“Hey, Romai.”
“See you later in class, Romai.”
“How was your weekend, Romai?”
All of it felt surreal. I had always been used to being invisible. Even when I was friends with Kathy, she was the only person who got noticed by people, while I was the spare sidekick, always lurking in the background.
For once, it felt really good to be in the limelight, even if all of it was based on a lie.
I had a permanent smile on my face since the weekend. Having sex with Bryan had boosted my confidence like no other thing could, and I was finally beginning to not see myself as a kissless virgin.
“Where’s your man?” Elizabeth said to me as I walked over to my locker to put away some of my books. She and I had been in a few classes together, but she had never really talked to me before.
“My man?” I replied, a blush coloring my cheeks. “You know him. He’s probably at practice.”
“Honestly, and I hope you don’t take this the wrong way, but all of us were so surprised that he was actually dating you,” Elizabeth commented, the surprise in her voice evident.
“I know that it came as a shock to everyone,” I replied. “But we like each other.”
I loved it when people asked me about Bryan. It helped me craft stories about our relationship that were not even real but sounded very romantic. It was like I was living in my very own fan fiction.
“You must tell me more,” Elizabeth said, “How did he ask you out? I don’t remember the last time he was interested in a girl.”
I pursed my lips, trying to come up with the most interesting-sounding story.
“Oh, well, you know, he told me that he had always liked me,” I lied, “And he said that he wants to get a chance to know me better. We went out on a date at the local pizza place, and it lasted for hours.”
“Hours?” Elizabeth repeated, shocked. “That must be a really good date.”
“It was,” I continued. “In fact, we had such a great connection that he asked me to be his girlfriend right away. I told him that he was crazy for even suggesting that, but he said that he knew that I was the one he wanted.”
Coming up with these elaborate lies felt a bit depressing since, in reality, Bryan had never shown such interest. But I knew that I had to make a good impression in front of Elizabeth.
“Wow,” Elizabeth muttered, seeming very impressed. “I’ve always joked that Bryan is in a serious relationship with hockey. You must really be something that you caught his attention like that.”
“Oh, I don’t know about that…”
“Stop being so modest,” Elizabeth nudged. “You’re going out with the hottest guy in school.”
I felt a pang of jealousy. It felt weird when other girls also acknowledged that he was hot. But then I quickly reminded myself not to get so possessive.
He was only my fake boyfriend, after all.
“Anyway, do you know where he is today?” Elizabeth asked.
I shook my head. “I haven’t seen him around.”
“Hmm, well, that means that you’re free to hang out right now?”
I blinked a few times, amazed at how drastically my social status had improved overnight. “You want me to hang out with you?”
“Of course,” Elizabeth replied instantly. “Jake and I recently started dating, and he’s best friends with Bryan. I think it could be cute if the both of us become friends, as well. Like WAGS, but for hockey.”
She laughed at her own joke, and I couldn’t help but chuckle along.
“I’d love that,” I replied, fully enthused by the idea, “Do we get WAG privileges too?”
“Hmm, maybe when they’re in the big leagues, we can ask them to get us a sports car,” Elizabeth laughed. “But for now, I think our job is just to be supportive and look hot.”