Twisted Deal | A not-so cliche fake dating romance

Chapter One

Sebastian

My best friend's daughter's birthday was today. The kid would be turning one, and I tried not to think about how sad it truly was. How kids can go from sitting in an incubator to a full-year-old. I'd blink, and she would be a teenager in no time.

I arrive to the party alone, a gift bag in my hand full of toys that Miles' would complain about only because it crowded their apartment. They don't know that it gives me happiness to hear that Evie is surrounded by things that make her happy. I wouldn't ever stop spoiling the little girl.

When I walk into the backyard of the Subarban home, I can hear the excitement all around. The sun was beaming down at us, and somewhere in the distance I can hear Andrea fussing about Miles forgetting to put on sunscreen. I stare up at the sky, wanting for the sun beams to cast their light down on me. I truly believe that the sun was strong enough to cure every sadness in life. I scrunch my nose up at the thought, hating myself for going there.

It's not a good place to me.

To go back to where I had the best eight years of my life and in the blink of an eye it had all changed wasn't good for me. I could practically feel my heart ripping away in my chest. How do you physically get rid of the eight years of love? I cannot. I want to hold on to it. I want to keep the way every moment felt to me. I want to remember about it every waking moment.

But it gets depressing.

To think about the moments would mean to eventually think about what was happening now. How every moment we shared is tainted because I'll never get it back. I'll never get her back. I was utterly in love with a girl who fell out of love.

"Bash!" my best friend calls out as soon as he sees me walking in. I force a smile on my face, pushing back my hair off my forehead. I try to keep up the smile as I say, "Hi. Where's the birthday girl?"

Miles physically frowns at my words, sighing as he gets closer to them. "Don't remind me, I'm still in denial." I take a look around the backyard, at the tables all over to the balloon archway. Then I make a point to stare at the big "Happy Birthday, Evie" banner in the back. Raising an eyebrow, I ask, "Did dropping a few hundred bucks on this party not remind you of your daughter's birthday?"

Miles bites back a laugh, giving me a pointed look. "Don't act smart with me."

I hold up the present, a smile on my face as I say, "Well, you know, I kind of had to."

Miles doesn't grab the present first and instead closes the distance between us. He throws his arm around my shoulder, pulling me in for a little hug. The hug throws me for a shocker, and when it lasts a little too long, I dread the fact that he knows. He knows about my breakup, doesn't he? He knows that Hannah dumped me because she fell out of love with me. Fell out of love. God, I was here for her this entire time, and she would fall out of love with me. The man who lives with her sees her every moment he is in town? I didn't get it. I didn't get how she fell out of love with me when I held her close to me no matter where I was. She is always with me, one way or another.

He pulls away from the hug with a smile, though a second later, and I blink at him. He squints at me for a second, "What?"

I feel my eyebrows pull together in confusion as I try to make sense of what was happening. When I realize that I'm the one causing the scene instead of him, I shake my head. Attempting a lighthearted chuckle, I say, "I just didn't know you were going for a hug."

Miles relaxes at my word with a sigh. "Oh, okay," he says quickly. I hold out the present to him again, and this time he shakes his head. "I don't even know why you bother buying her a birthday present; you get her a present every time you see her."