The entire room went silent.
Hazel stood beneath the prom lights with one hand pressed over her mouth and the other holding a small silver key.
It was old, slightly scratched, and tied to a narrow blue ribbon.
For several seconds, she only stared at it.
Then she looked at Eli.
“Where did you get this?”
Her voice was barely louder than a whisper.
Eli set the microphone down and walked toward her.
“Your brother gave it to me.”
Hazel’s knees seemed to weaken.
I moved forward instinctively, but Eli reached her first and gently held her arm.
“Mason gave it to you?” she asked.
Eli nodded.
“The week before the accident.”
Hazel’s face crumpled.
No one in the gym moved. Even the music had stopped. Hundreds of students stood beneath the hanging lights, watching the two of them in complete silence.
Eli took a folded piece of paper from the inside pocket of his suit.
“He made me promise I wouldn’t give this to you until prom night.”
Hazel stared at him.
“But he died almost a year ago.”
“I know.”
Eli’s voice broke.
“He was supposed to bring you himself.”
Hazel began crying before Eli had even opened the letter.
I covered my mouth as I watched him unfold the paper. I recognized Mason’s handwriting immediately. It was messy and slanted, with letters that leaned into each other whenever he wrote too quickly.
