Chapter 5: The Proposal.

LEAH's POV.

I stormed out of class once the bell rang for lunch, making my way down the hallway to the constant stares and whispers as I walked by. None of it had stopped. Instead, it seemed like the rumor was spreading even worse as time went by.

"I can't believe that's the girl Hardin West finally decides to settle down with?" "How does it feel dating a player?" "She must be so stupid if she thinks Hardin will ever commit to her?" The murmurs swept through my ears.

I opened my locker and squeezed my eyes shut.

"Who even is she? I swear I've never seen her around before today," "It's like she just appeared out of thin air," Chuckles that filled the air with fingers pointing in my direction. I'd somehow managed to catch the attention of some hockey players too as they weaved through the halls. Every stare made heat crawl up my neck and my grip tightened around the strap of my backpack as I closed my locker.

The hallway erupted in snickers as I made my way towards the entrance, nearly tripping over someone's foot. My guess was it was probably one of the many girls who had a crush on Hardin and now saw me as a public enemy.

God, I wanted to disappear.

Two days ago, I was the girl who was cheated on and now, I am the villain. Everything was happening so fast, it felt like my world was swept from under my feet. When I finally rounded the corner, I heaved in a deep breath, desperate for fresh air.

Then I saw him. The last person I wanted to be caught with again.

Hardin West.

He was standing at the end of the walkway in his hockey jacket, one hand tucked into his pocket like he'd been waiting for me.

"Not right now," I rolled my eyes to the back, brushing past his shoulders but he grabbed my wrist. "Leah! Wait!" He called.

"Can we talk?" I didn't stop walking but I pulled my hand away from him.

"Unless you know how to erase the internet, I don't think there's much left to say." I replied. I hated how I underestimated just how popular Hardin West was. If I'd just stayed away or returned his hoodie much later, I wouldn't be in this mess.

"Leah, I think I know how we can stop this." He finally said something that made me stop in my tracks. I resisted the urge to roll my eyes as I turned to him.

We were by the stairs that led to the rooftop so this part of the school building was much quieter, secluded to just the two of us in that moment. But I couldn't be too careful as I still took cautious looks over my shoulders.

"Unless you're secretly a hacker..." I said and Hardin scoffed.

"It's been a tumultuous day for me too. The rumor has spread beyond this school, not just the hockey team and my coach who is convinced you're the reason I can't get my head in the game but I have reporters emailing me for scoop about my relationship with you. Reporters from outside the school," Hardin said.

"And they never gave a shit about me except when it was time to write about my fuckboy reputation and all the girls I've slept with..." "Well, they'll be right." I interrupted. I had seen a few of those articles and they never helped his already bad reputation.

"Listen I've come with a plan, what if we give them exactly what they want?" Hardin said and my brows arched.

"What does that mean?" I asked. "We date." He replied almost immediately.

"Excuse me?" I blinked my eyes.

"Fake date, I mean...obviously." I looked at him and Hardin was dead serious. A laugh escaped my lips, not because it was funny but because it was completely insane.

"This is your plan?" I asked.

"Hear me out, Leah, the gossip will only stop once people stop speculating. Everyone already thinks we're dating, so why don't we play into it?" I couldn't believe the words coming out of his mouth. Hardin West asking me to date him?

What kind of alternate universe was I stuck in right now?

"Hardin, pretending to date you doesn't stop people talking." I replied to him. "Of course but it changes what they're talking about." He said. "They're obsessed because they don't know what's going on and the rumors keep getting worse because everyone has a different version of the story." He added and the frown slowly disappeared from my face.

"And?" I asked reluctantly.

"If we confirm it..." He shrugged. "The mystery disappears." He replied. The thought of what that'll be like crossed my mind but I couldn't help but wonder what was in it for him. Everyone including me knew Hardin as this self-centered, arrogant jock who never slept with the same girl twice. So why would he want to date me even if it meant it was fake?

"What's in it for you?" I asked him directly. "And don't tell me it's because you want the rumor to die," A smirk crept to his lips. I knew him too well.

"My coach called me into his office today, the third day in a row. He thinks the rumors are affecting my game and you know it's scout season," I remembered Ethan mentioning hockey scouts. "They're coming next month and I've spent my whole life working for that." His voice was calm, but there was something underneath it.

Fear.

"If I keep getting dragged into this drama..." He exhaled slowly. "It's all anyone sees and you're right, I don't have the best reputation to begin with so this could change how everyone sees me." He didn't care beyond his facade. All of this was an act for him.

"You think a relationship is going to magically erase your fuckboy reputation?" I quizzed and he rolled his eyes. Deep in them, I could tell Hardin was also holding something back but I didn't push it any further.

"And what do I get out of this?" I bit the inside of my cheek.

"Besides Ethan leaving you alone?" He replied in a questioning tone but that wasn't even what went through my head. After my last conversation with Ethan, he made it clear he never loved me and we were over. But then the need for revenge flowed through my veins. Dating his older brother would give me just that.

I fell quiet. I couldn't believe for a second I was really thinking about this.

In that moment, Hardin inched closer, leaving just enough space between us that I could've walked away. "If it doesn't work..." His eyes met mine. "We end it."

"Just say yes, Leah." His expression flickered for the briefest second, one that held the silence between us. Then finally, I sighed.

"Hypothetically..." His eyebrow lifted.

"Hypothetically," I repeated, "If I agreed...there'd be rules." My tone was non-negotiable, and his lips twitched. "Obviously." He agreed.

"No real feelings. No kissing or intimacy, not that it was on the table before." I said and Hardin smiled, his jaw flexing almost imperceptibly. "Unless we absolutely have to." He replied. "Hardin!" I folded my hands and his went up in the air.

"Fine. Fine" His voice was low and unconvincing but I was dead serious.

"No real dates." I continued and he shook his head. "We'll have to fake a few. At least to make it more believable." I rolled my eyes. He was right.

"What else?" I stared at him for another long moment and he laughed. Hell, this was completely ridiculous but every alternative seemed worse. "You realize we don't have to make a complete rules list now. We can just decide as we go on." Hardin said and my eyes dropped to his outstretched hand.

"One month." He muttered and I echoed. "One month."

"If this blows up in our faces—" He scoffed lightly. "It won't." He seemed so confident I almost asked if he'd done this before but I didn't. I didn't need to know. "Even if something happens, there's no saying we won't be able to handle it." He said and for some reason, I believed him.

So I took his hand and the minute our palms met, a strange warmth shot up my arm. His fingers tightened slightly before he let go and his eyes locked with mine.

"Deal," I whispered. His signature smirk crawled to his lips. "Deal."

However, neither of us noticed the black SUV parked across the street or the man inside watching us through tinted windows. Looking back, I think that was the moment my whole life truly changed.

"We've finally found her," He murmured into his phone. "She's with the Alpha."