Sweet Lies

Ava

Caspian flashed a brief, satisfied smirk and nodded. "Good decision, Ava. Now, come with me," he said, approaching me and taking my hand.

"Where are we going?" I asked, glancing between him and my confused brother, who wore a scowl of irritation.

"Don't you want the reporters gone?" Caspian asked, furrowing his brow. "They're obviously waiting for us, and they won't leave until we give them a statement."

I pulled my hand free from his. "You don't need to hold my hand through this. We're not exactly a couple, so there's no need to pretend to be the perfect boyfriend."

I left before he could respond, my brother following closely behind. As we stepped into the elevator, Caspian joined us, adjusting his tie with a practiced gesture, his poker face unwavering. When the doors slid open next, my eyes met Patrick’s.

"Hold my hand," I whispered to Caspian, taking his calloused yet warm hand and intertwining our fingers.

"Good day, sir," Patrick greeted, offering a respectful bow as his eyes flickered to our clasped hands.

Caspian simply nodded, and Patrick joined us on the ride. I noticed that he couldn't stop staring at our hands, and I felt a surge of satisfaction. He was probably getting jealous or regretful. Agreeing to this fake relationship was starting to seem like a smart move.

Soon, we were outside the building, our hands still joined, with my brother trailing behind like a protective bodyguard. Security personnel flanked us on all sides, trying to maintain order. As expected, the reporters bombarded us with questions while the obsessed fangirls glared at me.

"Who is she to you, Mr. Wright?"

"How long have you two been together?"

"What happened that night?"

"Is she a secret lover?

"Your fiancée? Wife?"

Over my dead body will I marry this man. I nearly said it aloud but managed to compose myself.

Caspian cleared his throat, his voice hoarse as he addressed the camera in front of him. "I sincerely apologize for the sudden upheaval I've caused. I never expected our relationship to become public this way."

He turned to me, wearing a fake smile which I forcefully returned. "This is my girlfriend, and we've been together for a few months now. Anyway, we hope you will all respect our privacy and relationship, and support us. Thank you."

Cameras flashed incessantly, the bright lights nearly blinding me as the intrusive microphones pressed closer.

"Does that mean you two will be getting married soon?" one reporter asked, the question filling me with discomfort.

Just as I was about to respond, Caspian interjected swiftly, "We'll share the news when the time comes. If you don't mind, we'd like to take our leave now."

Caspian guided me to his black car and then instructed his waiting driver to take me home.

Turning to Marcel, I asked, "What about you? Aren't you coming? I thought you wanted to resign."

"And be jobless? Thanks, but no thanks. Besides, my best friend can't live without me. But that doesn't mean I will give you two my blessings," Marcel responded.

"Our relationship is just a facade so we don't need your blessings," Caspian said in a low voice.

For some reason, his words left a bitter taste in my mouth. Without saying a word, I entered the car, slammed the door shut, and kept my cold gaze straight ahead.

"Take me home now," I said, and immediately the driver drove off.

When I arrived home, I found my mom staring at her phone, her face frozen in shock.

"Mom?" I called out softly.

"What's this, Ava?" she asked, showing me the viral video of Caspian's public confession.

"Wow. It went viral already?" I asked, letting out a small laugh.

"Don't joke with me, Ava," she yelled, her face creased with worry. "Tell me what's going on here. When did you start dating your brother's best friend, Caspian? You never told me anything!"

"Mom, please stop yelling. Remember what the doctor said," I sighed, leading her back to her chair. "Caspian and I recently started dating."

Mom let out a tired sigh, and I quickly fetched her a glass of water to help calm her down. If anything were to happen to her because of me, I'd never forgive myself. Ever since she fainted a week ago and the doctor diagnosed her with high blood pressure, my brother and I had been doing our best to monitor her health. We even convinced her to take a break from work, although she insisted she'd return soon.

"When and how did all this happen?" she asked, her brow furrowed with concern. "Didn't you end things with Patrick recently? And didn't you always hate Caspian? You said he was your greatest enemy."

"It just sort of happened, Mom," I whispered, kneeling at her feet and holding her soft hands. "I know you've several questions but please, just trust me."

"Alright," she sighed again. "I don't understand what's going on, but be careful, Ava, and you can always talk to me whenever you need to, okay?"

I nodded, a smile tugging at my lips as my eyes filled with tears, then pulled her into a tight embrace. It was the ringing of my phone that finally broke us apart, and when I checked the screen, an unsaved number stared back at me.

I wondered who it could be and answered the call. "Hello? Who am I speaking with?"

"It's me, Caspian," he replied.

I quickly stepped away from my mom. "And how did you get my number?"

"Marcel gave it to me," he replied. "And since we've found ourselves in this tangled mess, don't you think it's about time we had each other's numbers?"

I rolled my eyes. "What's the reason for your call?"

"My parents called," he said matter-of-factly. "They want to meet us tonight."

"Wait, what?" I asked, taken aback, but the line had already gone dead.