Real but Fake

Chapter 14

After the argument with Ayla, Grayson walked to the canteen. He couldn't stop thinking about the way Ayla spoke to him. It felt so real, like she was honestly heartbroken by him kissing Nicole. But that couldn't be true. Ayla didn't see him like that, did she? She had planned this. She had said "no feelings involved". Was it fake, or real?

When Grayson entered the canteen, he was greeted by Nicole. He smiled at her as he led her to the table where Ethan was sitting alone. When they sat down, Ethan frowned at them. "Where's Ayla?" Ethan asked.

"We broke up," Grayson explained. "But that means I get my girl back," he smiled at Nicole. Nicole smiled and cuddled up to him. Ethan looked at them with a blank face. Grayson and Nicole were being all lovey-dovey with each other.

"I'm gonna go," Ethan said, standing up from the table. "I'll leave you two alone". Ethan walked out the canteen and walked to Ayla's locker, but she wasn't there. He walked to the class that she would have next. But she wasn't there either.

Ethan was walking in the corridor when he saw Liam. He ran up to him to ask him where Ayla was. "Liam!" He yelled. Liam stopped and faced him. Ethan smiled at him. "Hey, have you seen Ayla anywhere? I heard about what happened with her and Grayson. I want to make sure she's okay," Ethan said.

"She went home," Liam replied. "I don't think she wants to speak to anyone. I tried to talk to her, but she just yelled at me. I think the break up is hard for her. She was heartbroken. I could see the pain in her eyes. I think it's best to give her some time alone before talking to her".

"Thanks," Ethan said before going to his next lesson.

Grayson and Nicole were sitting alone at the table. They were talking alone when the bell rang out for next lesson. They got up and walked to class together. Grayson felt weird that he wasn't holding hands with Ayla. He missed her.

When they sat down in class, Grayson got his phone out and began to text Ayla. He had heard people whispering about their argument. Some said that she was crying. Grayson didn't believe them, but he had to ask.

Grayson: People said you were crying?

Ayla 💕: Yeah, it made it more believable

Grayson: So it was fake?

Ayla 💕: The whole thing was fake

Her text broke his heart. He had actually started to develop feelings towards her. He thought she felt the same way. Obviously not. It was all fake. He wished it was real, but it wasn't. They had planned everything. They agreed that it would be fake. No feelings involved.

Grayson broke that one rule. His feelings were involved.

He put his phone away after finishing talking to Ayla. He had a realisation while day dreaming in class: he would never be able to hang out with Ayla because she is his "ex-girlfriend". His happiness disappeared after his realisation. He loved hanging out with Ayla. She was fun, and very similar to him.

Grayson spent his remaining time at school thinking about Ayla. Although he had everything he wanted, he still felt like he was missing something. He was trying to find the thing he was missing. But he couldn't think.

What could he be missing?!

Finally, school ended. Grayson and Nicole were going to spend some time together at Grayson's house. They got in his car and Grayson drove out the school. The car ride was silent so Grayson began to play some music by Kid Cudi.

He was smiling while he listened to the music. His smile vanished when he heard the music stop. He looked over at Nicole with a confused look. "I don't like that kind of music - you should know that. His music is terrible," she explained.

"Ayla likes his music," he whispered to himself.

Unfortunately, Nicole heard him. "I'm not Ayla!" She exclaimed. The car ride was silent for the rest of the drive to Grayson's house. Grayson didn't dare to speak again. It felt weird not having Ayla sitting next to him. Someone to sing with while they drove.

When they got to Grayson's house, Nicole stayed in the car while Grayson got out. Grayson sighed as he walked around to the passenger's side to open the door for Nicole. She kissed his cheek as she began to walk to the front door.

Grayson followed her to the house. He opened the door and took his shoes off. He heard his mom in the kitchen walk towards the front door. "Have you brought Ayla with you?!" She asked with a smile. Her smile disappeared when she saw Nicole standing next to Grayson. "Oh," Lisa said. She forced a smile as she said, "It's nice to meet you again Nicole".

Nicole smiled at her and said, "It's nice to meet you too, Mrs Dolan".

"We're going up to my room," Grayson said as he led Nicole upstairs to his room. Lisa walked back into the kitchen, not wanting to see Nicole any more. Grayson and Nicole were cuddling in his bed, talking about what it was like during the time they weren't together.

They were interrupted by Lisa yelling up to Grayson. "GRAYSON!" She yelled. "THERE'S SOMEONE AT THE DOOR FOR YOU!" Grayson sighed as he left his room. Nicole stayed in his room while he went to the door.

When he got there, he saw Ayla's brothers. He began to panic as he stood in the doorway. They were very intimidating. "What did you do to our sister?" One of them asked in a serious tone. Grayson was confused: he didn't do anything.

"What do you mean?" Grayson asked.

All of a sudden, he was being pulled outside by the collar of his shirt. He was shocked and didn't know how to respond. He was thrown to the ground by one of the twins. He looked up to see them looking down at him. "What did you do?!" They repeated.

Grayson didn't respond. One of them punched him. Grayson held his face and looked up at them. "She is crying in her bed right now! She refuses to leave her room! And she doesn't want to eat pizza with us! And she loves to eat pizza! What did you do to her?!" One yelled at him.

"What do you mean?!" Grayson asked. "I didn't do anything!"

He got punched by the other twin. "Don't fucking lie to us!" He yelled. Grayson was holding his face again while he looked at them. "You must have done something! She is heartbroken because of you! She is crying her heart out! What the fuck did you do?!"

Grayson realised what they meant. "I kissed Nicole, my girlfriend," he explained. "It was part of the plan. I didn't think Ayla was affected by it!" He was punched again, but much harder. This time, he stayed on he floor.

"You hurt our sister!" They exclaimed. "You broke her heart! She agreed to help you get what you want! And once you got what you wanted from her, you ditch her and leave her broken! You're fucking selfish! Don't you ever speak to her again!"

Grayson stayed on the ground while the boys walked away. After a while, Grayson was able to get up and walk back inside his house. His face was bruised and was painful. When he shut the door, he saw his mom staring at him.

He was shocked that she didn't look worried or concerned about his bruises on his face. She actually looked pleased that he was beaten up. Lisa was standing with her arms crossed over her chest and she looked at him with a cocky smirk.

"I told you someone would get hurt," she said before walking into the kitchen.

Grayson sighed as he walked upstairs to his room. He entered his room to see Nicole still lying in his bed. She sat up and looked at him in shock when she saw his bruises. "What happened?" She asked.

Grayson shook his head. "I think it's best if you go home," he replied, ignoring her question. Nicole didn't argue and left his house. Grayson lay on his bed and stared up at the ceiling. "How did I not know?!" He whispered to himself.

He broke the one good thing in his life.