HDU (10 page)

“Huh.”
 
The answer sufficed enough that Liam made a small noise of approval.
 
Amanda caught Ian’s eyes in the
rearview mirror to give a look of thanks.

“They’ll ask us where we met exactly,” she said,
finding her voice again.
 
“We’re
going to say that Ian was vacationing in St. Louis while I was living there
earlier this year.
 
You visited him
and I met you as a mutual friend.”

“And there was a spark then,” Ian added.
 
“But she kept it a secret because of
Megan.”

“Megan?” Liam repeated.
 
Amanda grimaced at the mere sound of him saying her name.

“She was my roommate in St. Louis.
 
She’s been obsessed with you since we
saw
The Sky Above
like, eight years
ago,” Amanda explained.
 
“It’s
still her favorite movie.”

“What an idiot, that movie was garbage,” Liam said
straightaway.
 
It gave Amanda a strange
sense of relief, but then he spoke again.
 
“What does Megan look like?” Amanda’s heart immediately sank.
 
How was it possible? Megan managed to
sound attractive to people who didn’t even know her.

“You
cannot
hit on Megan,” Ian commanded, though upon catching the look that Liam shot him,
he lowered his eyes.
 
“You… just
can’t,” he repeated, quieter now.
 
Liam looked at Amanda for an explanation but she didn’t give one and he
didn’t care to persist.

By the time they reached Merit the basics had been laid
out, including the fact that they would be flying to New York that night, but
Amanda knew that there was a serious and obvious lack of chemistry.
 
She suspected it was her own fault
– she had been frigid and ridden with anxiety throughout the entire car
ride.
 
Ian had done his part in
trying to relieve her and moderate conversation, but it was all in vain.
 
Her nerves were a tremendous force to be
reckoned with.
 
She could only hope
that Liam’s skills as an actor would come through once they entered the
house.
 
Her mother had already sent
about a dozen texts asking her where she was, when she would be back, and who
the boy in question
actually
was.
 
They really didn’t believe
her, but for once, it was a good thing.
 
Amanda couldn’t wait to shock them.
 
But first she had to compose herself and prepare to give a
good performance.

“We’re here,” Ian announced, his voice already tired
as he turned into Amanda’s street.
 
Neighbors’ cars lined the block, but Amanda’s usual spot in the driveway
had been surprisingly reserved.
 
She imagined that her mother simply wanted to see her visitor as soon as
possible.

“Ready for this, babe?” Liam grinned, hugging Amanda
to his side once she stepped out of the car.
 
She genuinely didn’t like the feeling, and it amazed her.
 
Never in a million years would she have
imagined that the affections of such a beautiful man would aggravate her.

Ian hopped up the steps before them.
 
“Maybe we should go in first, Amanda,
so we can give Liam a grand entrance.”

“Not the worst idea,” Liam said.
 

Amanda went with it, letting Ian take the reigns on
the situation once again.
 
She was
grateful for it, considering how unproductive she had been in the past hour.
 
She was generally an effective person,
but being both starstruck and wounded was apparently a good combination to shut
her down.

With Liam’s back facing the front door as he sat on
the steps nonchalantly, Amanda opened it.
 
Her house was packed to capacity with the residents of Merit, all joyous
and laughing as they ate her mother’s chili and nursed their beers.
 
Instinctively, Amanda smoothed down her
wrinkled dress and combed her hand through her hair.
 
Within seconds, the party caught wind of her presence and noticeably
hushed.

“She’s here!” a voice sang.
 
It likely belonged to Alice.
 
Despite all the voices shouting and eyes staring, Amanda
focused her attention on locating her former best friend.
 
When her eyes briefly landed on a
stupefied Ian, she knew she had by the transitive property found Megan.
 
She followed his gaze and upon reaching
its end, felt that familiar drop in her stomach, the same heavy pain that she experienced
after catching a glimpse of a Rams game on TV.

