Became an American Retro Novelist - Chapter 132



Only Noblemtl

132.

Prom was a special moment for the female students.

That day, they took more pictures than they ever had in their lives. Dozens of shots in the garden or nearby park before going to the party, hundreds of shots when they went to get their makeup and hair done, and finally thousands of shots at the prom. Of course, it was an exaggerated expression, but it meant that they were sincere.

The teenage era was special, and wanting to make the most of it was a desire shared by everyone who attended the prom.

As for why male students don’t do that, it’s because most male students have a habit of being lazy about taking pictures. When male students take pictures, they just do a ‘thumb up’ or an awkward smile. It’s like they believe that their soul will be taken away if they take a picture.

From the beginning, men were that kind of creatures.

People who prefer to munch on a hearty hamburger with pickles rather than go somewhere nice and eat fancy food.

And Jamie’s mother, Deborah, believed that if you can control those men well, you can get great photos at the prom that will be remembered for a lifetime.

“Ma Mama says······.”

The meeting begins with Malcolm’s partner, Jamie’s fluent black English.

Yeah, it was a ‘meeting’.

A gathering of all the female students who are members of the cheerleading club and are attending the prom.

About twenty people sat at a long table.

And Alexa Flair, who was sitting next to Jamie, belatedly regretted that it might have been a very bad choice to have Jiwoo attend this meeting, who was going to the first prom with Doofy. Because the first thing Jamie said was this.

“They say you can have the best prom party if you grab the man’s ‘Wiener’!”

“Right!”

“’Wiener’ is a major event!”

“······.”

Jamie talks about the ‘smoked frankfurter’ that only men have.

Jiwoo’s cheeks, who had been clinging to Alexa like a baby koala, instantly turned red. ‘Wiener’ was a word used to refer to a man’s ●●.

I brought her here because I thought she might be helpful for the first prom, but her first speech was too spicy. But that just meant that the cheerleader girls were serious about prom.

The discussion about the dress color and code that each person will wear has already been completed.

In a situation where they were taking photos together that would last a lifetime, the cheerleaders held meetings over a three-week period to finalize the concept and color to have as little overlap as possible.

Alexa is an ivory white that accentuates her white skin tone.

A deep purple with a bit of saturation added to respect Jiwoo’s usual taste.

Both of them were not too flashy colors, which is not typical of American teenagers.

“Tell each boy what color dress he’s going to wear to the party! And if he doesn’t bring a corsage that matches it, we’ll send him home!”

While everyone listened to Jamie with serious expressions, Alexa suddenly thought.

‘Is it really necessary to go that far?’

Of course, there was no denying that it was the day when I wanted to look my prettiest.

But I felt like sending my partner away just because he didn’t match the color of the flower on his wrist was putting the cart before the horse.

On a special day when you get to spend time with the person you want to look your best in, you ignore them because you don’t like the flowers they picked?

Alexa tilted her head and listened, not understanding much. Jiwoo also blinked, unable to follow the flow of the conversation.

After the meeting ended and the two people came out, they felt a slightly awkward atmosphere as they tried to go home.

Alexa asked cautiously, wondering if Jiwoo might be surprised by the harsh words used by the third-year sisters.

“Jiwoo, are you okay?”

“Yes, yes. Um, so······ I should contact Doofy and ask him to match the color of the corsage?”

“Huh? I don’t think it’s necessary to do that?”

“But what Jamie said just now was different, right?”

“That’s what they think. Wouldn’t it be nice for me to just go with God?”

Immediately after blurting out what was on her mind without much thought, Alexa realized she had made a slip of the tongue.

“Oh, oh······!”

Jiwoo’s face turned red for a different reason than before.

“Two, have you two decided to continue your good relationship from now on?!”

“No! Not yet!”

“If not yet, then when······!”

Alexa desperately denied it in front of Jiwoo, who spoke like a reporter who had discovered a scoop.

***

On the day of the prom, most of the female students had a very busy day.

I woke up early in the morning, got my makeup and hair done at home or at a salon, got dressed up in a dress, and took a lot of pictorial-quality photos. I drove around the backyard, a nearby park, and here and there with my parents, thoroughly recording the beauty and memories that had been maximized that day.

On the other hand, the boys······ gathered together during that time and played until it was time to pick up their partners.

And Doofi and I naturally decided to gather at Doofi House and watch a movie.

“Doob.”

“Shin.”

Me and Doofy lightly bumped fists. Bro fist.

