6

Willow was seated under a large tree on the grass of the university. She had no class at that time and figured it would be nice to spend some time under the tree with the it giving shade from the scorching sun.

She was dressed in a red and white plaid skirt that stopped a little above her knee and a red crop top. Willow wasn't the fittest person anyone would know and unlike her best friend, her tummy wasn't flat so she was glad her skirt had a high waist.

She was lost in her book when her phone rang.

Startled a little, she picked it out of her pocket and answered it. "Hello?" she spoke. "Is this Willow Sawyer?" an unfamiliar female voice spoke. "Yes, it's Willow," Willow said with a frown.

"I'm calling from Winston Hospital, where your grandmother was discharged from," the woman said and Willow sat straight immediately. "Yes, how may I help you?" her voice wavered a little. "We are informing you that you are yet to pay the hospital bills. If you can't pay it on time, we won't be able to take your grandmother in if another crisis happens," the woman said.

Willow swallowed hard. "Okay, I'll pay it on time," she said. "You don't have to rush it but you can pay half. I have sent the amount to your email. Thank you for your cooperation," the woman said. "Thank you," Willow said and hung up.

She quickly went to her email and checked the bill. Tears stung her eyes as she saw the amount.

How was she even going to pay all of these?

She placed her books on the grass along with her phone before burying her face in her hands. There were only a few people outside so no one would really notice her if she had a breakdown.

She exhaled, "I can do it."

"I can make it in time. I can do it," she chanted to herself and raised her head. Then after a few seconds of silence she burst into fresh tears. Her words were total lies and she knew that very well.

"I can't do I," she cried into her knees letting her emotions take over. She curried her heart out thinking about her grandmother. She thought about her father but she couldn't bring herself to contact him. He wouldn't even give her his ear to listen. She was helpless.

She couldn't even make enough money with the six-hour waitress job she was doing. She hadn't even paying her student loan. How was she going to pay the hospital bills?

She wanted to call her grandma but she couldn't risk giving the old woman a heart attack or putting her in a hospital again.

"What am I going to do?" she mumbled brokenly as she tried to wrack her brain for a solution.

"Hey"

Her breath hitched when she realized someone saw her. Decided whether to look up or not, she quickly wiped her tears and looked up to see the last person she expected to come across.

Nathan stood there looking at her with a concerned look on his beautiful face. "What's wrong?" he asked. She blinked before shaking her head. "It's nothing. Please ignore me and continue with what you were doing," she said as she got to her knees and began to pick up her books.

Nathan rolled his eyes and bent down before grabbing her hand, stopping her from continuing what she was doing. "Talk to me," he said calmly. "It's not important," Willow said, still not looking up. "Then you wouldn't mind telling then. If it's not important then you should tell me," he said to her.

She looked up at him as embarrassment filled her. How could she tell a guy like him that she was financially helpless? Everyone knew who Nathaniel Reyes was. His father won the award for the second best business man of the year. His family was basically the richest family in California and one of the richest in the whole of America.

"You can't do anything about it," she mumbled. "A problem said is a problem half solved," Nathan said making her look up. If he was going to make fun of her, she wouldn't actually care though.

"My grandmother's medical bills are piling up and I can't afford them," she mumbled looking away. Nathaniel frowned. "What about your parents?" he asked. She quickly stood to her feet. "They are out of the question," she said as she pulled her books to her chest.

Nathan then grabbed her hand to prevent her from leaving.

Then an idea popped up in his head.

"Do you have a boyfriend?"

Her eyes widened in surprise at his question. "W-Why do you ask?"

"Answer me please," Nathan said. "N-no," Willow couldn't help but stutter. Then he smiled. "Be my girlfriend and I'll pay you," he said and her eyes widened the more.

"I beg your pardon?"

He pulled her towards him, making her stumble on to his chest. Heat crawled across her cheeks in embarrassment. He was so tall and she was so short.

"Let me rent you as a girlfriend. I'll pay you $500 per week," he said and her jaw dropped. "What?" she gaped. He nodded, "Just be my girlfriend for as long as I want and I'll keep paying you."

"Why do you want me to be your girlfriend? You can just ask the others and they'll accept without you needing to pay them," she said to him.

"You're seem like a really good option," Nathan shrugged. "Give me time to think," Willow mumbled. He nodded, "I'll give you as much time as you need. You can call me when you've made up your mind."

∞

Willow sat on her bed with both knees raised to her chin while she leaned on the headboard. Her mind thinking of different possibilities if she accepts Nathan's offer. Surely it would be a good thing for her but she wondered if it was logical.

She had promised herself she wasn't going to get into a relationship again. She wasn't a fan of heart break after what she went through.

"But we don't like each other, so it will be easy," she mumbled and sighed before running her hand through her hair. How can a low life like her be the girlfriend of someone like Nathan?

"For grandma," she thought to herself and nodded. She fished out her phone from under the covers and searched for Nathan's contact. Her had given her two days ago when she asked for time.

Her heart began to pound loudly in her chest as she clicked on his contact.

After two rings, he picked up.

"Yes?" his deep voice filled her ears making her heart skip a beat. "It's Willow," she said, thankful that she didn't stutter.

"Oh, Willow," he said and she began to play with the hem of her shirt. "I accept your offer," she said. There was a moment of silence and she began to rethink her decision. "Maybe he has found another person," she thought to herself.

"That's great. Send your account details and let's pick a place to meet," he said and she mumbled an okay before hanging up.

"Oh God, I hope I don't regret this"