To The Only Boy I've Loved Before

Spinning

Lauren couldn't help the smile that came to her face when she saw Joey's car pull up outside their apartment that morning. She didn't even have a particularly long walk, but it was an especially cold day today so she was grateful for the lift.

She and Jaime had class together, so she called out to Jaime that their ride was here, and Jaime walked out of the apartment with a frown on her face.

Lauren got into the passenger seat, giving Joey a smile and taking a bite of the bagel that he had brought her. Jaime climbed into the back, her eyes glancing suspiciously between the two of them.

"I appreciate it, I really do, but why exactly is Joey picking us up now?" Jaime asked when no one offered her an explanation for this new change in their routine.

"Well, I guess because I'm her boyfriend," Joey said offhandedly.

Lauren almost choked on the bagel. Jaime raised an eyebrow at her but said nothing.

They talked casually on the ride there, Lauren glad that Jaime and Joey were already acquainted before this whole fake dating debacle, because it made things a lot easier.

Unnecessarily, Joey got out of his car and walked them to the building, sliding his hand into Lauren's back pocket as she gave him a knowing smile. Jaime shook her head in disbelief and walked ahead, and Lauren felt slightly bad for not at least telling her that she and Joey were a thing now. Well, not really a thing, but she couldn't tell Jaime the whole truth.

Lauren started walking faster to catch up with her, but Joey suddenly spun her around by her pocket to face him, so she almost flew into his chest. He planted his hands on her hips to steady her and grinned at her look of surprise.

She'd only been spinning for a second but she still felt dizzy, and she wasn't sure if it was from the unexpected motion or whether it was how close she was to Joey. She could see every fleck of gold in his eyes, every crease in his face as he smiled at her, every stray strand of hair that fell forward into his face. 

He let go of her with one hand to reach into his pocket. She closed and then reopened her eyes slowly, willing her head to stop spinning.

"I'll see you later," he said, his mouth close to her ear, and passed her a note. She gave him a weak smile and hurried off to class, noticing Darren watching her through the window. She was glad she wasn't close enough to see his expression. She ducked her head down and walked faster.

When she got home later that day, she decided to bake to try and calm herself down. She was already worried about this whole fake dating thing spiralling out of control; yes, she wanted Darren to back off, but she didn't want to make him so jealous that she lost him as a friend.

She was in the middle of kneading dough, her cheeks smudged with flour, when she heard a knock at the front door. Neither Julia nor Jaime were home yet so she dusted her hands on her apron and went to answer the door, opening it to find Joey standing there, wearing a nice shirt alongside the usual jeans and with his hair slicked back.

"Can I come in?" he asked.

"Sure."

"Cool."

She led him into the kitchen where she carried on her baking as if he wasn't even there. When he didn't say anything, she said "Joey Richter, what are you doing here?"

"Did you not read my note? I'm taking you to Brian's party," he said.

"I'm not going to that." She didn't do parties.

"Uh, yeah you are. It's in the contract." God, she'd hoped he would forget about that small clause. She'd only agreed to it because she didn't want to bargain with him, and she hadn't thought he'd actually follow through with it.

"Sorry, I can't."

"You can't what?" asked Jaime, walking in the front door at that moment.

"I can't go out," Lauren stated.

"I'm here to take Lauren to a party," Joey explained, giving Jaime that charming smile that must always win over girls' parents, which was weird because Jaime wasn't her mom. Lauren shot a glare at Joey.

"That's nice," Jaime said, smiling at Lauren with a look that said she was going to be in deep trouble if she didn't go.

"I can't, I'm making cookies," she said, gesturing at the spread of ingredients with a mock helpless shrug.

"Well, I can finish the cookies for you, you go get changed," Jaime said.

"No, Jaime, please!" Lauren protested, but Jaime practically shoved her out of the kitchen. Lauren looked at her in despair but, realising that she wasn't going to relent, she shut the door behind her and tried to settle on something to wear.

She didn't know why she was even bothering. She wasn't going to this party to show off to people, or even to have fun. She was going because she had signed a goddamned contract with Joey. She pulled clothes haphazardly off of hangers and discarded them into a pile on her bed, nothing seeming right.

Eventually she came across a red dress that she hadn't worn for years, and pulled it on to discover that it actually fit her better now. She gave her reflection a self satisfied smirk.

Not wanting to overdo it, she paired the dress with some black converse, quickly straightened her hair and put on some makeup, then walked out with gritted teeth, already wishing this evening could be over.

Joey and Jaime were still stood in the kitchen, engaged in polite conversation. Lauren couldn't help feel a pang of annoyance at how much like a mother Jaime had been acting.

Joey must have spotted movement in the corner of his eye, because he turned to her, smiling as soon as he saw her.

"You look beautiful," he said softly, glancing her up and down, his cheeks going pink.

She ignored him, feeling childish but not wanting to give in to him. Though she did take his arm when he offered it to walk her to the car.