“This is going to be so
fun!” Lindsay exclaims as she leaps gracefully out of the car, like a peppy
cheerleader.
I sigh and groan as I
slam my car door and slowly trudge along after her. Looking behind me, I notice that Alex has already
disappeared. I find this disappointing,
since he is the only one here I could possibly be interested in seeing, but the
evil side of me is also pleased because now Lindsay will be frantically looking
for Alex. Lindsay’s smile disappears as
she realizes that her boyfriend is nowhere in sight.
“Alex?” Lindsay asks,
glancing around in confusion. “Where are
you?”
I turn away and smirk,
but Lindsay notices before I get a chance to turn away completely. She gives me a suspicious glare.
“You know where he is,
don’t you?” Lindsay says, her pencil-thin eyebrows set in angry arches.
I look at her in mock
confusion. “Where who is? I don’t know what
you’re talking about.”
“Alex,” she says,
stomping her foot like a toddler having a tantrum. “Where is he?”
“How am I supposed to
know? You were sitting right next to him
like two minutes ago, and you’re his girlfriend, so if anyone were to know where
he is, it should be you,” I say putting my hands up in frustration.
Lindsay blushes and
fixes her hair, trying to recover.
“Well, you still know him better.
You guys have been best friends since junior high, so I think it’d be you who would know where he might
disappear to.”
Hmm.
Fair point. I guess Barbie’s got more brains
than I thought. “True. Well, I would say he’d go right to the
refreshments table. He loves food,
that’s for sure.”
“Thank you, Celia,”
Lindsay says, with a far too perky smile on her face as she confidently strolls
away. I just stand there for a few
moments, watching her strut away like a runway model. I shake my head, trying to break free from my
gloomy mood. I might as well try to enjoy myself, right? Who knows, maybe I’ll meet some handsome
prince or something.
So, I begin to make my
way through a crowd of colors. Just
looking at all of the different costumes people are wearing is enough to
lighten my mood. I stand off to the side,
just observing and putting the costumes into categories. There are the usual costumes: an angel, a
fairy, a firefighter, a doctor, a princess, etc… Then, there are the slut costumes: slutty
nurse, slutty cowgirl, slutty pirate, slutty pretty much anything you can
imagine. Finally, there are the funny, clever, or odd-ball costumes (which are
my favorites): a toilet, a ketchup bottle, Mario and Luigi, Big Bird…and Darth
Vader. The Darth Vader costume is
particularly impressive; tall, imposing, and wearing all the right gear, the
guy looks pretty much exactly like the real thing. The nerd that I am is very intrigued, so I
figure why not go over to the dark side and talk to Darth Vader? When I approach him he doesn’t notice me at
first, so I reach up and tap him on the shoulder. He turns around and looks down at me (at
least he appears to be doing this). I
have a sudden doubt come into my mind: What
if this guy is some kind of creeper? He
could be looking down my dress this very moment. As I think this, I unconsciously pull the
collar of my dress up higher, just
in case.
“Um, hey!” I say. “Just thought I’d tell you that I love your
costume.”
“Thanks,” he says in
the low, breathy voice of Darth Vader.
“Oh, sweet! I dig the voice changer,” I say, totally
geeking out over this guy’s authenticity.
“Say something else,” I add eagerly.
“Ummm…what do you want
me to say?” Darth Vader says.
His statement makes me
laugh for some reason. It’s probably due
to the fact that the real Darth Vader
would never say “ummm,” or be hesitant in any way, like this Darth Vader seems
to be. I have to say that I find it very
endearingly comical, and I want it to continue.
“Say something that Darth Vader would never say. How about ‘I love puppies’?”
“Okay,” he says. “I love puppies.”
I burst out laughing,
and Darth Vader joins in, which makes me laugh even harder. Darth Vader is laughing. I thought I’d never see the day.
“Thanks for that, Darth
Vader. I really needed a laugh,” I say,
after I’m finally able to control myself.
“Glad to be at your
service,” he says.
“Wow,” I say, raising
my eyebrows in mock surprise. “I never
knew Darth Vader was such a gentleman.”
“He’s full of
surprises, I guess,” Darth Vader says.
“I never knew Juliet was such a geek.”
“How did you know I was
Juliet?” I ask, surprised.
“Well, the outfit kind
of gave it away,” he says, shrugging his shoulders.
“Hmmm, I suppose,” I
say. “My friends didn’t know who I was
supposed to be though. The Dark Side
must be giving you some extra skills.”
“I wish,” Darth Vader
says, laughing ironically. We’re silent
for a few moments, taking in the scene around us. As people begin to gather on the dance floor,
fast-paced music pours from the speakers.
The crowd slowly begins to move about and dance to the music.
“You want to dance?” I
ask. Darth Vader just laughs. “What’s so funny?”
“I can’t dance,” he
says. “The Dark Side hasn’t provided me
with that skill.”
“Aw, come on,” I
say. “You don’t have to be a
professional to dance. I dance like
crap, but I still do it anyways. It’s
fun!” Before he can respond, I take
Darth Vader by the hand and lead him away from the Dark Side and into the
light.
