Sunsets Never Were So Bright

"Honey, I had Mel design your outfit for the ball tonight. I'd like to you to change now. I'm having Colton escort you, but I know how much you fancy that Zack fellow, so if you wish to pass Colton on to Anna, then you have my permission. Okay sweetie? I'll see you in an hour."
You have my permission. That sentence pissed me off beyond belief.
I sauntered through the mansion up to my room. I grabbed my phone and called my sister Anna, who was only three rooms down, but I wasn't about to waste the extra effort.
"Hello?"
"Anna, do you want Colton? I want Zack tonight."
"Of course I want Colton!" she said before hanging up. I shook my head. Why wouldn't Anna want Colton? Colton Docherty was the perfect boy for somebody in our lifestyle. Well, then again, so was Anna . I , well, I can't say the same thing for myself. I don't like dresses, or I should say formal dresses. Slutty dresses are fine. More so slutty dresses that attract rock stars and guys with tattoos. Because that's who I find attractive. Not the men in suits with their hair slicked back. Well, there is this one guy, but he's a different story.
His name's Zack, but he's told me I can call him Zacky. He has the most beautiful green eyes I've ever seen. He has puncture holes in his lips, as if he has piercings. He's exactly a year older than me - yeah, we share the same birthday. So that makes him 18, and me 17, with twenty four days until our next birthday.
I looked at the dress Mel had picked out for me, along with the accessories. It was a simple black and white dress that I knew wouldn't do my body the justice it deserved, even though it would hug my curves. The shoes, I knew, were well over $1,000, and would be terrible to walk down the steps at the Docherty house, where the ball was tonight. "Great. Just fucking great," I muttered to myself. At least Zacky was going to be my escort.
It took me about forty minutes to get dressed and do my hair in a messy bun. My mother had since come home from her hair appointment, and she was already dressed. I didn't put my shoes on yet, because there was no way in hell I was going to make it down three flights of steps in those. When I got to the foyer , my eyes met gorgeous green ones.
We were froze there for a moment, just a moment, before he came to his senses. Zack rushed over to me and took my hand, pressing his lips to it lightly. "Evening, Amber. I hope you've been well?"
I nodded, feeling a light blush creep onto my cheeks. "I've been wonderful, Zack." As my mother shot me a glare, I added, "Thank you for asking."
I put my arm in his and we walked out to the limo. I hated limos, they were just so flashy.
As he opened the door for me, the sleeve of his jacket rode up a little. I could clearly make out the ends of a tattoo sleeve. I gasped.
Hearing my gasp, Zack looked to me immediately. "What? Are you okay, my dear?" You could tell "my dear" was forced.
"Yes, yes, I'm fine."
We sat the rest of the ride without another word to each other. I kept stealing glances at him, and I knew he was doing the same to me. My mother, father, sister, and Colton were talking vividly about some recent scandal that went on in one of the elite families. I could care less - and apparently, neither could Zack.
We arrived at the Docherty mansion in a little under a half hour, due to all the traffic at rush hour in Huntington Beach. Many people were lined up along the Docherty's walkway, cameras in well manicured hands. Since we were part of the Grand March, we were led around to the back of the house and ushered up the back stairway and to a guest bedroom. It wasn't for another twenty minutes that one of the maids told us we were to be going on soon.
I checked my appearance in the mirror. My hair was perfect, my makeup was perfect, my dress - no, wait, let me fix my boobs - okay, now my dress was perfect, and to many, my escort was perfect. I couldn't hate myself more.
I felt arms wrap around my waist. I looked up to see Zack attacking my neck with his lips. It was so un-gentlemanlike of somebody with our status to be doing something like this. As soon as my mother turned around, he stopped and acted as if nothing happened. To say I was confused was an understatement.
I put my arm in Zack's once again and we walked out to the foyer above the grand staircase. He rested his hand on the small of my back, startling me a little, but didn't move until the couple in front of us had begun their descent.
Mr. and Mrs. Logan Docherty greeted us as we waited for our cue to go. They tried to make small talk, but we both blew them off. The floor below us silenced, signaling that we were next.
I took a shaky step down, supported by Zack. Once we were in the view of all the other attendees, soft clapping began and many cameras flashed. I put on a fake smile, as did Zack. Mrs. Docherty announced our names as we stopped on the final step, before continuing off into the crowd.
The rest of the ball was uneventful. I danced with Zack, spilled wine on some bitch I don't like, and got scolded by my mother for calling Anna a spoiled brat. When we were getting ready to leave, Zack planted a kiss on my cheek and told me he'd see me later - hey, it's a start.
Mother and Anna told me to be in bed by ten, since we had big plans for tomorrow.
Tonight, I had plans. And I'll be damned if I let my mother or sister stop me.