“Sweetie pie!” Megan cooed, holding her lithe arms
out for an embrace.
 
Amanda stayed
frozen as she approached.
 
Megan
wore a simple jersey tunic over a pair of blue jeans, and yet she still looked
ethereal, like an unreal beauty.
 
It was unsurprising, every bit within her arrogance to dress so simply
to her own elaborate party.
 
It was
proof that she wasn’t like the rest of them, that she never had to try to look
stunning, she just was.
 
Amanda
quickly felt embarrassed of her own calculated get-up.
 
All it had done was show Liam that she
wasn’t as hideous as he had anticipated.
 
Amidst Amanda’s shame, Megan pulled her face close and whispered in her
ear, “Don’t worry, I didn’t bring
him
.
 
I’ll keep it a secret.
 
For you.”

What a saint.
 
Megan hadn’t brought the boyfriend that she had stolen from Amanda for
the sake of her fragility, not because it was a completely preposterous idea in
the first place.
 
She would abstain
from telling their town about her thieving, not to save her own reputation, but
to do a favor to Amanda’s inability to keep a boyfriend.
 

“Thank you.
 
It’s so good to see you, Megs,” Amanda managed to say pleasantly,
remembering that all eyes were still on her, that she was about to stun
everyone by pulling out her own surprise victory.
 
She had to keep it together for that moment, despite the
absolute fury boiling in the pit of her stomach.

“Oh God, I missed you so much,” Megan breathed into
her ear as she went in for the hug, her raven hair spilling over Amanda’s
shoulder.
 
“Everyone’s been talking
about your new boyfriend.
 
Is this
him?” She flashed a dazzling smile at Ian, her tunic dipping off one shoulder
as she offered a hand to shake.
 
Amanda caught the glint of satisfaction in her eye as Ian stumbled on
his own words, managing some sort of dazed greeting as he shook her hand.
 
Megan’s eyes traveled back to Amanda,
her lips pouting into a smile.
 
“Aw, Mandy, he’s
sweet
,” she
said almost sympathetically, as if Ian were a handicapped puppy.

“That’s not him, that’s supposed to be the friend,”
Alice snickered, coming out of the woodwork, arms crossed over her chest.
 
Amanda’s own mother appeared from
behind her, looking genuinely disappointed.

“Where’s the famous actor?” she asked.

“The one who asked you to move to New York City,” Tandy
Mueller simpered.
 
Of course her
mother had invited Tandy, despite finding her nettlesome, despite knowing that
she had been the origin of all rumors about her own daughter.
 
It was just the nature of their
disingenuous town, something that Amanda was for once grateful for.
 
She wished every last person she knew
were present, about to witness her reveal.

The crowd still tittered at Tandy’s remark while
others covered their mouths to suppress amusement.
 
It was clear that they had all been briefed on Amanda’s
claim and that they of course didn’t buy into it.
 
A wave of satisfaction washed over her as she observed their
smug faces, taking it all in for just a couple more seconds.

“He’s outside,” she said, loud and confident for the
first time all day.
 
It was enough
to make a few people raise their eyebrows – they had expected her to
immediately break down into a confession of lies.
 
“He was making a call, but I’ll go get him,” she offered
breezily.

She exchanged giddy looks with a revived Ian before
stepping back out onto the porch.
 
Liam
was still sitting on the steps, nonchalantly browsing through his iPhone.
 
“It’s time,” she hissed, surprising him
with her energy.
 
He looked into
her lively eyes and actually smiled instead of smirking.

“You gonna give me a good performance?” he asked,
letting her drag him by the wrist for a second before manually removing her
hand.
 
He placed it in his.
 
“I’m your boyfriend, not your dog,” he
whispered.
 
Amanda only nodded with
eagerness, pulling him into the house through the door Ian held open.

~

“Surprise!” she said to the crowd with true jazz.
 
“Everyone, I want you to meet my boyfriend,
Liam.”

