Chapter 6

It is currently Friday afternoon, finally. I feel like this has been one of the longest weeks ever. I ended up calling Chadley back that same night telling him that I'll go along with his plan. Faith still doesn't agree with my decision and thinks that this is all a scam so that he can get back together with me, even though I've assured her multiple times that it isn't. Bailey, Faith and I are currently hanging out in my room since we just got out of school. As I'm kicking my shoes off my mom barges into my room thoroughly scaring me. "Hanna, go take a shower and wash your hair" my mom demands making me roll my eyes "I took a shower this morning" I retort since I'm kind of not in the mood to shower at the moment "Yes, but you just came home from school, which you possibly smell like" she says beginning to get irritated "But mom-" I try to negotiate only to be cut off "Hanna, just go take a shower, the hairstylist will be here in an hour" my mom says before walking out of my room I sigh as my friends try but fail to hide their awkwardness. I don't blame them. How are you supposed to act when your friend's mom yells at them in front of you. - "Good luck, Hanna" Faith says as she leans in to give me a meaningful hug before exiting through the front door After my shower I immediately change into my gala gown that I picked out two weeks ago. It is a long sequined black dress with a slit adjacent to the side of my leg, running from my upper thigh to the floor. I paired it with a pair of nude heels and a silver clutch. I allowed Bailey to borrow one of my previous gala dresses so that she could leave and arrive with our family. I helped her with her make up while the hairstylist, that my mother hired, did her hair. I turn away from the door and towards the sound of heels against the tiled flooring. My moms, sisters and Bailey appear from the kitchen, all dressed and ready. "Are you ready?" My mom asks me with a calm smile "Yeah" I reply with a sigh Here comes one of the longest nights of my life. - We enter the house where the gala is being held only to have my breath get caught in my throat. This house is almost as big as ours except this one feels more like a museum. "There is no way that the both of you lived here" I say with obvious shock on my face as I turn to look at my moms During the car ride here my parents were telling me how they lived here together during their Junior and Senior year of high school. "We can give you a tour if you would like?" My mom suggests as an amused smile makes its way onto her face I go to reply only to get cut off by a squeal. I look in the direction that the squeal came from only to see an older woman rushing towards my parents. When she reaches them she engulfs them in a suffocating hug. "Amanda, nice to finally meet you" my mother says politely as they pull away from each other Now that I have a better look of Amanda I notice that she looks really familiar. As I'm getting ready to introduce myself I feel someone lightly tap my shoulder. I pause and turn to face the person only to be face to chest with Chadley. "Are you okay?" He asks me genuinely as he gently grabs my hand and leads me towards his grandmother No, I'm not okay. I was hoping that I could've at least had fun before being whisked away to be a fake girlfriend. "Yep" I lie through my teeth He doesn't believe but chooses not to comment on it. As we approach his grandmother she turns to face us, a smiling instantly painting her face. "Hanna, I haven't seen you in far too long" she says making me gently laugh at her "I'm sorry, I've just been busy lately" I reply as I release Chadley's hand and walk into his grandmother's awaiting arms After squeezing me for a few seconds she pulls away but makes sure to hold me at arms length. "We should catch up over dinner. Tomorrow?" She asks with a hopeful facial expression I'm about to respond only for Chadley to cut in. "She'll be there" he responds making me internally groan Does he really want to end up in a hospital sooner than later because I'll make it happen. "Amazing," his grandmother responds, clearly overjoyed "I have to go talk to my husband, but I hope to continue this conversation later tonight" she says before giving Chadley a smile and gracefully walking away I turn to face Chadley with a furious glare. "What do you think you're doing?" I demand "I'm playing the part, if you would've said no then she would've been suspicious" he says with an eye roll "You're an idiot," I whisper yell at him "She's obviously smart enough to know that my family wants to spend time with me," I continue to whisper yell as he glances behind me "God, I think you want me to kick your ass tonight in front of all the people" I quietly threaten only to be pulled against his chest "If you're done throwing a tantrum my mom is coming" he says with clear annoyance in his tone of voice "You little-" I go to say only to be cut off by him "Hey, mom" he greets her with a bright smile I internally sigh before plastering on a smile and turning to face the woman. She smiles at her son but her eyes widen when they land on me. "Hanna, I thought you guys broke up?" She says with obvious confusion I wrap one of my arms around his waist while I rest the other one against his chest. I should've asked him to pay me for this. "We talked everything through and decided to give this another chance" I say with a small smile She looks between the both of us with a suspicious look. "Uh, okay, well I hope to see more of you tonight" she says with a smile before walking away Okay, so she obviously doesn't believe us. "Get off of me you rhinoceros" I say as I push him away from me He rolls his eyes at my attitude. "Why are you so stuck up, you agreed to help me" He questions "Because you're taking advantage of my kindness" I inform as I begin to glare at him again He brings his hand up to rub against his temples. "You know what, fine. I'm going to let you cool down while I go get us some punch" he says, not wanting to fight with