I'm not in love with you... Right?

Make It Believable

                              Matteo

   I tried to stalk her on social media accounts, but she had absolutely none. Not on TikTok, Pinterest, YouTube, Instagram, X, Facebook, Reddit, Quora. Absolutely nothing. I sighed exasperated.

She really is a total nerd.

   I'd managed to get her address through postal services. Mr and Mrs Argent's house. 007 on Allen Street. I stopped there and waited patiently. It didn't really matter, since I was always late anyway, the real problem was having to wake up by 6:00 am to catch her here.
    As if on cue, she stepped out the front door and locked it. As soon as she turned around and saw me in my black jeep her eyes widened and I got the message.

Why is he here?! It made me smile, she was an open book. She then regained composure and started walking really fast, acting like she didn't see me.

Really? Did she really think that'd work?

I simply drove up to her and continued at her pace.

“ That's pretty cold, Daph. I mean it's not a very nice thing to do to your boyfriend ” She stopped in her tracks at the last word I said; ' boyfriend '. I could tell, just by the look on her face, that she and that word were hardly ever associated.
   Just before she continued walking away, I hopped out of my Jeep and walked towards her. I threw her over my shoulder, like a sack of potatoes ( only, potatoes would have been way heavier than her ) as she kicked and screamed. Then I dumped her on the seat, as she gave me one of those glares that were more cute than threatening. I responded by blowing a kiss and a wink, to which she gagged and I chuckled.

“ WHY WERE YOU AT MY HOUSE?! ”

“ Isn't it obvious? I came to pick my girlfriend up ”

Her face twitched in irritation as she replied “ No one's here, you don't have to call me that ”

“ I know, but it's nice to see you rage, especially when you can't do anything ” She glared again and I chuckled, the rest of the ride to school was silent. I parked at my reserved spot and got down to open the door for Daph. I took her hand in mine, and she tried to pull her hand away, but I simply tightened my grip.

“ Make it believable ” She glared one last time before plastering a fake smile on her face. “ Atta girl ”

                            Daphne

      It was lunch break and I went to the cafeteria, got my tray of food, and headed for the large oak tree in the garden. Before a firm hand got a grip on me, leading me back to the cafeteria. I recognized the harsh scent of cologne before I saw him. His ruffled black hair swayed with the wind and his emerald eyes seemed to have obtained golden flecks from the sun.

“ Okay, paper- ”

“ It's Paige! ” I interrupted angrily

“ Yeah, Yeah, same difference ” He said with a bored expression “ You eat at the Cafe now, 'K? ”

“ What?! No! I'll just make a fool of myself. And I'll be sitting on my own with people staring, it's gonna be awkward- ”

“ Calm down, Daph. You'll be sitting with me ”

“ What?! No no no no no no no, that's even worse- ”

He simply dragged us to his table. I hate being small.

  I sat right across Britney Ambers. Lord help me.

“ Hey guys ” Matteo said, still holding my hand. “ This is my girlfriend, Daphne. Daphne Argent. Daphne, this is Dakota, my best friend, ” he said pointing to a blonde 17 year old with a sharp jawline and dark, onyx eyes. “ Then next to him is Jaythan. He's smart and has a great sense of humor, so you two should get along just fine. Then that funny looking guy over there- ”

“ Hey! ” protested the curly brown haired boy.

“ -is Collin. He's really funny ” The boy made a peace sign.

“ Over there is Britney Ambers ” I shuddered at the name, adjusting my glasses to make sure they were still there and not on the floor, like what she'd done yesterday. “ You should know her already... And this is her best friend, Brooklyn or Brooks as we call her ” he finished

“ Hey, Daphne ” They said, I responded with a sheepish smile and said.

“ H-hi guys ” I picked on my food until break ended. And rushed out of there and behind me, I could hear Britney say

“ So now we bring trash to the table ”

   I ran into one of the bathroom stalls and locked it. I sobbed and soon I picked out a familiar scent of cologne. His cologne.

“ Daph? Daph, are you crying? ”

“ N-no ”

“ Did I do something wrong? ”

“ Yes! I told you I didn't want to go, but you dragged me there anyway! I know you guys think I'm trash, God how stupid could I be. Why'd I agree to this? ”

“ I'm sorry. And we don't think you're trash. That was only Britney's opinion and she's a b- ”

“ Language ” I said in a shaky voice. The habit of correcting people had mastered me.

“ She's a dog ” He corrected and I smiled a bit at the change he'd made.

“ Daph, would you please open the door? ” The door clicked as the knob turned. He pulled me into a hug and patted my messy bun “ Do you think you're trash? ”

“ ... I don't think so, but it's myself - ”

“ Shhhh, that's all. You don't think you're trash, so you're not trash. No one can put you down without your consent. You are only put down when you let them ”

“ No one's here, why are you being this nice to me? ” He pinched the tip of my nose and said

“ Now that's the Paige I know. We aren't allowed to fall for each other, doesn't mean we aren't allowed to be friends. It may all be a contract, but you seem like a pretty good person, who I'd love to be friends with. Personally, I'd like to be friends with the person I'm driving to school and holding hands with everyday ” I giggled at his remark. It just slipped out, and he looked surprised at the sound.

“ What? ”

“ Nothing, just the first time hearing Serious Black laugh and it's really cute ”

“ You watch Harry Potter?! ” I ask eagerly, hoping to find another member of the fandom, completely ignoring the compliment.

“ 'course ” he said wiping my eyes. “ The way your emotions change frighten me ” he said leading me out.

“ You do realize you went into the girls toilet? ”

“ Yup, but the thing is, I'm popular, so no one's gonna question it ”