I Feel Like I’ve Become a Bothersome Person Getting in the Way Between My Childhood Friends. - Chapter 6.2

Prom Night
On the day of the prom, I put on my makeup, curled my hair, and changed into my dress. It took longer than usual since I wanted everything to be perfect. It’s a once-in-a-lifetime event, and every girl wants to look as cute as possible. I wanted to look good enough to stand next to Stanley, even just a little.
The prom itself wouldn’t start until the evening, but people usually gathered early to take pictures and mingle. I waited for Stanley to come pick me up, and when the doorbell rang, I was completely ready.
“You look great,” he said.
“You too, Stanley.”
Girls usually wear long dresses, and boys wear tuxedos or suits. While the girls’ colorful dresses make the place vibrant, the boys often look pretty similar. Still, even in his simple black shirt and black jacket, Stanley looked like he had stepped out of a magazine. Really, that’s what it means when someone looks good in anything.
“Our tie and dress colors match. What a coincidence.”
“It’s not a coincidence. I matched it on purpose.”
“You did that on purpose?”
“Yeah. What’s wrong with that?”
He turned his head away, a little embarrassed, and it made me blush too. If you’re going to get embarrassed, then don’t say it in the first place!
It’s tradition for the girl to give the boy a boutonnière to wear on his lapel, and for the boy to give the girl a corsage for her wrist. So, I had told him the color of my dress beforehand. The fact that he picked his tie color to match was kind of adorable. I had chosen a white flower for Stanley.
“That choker—you got that from Xeno, didn’t you?” he asked, lightly tapping his neck.
“Yeah. He gave it to me, so I wanted to wear it.”
I had the choker Xeno gifted me on. It matched the dress perfectly, so it seemed like a good occasion to wear it.
“…Hey, I’ve got a present for you too,” Stanley said, holding out a silver necklace.
“No way, I didn’t get you anything. I’m so sorry!”
I hadn’t expected to receive a gift. Should I run out and buy something now?
“It’s fine. I wanted to give it to you. So, which one are you gonna wear?”
His eyes seemed to say, Choose me.
Xeno’s gift or Stanley’s gift. It felt like I was being asked to choose between them. Normally, I should pick Stanley—it’s his night, after all. But something about that choice felt wrong, like it would change something between us. I regretted wearing Xeno’s choker to the prom with Stanley. I hadn’t thought that far ahead, and that was my mistake.
“Both,” I said.
I decided not to take off Xeno’s choker and to wear Stanley’s necklace too. Once I put them on together, they looked like a matching set. That way, I didn’t have to choose between them.
“See? Looks like it was designed this way from the start, right?”
“Hah… I can’t beat you.”
When I grinned, feeling victorious, Stanley smiled too. Maybe this kind of moment suited us best.
“All right, shall we go? May I have your hand, princess?”
“You’re so cheesy—but it suits you.”
“Thanks. The guy’s supposed to escort the girl to prom, you know.”
I took his hand, and we got into Stanley’s car. On the way, I saw other couples and groups of friends dressed up and heading in the same direction. Among them was a group of two boys and one girl.
“Do you think Xeno wanted to go?” I asked.
“Who knows. But if he really didn’t care, he would’ve said so back then.”
“Yeah, I guess we think alike.”
“Does it bother you?”
“Yeah.”
“…You really do like Xeno.”
He said it softly. I shouldn’t have stayed silent—it made it sound like I was agreeing.
“You like him too, don’t you?”
“I do, but it’s not the same way you do.”
“It’s the same.”
“If you say so.”
“No, it is.”
“All right, all right.”
“Jeez.”

“Aria!”
As soon as we arrived, I spotted two of my friends.
“Good, you actually came with Stanley.”
“When I heard rumors he was coming with someone else, I was worried!”
“Why were you two so concerned about that?”
“Well, you know.”
“Yeah, you know.”
They giggled, and Stanley peeked over my shoulder.
“Relax. I was the one she picked.”
The girls squealed in delight, and I could hear similar reactions from others around us. Just Stanley’s arrival seemed to liven up the room. It was honestly a bit overwhelming walking beside him—he practically radiated charisma. I wished he’d tone it down a bit—or at least stand farther away.
But before I could even try, Stanley was already surrounded by people wanting pictures. It was the last high school event, so everyone wanted to make memories. Stanley, being considerate, went along with it without ruining the atmosphere.
