Prom Queen, The (Life at Kingston High Book #3) (20 page)

“Even so, that’s a small percentage of students.” Catching
a heel on something, she tightened her hold on his arm. “Still, it’s sweet.”

They settled in at a table, and soon the couples took to the dance floor. Megan thought that if she could just forget she still had to get on that stage with the other girls, she could be just fine. As more people entered the room, she kept a watch out for Bethany and Michael. It would be hard to miss a wheelchair. Finally, just as the principal was making her way to the stage, Megan saw Michael pushing Bethany into prom in a wheelchair, with several of their friends trailing happily behind them. It was a relief to see their smiles.

But now all attention was on Mrs. Morgan as she made a little speech and then called the prom queen candidates up to the stage, giving them each a short introduction. Megan knew from the last prom committee meeting that the candidates were expected to be escorted to the stage by their dates, and then the guys would line up off to one side. She’d already explained this to Jack.

“And this, ladies and gentleman”—Mrs. Morgan waved an envelope with a big gold seal on the back—“holds the final results. Are you ready to crown this year’s queen?”

Some clapping and whoops came from the onlookers. Feeling silly and conspicuous, Megan just waited, biding her time.

“This year’s prom queen is
Megan Bernard
.”

Megan frowned at Mrs. Morgan, certain that she’d read the card wrong. Or else Megan had heard her wrong.

“It’s
you
.” Hallie gave Megan a sharp nudge.

“But—”

“Go on,” Amanda told her.

“But it can’t—”

“Megan Bernard,” Mrs. Morgan said happily, “come and get your crown.”

Megan’s knees felt wobbly, and her stomach was turning upside down. Not only that, but it felt as if her shoes were glued to the stage. Like a bad dream.

“Come on, Megan.” Jack linked his arm in hers. “Let’s go get your crown.”

To her relief, he walked her over to where Mrs. Morgan was waiting with the crown. But when he tried to step away, as Mrs. Morgan secured the crown to her head, Megan held tight. She knew that without him, she would probably fall over. She was presented with a bouquet of roses.

“Okay, Megan, go ahead.” Mrs. Morgan pointed to the microphone. “Speech time.”

Megan looked at her with frightened eyes, wishing this nightmare would end.

“Your royal subjects are waiting.” Mrs. Morgan gave her a worried look.

“Just talk to your friends,” Jack whispered.

As she stepped to the mic, Megan shot up a quick “help me” prayer. “Thank you all so much,” she began slowly. “I guess you can see how shocked I am to have won this honor. I honestly didn’t think I’d win. I didn’t even prepare a speech.” She took in a fast breath. “The only reason I’m up here is because you guys believed in me.” She smiled now. “And I think the reason you believed in me is because I’m just a regular girl. Like most of you. So me winning this crown is like we all won it. Right?” Several people clapped at this.

“This prom is for everyone—to have fun and enjoy the last big event before graduation. I hope you’re all doing that.
Are you?” More clapping erupted. “So I’ll keep this short. But first I want to thank my really good friends for standing by me—even when I wasn’t much fun to be around. I also want to thank God for reminding me to keep my feet on the ground. I learned a lot while campaigning for prom queen.” She paused to consider what she wanted to say.

“The most important thing I’ve learned—I think I’m actually realizing it right this moment—is that the true purpose of royalty is to care for its subjects. To put your subjects’ needs above your own.” Megan laughed. “Not that you’re really my subjects. But I think a good queen would realize that she’s really nothing more than a servant to her people. Not someone who should be waited on and treated in a special way. Because I know everyone out there is more important than I am. So why am I still talking?” She laughed. “I just hope you all have a really fantastic and memorable evening!” She held up her bouquet like a scepter. “And God bless!”

The music began to play again, and following tradition, Megan and Jack began to dance, followed by the rest of the court. But as soon as the dance ended, Megan and Jack went over to rejoin their friends, where more hugs and congratulations were shared.

“Look,” Lishia said suddenly, nodding over to the dance floor.

Megan turned to see that Michael had parked Bethany’s wheelchair on the side of the dance floor and was now lifting the petite girl up into his arms. “Oh my!” Megan watched as he carried Bethany onto the floor, holding her securely as they danced to an especially romantic song. The other girls
let out little oohs and aahs as they watched. Megan removed the crown from her head.

“What are you doing?” Janelle demanded.

“This crown belongs to all of us,” Megan told them.“I want everyone to have a chance to wear it, and I think Bethany deserves it next.”

As the song ended, Megan went over and placed the crown on Bethany’s head. “We’re going to take turns wearing it.”

“But you can’t do—”

“I’m the queen, am I not?” Megan asked her.

“Yes . . . well . . .”

“And I hereby declare that we are all queens tonight! And any girl here—starting with you and my good friends—anyone who wants to wear the crown is welcome to a turn.” She gave her head a shake, relieved to be free from the weight of the crown. “Now let’s all make this a night to remember!”

Art Imitating Life

Y
ou may not realize that Bethany Bridgewater is a real girl and not a fictional character. Bethany came into my life through the Make-A-Wish Foundation in July 2012, after Bethany expressed her wish to write a book with me. Well, I’m a fast writer, but it would be impossible to write an entire book in just one day. Since I was in the final edit stages of this book, I decided to turn a real scene out of Bethany’s life into a scene in
The Prom Queen
. Fact meets fiction!

Bethany really did participate in show choir. She did suffer leg pains after a performance shortly before her own prom.
And she was diagnosed with a form of cancer called Ewing’s sarcoma. But because she so wanted to attend prom, her doctors delayed her much-needed chemo treatment and surgery a couple of days so that she and her date could go to prom. Much like it’s written in this book, he did pick Bethany up and carry her to the dance floor, turning that prom into a night that Bethany will never forget. Thanks to excellent medical treatment and God’s miraculous mystery, Bethany is a rare positive statistic and on her way to recovery.

Because Bethany wants to be a writer, I’ll be helping her to craft a memoir about her journey through cancer. Right now we’re calling it
Swallowing the Red Devil
, but as with many things in life, titles change. As the memoir gets closer to publication, I’ll try to keep you updated on my website.

For more information about the Make-A-Wish Foundation, go to
www.wish.org
.

Melody Carlson
is the award-winning author of over two hundred books, including
The Jerk Magnet
,
The Best Friend
,
Never Been Kissed
,
Double Take
, and the Diary of a Teenage Girl series. Melody recently received a Romantic Times Career Achievement Award in the inspirational market for her books. She and her husband live in central Oregon. For more information about Melody, visit her website at
www.melodycarlson.com
.

Devotions for Real Life

Double Take

Just Another Girl

Anything but Normal

Never Been Kissed

Allison O’Brian on Her Own—Volume 1

Allison O’Brian on Her Own—Volume 2

L
IFE
AT
K
INGSTON
H
IGH

The Jerk Magnet

The Best Friend

The Prom Queen

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