LOVE IS ALWAYS CLOSE BY

𝐓𝐞𝐧

✿ 𝐇𝐀𝐙𝐄𝐋

It was already Thursday and I couldn't seem to come up with anything for the collab. Not to mention my school reunion is next Friday. I was in pure shit and I didn't know how to get myself out of it.

For inspiration I decided to take a trip around town. I sat on a bench that was placed by a big tree. This was my favorite spot.

Why?

Because it was placed in the middle of town. Cars drove by brushing a slight breeze towards me. Smells of biscuits and coffee filled the air.

With all this nostalgic, I started sketching dresses and searching about more fabrics. The theme of the collab was something eternal like. They wanted it to be Greek like. Though they needed a pop of color, they wanted to mainly keep the fabrics a bit darker. I wanted to use satin but I couldn't quite think of what color or which design looks the best.

I blasted some music in my earbuds to concentrate but I was disrupted by an outside force. I rose my head to find my boss, Cecilia, staring down at me.

"Hello, w-what are you doing here?" I asked, placing down my things.

She furrowed her eyebrows, pulling her bag. "I'm here because Mrs. Dawn didn't want you to get too distracted. I'm here to keep you in check." She looks down at my sketches and body.

"Seems like you're showing," she chuckled. I rolled my eyes and crossed my arms. Her words made me remember that I had made up that lie about being pregnant. My hand quickly covered my mouth.

"So, where's your ring and husband?" She questioned, raising her eyebrow. She pointed at my left hand.

"My engagement ring is at the jewelry repair shop."

Cecilias eyes squinted as her head tilted. "That explains your ring. Now where's the man." Damn she's making me very agitated with these questions.

Quick think of a lie. Ummmmm.....

From the corner of my eye I see Xavier, moving around some things. His was very sweaty which explains why his hair was stuck to his forehead. It was way curlier than it usually is. His shirt stuck to skin as his muscles flexed underneath it.

"That's actually him right there." I point towards Xavier, making sure he doesn't see me. Her eyes brightened as she examined his appearance.

"H-He's very..." she stuttered and coughed. I could tell that her throat had gotten a little parched. "Maybe we should go say hi," she suggested.

I've brought myself into some shit. I sighed deeply and shook my head. "Maybe we shouldn't, he's gotta a lot of things to do." Instead of listening to me, she begins to rush towards Xavier. I tried to stop her but her legs were too fast.

"Excuse me, sir."

Xavier turned around, wiping his forehead. His eyebrows furrowed as he looked at me. "You must be her husband to be." Xaviers eyes leaped as they looked over to me. I stood right behind Cecilia which was more of an advantage than anything. I secretly begged Xavier to play along. I couldn't waste my opportunity for this collab.

He smiled and crossed his arms. Cecilia turned around and faced me with an annoyed look. She waved at me to back up a bit. Xavier furrowed his eyebrows as she did.

"Actually, I am her fiancé," Xavier announced, grabbing me. My eyes widened at his actions. His hand laid on my hip, pulling me into him. "Yep, we met in high school and we've been together ever since." He stared down at me before returning his eyes to Cecilia.

"Well, congratulations you two. For the engagement and pregnancy." Xaviers eyes widened as he chuckled to himself. I could feel his hand tighten around my waist, indicating I had some explaining to do.

"Thank you so much, hmmmm?" He says, wanting to know her name.

"Oh um, Cecilia," she says, putting out her hand. He grabbed it and shook it lightly. Cecilia smirked at him as he pulled away. From my side view I could tell Xavier wasn't satisfied with her expression.

"I would love to have dinner with you two tomorrow night. Maybe at a fancy restaurant around town."

Shit.

Xavier pulled me in front of him, still holding onto me. I felt my stomach turn a little as I feel his hands touch my belly. He maybe did it as  ploy but it felt good to have him close by.

"I wouldn't mind going," Xavier says, sighing.

I'm surprised he even accepted the proposal. My heart skips a beat when I feel Xavier playing with my rings.

"Well, I'll leave you two. Hazel, I'll be at your house tomorrow morning for some previews." Cecilia walked away, getting into an Uber. Xavier moved away from me quickly which made me a little emotional.

"What happened, Haze?" He asked, staring down at me.

"I might of lie and said you're my soon to be husband and baby daddy." I slightly smiled thinking he would at least laugh but he didn't. He kept a serious expression.

"You shouldn't have brought me into your shit. Why are you even doing this?"

It's so crazy how affectionate he was earlier and now he's completely angry.

"I'm sorry. I'm really sorry. I'm doing this for a job. I need this because this could be my only chance for me to keep it." I begged and begged til tears showed in my eyes. He sighed deeply before nodding his head. I'm glad that he still has compassion towards me even though I know he hates my guts.

"I'll help but you're gonna have to tell the truth one way or another. After this is done, I don't wanna see you again." He walked away, picking up a table like it's nothing. He disappeared into the building, leaving me to finish my sketches.

Did his words hurt?

Of course. Extremely. I have no idea how we're gonna keep this up without getting caught.

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                        𝐀𝐔𝐓𝐇𝐎𝐑'𝐒 𝐍𝐎𝐓𝐄

Crap.

-STAR ⭐️