me right now He walks away without a second glance, Bailey quickly taking his place. "Hey, are you okay?" She asks "Besides the fact that I'm being taken advantage of, yes" I reply "You did agree to this so you can't too mad" she says "I hate when you're right" I sigh causing her to laugh "Don't worry, it can't get any worse" she assures me "Hanna?" Someone calls from behind me Bailey glances behind me only to smirk with amusement. "Never mind, I stand corrected," Bailey says I look behind me only to be face to face with Aurelia. What the hell?! When did she get here? How did she get here?! "Have fun lover girl" Bailey teases before walking away from me I choose to ignore Bailey's joke and instead observe Aurelia's outfit. She's wearing a black fitted suit that has vertical lines going down both the jacket and the pants. Underneath that she's wearing a white button up which she ended up pairing with a pair of black ankle boots. Her black hair is pulled back into a ponytail, almost like the one she was wearing on her first day of school. "My eyes are up here, princess" she jokes with a low tone, causing a light stirring to become apparent in my lower tummy I roll my eyes at her and cross my arms all the while she gives me an amused facial expression. "What are you doing here?" I ask her only for her to to give me a confused facial expression "You seriously didn't know?" She asks me with a confused tone of voice "Know what?" I question again as I uncross my arms Just as she's about to respond we're interrupted by our parents. "Hanna," the lady from earlier says as she gently places her hands on Aurelia's shoulders "Your mothers are literal angels in disguise" the Amanda lady says with an overjoyed facial expression "Amanda, you're one to talk" my mom says with a bright smile What are they talking about? "What did they do?" I ask Amanda with a curious tone of voice "They allowed both me and my daughter to live here until we found a more permanent home" she informs me causing my eyes to widen in surprise "They did what?" I whisper with a shocked tone of voice "Hey, babe, I the line was long but I got our punch" Chadley says as he comes up behind me Really Chadley?! My moms face Chadley with a shocked, and furious, facial expression while Amanda gives him a confused one. I can't say the same for her daughter. Aurelia looks like she's ready to beat him up again. Oh god. This is bad. - After exiting that awkward conversation, with Chadley, I chose to talk to his grandmother. Mainly so I wouldn't have to get scolded by my parents. I don't think I've ever seen my parents that mad before. They looked like the wanted to murder him. Not that I mind, there are just too many witnesses. "Chadley, would you be a dear and fetch us something to eat" his grandmother asks politely "Okay" he agrees with a nod before swiftly walking over to the snack table "Now that he's gone, we should talk" she says causing me to internally freak out Oh god. She knows. "Talk?" I question but it sounds like a mouse is talking "Yes, about the dinner tomorrow" she reminds me causing me to release a breath of relief "Oh" I respond She laughs before quickly and thoroughly telling me where we'll be having the dinner at and what time I should arrive. I was in the middle of putting it in my phone when someone walks up to us. "Excuse me, ma'am, may I dance with your granddaughter?" The familiar voice says "She's not my granddaughter, dear" she says with a lighthearted laugh "My apologies" the voice says again as I put my phone away I look up only to meet a pair of stormy grey eyes. Shit. "You should go dance with her, you're only younger once" his grandmother says as she gestures to her, barely there, wrinkles I internally sigh as I give her a smile and agree to dance with the she devil in disguise . I gently wrap my arms around her neck as she places hers on my hips, effectively making my breath hitch. We're silent for a few seconds until it's broken by her. "Why are you here with him?" She demands causing a shiver to run down my spine, my lower stomach stirring What the hell? "He's my date" I say without hesitating, and that's saying a lot at the moment She gives me a look of confusion making me glance away from her captivating eyes. "Not by choice, I'm assuming" she says with a smug tone. I glare at her as she pulls me in closer. "Actually, he asked me and I said yes" I tell her matter of factly "Really?" She whispers lowly, her smirk never falling "Yes really, do you think I have something to hide?" I question with an annoyed tone of voice She leans down slightly so that her lips are gently brushing against my earlobe. "I think you're hiding a lot of things, princess" she says lowly, igniting a flame within me making wetness pool between my thigh Fuck. Seriously?! "Excuse me, may I cut in?" Chadley says from beside us Aurelia looks him up and down as if he were a mere speck on the wall. "Yes" I reply since I don't want them to fight each other in the middle of the dance floor I pull away from her and resume my previous position with Chadley in her place. I could just be delirious but I swear I heard her whisper something along the lines of winning me over. Whatever helps her sleep at night, I guess. "What did you tell her?" He demands "What are you talking about?" I question him "What did you tell that emotionless bitch about us?" He rephrases with an annoyed tone of voice I pinch the back of his neck causing him to jump in surprise. "One, don't call her a bitch, and two, I didn't tell her anything" I say He has no room to call anyone a bitch after everything he's done. "Whatever, just keep your mouth shut" he says causing me to immediately pull away from him "You know what, I'm done, I'm a fucking human not a goddamn trophy wife. Either treat me like a person or I'll tell your grandmother what you did" I say before walking away from him I know what I just said was wrong and kind of rude but I can't stand the idea of people pushing me around after I choose to help them.