#Chapter 09 Playing House
Mission #1 of our fake dating plan: Look convincing.
On the first day, if I wasn’t threatened with getting pushed out of the drama club, I would call it quits. Because Alex is entirely too popular and too social for me to handle.
He doesn’t even get left alone at Mozzy’s Pizza on our first mock date. From entrance to ordering to looking for seats, folks keep coming to greet him.
“Hey man, what’s happenin‘?”
“Haha, nothing much, how ’bout you?”
Alex greets the fifth person in what feels like ten minutes as I try to melt into the sidelines. It’s not hard–next to him, I look like a hobo. He’s all sleek sweater and dark jeans and I’ve stuffed myself into a fuzzy turtleneck and a long black skirt.
He laughs and grasps hands with the visitor, someone not on the hockey team it seems like. However, they’re friendly enough with each other that he stands there and starts talking.
Someone drops something in the nearby kitchen, and I flinch, almost knocking into Alex. Smoothly, he snakes his arm around my shoulders and holds me close, not missing a beat. The guy’s eyes widen a bit at our closeness, but he doesn’t say anything.
Once they finish, Alex waves goodbye, and the guy returns the gesture. He also waves to me. I barely remember to wave back before the person leaves.
Alex laughs as he guides me over to a booth seat near one of the large street windows. Once I sit in, he scooches in right beside me, really making our height difference stand out.
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“I always thought the ‘deer in headlights‘ thing was a bit exaggerated, but I see it fits you perfectly!”
“I’m not…uhm…talkative.”
“Oh, I’ve noticed. Like, either a deer or…what’s those little skinny dogs that shiver all the time?”
“…A…whippet?”
“Yeah! Those! You’re like one of those, but human.”
I stare at him, utterly unamused, and he snickers like he’s just told the funniest joke.
“But man, there’s clearly something in you. Otherwise you wouldn’t have agreed to this… Though, if you’re so timid, why join the drama club? I just can’t see you on stage in front of people…ah, no offense.”
“Ah…” I shrug slightly. “I don’t…act. Perform. Background is…I’m…you know, stagehand.”
“Oh, one of the background folks?”
My nod displaces a bit of my hair, so I push it back. He sets his elbow on the table, resting
his head on his hand.
“Well, why not be a performer?”
“…I…uhm…used to.”
His eyebrows raise up, interest sparking in his eyes.
“As a…kid. Sometimes led the show. Stuff happened, but…I liked…it.” My lips turn up at the corners despite the bittersweet feeling in my chest. “But backstage. Left alone and…you
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just, work. Unnoticed. I can watch the play. The pressure is…less. You don’t face as much.”
“Huh…well, I think it’d be cool to see you act,” Alex hums. “Background stuff is cool, but since you’ve done it before, wouldn’t it be fun to do it again?”
“…Maybe.”
“Let me know when you do. I’ll take a front seat!”
Talking with him is…interesting.
He’s more expressive than handsome when casually speaking with him. Not that any of his expressions so far have been anything but–blessed by the gods, I guess. But there’s an ease to him that I can sense that doesn’t exist around others.
To be able to put someone at ease with my presence… It’s not a bad feeling.
Though, when the bell above the door at Mozzy’s rings and he glances up, that ease evaporates in real time.
“Hey, Capt!”
I look up to see a crowd of people entering, all of them initially chatting amongst each other. But when that one person calls out, everyone’s attention turns to us.
This time, I recognize many of the faces. I spoke with them when looking for Alex.
Two of the faces, I especially wish I never recognized.
Oliver blinks, confused upon seeing me, and Danielle grimaces before quickly fixing her
face.
“…Showtime.”
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I glance over at Alex, then twitch, feeling his fingers lace with mine under the table. He raises the hand he’d been supporting his head on to wave at the others. They apparently took this as an invitation, because they beeline over.
Good God, can people just leave us alone long enough to eat some damn pizza?!
The group of six come over, most of them jovial, while Oliver and Danielle give us conflicted and irritated looks. Three squeeze in the other side of the booth, and I realize they intend to hang around for a bit. The other three stand, giving my cheater and Alex’s admirer dominance with height.
I’d slightly felt like Alex blocked me in when we initially sat down. Now I realize he’s a
barrier.
“Who’s this?” one of the seated guys brings up.
Alex grins, holding his other hand out toward me in presentation.
“This is Cynthia. She’s my girlfriend.”
His answer immediately shocks all of them, though the four hockey guys look more awed
than baffled.
“Wait, girlfriend? Did you say that with a hard G?”
“Seriously? You, Alex? How’d you two meet?!”
He gives me a glance, cueing that it’s my time to contribute. I breathe in.
….Restaurant. We, uhm…knocked into each other. He helped me clean up. Started talking.”
Although it’s hard to get those words out, the others seem to understand, oohing and
aahing with great interest.
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Having this attention on me feels suffocating. But I can still feel my fingers interlaced with
Alex’s. It grounds me more than I thought it would.
As they continue asking us questions, I manage to keep answering when it comes to me, quickly feeling my social battery deplete. Even so, we still seem enough like a couple that the interrogation slowly subsides into regular conversation. For a while, I even forget that
Oliver and Danielle are here.
“We ordered some pizza, but they said one of their ovens are down,” Alex sighs.
“It shouldn’t take too much longer.” I glance up at him.
“Haah, I’m just hungry, babe, don’t mind me.”
I feel my face flush a bit at the affectionate nickname, the others teasing us with oohs and
laughter.
“Oh man, I can’t believe he’s got a girl. I thought the rink’s doormat was gonna dissolve
with how many ladies would come around.”
“Their harassment will finally stop, thank God. You better keep her, Alex!”
My face reddens further, much to their amusement, as Alex grins, letting go of my hand and hugging me around my shoulders.
“Yeah, no worries. She’s super cool.”
It’s so strange, being around people who don’t seem to mind my stuttering. Or, if they do, they’re polite enough not to mention it. I feel…a bit elated by it.
Certainly happier than I have for the last few days.
And of course, that means someone has to ruin it.
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“Don’t joke, Alex,” Danielle hisses, crossing her arms as she stares down her nose at us. “If you get her hopes up, you’ll just break her heart. How long do you plan on making this fling last?”
The jovial air chills immediately, the other guys looking at her with surprise.
“…Maybe they’re just faking it,” Oliver adds a moment later, staring at Alex’s hand on my shoulder. “Like there’s some kind of deal or something between them. Be real, he’d never go out with her.”
“Yo, Oliver, that’s too-”
“No, he’s right,” Danielle cuts in, interrupting the hockey player. “They’re just playing house to fool us. We’re not stupid.”
She grins down at me, her eyes narrowed, and I feel like sliding into a hole to escape the ook.
The other guys don’t say much, if anything, watching in awe and interest… Maybe they are hinking the same thing she is. Maybe their kindness is false and they never believed us.
This is why I thought it would be better for Alex to choose someone better looking or more ociable than me. I’m much too easy to read, and now Oliver and Danielle have figured us it.
ission #1: Failed.
t, as I try and fail to think of an excuse to cover us, Alex’s hand touches my chin.
ook over with nervous eyes, hoping to see if he has an answer—
stead, all I see are the dark eyelashes on his closed eyelids.
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#Chapter 06 Playing Heise
And feel soft lips against my own.
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