While he was busy, I chatted and grabbed some snacks with my friends—until Elisa showed up. She was the rich girl who had invited me to her birthday party before.
“So, Aria, you really came with Stanley,” she said, sounding disappointed but resigned. I remembered—Elisa liked Stanley. She probably wasn’t happy that I came with him.
“Y-yeah… it just happened that way.”
“No need to make excuses. I understand.”
Understand what? Wait, no—she definitely misunderstood. From her tone, it sounded like she thought Stanley and I were dating or that I liked him.
“You’re mistaken!”
“No, I’m not. Stanley clearly treats you as someone special.”
Oh. That kind of “special.” I sighed inwardly. I couldn’t deny it either. I was honestly glad Stanley wasn’t here to hear this conversation.
“…No comment.”
“Heh, it’s fine. I’m not so arrogant as to think I could date him. Just seeing him is enough for me.”
Her gaze drifted toward Stanley, still being photographed. Her eyes were those of someone in love. Seeing that made me feel guilty for pretending not to notice his feelings. But it was my own fault.
After a while, Stanley returned.
“I want some of that,” he said, pointing at the chicken I was eating.
Before he could take it, I quickly popped it into my mouth.
“Hey, you knew I wanted that!”
“There’s more over there.”
Before he could go, Elisa stopped him.
“Can we take a picture together?”
For some reason, Stanley looked at me first. That was not the direction he should be looking. I turned away immediately, feeling bad for Elisa.
“Sure. Come closer,” he said.
He leaned in, and Elisa’s face turned bright red as the camera clicked. He was unusually cooperative—he hadn’t even moved during the earlier photo rush.
“Now take one of us,” he said next.
Before I could react, he pulled me close by the waist.
“…What?”
“Come on, just one picture.”
“You’re impossible. We look like a couple!”
“Don’t we?”
I glared at him, but that only brought our faces closer, and I had to look away. Elisa, clearly heartbroken, took the picture. I couldn’t even imagine what she was feeling.
After that, the main party began. We chatted, laughed, and eventually, it was time for dancing. It wasn’t slow dancing—more like a club vibe, with the DJ playing upbeat music and everyone moving however they wanted. At the end, they would announce the Prom King and Queen, who’d then share a slow dance. Usually, it was the popular kids like the Queen Bee or the star athlete.
“Did you practice dancing or something?” Stanley asked.
“You’re one to talk—did you practice with Xeno?”
“Don’t be stupid.”
I even danced with Elisa. She seemed more relaxed now, smiling and laughing freely.
I wished the night could stay like this forever. But I had forgotten—those mean Cool girls were here too.
Just as things were winding down, a group of them approached me.
“Nice dress,” one said.
“But maybe we should make it even prettier,” another added.
“Yeah, let’s make it really you.”
They were holding cups of red soda. I didn’t even need to guess what would happen next.
One of them grabbed the mic.
“Everyone! Let’s make this the best party ever!” she shouted, drawing everyone’s attention.
Then she pretended to bump into me and tilted her cup. I saw the red liquid falling toward me in slow motion—
—but it never hit me.
A strong arm wrapped around my waist, yanking me backward. The drink splashed onto the floor instead.
“Watch it!” Stanley snapped.
He had saved me, like a knight in a story. Maybe he pulled too hard, though—it almost knocked the wind out of me.
“That was way too obvious,” he said. “Everyone could tell they were trying to dump that on you.”
The Cool girls looked shocked. Their plan had failed spectacularly, and everyone had seen it.
“It was an accident! I’m so sorry, Aria!” one of them said, fake-sweetly.
Stanley looked furious. If he hit someone, that would only make things worse. So, I grabbed two glasses of the same red soda from a nearby table.
“It’s okay. I know it was an accident,” I said—and then splashed both glasses all over them.
It was our last high school event. I had stayed quiet for years, trying to avoid trouble—but now, there was nothing to lose.
Screams filled the air. Everyone stared. The quiet Asian girl had just done that.
“Stan, let’s run!” I said.
I grabbed his hand and bolted.
“Haha! Nice one, Aria!” he laughed, now the one pulling me along.
“Stanley and Aria just ran out!”
“It’s the losers’ rebellion!”
“Nice one, Aria!”
