Playing Fake With Kade Black

Proposal

Sora

“Propose?” I yell, my eyes nearly bulging out of my skull. “What do you mean, ‘You’re planning on proposing to Daisy’?”

Cam smiles sheepishly, then nods like a kid in an amusement park. “She’s the one for me. I can feel it.”

I want to scream, I’m the one for you, asshole, but I bottle it up and force a supportive look.

“Don’t you think it’s too sudden? What if she doesn’t want to get married yet?” I ask, hoping he sees it as a way to evaluate his decision.

“Nope,” he says, shrugging. “She’s already hinted at wanting to be Mrs. Black before we graduate.”

Okay… that’s suspicious. Daisy hates being tied down—part of the reason I didn’t fight their relationship before. I always suspected she’d bail before he fell too hard.

“She does? That’s…” Nothing I can say feels right. “Uhm… that’s great. I’m happy for both of you!” I clap awkwardly and head to the kitchen to pour myself a glass of water.

So this was Code Grey. His grand proposal… to my bully. Perfect.

The universe sure is funny. Cameron has always been the type to avoid anything serious, and now, just when I’ve finally accepted the depth of my feelings, he decides to settle down… with her.

“So, what do you need me to do?” I ask after setting the glass down. The water tastes bitter as I finish it.

“I plan on proposing on our anniversary in two days.”

One year already. A whole year of watching them act like the perfect couple while I bit down my feelings.

“That’s… so romantic,” I gag out.

“Stop!” he snaps, voice panicked. “I’m scared, Ro. What if she hates what I’ve planned?”

I huff, shaking off my selfish, breaking heart. My feelings don’t matter right now—Cameron needs me, and that should be what matters.

“Okay… calm down,” I mutter. “Talk to me. What do you have planned?”

He collapses onto the couch, head in his hands, groaning into the cushions. “I’m trying to calm down, but… fear. I love Daisy, Sora. I can’t ruin this.”

“You… you love her?” I stammer, my chest tightening. Sure, he’s said he liked girls before. He’s said he couldn’t live without someone… but he’s never used the L-word like this.

“Why else would I be proposing to her?”

“I’m just surprised… you’ve never said you loved a girl before,” I say, forcing a smile despite the ache in my chest. I sink onto the couch next to him, draping a hand across his shoulders.

“Okay,” I continue, steadying my voice, “what do you think you want to do?”

That earns him that boyish grin that always melts my heart.

“I know I can always count on you.”

I smile back, even though I’m certain it doesn’t reach my eyes.

“Yeah, yeah. We all know you’d be nothing without me.”

He suddenly pulls me into a hug, squeezing me so tight I can practically taste his cologne. It takes the grace of heaven itself not to moan.

“I love you so much, Sora,” he mumbles into my shirt.

My heart nearly jumps into my throat, and the world stops there.

“You’re the best friend anyone could wish for.”

Shit.

What’s wrong with me?

Why did I think he meant it like that?

“Yeah, wow. That’s actually disgusting,” I mutter, blinking fast to keep the tears from spilling.

“See? This is the reason you’re still single,” he says, pulling away from me.

No. That’s not the reason.

You’re the reason.

“You said it yourself—I don’t need to focus on a man,” I reply. “Now are we going to talk about your proposal, or can I head back to work?”

He claps once, laughing. “I’m sorry, boss.”

Rolling my eyes, I pull out my phone and open my Notes app.

The first note staring back at me reads:

To-Do List

Tell Cameron I love him.

That’s all I need to see before I exit the page immediately.

I open a clean note and type a new title.

• The Proposal List •

Okay,” I say, thumbs hovering over my phone. “Start talking.”

Cameron straightens, all the playfulness gone. For a second he actually looks… mature.

Serious.

“So we’ll have dinner first,” he says. “Then I’ll bring her back to the hall for the party.”

I type it down.

He takes out for dinner before 8:30p.m.

Then by 9pm they should have arrived at the hall for the party.

“And while we’re cutting the anniversary cake,” he continues, “I’ll go down on one knee.”

Cake?

They already sound married.

“That’s way too cheesy,” I say, wrinkling my nose. “Christ, I might actually throw up from how sweet that sounds.”

Cameron rolls his eyes. “You’re impossible. Anyway, the cake part is when I’ll pull out the ring.”

My thumbs pause over the screen.

“Two questions,” I say. “Do you want music playing? Anything specific? And… have you already bought the ring?”

He pauses, fingers tapping against his chin. “I haven’t really thought about the playlist yet. But yeah, I told the jeweler exactly what Daisy said she wanted.”

I force a smile to my face. I’ve been doing that a lot lately.

“And what exactly did Daisy say she wanted?”

Cameron pulls out his phone and opens his gallery. After a moment, he turns the screen toward me.

Everything in the room goes still.

An oval-shaped purple amethyst sits in a golden base. Delicate branches twist around the band, curling into tiny leaves that cradle specks of Sora.

My ring.

My dream ring.

“Isn’t it beautiful?” he says, grinning. “She wouldn’t stop talking about it after you mentioned it three months ago.”

“But… I… you’re proposing to her with that?” I manage, my voice coming out choked.

“Yes,” he says, confused by my reaction. “Isn’t it beautiful?”

It is.

That’s why I wanted it for myself.

God, Cameron. How long are you going to keep hurting me?

You’re so blind—so f*****g blind you can’t see Daisy taking everything from me.

You.

My dream proposal.

My dream ring.

My dream life.

Fuck.

“Are you crying?” Cameron asks suddenly, panic creeping into his voice.

I shake my head, even though I hadn’t noticed the tears slipping down my face.

“I guess seeing you grow up and settle down makes me emotional.”