By this time, I was wondering where Taylor had gone. As I scanned the room, searching for him, I saw a clock on the wall. Absently, I noticed that the clock read 10:15. I didn't pay much attention to that, though, because just then, I heard a voice calling my name. I turned to see Taylor coming toward me. He was smiling slyly, as though he had a secret.
"Come on, Moni," he said, taking my hand and pulling me to the dance floor.
I was very surprised, since there was no music playing. "Tay, what is going on? There's no..." I broke off in shock as a song began playing...a very familiar song.
"Oh, Tay!" I whispered as he put his arms around me and we began dancing to the beautiful sounds of "Hero."
"Look at the time," he whispered.
I looked back at the clock. It still said 10:15. All of a sudden, it dawned on me why this time was significant...I couldn't believe I had forgotten about our agreement to listen to "Hero" at this time every night. I turned back to Taylor and smiled. "I can't believe you remember," I said softly. "I had nearly forgotten myself."
"So had I, actually," he replied. "I just remembered it when we heard her other song. I didn't know if they'd have that song or not, or if they took requests. But I took the chance, because I wanted to do something special for you."
"Taylor, this is the nicest thing anyone's ever done for me! Thank you so much!"
"You're welcome." As I started to say something else to him, he put his finger over my lips. "Shh...just listen to the song." He pulled me close, and I rested my head on his shoulder. Not another word was spoken for the remainder of the song.
As the song finally died away, I slowly lifted my head from Taylor's shoulder. "Thank you, Tay," I said softly. "This means so much to me."
"You're welcome, Moni. I know how much this song means to you, and I wanted to show you just how much I really do love you."
Taylor always did know how to make me feel special. Sometimes I wished I could do more for him. "Tay," I said, "I love you, too. I just wish there was some way I could show you just how much."
Taylor's strong arms wrapped around me again as he held me tight and whispered, "You don't have to do anything except be yourself. I love you for you, not for what you do."
Taylor and I danced for the rest of the night after that. It was around 11:30 when the music stopped suddenly.
"What happened to the music?" Taylor asked.
"It's time for them to announce the Court, I bet," I replied, referring to the Prom King and Queen and others.
Sure enough, the next thing I heard was the dj/announcer say, "Okay, everyone, let's come over here now for the Prom Court announcements!"
Everyone crowded around the dj's booth. Taylor and I were lucky enough to be able to see a little bit. Of course, Taylor's height gave him an advantage, but that was okay.
After a long moment of suspense, the announcer said, "And now...the Junior Class Prince is.."
I could not hear the name over the shouts, but I saw that it was a boy from my science class the previous year. I had once had a very small crush on him...not enough to do anything about it, though, especially since he had a girlfriend. I hoped that his girlfriend would be the Princess.
The announcer then said, "And the Junior Class Princess is..."
Once again, I could not hear the name, but I knew it was her when I saw them hugging joyfully.
I didn't really listen to the announcements for Prom King and Queen. I didn't really care. I had no eyes for anything or anyone but Taylor. After the Prom announcements, nothing extremely special happened. Taylor and I danced for the rest of the night, until the dj finally said, "This is our last song for tonight. I hope you all have enjoyed the prom." The song wasn't even that special.
The last song ended, and the lights came back on. After I retrieved my purse from the table where I had left it, Taylor and I exited the building hand-in-hand. We walked through the parking lot to Taylor's car. He opened the door for me and then got in himself.
As we drove off, Taylor asked, "Do you want to go get something to eat, or something?"
I looked at the clock and saw that it was 12:15. "I better not," I replied. "It's already late, and I don't want to be unable to wake up tomorrow!"
"Yeah, I know what you mean."
"No, you don't," I teased. "You're always working in the studio at, like, two o'clock in the morning! You don't need that much sleep!"
He laughed. "Well, that's true. The recording process kinda gives me energy, but then I'm tired the rest of the time, and I need all the rest I can get during our rare breaks."
"Well, okay," I allowed. "But you're getting to bed early tonight, so you better be back in the studio at 5:00 tomorrow morning!"
"Very funny. No, we have a break this weekend, and I'm gonna make the most of it!"
Serious now, I asked, "Like tonight?"
"Like tonight," Taylor replied.
The look that passed between us then said more than any mere words could express.
The car finally pulled to a stop in front of my house. Taylor jumped out and ran to open the door for me. He took my hand and walked me to the front door.
"Goodnight, Monica," Taylor said, turning to face me. "Thank you for giving me the best night of my life."
"You are so welcome...it was the best night of my life, too. Goodnight, Taylor. And thank you...for showing me how much you care."
"I love you, Monica."
"I love you too, Taylor."
Once again our lips met as we kissed goodnight, expressing the feelings that had been revealed that night.
Reluctantly, I pulled away to go inside, but turned back to wave to Taylor as he disappeared down the street. I went to bed, feeling more complete than I ever knew I could.
Chapter 45
Love Takes Time
Story Page
Back Home
