Fake Dating Rules

Amara Bennett spent exactly three minutes and forty-two seconds pretending Julian Reyes’s question hadn’t affected her.

Unfortunately, her heartbeat was refusing to cooperate.

Would pretending to date me really be that terrible?

The problem wasn’t the question.

The problem was the way he said it.

Like he wasn’t joking.

Like he’d already thought about it longer than she had.

Which was impossible because she’d only known him for one day.

“Amara?”

Ivy snapped her fingers dramatically in front of her face.

“You’ve been staring at your cereal for ten minutes.”

Amara blinked.

“I’m thinking.”

“You’re spiraling.”

“Same thing.”

Across the kitchen, Chloe Bennett looked up from her phone with dangerous little-sister excitement.

“This is about the hot new guy, isn’t it?”

“There is no hot new guy.”

“Oh?” Chloe grinned. “Then why did you reread his text six times last night?”

Amara nearly choked on orange juice.

“I hate living with both of you.”

Ivy leaned across the counter. “Okay but seriously—Julian Reyes asking if fake dating him would be terrible?” She pressed a hand dramatically to her chest. “That’s literally chapter one romance novel behavior.”

“It’s fake.”

“You’re already defensive. That’s a bad sign.”

Amara grabbed her backpack before either of them could continue psychologically attacking her before eight in the morning.

By the time she reached school, the rumors had somehow gotten worse.

Girls whispered when she walked past.

Someone had edited dramatic music behind cafeteria footage of her and Julian and posted it online.

One comment read:

THE WAY HE LOOKS AT HER???

Another said:

Amara Bennett winning after that disaster breakup is kinda iconic.

That one irritated her most.

People talked about her old heartbreak like public entertainment.

Like she wasn’t still embarrassed by it.

Like she couldn’t still remember standing in the courtyard while Tyler Dawson laughed nervously and admitted he’d only dated her because his friends dared him to.

The memory still burned.

Which was exactly why she didn’t notice Julian approaching until his voice appeared beside her.

“You look like you want to fight somebody.”

Amara jumped slightly.

Julian handed her a coffee.

She frowned immediately. “What’s this?”

“You skipped breakfast.”

Her suspicion deepened. “How do you know that?”

“You looked at the vending machine for thirty seconds like it personally betrayed you.”

“That doesn’t answer my question.”

A small smile touched his mouth.

“You also get quieter when you’re hungry.”

Amara stared at him.

“You’ve known me for one day.”

“Mm.”

“That’s weird.”

“Probably.”

The annoying thing was—

He didn’t sound ashamed about it.

Before she could answer, Noah appeared beside them carrying two energy drinks and chaos.

“Good morning to the school’s newest celebrity couple.”

“We’re not a couple,” Amara said immediately.

Noah looked unconvinced. “Tell your faces that.”

Julian coughed to hide a laugh.

Traitor.

They reached the hallway outside literature class just as Tyler Dawson rounded the corner.

And smiled.

Amara instantly felt her mood crash.

Tyler still had the same careless grin that used to make her nervous in the best way once upon a time.

Now it mostly made her tired.

“Well,” Tyler said lightly, glancing between her and Julian. “This is new.”

Amara crossed her arms. “Good observation.”

Tyler ignored the tone completely.

“To be honest, Bennett, I didn’t think you’d recover that fast.”

Julian’s expression changed slightly beside her.

Not angry.

Worse.

Quiet.

“What’s that supposed to mean?” Ivy asked sharply from nearby.

Tyler shrugged casually. “Nothing. Just saying she used to cry over me like every day.”

The hallway suddenly felt too warm.

Humiliation hit Amara hard and fast.

Even now.

Even after all this time.

Her fingers curled tightly around her coffee cup.

Then—

Julian stepped closer beside her.

Not dramatic.

Not possessive.

Just enough that his shoulder brushed hers lightly.

“She deserves better memories than that,” he said calmly.

The hallway went silent.

Tyler laughed awkwardly. “Relax, man. It’s not serious.”

Julian looked at him for a long second.

“It clearly was to her.”

Amara forgot how to breathe properly.

Because nobody had ever done that before.

Nobody had ever stepped in.

Tyler muttered something under his breath before walking away.

The second he disappeared, Amara turned toward Julian.

“You didn’t have to do that.”

“I know.”

“Then why did you?”

His eyes met hers carefully.

“Because you looked like you wanted someone to.”

That answer hit harder than it should have.

Way harder.

The bell rang loudly overhead.

Neither of them moved immediately.

Then Noah suddenly clapped once.

“Okay,” he announced. “I’m emotionally uncomfortable now.”

Which broke the tension just enough for Amara to exhale.

