Off-script: My Accidental Fake Boyfriend

Chapter Twenty

Riley’s POV

I still couldn’t believe I made callbacks. After weeks of terrifying silence and endless waiting, this was easily the best news I’d gotten in a long time.

The moment Cole dropped me off at the library yesterday, I texted June immediately. Her reply didn’t come at first, but when she finally called me back, she sounded even more excited than I was. By the time I left the library, I ended up spending the rest of the day with her.

June insisted we celebrate because according to her, making callbacks was “main character behavior,” but I managed to convince her not to drag me outside. Instead, we had a girls’ night in, just the two of us sprawled across the couch with snacks everywhere, binge-watching our favorite shows until sometime past midnight.

Which explained the pounding headache currently threatening to split my skull open.

My phone had been ringing nonstop for what felt like forever before I finally groaned, reached blindly across the bed, and pressed it against my ear without checking the caller ID.

“Hello,” I grumbled sleepily.

“What the heck? Please tell me you’re not still sleeping.” Stacy’s voice blasted through the speaker.

I immediately pulled the phone away from my ear and squinted at the time.

7:30 a.m.

“Not everyone is a vampire, Stace. Some people require beauty sleep,” I muttered, my voice still heavy with exhaustion.

“Riley, did you not get the email from the Student Affairs Department, or are you drunk?”

That got my attention.

“What email?” I asked, sitting up so quickly the room spun slightly around me.

“Check it and you’ll see,” Stacy replied before hanging up immediately.

I stared at my phone in confusion.

What exactly was that supposed to mean? Why would Student Affairs be emailing me? I wasn’t in trouble… right?

Suddenly wide awake, I tossed the blanket aside and reached for my laptop. My inbox loaded slowly, and sitting right at the top was a message from Professor Stones himself.

Even his name sounded cold. My eyes scanned the email quickly. Mandatory conference meeting at hall B. 8:00 a.m. I glanced at the clock again.

“Oh my gosh.”

I practically launched myself out of bed and into the bathroom. Was this man not loved at home? Who scheduled meetings this early?

I rarely drove to campus because my car attracted far too much attention, courtesy of my mother who believed subtlety was a disease. But today, I genuinely didn’t care.

My silver Porsche Taycan practically gleamed beneath the morning sunlight as I sped through campus roads. The car screamed luxury in the most unapologetic way possible, sleek curves, tinted windows, cream leather interior, and enough attention-grabbing presence to make heads turn before I even stepped out of it. It fit my mother perfectly.

Unfortunately, that meant it fit me by association.

By the time I rushed into the conference hall, I was already five minutes late and slightly out of breath. I paused at the entrance, expecting to see Professor Stones glaring holes through somebody’s soul.

Instead, four familiar faces turned toward me almost simultaneously.

“Brooks.” Tyler beamed, elbowing Cole beside him.

Cole spared me one brief glance before returning his attention to his phone.

“You seem to enjoy dramatic entrances,” Noah teased, amusement gleaming in his eyes.

“If she delivered anything less, she wouldn’t be theatre material,” Stacy laughed from where she sat between Tyler and Noah.

Tyler scoffed immediately. “I don’t do dramatic entrances. Does that mean I’m not theatre material?”

“You do plenty more than dramatic entrances,” Stacy replied with a soft laugh, casually ruffling his hair.

Tyler visibly tensed beneath the touch for a split second before grinning again. Interesting.

“What exactly is going on here?” I asked as I finally walked over to the table.

The only empty seat left was beside Noah. I slid into the chair while Cole’s gaze flickered briefly between Noah and me before he returned to his phone again.

“What are you all doing here?” I asked.

“The same thing you’re doing here apparently,” Tyler answered.

“We all got the email,” Noah added.

Stacy narrowed her eyes at me suspiciously. “How did you not check your mail? You’ve literally been refreshing your inbox every hour waiting for callback updates. Or have you been too busy being in love?”

