Throughout the rest of lunch and all of U.S. History, Asher was in a very good mood. He cracked several jokes, ruffling my hair after each one. I wasn't in as good of a mood, still a little worried, but was in a better mood than I had been all day.

At the end of U.S. History, as I was walking out of the class with Asher by my side, he leaned in and whispered something in my ear.

"Meet me by the front entrance after school," he murmured, planting a quick kiss on my cheek.

Before I could make any comment, he was off, sauntering down the hallway with his bag on his shoulder and a smirk on his lips. I stood by the door to the classroom for a few moments, a bewildered and flustered expression on my face.

Once I snapped out of it, I booked it down to my next class, pre-calc. Math was my worst and least favorite subject, so my thoughts easily drifted as the teacher rattled off about equations and formulas. I thought about what Asher had planned and felt excitement as well as nervousness bubble up in my stomach.

Math, science, and French all passed by at a snail's pace. I was so anxious that I barely paid any attention throughout the lessons. The second the final bell rang, I jumped up from my desk and made a beeline for the door.

I was halfway to the school's exit when I realized that I had left my English binder in my locker and needed it to do my homework later that night. Sighing, I spun on my heels and headed in the direction of my locker.

After putting in my combination and securing the binder in my backpack, I quickly sped off in search of Asher.

The second I stepped out of the building, I scanned the perimeter. Several groups of friends were scattered around the campus, talking and laughing. Even more people were walking towards their cars in the parking lot. Standing by a tree, talking to a few girls, was Asher. Once we made eye contact, his charming smile spread into an excited grin. He excused himself from the girls and sauntered over to me.

I rose an eyebrow at him as he looked down at me. "What's up?" I asked curiously.

"You'll see," he explained briefly. He turned away from me to face all of our peers. "Excuse me!" he shouted, cupping his hands around his mouth for extra volume.

As the crowds of students fell quiet, blood rushed to my face. "Asher," I whispered, tugging his sleeve.

He looked over his left shoulder with a small smirk on his lips. Turning to face me completely, he cleared his throat and softly grabbed my hands. "Lindsey, over the past few weeks, I've grown closer to you than I ever could imagine. Throughout this wild journey, I've developed intense feelings for you. I was hoping you feel the same way."

Realizing this was all a part of his plan to announce our "relationship" to the school, I looked up at him with a cheery smile and nodded. "I like you too, Ash," I murmured.

His face lit up and he motioned someone to come closer by waving his hand. Some freshman ran over with a bouquet of daisies in his hand. He offered the flowers to Asher before rushing off.

The black-haired boy sheepishly handed me the bouquet. "Will you be my girlfriend, Lindsey Matthews?"

As I accepted the gift, smelling them a little, I nodded. "Yes, Asher, I will."

Grinning, he wrapped his arms around my waist and lifted me from the ground. It took me a moment to react, but I loosely rested my arms across his shoulders, gripping the flowers tightly against his back. The sides of our faces were pressed against each other and I shivered as Asher whispered something in my ear.

"Awesome acting, Linds."

I chuckled. "I could say the same for you," I told him quietly as he gently set me down. "You almost had me fooled."

He winked, swooping down to press his lips against my cheek. "Will you come on a date with me?" he asked in his normal tone.

"Right now?" When he nodded, I sighed. "Sure, let's go."

Holding my flowers in my left hand and Asher's hand in my right, I was towed in the direction of the parking lot. The sleek black Camaro we were heading towards was easy to spot amongst the other inferior cars.

Asher guided me over to the passenger side of the car, unlocked the vehicle with his key fob, and opened up the door for me. Blushing with a small smile on my lips, I sat down on the plush leather seat and set my bag on the floor by my feet.

Asher rushed over to the driver's side and hopped in, starting the engine of the car with a loud rumble. He quickly drove out of the lot and out onto the main road.

I scanned his body language. His brows were relaxed and his lips curved up the tiniest bit at the edges. His fingers lazily drummed on the steering wheel to a beat he only knew. Overall, he seemed to be in a good mood.

I was also in a good mood, although I was still having experiencing some of the effects of my previous anxiety. My heart was racing, my knees were bouncing, and my mind was racing. I hoped those symptoms would go away soon.

After about ten minutes of driving through town, Asher stopped the car in the parking lot of a small diner. He jumped out and sped around the car, but I opened up the door before he could reach me.

"I could have gotten it," he told me.

I rolled my eyes a little as I set my bouquet on my seat and shut the door. "I know that, and I appreciate it, but I'm all set."