Barely.

—

Lunch was worse.

Or better.

Depending on perspective.

The rumor account had officially posted:

AMARA BENNETT & JULIAN REYES CONFIRMED???

Underneath was a blurry photo of Julian touching the small of her back while walking through the hallway earlier.

Amara nearly slammed her head into the cafeteria table.

“This school needs hobbies.”

Ivy looked delighted. “I personally support the relationship.”

“It’s not a relationship.”

Julian sat beside her. “Not yet, apparently.”

Amara glared at him.

He looked suspiciously entertained.

Noah pointed dramatically between them. “See? That right there. That’s chemistry.”

“There’s no chemistry,” Amara argued.

Julian tilted his head slightly. “That sounded aggressive.”

“Because you’re irritating.”

“You smiled when you said it.”

“I absolutely did not.”

“You absolutely did.”

The horrible thing?

He was right.

And somehow he noticed immediately.

Amara looked away first.

Mistake.

Because now she could feel him smiling beside her.

A few minutes later, another group of girls walked past their table.

One whispered loudly:

“I don’t get why he likes her.”

The words were quiet.

But not quiet enough.

Amara’s appetite vanished instantly.

Old insecurity crawled painfully back into her chest.

Julian noticed.

Of course he noticed.

He always noticed.

Without saying anything, he reached over and slid her untouched fries closer to himself.

Then casually stole one.

Amara blinked. “What are you doing?”

“You stop eating when people upset you.”

The softness in his voice nearly undid her.

He looked toward the girls briefly before looking back at her.

“I think they’re wrong, by the way.”

Her throat tightened unexpectedly.

This was dangerous.

This whole thing was dangerous.

Because boys like Julian Reyes weren’t supposed to exist.

Not patient ones.

Not observant ones.

Not ones who looked at broken girls gently instead of like they were difficult to love.

Amara pushed back from the table suddenly.

“I need air.”

She walked quickly toward the empty staircase near the art hallway before anyone could stop her.

A few seconds later—

Footsteps followed.

Obviously.

“You’re becoming a problem,” she muttered without turning around.

Julian leaned lightly against the stairwell railing beside her.

“You say that like it’s a bad thing.”

Amara folded her arms tightly.

“This fake dating idea is stupid.”

“You haven’t even agreed yet.”

“That’s because it’s ridiculous.”

“Mm.”

“And people already think we’re together.”

“They do.”

She turned toward him finally.

“You don’t seem bothered by that.”

For the first time all day, Julian looked slightly less playful.

Slightly more honest.

“No,” he admitted quietly. “I’m not.”

Something shifted painfully in her chest again.

Amara looked away first.

Because eye contact with him was becoming emotionally unsafe.

“This ends badly,” she whispered.

Julian studied her face carefully.

“Maybe.”

“That’s not reassuring.”

“No,” he agreed softly. “But it’s honest.”

Silence settled between them.

Warm.

Dangerous.

Then Julian reached into his hoodie pocket and pulled out a folded piece of paper.

“What’s that?” she asked cautiously.

“Our fake dating rules.”

Amara stared.

“You’re kidding.”

“I’m very committed to organization.”

Against her will, she laughed quietly.

Julian watched her like the sound mattered to him.

Like it was important.

Which made her stop laughing immediately.

Bad idea.

Very bad idea.

She unfolded the paper.

RULE ONE: Don’t fall in love with me.

RULE TWO: Don’t let me fall in love with you.

RULE THREE: At least pretend to enjoy holding my hand in public.

Amara looked up slowly.

“You’re insane.”

“You’re considering it.”

“No, I’m not.”

“You’re holding the paper very carefully for someone who hates the idea.”

She hated that he kept being right.

Julian stepped slightly closer.

Close enough that her pulse immediately betrayed her.

“It would solve the rumors,” he said softly.

“It would create worse ones.”

“Probably.”

“And what happens when people realize it’s fake?”

His expression softened unexpectedly.

“Then we’ll give them something else to talk about.”

Her heart skipped.

Again.

God, this boy was exhausting.

Amara exhaled slowly.

Then finally said the words she knew would ruin her life.

“Fine.”

Julian blinked once.

“Fine?”

“We fake date.” She pointed at him immediately. “But this stays fake.”

Something unreadable flickered briefly across his face.

Then he nodded once.

“Okay.”

“No real feelings.”

“Okay.”

“No jealousy.”

“Sure.”

“No mixed signals.”

This time, Julian smiled slightly.

Small.

Dangerous.

“That one might be difficult for me.”

And before Amara could recover from the way that sentence wrapped itself around her heartbeat—

Julian reached down carefully…

And intertwined their fingers for the very first time.