Lacing our fingers together, I squeeze. “Don’t be sorry for a mistake you didn’t make.”
“The night at the club, I had no idea. Were you okay?”
When I shake my head, her eyes look sad.
“I wasn’t at first, but I distracted myself.”
“And you always pretend to be fine?” She shakes her head. “I would’ve had no idea.”
“We’re both imposters,” I point out.
We both pretend to be okay while deceiving others.
Smiling softly, she nods, looking conflicted. After a while of silence, her voice whispers, “Do these sudden confessions mean we have to be nice to each other for good now?”
“God, no. Being nice takes up way too much of my energy.”
She sighs, “Same, honestly. Every time we have a civil conversation, I feel like I’m sick.”
Feeling my own forehead, I play along with her joke and muse, “I feel hot. Get away from me. I probably have a fever.”
She jabs her elbow into my side in response, and I wince.
Facing her fully, I give her a serious look. “You know, all jokes aside, what I’m about to say might make me sound like I’m five. But let’s make a pact.”
She smiles slightly as she twirls a piece of blonde hair around her finger. “What kind of pact?”
“That I will continue not drinking if you eat every day.”
I don’t know why I care suddenly, but when I lie awake at night, the thought that she might not have eaten keeps me up even longer than normal. No one should go to bed hungry. I watch the piece of hair twirl around her finger before falling.
“How will I know if you don’t follow through with this so-called pact?”
“Trust me, you’ll notice. I’m not the same person when I drink.”
And that’s why I fight my cravings—because my sister deserves more than that.
I deserve more than that.I have to do this for myself too.
“I can’t promise I’ll stay true to this, Levi. That’s going to be extremely difficult.” She chews on her lip.
“Good outcomes in life are always hard. You have to work for it. It’ll never come easy.” My voice comes out rougher than I intended it to, making her look at me.
“I’ll try,” she whispers finally, her eyes burning into my own.
“For who?” I whisper back.
Her sweet voice whispers into the quiet, “For me.”
CHAPTER26
AMELIA
“Imean, the numbers are ridiculously high!” Justin exclaims. “This fake relationship was the best decision we’ve ever made.”
We?
“Y’all used to be billionaires … and now, you’re multibillionaires.” The laugh our manager lets out resembles a villain in a scary movie. “I’m sure you guys haven’t forgotten about the concert you have coming up in a few days! Anyway, this concert needs to be a hit. Your vocal coaches seem really happy with your practices. So, we’re good in that area; however, we all know since Amelia and Levi are in a fake relationship, they need to shine at this concert. We have to make a big impact.” Justin clears his throat before continuing, “I’m still chatting away with Triple Threats’ team. We’re coming up with ideas about how we’ll incorporate Levi, so I’ll let you know when I have more details.”
