Silent Flames

Episode3

Scarlett’s POV

I stormed into Maddie’s apartment without knocking, the door slamming harder than intended. She looked up from the couch, popcorn halfway to her mouth, eyebrows rising in slow amusement.

“Oh, look who finally decided to bless me with her presence,” she drawled. “And judging by that murder-face, I’d say you either failed a class or killed a man.”

“Worse,” I groaned, tossing my bag onto the floor before collapsing next to her. “I’m fake-dating Liam-freaking-King.”

The popcorn hit the coffee table with a soft plop. Maddie’s mouth dropped open. “Wait. What? Back up, rewind. Play that again with subtitles.”

I shoved a pillow over my face and screamed into it. When I finally raised my head to take a breath, I found Maddie staring at me like I had grown two heads.

“Are you…are you serious right now?” she demanded. “Liam King? The hockey star, media darling, and local sin incarnate?”

“The very one,” I muttered.

She blinked at me, then broke into the most evil grin. “Girl, if you don’t want him, I’ll take him.”

“Maddie!”

“What? I’m just saying.” She tucked her legs under her and leaned in like she was about to hear the juiciest gossip of her life. “How did this even happen?”

I braced up and told her everything that happened. The picture, the PR disaster, and my mother's brilliant idea of turning bad press into fake relationship gold. By the time I finished, Maddie’s expression had gone from gleeful to shocked, then to annoyingly smug.

“Oh my God,” she whispered dramatically, clasping her hands like she was in a soap opera. “This is literally unexpected. Do you know how many people would kill for this situation?”

“I would gladly trade places with any of them,” I shot back.

She smirked. “Sure you would.”

I groaned again, burying my face in my hands. “Maddie, you don’t get it. He’s…he’s arrogant, and infuriating, also obnoxiously attractive.”

Her laugh exploded so loudly it scared her cat off the windowsill. “Ohhh, there it is! The slip-up. You think he’s hot.”

“I didn’t say that!”

“You literally said obnoxiously attractive, which is basically code for hot, but I hate myself for noticing.’'

“That doesn’t mean anything.” I said with a deep frown, turning away from her.

“Oh, honey,” Maddie said slowly. “It means everything. You already clocked his looks, didn’t you? What was it? His eyes? His shoulders? The way he...”

“Stop!” I threw the pillow at her. She dodged, cackling.

“It was the shoulders, wasn’t it?” she teased. “Hockey players and their broad shoulders. Gets ‘em every time.”

I glared at her. “It doesn’t matter what he looks like. He’s impossible. He thinks the world revolves around him.”

Maddie shrugged, unfazed. “To be fair, in his world, it kind of does.”

I groaned. “Not helping.”

She nudged me with her foot. “Okay, okay, so what’s the plan?”

“There isn’t a plan,” I said miserably. “The media thing is tomorrow night. Some charity gala. I’m supposed to show up, smile, hold his hand, maybe let him put an arm around me while cameras flash. Basically sell the world on a fairytale romance I don’t even want.”

“Sounds terrible,” she said, but her smirk gave her away.

“It is terrible! You know how many girls out there worship him? They’ll be sharpening their pitchforks the second they see me next to him. I’ll be public enemy number one.”

Maddie snorted. “Oh please. You’ll survive. Besides, you’ve handled worse like Professor Halloway’s three-hour lectures.”

I gave her a look and shook my head. “Not the same thing.”

“True,” she admitted, eyes sparkling. “Because this time, the danger comes with abs.”

I groaned again, wishing the couch would swallow me whole. Maddie is another problem I can't help myself from. She shifted slightly and rested her chin on her palm as she studied me. “Be honest. Are you nervous because you hate him or because part of you doesn’t?”

I turned to her sharply, furrowing my brows in surprise. What the hell? I wasn't expecting such a question. I opened my mouth to answer, then shut it again, completely at a loss.

“I don’t...Maddie, no. Don’t start with that.”

She grinned knowingly. “Oh, I’m definitely starting with that. You’ve spent years brushing him off, but one fake-dating scheme and suddenly you’re spiraling. Just admit it.''

Before I could respond, my phone buzzed. Liam’s name lit up the screen, and on noticing the look on my face, Maddie leaned closer and had a look.

“Ohhh, speak of the devil,” she blurted out.

I ignored her and opened the message. It reads. ''Don’t be late tomorrow. It's already on the media.''

I scoffed and shook my head unbelievably. He couldn’t even be polite, just straight to bossing me around. Without hesitation, I typed back furiously. ''I’m not your accessory. I’ll show up when I show up.''

His reply came seconds later. ''Guess I’ll make sure the spotlight’s on me then.''

I groaned and tossed my phone onto the couch. Maddie picked it up, reading the texts before I could stop her.

“Oh my God,” she gasped. “This banter is gold. Do you two realize you’re basically flirting?”

“Flirting?!” I nearly shrieked. “That’s not flirting, that’s fighting.”

“Same thing,” she said with a grin. I shoved her shoulder, but she only laughed harder.

The truth was, I couldn’t stop thinking about tomorrow. About walking into that room with him by my side, pretending we were a couple. About the way his hand might rest on my back, how close I’d have to stand, the way the cameras would capture every fake smile.

“Relax,” Maddie said, clearly reading my expression. “You’ll go, you’ll smile, you’ll survive. And who knows? Maybe you’ll even enjoy yourself.”

I shot her a glare, and muttered between gritted teeth. “Not a chance.'’