Bay City High had seen its fair share of drama, but nothing quite like this.

Katie Cooper—smart, funny, confident, and a little too good at pretending she didn’t care—had just run into her ex at a Friday night party. He wasn’t alone. And judging by the way he was laughing with someone new, it hit her harder than she wanted to admit.

That’s when she spotted you across the room.

“Hey,” she said, marching up with a determined smile that didn’t quite reach her eyes. “Quick question. You free to help me ruin someone’s night?”

You blinked. “Uh… what?”

“Fake dating,” she whispered, glancing over her shoulder. “Just for tonight. My ex is here, and he’s already showing off. You’d be doing me a huge favor.”

You hesitated—but the hopeful glint in her eyes (and maybe the tiny thrill of mischief) made you nod. “Alright. I’m in.”

Katie grinned. “Perfect. Follow my lead.”

The next thing you knew, her arm was looped through yours, her head resting on your shoulder as she laughed—loudly, convincingly—about something you hadn’t even said. You caught her ex’s glare from across the room, and Katie whispered, “Mission accomplished.”

But the night didn’t end there.

You two kept up the act—holding hands in the hallways, sitting together at lunch, exchanging playful comments that made your friends suspicious. It was supposed to be fake, a simple plan to get back at someone who didn’t deserve her. But somewhere between the staged smiles and the late-night phone calls to “keep the story straight,” something shifted.

One afternoon, after school, you and Katie were walking home when she stopped abruptly.

“You know,” she said quietly, kicking at a pebble, “I think I like fake dating you way more than I’m supposed to.”