Page 51 of Save You

“You say that every time,” Ember replies, scanning the page with narrowed eyes.When it comes to her blog, she’s as much of a perfectionist as I am with my bullet journal.

“I know, but it’s true.”I browse her latest outfit posts.Even though I took the photos myself, I could look at them again and again.Ember looks so beautiful.For the zillionth time, I wish Mum and Dad weren’t so critical of social media.They’re worried that Ember might reveal too much personal information, but she takes an impressively professional approach toBellbird.These days, she even has a couple of brands that she works with regularly who send her clothes.

“Oh, by the way,” my sister says suddenly, “I saw a dress that could have been made for you.You still need one for the gala, don’t you?”

I nod.“Show me.”

She turns the laptop toward her slightly and her tiny desk wobbles dangerously.I hastily grab my glass of orange juice to stop it tipping over.We’ve been sitting here side by side, working on her blog for two hours now, with Frank Ocean’s melodic voice coming from the little speakers in her laptop.

Ember opens one of her bookmarks and we watch together asthe page loads slowly, eventually revealing a dress that makes me breathe a sigh.It’s black, with a V-neck, and it’s in some flowing fabric, fitted at the waist and then falling in soft waves from the hips.

“Are there any more pictures?”I ask, but at that moment I catch sight of the price.“Oh, God.It costs over two hundred pounds,” I stutter, raising a finger to shut the window.“Why would you show me a thing like that?”

Ember catches my hand and grins at me.“Not for us, it doesn’t.The company is offering me a collaboration.”

I hesitate.I know that Ember gets a lot of offers of collaboration with shops these days, but that doesn’t mean she has to accept every one of them.

“You’ve been looking for ages,” my sister continues.“And this would be perfect for a fancy occasion like that, wouldn’t it?I could ask them.”

I shake my head at once.“No, I can’t accept that.”

“Why not?”

I give an uncertain shrug.“Dunno.Isn’t it kind of off to get stuff for free?”

“Do you think actors pay for the designer dresses they borrow for premieres and awards ceremonies?”

“I’ve never really thought about it, to be honest,” I admit.

“Well, now you know,” Ember says.“They offered me the chance to try three dresses, and they’ll even pay me if I write an honest review of the fit and so on.All I’d like to do is take a photo of the two of us wearing the dresses and publish it—if you don’t mind.”

I look back at the dress.I click through the other pictures, falling deeper in love with the sweeping skirt, the soft-looking fabric, and the little appliqué details on the neckline with everyphoto.I’ve never worn such an elegant dress—apart from the one the Beauforts lent me for last Halloween.

“I don’t even need to ask, do I?”Ember says suddenly, and as I turn my head to look at her in confusion, she won’t meet my eyes.Her smile is resigned.“You presumably still don’t want me tagging along.”

“Ember.”I sigh, taking a deep breath to give my automatic reply.But then I pause.

Ember’s been there for me day and night in the last few weeks.She’s taken care of me and hasn’t breathed a word about what happened with James to Mum and Dad—no matter how insistently they asked her.

I know how much Ember longs to come to one of our school events.And now that I come to think about it, the charity gala is probably a more suitable occasion than any of the other Maxton Hall parties.It’s the one event of the year where everyone’s on their best behavior.There will be too many celebrities and VIPs around for anyone to want to make a bad impression.So there’s a more sedate atmosphere, and the chances of anything bad happening to her are relatively low.

Ember watches me attentively.She doesn’t move a muscle, as if she’s scared that the least twitch would provoke a negative answer.

“I’ll take you,” I say in the end.

Ember’s eyes grow wide.“Do you really mean it?”she asks in disbelief.

I take a deep breath.These are our last few months together and I want them to be as nice as possible.Soon we won’t be seeing each other every day, and however much I’m looking forward to Oxford, that’s still a scary thought.

“On a couple of conditions,” I add in a firmer voice, because I want Ember to know that I’m serious.She waves to me to go on.“You have to stay with me the whole evening.And only talk to people I know and say are OK.I really don’t want you getting messed about by some creep.Deal?”

Ember flings her arms around my neck and hugs me so tight that I almost fall off the chair and have to cling on to her desk.

“You’re the best!I won’t leave your side for a second,” she declares.I hug her back and close my eyes for a moment.A wave of worry washes over me and I ask myself if I’m doing the right thing.After all, I know more than her about what can happen at these parties.But on the other hand, Ember’s nearly seventeen.She’s clever and self-confident and knows what she wants.I should probably just have more faith in her.

I’m certain that I’ve made the right choice when Ember pulls away from me and beams at me, eyes shining.“This means we can now officially start dress shopping.And I’ve got an event to wear it to!Plus, this is going to be the best blog post of all time.I can’t wait!”

I smile back at her and feel her excitement and genuine joy spill over to me.It’s the first time in ages that I’ve felt this at peace.“I’m happy that you’re happy.”