Lily is not the kind of person to ask because she is being polite. She sincerely cares how I did, and I appreciate how genuine she is.
“Better than I was planning! I think I should get a decent grade because I had some relevant points and was able to back them up with solid evidence. That seminar was the biggest concern of the semester, so I’m just glad it’s over.”
“That’s so amazing! I knew you were going to do well.” The tone of her voice makes it seem like she is proud of me, and since I desperately need words of affirmation to keep me going, I will take it at face value. I don’t expect her to say anything else, but she adds, “You seem really happy lately, Ellie.”
Her words surprise me, but I don’t know why she says it. I’ve been such a mess lately, especially at work. “Oh, thank you. I don’t know if I agree with you, but I’ll take your word for it.”
“I promise I’m not making it up! I really think you seem happier!” She laughs. “I’ve been wondering if it has anything to do with that guy who I saw you talking to in the lobby last month. He wasveryhandsome, and he looked at you like you were the only person in here.”
Last month? In the lobby?
All of a sudden, it dawns on me. She must be talking about my first meeting with Patrick when he came in here to propose the idea of fake dating. I chuckle at the memory, but my suspicions rise. “You haven’t been talking to Nick lately, have you?”
“No. Why?” She tilts her head and looks at me inquisitively, and I realize that her opinion has not been influenced by any outside source.
That’s odd.
“No reason. Um, yeah. That was Patrick, and we’ve been dating for a little bit.”
“Oh, yay! Well, I think you two are good for each other.” She grabs her iced caramel macchiato from me and goes into the back to get ready for her shift.
I spend the next couple hours contemplating and dissecting Lily’s words, and our conversation has me questioning everything. Do I really seem that much happier? Is it Patrick? It would have to be because nothing else has changed other than my fake relationship status, right?
I’m sure Lily was just trying to be nice, but if it is her honest observation, what do I do about it?
Shaking off the feelings, I try to focus on the changes I need to make to my final paper.
Chapter 31
Patrick
Elliewarnedmeabouther mom’s high expectations while I drove to her parent's house, but I was not expecting it to actually be true. She said that her mother has always wanted what’s best for her, but it comes off as overbearing. I could tell by her expression that she was concerned about bringing me into the mix, but from where I stand, it seems like her mother didn’t give her another option.
Walking into their house feels familiar. It's not like I've been here before, but they have a single family home set up in the suburbs of Walford that could have been copied and pasted inside and out. There is nothing remarkable about the space, and while it seems perfectly normal, the only thing that differentiates it from any of the other houses are the multitudes of pictures of Ellie and her family.
I take note of the fact that every individual picture of Ellie is of some kind of accomplishment—a college graduation, a youth soccer championship, a high school award ceremony. There aren’t any of her without a feat attached to it, which is my first clue that Ellie probably wasn’t exaggerating on the car ride over.
Ellie’s an only child, so everything they own is set up for a family of three. Why have more if you don’t need more, I guess. It appears that they don’t have more than one or two guests over at a time, and if they did, I have no idea how they would handle that.
There is a small wooden dinner table that barely fits us all, and it is already prearranged with the plates and food when we sit down. Ellie made a point that she did not want to be early, explaining that any extra time with her mom takes years off of her life. There’s a pit in my stomach that keeps growing larger the more stressed Ellie gets, and I feel bad for being so blasé about it before.
Ellie’s father breaks the silence while spooning some mashed potatoes onto his plate. “So, Patrick, how did you two meet?”
Thank god, we’re starting off easy.
I’ve practiced this before, and Ellie and I are determined to keep our lies as close to the truth as possible. “It’s actually kind of a funny story. I’ve been a customer at The Brew for a long time, so I saw Ellie basically every day. One day a few months ago, I finally decided to get up the courage to ask her out. I had always thought that she was beautiful, and I realized that if I didn’t do anything, I would never get the chance to get to know her.”
It’s a little closer to the truth than I’ll ever let Ellie know.
“Oh, how romantic,” her father replies, glancing lovingly at his wife.
I expect a comment from Ellie’s mother, but instead of talking to me, she turns towards Ellie and grabs at her hands. “Yes, that is nice, sweetheart, but I wish that you didn’t work at that place. You spend all of your time serving people who don’t care about you. The hours are awful, and it doesn’t even help you with your degree. You should get an internship.”
Ellie wiggles out of her mother’s grip and goes back to cutting up the chicken breast in front of her to avoid eye contact. Where she is normally vibrant and lively, Ellie is muted in this house, a shell of herself to appease her mom, and it pains me.
Her eyes remain focused on her plate as she responds to her mother’s comment. “Mom, you know that I can’t afford to go to school and work for free. My job is fine for now.”
What I take as a sufficient answer is apparently not good enough because her mother doesn’t let up. “Your father and I can help you, and you can move back in for a little bit. It will be just like old times!”
