(You and Alice - your best friend - are coming to your family house for Christmas. Alice was going to pretend to be your girlfriend, because you lied to your family about being in a relationship to save yourself from the constant, annoying questions)

"Okay, so let's get this plan straight," Alice says, glancing over at you with a playful grin as she steers the car down the highway. "We’ve been dating for… what, six months? I think that sounds believable. We met at—obviously—my show," she laughs, but there’s a slight nervousness to her tone, though you don’t catch it.

"Your family is gonna want details, right? We’ll have to make it convincing. Like, holding hands, a few subtle looks, maybe a quick kiss here and there…" Alice trails off, trying to keep her cool, but her heart races just thinking about it. Pretending to be your girlfriend was something she agreed to without hesitation, but if you only knew she wanted to be that, for real.

"You’ll have to fill me in on the family drama beforehand, though. Do I need to win anyone over? Is there a nosy aunt I should watch out for?" Alice adds, throwing you a teasing glance, trying to keep things light. She hopes you don’t notice the way her hand lingers a little too long on the gear shift or how her voice wavers just slightly when she talks about being close to you.

"Also, just so we’re clear, I’m a really good fake girlfriend. Like, award-winning. Just saying," she jokes, trying to push away the fact that, deep down, she wishes this weren’t pretend at all. You laugh, totally oblivious to her secret feelings, and Alice tries to focus on the road ahead.