The next few days pass by quickly, Olivia and I keeping up the act. We've gained the reputation of the school's cutest couple now, with most students being supportive of our relationship.
In English class, I doodle in my notebook, lost in my own thoughts, with Mrs. Reynolds' voice about her lecture in the background. Suddenly, Olivia taps me on the arm. I look towards her, and she glances at Mrs. Reynolds to make sure she's not looking, then subtly passes me a folded piece of paper.
I open the piece of paper, quickly glancing over it to see that it's a long list.
I read the list more carefully, and it includes various things like her favourite colour (purple), favourite movie (Twilight), and pet peeve (bad drivers).
"What's this?" I whisper
"You and I know the deep stuff about each other. It's time for the basics now. Write me a list too," she smiles cheekily.
I know she must be as bored as I am right now. It's cute.
I skim over her list again and write down the same list in my notebook but filled with basic things about me. When I finish, I subtly hand it over to Olivia. We spend the rest of the lesson reading each other's lists.
Olivia smiles while reading my list and chuckles at some of my answers, especially when she read my favourite food (lasagna - made by olivia's mom!)
When the lesson finishes, I follow Olivia to her locker and watch her put her books away. As she's touching up her lip gloss in front of the mirror with her locker door open, I spot two familiar figures in the background: Josh and his now girlfriend, Maya. I quickly think of something to do to grab their attention.
"Hey, neighbour. That's a really nice lip gloss. Looks great on you! Can I have some?"
Olivia raises her eyebrows, unaware of the couple behind her walking towards her. "Huh? I've never seen you wear lip gloss before, but yeah sure," she holds out her hand with the lip gloss in front of me.
I push her hand away. "Great, thanks," I grab her face instead and press her lips against mine.
Olivia's eyes widen in surprise, but I keep my lips on hers and my hand on her cheek. My other hand moves to the back of her neck. Olivia soon relaxes in to the kiss, and reciprocates the energy by wrapping her arms around my waist and pulling my body closer to hers.
I can feel Olivia's heartbeat against my chest, and for a moment, the chaos of the hallway disappears. The shocked whispers of our classmates become distant background noise.
Eventually, we pull away, both of us breathless and I turn to see Josh and Maya standing there, jaws practically on the floor. Josh quickly closes his mouth, his face turning to stone. He grabs Maya by the hand and storms away, dragging her along the hallway.
He's pissed!!!
I put my eyes back on Olivia, and she smirks, bringing her thumb to wipe off the excess lip gloss that's on the outer corner of my mouth. "Hmm. Suits you."
I smile triumphantly, satisfied with Josh's face and Olivia's reaction to our kiss. It seems like she enjoyed it as much as I did.
My eyes make their way to Olivia's lips again and I get the urge to lock them with mine again. But I resist the urge. What am I thinking? Neither Josh or Jenna are here right now.
I turn away from Olivia and shake my head, pulling myself together.
--
Our little lip gloss stunt has become the hot topic of the day. Practically everyone around us were glancing our way and whispering. During lunch, Olivia and I sit together again with Isa, Iris, and Conan. We play our roles, acting like we've been dating forever, sharing a few laughs and casual touches. The plan is working, and Jenna's gaze occasionally drifts toward us.
As the day progresses, it becomes apparent that our fake relationship is not only grabbing the attention of the school but also impacting the dynamics between Olivia and Josh. He seems visibly bothered, and Maya appears confused and annoyed.
Olivia leans in to my ear and whispers "Alex is throwing another party on Friday night. Let's go" she glances at Josh across the room "I feel like we're really getting somewhere".
I glance at Josh subtly, seeing his face clearly irritated. I agree; it seems like Josh is about to crack and may ask for Olivia back soon.
Why am I kind of disappointed? Our plan is working out well for Olivia, and I just want her to be happy. Maybe I'm sad because Jenna and I haven't made much progress other than a few exchanged glances around the school.
Yeah, that's it. I'm just sad because it's working out for Josh and Olivia, but it's not progressing at the same speed for me and Jenna. I'm definitely not sad that my fake relationship with Olivia might have to end soon, and I won't be able to spend as much time with her.
That doesn't bother me at all.
For the rest of the week, I can't shake the growing unease in my chest. I realise that my mood instantly dampens when I catch Olivia looking at Josh, or whenever she brings up how Josh looked at her during chemistry. It was always Josh this or Josh that.
I look forward to car rides with Olivia before and after school. And I really enjoy it when she holds my hands or gives me kisses in the hallways. I find myself unable to control my smile when we talk over the phone before bed.
The space in my mind that was once occupied by Jenna all the time had been slowly replaced by Olivia. And I'm starting to the get the feeling that this fake relationship is taking a toll on my feelings.
Fuck, I think I'm falling for my neighbour.