Unnoticed
She was the centre of attention for every student. While he stood proudly beside her, she twisted her arm around his as she smiled. Her appearance was nothing short of stunning. It wasn't long before they all noticed her.
Her smile remained unfaltering as they walked through the crowd. In that moment, her gaze locked on the girl who had always made her feel so awful about herself. After all these years, she had finally won.
No Huge Deal
Her lack of a homecoming date didn't seem like a huge deal at first to Kelsey. Usually, boys were just interested in being her friend and not really looking at her that way.
Aside from not wearing makeup or painting her nails, she was quite content to be single. The girls at her school were not like her.
Talking Behind Her Back
However, Kelsey always felt like one girl was always saying something about her regardless of her individuality. As a cheerleader with a new boyfriend every two weeks, Jessica teased Kelsey for being a tomboy.
While Jessica rarely spoke negatively to Kelsey, she never spoke positively behind her back.
The Photo On Her Story
Kelsey didn't begin to panic about homecoming until one Thursday evening. Jessica's story caught her attention as she scrolled through her Instagram after returning from the mall.
A picture of Jessica and her boyfriend had been posted with a big sign that read, “Will you go to homecoming with me?” When Kelsey read the caption below the text, her eyes widened.
In Pink Text
Jessica wrote in small pink text: Only losers don't have dates to homecoming. Normally, Kelsey didn't care what others thought of her, but when she saw the post, she panicked.
In the case of her pitching up alone, would everyone at school call her a loser? She was the only one going alone, all her friends had dates.
The Post
Her thoughts drifted to Jessica's Instagram story as she slept that night. What if they laughed at her? Her goal was to be liked, even though she knew Jessica wasn't nice. Her appearance alone would be absolutely ridiculous.
She was suddenly anxious about something she was excited about, so tears painted her cheeks as she laid in bed that night.
Sleepless Night
She was wide-eyed as she contemplated what was ahead. It was already decided what she would wear, how she wanted her hair done, and even whether she would wear makeup.
In the end, she decided not to go at all. She was a mess of anxiety. However, all that changed when her phone pinged. A glance at the screen revealed his name and her eyes widened. The right thing to do was obvious to her.
Growing Up In Texas
Life was good for Kelsey Jones as a child growing up in Houston, Texas. Her time at school was generally enjoyable as she made her way through high school. Her parents were loving and her friends were amazing.
Life could not get better for her. However, things didn't change for the teenager until one September.
Always Something To Say
Kelsey was a tomboy at school. It was common for her to hang out with boys most of the time, and she didn't dress the same as all of the other girls in her year. Despite having a few friends, she didn't seem to be noticed much.
She didn't care about that, though. Kelsey was generally happy as long as she was allowed to do what she wanted. There was one girl, however, who always seemed to have something to say about her.
After Dating Dylan
Everyone at her school loved Jessica Mayer, who was a cheerleader. While Kelsey didn't interact with Jessica very often, she heard the things she muttered behind her back, even though she was usually kind to her face.
The fact that they were once friends always seemed strange to Kelsey. After she broke up with Kelsey's best friend, Dylan, Jessica changed and became mean.
Her Closest Friend
Dylan was two years older than them, and as soon as he finished high school, he left for college, and they hadn’t seen him since. He was one of the most popular boys in their high school.
He was attractive and cool, and he was nice to everyone. He and Kelsey always shared a close bond, but now, he was gone.
Homecoming
It was early September and all of Kelsey’s friends had been going on and on about homecoming. It was just two weeks away, and none of them could contain their excitement.
Kelsey was excited to spend the evening with the people she loved. She didn’t have a date for homecoming, but that didn’t really matter to her. She didn’t need a date to have a good time. All of her friends were going with their partners, but it wasn’t really something Kelsey thought about. Until one day.
That Thursday
It was a Thursday afternoon, and Kelsey had decided to go to the mall with one of her friends. They were on their way to the movies when they ran into Jessica. As usual, she was kind as she greeted the pair, but then she asked one simple question.
“Do you guys have dates for homecoming? My boyfriend asked me today,” She said, twisting her hair around her index finger.
Judgment
“No, I’m going by myself,” Kelsey responded casually, not seeing any problem with her answer, but she could sense the judgment in the way that Jessica looked at her.
“Oh, bummer!” The blonde girl smiled sympathetically, “Well, maybe next time,” Jessica said before turning on her heels, snickering to herself as she walked off. Kelsey thought it was strange but decided to shake it off. She didn’t think about it again, until that night.
That Evening
Kelsey had just gotten home from the mall and was scrolling through her Instagram feed when she opened Jessica’s story.
Jessica had posted a photo of herself with her boyfriend who was holding a big sign that read, “Will you go to homecoming with me?” But Kelsey’s eyes widened when she read the horrible caption beneath the text.
Pink Text
There, in small pink text, Jessica had typed the words: Only losers don’t have a date to homecoming. Kelsey wasn’t usually the type to care what others thought of her, but the post sent a wave of panic through her body.
Would everyone at school call her a loser if she pitched up by herself? All of her friends had dates, she was the only one going by herself.
