~ Zoie's POV ~
Zoie combed her long blonde hair and stared at her reflection in the mirror. She was smiling in satisfaction. The blonde wig she got from Amazon turned out perfectly. She was also wearing a long, red gown, channeling her inner Rhaenyra Targaryen.
Yup, today was the long-awaited Valentine's Day and Zoie and Asher were going to the school's Exes and Ohs Party. For the past week or so, they'd been helping Nic and Jo with the setup. The girls weren't kidding when they say they were throwing the biggest party the school had ever seen. They went with a carnival themed party with costumes and music. The courtyard in the Student Center was transformed into this larger than life dance venue complete with a DJ booth and a laser light show. Around the dance area, there were game stations and carnival rides like a merry-go-round, a small Ferris wheel, and of course - a gondola ride.
Zoie was super excited about tonight, and not just because of the party, but because this was her first Valentine's Day together with Asher. Actually, this was her first Valentine's Day with anyone ever.
Feeling satisfied with how she looked, Zoie grabbed her purse and made her way to the door. As soon as she flung the door open, she saw Asher standing in the living room. He was wearing this knight in shining armor costume, reminiscent of Ser Criston Cole. Zoie and Asher were binge-watching the House of the Dragons lately and this was the result.
"H-hey!" she stammered as the sight of Asher took her breath away.
"Hey," Asher beamed as he stepped closer. Zoie didn't move away. He stood tall in front of her and grabbed her hand. As he kissed the top of her hand, he whispered, "Your grace,"
Hubba-hubba!
Zoie's stomach was feeling the jingle-jangles. She couldn't help but smile and giggle.
"R-ready to go?" she asked him.
"Hmm, I don't know," he shrugged. Then his hand went to rub her arm. "I'd rather stay home and get you out of this dress,"
"Asher!" she gaped and smacked his arm playfully. "I spent an hour working on my hair and make up, we can't just not go,"
Asher rolled his eyes and exaggerated a disappointed face.
"Besides," she continued. "We'll do that after,"
Asher's lips immediately curved up a smile.
"Guess we better get going then!" he exclaimed in excitement, lending his hand out. Zoie could only laugh as she took his hand.
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The Exes and Ohs Party was a total success, to say the least. Zoie and Asher pulled up at the carnival's entrance and her eyes lit up in excitement. The DJ was blasting Bad Bunny tracks, there were people in all kinds of costumes dancing and having a good time, and the lights from the carnival rides and the dance floor were spectacular. It almost felt like she was stepping into Coachella or something.
"Wow!" she gaped in astonishment. "We did such an amazing job with this, don't we?"
"Yeah, I guess all that manual labor didn't all go to waste," he shrugged.
Asher was in charge of a lot of heavy lifting for this project. He had to cut and carry blocks of wood to make those X and O signs. And don't forget about the dozen fake palm trees that he and several other guys had to carry while Zoie and the girls got the easy jobs like painting the signs or hanging the fairy lights.
"Oh, come on, it wasn't so bad, right?" Zoie joked playfully, knowing full well that it would trigger him.
Asher rolled his eyes and glared at her.
"You're lucky I really love you," he chuckled.
Zoie was smiling too, but she quickly looked around to make sure no one heard that.
"Ssh!" she hissed. "Not here!"
While Zoie was busily looking over her shoulders, Asher rolled his eyes again. He thought it was so damn stupid that they had to hide around like this at school. It was hard enough doing it at home. But since this is what the princess wants, he just had to play along.
"I'm gonna go get a drink, can I get you anything?" he asked, eyeing the bar in the corner of his eye.
"No, thanks. I'm good,"
"Okay, I'll be right back,"
Asher stepped away in the direction of the bar while Zoie continued walking down the games area. She took note of all the carnival games set up there, like the ring toss and popping balloons. Everyone seemed to be having a good time and love was clearly in the air. She took note of all the couples around. There were couples kissing, dancing, and holding hands. All the things that she and Asher couldn't do right now and it made the moment feel kind of bittersweet. Zoie could only wonder if someday in the future, she and Asher could be doing things like this too?
"Can I read your fortune, dear?"
Suddenly, a voice was heard and it broke through Zoie's daydreaming. She looked up and realized that she was walking aimlessly into a fortune teller's booth.
