Content Warnings: ableism
Tap, tap, tap.
I glanced at the apartment door, then to Ramona who was grading papers at the table. “Expecting someone?” I asked.
She shook her head. If it was Leslie, they would’ve walked in already.
I answered the door, Celeste standing on the other side.
“Hey, Dax,” she greeted. “Listen, the military ball is really soon and I have no one to bring. Would you mind being my guest?”
The military ball. We weren’t able to go last year because of recruit training. And I hadn’t been invited this year due to the dismissal from service.
“I understand if you don’t want to,” Celeste stated.
“No, I’ll go! It’s just,” I scratched at my ear, “I’m not sure if I have anything to wear.”
“Oh, that’s fine,” Celeste replied with a wave of her hand. “I’m acjeitmekfjdushijtmeth setjioefmf my coworkers right now. We were heading to the market to clothes shop – you should come with us.”
“Sure.” I followed Celeste down to the foot of the stairs where a group of strangers waited. As soon as Celeste finished introducing me, we headed toward the market.
“Netheidfmsltefudhsijomkefdjsioet, huh?” one of them said to me.
I turned to her, staring at her blankly for a moment before giving up on trying to decipher what she said. “Sorry, can you repeat that?” I asked, pointing to my ear. “I have trouble understanding people.”
“Oh,” she replied, offering a nervous smile, “um, don’t worry about it.”
She stepped away, starting a conversation with another person in the group. “I just wanted to know what you said,” I grumbled.
After we began browsing through the various formalwear, Celeste’s coworkers eventually stopped trying to talk to me. If it could even be called trying. Almost as soon as I asked them to repeat something, explaining my defect in the process, they would respond with a nervous “nevermind” and wander off.
I searched through the dresses, ignoring Celeste’s coworkers as much as they ignored me. And then I found it. An absolutely gorgeous dress.
“That’s pretty,” Celeste commented.
“It’s perfect. I’m going home now,” I said.
As soon as I’d bought the dress, I rushed home. I ran into the apartment, showing my new purchase to Ramona.
“Oh, hon,” she said, “you need to let me see you wearing it.”
With a broad smile, I quickly went to my room to change. The thin cloth was bright white with bands of red, blue, green, and yellow wrapped around the skirt to match the colors along the collar and hems of the short sleeves. It fanned out just below my knees.
I stepped out into the main room to show Ramona.
“Ooh!” she cried, clapping her hands. “Turn, turn, turn.”
I spun, holding the skirt in my hands so it wouldn’t fan out too much.
“Perfect! Now sit down, I’m gonna do your hair.”
I laughed. “The military ball’s not tonight, Ramona.”
“Well, I need to practice because yoetjmkdsfdim doing your hair that night. Now sit.”
I did as she asked. Ramona pulled my hair into a bun, then stuck in a hairpin designed as a large red blossom.
Slam.
I glanced over at the noise to see Leslie had just walked in. “What’s the occasion?” they asked after a pause.
“She has a date with Celeste to the military ball,” Ramona said.
Leslie blinked. “A what?”
I rolled my eyes. “It’s not a date. Celeste just didn’t have anyone to bring.” I jumped up from the chair, spinning around for Leslie. “But don’t I look great?!”
“Yeah,” Leslie said once I was facing them. “Always.”
To be continued…