#rivervale_lodge

"If I were to go... I mean... there's nobody else to ask."

"then.. that's easy. You should ask first."

A grunt. "He won't want to go."

Sylvi rejoins them, looking rather relieved.

"you really think he'll have a choice? His step mom.. oh Hi Sylvi. Everything okay?"

"Yeah. I forgot to hand in the last page of my report. It was still in the notebook, thank goodness." She taps the notebook in question.

"Lucky." then "I was just telling Dagmar that Symon's step mom mmight be insistent he say yes if a girl ask him out"

"Oh, she totally would." Sylvi nods. "And Symon will do it, even if he grumbles the whole time."

A pleased look at something

"Ohhh, wow...." An idea just occurred. "Can you picture Dirk going to this thing?"

Nadeen blins "Not at first no, now I'm afraid I will"

"Well, will there be food?"

"Probably refreshments? Like, cookies and punch?"

Nadeen groans "It's worse than that"

"How do you mean?"

"Where there are high school dances, there Will be parents asked to be chaperones"

"Sylvi, your mom maybe on the top of their list"

A sigh. "Wow. You're right. And...and if Colton is there, Dad will probably be there, too." A groan.

"Nadeen, are you sure you want to go?"

"Yes, even now."

She rubs the back of her neck, sighing. "I'll ask Symon."

"Well...who are you planning to ask, then, Nadeen?"

"I don't know. I am thinking of giving Zane a chance sicne I was defeending him. He's not my type, but .. I'm not sure I know what type I go for yet"

A blink and a grin at Dagmar. "That's cool. You know, I think he'll appreciate that."

"Or he'll hate it."

"Especially is his step mother is making him go" amusement at something

"I sure can't let Ann Marie know."

"Oh, if you think Anne Marie doesn't already know, you're fooling yourself. She probably knew the moment it was scheduled."

"Well, at least with me he'd be safe from any mushy stuff..."

"Look, if it helps, if I do ask Zane out, I'll warn him 'no gift'"

"Welllll....let's see...." she wrestles her books to one arm, and fishes out her phone, sending a text to Colton: You are hereby informed that I am inviting you to my school's Sadie Hawkins dance. She adds the details, and can you make it?

And she waits.

Lucia comes up. "guys, did you hear?"

"Hey Lucia. Yeah." Glum.

"isn't it great?" " Lucia says "no more waiting We can ask"

Nadeen says "And get rejected."

Sylvi frowns at her phone.....

"I...guess he's doing something right now...." She keeps the phone in her hand. "Hey, Lucia. So, who are you going to ask?"

"Well, I WAS sfeeling good about my chances" Lucia says with a look to Nadeen

"Oh, like Nadeen is ever going to get rejected." Sylvi waves that off. "But who are you thinking of?"

"Well, you know? I thought about Robert. you know, mortal but nice. " A blush "Good eyes."

Sylvi smiles. "I can see that. You two would be cute together."

Another glance at her phone.

A noncommittal grunt.

A glance at Dagmar. "You know, if you want to ask you-know-who, you better do it before a certain somebody else does."

"oh, you're going to ask Symon?" Lucia says guessing right away

Her shoulders slump and she shuffles her feet.

"I understand, it can be nerve wracking to risk rejecttion" Lucia says kindly

"I don't like dances."

A text comes up on a phone