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Pretending Hearts (O/O CLOSED)

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Daisy thought it might be best to dress up a little more than a cute sweater and jeans, like she usually did, to meet her “fiancé’s” mother. So today she wore a plaid dress of deep blue and white lines, along with a pair of brown ankle boots that had a bit of a heel.

When she heard the knock at the door, she finished the last brush of mascara over her eyelashes, pushed her glasses onto her face, and made her way out to the door. She opened it with a smile, greeting him with a soft, “Hey.”

(The dress: https://pin.it/qe63wqfz6rvwsr )

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When Arvil saw her, he couldn’t think straight for a minute or two. She looked absolutely breathtaking. She always looked beautiful, but… today… Arvil couldn’t find the words to describe her.

He forced away the thoughts in his mind and instead tilted his head to the side.

“Hello, Daisy darling,” he said in a soft purr, his eyes looking her over, waiting for her to close the door. “Ready to go?”

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“That I am, nerd,” Daisy agreed with a nod, stepping farther out of the room and closing the door behind herself. “Are we meeting her at the house, or were we going to lunch with her?”

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“At the house,” Arvil responded before he pressed both his hands on either side of her, effectively trapping her between himself and the door.

He leaned down until their noses were barely touching, his eyes narrowed into slits.

“Last time we parted, you stuck your tongue out at me,” he murmured, tilting his head slightly to the side. “What did I say about doing that, Daisy?”

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Oh, fricking heck.

She was in deep crap, wasn’t she? Daisy knew she shouldn’t have tested him like that, especially not right after he’d made mention of it. This was her punishment for doing so, and she definitely deserved it…

And she maybe even desired it a little.

“I don’t recall,” she breathed, her eyes widening as she looked up at him.

She wasn’t scared — no, far from it. In fact, she was almost waiting for him to close that distance between them. And she silently cursed herself for doing so.

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A small smirk wormed its way on to his lips at the desire he found in her eyes. She wanted him to kiss her. He could clearly see it.

Unfortunately for her… he had other plans. Why should he give her something she clearly wanted, when he could leave her hanging? Even when her lips looked so inviting…

“That’s a shame,” he murmured as he leaned closer, mouth inches away from hers. “Perhaps I should remind you.”

Just when their lips were about to touch, he changed course, lightly pressing against the corner of her mouth. Then he pulled away, staring at her heatedly.

“You look absolutely beautiful, by the way,” he said as he slowly turned away from her, though he held out a hand. “Come, love. We don’t want to be late, do we?”

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Dang it. Dang this man who could so easily set her insides aflame and make her cheeks burn. Why did he have the desire to do so? Why must her tease her like he did? It was frustrating. So frustrating that he wouldn’t just fulfill the unspoken want in his own eyes, the want that was undoubtedly reflected in her own.

“I hate you,” she muttered, pushing herself off the wall. She rubbed at her cheeks with her hands and looked down, shaking her head at the carpet.

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Arvil turned back to look at her flushed cheeks, and gave her a wink.

“I warned you,” he said, pausing and waiting for her. “Next time, though, I might not stop.”

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Daisy blinked, looking up at him with utter shock in her eyes. She knew her face had to be bright red at this point, what with the way it was burning.

“Oh my gosh, Arvil,” she breathed, shaking her head as if to clear it. “Let’s go before you scare me off completely.”

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Arvil froze at her comment. Scare her off…? He was scaring her off?

“I’m sorry,” he said immediately, releasing a breath he had held back. “I didn’t—I didn’t think you would take it that badly.”

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Turning toward the man at her side, Daisy raised her eyebrows. She shook her head, her mouth opening to explain herself before closing again. How was she supposed to tell him that she hadn’t meant it that way? That she hadn’t been entirely serious?

“No— Arvil, that not… what I meant,” she sighed, glancing at the floor before meeting his eyes again. Her face was soft, if entirely flustered, as was her voice. “I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to worry you— didn’t meant it that way.”

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Arvil locked eyes with her before scanning her face. He pursed his lips before sighing, looking away. What was he even doing, really? She just… always made him lose control like that. Did she even realize that?

“No, not your fault,” he shook his head. “I took it too far.”

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“Arvil, really. It was fine,” Daisy assured him again, somewhat more vehemently. She took a tiny step toward him, close enough that he would have no choice but to meet her eyes or make it awkward. “Really. If— if I feel uncomfortable, then… I will let you know. Immediately. So you did not go too far. Not this time.”

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Arvil met her eyes again before he nodded once, slowly.

