“Really?” He asks, slowing to a stop. “Was there anything in particular you liked or hated about it?”
I open my mouth to answer, but I’m caught off guard when I spot three familiar bodies, in the world’s worst disguises, hiding behind a willow tree and peaking out at me.
“It’s okay if you didn’t actually read it, Kairi,” Hayden continues when I don’t answer. “You don’t have to lie.”
My attention snaps back on him and I understand what Maliah means now when she says people give her theick, because right now that’s exactly what Hayden is doing.
I read his book, all about overcoming failure and achieving success. It was alright, definitely not worth putting on my Bookstagram account, but he is clearly doubting me so I might as well give my review directly to him.
“I liked the second half of your book, where you wove in the law of attraction for achieving success,” I finally answer. “It was very inspirational.”
His eyebrows lift in surprise and he begins to walk again. “You know about the law of attraction?”
I scoff. “Doesn’t everyone by now?”
He nods. “Fair, but why didn’t you enjoy the first half?”
I glance over at him, noticing how focused he is on me right now, as if I’m giving him something valuable. I wonder if that’s what it’s like to be an author—constantly searching for feedback.
“It was a very narrow viewpoint on how people should handle failure and all the complicated emotions that come with it,” I say, scooping up more ice cream. “You essentially wrote that people should just get over it and move onto something bigger and better.”
”And?” He asks, sounding almost defensive. “What’s wrong with that?”
I laugh, not surprised in the slightest that I’m losing my appetite for this ice cream right now.
“Well, that’s easy to do if you fail at something you don’t care about,” I say, looking around for a trash can to toss my barely touched ice cream into. “But if it’s failure or a setback when it comes to your dream, or your passion—something you really care about—then I imagine it would be much more complicated to justget over it.”
He nods, surprising me. “You’re right.”
“I know,” I say, lifting my head high.
When he laughs and looks in the opposite direction, I sneak another glance at Maliah, Eliana, and…is that Colton with them?
“You’re very confident,” he says again, rubbing his bottom lip with his thumb. “I like it.”
I force a smile and wonder if it’d be rude to end our date here. I can tell he isn’t the person for me, and with my friends spying on us I’d rather not waste their time along with mine.
“When I first met you at the coffee shop,” Hayden says, sliding his hands into his pockets. “You were there with another guy.”
I look past him again and my eyes land on Colton, who’s taken off his glasses and is staring back at me.
”I was,” I say, distractedly.
Why do I feel like I’m betraying him by being here with Hayden? We’re fake dating, and the whole point of our love coach arrangement was for me to date people, wasn’t it?
I straighten as Colton begins walking towards us, waving off Maliah and Eliana’s grips on his arms as they try to pull him back.
“I kinda thought he was your boyfriend, to be honest.”
“He is,” I say, glancing at Hayden for a quick moment before looking back at Colton again as he nears.
“Wait,” Hayden chokes out, “you have a boyfriend?”
“She does.”
My insides feel like they’re melting in the best way as Hayden turns and looks up at Colton, hovering behind him.
“I’m Colton,” he says, holding out his hand.
