The Academy

Chapter Fourteen

Right after classes, we had all gone to get our Beaumont Ball dresses at the dress shop a few streets over called Gala. It took us three hours for each of us to find a dress, but we were all successful in our quest. I bought a long, red, one-shoulder dress that looked as elegant as I hoped I would feel that day. A gold and peach dress was purchased by Carlisle, Lindsay bought a pastel-pink knee-length dress that showed off the few curves she had, Marisol bought a sea-foam green strapless dress, Aspen invested in a purple cocktail-looking dress, and the dress that Ivy bought was as white as her hair. Each of us were happy with our purchases.

I sent Tatum a picture of the dress and he agreed to get a tie the exact same color. Just like at prom, at the Beaumont Ball, most of the couples' outfits should match.

After dress shopping for what seemed like an eternity, we went to this extremely fancy restaurant beside Gala called The Cellar. I had driven past it with Tatum, but had never been inside of it before.

I knew that I didn't have enough money to buy myself even the cheapest meal there, so Carlisle demanded to pay for me. I wasn't about to argue.

When we were seated, each of us were handed a menu by a handsome waiter in a suit. He had dark hair, tan skin, and stubble on his chin in the shape of a beard. "Welcome to The Cellar. I'm Arlo and I'll be your waiter on this fine afternoon. Can I get you ladies some drinks?"

"He's going to be my date for the Beaumont Ball," Ivy mouthed. We all laughed.

"I'll have a lemon-lime soda," I told him.

Lindsay, Aspen, Marisol, and Ivy all ordered water.

"Can I have some of your house chardonnay?" Carlisle asked, flashing her tiny but powerful smile.

Arlo nodded, wrote it down on the little notepad he was carrying, and disappeared in the kitchen.

"I thought you didn't drink anymore," Lindsay said to Carlisle, giving her a nasty glance.

"I don't get drunk anymore. There's a difference."

"How are you allowed to get alcohol at seventeen?" I asked Carlisle, who was sitting right beside me at the table.

"The Cellar never cares. As long as you look older than fifteen, they'll be fine with serving you whatever you want," Carlisle replied, not looking at up at me from her menu. "You should try it. It's amazing."

When Arlo arrived with soda, water, and a glass of chardonnay, I asked for a glass, too.

Calamari isn't as good as everyone says. I ordered it, thinking it'd be amazing, but was quite disappointed when I realized it was just squid. I pretended like I was aware of what I was eating to the rest of the girls, so I would seem culturally diverse, although I wasn't close to that.

Marisol and Ivy both just snacked on white bread with olive oil and caviar, Carlisle had ordered escargot, Lindsay ordered cajun chicken (with a side of mac and cheese, of course), and Aspen ordered a piece of extremely expensive steak. They all seemed content with their meals, while I tried to get mine down my throat without puking.

On the upside, the chardonnay was pretty good. It was better than I expected my first glass of alcohol to taste. I tried to keep the fact that I had never drank alcohol before to myself. Lifting the tiny glass up to my lips and taking a small sip of it at a time made me feel like I was elegant. Like I was some type of medieval royalty or something.

Tatum picked me up from The Cellar, telling me that he had a surprise waiting for me. I was hoping that it wouldn't be anything outside, because it was still too cold for that.