chapter thirteen!

season 1, episode 7 - summer love (pt. 1)!

Mia's Deb Ball Look!!

TONIGHT WAS THE night Mia's dreams would finally come true.  She'd find her Prince Charming and dance the night away with him. 

She was in the dressing room with the other debuntantes.  She had just finished changing, sitting in front of a vanity mirror.  Nicole was helping her do her lip liner, finishing it off with a coat of lip gloss before going to help Shayla. 

Belly sat in front of a vanity mirror a few seats down from hers. The girl wore a pretty white gown with a pearl necklace. Her hair was in a low bun and wore a pearly headband.  "Hi, Belly." Mia stated, giving the girl a wave with her gloved hand.

"Hey, Mia! You look gorgeous!" Belly gushed, causing Mia to get a bit shy.   "Thank - thank you.  You look pretty too!"

Belly gave her a small smile which Mia returned.  The two girls noticed the other girls grabbing the bouquets of roses, signaling that it was time for them to make their entrance.  Grabbing a bouquet, she took a deep breath before exiting the room.

Meanwhile, Conrad was talking to Jere, Steven, Alex, and Cam.  Cam wasn't in his suit yet.  "Hey, you guys ready for the escort dance?" Conrad asked the three of them.

"Dude, I - I actually still can't believe you roped me into this." Steven said to Jeremiah.  "I'm a bit nervous about it, actually." Cam answered.  "I'm so excited!" Alex stated.

"Come on, dudes.  The girls are gonna love it." Jere reassured the two. "Kind of thought we were all doing it together, you know?" Conrad inquired, causing Steven to think it was about doing the dance routine with them. "No, no." he clarified, causing the boys to laugh a bit. He pitched the idea of them going on an overnight fishing trip since they had only a week of summer left.

"Dude, yeah, I'm in."

"Yeah?"

"I would love that.  Could I invite Sam?"

"Sure."

"Yeah, me too.  What about you, Cam?"

"Um, I have to ask my mom but I'd love to go."

"Great, alright. But you guys are going to kill this." Conrad assured them, hugging the four of them individually. As he left the room, he stated, "You guys look good." He quickly stopped, "Kill it." before fully leaving the room.

AS MIA WALKED up the stairs with the roses in her hand, her heart was beating rapidly.  What if I trip? What if I mess up the dance?, she thought to herself.  Belly was going right after a girl named Gigi.  She looked a bit nervous as well.  "Belly." Mia whispered, causing her to look around until she saw her.  "Your going to do great." she reassured her.

Belly smiled, mouthing a 'Thank you.  You too' before walking on the stage. She quickly met up with Jeremiah, linking arms. A few photographers took their pictures before they eventually walked to their seats. Name after name, it was almost Mia's turn. That's when she saw him.

Cameron Rodriguez.  The boy who's for the past two weeks made her palms sweaty, made her cheeks feel hot, and her stomach do flips every time she saw him. The boy who had made her ill.  That's what she kept telling herself.  He simply had given her a fever that wasn't cured yet.

Although, she had to admit that he looked handsome.  Standing at the opposite side of the stage, he wore a black and white tux with a black tie and dress shoes.  His curly hair looked soft to the touch as the boy talked to Steven and the other guys.

Soon enough, the announcer introduced Mia.  She stepped onto the stage as Cam walked her way.  "Mia Knight is the student body president at her school and an academic achiever.  She's also in her school's theater program.  She's raised $12, 000 at the Cousins Pet Center and $6, 000 for Wellness of Children Hospital."

As the crowd applauded, Mia linked her arm with Cam's slowly walking down a few steps before smiling for the cameras.  Once the announcer moved onto the next person, the two of them walked down the rest of the step before walking together to their designated seats. Once Mia was seated at her table, she spoke to Kiara, and Olivia.  Alex, Cam, Sam, and Alan were no were to be seen.  "Do you guys know where Alan and my brother went?  Also, I haven't seen Rodriguez since he walked me over here." Kiara and Olivia smirked, making Mia furrow her eyebrows.  "Why are you guys looking at me like that?"

"I know what this is about." Kiara stated. "You do?"

"Yes.  You like Cam." Kiara whispered. "I do not! We hate each other!"

"Sure, you two definitely hate each other."

"Have you seen the way you look at him now?" Olivia asked the girl.  "Look, what I feel towards him is complete hatred, okay?"

"No, you're in love." Olivia said in a sing - songy voice.

