A dashing young man with blond hair in a fancy black suit was exiting a white limo. He stood up, smoothened his suit, and turned around to lend a hand to the beautiful young lady behind him. She held onto his outstretched hand, letting it gently pull her up and out of the limo.
The two briefly paused, basking in the attention they garnered from their fellow schoolmates who had also recently arrived. The people whose eyes settled upon the two were varied in emotions. Most simply felt envious at their well-above-average looks, some wished they had arrived in a limo as well, while a few others seethed in disdain and hatred.
As the two heard the limo behind them drive off, they linked arms and slowly strode forward. They were let off at the base of a large hill where intricate stone steps paved a path in the dirt leading to the top. Above them, colorful lights lit up the starry sky.
As the two walked up the steps, the boisterous pop music grew clearer. Its beat slightly shook the ground, a testament to its high volume.
They finally arrived at the summit. In their view was an outdoor party, decorated with balloons, streamers, lights, and large banners that read, "Congratulations on Surviving School!"
"Havel! You and Catherine look great!"
Sitting at a round table near the stone steps was a large, muscular man in a similar suit to Havel's. His deep voice boomed, complementing Havel and his girlfriend as soon as they arrived.
Turning towards the large man, who was energetically waving at them, Havel replied, "As always, Richard!"
Beside him, Catherine giggled, somehow transforming her visage to appear more celestial.
"Y'know, I'd be mighty jealous of you if I didn't already have Samantha." Richard joked after having been graced by the image of Catherine giggling.
"That's right, if! But you do have me, so don't let your mind wander!"
To the right of Richard sat Samantha, who was also waiting for Havel and Catherine to arrive. Unlike Catherine, who was tall with long hair, Samantha was short with medium-length hair that only reached her shoulders.
The four laughed a bit before moving together as a group towards the last member of their clique. Along the way, a lot of people snuck glances towards them while a few classmates approached and briefly spoke, complimenting the women's clothing or congratulating the men for their most recent football game, which they won by a landslide.
It took a few minutes before the group of four made it through the dancing crowds to arrive at the snack area. Among the people there, one person in particular stood out. A thin man with comically-large glasses on his face could be seen holding a cup full of juice in one hand and a plate covered in food in the other. What made him draw attention was how quickly he scarfed down his food and drink, only to serve himself more. A light of gluttony could be seen shining in his eyes. He was definitely enjoying prom the most.
Noticing his four friends approaching, he stopped re-filling his plate to walk in their direction.
"Michael! Making the most of tonight, aren't ya? Didn't even bother grouping up with us?!"
Richard's voice boomed once more as he reaffirmed his belief that Michael was hiding a black hole within his stomach.
Richard, Catherine, Havel, and Samantha, stood in front of Michael, who was too preoccupied with chewing to speak.
Uproarious laughter ensued as the four couldn't help but find Michael's behavior hilarious. It wasn't as though this was his first time acting like that, but to them, it never got old. Michael's gluttony was as much a law of the universe as gravity.
"Ahmust phinisht!" What could barely be called words spilled out of Michael's mouth as he attempted to speak, which only caused the four to laugh harder.
Richard stepped forward and took Michael's plate right off his hand, preventing him from further filling his mouth. Michael was fine with it at first…until Richard began eating from it.
"Heee! Tats myy phud!" Michael moved towards Richard, who was backing up while licking his lips.
"You can just get more! Forget about this plate!" Richard took advantage of his athleticism to weave through the crowds like a fish in water, dodging Michael with ease.
Somehow, Michael had not spilled the drink he still carried in his hand as he chased after his rightful food.
"Yuu bazchrd!"
Again, laughter rang out from Havel, Catherine, and Samantha, as they watched Richard's and Michael's shenanigans with great amusement.
"This is nice…"—Catherine leaned her head against Havel's shoulder—"…our senior prom."
Samantha sighed. "It is…but, it feels like high school flew by too quickly. I want to spend more time with you all."
Samantha's words contained a tinge of melancholy as she recalled all the fun times their clique of five shared throughout their high school years.
"Hah hah, nobody wants it to end. That's why we're all going to the same college!"
Havel flashed a brilliant smile, using his charisma to prevent the mood from becoming even a little sad.
"Of course! We'll be together forever!" An arm slung itself around Havel's shoulder. Michael had somehow appeared behind them without their noticing.
"Finished chewing, huh? Took you long enough!" Havel unlinked arms with Catherine to put Michael into a headlock and give him a noogie.
"Oooow! I'm sorry! Please, please, make it stop! I'm sorry I ignored you guys to gorge myself!"