Heat immediately rushed to my cheeks. Across the table, Cole’s lips lifted slightly into the faintest smirk without him even looking up from his phone. I opened my mouth to defend myself when Noah lightly tapped my hand. His gaze dropped downward. Confused, I followed his line of sight and immediately froze.

“Oh my gosh.”

“You do realize you’re wearing two different sneakers, right?” Noah asked carefully.

I looked down in horror. They were technically the same style and color family, which honestly made the situation worse because it proved I had almost matched correctly.

Almost.

“It’s not that bad,” Noah added quickly, probably noticing the sheer embarrassment spreading across my face.

Again, Cole glanced over briefly before silently returning to his phone. Tyler chuckled under his breath while I covered my face with both hands. I had been in such a hurry this morning that I grabbed the shoes without even looking properly. Great. Absolutely fantastic. Just then, the conference room door opened.

Professor Stones walked in alongside Mrs. Matley, our theatre director, the football coach, and another professor wearing a jacket with the Computer Science Department logo stitched neatly across the front.

“Glad to see you’re all on time,” Professor Stones addressed dryly as they settled at the opposite end of the table.

I blinked. The man had definitely looked directly at me while saying that. Without wasting another second, he continued.

“We’ll proceed directly to the purpose of this meeting.”

Mrs. Matley began passing files around the table while Professor Stones spoke. The moment I opened mine, bold letters stared back at me.

CENTENNIAL GALA

Everyone exchanged confused looks except Stacy, while Professor Stones continued speaking.

“As you all know, Histon University will soon be celebrating its centennial anniversary. This is a significant event for the institution, and after extensive discussion, the board has decided to place this year’s gala preparations into student leadership.”

Okay… now I was definitely awake.

“It is no secret that the university’s most recognized departments are, in no particular order, theatre, computer science, and athletics,” he continued. “And whether intentionally or not, you five have become some of the most visible faces representing those departments.”

My fingers tightened slightly around the file.

“That being said,” he went on, “you will be leading the planning, organization, and execution of the Centennial Gala. Your objective is not only to present your individual departments in their best light, but also to prove that collaboration between them is possible despite longstanding perceptions on campus.”

This was huge. No, huge wasn’t even enough. This was the university’s hundred-year anniversary. A milestone event. And somehow, they were handing part of it to us. I was still trying to process the weight of that when Stacy spoke.

“If I may ask, sir,” she started calmly, her posture straight with the same quiet confidence she carried during rehearsals, “I’m not technically a student here. I’m an assistant director. I certainly cannot be one of the faces representing theatre.”

Mrs. Matley looked oddly proud beside her, like a mother watching her child exceed expectations. Professor Stones gave the closest thing I’d ever seen him give to a smile.

“Your work has not gone unnoticed, Miss Carter. You may not be a student but your talent has also put you in the spotlight.” he replied. “In fact, multiple faculty members specifically recommended your involvement. You will be serving as overseeing director while reporting directly to us, members of the board.”

Stacy’s eyes widened slightly despite how composed she tried to remain.

“And Riley Brooks,” he continued, flipping through a document, “will function as Student Artistic Director.”

My head snapped upward immediately. “What?”

I barely had time to process that sentence before he continued.

“Additionally, an academic transfer has been approved for this project. The student in question will be joining the Computer Science Department effective immediately.”

Professor Stones looked toward the door.

“Emelia Hayes.”

The room went strangely still. Noah spoke first, his voice quieter than usual.

“You came back.”

I turned instinctively toward the entrance. A brunette stepped inside wearing a soft smile that somehow looked both nervous and familiar at the same time.

Tyler had gone unusually quiet. And for the first time since this meeting started, Cole finally looked fully alert. His jaw clenched sharply, before going completely still.

My eyes moved between all of them slowly. Noah’s surprise. Tyler’s unreadable expression. Cole’s sudden tension. Then back to the girl standing at the door.

There was definitely a story here, but what?