Playing Pretend

"We were shooting for a variety show today, and the production crew needed to see something interesting on this episode."

Cathryn's mouths hang open and closed like she was a fish out of the water.

She didn't know how to react when the production crew had entered the painting classes like it was a mid-day alien invasion.

All of her classmates stopped whatever they were doing--their paintbrushes hovering in mid-air as their heads turned on them--staring with utmost curiosity, especially with Alexander.

Almost half of the students in that painting lesson were girls.

The moment they noticed the vocalist of Mild Savagery in their vicinity, the girls started to preen and fix their looks, combed their hair with their fingers, brushed off invisible lint of their dresses and pulled out mirrors from their cute, girly, backpacks to check out if they had oil paint on their faces.

Of course, they need to look pretty for the cameras.

Girls were good at spotting cameras aside from boys.

Seeing them being conscious around Alexander made her self-conscious too.

Cathryn also wondered if she had something on her face because Alexander kept on staring at her, making the butterflies on her stomach go wild.

She can't afford to blush in front of him now that the cameras were on them.

People could catch Cathryn in action when it came to embarrassing herself.

Cathryn had that peculiar talent aside from her art.

She cleared her throat and asked Alexander to get it over with, "Is there any paint on my face?"

Cathryn forgot about the fact that they were awkward around each other.

She couldn't just ask that right away without thinking.

What if she wouldn't like his answer or would act like a jerk after remembering that incident last two weeks in the apartment where he suddenly went cold on her because of Blake.

It made her a bit paranoid.

She wondered if it was her who was the problem for being with Blake when he was around during the housewarming party.

Cathryn stood straight, her posture was stiff, and her muscles went rigid as she waited for his answer, preparing herself for any cutting remarks from Alexander, but they weren't any.

Alexander proceeded to pull out some clean handkerchief, dabbing it on her left cheek and her brow gently.

Why the fuck was he doing this in front of so many people around them?

"What the fuck?" Cathryn muttered, just loud enough for him to hear as she glared at Alexander in confusion.

Her brows furrowed as she thought, 'That shouldn't be caught in any video.'

She glanced at everyone at the corner of her eye, making sure that they hadn't heard her curse.

She noticed that they seem to have gotten closer to them, encircling them with extreme interest.

Cathryn placed herself in the third point of view, imagining this whole scene in her mind's eye.

They appeared like they were wanna-be protagonists, shooting in a movie while the cameras were on them.

Hmm, this seemed closer to a reality TV show compared to the movie.

Alexander stepped forward, leaning close to her ear.

His soft breath tickled as he said softly, "Just pretend that you are my girlfriend for this show."

'Wait.' Cathryn felt her sweat ran down her back as she scratched the back of her neck in discomfort. 'Why did she have to pretend to be his girlfriend in front of the camera?'

"For what purpose?" Cathryn mouthed, hoping Alexander would understand, but he sneaked a look around him instead, held her wrist and squeezed it, shaking his head no.

So, he didn't want her to ask questions, huh?

Alexander wanted her to play along, appearing serious as hell with his knitted brows and pursed lips.

Cathryn decided that she would help him out and ask questions later.

Abruptly, Alexander pulled back and patted her head, "Baby, you did a good job the painting."

Alexander smiled as he pinched her cheek, leaving her stunned and frozen in place, befuddled.

It took her a long time to recover her composure.

But fine, whatever.

Cathryn wasn't good at acting, so she kept her face blank and non-threatening.

"I never knew that you drew the two of us so well it appeared really realistic," Alexander added as he turned the painting, facing her and everyone else in the room, showing off.

Fuck.

She forgot he still had that damned painting in his grasp.

What a wrong time to make this 'Rhiannon and the Knight' painting with the same face as Alexander.

Cathryn fought the urge to cover her face with her hands, curl up in a corner and die.

Then, Alexander scratched his head, flushing in fake embarrassment—that the guy could have been easily an actor and no one would argue.

"I never knew that you were so devoted to me that you couldn't keep our relationship hidden anymore." He said out loud in a semi-theatrical voice, catching more attention from the people outside passing by their classroom, wondering what the commotion was all about.

Professor Andreas had finally looked up from his table when he heard Alexander's announcement, glanced at the book he was reading and did a double-take.

Professor Andreas' face as if he had seen an apparition instead of his brother.

We had the same expression of shock in our faces.

It was funny to see Professor Andreas squinted, peering beneath his glasses as if he made sure he didn't see things.

When it finally sunk in, he removed his bass headset, stood up from his chair and approached them in a hurry, almost stumbling at a student's easel on his way.

He had noticed the staff holding their large cameras, setting up equipment around the four corners of the classroom in preparation for the variety show.

Cathryn would have laughed at how comical it was if she was a bystander and not one of the actresses.

Professor Andre stared at Alexander first before his gaze slid into mine, arching his eyebrow as if he had asked a silent question, 'What is happening here?'

Cathryn shrugged her shoulders because she honestly had no idea.