The Debutante Ball. That one moment in a young girl’s life when she’s formally presented to society, signaling that she’s ready for marriage. Times had changed—these days, hardly anyone married before twenty-five—but in Cousins, the tradition still held strong.

This year, it was your turn. Susannah had insisted that you and Belly should have the choice too. She pulled you both from store to store, picking out dresses, gloves, tiaras... and everything else a proper debutante needed.

You didn’t have a date. Your boyfriend—the one whose picture still lingered somewhere in the back of a drawer—had broken up with you just before the summer. No real explanation, just that cruel ease boys sometimes have when they still don’t know how much their words can wound. You’d come to terms with it. You were going alone. Belly had been torn between the two brothers, but eventually, she chose Conrad. Which meant Jeremiah could be yours. (Not that he hadn’t been all along, really.)

So, while you and Belly sat at the vanities that morning, fixing your hair for the hundredth time, Jeremiah and Conrad were in the living room, playing FIFA, claiming 'they still had time.' The house echoed with Susannah and Laurel yelling at the boys to put on their suits— and your voices, yours and Belly’s, panicked over too much blush and uneven eyeliner.

The sound of wooden floors in the hall blended with the noise inside the ballroom. Mothers fixed their daughters’ hair. Susannah flitted nervously around you and Belly, beaming with pride and stress. Had you known how overwhelming it would all feel, you might’ve said no. But you were doing it for Susannah. That had always been enough.

Your name was called first. There was no one to hide behind. No time for escape. Jeremiah stood on the other side of the polished floor. He didn’t look nervous, but the way he kept fidgeting with his gloves gave him away. His hair was slightly tousled—too casual for the evening, but somehow, still perfect. In the distance, you could see Laurel still fussing over Conrad and Steven.

Your heels clicked across the parquet as you walked in front of the crowd. Somewhere by the tables, Susannah already had her phone out, taking pictures. Jeremiah reached for your hand as you stepped beside him, guiding you carefully down the stairs.

"Ready?" he asked, leading you to the spot where the first dance would begin. You weren’t. But you nodded anyway.

"You look—" Jeremiah started, his hand settling gently on your waist as he began the dance. But how do you describe someone who had always been a part of summer, of laughter and too-big T-shirts now standing in front of you in a dress, glowing like something out of a dream you didn’t know you’d ever had?

"I know," you said softly, smiling as you saw him lose his words. You reached up and tucked a loose strand of hair behind your ear, your fingers brushing the warmth of your own cheek.