I’m glad I’m a man. I get to spend my time sitting on the couch watching all the movies Harrison Ford stars in.

Because I was wearing an expensive tuxedo, I couldn’t eat snacks or finger foods that could possibly get on me, so instead I carefully sipped clear Sprite and binge-watched Harrison Ford’s masterpiece movie.

Then we started getting occasional calls from Alexa, who knew our whereabouts.

Ring ring ring~! Ring ring ring~!

Crunch.

[Oh my, my hair and makeup are done!]

“Really? I’m looking forward to it.”

[Jiwoo is so pretty!!]

“I think you’d be pretty too.”

[······I’ll contact you later.]

The phone suddenly hangs up.

I found myself chuckling without realizing it.

The movie was fun, but I was also looking forward to picking up Alexa later.

After watching a movie with Doofi like that, we left for Alexa’s house together at around 5:30.

I drove a car with a head larger than mine, with my back to the sun, which was tilted considerably in the middle of the sky.

Since I’m a better driver because of my past life experiences, I become the driver when we all move together.

“Ready? Let’s go?”

“Of course, God. Let’s have a wild night tonight.”

“But there is a problem.”

“What’s the problem?”

“······Do you know how to dance?”

“I only know the theory.”

“me too.”

That part was the only thing that worried me a little.

Well, there is a saying, ‘If you don’t have teeth, use your gums.’

I headed to Alexa’s house, thinking that things would work out somehow. Luckily, the roads were clear, so I arrived quickly.

I lightly rang the doorbell and waited. Mr. Flair came out to greet me. He was accompanied by his pet shotgun.

······As expected, the way they looked at me was unusual.

“Twelve o’clock in the morning.”

“I will keep that in mind.”

“Did you say scalp?”

“Yes, yep.”

“It’s the same time.”

“Yes, sir.”

As we waited for the harsh initiation ceremony(?), two people appeared from the inner room.

And for a moment I felt like my heart stopped.

I felt the blood rushing to my face. Up until I got here, I had just been happy and excited, but when my partner appeared before my eyes, she was so beautiful that I began to feel nervous without realizing it.

The white dress had a simple design that revealed her shoulders, and she gave it some flair with accessories like a necklace and earrings. Her blonde hair, which is usually left hanging naturally, was lightly wavy.

Jiwoo, who was wearing makeup and a purple dress, also looked great, but thanks to Jiwoo, I realized that I wouldn’t be able to see anyone else except Alexa today.

Mrs. Flair stood behind her hesitant daughter and gave her a light push on the back. Then Alexa, who slowly approached me, opened her mouth with an awkward smile.

“Wow, you’re here?”

“······uh.”

“What, is it weird?”

“No, it’s really pretty.”

Alexa’s face turned bright red like a carrot at my words and she avoided eye contact.

We exchanged flowers with each other.

Alexa pinned a white boutonniere on my chest, and I pinned a white corsage on Alexa’s wrist. And as we held hands lightly and awkwardly turned around, I realized that we were getting quite a bit of attention.

“The atmosphere is so soft.”

“You two look really good together!”

Unlike the two of us, they were laughing comfortably with each other, praising each other, and exchanging boutonnieres and corsages.

Mrs. Flair, who was standing next to us, thrust her camera at us with sparkling eyes.

“Come on! Let’s take some pictures and go!!”

After shooting about a hundred individual cuts, couple cuts, and cuts of all four people at the same time with different expressions and concepts, we were able to depart from the flare house.

***

Central City Value High School’s prom was held in the school gym.

The gym where I always watched the cheerleading club practice. When I went inside with Alexa after purchasing the ticket, the first thing I noticed was that the interior had completely changed into a ballroom.

‘Was it originally this fancy?’

I looked around the interior in admiration.

Even the ordinary windows had large, colorful curtains, and the blackout curtains behind the stage were different than usual. Round tables and chairs were placed here and there in the spacious space, but that alone made it feel like it wasn’t an ordinary school space.

The interior was dark and dull overall without any highlights, with colorful lights playing and atmospheric music.

‘I don’t remember it being this fancy in my previous life.’

As I was looking around wondering why this had happened, I found Kate Moore, wearing a dress, leading the broadcasting club and student council members.

‘Didn’t that guy come with a partner in his past life?’

When our eyes met, she gave me a sharp, sharp look, then quickly turned her head away and went back to work.

Suddenly, I remembered that a while ago, when I came to get an autograph, I asked him a lot of questions about college entrance exams.

‘I guess that just fueled the competitive spirit.’

