When You're In Love with a girl

Chapter 26, Byron's Perspective

BYRON'S PERSPECTIVE 

Byron is in a mood. Life is swinging. Wanda just bought him his new video gaming set, including the latest model of the gamer chair and gamer headset. It's a trendy teal and black set. He has his headset on his game is a foot from his face.

Suddenly, Wanda rips the headset from his face. "Byron," she begins, "I've talked to Marley and she says we should continue the relationship."

Byron doesn't process. "Give me back my headset!" he says worriedly, his eyes still following the screen.

His mother sighs and unplugs the power. "Hey!" protests Byron.

"They're coming around about eleven," she says.

"Do I have to pretend to be Ally's boyfriend?" He purposely pronounces her name wrong. He reads Wanda's apologetic face and gets what he needs. He groans. "She's so boring; it's like having a conversation with air."

Wanda shrugged. "I guess, but Marley says it will help our channels. Plus all the fans love you all together! Look smart, will you? Wear that nice Burberry shirt, and your Converses, and your Apple watch. Maybe we will record an Apple watch commercial," she thinks aloud.

"Okay, can I have my headset back?" Byron is tapping his fingers against the headset irritatedly.

"Alright, but only if you heard what I said. Well, I have to get ready. You go change into the clothes at ten-twenty. We have to be ready for them."

"Ten-twenty?" he echoes. "That gives us forty minutes!"

"They might be early," Wanda reasons. Seeing the disappointed look on Byron's face, she compromises, "Okay, you can keep playing your game after you change into your clothes, but as soon as the doorbell rings you unplug your game and greet Alie excitedly."

"Okay!" says Byron, too happy about being able to play after all to really care.

"Don't you still have homework to do?" Wanda adds incisively, then moves on to instruct Byron's brothers and sister.

All too soon, he hears the doorbell ring. He says a euphemistic curseword and unplugs the headset. Even though Byron loves gaming (possibly more than his family), he knows that he can't disappoint his mother. She has done so many things for him that he would feel guilty if he doesn't do the dating-Ally thing for her. The truth was, every time he looks at Alie he feels that he is in love. Actually.

It's horrible, Byron reflects. Everyone (but our fans) know that the relationship is false. It's obvious that Alie has no love for me. So I have to pretend that I too have no love for her.

Byron knows that her name is Alie and not Ally, but pronouncing her name wrong stops him from sounding like he's in love with her. Groaning and grumbling about having to talk with Alie protects him from his own desire.

Byron is fourteen. He is young, but he is a freshman in highschool. He has looked at a girl's breasts before. He has thought about marrying someone before. He asked out the Queen of popularity, a blonde with long, luscious curls in seventh grade, and she said no. That had really hurt his self-confidence. Of course his mother would never let him date anyone else at his highschool because it could cause a scandal since he's apparently dating Alie.

He so wishes he was. The girls at his school are so boring. But maybe he should be glad that Alie doesn't go to his own school because if she did, they would have to be together all the time. At least this way, they only have to pretend sometimes. Well, only Alie would have to pretend.

But it's no fun hanging out with someone you are deeply in love with when you know they don't love you back, and they're just pretending to be in love with you for some benefit.