Page 23 of My Fake Date With My Childhood Friend (Port Lane Romances #3)
sixteen
“You’re being quiet today,” Alexander said.
“Hm?” I looked away from the car window I’d been staring out of for the entire drive to school. Since we lived close to each other anyway, and it would help sell the ruse, Alexander agreed to drive me to school whenever he got his family car. “Oh, I’m just tired, I guess.”
“Are you sure that’s all it is?” He asked with concern.
“Yeah,” I sighed. I pulled my sleeves down over my hands and bit my lip.
Nikki's words were still turning over in my mind over and over again. I couldn’t believe everything she’d said to me or that she could so easily look me in the eye and lie to me the way she had.
I didn’t want to believe she was capable of doing that.
I pushed my hair out of my face. “It’s just… .”
“Just?” Alexander prompted me when I didn’t say anything.
“Just Nikki.”
Probably better for you to break it off sooner rather than later.
You know, spare yourself the embarrassment and all that.
Part of me was actually hoping that was she said was true, that she wasn’t lying.
But the bigger and more rational part of me knew that it was better if she wasn’t.
For one thing, I needed to be able to trust Alexander for this whole thing to work.
And for another… I was really, desperately hoping that he was into me.
“Ah. Of course.” He paused to glance at me. “What did she say now?”
“Nothing.” I shook my head. “Just... did you tell Nikki that you're not into me?”
“What?” He looked hopelessly confused.
“Nikki told me that you told her that you only see me as a friend. That I should break this off sooner rather than later.”
“Penny...”
“I don't care that you don't like me,” I clarified quickly. “That's not what I'm upset about. This isn't real, and it's better than real people aren't involved, but if you told Nikki that, then this whole thing is?—”
“Penny,” Alexander interrupted. I snapped my mouth shut. “I didn't say anything to Nikki.”
“Anything?”
“Nothing,” he confirmed. “Actually, I haven't talked to her in months. And the last time I did talk to her, it was just because we were lab partners.”
“Oh,” I said softly. So, I was right. Nikki really just said it to hurt me.
“When did you talk to her?” Alexander asked. “I mean, I know we ran into her and Joseph, but she didn’t say anything like that.”
“I think she’s following me or something. She keeps cornering me in the school bathroom.”
“Oh,” Alexander said. He tapped his fingers against the steering wheel. “I'm sorry if she's being so awful to you.”
I shrugged and looked at my hands.
“I think she's just projecting,” I said. “The novelty of her relationship with Joseph is wearing off, and she doesn't know how to deal with it, so she's taking it out on me, you know?”
“Do you think she'll break up with him?”
“I hope so,” I said. “I really hope she realizes how absurd all of this is and just leaves him.”
“Would you forgive her?” Alexander asked. “If she broke it off with him and apologized for everything, would you be friends with her again?”
“Well… yeah,” I whispered. “She’s my best friend.”
We pulled into the school parking lot and parked at the end.
“You can just leave your jacket in here,” Alexander said as I started to collect my stuff.
“Oh, are you sure?” I asked.
“Yeah, it's not like I'm going to be using it before I drive you home again,” he said. He reached between our seats to grab his bag from where he stored it in the back. “Don't forget your sweater.”
“Oh crap. Thanks.” Normally, I just wore my sweater under my jacket when I walked to school, but Alexander kept his car so hot that I felt like I would die under all those layers.
I jumped out of the car and fixed up my clothes, then swung my backpack over my shoulder.
“If I’m leaving my jacket here, then I don’t need to go to my locker. Do you?”
“Nope,” Alexander said. He walked around to my side of the car and grabbed my hand. “See, these are the benefits of having a boyfriend with a car.”
“What are you….” I started to ask why he was referring to himself as my boyfriend like that, but a quick look around told me we weren’t alone down here. Right. He was a lot more on top of this than I was, and more importantly, not bogged down by stupid newfound feelings.
“What about Joseph?” Alexander asked.
“Hm?”
“If Joseph realized the error of his ways and genuinely apologized, would you forgive him?” He asked. “Would you take him back?”
I hesitated. I genuinely didn't know the answer. Charlie's words had gotten into my brain, reminding me that I held onto the necklace Joseph had given me, even after all this time. As if I was expecting things to reignite between us and for me to need it again.
Alexander nodded slightly and cleared his throat.
“Well,” he said, “I guess the lack of a no is an answer in itself, isn't it?”
Was that true? If I told him about it, would Alexander agree with what Charlie had said to me? Maybe I was still in love with Joseph — and somehow, I was the only one who hadn’t seen it.