two weeks later

✪

they were about to enter week three of the game they were playing, and adam's feelings for y/n were hitting an all time high.

they sat on the bus, in preparation for a scrimmage against the avail academy wolverines. though the j.v. season was technically over, they continued to play games to keep their skills fresh.

and while adam had been hoping to get some sort of homework done, all he could focus on was y/n's peaceful breathing as she slept with her head on his shoulder.

charlie watched from afar, feeling like he had ruined his relationship with the girl forever. ever since he had offered to break up with his girlfriend for her, their only communication was on the ice.

y/n just didn't know what to say to him. she had gotten what she had always wanted, and yet, suddenly she felt dirty about it. she felt guilty, practically stealing another girl's boyfriend. whether he had liked her first or not.

which is why, for the past few weeks, she had really thrown herself into this fake relationship with adam. she spent every waking moment with him, and if she were being honest, she liked it. she liked him. everything about him, it didn't matter. his smile, his eyes, his ability to make her feel better in just a second.

but, of course, she refused to admit that to anyone, even herself. and though goldberg had been pretty prodding, for reasons she didn't quite understand, she still refused to let up.

meanwhile, goldberg was living on a high wire. his plan had grown in ways he hadn't thought possible. in his mind, there was nothing more telling than the silence that ensued after charlie and y/n's talk.

at this rate, goldberg wouldn't even need them to make it to the winter formal. he'd have enough material to reforest the amazon, something charlie's girlfriend would have praised him for.

though he wasn't entirely sure how this whole adam-y/n thing fit into the equation. his whole scheme rested on the fact that eventually someone would snap. charlie had technically already done so, but there was definitely still more to go.

"who would've thought." guy muttered quietly to his girlfriend, who was sitting right next to him.

"hm?" she questioned, sitting up to look at him, "who would've thought what?"

"adam and y/n." the boy clarified. guy always thought he knew the girl so well, there was something that just didn't sit right with him.

first of all, she had never been interested in blondes. secondly, she had never even given banks a second glance, because she was always so infatuated with charlie. and as far as guy knew, she still was. something wasn't adding up.

connie, knowing her boyfriend tended to cling onto a conspiracy, tried to shut it down before it progressed, "let them be. crazier things have happened."

"not to her." he replied immediately, causing his girlfriend to let out a contempt sigh.

"are we sure you're not just upset because there was something she didn't tell you?"

the question hung in the air, guy not wanting to acknowledge that possibility. they had been best friends since they were ten, and it was strange to think there was something he didn't know about the girl.

he wanted to drop the intruding thoughts of possible fabrication, but there was something about it he just couldn't let go. he knew he had to get to the bottom of it.

•

she had been avoiding him two weeks. fourteen days since she last talked to the boy she had only ever wanted to spend time with. it was hard for her, of course. she just didn't know if there was anything to say.

it was the weekend at eden hall, and while most took this time to get back to their families and hang out with them, y/n decided to stay back. she had a king lear project that surprisingly hadn't yet done itself.

hoping to get an opportunity to be with her, both adam and charlie decided to hang back as well.

when adam went out to have dinner with his brother and brother's fiancée, charlie took a chance he might never get again. adam would be back in a few hours, and all hope would be lost. so he needed to act fast.

he watched as she tried to string lights into a box and get increasingly frustrated by the fact that they wouldn't stick.

"need help?" he questioned, his voice causing her to freeze entirely.

she wasn't sure she was ready to address the elephant in the room, but let's face it, he had basically cornered her.

with nowhere to run and no where to hide, she allowed him to sit next to her and help string the stupid lights for her project. she watched wordlessly as he did it perfectly with little to no effort.

hoping there was still time to get out of the inevitable heart to heart, she forced a kind smile, "well, thanks for all your help. i'm sure you have something better to do, so-"

"y/n, come on," he cut her off, setting down her project on the coffee table, "i think you know me better than that."

she stared at him for moment, not sure what she could say. of course she knew him. she had known him for years, and even more so, she had loved him for years. there wasn't a single thing she didn't know about him, and while that used to make her feel good, now all she felt was guilty.

"do you ever wish things were different?" she asked quietly, trying not to reveal too much about herself or the situation she had gotten herself in, "like, you could just go back and change one little decision?"

charlie looked over at her with surprise, assuming she was talking about her relationship with adam. really, she was talking about agreeing to the whole scheme in the first place. she had always known somebody was going to get hurt, she just didn't know it would be her.

"all the time," he replied, unconsciously scooting closer to her on the couch, as the pin finally dropped, "do you really like adam, y/n?"

she wanted to say yes. she wanted to tell him to go back to linda and leave her alone. she wanted to tell him that she was happy with him, even if it was fake.

but none of those words came out of her mouth. she tried, she really did. she needed to admit to both him and herself that she had moved on.

but she hadn't. she couldn't.

"what about linda?" she questioned, giving him all the answers he needed.

she felt white hot guilt burning through her, knowing this situation was going to eat her alive over the next few weeks. but she couldn't stop what she was about to do.

"she's not you." charlie replied, their knees now touching as he looked deeply into her eyes.

before either of them could stop it, their lips had touched. all the guilt that y/n had been feeling melted away with the simple action, as it had taken over her senses.

this is all she had wanted for years, and it was finally happening. it felt amazing, but as soon as they pulled apart all she could see was linda's broken heart.

she wanted this, of course, but not at the expense of another girl.

charlie could tell she regretted what she had just done. deep down, maybe he did too. sure, he was on cloud nine, but the sky was falling.

"i'm gonna go finish this in my room." y/n spoke, grabbing the box and leaving without another word.

once again, they were in the exact same spot as they had been in before the conversation started.

•

"we kissed." y/n blurted out from her spot laying down next to adam on her bed.

adam felt his heartbeat in his ears, wondering if he had heard that right. he had just gotten back from a nice family dinner, and decided that this was the time he was going to confess his feelings to the girl.

but before he had the chance, she had dropped a bomb on him.

"what?"

"i'm sorry." she said immediately, sitting up to
look at him.

he stared at her for moment, feeling his heart sink to his feet. he quickly shook off the feelings of contempt, trying to be happy for her.

"don't be," he started, trying to force a smile, "this is what we wanted, right? the reason we started this whole thing."

y/n frowned, knowing she had never felt such a bittersweet moment in her life. she liked adam, and she thought maybe he had liked her too. but he was just being a good friend to her, which somehow only made her feel worse.

"yeah." she answered quietly, trying not to reveal too much about the way she was feeling at the moment.

he stared at her, not sure what to say. he chastised himself for ever developing feelings for her in the first place. it was all just a game to get y/n what she had wanted, and he should have known that from the start.

"do you still wanna go to the dance together?" adam asked, knowing their custom outfits were already on the way from italy.

she nodded, feeling like maybe there was a way she could fix this. maybe not everyone had to get hurt.