Owen finds me in the crowd and gives me a little smile.

‘Josh, I’ve wanted to do this since forever.’

‘Huh?’ Josh says, stunned as Owen takes him by the hand.

‘Kiss me,’ Owen says, and so they do, in front of everyone.

The hall is silent for a moment as everyone does the maths.

‘Wait, Owen is gay?’

‘I knew it!’

‘I thought they were already a couple?’

And then someone starts cheering. And then somebody else does too. And, before we know it, the whole room is clapping for them. Chase grabs the two crowns that were left behind, and places them on their heads. Meanwhile, Madzikanda must have seen the whole thing because she triggers the rainbow confetti from somewhere behind the scenes.

‘Love is love!’ I yell as it rains down all around us. Josh was right. It is all about context.

And that’s when I feel it. An electricity surging through me. The same feeling I felt when Kellen kissed me last night, but a thousand times more intense. I look across the room to find him, and, when our eyes meet, I know he feels it too.

This was never about us. It was always about them.

This is the feeling that we’ve been waiting for.

Madzikanda appears beside me in the crowd, clapping along with everyone else.

‘Huckleberry,’ I whisper, nudging her in the ribs.

Her eyes widen. ‘It’s you?’

‘Me and Kellen.’

‘Two of you?’ she says. ‘Well, whaddya know!’

‘So you didn’t figure it out?’

‘I thought it was Josh! I’ve been saying “Huckleberry” to him all evening.’

I laugh. ‘So he now thinks you’ve lost it.’

‘Yeah, him and everyone else. Any fires this time?’

‘Just one,’ I say. ‘Do you not think the prom committee should maybe ease up on the candles next year? You know, considering the tendency of this place to regularly go up in flames?’

‘Don’t get me started,’ Madzikanda replies. ‘Do you know how many times I’ve had that conversation? Every year I tell them, but the candles are “tradition” and none of them ever remember the school burning down, so to them it’s as if it never happened! You see these grey hairs, Zach? This is exactly why I have them.’

‘Well, I suppose they do set the scene,’ I say, looking around the candlelit hall, moonlight breaking through the skylight.

‘So this is it then? Your final day?’

‘I think so,’ I say, looking at my watch. ‘Just a couple of minutes left …’

‘What was it this time? A break-up? Enemies to lovers? Unresolved rivalry?’

‘All of the above,’ I say. ‘But mostly a love story.’ I nod to Josh and Owen. ‘I thought it was about me and Kellen, but it was about them all along.’