Page 71 of The Fake Script

“It’s a pink one!” Alice exclaims. “I’ve never seen you wear anything but black or dark gray. Not that it’s a bad look,” she adds. “Just different.”

“Well, Ifeeldifferent,” I sigh. They wonder what happened? Auston Buckley broke me, that's what happened.

“But I mean it, I love this look on you, Emz. And I’m not just talking about the shirt.”

Hayley nods. “Absolutely.”

“You do?” I furrow my eyebrows. “But I don’t even know what I’m feeling. I’m so lost, so confused. I’ve been wandering around aimlessly fordays.” Fighting with your subconscious and inner feelings isnotfun.

“Don’t worry, we’re back now,” Hayley says. “And we’re going to help you figure this out.”

How could they, when I don’t even know where to start?

“When are we seeing Auston again?” Alice asks, drawing her brown hair into a ponytail.

I massage my temples, groaning. “He’s personally throwing me a birthday party on Saturday.”

They both gasp, then Alice smiles. “Emz, I think Melissa is onto something. If the guy’s throwing you a birthday party, there’s definitely something going on.”

Hayley nods. “You’re one lucky girl.”

I sink into the couch, my heart hammering at the thought of Auston organizing my birthday. The butterflies take flight again, but this time, I welcome them. Hayley’s right. For the first time in a decade, I do feel lucky. Could he really like me in that way?

Don’t forget,he’s an actor, that irritating voice whispers again. Can’t she just shut up for once? I really want to bask in this feeling. It’s warm, comfortable.

But it would never work. Even if he does feel the same, your lives couldn’t be more different. He’s just here for the movie. Soon, he’ll go back to LA,and you’ll just be a thing of the past—again.

My first instinct is to fight back, but I can’t. Because what if she’s right? What if he leaves me all over again?

29

The Perfect Bookish Birthday

Emma

Tonight’s the night, and I have zero idea what Auston has planned for my birthday. I fished for clues all week, but neither Auston nor my best friends gave anything up.

Now, here I am, blindfolded out in the street. Yes,blindfolded. Auston might not read Dark Romance, but I guess he has an idea or two of how to channel his inner morally-gray hero. Still, it’s way more fun to read about than experience. Normally, I’d be taking none of this nonsense. But Auston probably worked hard to make this happen—to makemehappy—and I don’t want to seem ungrateful. It’s been a while since anyone has gone to this much trouble for my birthday. Last time was my sweet sixteen.

My heart beats faster as we traverse the Brooklyn streets. I know we’re still in Brooklyn because we’ve come all this way on foot. I tried to figure out where we were going, but I lost track after a few turns.

“Are we almost there?” I ask, dying to rip the blindfold off.

“As a matter of fact,” Auston says, placing his hands on my shoulders to steady me. “We’re here.”

I raise my hand to remove the fabric. “Can I—”

His big palm wraps over mine, and it’s as if fireworks just set off from our joined hands. They’re not kidding about your other senses being heightened when you’re deprived of one.

“Wait a second,” he says with a low chuckle. “Let’s go inside first. I’ll take it off for you.”

I nod, refraining from telling him to hurry it up. I do wonder where we are, though. Probably a restaurant or a venue he rented for the occasion.

The light breeze I felt moments ago is gone, so I’m guessing we’re now indoors. There’s also a distinct smell, new and old at the same time. And coffee? Definitely coffee. Oh my gosh, this man knows me too well. He organized my birthday in a coffee shop.

“Okay,” he says, situating himself behind me, hands on my shoulders. “I’m going to remove the blindfold now. Are you ready?”

I nod eagerly. I’m always ready for coffee.