Well, maybe she isn't quite that done with school yet. After all, there's still the grand finale, senior prom, left.

Compared with some of the things Haeri's had to deal with this school year, prom should be a breeze. Still, she can't help feeling a bit nervous. It's not that she's scared nobody will ask her - it's just that, well...
...yeah, she is pretty scared that nobody's going to ask her. She really hates that she would be scared of something so little like that, but she can't help it.

A lot of girls go to prom alone on purpose! Haeri chides herself. They turn boys down when they get asked, even! That annoying little voice in her head breaks in: You know you don't want to be one of those girls, Haeri.

Agh. It doesn't help when she remembers how she had always thought she and Sehun would go together, back when they were dating. He would have asked her in the sweetest, most amazing way...

Whatever.

She's going alone for sure, and quite possibly because she doesn't want to think about this depressing piece of news, she pushes it to the back of her mind. There, it lingers silently, mostly out of thought, though never completely gone.

Though Lina and Haeri have been best friends since forever (and most of the school knows this), Lina has always been the more popular, approachable one. Haeri was usually studying or reading for her classes. Times haven't changed much since then, so it's to nobody's surprise when Lina gets asked to prom with a giant teddy bear only two days after the theme, Whispering Waves, is announced. It's ocean and water themed and only another painful blow to Haeri when she realizes the luxury resort that is serving as the venue this year is only a little away from the place she and Sehun watched the sunset together that fateful day. She tortures herself with this information whilst congratulating Lina and her date, a boy named Jungsik.

In the meantime, she and Lina go dress shopping together. Lina, who has her heart set on green, knows exactly what kind of dress she wants to get. Though it takes nearly the whole afternoon, she finally finds it and buys it happily. It's a long, rather voluminous confection of faux emeralds and shiny material, and Lina loves it. Haeri? Not so much. She could never see herself in a dress like that. But Lina has always liked making a splash, and this dress is sure to do it. Haeri, still dress-less, decides to just wander around more stores until she gets lucky. Lina bids her goodbye regretfully, as she has a date with Jungsik to coordinate their prom wear.

The sun is starting to paint the streets with fading orange light when Haeri starts to think that maybe she should try her luck another day. Sighing, she heads into a small boutique, promising herself that this will be the last store of the day. As she walks in, small bells tinkle above her head. The cashier, a young woman looks up.

"Oh, hello," she greets tiredly. "How can I help you today?"

She sounds, Haeri observes, like she's spoken that line all her life and is utterly tired of doing so. Smiling, she answers, "I'm just looking for now." The woman nods and puts her head back down on the counter. Wandering around the shop, Haeri brushes a hand lightly through the rows of hanging dresses - all beautiful and elegant, to be sure, but none that stand out to her. After a few minutes of browsing, Haeri figures that she'll probably just come back the next day to look. She's completely worn out and feeling more than a little wistful and sad.

Her footsteps are loud on the wooden floor and alert the cashier to her presence as she makes her way back to the front of the shop.

"Didn't find what you were looking for?" the cashier asks sympathetically, clearly used to this plight of high school girls.

"Pretty much," Haeri replies with a small laugh, shrugging.

"Well, good luck to you! I'm sure you will be able to find the perfect dress."

"Thank you," Haeri says, and she means it.

As she walks out the doorway, the tinkle of bells sounds at the exact time something in the corner of her eye catches her attention. Frowning, she turns back around, into a secluded corner of the shop, where a dress rack she hadn't noticed before stands, a little forlornly. The cashier watches her quizzically as she slowly lifts back dresses. Then, as she peels back more and more dresses, Haeri's fingers still, and she gasps quietly.

There, hidden at the very end of this inconspicuous rack, is the perfect dress.

It's like a starry night, is all she can really think as her fingers dance down the delicate material in awe. Slowly, as she comes to her senses, she begins to notice more and more about it. The elegant, sweeping neckline: not quite round or cut in a deep 'V', but more of an in-between curve that shows just a little big of shoulders. The material: a deep, understated gold beneath, and a dusky blue veil covering on top. The subtle sprinkling of gold glitter on the blue. Most of all, just everything. It looks light and floaty and ethereal and Haeri's completely in love with it.

She buys it, cringing a little at the price, though she feels that the dress is something worth splurging for. The cashier almost looks happier than Haeri as she carefully wraps up and bags the dress.

"I think this dress is meant for you. You're going to look beautiful in it," she says sincerely as Haeri gathers the dress up.

"Thank you," Haeri says with a smile, and then again,

"Thank you."