1 Chapter 1: The Deal

Dell took a deep breath. She looked fairly okay, she was successful, and she thought she was kind enough. And come on, she was vice president of a prestigious bank who made deals for breakfast. She practically breathed negotiation. This was just another deal. She steeled herself, looked him in the eyes and said, "Will you be my boyfriend?"

"Umm..." This obviously caught him by surprise.

"Not a real boyfriend," she added quickly. "Just a pretend one. For three months."

"... Wait. What? Why?"

"Well, because there's this guy I like and, well, relationships are like jobs, you know. When you don't have one, there's really nothing. But when you already have one, that's when you sort of get the offers."

He looked at her incredulously. "Where in the world did you pick that up?"

"Hey, it's true, you know! I remember when I was younger, and I left my first job, and I was trying to get a new job, I couldn't get one no matter how much I looked. I needed to ask help from a friend to recommend me to her employer just to get a new job. But now that I'm working, a month doesn't go by when a headhunter doesn't give me an offer."

"I'm not talking about jobs."

"Relationships are the same. When you're already in one, you sort of already have a proven track record."

"Dell," he said in a patient voice. "You are asking me to be your boyfriend so you can get a different boyfriend. Do you know how strange that sounds?"

"I know it sounds a little unorthodox. But help me try it out."

"You are not making any sense."

"Look, it's only three months. And you're a guy in your thirties, I think this whole deal would up your market value, too."

"My market value? Can you hear yourself?" Although she could see that the statement hit something in him.

"What? I'm being practical."

He shook his head. "I still believe in destiny when it comes to love."

Destiny. The word irked her. "Well, I don't. Destiny hasn't been kind to me."

"Hey, you can't say that. You're a successful woman. People would kill to be in your shoes."

He had a point and that irked her even more. "Still! My success isn't doing me any good in this situation."

"Then why go through this roundabout way? Why don't you just tell him you like him."

"Because if I do that now, he's going to reject me. I need to up my value first before I tell him."

"Up your value? Dell, your value doesn't change. We're human beings, not... market stocks! Nothing you do will bring up or bring down your value. You don't have to manipulate the situation. Just wait for it. Let the natural run its course."

"Wait for it?" She stood up angrily. She felt embarrassed for even asking. But more than that, she felt angry that he didn't understand. "I've been 'waiting for it' for the past thirty two years. Easy for you to say, 'wait,' because you're a guy. You don't really have a shelf life."

She marched past him but he caught her arm before she could leave. "See," he said in a quiet voice. "This is why you can't get a boyfriend. Not because you don't have enough 'market value.'"

She glared at him and shook her arm free.

Dell stormed out of the building and found herself in a nearby park. There she sat on one of the benches and stared, or more like glared, at the starless sky. She was successful. Just not in this department. And she felt like she was being punished for attempting to do something about it.

The dark and quiet calmed her. You're being unfair on him, a voice within her said.

"But believing in destiny is stupid," she told the voice. "What's wrong about doing something about your situation?"

Nothing, the voice said. But you're being unfair to him.

About fifteen minutes after she had arrived there, she saw him sit next to her on the bench from her peripheral vision.

She didn't say anything.

He was the first one to speak. "Sorry."

"For what?"

"For not really taking the time to understand how you feel."

She was also guilty of that when it came to him. "Yeah, I'm sorry, too."

He laughed. "A lovers' quarrel already? And we've barely even started!"

"You don't have to do it," she told him. "It was a harebrained idea anyway. You can continue believing in destiny. I shouldn't force you just because I don't."

"It's alright. You didn't force me." He took a deep breath and continued, "But yes, I guess you're right. I'm in my thirties. I suppose I should already be thinking about this, too."

She didn't reply.

"Do you really like this guy?" He asked.

She looked at him, her hard stare softening. She nodded.

He let out a heavy sigh. "Alright, let's hear it. Tell me about him."

"Are you saying you're agreeing to this?"

"Three months with a pretend girlfriend." He shrugged and smiled at her. "Seems like fun."

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