“Okay,” he rubbed the back of his neck. “We should go now.”

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Daisy let out a loose breath and stepped back. She gave him a slow nod of her own, agreeing with him.

“Yes. We should,” she sighed, starring toward the door. “The sooner the better, right?”

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Nodding in agreement, the two made their way out of her apartment building and into the parking lot. He unlocked his car, then looked at Daisy.

“It’ll take us at least thirty minutes,” he informed her softly. “Twenty, if we’re lucky and there’s no traffic.”

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“All right,” Daisy hummed as she slid into her seat. “I suppose we can figure out more things about the wedding, then.”

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“Works for me,” Arvil hummed as he took his seat, closed the door, and buckled his seatbelt. He started the car and then drove off the parking lot. “You got your dress, right?”

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“Yes, I did. And you are not allowed to see it before the ceremony…” Daisy trailed off at her own words. She frowned slightly, realizing just how close to the date of their wedding it was getting. And what she would have to do. And what her parents would expect of them almost immediately, even if he had assured her that she needed worry about that.

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Arvil gave a small pout. “That’s mean,” he sighed. “That means I need to wait for fourteen more days. You’re cruel.”

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Daisy hummed again, nodding a couple of times. A look at her face would show the distraction she had caused herself, the nervousness and worry causing her eyebrows to draw together and her lips to press into a tight line.

There would be so many people… so many people so see her falsely proclaim her love to him, to see her kiss him like she loved him. Already, she was feeling stressed out. Again. Would this stress ever end? Would she ever get a moment’s rest?

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Arvil looked at her for a second before his eyes fell back on the road. He sighed, shook his head before speaking again.

“Daisy, don’t,” he said softly. “Don’t worry about it. It’ll be over before you know it. Everything will work out.”

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“Sorry, I just— I can’t help it. It’s going to be so hard,” Daisy admitted in a whisper. She pulled one her her legs up into the seat, hugging it against herself. “I will have to be happy, so happy. And I don’t mean to offend you by any means, but… that will be hard for me to fake. And I will likely have to fake it, that happiness that overcomes everything else.”

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Arvil bit down on his bottom lip. God, he knew. He knew he wouldn’t be able to keep her happy. It was a fake relationship. She didn’t love him, and he… really, really liked her. There was nothing he could do about that.

“You’re the type of a person who doesn’t exactly show how happy she is,” he finally responded. “I don’t think anyone will note the difference if you don’t try so hard to be. Besides, it’ll be a tiring day. Nobody will expect you to look glamorous and refreshed.”

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Daisy just shrugged, her head drooping. She stared at her feet for a while before dragging her gaze to Arvil.

“I’m sorry. Really. I know you’ll try to keep me happy, and I will be incredibly grateful for that,” she said quietly, wishing she wasn’t hurting him with her words but knowing she must be. “But you know I had a dream, and this was not how it was supposed to go. I’m really sorry, Arvil…”

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Arvil sighed, drumming his fingers against the steering wheel. Her dream. Right. The perfect man, perfect wedding, perfect marriage. There had been a question plaguing him, but he didn’t dare ask. It would probably ruin the comfortable atmosphere around them.

“I understand, so don’t worry about it,” when he spoke, his voice was somewhat detached, as if what they were talking about wasn’t even remotely hurtful. “It is a fake marriage, after all. I can’t expect you to be happy.”

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“I’m sorry,” Daisy sighed, hating herself for the way he sounded at that moment. She knew he was going to try to make her happy, and, like she’d said, she would be incredibly grateful for that. It would be something she would never forget. “I’ll try. I’ll try to be happy, rather than being such a pessimist. I’ll try, Arvil.” For you.

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Arvil let out another sigh, wanting to close his eyes briefly, but unable to. His hands gripped the wheel tightly, and he wished they’d get to their destination quickly. He didn’t want to continue with this conversation.

“When we’re alone, we don’t need to try,” he answered somewhat calmly. “The only thing we need to fool is the media. And our parents.”

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“I’m still going to try, even while we’re alone. You deserve that much, at least,” Daisy whispered, glancing back over at him. Tentatively, she reached over and set her hand on his knee, giving it a gentle squeeze before she pulled away again.

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Arvil didn’t say anything. Instead, he found a place he could park his car, and turned on the indicators. Then he fixed his heated stare on her.

“You’re not going to try, Daisy,” he said, furrowing his eyebrows. “I’ll make sure your happiness is genuine, nothing to be forced for the most part. But if you keep thinking you’ll need to fake it, then yes, you will need to. Because it doesn’t work the other way.”