David, who hasn't let go of his hand, and leans into him, feeling David press a kiss into his hair.
They unanimously decide on the Sutro Baths, the famous abandoned ruins on the nearby coast, Markham and Stackhouse making them stop by one of their houses to grab blankets and bottles of cider along the way for a 'midnight picnic'. And for the first time in his life, Evan is finally able to be comfortable, leaning against David, David's arm wrapped tightly around Evan's shoulder as the limousine cruises through the city in search of their destination.
Later, after a quiet, but fun-filled night, with memories of moonlight splashing off the waves, the limousine drops off first Katie, and then David (Evan walking him to his door and getting the most amazing goodnight kiss). As they near Laura and Markham's houses, Evan looks at each of his friends, quietly saying, "Thanks, guys," hoping his tone of voice can express what his words can't.
Laura smiles, then pulls Markham and Stackhouse down into a hug, each of them smiling as they crowd Evan. "Hey," Laura says as she blows out a sigh, leaning her forehead against Evan's. "We're friends; it's what we do."