"Five dollars for each prophecy," said the fortune teller, sitting back in her chair.
The fortune teller was an old woman in her late sixties. She was wearing a purple hair covering and her lips held a crooked smile. She waved at the empty chair in front of her, gesturing for Zoie to sit down. In front of the chair was a table that held a crystal ball and a jar with a few dollar bills inside it.
"Oh... sure," Zoie shrugged and pulled out a five dollar bill from her purse. She sat down and drop the money inside the jar.
The fortune teller smiled that crooked smile and she began focusing her eyes on the crystal ball. Zoie obviously didn't believe in psychic reading, but she felt bad for the old lady, so she just wanted to help out.
"Hmm... I see... a great love in your future..." the fortune teller began to speak. Her voice was low, almost like a whisper, and her eyes were closed. "It's an amazing love... the best kind of love... and he's not far... very close... closer than you think..."
Zoie found herself glancing aimlessly and she spotted Asher at the bar. The fortune teller wasn't wrong. He was closer than one might think.
"That's great, what else do you see?" she asked.
This time, Zoie was a lot more eager than before. The fortune teller knew she got Zoie hooked. She just smiled and pushed the jar closer to her.
Ah, right. Five dollars for each prophecy.
Rolling her eyes, Zoie took out a ten dollar bill and shoved it into the jar.
"What else can you tell me about him?"
The fortune teller closed her eyes again, focusing on the crystal ball. This time, Zoie paid closer attention.
"He's got eyes like fire..." the fortune teller spoke. "His eyes... they burn with passion... and he's had a hard life, but he's learning... he's becoming a better man... because of his love..."
Eyes like fire...?
Zoie remembered Asher's eyes. They were warm hazel, and yes, sometimes they looked like the color of fire burning.
"I see... great protection covering you..." the fortune teller continued. "He's always watching... but the moment he stops, a great calamity is heading your way!"
The fortune teller opened her eyes suddenly. The smile on her face dropped into a frown. Her eyes were stricken with horror.
"Be careful, child!" she said as she grabbed Zoie's hand. "Don't let his watch ends!"
"What?" Zoie looked at her quizzically. The fortune teller's hand was shaking. "What are you talking about?"
The fortune teller let go of Zoie's hand and she stood up. She started pacing back and forth like she was scared about something. If this was an acting gig of some sort, this lady deserved an Oscar. She really got Zoie hooked on this whole prophecy thing. Zoie opened her purse again and took out a twenty dollar bill this time.
"Excuse me, what calamity are you talking about?" Zoie was about to put the money in the jar, but the fortune teller quickly grabbed the jar from the table, preventing Zoie from putting anything into it.
"Please!" the old lady begged. "It's too horrible, I don't want to look anymore!"
Zoie was taken aback. Why was the fortune teller was refusing to take her money?
"That's all I can tell you and you know for yourself what you need to do!" the fortune teller said again. Then she gestured for Zoie to move from her chair. Zoie looked back to see a line had formed behind her. Perhaps the old lady wanted to give other people a try, she thought.
"Okay... Thanks..." she said as she got up.
The fortune teller didn't even reply. It was almost like she was too scared to look Zoie in the eye.
Okay, that was weird.
Zoie walked out of the booth and headed toward the dance floor area. The music felt louder here and there were more people around. In the midst of the crowd, Zoie spotted Karli, dressed as a sexy, or more accurately slutty, devil. Karli also caught her eyes, but she pretended like she didn't even see her. Zoie just scoffed and rolled her eyes, walking to another side.
"Zoe! Babe!"
Zoie turned to her side and saw Jo and Nic racing over to her. Jo was wearing a sexy cowgirl outfit complete with some cowboy boots and a hat. Meanwhile, Nic took a more traditional approach, dressing up as Hermione in her Gryffindor robe.
"Oh my gosh, you look great!" Nic complemented her dress.
"Aw, stop!" Zoie blushed and waved her hand. "You guys look amazing too!"
"Why, thank you, princess," Jo said playfully as she bowed.
"Are you having a good time?" Nic asked.
"Totally!" Zoie nodded her head. "Everything turned out so great, you guys did a spectacular job!"
"Couldn't have done it without your help. And Asher's too," Nic said.
"Speaking of Asher..." Jo nodded in a direction.
