Truth or Dare? [REWRITTEN]

¤Chapter 27¤

¤Chapter Twenty-seven¤

The entire day went by in a blur.

My friends tiptoed around me, keeping the jokes and jests to a minimum. They didn't mind giving me space but they never allowed me to completely disconnect from reality —at least not when they're around. During lunch, I was forced to chat about what color Angie should dye her hair and cracked a smile when Amy made a comment suggesting that's exactly how Mr. Pot became bald in the first place. 

 I must have unconsciously agreed to something I would normally refuse at some point during the day because one minute I'm in English watching Wendy go back and forth with the rest of the class due to her arguing that adultery wasn't 'a big deal' then, the next minute I'm trying not to fall asleep in Owen's car as my elbow rested against the window on the passenger side. My eyes widened when we began approaching an unfamiliar neighborhood. 

"What the hell?" I stared in confusion.

"Ah, she finally speaks" He chuckled nervously. "You barely said a word all day. I'm just glad you agreed to do this for me, Madi"

I adjusted the seat so I'm directly upright. "I agreed to do what exactly?"

The color drained from his face. "Oh no, don't tell me... Amy said you were fine though" He muttered in a rush. "She said you aren't in a talkative mood today but you'd still cooperate"

"And since when does Amy make decisions for me?" I crossed my arms. What the hell is he talking about? Cooperate with what? Part of me wants to pretend I'm completely normal and didn't just go blank the whole day while the other part is annoyed that I felt the need to hide that from him.

 My parents seemed pretty concerned this morning and my friends weren't much better so I'd like to avoid any more worried stares but it seems that can't be helped because if we're going where I think we're going then I need to know why immediately. 

His head turned in my direction, allowing me to see his puzzled expression. "Amy didn't agree to it, you did"

"What do you mean?" I racked my brain for memories of today but other than a few moments, it was all cloudy.

The car came to a brief halt as we arrived at a stop sign. "I walked up to your lunch table and asked if you could... do me a favor after school. Without looking at me you said, 'whatever'" —The last bit was done in his best imitation of my voice. It was cold and way too high pitched.

When I didn't respond he started to ramble. "I confessed to my parents that what me and Brittney have is completely fake"

"Congrats," My voice lacked emotion. "Where do I fit into this equation?"

His hands clenched the staring wheel tightly as he pulled into the driveway of a fancy looking suburban house. "Well..." He gulped before clumping the rest of his sentence together so it sounded like one long word, "you agreed to pretend to be my girlfriend so they can get off my back"

I gripped the edge of my seat and laughed humorlessly. Either my patience is truly being tested today or this is a prank the three musketeers put together in order to cheer me up. I'm hoping its the latter. "And how is ending one fake relationship and jumping into another one going to help?"

His grey-green eyes met mine with deep conviction. "It doesn't have to be fake" 

Something changed in the atmosphere. The windows were halfway down but the space between us felt warm and stuffy. I glared at him so he would look away but he stared back with the most determination he's shown me so far. What is he thinking? I leaned closer just a bit to decipher the meaning beneath his gaze and he followed suit. Suddenly, his tantalizing scent wafts into my nose and I absentmindedly placed a hand on his chest to maintain some distance but the rapid pace of his heart beating within made me pause. It matched mine.