Page 21 of Lessons in Chemistry

“I’ll be your pretend boyfriend. If he sees us being all couply, he’s bound to realise he has feelings for you. Or not, if he’s not into guys. But either way, you’d know.”

“All couply?” I ask.

“You know? Hugging. Kissing. Maybe with tongue.” He winks.

My mouth is dry. My heart pounds. Is Auggie offering to kiss me? In front of Casey? What’s even happening?

“That doesn’t feel right.”

“Why not?”

“I’d be lying to my best friend.”

“It would be a social experiment. You want to know if he likes you back, right?”

I nod.

“But you’re not going to ask him?”

I shake my head.

“Then this is the best way. Let me be your fake boyfriend.”

“With kissing?”

“That’s what boyfriends do. You have kissed a guy before, haven’t you?”

I snap my mouth shut and look out the window.

“Oh. Oh. I could teach you how.”

The ground still isn’t opening up and swallowing me whole, just like it refused to this morning.

“Or we could forget the kissing and just hold hands and hug,” he says.

He seems so relaxed with this conversation, whereas I’m dying. The hottest guy on my course now knows I’ve never kissed anyone, which means he must have realised I’m a virgin too. Heaven help me. I cover my face with my hands and take a few deep breaths. When I lower my hands, my lenses have misted up. Fuck my life.

“There’s nothing to be embarrassed about. Everyone has to have a first time. Why not with a friend?”

I look up sharply. “A friend?”

“Yeah. Me.”

“You’re my friend? We’re friends?”

“Uh, yeah.”

“I thought—” I shake my head and point at his essay.

“Well, yes, you were helping me with that, but I don’t make a habit of spending so much time with people I don’t like. Except my parents, but I don’t have much choice with them.”

“You don’t like your parents?”

He presses his lips into a taut smile. “We’re not talking about me. We’re talking about you and operation ‘make Casey realise he’s in love with you’.”

“Maybe we should talk about you.”

“Nope. Is the fake boyfriend plan a go? I could take you out tomorrow night.”