Page 20 of Once Upon a Fake Date

I’m hanging out with Ella. It’s girl’s night in and we’re watching a movie.

Alright. Have fun.

Night.

Ella and I ended up snuggling up in her bed—it was bigger than mine, after all—and watching a movie until we fell asleep.

My dreams that night definitely didnotfeature Parker riding in on a white horse with a sword in his arm to save me from an evil dragon. Maybe I’d been watching too many fairytales.

That was probably it. There was no other reason why I’d be dreaming about my best friend like that.

Not a single one.

CHAPTER 6

Parker

Spring semester meant lacrosse season was starting soon, so our practices were in full swing. I’d spent the last week on campus, getting back into the swing of things before the semester started, but classes were officially back in session as of today.

Samuel slapped my back as we headed back into the locker room after practice. “How’s your girl?”

I shook my head. “She’s not my girl.”

Even though that wasn’t true. Shewasmine. She just didn’t know it yet. I’d been in love with that girl for my entire life. My best friend. When I was nine, I’d declared to my mom that I was going to marry her someday. Now, though, I knew that was all just a dream.

We were just friends. That was all we’d ever been. And I knew that was all I’d ever be to Audrey, so I was making do. She’d made it clear that we were friends, and I was okay with that. With lacrosse and my degree, I didn’t have time for a relationship.

That was what I kept telling myself. That I’d take whatever I can get when it comes to her.

Sam made a noise in the back of his throat. “Sure. You definitely don’t like her. I saw the way you looked at her at the Halloween party, remember? And you spend all of your time with her.”

Groaning, I dropped my helmet onto the bench, my gloves quickly following behind so I could run my fingers through my hair. “She’s my best friend. I’ve known her since I was a kid. That’s all it is.”

Since she chased after me with her pink ribbons in her hair. Since she’d followed behind me on her pink bike.

He shrugged, stripping the rest of his gear off and heading towards the showers. “Keep telling yourself that, man.”

I was trying. Maybe, one day it would be true.

Last night, when she texted me she was back to campus, I’d stared up at the ceiling in my room, deliberating what to say—resisting from begging to ask to see her.

How had I gone nine years without seeing her when even one month apart felt like this? I liked my life full of her glitter and pink, how she’d always blush just for me, and how everything just felt so easy around her. Like I could be myself. I didn’t feel like I needed to be anyone else.

But she’d spent the night hanging out with her sister, and who was I to object to that? Audrey and Ella were close. Growing up, they were practically joined at the hip. Always matching in their little color coded outfits. But I didn’t need the pink to tell Audrey apart. There was a sparkle in her violet-hued eyes that couldn’t be mistaken for anyone else.

Dumping the rest of my gear into the locker, I grabbed my stuff to also head to the shower when our Coach, Stefan Holmes, popped his head into the locker room.

“Maxwell,” he called. “Can I see you in my office when you’re done?”

“Sure,” I said, dipping my head. Worry churned in my gut. I wasn’t in trouble already, right?

I thought I’d been playing well. Meshing with the guys. Sure, I hadn’t really attended many of the parties or group hangouts, but now that we were getting regular practices in, I felt good.

Better than I’d felt at the end of last season in Rhode Island.

After showering and collecting my bag, I headed to his office, hair still damp.

“How are you feeling after practice? Getting used to the new dynamics?”

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