and dull tile floors of the hospital room.
I burst into tears on the spot.
“David!” I cried as he closed the distance between us and folded me into a hug. “You look so handsome!”
He pressed his nose against my neck as I wept into the shoulder of his tuxedo jacket. Low enough so only I could hear, he asked, “Are you okay?”
I nodded and started to wipe my eyes but froze when I saw he hadn’t come alone. Standing in the door frame, fidgeting with the wrist strap of a corsage identical to the one David had carried in—and looking beyond beautiful—was Isabel Rose.
Her sapphire-blue halter dress hugged her curves, and her hair cascaded down her back in flowing dark curls.
The dress I’d wanted to wear was so similar. I’d eyed it on the rack in the department store but left it there when I saw the price tag—and when I pictured Isabel and Maddie dousing me with a bucket of red paint, Carrie-style, and making me the laughingstock of the dance. I was glad now that I hadn’t bought it. I couldn’t imagine ever looking that flawless in it. In fact, even with my painted nails and my brushed hair, at that moment I could not have felt more hideous or inadequate.
Isabel picked at the lacy band of the corsage around her wrist and twisted it around her finger as she shot me a tight smile. I scooted back on the bed, putting some space between David and me.
“How did you know where to find me?” I asked.
“Your dad was getting coffee in the lobby.” David turned to look at my father, who handed a steaming cup to my mother and a Snapple to Miranda. “We followed him up. By the way, everyone, this is Isabel.”
Isabel looked mortified at the mention of her name, as if saying it out loud had stripped her of an invisibility cloak. The tight smile stretched even tighter, and this time an equally tight wave accompanied it. My parents must have sensed the discomfort in the room, because they promptly ushered Miranda out and made an excuse about needing to stretch their legs.
“This is for you,” David said with a grin as he held out the corsage box he’d placed on the bed.
I fought back the lump in my throat. “David. That is so sweet of you.”
He shrugged and his expression turned sheepish. “I was gonna get you one anyway.” Behind him, Isabel’s lips pressed into a line. “Seriously though, are you okay? Do they know what’s going on yet?”
I shook my head and dropped my voice to a whisper. “It could be a few different things. They’re really making me nervous.”
David’s brow puckered and he squeezed my hand. “Don’t be nervous. You’ll be fine, I know it.” The corners of his mouth turned up again and mischief lit his eyes. “You just did this so I wouldn’t embarrass you on the dance floor tonight.”
I had to smile. “If you dance as badly as you spell, then maybe I should be glad I’m not going.”
He squeezed my hand again and leaned a little closer. “I really wanted you to go,” he said quietly. “I would’ve come alone, but by the time you texted me, I was already on my way to her house.” I knew he didn’t want Isabel to hear, and if she felt like a third wheel, I didn’t care. I hoped she did, actually.
David spoke in his regular voice as he told me to call him if I heard anything, and to let him know when I went home. But then as he stood, he leaned in again so only I could hear him. “Save me a dance for another time, okay?”
I nodded, feeling sad and alone the moment his weight lifted from the mattress.
“Feel better, Kelsey,” Isabel said as David walked toward her. Her relief couldn’t have been more obvious. From the way she’d been eyeing the room and shifting on her silver-heeled feet, you would have thought a fleet of cockroaches were closing in and David had rescued her in the nick of time.
They left the room and I sank into my pillow, ready to give in to my overwhelming urge to cry. I turned on my side, the IV needle pinching me in protest. That was all it took to push me over the edge, and I buried my sobs in the stiff linen.
As I repositioned my hand, trying to avoid the niggling stabs, the bloodstained gauze around my