Self-Conscious
That evening, as Kelsey lay in bed, she couldn’t stop thinking about the caption. She couldn’t help but feel like Jessica was intentionally making fun of her. Why would she do that? Suddenly, she felt extremely self-conscious.
She was crying as she lay in bed, suddenly anxious about something she was so excited about. Was she a loser? Boys never showed interest in her, was she not pretty enough? She felt awful!
The Text
Her eyes were wide open as she thought about what was to come. She had already picked out a beautiful dress, she knew how she wanted her hair to be done, and she even considered putting on some makeup.
But now, she was considering not even going anymore. She was a mess. But that all changed when she heard the ping of her phone. Glancing at the screen, her eyes widened when she saw his name.
Dylan
She couldn’t believe it when she read Dylan’s name on her screen. She had barely heard from him since he’d left for college, and now, he was texting her. “Hey Kelsey, it’s been a while,” His text read. Three small dots appeared at the bottom of the screen, he was typing another text.
“I’m coming to town for my mom’s birthday in two weeks, I was wondering if you’d like to hang out again? It’s been so long,” Her heart fluttered. For the first time in so long, she was speaking to one of her closest friends.
Pop By
“Hey! I would love to hang out. We have our homecoming in two weeks, so you should totally pop by. Everyone at school would love to see you,” She responded, her cheeks aching from smiling so widely.
“Homecoming? That would be awesome,” He responded, but a second later, he sent another text that made her heart skip a beat. “Are you going with anyone? Maybe we could go together if you want?”
She Couldn’t Wait
She typed fast, not even bothering to fix any of her typos. Of course, she agreed to go with Dylan. Everyone at their school absolutely adored him, and she couldn’t wait to see the look on Jessica’s face when she walked in, right next to her ex-boyfriend.
That night, the two of them finalized the details. He would pick her up from her house with his car, and they would attend homecoming together. She was over the moon. She couldn’t wait to see Jessica’s face.
In The Blink Of An Eye
Two weeks passed in the blink of an eye, and before Kelsey knew it, she was sitting on her mother’s bed. Her hair had been done and she was wearing a gorgeous dress. Her mother applied the last bit of makeup to her face just as the doorbell rang.
“That’s Dylan,” Kelsey grinned as she got up. Her mother smiled proudly, admiring her beauty. “You look stunning, go have the best time tonight,” She told her daughter.
Chatting
During the car ride there, Kelsey and Dylan couldn’t stop speaking. It was just like old times. He told her about college, and she told him about Jessica’s rude caption on her Instagram story to which he rolled his eyes.
“You know, it’s really awesome to see you again, Kels. I’ve missed you so much,” He smiled at her as they pulled up to the venue.
They Were Late
They were half an hour late, which meant that they were the last to arrive. Stepping out first, Dylan quickly walked around the car and opened Kelsey’s door for her. She locked her arm around his as they walked to the entrance of the venue.
They could hear the loud music from outside, nervous excitement pumping through their veins. They took a deep breath and pushed the doors open before walking in.
Staring
The second they stepped through the doors, everyone seemed to stop what they were doing. Everyone turned and stared as they walked through the doors. “Oh my gosh, it’s Kelsey Jones and Dylan Beck,” One girl said aloud.
Kelsey grinned proudly as she stood beside him. But she had no idea what was about to happen.
They All Noticed Her
Every single student had their eyes on her. She had a slight grin on her face, her arm twisted around the young man’s as he stood proudly beside her. It was no secret that she looked drop-dead gorgeous. Finally, they all noticed her.
They slowly walked through the crowd in front of them, her smile not faltering. Her eyes then locked with the girl who had always made her feel so horrible about herself: Jessica. She had finally won.
Furious
Jessica looked furious as she stood beside her boyfriend. He wasn’t nearly as handsome as Dylan, and it pained her to see her ex-boyfriend next to the girl she disliked the most in their school.
She huffed as she stomped her foot into the ground. She then turned on her heel and stormed off. Dylan and Kelsey couldn’t help but laugh as they watched it happen.
Friends
They walked together to a group of their shared friends. They were all over the moon to see Dylan. Soon, they began chatting. Many of Dylan’s old friends stopped by and greeted him, a few girls even came up to Jessica to tell her how pretty she looked.
They were the most popular couple there, and everyone seemed to want to speak to them. But just then, Kelsey felt a tap on her shoulder.
You Need To Leave
When she turned around, she was met by the principal, Mr. Peters. “Miss Jones and Mr. Beck, I’m going to have to ask you both to leave. This event is for students of our high school only, since Dylan is no longer in our school, I’m going to have to ask you to leave.”
Surprisingly, they didn’t mind it too much. In fact, a few of their friends decided to leave with them. Together, they all headed to a nearby McDonald’s where they continued to party on their own.
Seen And Appreciated
Dylan spent the entire evening by Kelsey’s side, and she couldn’t be happier with how the night had gone. She felt loved and seen, and she was glad that she got to ruin Jessica’s night, just as she had ruined Kelsey’s night two weeks ago.
From that point on, Kesley became good friends with a lot of people in her school. Finally, she was seen and appreciated. Long gone were the days of feeling invisible.