Deception by Cyndi Goodgame

were pulled tight.  The long flowing pink lace skirt was smooth and wasn’t ruffled up too far showing my black look-a-like leggings peeking out the edge.  I felt my necklace catch against the lace right above my tank.    Surveying her costume, I could see the problem.  She had on nearly the same, but with pink hair, more skin, and ugly shoes.
    Laughter came from all directions.  Ian rescued me fittingly.  “She is more of a punk rock Cinderella.” 
    “How cute,” another snotty girl said, “and she brought her hot freaky Prince.”  She looked Ian up and down.  The snotty “she devil” girl turned to Caylie, “And you?”  She looked her up and down too. 
    “Your worst nightmare if you don’t let me inside to go to the restroom.  You are so whack!”  Caylie stepped in the house and pushed the girl aside. The girl turned to her friend while motioning to Ian and told her something about her wishes coming true with hot, dark and freaky. Caylie, my very good friend, turned in her tracks and simply said, “You are so SOL on that deal.  He’s already taken.”   She rolled her eyes at the girl, smiled at me and didn’t dare look back.   Ode to Caylie!  She is so brave .   I wondered why we were here with these jerks?  I was busy contemplating leaving and not facing Ian after a comment like that when I saw Pam was already here.
    She was standing by the fireplace in the main living room.  Wow, she was with a boy.  Even more wow!  I sizzled up to her and raised my eyebrow in silent questioning, but obvious curiosity.  Pam took the bait.  A huge smiled played on her lips.  She rarely smiled.   
    “David, this is Grace.  We are friends from school.”  She moved her hand back and forth between us.  Perhaps this could be a good thing for her.
    Obviously, David wasn’t from our school or any high school.  Decked out in full black leather pants a little too tight for my taste, white t-shirt, and black leather jacket, he stood with an air of smugness and lots of ego.   And he didn’t have a costume unless he was auditioning for the screenplay of Grease o r some vampire wanna be.  So that led my mind to the obvious; that he was screaming every bit of way older than high school and Pam loved every minute of it. 
    “Nice to meet you.”  And why was he really here?  With a high schooler?  I knew what most guys that age wanted from a high school girl.  Pam did too.
    I turned to search for Caylie and Ian now wishing to return to my safety net.  With Caylie nowhere in sight and unable to find Ian or his scent anywhere caused panic for really no reason except my own selfish desires.  There I stood in the middle of the crowded room completely sandwiched by hormonal teenagers moving and swaying to the fast moving music that was playing through the whole house.  Making my way towards the entrance hallway that would lead to the rest of the house I moved one step, then another, and… Ian walked up in his decked out black Levis, doc martins, and the inescapable fitted green t-shirt in exchange for his black as an attempted costume.  And it was perfect.  Just perfect.  He looks that good.  Scrumptious!  This prince thing works for him though he didn’t really need a costume to be my prince. 
    I closed my eyes to lose the thought.   When I opened them, he had the lopsided smile inches from my face.  I felt like my eyes might be crossing, he was so close.  A hand touched my elbow and shivers ran all up and down my arm.  He whispered, “Miss me?” 
    I’ll never survive him long enough to be near him.  He was too tempting. So I shook my head and headed back to the fireplace where Pam and her man friend stood taking turns peeking back at Ian several times willing him to follow me.  His face looked suddenly every bit of in pain as I screamed in my head for him just tell the stinking truth then cringed along with him worried I had some kind of physic ability to hurt the people