Courtney's POV: I haven't seen Duncan in a while, and it made me start to worry. He would usually call or text me if he were going somewhere, and I haven't heard any word of him in over two weeks.

I decided to keep my mind off the matter and go to the mall with Bridgette and Tiannah. Ahhh... so good to be back with the homegirls. Especially in a store like Hot Topic, you can never think about bad things. What was I worrying about? Idk.

"OMG HERE, GO!!!" Tiannah shoved me into a dressing stall with a few dresses on hangers. Bridgette walked into the stall seguinte to me and I heard Tiannah in the stall on the other side of me.

"Ugh, I'm so glad you won that last lawsuit, Court." Bridgette flipped her camisa over the topo, início of the door of her stall.

"Yeah, now we get to spend $3,000 of it here!" Tiannah laughed heartily.

And all of us girls squealed and got changed.

I was the first out, and I modeled a short lilás dress with a corset and ruffly white and purple saia flaring out from it. My ameixa pumps click-clacked on the linoleum flooring, and I felt a tap on my back. I turned to see Tiannah posing in a short black and white striped dress, like a maid's uniform, except it had a red chest, and the rest of the dress flowed out with black and white cloth.

"So....?" She looked at me for an answer. "Good enough for Sophomore Prom?"

I giggled. "It looks great, Tia."

She scuffed her black high heeled boots on the floor and walked back into her stall. "This is the one!"

I kept looking at my dress in the mirrors, wondering if I should get it. When I made up my mind, I spun around - and accidentally ran into a bubbly Bridgette.

"Oops, sorry Court. Do I look good? I want to impress Geoff." She placed a delicate white-nailed hand on her hip and stood erect, her long strapless blue and green sea embrulho, envoltório dress flowing and dancing with sparkles. She wore a pair of high green wedges with cork heels, and her long blonde hair was in a side ponytail that gently fluttered down her chest.

"Geoff will amor it." I smiled supportingly.

"Awww thank you!" She and I exchanged air kisses and then something struck her mind. "What about Duncan?" She asked.

I froze.

The memory came back. I didn't at all want it to return, and yet it did.

I felt tears forming in my eyes and I quickly blinked them away. "Uhh....forget about him, he's a jerk."

"Awwww Court, you don't have a date?" Tiannah put her hand on my shoulder. "You can always go with my brother."

"Ewwww!" I shook her hand off and folded my arms. Nobody could ever replace Duncan. I thought.

"Ok ok!" Tiannah held up her hands innocently. "Do you want me to go find some other dresses for you?"

I nodded my answer, and Tiannah walked out and we lost her in endless clothing racks.

Bridgette turned back to me. "He left you?"

I nodded, not wanting to expose the truth that I had no idea where or how he was.

"Awww Court, it's ok. You'll have your coração broken so many times before you find your soulmate." She pursed her lips sadly.

"I thought for sure he was my soulmate..." I said quietly.

Bridgette obviously didn't hear, because she went back into her stall after patting my arm to change. Tiannah came back with a few mais dresses and handed them to me, and went into her stall to change, too.

I went back into my stall and changed into the only dress out of the four that were handed to me that looked good. I checked myself out in the mirror. The dress was a long pêssego flowy saia with a sparkling white corpete and white milky ribbons on the hem at the bottom. I strutted white heels and I nodded confidently.

Truth be told, Sophomore Prom was NOT an event I was looking progressivo, para a frente to.

~ ~ ~ ~ ~

When I got back to my house after shopping, I had bought three dresses and eight pairs of shoes. The dresses I bought were the pêssego and white vestido I liked, the purple skimpy dress, and a simple black and white checkered saia and white corset that were attached close enough to be a "dress".

Prom was only two weeks away, and por God I wanted time to slow down so it wouldn't come. It's not that I don't want to go, really I don't, it's just the fact that my parents would want me to.

Suddenly, my cell phone rang.

I stalled to reach for it. What if it was Duncan? What if he was murdered and it was his killer?

I was willing to take my chances, so I flipped open my phone and forced out the words. "Hello?"

"Courtney? It's Bridgette." That's when my coração stopped pounding. Good old Bridgette.

"You alright?" She must've noticed my silence.

"Uh... yeah, I...I'm fine."

She hummed. "Yeah, no you're not."

"Huh?"

"I know what happened to Duncan."


Brief silence.


"W....What happened? Is he alright?" I stuttered.

"His father is alive."










"And he tried to kill Duncan."

~ ~ ~ ~ ~