EVIL QUEEN - Rebel Hart Page 0,91

students to line up alphabetically, which effectively pulled all of us apart. We gave our final hugs and kisses and congrats before lining up, and my stomach rumbled with anticipation. Only about five spaces in front of me, dressed in a gown and with a look of anxiety on her face, was Cherri. Her hair had been curled, looking similar to how it used to look when she was with The Royal Court, though it was still shorter and dyed. Beneath the base of her gown, I could see that she was wearing heels, similar to something I might have expected to see her in a year ago as opposed to the tennis shoes or combat boots I was expecting from her in the past six months. She had makeup on, again similar to what she used to wear, and though she was fidgeting back and forth, I could see that her nails were done.

It seemed that the members of The Royal Court weren’t the only ones getting back to normal, but if she was finally coming down off her high and mighty attitude, did that mean she’d try to get back into The Royal Court?

Almost as if she sensed me looking at her, she turned her head, and our eyes locked. My gut reaction was to look away, but I held her gaze, and to my complete shock, she lifted a hand a little bit and waved at me. My lips parted in surprise, but nothing came out, so I just lifted a hand and waved back. After that, she looked away from me, and I glanced around to see if anyone else in The Royal Court had seen it, but everyone seemed tangled up in conversations with the people who were nearest them in line.

Then the call came. Principal Hix and the teachers walked out first, and then after a short welcome from Principal Hix, the processional started. Pomp and Circumstance boomed over the sound system as we filed out onto our football field under the cheers of our friends and family. I spied my foster mom, Sistine, my foster father, Charlie, and my grandmother, Hannah. They started to jump up and down and cheer as our eyes met, and I chuckled and waved a hand at them.

A few seats down the way was Brayden, and he was frantically trying to wave at each specific member of The Royal Court as they passed. When our eyes met, he held up a thumbs-up and screamed, “Congrats, Nikki!” It made me feel good to see that he seemed to be in high spirits, and I waved at him as I passed. We all took our seats, and I turned and looked into the row behind me, where Nathan was sitting almost directly behind me. He stepped out of line briefly to kiss me and then returned to his spot, winking at me as he did so. I turned to face forward again, and then we were seated so that the ceremony could begin.

I was grateful that Principal Hix committed to keeping things short and sweet. The longest part of the ceremony was Colette’s speech. Though she’d missed her final chance to be Valedictorian and Class President, no one took the positions in her wake, so when she applied for the chance to be the Class Speaker at graduation, she snagged it without issue. Her incredible skills for writing showed in a moving and emotional speech that she ended by calling out each member of The Royal Court, Cherri and Sicily included, and saying, “Thank you for making me who I am.”

Walking across the stage left me lightheaded and buzzing. The screams of my family from the stands and of The Royal Court from amongst the students rang in my ears long after the ceremony had ended. I wished I could have recorded it for when I felt sad in the future, but the memory would have to suffice. I found my family after the ceremony and enjoyed the flowers they gave me along with their hugs. It was nice to see my grandma again after almost a year.

“Um,” my grandmother said softly. “Where are Nathan’s parents?”

I looked over my shoulder and saw Nathan standing off to one side alone. Occasionally, different students and their families walked past and congratulated him, but Nathan had made sure to tell us the night before not to try and drag him into any of our family interactions because he thought it would be too