I went to prom expecting nothing, just another face no one noticed in a crowded room. I didn’t know one dance would lead me to a truth about my past I’d never even questioned before.
I’ve been using a wheelchair since I was 10.
That’s the year everything changed. My parents and I were in a terrible car crash. I don’t remember much from the worst night of my life, just flashes, sounds, and then waking up in a hospital bed with my grandma holding my hand.
My parents didn’t make it.
After that, it was just Grandma Ruth and me.
That’s the year everything changed.
***
My Grandma raised me alone. She never treated me as if I were fragile, despite my inability to walk. I never let myself feel sorry for what I’d lost, continued living, and never complained.
By the time senior year rolled around and prom came up, I wanted to go.
Not because I expected anything big to happen. I just didn’t want to sit at home wondering what it would’ve been like.
I never let myself feel sorry.
***
Grandma and I went dress shopping two weeks before. She pushed me through every aisle as if it were the most important mission of her life.
“You’re not settling,” she said, holding up a navy blue dress. “You’re picking something that makes you feel like yourself.”
I rolled my eyes, but I listened.
I chose a simple dress. Something that felt right.
“You’re not settling.”
***
The night of prom, music spilled out from the gym doors, loud and steady. I sat in Grandma’s car for a moment, watching couples walk in together.
Then I told myself, You didn’t come this far to turn around now.
So, with her assistance, I went in.
At first, it wasn’t bad. A few people smiled, and some greeted me.
But it didn’t take long for me to notice the truth.
So, with her assistance, I went in.
The girls stayed in their circles, leaning in close, whispering, and keeping their distance from me. The boys walked past me as if I weren’t even there. Everyone was taking pictures, laughing, dancing, and no one seemed to notice me.
No one said anything rude. But it was clear enough.
I didn’t belong in the middle of it.
After a while, I moved to the corner of the room.
I told myself it was fine, that I expected it, but sitting there alone, I felt the hurt anyway.