The girls were staring at the bar area where Asher was at. He was holding a glass of whiskey in his hand, sipping his drink casually. He noticed Zoie looking at him and he nodded at her. He was about to walk over to her but Zoie quickly shook her head. Asher stopped in his tracks and returned to the bar.
"Is it me, or does he look so damn fine in that suit armor?" Jo continued.
Zoie reacted immediately, turning her gaze to Jo.
"Jo, stop!" Nic laughed and shoved her friend playfully. "That's still Zoie's brother!"
"Ha-ha, just kidding, I got my eye on this new exchange student from Italy. His name is Giulio and he's hot with a capital H!" Jo giggled happily. "Besides, no offense to your brother, but I don't want Karlie's sloppy seconds---"
"He and Karli never did anything!" Zoie cut her off, unable to hold herself back.
"Really?" Jo scoffed. "She was totally bragging to everyone last year,"
"Well, she lied, as usual," Zoie stated matter of factly.
"Are you sure?" Nic asked.
"Yeah. Asher told me everything!"
"You guys are really close, huh?" Jo asked.
This question caught Zoie off guard. She laughed nervously, and said, "Well, he's my favorite brother... I guess you can say that... ha-ha,"
"That's cool," Jo replied. "I'm glad Asher has better taste,"
"What's his type, anyway? Maybe we can set him up with someone?" Nic asked.
"Oh, I-I don't know,"
"You must know, you two are so close!"
Jo and Nic were staring at Zoie, waiting expectantly. Zoie got even more nervous.
"I... I guess he likes... girls that are... sweet..."
"Sweet?" Jo and Nic stared at each other in disbelief.
"Yeah..." Zoie smiled nervously.
"Oh, I know what you mean!" Nic clapped her hands like she just got a brilliant idea. "Okay, look over there, that's Mikayla and she's, like, the sweetest girl I've ever met!"
Nic was pointing to a girl who was dancing with her friends. She was a cute, skinny Asian girl dressed as Ariel. Zoie knew of Mikayla Kim. Apparently, she was almost a pop star in South Korea or something like that.
"Oh, I know Mikayla! I have a class with her. She's a sweetheart and a total cutie," Jo agreed.
"And she's newly single, so if he's Ash's type, he should go for it now before anyone snatches her!" Nic added.
"You know how thirsty the boys in our school are," Jo rolled her eyes.
"So, what do you think?" Nic asked.
Zoie felt under pressure again. Nic and Jo were waiting for her response.
"Y-yeah, I guess she's his type..." she stammered.
"Woo!" Jo and Nic high-fived each other before waving for Asher's attention.
"Asher! Hey, over here!" Jo exclaimed.
Asher saw the girls waving him over. He looked at Zoie again and this time, she nodded her head.
"What's up, guys?" Asher said as he came to the girls. He stood next to Zoie and Zoie stepped away in response, purposefully leaving a gap in between them.
"Guess what? Your sister and I were playing cupid, and we think we found someone that you might like!" Jo said playfully.
"What?" Asher looked confused.
"See the Little Mermaid over there?" Nic pointed to Mikayla on the dance floor. "We think you should go and talk to her,"
Asher still looked confused. He looked at Mikayla and at Zoie, waiting for an explanation, but Zoie's face held no expression.
"You can thank us later," Jo said.
"Right, Zoe?" Nic nudged Zoie's elbow.
No! Not right at all!
Zoie could only force out a smile and said, "Yeah... I think you should go talk to her,"
Asher looked even more confused now.
"Talk about what?" he protested.
"Ask her to dance... or something..." she replied.
"You want me to go there and ask her to dance?" Asher frowned, looking somewhat mad.
"Yes!" Jo and Nic squealed in unison.
Zoie swallowed hard.
"Yes..." she said.
Asher looked at her for a second longer to study her expression. Again, Zoie forced out a smile and nodded her head. Almost as if she was forcing him to do it. Letting out a sigh, Asher turned around and started walking to the dance floor.
Oh, no. Why do I feel like I'm gonna regret this?
Zoie felt her stomach drop to the floor as soon as Asher walked away. And the moment he tapped the girl's shoulder and started talking to her, she immediately regretted it.
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- - - - - - - - To Be Continued - - - - - - - -