It was official.
Rome wasn't going to help me out of the kindness of his cold, aesthetically perfect heart.
So I had to convince him.
With a plan.
A real, well-thought-out, not-at-all-cringe plan.
Step 1: Presentation.
I stayed up all night making a slideshow titled:
"Why You Should Be My Fake Boyfriend (And Possibly Save My Life)"
It had glitter transitions.
And frogs.
And a pie chart that said:
> 90% – Lucas is scary
10% – You're really hot
I printed it out.
On colored paper.
I found Rome behind the gym the next morning, casually sipping water like a drama lead in a K-drama reboot.
"Hey," I said, trying not to trip over my own nervous system. "I made you something."
He looked at the packet I handed him.
Then looked at me.
Then back at the packet.
"…Is this real?"
"I used my mom's printer for it," I said proudly.
Rome blinked. "You made a PowerPoint… to convince me to fake date you?"
"Yes."
"And you think that would work?"
"No," I admitted. "Which is why—"
Step 2: Bribery.
I reached into my bag and pulled out the one thing that could melt the iciest heart:
Mango juice. The good brand. With pulp.
Rome stared at the bottle. Then at me.
"Desperate much?"
"Absolutely," I said. "I am so desperate, it's becoming a personality trait."
He sighed. Closed the folder. Took the juice. Sipped it.
AND THEN WALKED AWAY.
WITHOUT SAYING A WORD.
I stood there. Stunned. Rejected. Holding my emotional breakdown like a cute tote bag.
"…Ican offer snacks too," I called out.
Rome didn't even turn around.
I sat down on the grass and covered my face.
This was not working.
Lucas would probably make us couple bracelets next.
I'd have to wear matching socks.
I wasn't built for this level of chaos.
Then I heard a soft voice above me.
"Still trying, huh?"
I looked up.
Ella.
She handed me a juice box and sat beside me.
"I made a whole slideshow," I said, emotionally exhausted. "With fonts."
She giggled. "He's not saying no because he hates you, you know."
"…He smirked while I was being cuddled to death."
"Yeah, but he watched, didn't he?"
I blinked.
"…Wait. You think he's interested?"
She smiled slyly. "I think Rome doesn't do anything without a reason. If he really didn't care… he wouldn't still be watching."
I paused.
Heart pounding.
Maybe she was right.
Maybe I just needed the right opportunity.
Because even if Rome was impossible to read…
He hadn't said no. Not yet. Not really.
To be continued…