F E I G N E D | elounor

~ e i g h t ~

~ E L E A N O R ~

"So. . ." Louis began picking at his orange chicken.

I raised an eyebrow curiously after he didn't continue the sentence.

"So?"

"Why did you agree to the contract? I mean, I know I give you shit all the time, but you're a decent looking girl that seems like she could get a decent looking guy. Not as good looking as me of course but yeah." He just had to say making me roll my eyes.

"I don't know if I should say thank you or shut up, os I'm going to say both. Thank you now shut up." I said with a playful scowl, and he shrugged.

"I take it you had that lad named Hardy?" He asked disinterested, but I couldn't tell if he was pretending or not. And Hardy? He obviously knows his name is Harry.

"Oh drop the act. I know you know his name is Harry, you said it at the wedding." I said.

"Harry, whatever." He said and took a forkful of rice.

I grinned. "What are you? Jealous?" I teased and he let out a HA!

"Hardly."

I rolled my eyes and shook my head as I took a bite of my roll.

"Well. . .for your information, yes I had someone named Harry." I told him, my voice going low and my heart getting sad at his name.

He looked at me confused. "Wait, so if you had someone why did you take the contract?" He asked.

"You make it pretty clear you don't like me almost everyday so why did YOU take the contract?" I countered back getting a little defensive.

"I asked you first." He fired back.

"So? I asked you second." I said in a sassy tone.

"Fine, if I tell you why will you tell me your reason?" He asked already getting annoyed of going back and forth.

I nodded my head.

"Well. . ." He began and sighed, leaning back in his chair. "I agreed to the contract, but only because it was supposed to be with another woman whom I already had feelings for."

Danielle. . .

"The girl from the wedding." I said lowly, listening closely and now very curious.

"Yes, Danielle. The one from the wedding." He said.

"Wow, so I wasn't even a first option. I'm hurt." I said pretending to be hurt and he gave a glare mixed with a smile.

"Oh shut it." He said and I gave an airy laugh.

"So you wanted to do the contract with her, what happened? She said no?" I asked.

He sighed. "Well we always had an open relationship, but she always told me I was her favorite, she felt connected with me and no one else, she loved me, and no one compared to me. Meaning the other guys she slept with." He said, and I could tell that just telling the story made him upset. I could see it in his eyes.

"You loved her huh. . ?" I trailed off, feeling sort of sad for him.

He nodded his head slowly. "Yeah. . .at least I thought I did. She began to tell me that she'd leave all the other guys to start a serious relationship and a life with me. That obviously made me happy, and when my father brought up the contract, she was my choice. She was just telling me that she wanted to be with me in a serious relationship and that she loved me too, so I thought hey! She could be the one."

I bit my lip sadly as he looked down at his bowl. He looked like a lost puppy.

"She said no? But why?" I asked.

"That, my friend, is a question I will never get the answer to. The fact that she was with other men pretty much answers it all. She said she wasn't ready for marriage but I told her it was pretty much fake. Poured my heart out, she refused, a day later I found her in bed with another guy." He said and lightly stabbed his chicken.

My mind went back to the wedding when they were arguing, I remember him saying that he offered her everything and she refused.

"I'm sorry. . .well if I had known this at the wedding I would've gone off on her for you." I joked trying to lighten up the mood.

To my surprise he gave a small smile but it was a sad one.

"Don't worry I can deal with my own disasters." He assured me.

"I know." I said surely and his eyes met mine at that. I smiled at him.

He held his gaze on me like he was trying to figure me out. But after a moment or two, he looked back at his bowl.

"There, I told you my story, so now it's your turn. Hopefully yours is a little better than mine." He said hopefully and I smiled.

"Well, mine is a modern Romeo and Juliet kind of story." I said, and he rolled his eyes.

"Ugh, that sappy love shit? Typical." He said and I gasped.

"Hey! Romeo and Juliet is a timeless ballet and my favorite!" I defended my love story and he shook his head.

"That's typical too."

I rolled my eyes. "Whatever just let me finish."

"Fine." He huffed.

"His name was Harry and he was handsome of course—"

"Probably not."

"Shut up." I said, and he chuckled. "He was a market boy though and didn't make much money. My mother even said it was such a shame he had good looks and no money." I said sadly.

"Your mother has bad taste then."

I glared at him. "Ok really? I didn't interrupt you or give rude side commentary." I argued.

"Ok, fine." He said seriously and looked at me to continue.

"Anyways, we began to see each other and I fell for him just like he did for me. I never cared about money and still don't. If it were up to me I'd marry him in a heart beat." I said sadly and he hummed.

"I'm guess your parents didn't approve of him because of his background." He said, and I nodded my head.

"She never knew about us, but I'm sure she caught on after a while. Probably another reason she made me take the contract. So I wouldn't end up with him. So we just saw each other in secret. He made so little money but I feel as if he had given me everything. All the laughs, the cuddles, kisses, smiles, just felt like everything."

"Sounds like a good guy." He said with a straight face, his normal face.

"He was amazing. It was heartbreaking for me to tell him I just stopped loving. It was too sudden. He was so confused how I could stop loving him just like that and love someone else so much to marry him. Well you." I said and nodded to him.

"Yeah."

"He was so lost and confused. It broke me. But my parents said I had to do the contract to save my father's company. My mom just wants more money, and I'm sure she didn't want me with him anymore. I miss him terribly, but it's best I stay away so I don't hurt him more." I said and looked at my bowl with a melancholy expression.

"I'm sorry to hear that." He said.

"You never said why you did the contract though? When Danielle refused, you could've just said no and forgotten the contract right?" I asked him, trying to get away from the topic of Harry because a second more I'd probably begin to tear up.

He shook his head no. "The contract wasn't my idea. Since I was getting the company now, I guess my father said it'd look better publicly if I was married. More responsible rather than some bachelor sleeping with an actress." He said and shrugged.

"She was an actress?" I said surprised.

He nodded his head. "Yes . . .probably why she was so good at faking her feelings."

He got sad and serious again. I sighed.

"Well I don't think I've seen her in anything so she can't be that good of an actress." I said, and he smiled to me as if to say thank you.

I smiled back to him and we ate.