His fruit tarts also needed a bit more work, but while they weren’t the prettiest, he was able to make them without me having to lend him a helping hand even once.
I was really proud of him, and honestly, I couldn’t believe how much of a quick learner he was.
If he continued to work as hard as he did, I was sure he’d make each treat look like a masterpiece in a couple more weeks.
Unfortunately, we only had until the beginning of May left since he was going to graduate then. I doubted we’d be seeing a lot of each other once he was done with college.
“You do quite a lot with Eden, huh?” Asiya said. There was something odd in her voice. She didn’t sound sad or offended, but not curious or interested either. It was very strange.
“Well, he is my boyfriend.” I couldn’t believe how easily those words made it past my lips now.
Just a few weeks ago, I could barely say the word. I didn’t want to believe that I agreed to such a stupid deal like fake dating Eden fucking King.
He wastheguy on campus.
Everyone loved him.
Everyone wanted to be friends with him.
Everyone wanted to bewithhim.
Everyone except me.
Yet here I was, pretending to be his girlfriend, opening up to him, spending time with him outside of what we agreed upon. I was even sleeping with him, which was probably the weirdest thing that could’ve happened. Somehow, I didn’t regret it.
It was all so confusing, especially since the lines between what was real and what wasn’t were becoming more blurred with each passing day.
“Is he really?” Asiya asked, her eyebrows raised slightly. “I mean, Lana… You weresoin love with Austin, you couldn’t even tear your eyes off him if you saw him across the room. You had the hots for that guy for over a year now. Now you’re meaning to tell me that you met Edenonceand a week later, I hear you’re dating him. How is that possible?”
I was a little surprised she hadn’tonceraised any concerns before. To be fair, I rarely saw her anymore these days.
Louisa was right when she said we had to be there for our boyfriends. If I truly loved Eden the way it was expected of me in this relationship, I would’ve wanted to see him succeed. My support would’ve meant the world to him. If supporting Eden meant spending time with his teammates and their partners, then I could do that.
Besides, they really weren’t all that bad. In fact, I laughed way more with that crowd than I did when it was just Asiya and me.
Lying to my best friend was the worst part of the whole deal, but I couldn’t afford to tell her. If she slipped up, it was going to ruin Eden’s life.
The whole internet was filled with rumors about him. Eden’s entire life was written down on stupid blogs like a fucking biography, as if he wasn’t a person who deserved privacy.
If he madeonemistake, the whole world could look it up.
Tori was going to talk about him formonthson her blog, and while Eden didn’t want to go pro after college, a tarnished image was still going to cost him.
“Heismy boyfriend,” I repeated, though I wasn’t exactly sure if I sounded convincing enough. “Things change, you know? And so do people.”
“But you?—”
“I never had a chance with Austin anyway, Asiya. I had to move on.”
She cocked her head at me, a skeptical expression painting her face. “But you had a chance with Eden?TheEden?”
What was that supposed to mean?
I wasn’t the most athletic person on earth, so what? And maybe I wasn’t the prettiest either, butsomeonewas going to think otherwise eventually.
Beauty is in the eye of the beholder, after all.
And, alright, I was quiet and shy… barely had any confidence in myself, but so what? That didn’t mean I didn’t deserve to be loved. And it certainly didn’t mean thatsomeone like Edencouldn’t be the one to fall for me.
