Chapter Nineteen

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Tom and I began talking about this setup in secret. Since he's just going to use me for his own benefits because of his family's tradition, I've decided that boundaries must be set on this one and so we've created an agreement.

"No sleeping with me," I said directly. "No touch, no sex. I'll allow holding hands but only when your parents and grandparents are around." I said strictly.

"No sex, got it." He answered.

That's the only condition I've got for him.

"You don't feel lust a lot, don't ya?" I asked.

"You're a little blunt, aren't you?" Tom responded.

"That didn't answer my question but whatever. That's the only condition I have for you," I said. "How about you?"

He shrugged and said, "Nothing on my end. I just need to get over this."

"Can I hug you?" He asked.

"Well if only necessary, sure." I answered.

"How about a kiss?" He asked.

"If you want to kiss my fist, sure thing." I answered and glared at him.

"That's mean!" He said like a child. "Are you going to tell Nico about this?"

Shaking my head sideways, I answered, "He doesn't need to know. He's our classmate, remember? The last thing I'd like to happen is to blow up my cover."

"Sounds reasonable to me," He answered. "They will be arriving next month. Can we start practicing now?"

"For preparation? Yeah, sure" I answered.

"How about a date today? It's Sunday and there's still enough time to go out. Pretend like you're my real girl." He told me.

"Fine, after you" I answered. "Let me change my look first."

"I can lend you my crystal blue eye contact lense," L offered. "I'll get it in my room."

L and I both climbed up towards her room. Compared to mine, L got a very clean and organized bedroom. Like a real lady. As expected of her. NJ is like L, a clean freak. It's like they couldn't end their days without cleaning their rooms.

She also helped me with my light makeup and put on the contact lense. I could not believe I was wearing a contact lense! As soon as I did, I looked at my reflection in the mirror and I almost did not recognize myself.

"We're not yet done," L said. "Let me fix your hair."

"There is no need to get my hair fixed." I said.

"Oh, so you'd like to blow your cover right off the bat?" She asked.

I grunted and said, "Fine, you can fix my hair"

"And clothes," my elder sister L said, a hint of excitement could be heard from her voice and could be felt from her vibes. "Let's go to your room. There might be normal clothes there."

With that, we walked to our room to find an attire that was acceptable in society.

"Unbelievable. Since when did you last clean your room?" She asked as she look at my messy room in disgust. "You really sleep in a messy room? I couldn't stand the sight!"

"NJ helped me clean my room last week," I answered. "I guess, getting your room messed is inevitable." I added.

"Why not put an effort into maintaining a clean room? At the end of the day, you'll be the one who must clean your own space." L ranted.

"Mind your own business!" I said. "How about let's start looking for nice attire? Today's my trial date with Tom."

"Fine but we're not yet done with our talk." L said and began rummaging through my wardrobe to find an attire for me. Knowing my elder sister, she's pretty good at choosing attire. She never failed society's taste in fashion. She could even get hired as a fashion consultant, if you ask me.

After 5 minutes, she finally found the right outfit for me and I wore it as she suggested.

I wore a dark blue vest with a white tube inside for the top and for the bottom, I wore a leather skirt that fell before the knee. And lastly, a black knee-high shoe for the footwear.

For the hair, we tied it up in a bun then she finished my light makeup.

"And you're all set!" She said as she clasped her hand together while looking at me with a smile. I blinked twice because wearing a contact lense felt uncomfortable to me but I've decided to endure it. "Do you like your new look?"

I looked at my reflection in my mirror and said, "Hmm. It's fine."

She looked at me with a poker face look and said, "You really sure got a different taste than the rest of the people."

"Being different isn't that bad" I casually said with a shrug.

"But staying as you are right now is bad," She said. "Come on, level up your fashion taste."

"Should I fit into the status quo?" I said. "I don't think that's necessary. Anyway, thank you for the help but we are wasting so much time."

She smiled. "Alright B, have fun."