An announcer asked the escorts to enter, since it was time for their dance.  Alex waved at his sister, who reciprocated the action.  As they walked down the stairs, Steven and Jere had a conversation.  Alex and Sam were on the left side while Cam and Alan were on the right. 

"I Like That" by Bazzi started to play as the boys did their dance.  Alex, Cam, Jere, Alan, Sam, and Steven were in the front, copying each other's movements.  Mia cheered for her brother and their friends, along with her parents.  The six boys moved left to right before slowly turning around holding the sides of their suit jackets.

He's not a bad dancer after all, Mia thought to herself.  The dance ended with the boys posing on the floor, making the crowd cheer.  As the boys went to sit down, Mia walked up to Cam, helping him off the floor.  "I didn't know you could dance like that, Rodriguez." she teased.

"Well, Knight, I guess I'm just full of surprises.  You look nice by the way."

Her stomach did flips again which she found strange.  Why did it only happen when Cam was around?

"Thank you.  You don't look bad yourself."

"Are you saying that I'm ugly?"

"No, no! I think you look nice too."

"So you think that I'm handsome?"

"You ask too many questions, Rodriguez.  I'm hungry, let's eat some of the appetizers." she stated, grabbing his gloved hand in her own.  Her heart felt like it was beating out of her chest.  I must be really sick, Mia thought to herself.

AS ALEX AND Sam (plus her friends) spoke to one another, Mia spoke with Belly and Nicole.  She also complimented the other girls and a few of the escorts.  Taking pictures with Alex and her parents, she couldn't be happier.  There was only one more thing she hoped for.

One perfect dance.

As the debutantes and escorts lined up on the dance floor, she went in her spot when Cam walked up to her. "I know that you wanted to dance with you know who but I can dance with you if you want." he whispered in her ear. Mia wanted to die. He was really making it hard for her cheeks not to feel hot. "I think I'd like that." she stated, clearing her throat as they waited for the music to start. "At Last" by Etta James played, signaling the kids to start waltzing. Mia tried to avoid Cam's eyes as they danced. "Knight, what's wrong?" he whispered.

Mia looked into his eyes, finding herself getting lost in them.  Why do I feel like this?, she thought to herself.  Once Cam carefully dipped her, the crowd softly applauded.  The two of them stared at each other before he slowly brought her up.  "Thank you, Rodriguez."

"No problem, Knight."  After food was finally being served, the kids ate and conversed.  Sure, the night was almost ruined with her learning about Susannah's cancer and the Fisher brothers' altercation but she just hoped that Susannah would prevail.  That the doctors would help her and she would be able to hug her and flash her a warm smile like she does every summer.

Before the ball ended, "Never Knew I Needed" by Ne-Yo played as the guests made their way to the dance floor, slow dancing with one another.  Mia swayed her head to the beat, smiling at her parents as they danced. Her friends made their way to the dance floor as well. Alan was dancing with Olivia, Kiara was dancing with Nicole, and Alex begged Sam to dance.

"Care for this dance, m'lady?" Mia furrowed her eyebrows, "Who-". Suddenly, she relaxed when she realized it was Cam. "Yes." Extending his hand out, he led her to the floor. He brought her gloved hand to his lips, placing a kiss. Shit, she thought.

"You okay, Knight?"

"Yeah, I'm fine." Placing a hand on her back and the other in her hand, he guided her as they danced.

"Rodriguez?"

"Yes, Knight?"

"Thank you for everything. It was... nice spending time with you this summer."

"Wait, I'm sorry. What was that?" Cam teased.

"I know you heard me. Don't make me repeat it again." Cam chuckled, causing her to have butterflies in her stomach.

He has such a pretty laugh, she thought. He spun her around before spinning her back towards him. "But I think you look handsome tonight, Rodriguez."

Cam smiled, "Thanks. You don't look too bad yourself."

"Are you saying I look ugly, Rodriguez? Because I can take back the-"

"Knight, I was kidding. I think you look beautiful tonight."

Hearing those words made her heart flutter.

Oh.

Oh.

She liked Cam. She liked the way he smiled, his curls, the way he laughed, and how kind he was to her. It was like she was in a dream, making her eager to wake up. But it wasn't.

Curse Cupid and his aim.

Maya Speaks 💫:

This meme literally sums up what she was going through this chapter 💀like she's finally admitting she has a crush on him (everyone rejoice!)

But act one is FINALLY almost over bc I need to get to act two and finish this book 🥰