Page 15 of Olivia's Only Pretending
So, I kept saving for that old house.
Last June, a year later, I finally joined the Sweet River Historical Society we’d talked about joining together. I sat in a plastic chair in a room of fellow Sweet River lovers and watched a slideshow go by of a historical house downtown. It looked like a dream come true.
I toured the house that day and saw rooms for me to decorate, a yard for me to barbecue in with my friends, shelves topaint, and walls to break down. I could already envision the light coming in through the back windows as I turned the pages in a good book.
Yes,thiswas what I’d wanted all along.
This dream was mine to begin with. I’d only briefly shared it with Ryan. When he left, I felt freedom in knowing he hadn’t taken anything of mine with him. Not my dreams, not my heart.
Okay, he did take my favorite pumpkin mug.
Six
Gabby
Not sure what exactly Sonny saw happening in your office…but whatever it was, is not helping dial back the office gossip…
“Wait, wait, wait.” Lucy dragged a french fry through ketchup. “Do you really think you can maintain lying to the whole schoolfor weeks?”
We were in the shiny red booths at the old burger joint near Lucy’s apartment. It had been a frequent dinner spot for us back when we still lived together. She’d picked me up from work because my car wouldn’t be ready for me to pick up from the auto shop until the next morning, and since we hadn’t adequately discussed the fiasco that was my morning, we decided to head straight for burgers and fries to finish hashing it out.
“Okay, first,the whole schooldoesn’t even know who I am. Second, we’re not lying. We’re just letting people think whatever they want.”
“Sure, if you make out with someone, it isn’t technically saying you’re dating, but you can’t deny that it does send a certain message, Olivia.” Lucy raised a judgmental eyebrow.
“We won’t be making out anymore,” I said quickly, feeling my cheeks heat. And my chest. And my stomach.
“How was it, though?” She leaned in, elbows on the table. “The kiss?” she added in a whisper.
“Oh, I don’t know, Luce.” I let out a breath, trying to stay cool and collected, even as my body still felt Victor’s hands on my waist like an imprint.
“Was it a peck?”
“Definitely not,” I said without thinking.
Lucy squealed, bouncing in her seat. “I’ve been waiting for this.”
“No, hold on.” I placed a firm hand on the table. “Do not get your hopes up. This is pretend. The kiss was …” But I couldn’t get myself to call that kisspretend. It felt as real as the heartbeat pounding in my chest.
“Sure, sure.” Lucy grabbed another fry. “Sure.”
“Lucy, it’d be tougher at this point to try and explain to everyone on campus that we’re not together. Plus, this way, I have a copilot with me through everything.” I tried to recall the great points Victor had made when we schemed up this plan. It was convincing when he said it with all his charisma and confidence.
“A copilot?” Lucy’s brows furrowed.
“Yeah, he can be like my sidekick. Since everyone thinks we’re dating, he can tag along with me to every event and help me out with Ryan.”
“You think Ryan will be that much of a nuisance?”
I suddenly felt defensive of my and Victor’s plan.Of course,I needed Victor to accompany me to everything. “Maybe. I didn’texpect him to show up this morning, so obviously, the man is full of surprises.”
“Uh-huh,” Lucy said slowly. “That’s totally a valid reason to experiment with taking Victor along as your date?—”
“No, no!” I nearly shouted, making Lucy break into giggles. “Don’t make this a thing.”
“You and Victor literally made this a thing all by yourselves.”
“We’re just … you know … He’s so …” I grabbed my sweet tea and took a long, sugary sip. “Anyway, whether you think it’s a silly idea or not, I’ll at least have some company with me on Friday. I can’t believe these fall events I’ve been excited about will now include Ryan.”