The silence in the air was thick and the tension gave
Amanda a somewhat sick sense of satisfaction.
 
Her eyes were fixed on Megan, whose knees actually
buckled.
 

“It’s a joke,” she blurted, quickly embarrassed by
her own vulnerable words.
 
She
covered her mouth and blushed, practically curtsying before Liam with
subservience.
 
“I mean, I just
don’t… ” She trailed off.

Amanda’s father, sitting in his chair in the den,
pointed a finger at Liam.
 
“You’re
in the movies,” he declared.
 
Amanda
raised her eyebrows and turned to Liam, genuinely interested in what his first
line in their lie would be.

“Yes, I’m an actor,” he laughed, bowing his head
slightly.
 
Amanda wanted to burst
out laughing.
 
He was actually
acting humble, polite in front of her parents.
 
It was quite a transformation, his gait still self-assured but
now paired with a sense of being mannerly, courteous.
 
He even kissed the top of her head lightly, as if trying to
be modest about their love.
 
Amanda
found his dedication to the role somewhat endearing.

But before she forgot, she turned back to face her
neighbors.
 
She would never get to
see such reactions again and she had to savor them.
 
Alice looked as if she had been shot, her mouth agape, her
hand clasped to her chest.
 
Tandy
Mueller appeared incensed, as if Liam’s presence debunked all her previous tales
of gossip.
 
And then of course
there was Megan.
 
It was as if her
reaction had been plucked from a movie it was so perfect.
 
Amanda had feared that she might break
down and sob, forcing her to feel sorry because she just couldn’t help it
sometimes.
 
But Megan’s tears were
angry, her tomato-red cheeks ruining any attempt to downplay the moment.
 
Instead, she embraced it.

“I’m sorry, but I don’t believe it,” she
blurted.
 

“Megan,” Alice started, trying to save her daughter
from making a scene.

“I’m
sorry
,”
Megan snapped, though her own enraged face seemed torn as it tried to remain
attractive for Liam.
 
He wore an uncomfortable,
slightly apologetic smile that Amanda suspected was at least somewhat real.
 
“I just don’t.
 
I’m sorry.
 
It couldn’t happen.
 
How did you
meet
?”

Liam opened his mouth to speak but Ian raised his
hand.
 
“Uh, that would be my fault,
Megan,” he said comically, drawing a chortle from Amanda’s father.
 
“I introduced them when he came to
visit me in St. Louis.
 
Kind of
predicted there’d be sparks.”
 
The
mention of St. Louis drew a few familiar “ah”s from the party, but Megan
narrowed her eyes suspiciously.

“She never mentioned either of you,” she said in a
rather bratty tone.
 
“And I’m
pretty sure she would have, because she had nothing else going on.”

Amanda put on a face of compassion, relishing her
next line as she pulled Liam close.
 
“I kept him a secret, Megan.
 
For you.”

- Chapter 4 -

Signs of Amanda’s new life began the moment she
arrived at Columbia Regional Airport.
 
Perhaps word had spread beyond Merit that Liam was in town, if even for
an afternoon.
 
Upon stepping out of
the car in front of the airport, she spotted a small crowd of young women
gathered at the entrance.
 
Their
eyes skipped past her and Ian, quickly latching onto Liam before the clamoring began.

“Marry me, Liam!” one shouted, sparking the rest to
echo their professions of love.
 
Amanda and Ian both watched, fascinated by Liam’s total comfort with the
situation.
 
It was what they both
had seen in posts on HDU, but the real life energy was entirely different.
 
The excitement was like a domino
effect.
 
More and more heads turned
with each person who looked their way.
 
Liam rewarded his fans with a smile and single wave as he
walked through, satiating them with a half-hearted, “I love you too.”
 
The high-pitched shrieking that the
girls broke out into actually hurt Amanda’s ears, but she reminded herself not
to cover them with her hands.
 
It would
probably come off as rude and a little bit snotty.