“Prom King candidate Stanley just ran off with his girl!”
Voices and laughter echoed behind us as we jumped into his car, breathless but exhilarated.
“That was one hell of a comeback,” Stanley said. “I love that side of you.”
“I think it was perfect. I hope someone got it on video.”
My heart was still racing.
“So, what now?” he asked, looking at me. His tone hinted at something more. Nighttime, just the two of us, dressed up, nowhere to be. The atmosphere was thick, and for a moment, I thought… maybe I could just let it happen.
“Aria,” he whispered.
“…Stanley.”
The air grew heavy. Our faces drew closer. But then, another face flashed in my mind—our other childhood friend, probably buried in research papers right now.
“Let’s go see Xeno,” I said suddenly.
I leaned back into my seat. So much for the mood.
“…I figured you’d say that,” Stanley sighed, starting the engine.

“Xeno! Let’s have our own private prom!” I shouted after ringing the doorbell.
Xeno opened the door, eyes wide. His parents weren’t home, meaning no one would scold us no matter how late we stayed up.
“Well, you two certainly managed to turn an important night into chaos,” he said after hearing the story of how we dumped soda on the Cool girls and ran. He couldn’t stop laughing.
Stanley made Xeno change out of his lab coat, and I ordered pizza. He ended up wearing a simple black jacket and a tie the same color as Stanley’s.
“You picked matching ones? You two are too close,” I teased.
“Not with Stanley—with you,” Xeno said.
Since Stanley had matched my dress, and Xeno matched Stanley, all three of us ended up coordinated.
“…You both really like matching, huh?”
“Stan, why don’t you take off your tie? The real prom’s over. No need to stick to formal manners—and you’ve always hated this kind of outfit,” Xeno said.
“What are you talking about? The real prom’s just starting,” Stanley replied.
We grabbed pizza and put on a random movie from Xeno’s collection. The three of us squeezed together on the couch—it used to be roomy when we were kids. Even though there were other seats, they wouldn’t let me move. I got the message: they wanted to stay like this. Just for tonight, I let them.
The movie was a sci-fi story about a high school boy caught in a mysterious incident. Thanks to Professor Xeno’s running commentary, I actually understood the plot better than usual. The final scene happened to take place at a prom too. The hero solved the mystery, confessed his love to the heroine, and kissed her after a slow dance.
“Did you and Stanley dance like that too?” Xeno asked.
“No, the music was too fast.”
“Yeah, it was basically a club,” Stanley added.
“Did you see the football team dancing?”
“Yeah, I thought a bunch of gorillas were on the floor.”
I laughed so hard remembering it. We chatted about the weirdest dancers, who confessed to who, and all the crazy things that happened. Xeno, meanwhile, just watched us quietly while the credits rolled.
They say eyes speak louder than words, and it was true for him. Xeno might be smarter than most adults, but he was still a seventeen-year-old boy. Being gifted meant he couldn’t always share the same experiences we did. He probably didn’t mind—but sometimes, he looked at us with quiet longing. Like now.
“Xeno,” I said.
“Aria?”
I took his hand and stood up, pulling him with me.
“Let’s dance. It’s prom night.”
Still holding his hand, I placed my other hand on his shoulder. The song from the movie’s credits was soft and slow—perfect for a slow dance.
“You’re kind, Aria.”
“I’m not. I just want to dance with you. I already danced with Stanley.”
We swayed side to side. At some point, his hand slid around my waist.
“I’ve loved you, all this time,” he said suddenly.
I froze, then realized he was quoting the movie. So I played along.
“An honor, coming from the hero who saved the world,” I replied.
“…You’ve got a good memory.”
“I just saw it.”
“You two are heating things up,” Stanley teased from the couch.
He was watching us with a smirk. It felt like we were leaving him out, but I reminded him that I’d already spent the whole school prom with him.
“Fair enough. I’ll let Xeno have this one,” he said with a shrug.
“You’re my light,” Xeno whispered. “Without you, I couldn’t live.”
“You got the line wrong, Xeno.”
In the movie, it wasn’t “light” but “jewel.” The line went something like, I could live without it, but having it makes life richer. It was the hero’s awkward, cheesy confession.
“Oh, was it?” Xeno chuckled softly, gazing at me with warmth.
And I couldn’t bring myself to say, “I love you too.”