Sighing, he wrapped his long fingers around my wrist and gave me a tug. Stumbling forward, I followed him around the building and through the front door. I took in the atmosphere. 

Tacky red leather booths lined the walls and different sized tables filled the middle of the dining area. There was a long counter with five stools separating the main area from the bar, and behind the bar was the kitchen. The restaurant wasn't too busy seeing as it was before three o'clock. Two booths were occupied and one person sat at the bar. 

Noting the sign instructing visitors to seat themselves, Asher asked me where I wanted to sit. I pointed towards the right side of the dining room, at one of the booths. The two of us headed over and sat across from each other.

"So," Asher began, weaving his fingers together on the table, "did all of your questions get answered?"

I smiled sheepishly. "Most of them," I admitted.

Picking up his menu, he questioned, "What else are you wondering?"

I blushed and flipped through the pages of my menu. "Well, I was curious as to what the boundaries for this were going to be. I mean, I've never had a boyfriend before and don't particularly want to lose all my firsts during a fake relationship."

"I get it," Asher told me. "I'm not going to kiss you. I'll probably stick to cheek and forehead kisses. I'll hold your hand and give you hugs. Is that good?"

I nodded. "That's okay. My next question is about who we're going to have to fake in front of. Are you going to tell Chris or your sister? Should I tell my sister?"

"I'm going to tell Chris," he said, "because he would figure it out anyway. I hadn't thought about if I was going to tell my family or not, and if you tell yours is completely up to you."

I frowned, looking down at my menu. Did I want to tell my family? My sister had been so happy when I told her I was going to the game and after-party a few weeks ago. She had told me while doing my makeup that she was glad I was finally not letting our mother's death consume my life anymore. Maybe if she thought I had a boyfriend, she'd be even more proud of me. Maybe if I told my family I was in a relationship, they would think I was normal and stop worrying so much.

"I'm not going to tell my family about it being fake," I decided after a while. "I'm going to tell them I have a boyfriend."

Asher cocked his head. "Any particular reason?"

My lips parted and my eyes darted around the room. Just as I was about to blurt out some half-hearted excuse, a waiter zoomed over to our table.

"Hello there, folks," he greeted, whipping out a pen and pad of paper. "Sorry about the wait. Can I get you anything to drink?"

Grateful for the interruption, I ordered water while Asher got Pepsi. The waiter said he'd be right back before running over to the kitchen.

Clearing my throat, I looked up at Asher. "Are you going to tell your sister?"

He shrugged. "Probably not. I think the fewer people that know the truth the better. I trust her, but if word got out, that would be rather embarrassing."

I nodded, laughing a little. "So Chris will be the only one in on our secret?"

"Seems like it."

"Okay, I have one more question," I announced.

Asher's blue eyes twinkled. "Shoot."

Resting my head on my head, I asked, "How long is this relationship going to last? I know you said that you were doing it to get girls off of your back, but we can't do this forever."

He frowned. "You're right. I hadn't thought about that," he admitted.

"Maybe, like, three months," I suggested.

"That's not that long," he told me.

My eyes bugged out. "Three months is a very long time."

Asher chuckled. "Alright, how about this: we date until one of us becomes romantically interested in someone. Then we break up and say we wanted to give each other a chance to grow or whatever."

I bit my lip. "I don't know about that," I said. "What if we're graduating high school and still don't have feelings for anyone? As we've been over many a time, you have very high standards, and I've never had a boyfriend. There's a very low chance that will change within the next two years."

"True," he pointed out. "Here's my final idea, then. We date until one of us finds someone we like or until the end of junior year. That's two different opportunities to break up."

I sighed. Nine months was a very long time, but at least it was a definite period of time. "Okay, deal."

Our waiter came back over with our drinks and asked if we were ready to order. We nodded, telling him what we wanted to eat. It was quickly delivered to us and we happily munched on the delicious food.

"Wow," I mumbled, shoving fries into my mouth, "this is incredible."

Asher smiled. "I know, right?"

Nodding, I scarfed down another bite of my burger. "How'd you find this place?" I asked once I swallowed.

"My family used to come here every weekend when Brooke and I were younger and my parents didn't go away on such long work trips," he said.

Sipping some water, I questioned, "Do you miss your parents?"

Asher sighed. "Of course I do. They go away for weeks at a time and only stay for a week or two before leaving again. The only thing I'm grateful for about the whole thing is how close Brooke and I have gotten."

I quirked an eyebrow up. "Not even your huge mansion?" I teased.

He scoffed. "I would trade in ten mansions to spend every day with my parents."

I smiled sadly, realizing I would do the same.