6. Pretend

The following week, my workload was overwhelming with finals approaching, so I stayed focused on my studies and avoided the parties Camila kept trying to drag me to. Honestly, I just didn't have the energy. Socializing felt like a marathon I wasn't up for, and I could proudly admit that I was the weak one in this scenario.Camila, however, was relentless in her quest to pull me out of our room. She seemed to hate seeing me contentedly watching anime or buried in a book."Girl, come on! We have a week till finals. This is the last party before we have to fight for our lives," she pleaded.I rolled my eyes. "That's exactly why I should rest and enjoy my final days of freedom before we face hell.""No, you need to come to the party with me..." She whined.I sighed, looking at her with annoyance. "Come on, just go alone..."She gave a dramatic sigh. "Okay, how about you come pick me up afterwards? I'm definitely getting wasted at this party."I figured picking her up wouldn't be too bad. It was a small compromise—going to a party for hours and making small talk with drunk guys was physically painful for me, but this way, I could avoid the worst of it and still be a good friend."Okay, I'll pick you up afterwards... happy?"Her face lit up with a smile. "Thanks, my sweetie."I rolled my eyes playfully as she hurried off to get ready for the party. I settled back into bed, trying to refocus on my book when my phone buzzed. I fished it out from the covers, and my frown deepened when I saw it was another text from Reese.Since the party, he'd been making an effort to chat with me, but I hadn't been responsive—either ignoring him or giving him brief, unenthusiastic replies, hoping he'd take the hint and move on. He was a good guy, but I couldn't ignore the fact that I'd slept with his best friend, Liam.I decided to leave his message unread and turned my attention back to my dark romance novel, trying to immerse myself in a world far removed from the complications of my real life.================================================================================I was sitting in my car, waiting for Camila who had called me, drunk, saying it was time for me to pick her up. I'd been watching Jujutsu Kaisen, and honestly, her call was on the verge of being ignored. She didn't understand that when I watched my Anime the outside world really stopped existing and all that matters is Megumi!After checking my phone, I realized I had been waiting for her for about 10 minutes. I'd called her when I first arrived, and she'd assured me she wouldn't be long, but here we were, me sitting in the car with impatience growing.When someone knocked on the window, I prepared myself to scold Camila, but when I saw Reese standing there, I wished the ground would swallow me up right then and there. I had been ignoring his messages and acting cold towards him, and now he was right in front of me. How was I going to avoid him now?Taking a deep breath, I rolled down the window, trying to muster a casual expression. "Hey, Reese. What are you doing here?"Reese grinned. "I came to party... you?""I'm just picking up a friend. She's taking forever to get out here."We exchanged awkward smiles as I sat in the car, debating whether to step out and confront him about the days I'd been ignoring him. I mean what was I supposed to say to him? Hi, I have been ignoring you because I slept with your best friend and the guilt is eating away at me because I think you're a great guy and also I'm lying to my best friend for her happiness although there is a huge part of me that's keeping the secret because I am afraid of what would happen if she found out the truth. Part of me wanted to face the situation directly, but another part of me urged to stay put and pretend nothing was wrong. I felt like a coward, caught between wanting to avoid the conversation and needing to confront it."Cool," he said, pulling out his phone. I was puzzled until my phone rang and I saw it was Reese calling. I looked up at him, bewildered."Reese?"He ended the call. "I was just checking...""Checking what?""I thought you blocked my number or something."There it was—the elephant in the room. I'd been avoiding him, and now he was addressing it directly, though I'd rather we just pretended it wasn't an issue."Um... Reese," I began, searching for the right words that wouldn't make me sound like a bad person or like I hated him, because that really wasn't my intention."I thought we hit it off... or maybe I came off too strong, and if that's what's wrong... I'm sorry."His apology felt like a dagger to my heart. He was blaming himself for my coldness when he'd been nothing but respectful and kind. I didn't deserve his attention, and how I even had it was a mystery to me."Reese, no...""Amelia, I don't want you to feel uncomfortable or pressured to talk to me just because—""No, Reese! I am the problem. I think you're like the coolest guy I've ever met and..." I felt awkward talking to him while still seated in the car, so I got out and walked up to him. "I think you're really cute."Reese's smile widened as he looked at me. "You mean that?""Yeah," I said, feeling a bit vulnerable. "I just got into my head about everything. I'm sorry.""If you promise to message me back, consider yourself forgiven.""Totally, I'll message you back, promise.""Good," he said, his gaze warm. "I really want to get to know you, Amelia. I think you're gorgeous and smart."A huge smile spread across my face as he continued speaking."I just really want to get close to you. I don't know why, but you pull me in the way you do."His words were like a balm to my anxiety, and I felt a flutter in my chest.