Let's Play Pretend Mga Nobela at Kwento

"Mom, that's Alpha D'Angelo. Please pretend to faint or be very sick." I held my breath, hoping she would understand and play along. My eyes darted toward Alpha D'Angelo, who was still watching me with a confused look. Without any room for questions, my mom let out a soft moan and slumped against me, pretending to faint. I started crying and wailing, trying to make the scene as convincing as possible. Alpha D'Angelo took a step closer to us, frowning. “She's very ill,” I cried out with desperation washing over me while I prayed that our trick would work.

Then he leans back. Tapping the tabletop with one hand, meeting my gaze with bright eyes. “Let’s play ‘Pretend’ for a moment. Let’s pretend everything in that story happened, either in the real world or in some other dimension or reality. Or, on some sort of spiritual plain, as I lay unresponsive in an ambulance speeding toward the hospital.” I nod. “That was a nice touch. Those painful spasms being the shock paddles, trying to re-start your heart.”

I stated, trying to act calm, “You could at least pretend to be cooler about it.” “I am cool,” I said, trying to sound more believable, but I clearly couldn’t fool her. “You’re clearly blushing.” “Shut up, I am not,” I refused, but my voice immediately betrayed me, as it turned high-pitched, making her grin. “You so are.” I just shook my head in disbelief, as I turned my attention back to the field before she could say anymore, and there he was. Focused, confident, and completely in his element.

It’s an open floorplan and clearly not intended for more than one person to inhabit, given the only room with walls and a door is the bathroom. Deciding I’d rather keep Lila close to me than trying to hide her, I dart into the far corner, pushing her small body behind me and whispering, “We’re going to play a game now, sweetheart. You have to be very quiet and very still. Pretend you’re a statue, can you do that for me?” She opens her mouth to answer but I hold up a finger to my lips, and she purses her lips tight, nodding in agreement. “Good girl.”

Logan squealed, his tiny hands gripping my shoulders as I jogged around the room, pretending to gallop like a horse. “You sure you can handle all this energy?” Helen called from the doorway, watching with a smirk. She was trying to act stern, but I could see her softening, especially seeing how much the kids enjoyed themselves. “Piece of cake!” I called back, doing a little spin that had Logan squealing with delight. Lyra laughed so hard she had to sit down, clutching her sides. For a few minutes, the chaos of the outside world didn’t matter. Not the curse, not Gavin’s journey, not even Iris’s anger. It was just us, pretending everything was normal.

Just one question she asked and he was giving a stupid speech that he was sure she found extremely boring. Chloe simply smiled at him, "So I guess I should move along then?" she said, deciding that it would be fun to tease him a little. "Wouldn't want to ruin this... Whatever you got going on with your.... Imaginary friend sitting beside you." "Oh don't be ridiculous" Timothy said and he flashed her a smile that made her toes curl and her silly heart do a little flip. "I meant strangers.... And you are not... Well,...you are not a stranger"

They even let her fix their shirts and kiss their cheeks again. Later, Levi peeked into the room and smiled. “Well,” she said, stepping in and sitting beside them, “what are you guys playing here?” Ethan held up a flashcard. “It’s a matching game! We match the pictures with the words.” Elias joined in excitedly. “See this one? It says ‘lion’ and it has a lion on it! Rawr!” Levi pretended to roar, and the boys giggled. Irene just sat there, watching the little chaos unfold, her heart finally a little lighter.

she shouted, clapping her hands together. "Let's play with Uncle Tristan too. Uncle Tristan can be my daddy and you can be my mommy!" I stumbled a little when she said that. Of course a four-year-old would come up with the one game that would make everything even more awkward than it already was. "Uncle T, will you play with Aunt Athena and me?" Lily called out, looking over at Tristan with those big hopeful eyes that nobody could say no to. I expected him to make some excuse, to say he was too busy or too tired for pretend games. But instead, he walked right over to where I was standing and stopped in front of me, not even trying to take Lily from my arms.

"No." "Classes are about to resume," I argued, stepping closer, refusing to let him intimidate me with his size. "The academy is going to be flooded with students in a matter of days. If I am going to keep playing this ridiculous game, if I am going to keep being your 'fake mate' for the public and the High Court, I need stability. I need privacy. I need a lock on my own door."

Finn whispered. "We can just tell her you got sick or you have a massive exam to study for." "I am not going to flake on your mom," I replied firmly. "We need to make this look real and a family dinner is the perfect alibi." "But what if she figures it out?" he asked. "She won't figure anything out if we stick to the story we made up in the library," I assured him. "We met while I helped you reach a book and I chased you for a month."