บท 111: Fake It Well

"Nnnneah."

"I don't think that word is a part of the English language."

"I want her to like me okay? I don't know why I want her to like me, but I do. Probably because I hate rejection, or because people pleasing is ingrained inside me to my very core. The idea of meeting her makes me so nervous. Do I bring a gift? Is she old fashioned or more modern in her thinking? Do I need to go to church with her? What am I supposed to wear? What does one do when meeting the parents? And we don't even have our story straight! What are we supposed to say?"

"You're nervous," he says while watching me with adoration. 

"Be serious for a second."

"I am."

"Alexi, our relationship is nothing but a sham and your mother doesn't know that. Do you realize how precarious this situation is. There is no better judge than a mother who cares about her child. The moment she senses something off between us, she'll figure it out."