After waiting about fifteen minutes in a long girls' bathroom line, Aria emerged on the dance floor and gazed around the room for Noel. He'd been a gentleman all night, dancing every dance with her, getting her glasses of pink punch whenever she was thirsty, already talking about how they were going to go all out for prom—maybe they could even arrive by his dad's helicopter. Everything just felt…right.
She pushed her way toward the bar, figuring Noel might be there. Kids swirled around her, their dresses swishing. With so much red, pink, and white, Aria felt like she was inside a giant circulatory system. A few kids stared as she passed, smirks on their faces. A knot of sophomore girls nudged one another and whispered. Mason Byers caught sight of Aria, widened his eyes, and turned away. Aria's heart began to thump. What the hell was going on?
And suddenly, as if on cue, the crowd parted. In the corner of the tent, right next to the chocolate dipping station, a couple stood kissing. One of them had slicked-back dark hair and wore a gorgeous black suit. The other was sylph-thin, with honey blond hair done up in a French twist. her fitted red cocktail dress skimmed her hips. The surface of her skin sparkled, as if it had been brushed with diamond dust.
Aria watched helplessly as the music swirled romantically. Someone let out a loud whoop.
Time snapped into warp speed, and just as a fiery flame ignited in Aria's stomach, Ali broke away from Noel, her face twisted with outrage. She slapped him hard, her hand making a loud cracking sound against his cheek. "What are you doing?" she screamed as Aria rushed over.
"Wha…?" Noel stammered. A huge red welt appeared where Ali had slapped him. "I don't…"
"Aria is my friend!" Ali screamed. "Who the hell do you think I am?"
Then she turned, locked eyes with Aria, and froze. Her lips parted. Noel turned and saw Aria, too. His face went sheet-white. He started to shake his head, as if to say he didn't know how he'd found himself here, doing what he was doing. Aria glared from Noel to Ali, her fingers twitching with rage.
The cloying scent of dark chocolate from the fondue station wafted into Aria's nostrils. The oscillating spotlight on the dance floor turned Ali and Noel from blue to red to yellow. Aria was so angry that her teeth began to chatter.
Noel's Adam's apple bobbled. Ali stood a safe distance away, shaking her head both self-righteously and sympathetically. "Aria, it's not…" Noel started.
"You said she didn't matter," Aria interrupted. Her chin wobbled, but she steeled herself not to cry. "You said you didn't like her. You wanted me to give her a chance."
"Aria, wait!" Noel's voice cracked. But she didn't let him finish, whirling away and weaving around the gaping partygoers. Lucas Beattie let out a gasp. Zelda Millings, who went to the nearby Quaker school but always managed to snag dates to Rosewood Day events, smirked. Let them, Aria thought. She didn't care.
Aria was almost to the door when she felt a hand on her arm. It was Ali. "I'm so sorry." She panted, out of breath. "He just…smothered me. There was nothing I could do about it."
Aria kept walking on, too furious to speak. Her instincts about Noel had been right all along. He was a typical, lacrosse-playing, fratty, cheating Rosewood boy. He'd claimed to be different and she'd bought it. She was so stupid.
Ali was still keeping pace with Aria, her arms crossed and her head bowed. I've changed, Ali had said at the wishing well. Maybe she had.
They emerged into the frigid air. A bunch of kids loitered near their cars, smoking cigarettes. Fireworks erupted above the stately school, marking the end of the dance. Across the parking lot, Aria spied Spencer, Emily, and Hanna leaning against a BMW. Their faces brightened when they saw Ali, and Ali waved back.
Aria knew what her old friends were waiting for and where they would be going next. Suddenly, she realized how badly she wanted to join them. How badly she wanted to go back to the way things were—before all the secrets and lies. Back to when they first became friends and everything was filled with possibility.
"Um, about your Poconos trip," she said tentatively, not daring to look Ali in the eye. "Do you think there's room for one more?"
The corners of Ali's mouth spread into a wide grin. She jumped up and down a little, and then threw arms around Aria's shoulders. "I thought you'd never ask."
Ali pulled Aria across the parking lot, avoiding a shiny patch of ice. "We're going to have such a great time, I promise. You'll forget all about Noel. And tomorrow, we'll find you someone even hotter."
They skipped to the bottom of the hill, arm in arm. "Look who I found!" Ali cried, hitting the unlock button on her key chain. "She's coming with us!"
Everyone whooped. Suddenly, Aria heard a strange, muffled sound. She paused, curling her hand over the car door. it sounded like a thump, followed by a squeal.
"Did you hear that?" she whispered, looking around the parking lot. Couples staggered to their cars. Limos chugged. Mothers waited for their kids in their SUVs. Aria thought about the Polaroids she'd found in the woods. That phantom face, looming at the barn window. She looked around for Wilden…or any cop, for that matter, but they were all gone.
Ali paused. "Hear what?"
Aria waited, listening again. Between the thumping bass and the booming fireworks, it was difficult to hear anything. "I guess it's nothing," she decided. "Probably just some kids hooking up on the Commons."
"Sluts," Ali giggled. She opened her door and gracefully got into the driver's seat. Spencer sat beside her, and Hanna, Emily, and Aria clambered into the back. As soon as the car flickered to life, Ali cranked the music up so loud that it drowned out the fireworks. "Let's go, bitches!" she cried. And off they went.