Page 84 of It's Not All Fake

The film cuts to a party scene where the couple is socializing, exchanging lingering glances amidst the crowd.

Then, they’re alone in an elevator. “I don’t want to feel bought,” Lana says.

My heart seizes. This is us—scenes ripped right from our life. Adrenaline courses through my veins, but I'm frozen in place, unable to move.

“You’re not bought,” he reassures her.

“Then what am I?” she presses, her gaze intense.

“Ashley—what is this?” I whisper frantically.

“Just watch,” she hushes me, patting my hand. Ashley knew about this. Did Liam sell our story? I grip the armrests, flooded with questions, as the trailer continues.

Lana and Charlie stand barefoot in the surf, the sky painted purple and orange. She playfully splashes him with her toes before darting off along the shore. He chases her, catching up quickly, lifting her into the air, and spinning her around.

That happened at Catalina. We did that…

Next, surrounded by flickering candles, they lie on a blanket near the water's edge, kissing under the stars. He pulls back, looking at her with adoration. “You’re perfect,” he murmurs, gently stroking her hair. Then he yelps, leaping up. “Uh—crap—crab. Oh, crap!” He flings the crab away in a comical panic.

I stifle a laugh, remembering his dramatic reaction to a harmless shore crab.

Lana bursts into laughter. Charlie scoops her up again, declaring, “I’d better save you! You’re next!” She giggles uncontrollably as he carries her away.

He did exactly that. A lone tear escapes down my cheek.

The music shifts to something more dramatic and poignant.

An older woman confronts Charlie. “You take risks on everything else, why not this?” she chides.

His mother, I realize.

The scene switches back to his golfing buddy at the course. “Her world is falling apart and you profess your love on television?” he scoffs, shaking his head in amusement. “I could have told you that was the wrong move.” He laughs.

My heart tightens, tears welling up. The pain of everything rushes back. He must have understood why I left.

Charlie throws his golf club in frustration. “Fuck!” he shouts.

He was this torn up about us too? He wanted me to know this.

The next scene shows Charlie, pained, sitting in a café across from a curly-haired blonde. “She’s a million miles away now because I couldn’t say the right thing, but it’s not what she thinks,” he explains earnestly.

He regrets how it ended. The tears overflow.

It cuts to Charlie’s companion—Ashley.

Oh, my God. I let out a choked laugh through the tears.

“So, find a way to tell her,” on-screen Ashley advises simply.

I turn to the real Ashley beside me. “You were in on this?” I ask, though it's obvious now. She had been part of this all along. She even had a scene with A-lister Charles Day. My head spins.

The trailer ends and title cards flash “Based on a True Story” and “Coming Soon.”

“It was incredible, wasn’t it?” Ashley gushes, squeezing my arm. “Can you believe I actually had a scene with Charles?” Her excitement is palpable.

I rise from my seat, my eyes sweeping over the dispersing crowd as the theater lights brighten, searching for Liam.

“Ashley, where is he?”

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