"I don't feel like Beauty Smith right now because of my new look. I don't recognize myself anymore. I think this would work somehow." I said.

We walked down together and when Tom saw us, he said, "You don't look like Beauty Smith at all. You looked like a completely different person!"

"Is that a compliment?" I asked.

"He thinks you're beautiful," L told me. "He's just shy to admit it."

"Whatever. Let's just get over this trial date," I said. "Let me clarify things. As soon as we step out of this house, I am officially your fake girlfriend, is that right?"

Nodding, he said, "Yes. And you have to act like a real girlfriend. We're in our practice period."

This is the first time that I'll act as a girlfriend. Heck, I haven't even dated anyone before so I have zero percent experience with becoming a girlfriend. However, I have read some romance and teen-fic novels. Maybe I'll apply what I've read in novels. Might work, who knows? We won't know unless we try.

"Okay, got it," I acknowledged. "Let's go before it gets too late. We wasted so much time talking already."

"Alright, girlfriend" He said and looked at my sister and said, "I am taking out your sister for a while. We'll be back before 8PM."

"Take care, pretend lovers!" L said and smiled.

Tom had a motorcycle but unfortunately, I am wearing a skirt so we've decided to walk together.

At first, it felt awkward, especially when I noticed him trying to catch and hold my hand as we walked. I don't like being touched by someone but then I remembered that this is a trial date and must be taken seriously. You know, practice purposes so I'll be able to perform well once I finally meet his parents and grandparents.

So I let him hold my hands and now, we're walking together with our fingers intertwined together. Ugh, this sucks and feel awkward. I barely even hang out with him. Maybe that's the reason why I was feeling awkward.

"So, where do you want to go first, babe?" He asked and trusted me, it made me cringe but of course, I didn't show him that. We're putting a show, right?

Smiling, I said, "It's pretty hot. Want to grab some ice cream?" Then I pointed to the ice cream shop we were passing by.

"Sounds good to me," He said.

"And seriously, we're using babe as an endearment?" I confirmed. "Can we not use endearment? This is just a trial. I am not yet facing your parents and grandparents."

"Well, I want you to get used to it," He said. "We need to convince our parents and grandparents that you're my real girlfriend."

"Alright, fine fine," I answered. "But after meeting your parents and grandparents, no more endearments, okay?"

"Deal," He said. Tom opened the ice cream shop's glassdoor for me. Very gentlemanly.

"Thank you" I said when he opened the door for me.

As soon as we walked towards the counter to order, I scanned around the area while Tom took the order. I was surprised to see NJ sitting near the window and he's not alone! He's with Audrey and the two seem to be enjoying their time together.

I tried to cover Tom by moving closer, hovering him so that Audrey and NJ won't be able to see us. When Tom felt that I moved closer, I noticed that his body stiffed for a while but immediately regained his composure. "Do you have an additional order?" He asked and I shook my head sideways.

"No, but can we take out our order? We can't stay here for much longer." I said in almost a whisper.

"Why?" Tom asked. "Are you not feeling well?"

"NJ and Audrey are here," I said. What a coincidence. "We can't blow my cover. And don't ask questions. Let's just go."

And with that, we rushed outside with our orders. Of course, I paid mine. This isn't a real date and even if I were to go on a date, I'd like to pay my own order.

We walked away from the shop and found a spot where no one could see us especially from NJ and Audrey's sight. We chose to sit under the oak tree we saw. Specifically, the grass.

I let go of his hand and said, "Whew, that was close."

"It's Sunday today," He said. "Are they on a date?" Tom wondered as he handed me over the ice cream in the cup he ordered.

"Maybe?" I answered, uncertain. I see, so that's why he didn't barge in. He's hanging out with Audrey. Not that I care. Having him not barge in my room gives me peace. "Who cares?" I said and my tone sounded bitter.

"You weren't jealous, were you?" Tom asked.

"Of course not, why would I?" I said. "And why are we having this kind of conversation? I thought we're going on a date like a real couple?"

