A PRETEND LOVER

"He did say it!'Arianna's usually calm voice was shrill with a happiness born of over excitement.

"What am I going to wear...oh my gosh I can't believe it,I get to see Teddy for real and to think that after my agony about what happened at the company, I'd be this happy again,oh my gosh I am so excited Tianna!"

Tianna cast a quick and embarrassed glance about the restaurant before she pinned Arianna down with a distasteful look in her brown eyes.

"You are shouting Arianna and people are staring"Tianna muttered.

"I am not..and guess what,he said I should fix a date myself,I am sooo the happiest person on earth right now"Arianna's happy glance went round every corner of the restaurant then she put down her utensils and pressed her hand briefly against her throbbing heart.

''Oh Tianna,I think I'm going insane!"she whispered.

"Now hold it miss Teddy,calm down,we have a lot to do you cat go on your first date looking like my grandma".

Tianna said unapologetically,spearing her turkey with her fork and knife.

Arianna dimmed her eyes in annoyance and twitched her eyebrow.

"What's wrong with my sense of fashion?"she demanded.

"Everything sweetheart,now we don't have much time,you told him tomorrow, so we have to get you ready for the date and most importantly I have to set you up for a get ready date".

Arianna nodded readily.

"Alright but when you say...a get ready date, what do you mean?"

"A pretend date darling and who will be the best..."Tianna paused abruptly,thinking hard she ran her fingers over her head. 

 "Oh yeah,Max is the perfect man for the job"

"No..I can do this ,I am not a teenager for crying out loud,it's awkward to get me into a pretend date just because.."

"Well you are a 24 yrs old virgin in this 21st century"Tianna said stuffy with a mocking smirk.

"Tianna!"Arianna gasped in whisper.

"Look you need this honey, listen to mummy, mother knows the best".

She said musically.

Arianna sighed deeply.

"Well are you sure Max will agree to it".

"Of Course honey, Max will be more than happy to help! Now let's get you a new dress and a pair of contact lens"Tianna said cleaning her mouth with a tissue.

She signaled the waitress to remove their plates.

"Wait, what happened to my glasses?"Arianna protested.

"Don't act like you love them that much, you've always tried to get rid of them".

Arianna sighed again.

"I know but...I want him to see the real me you know".

"Contact lens makes no difference and besides honey it's a first meeting, there is nothing wrong in trying to look as pretty as possible, don't worry your anonymous lover will definitely love the new you".

"Alright..I guess"Arianna shrugged.

She looked out of the window deep in thought.

What if he wasn't impressed by my looks or maybe he only wanted the same thing that Edward wanted then, it's a date and we are both adults right,what if he wants something I can't give up.

"Really,where did he drop his phone!"

Tianna groaned loudly, cutting into her thoughts.

"What..what are you saying Tianna?"

"Max, he is not picking his call, I better text him ,he got to be here tomorrow night".

Arianna admired the fact that Tianna was really happy for her and would do anything to make her happy.she is literally more excited than she is right now.she smiled softly at her.

"Tianna we still have a whole day so don't be so stressed out".

"Oh I am not,come on let's get to the boutique right away".

**The next day***

“Now you can open your eyes, Max’.

The long awaited instruction came to him. Slowly he dimed his eyes open as his jaw dropped open in astonishment. 

His eyes ran over Arianna. Adorned like a new bride yet simple, Arianna wore a red sleeveless short gown with fur, exposing her nicely shaped legs and fair thighs. Her small slender body was flattered by the dress, below average height and slender built but with curvier hips and fat in the lower body. Her eyes were the major attraction. Doll like, large beneath her big glasses and aquamarine.

 They were fringed with long lashes and a glittering eye shadow. 

Her long black waist length hair dropped down her waist, matching with her very pale skin which was exposed by the open back design of the gown.

The rest of her features were flawless, a small straight nose , a wide generous mouth with full lower lip and even fuller upper lip and her small cheeks altered by deep dimples at both sides.

Max wondered why she didn’t even get to be on the list of the company's average beauties.

Beauty sure lies in the eyes of the beholder.

“So what do you think?"Tianna asked tartly.

Max was still speechless.

“Is it that bad? Tianna insisted on this gown, she said it looks great on me” Arianna asked innocently.

