𝐬𝐮𝐞 𝐦𝐞 - 𝐦𝐚𝐭𝐭𝐲 𝐜𝐚𝐬𝐡

13

The evening was slow. Time ticked but the cuckoo bird didn't come out every hour. Instead, it felt like at least two for Olivia. She felt like she had spoken to everyone in the room, most of them being out of politeness but she did happen to know a few of them through Ava. They were all donors to the McNeill's charity of choice and the conversations were dull. So dull that Olivia felt like she was about to fall asleep mid-conversation.

Olivia and Matty had spoken to more middle-aged people in a night than what they would in an entire lifetime. So many of them were interested in Olivia's job as a YouTuber and podcaster. Most of them were interested in the recording process of Olivia's podcast and she was sure that she had been through it all at least a hundred times by the time that she and Matty had made it through the living room.

"I could really use a break right now," Olivia spoke to Matty who only nodded. He had barely spoken a word to her the whole night. The only time that he had spoken was when he was asked questions about his job by the guests that they were speaking to. Most of them were about football and how his team were performing.

Matty, listening to what Olivia had just said to him, took her hand in his and lead her out to the back garden. He wasn't sure that keeping her so close to him and making physical contact with him was a smart idea. The urge to reveal his true feelings to her was becoming more and more as the night went on and he was having to bite his tongue in order to hold the words back.

The garden was much quieter and congested than the rest of the house and the air, despite it being cool since it was autumn, was refreshing. Olivia let go of Matty's hand and spun around in the garden, taking in the feeling of liberty that she felt now that she was outside once again. Matty watched on, a small smile appearing on his face as he watched her. She was so unapologetically herself and he couldn't believe how much of an idiot Jordan was to let her go.

"Come dance with me," Olivia called out, sticking her hand out for Matty to join her. He let out a low chuckle before stepping towards her and encasing her hand in his. His hands were placed on his waist delicately and hers wrapped loosely around his neck.

"You know that there's no music right?" The footballer pointed out and Olivia nodded before proceeding to tell him that they didn't need music to dance. They just needed a dance partner and that's exactly what they had.

The two of them swayed slowly in the garden. Olivia was careful not to step on Matty's feet since co-ordination was not a strong point of hers. She was so focused on her feet that she completely missed the enamoured look that Matty was giving her.

The moment between them was something that Olivia knew she would cherish forever. She had so much fun when she was around Matty and she hoped that it would be that way for a long time. She was scared to admit to herself but she was slowly falling for her fake boyfriend. There was no one else that could make her feel the way that he made her feel. Not even Jordan back when they were together.

"Olivia! Come inside! We should have a chat!" A slightly older woman that Olivia recognised as her aunt called from the back doorstep. She removed herself from Matty's grip and lead him back inside the crowded house. Matty sighed, wishing that he could have frozen that moment and stayed there forever but instead, he had to face reality.

The fake couple stood with Olivia's aunt Alison as she interrogated them about their relationship. It had been months since the two family members had had a proper catch-up and it was safe to say that Alison was making up for lost time.

"So how did you two meet?" Alison questioned with a fond smile on her face. She looked to Matty, glad to see that her niece had met someone who seemed to be so kind and caring towards her. It was the least that she deserved after Jordan.

"Why don't you tell it, Matty?" Olivia prompted and Matty gulped. He had held his tongue for most of the night. It would have been a shame to let it all slip out after he had done so well.

"I'm sorry, Olivia but I can't do this anymore." That was it. The moment that Matty had been trying to avoid the entire night. He knew it was coming but he had snapped.

"Do what? What are you talking about?" The brunette girl reached for his hand but he immediately retracted it. He was a man on a mission and he wanted to try and cause as little damage as possible.

"This! I can't be your fake boyfriend anymore. I'm torturing myself here because I'm in love with you, Olivia! I need to put myself first for once so I'm sorry but I'm out." And with that Matty left the event.

Olivia stood in the middle of the dining room beside her aunt in complete shock. She was humiliated. Never did she think that Matty embarrass the way that he just had. She had always been open with him, telling him that if it ever got too much then he just had to say the word and their fake relationship was over.

"Excuse me," Olivia whispered as her family and friends watched her run out of the house, desperate to get out of there and away from the humiliation.

note from e !

Hello, my loves! This update was supposed to go out a long time ago but then life came along and hit me real hard. In case you didn't know, one of my dogs passed away after a short but hard fight against cancer. It left us all devastated so I was dealing with that and then at the end of the month, it was the 11 year anniversary of my grandad passing. It's been tough but we're still going <3

Anyway, on a lighter note, today is my birthday. I'm twenty and I still feel sixteen at heart (I'm blaming the pandemic). So, in spirit of it being my birthday, here is my gift to you all.

Any new years resolutions?
- I learned a lot last year and learned some lessons that I didn't want to learn but for me, take each day as it comes and cherish every single moment with the people I love.

Enjoy and stay safe!

Lots of love, e x