My Accidental Fake Boyfriend

Deal

Elyse

I wish I could say I handled it gracefully, but no.

The rest of the day was a blur of wide-eyed stares, girls cornering me in bathrooms, and guys asking if I could “put in a good word” for them with Caleb.

My teachers looked at me like they were trying to figure out if they’d missed something. Even the janitor gave me a knowing wink.

By the time the final bell rang, I was ready to dig a hole and disappear forever.

But of course, Caleb wasn’t done with me yet.

I found him waiting by the school gate, hands in his pockets, posture annoyingly perfect. When he saw me, he tilted his head toward the quieter side street.

“We need to talk.”

I followed, still half in shock. “What was that back there? Why would you—”

“Calm down,” he said, voice steady. “If we don’t play along, people will hound us with questions. And I don’t have time for that.”

I crossed my arms. “So your genius plan was to make it look like we’re actually together? Do you know what kind of mess that creates for me?”

His eyes softened just a fraction, though his tone stayed cool. “It’ll create more of a mess for me if the truth comes out.”

That caught me off guard. “The truth?”

He didn’t elaborate. He just looked at me with that unreadable expression, like he was calculating a hundred things in his head.

“Just… keep up the act. For now. It benefits us both.”

I opened my mouth to argue, but the words caught in my throat. Because deep down, some reckless part of me knew he was right.

If I denied it now, I’d be the pathetic girl desperately insisting she wasn’t dating the most desirable guy in school. Nobody would believe me. But if I went along with it, maybe—just maybe—the whole thing would eventually blow over.

Besides… it wasn’t like I actually liked him.

Right?

“Fine,” I muttered. “But this better not blow up in my face.”

His lips curved—just slightly. Not quite a smile, but enough to make my heart stumble.

“Deal.”

And just like that, I went from background character to leading lady in the most ridiculous drama of my life.