“Of course not! He is obviously stunned by your beauty, don’t you dare underestimate my magic fingers” Tianna growled angrily at her.

“Sorry”. 

Arianna mumbled.

Max chuckled at their little argument even though he was a bit tense.

“You look lovely Ari, I really don’t know the words to describe it’'.

Arianna couldn’t hold his gaze. 

Max knew her well enough to notice her uneasiness.

“It’s such a rarity to find a woman of your age who still blushes at every little compliment”.

“Stop it already!” Arianna cried.

“Don’t make her so nervous Max!’ Tianna snapped in her defense.

‘’My apologies. I just can’t hold back, she is pretty I had to confess’’.

This time Arianna looked up at him and met his longing eyes, glistening with love and affection for her.

Tianna, who knew quite well of Max’s secret crush on Arianna, had to get him back to his feet or else he might ruin their moment.

She cleared her throat, breaking the lengthy moment of awkward silence.

“I think this will be the time we all get into our characters'’.

Tianna commented gesturing at the table at the middle of the room, she had set up earlier for the fake date tonight.

Ariana admired how skillful Tianna's decoration, she totally turned the room into a little event center for a romantic date!

 Everything was perfect from the fairly light shadows to the romantic red petals on the floor. The blinding white sheet spread on the table with the coated chairs kissed with ribbons. The open window too was a great view, the romantic candles and the scent was heavenly if this hadn't been a fake date.

 Arianna would have confessed of having her simple fairytale dream date come true.

Max on the other hand couldn’t take his eyes off Arianna not until her eyes caught his.

“Mm…. May I?’ Max asked with a slight bow offering his hands like he would do to a royalty.

Arianna chuckled softly at the gesture and accepted his offer.

He took her to the table and pulled the chair for her.

“Thanks"she mouthed.

He nodded at her with a soft smile and went on to sit at the opposite chair.

Tianna came to the table and lifted the lids which had kept their food warm. Arianna mouth watered at the sight of the dishes and her inside shook with hunger.

She spread a serviette across over her knees with excitement.

The steaks were hot and tender and also succulent, the salads fresh and rich and the potatoes had been fried deep enough to leave it soft beneath and crispy on the outer layers living golden brown.

Just then did Arianna realize how hungry she must have been before now as her tummy continued rumbling with an extremely exciting hunger trigger.

“They look delicious, don’t they?” Max cuts into her thoughts.

She looked at him and smiled.

"The chef sure is good, too good I suppose” Arianna said and turned to Tianna.

“I hope you enjoy the food ma’am and also your pretend boyfriend".

Tianna said with an air of mockery shading off the compliment.

“Go on enjoy” Tianna continued, ignoring the "I will kill you" look from Arianna.

She chuckled and left them. 

She then walked over to sit at the dining table which was feet apart from the room and opposite. There was a moment of intense silence between the two supposed lovers.

Tianna, who was watching from afar in expectation, got bored by their awkwardness.

Asking Max to be her pretend boyfriend must be a bad idea given that she was fully aware of Max’s huge secret crush on Arianna, she thought in her own disappointment.

Arianna still hasn't shifted her gaze from the plate while Max toyed with his spoon, sweating profusely as he stared at her intently. He looks like he got a million things to say to her but none was forthcoming.

“Are you guys f**king kidding me!”

 She growled in frustration.

"I think we should keep it natural don’t you think so, I might be a little bit shy with the real teddy you know …..” Arianna said calmly.

“I agree with Ari” Max concurred, Arianna smiled back at him.

Tianna groaned loudly.

’’Fine! Good idea by the way and remember, you are the unicorn and he is teddy’‘.

The two nodded as if they had been addressed by their teacher.

Tianna sighed out loudly and went back to her seat.

Arianna, knowing quite well there was no time she had to practice, decided to overcome her shyness and start a conversation since Max strangely was not quite as good at this as she thought he might be, he looked disturbed and wouldn't do anything but stare. She had to speak first but before she could find the right words to begin with, Max mouthed.

“I love you Ari”.

Arianna looked up at him as a strange expression flitted across her small face. Her feet suddenly felt horribly unsteady beneath her and her heart started pounding uncontrollably hard.