fake dating (bxg)

iix the hospital

honestly, i don't mind my suspension that much. it's not like i want to be at school at the moment anyways. but the bit i hated was my parents having to come pick me up and walk me out of school. because i knew they could hear all of the rumours about me being whispered too loudly to students all around us as they took me out to the car park to take me home. in the car they got mad at me.

"fighting? really?" and "we did not raise you like this, tessa!" and "somebody could've got seriously hurt!!" turned to "what's wrong, hon," and "what's gotten into you lately?" when they saw i didn't even have enough energy to argue back. after they were done the drive home was silent.

i ran upstairs to my bedroom and went on my phone to play some sad music so i could just cry it all out. that's when i saw 4 notifications from charlie, nate's friend.

tessa ik u and nate aren't on good terms rn but he's in the hospital and i think you should be here he would want you here

you don't have to make up with him but please come quickly

it's because of fucking elijah too

sorry for e-word without trigger warning nate told me what happened

i jumped up and wiped my eyes. he was hurt. nate was hurt. and i was so selfish i was at home sobbing while he was in the hospital with an injury that was all my fault.

i ran back downstairs and rushed to tell my parents everything. my mom drove me down to the hospital.

i easily found where nate was and sat next to charlie in the waiting room. his parents were in the room with him.

"i exaggerated a little bit by the way. he's not dying or anything. he broke his nose, that's all," charlie smiled nervously.

"that's okay." i forgave him. then i started crying again.

"woah! i'm sorry, i didn't mean to-" he started to apologise.

"no it's not you," i said through tears. i held my head in my hands. how did i always manage to surprise myself with just how stupid i could be? i saw the fight myself. i wish i hadn't, but i did. i would know if elijah got a punch in that could've killed him or something. i was being very irrational. but that didn't stop the same thought from repeating over and over in my mind. even though i have no clue why i was freaking out thinking he was going to die, the thing that really distressed me was that i would never get to tell him i love him.

because i do. i do so much. i fell in love with him the way you fall asleep, slowly and then all at once. when we kissed for the first time, that was kind of the push that made all the domino's fall. every kiss we had, pushed me that little bit further. and now i know. and i realise how stupid i actually was, but not for the ways i thought i was. he didn't con me into sleeping with him. he didn't use me for spanish tutoring. it wasn't his fault i went about it like that with lily. in the park, he was genuinely worried about me and i fucking shoved him. but he forgave me anyways. maybe it's because of what he said when he thought i was asleep, the night we slept together. he thinks he might love me. that's also probably why he looked out for me when elijah made me kiss him. he definitely didn't handle it the best way. but that's because he was angry. because elijah wasn't just forcing anybody. he was forcing me, and nate thinks he might love me.

then i have another realisation. because all of that was before. before i fucked it all up. by shoving him, and blocking him, and ignoring him. even if he did think he might love me before, he definitely doesn't now.

"charlie, tessa, you can go in. he'll be happy to see you both," his parents tell us. when did they come out? i was so wrapped up in my thoughts i didn't notice. me and charlie stand up and as we go to see him i remember how shit i look right now. all i've done in the past 24 hours is just cry. my under eyes are swollen and my face still blotchy.

"i have to go to the toilet. go in without me, i'll be right back," i say. i run to the ladies' and fix myself up. a couple of minutes later, i walk in.

"tessa, you didn't need to put makeup on for this crooked bastard," charlie sighs.

"hi tess," he smiles at me. it's nate. my nate. and he's okay. i crumble with relief and i smile at him. "don't listen to charles. you look gorgeous,"

"cringey. i'll leave you two alone. i'm already sick of this ugly fuck," charlie grins.

"hey!" nate laughs. charlie leaves and he turns to me. "they fixed my nose by the way. but it's a little crooked right there.." he touches it and winces a little, "and it will be forever. so i'm ugly now."

"no you're not," i laugh.

"does this mean you don't hate me anymore?" he grins.

"as a wise boy with a fucked up nose once said, 'i could never hate you'." i recite back something he said to me at the rugby match ages ago.

"why is everyone being so mean about my nose," he sighs, "i think it's quite edgy,"

"yeah, proper edgy." i snort.

"tess?"

"yeah?"

"i'm glad you're not mad at me anymore," he tells me.

"me too. i was being dumb and i'm really sorry about everything. about ignoring you, shoving you, the whole thing with elijah." i apologise and i properly mean it, "it's all my fault,"

"no it isn't. elijah's a dick. i'm not sure what you ever saw in him, frankly. and don't call yourself dumb. because if you're dumb what does that make me? you do tutor me, you know." he grumbles.

"i don't know about that. you know how we broke it off. so.." i shrug.

"you're not tutoring me anymore. ah," he says sadly.

"i'm joking, loser, of course i will. what would you do without me?" i laugh.

"i can't imagine," he grins.

"exactly." i smile back at him. i don't know what miracle made him forgive me after all of this (probably the miracle of painkillers) but i'm just so incredibly happy we're back to normal.

"kiss?" he asks me with a smirk on his face.

"no," i immediately joke, but i'm already leaning in with a small smile.

"OW! nose," he reminds me with a wince as i hit his nose clumsily with my own.

"i'm so sorry!" i gasp.

"i'm joking, idiot. i'm high as a kite, i can't even feel my nose anymore," he laughs at himself. i smile too and then i kiss him again. he gets up, steadies himself and kisses me harder. he's clearly been waiting for this. well, we haven't made out since the night we spent together, so he's been waiting a while to kiss me again. i guess i owe it to him to let him be as messy with it as he wants. when we stop making out and his parents want to come back in to check in on him, i drop a bomb with my hand just on the door handle.

"oh, nate?" i say.

"uh huh?"

"i love you!" i grin. he immediately shouts the same back and i just smile as i let his parents inside.

very wholesome icl this is probably my favourite chapter of all of them so enjoy my personal fav i also think this one is quite well written?!?!? well nothing i write rlly is but this one is more so than normal. also, yk how i was complaining about roman numerals earlier well i realised i got my whole system wrong because i had 2 chapter eights, one was viii and one was iix and iix is such a prettier looking number so yeah