"You better be! Or else I won't get you any more snacks, ever!"
At Havel's threat, Michael's body went limp. All that could be heard from him was whimpering as he struggled to imagine a future where his life-long friend refused to purchase anymore snacks for him.
"That's right: I'm the boss!" Havel finished his noogie and released Michael.
"Hmph! Taking damage like that cost me a lot of health points! I'm going back to eating."
Michael slowly dragged his feet toward the snack area, occasionally sneaking hopeful glances behind his shoulder to his friends, as if he were asking for something.
Eventually, Havel couldn't withstand Michael's pleading gaze.
"Fine, fine. Wait for me! I'll grab a few snacks for everyone."
Havel trotted toward Michael, whose eyes lit up as if he received a gift, apparently excited that someone joined him in feasting.
"Make sure to grab me some cake! Preferably a few large slices." Catherine called out to Havel, before turning to Samantha and Richard to talk about a new T.V. show they were hyped about.
"Cake is nice and all, but don't get f…" Havel stopped himself after considering how Catherine would act after being warned against eating too much.
"Never mind..." He continued heading towards the food.
Already shoveling sugary treats down his throat, Michael patiently waited for his friend to catch up.
"Alright, let's see the options." Havel skimmed over the different foods, ignoring everything fatty or green. His sweet tooth was particularly strong that night.
"Hey, Havel."
Havel turned to find that Michael had, again, managed to sneak up behind him. He just was about to comment on Michael's ninja-like abilities when he noticed something peculiar. Michael was neither smiling nor chewing. Could something bad have happened?
"Why so serious? You look like you were banned from food for an entire hour."
Havel tested him with a joke, but no change occurred in Michael's expression. Something was wrong.
"Is it serious? Do we have to talk about it now? This is prom night…will it ruin my mood? Can it wait until tomorrow? I want to have a fun night with Catherine." Havel's face darkened as ideas of what could possibly worry Michael flashed through his mind.
"It's…pretty bad. Let's go somewhere no ears can listen in." Michael began moving towards the outer edge of the plaza. Havel was only worried further when he realized that Michael didn't have any food in his hands. The chances of Michael having been joking decreased yet again.
Havel followed Michael for a while until they stopped in an area where the nearest person to them was well out of earshot. The entire time the two walked, Havel continued nervously speculating. Could it be that someone wanted hush money? Did they figure out he cheated on his tests? Was footage of his secret orgies leaked? A friend of his was shot? Evidence of his bullying uncovered? There were too many things to worry about.
"It's a good thing that I managed to pull you away from them so quickly. I thought it would be a while before I had a good excuse to be alone with you."
Michael pulled out his cellphone from his suit pocket and flipped through a few things. After a few seconds, he turned the screen to face Havel.
Havel's eyes scrunched up as he tried to make sense of the photo in front of him.
"Uhh, I don't get it. Wha-"
Havel's eyes went wide and his mouth gaped. He finally understood what the picture depicted.
"T-THAT…"
His face went from shocked, to furious. Fists clenched, legs shaking, veins bulging, Havel couldn't believe what he was seeing.
"THAT BITCH!" Havel's face was changing colors as he felt the urge to strangle someone.
"I know. I couldn't believe it either, at first." Michael's expression was not the usual smile, nor blank. Instead, a sneer could be seen formed from his lips, a look that he seldom wore.
It was difficult for Havel to keep himself from roaring in rage. He truly felt the need to learn what it felt like to kill someone. To think that she…
"That evil whore!" Havel was doing all that he could to control himself.
"I'm sorry, man. I only learned about it today."
Michael waited a few minutes for his enraged friend to cool down before offering a coping method.
"I think you should spend tonight as if everything was fine, have one last night with her, and meet up with me tomorrow to discuss revenge. I already have a lot of ideas."
Michael's hand was on Havel's shoulder, a bridge of sentiment between a pair of best friends.
"You know what?" Havel's voice was eerily calm and frightened Michael.
"I've been betrayed. I can't act as though it didn't happen, even if it's only for a night."
His face looked calm, but within his eyes was a fervent fury like that of an eternal flame that could never be extinguished!
"Yeah, we'll ruin her life, but, first I'll ruin her senior prom night."
Upon receiving such a reply, Michael didn't know what to say! Yeah, Havel could really rage at times, but after he cooled, he always chose to get the most out of the situation. Was he really hurt so badly to want to get revenge so quickly?
"Uhh, Havel, don't act rashly! Things will be more complicated if you go about it like this!"
Michael tried talking sense into him, but it was to no avail. Havel simply turned around and began marching, completely ignoring the logic being spoken by Michael.