"Right. Apologies," He started and cleared his throat. "Can we try again?"

"Sure, let's restart." I said then followed his league.

"So, how was school?" He asked. Has the show started? Guess so. I followed his lead and began putting on a practice act.

"Nothing special, just the usual," I answered. I moved closer to his side causing my shoulder to brush his. "How about you?"

"Always special because I always see you" He said and winked.

"Ooh, smooth move" I said and giggled. "But not as smooth as the feelings I have for you." I joked and laughed.

"Well, that's lame" Tom said. "But nice try! I hope we won't stop trying too."

"Try to make your parents and grandfather believe that we are really together? Right." I answered.

"I know, I know," Tom said as he continued eating his ice cream and the same goes to me too. "This is an act and there's a boundary. I know and I won't forget about it."

"What are your parents like? Can you tell me?" I asked. Even though I am just a pretend girlfriend, I need to know what their parents are like so I would know how to act when I'm around them. For some reason, I began feeling thrilled about this make believe situation but at the same time, I feel bad because we're going to lie to his parents and grandparents.

"Good question," He said. "What do you exactly want to know about them?"

"What do they accept and not accept in a girl? Do they have expectations of a girl you're currently dating?" I asked.

"Well, my mom likes girls who know how to wear the right attire in the right place and time. As for my dad, he likes a girl who got talent specifically, dancing or writing," He explained. "My father always believed that when you're in the writing field, you are automatically an intelligent person."

"He's totally wrong about that," I answered. "I am nowhere intelligent. Maybe he's fond of imaginations?"

"Yeah. That too. He also owns a library where he stores his books," He explained. "Whenever he's free, he would hang out in his library and read his book."

"Literature, alright. And how about your mother?" I asked.

"She likes fashion so she'd like to have a daughter-in-law who is fashionable enough to match her taste. She's also looking for someone chatty."

"Chatty? Is she really that talkative for her to find a chatty girl?" I asked.

"It's the opposite. She doesn't talk too much which is exactly why she's looking for a chatty person so someone would give her a topic to talk about." He explained.

That's kind of strange. But each and everyone of us are strange in their own ways, right?

"Is that all I need to know?" I asked.

"So far, yes" He answered. "Enough of our family. I just have a question."

"Shoot away," I responded as I continued to eat my ice cream 'til the cup's finally empty.

"It's about you and Nico." He said.

"Hm? What about NJ and I?" I asked. "Spill your question already, will ya?"

"You're very close," He started. "Is there something going on between the two of you?"

"We're just buddies. Nothing more, nothing less," I answered. "See, he's close to a lot of people. You saw him earlier with Audrey, right? And I know that you noticed how close Audrey and NJ were," I continued. "Stop giving malice to a girl and a guy friend. Why do you ask, anyway?"

"Nothing much," He answered. "It's just that this is the very first time I've seen you very close with a guy. You even got a name for him!"

"Be honest," I began as I threw the cup of ice cream that I've been devouring. "Have you been observing me and if so, how long?"

"Blunt as ever but yes," He answered. Well, that was quick. Never expected that he'd be honest. "You're always alone and never talked to anyone at school. Made me think that you're anti-social."

"No I'm not. I am not anti-social," I answered. "If I am anti-social, I wouldn't be having a small group of friends back when I was in highschool."

"Agreed," Tom said. "Sorry about that. Can you tell me how many you are in a group?"

"Back then, we were 8 in a group. Now, we don't talk anymore," I answered with a shrug. "Welcome to this thing called adulting. They probably found new friends wherever they are now."

"That's life. People come and go. Face it," He answered. "But I hope that you'd stay with me even as a friend."

"Sure, why not?" I answered.

Lately, I've been gaining more friends. I don't know whether I would be happy about it or not.

If we became closer and one day, they have to leave, I'd feel sad.

Maybe I'll stop thinking of the worst-case scenario.

Besides, people really do come and go.

And that pill is very hard to swallow.

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