I smiled awkwardly and entered the very well-decorated gym.

The prom parties I enjoyed in my past life weren’t particularly fun.

At that time, I didn’t have any close friends who I could ask to go to prom with me, so I came alone, looked around for a bit, and then went back.

Suddenly, I recalled that memory and a bitter smile came to my mind, but I quickly forgot about it when I saw Alexa, who was holding my hand and pulling me forward with her bewitched eyes. It was as if she had erased it with an eraser.

“Wow, wow······. Waaah······!!”

The guy who grabbed my hand and dragged me inside shouted with a bright smile.

“Oh my god, look at this! It’s so pretty!”

“That’s right. It’s decorated better than I thought.”

“Is this what a prom party is like?”

“Yeah! Yeah!! Jiwoo! Let’s take a picture!”

Today I am not only Alexa’s partner but also her dedicated cameraman.

As I started taking pictures with the camera I received from Mrs. Flair, the cheerleading girls who had arrived first appeared one by one with their partners.

I watched Alexa smile brightly through the viewfinder, wearing the flower I gave her on her wrist, and took pictures of her as she pleased, from solo photos to photos with friends, to create memories.

Typically, prom parties are divided into three or four main categories.

First of all, ‘Dinner time’.

The meal, prepared buffet-style by a professional caterer, was better than expected.

Couples sat together at a round table and ate, and on one side of the gymnasium, a projector was used to project photos donated by students. The photos, which showed what kind of school days each student had, somehow touched my heart.

Then the ‘Grand March’ began.

Everyone went up on stage in their own order and took pictures. I took a picture with Alexa, a group picture with the boys, and a picture with everyone at the party.

After things were somewhat sorted out, Kate Moore went up to the stage and began reading a congratulatory speech she had prepared to the students.

To be honest, it was kind of funny.

[The fruits of our labor over the past three years will one day shine brightly in the future······.]

But what does it matter? Everyone has something they want to do.

The students also seemed to accept Kate, who was strict and led the event, as she was today.

I sat down, gently holding Alexa’s hand, and whispered in her ear.

“Tell me if you’re sleepy.”

Phew, she stifles her laughter.

And after her speech, the real ‘Dance time’ began.

Thump, thump, thump······!

The first music was sticky disco.

“Ah, this song!”

“know?!”

“I don’t know! But it’s good! It’s exciting!”

Our voices naturally grew louder as the music grew louder.

The students went up to the stage decorated with various atmospheres.

Each of them gathered together and danced happily. They might have been embarrassed, but the lighting, the atmosphere, and the fact that this was the last time seemed to allow them to move freely.

As I sat there for a moment, watching the awkward yet splendid sight, Alexa slowly grabbed my hand that she had been holding, and I went out onto the stage with her and started dancing.

‘What was disco like back then?’

When I actually tried to dance, my mind became momentarily confused, but soon I surrendered to the rhythm.

On the other hand, unlike me, whose dancing was not awkward at all, Alexa’s movements right in front of me were quite flashy.

‘As expected, the cheerleader captain.’

On stage, she was more splendid than anyone else. And my role was to support her so that she could stand out even more. It was like a baby’s breath in a bouquet or a flower pot containing flowers.

As we were dancing happily with her, Doofy, Jiwoo, Malcolm and Jamie also came up to us and joined us.

Everyone danced as if they had become one, abandoning their school cliques for this moment.

After sweating for a while, slow music followed.

‘Who the hell selected the songs?’

I thought it was the perfect timing. If it was Kate, I would have praised her by giving her a signed copy.

And as the song started, the couples who attended the prom as ‘friends’, including Doopi and Jiwoo, went inside.

I thought there were two main types of dance at prom parties.

There is a dance where everyone gathers together and dances, and there is a couple dance where only real couples remain and dance.

As the mood grew, even people who weren’t a real couple started dancing to couple dances, but the first couple dance song was different.

Those who remained on stage were almost all of the school’s ‘official couples’ that Alexa had heard about.

Alexa glances around.

Her large lips were shut nervously, and her eyes were shaking slightly as if she had lost track of where to go.

As I was looking at that sight, I unconsciously reached out my hand and opened my mouth.

“Alexa.”

“Uh, yeah······?”

“I really can’t dance.”

With those words and a light handshake, Alexa completely burst out laughing.

She covered her mouth with the back of her hand and laughed loudly, then quickly came close to me and put a hand on my shoulder.

“It’s okay. This is my first time doing something like this.”

It was so close that I could even feel their slightest breath.

End

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