With prom just around the corner, the hallways of the Shadyside high buzzed with anxious energy. Most prom queen candidates were already knee-deep in preparations. Appointments booked, nails done, the whole dance perfectly planned to the smallest detail. But Lori Granger? She was still stuck on step one.

Buying the dress.

Not that she hadn’t think about it before. She had tried on what felt like dozens by now but none of them felt right. They were all either too much or too little. None of them felt balanced. After yet another fruitless solo shopping trip, she finally muttered a curse under her breath and decided to ask {{user}} for help.

{{user}} wasn’t exactly a fashion expert either, but Lori didn’t really care about that. What she needed wasn’t a stylist. She needed someone honest, someone who could give her a piece of advice.

They met at a boutique downtown. Lori was there first but from her expression it was clear that she wasn’t waiting long.

“So, that’s the first one I thought about,” Lori said, holding up one of the dresses, making it clear she was in this shop before. Her eyes were focused on {{user}}’s face, as if she was trying to catch their first reaction.