The audition room was colder than Rae expected — not physically, but in the way rooms could feel when everyone inside was watching you too closely.
Cameras. Judges. The director of Bits and Pieces himself.
Rae stood center stage, heart racing. She knew the lines. Knew the blocking. But what she didn't know — couldn't prepare for — was the weight of all the attention now attached to her name.
Still, she inhaled. She smiled. She became the character.
When she finished, there was silence. Then—
"Wow," said one of the producers.
The director leaned forward. "That was… electric."
Vivienne's eyes gleamed from the back of the room.
Rae forced herself to stay calm.
"We'll be in touch within the week," the director added. "But Rae? This… this might be it."
Rae's stomach flipped. She nodded, lips stretching into a smile as she stepped off the stage, her legs somehow remembering how to work.
Vivienne swooped in the moment the door closed. "Did you hear that? He said this might be it! I told you — the trending posts, the fan edits, the ship name—this is the push we needed!"
Rae paused at the word we.
Vivienne, of course, didn't.
"You and Milo are gold. Just gold, baby. Keep it up, and this role is yours."
"Didn't they say they'd let me know in a week?" Rae said cautiously.
Vivienne waved her off. "Formality. That man is obsessed with you. Just give him a few more headlines to remind him."
Rae narrowed her eyes. "What do you mean by that?"
Vivienne grinned too wide. "You'll see."
---
Back at school, things were… intense.
The hallway was lined with giggles, glances, whispers. Phones turned just a little too obviously in Rae's direction.
She could hear it all even when she pretended not to:
"She's really acting like she likes him."
"She's probably using him."
"I heard they staged that library moment. Who even laughs like that in real life?"
She held her head high, slipping into her seat in history class, but it burned under her skin.
The second Rae walked into the cafeteria, Lena was waiting.
"You okay?" Lena asked, even before Rae sat.
"Peachy," Rae said flatly.
"I saw the posts."
"Of course you did. Everyone has."
"That last one…" Lena lowered her voice. "The photo where you're looking at Milo like he invented gravity? It's got 400K likes."
"I was acting," Rae snapped.
"Right. Sure." Lena said, unconvinced. "By the way, you got tagged in a fan vid this morning. Set to an acoustic cover of Yellow. I cried."
"Lena."
"Fine. I'll stop."
---
But Rae didn't get a break. Not after school. Not even at home.
Vivienne called again. This time, her voice was buzzing with schemes.
"I've got something brilliant for you two. A coffee date. Paparazzi accidentally catches you. Maybe you drop a muffin, he picks it up like it's a diamond. Boom. Instant adorableness."
"No," Rae said.
"Excuse me?"
"No more stunts," Rae said. "Milo didn't sign up for this. I didn't sign up for this."
Vivienne paused for a long beat. "Didn't you, though? Fame, Rea. This is how it works. Everyone wants you right now. Let them."
Before Rae could respond, the line went dead.
---
It wasn't until the next day that the storm really hit.
A tabloid account posted a "source leak" claiming Rae only started fake dating Milo to look more "down-to-earth." It showed a photo of Milo waiting for Rae outside class, looking confused and kind of alone.
The headline read:
"Is Rae Morgan Just Acting Like She Cares?"
By the time Milo saw it, the damage was done.
He marched into the drama room where Rae was sitting with Lena and Grayson, visibly shaken.
"Are you kidding me?" he said, holding up the phone.
Rae blinked. "I didn't know that was happening."
"Sure you didn't," he muttered, voice clipped.
"Milo—" she stood.
"No, really. Because it feels like everyone else knows what's going on except me."
Grayson stood up. "Dude—"
"I'm not mad at you," Milo said to Grayson. "I'm mad that I'm just part of some storyline now."
"You think I wanted this?" Rae said, voice rising.
"You agreed to it."
"To protect myself! You don't know what it's like, Milo. People use me. Tear me apart. I needed someone who wasn't in it for the attention."
"I'm not."
"I know!" Rae snapped. "Which is why I hate that this is what's happening."
The room went quiet.
Lena stepped forward gently. "Rea. You don't have to handle everything alone."
Rae looked away, jaw clenched.
Milo softened just a little. "She's complicated," he muttered.
Grayson leaned against a desk. "So are feelings."
Milo sighed and looked at Rae. "I didn't mean to blow up. I just… I didn't think pretending would make me feel like this."
"Like what?" Rae asked quietly.
"Like it's not pretend anymore."
Rae's breath caught.
Lena was already backing out of the room. "Okay, I'm gonna… go pretend I don't have eyes. Grayson, let's move."
Grayson didn't move. "Wait, wait, are we witnessing a turning point? Is this the part where—"
"Grayson," Rae and Milo said in unison.
"Fine. Just saying. Good chapter moment."
They left, finally, leaving Rae and Milo alone.
The silence sat between them, sharp and awkward.
Milo leaned against the wall, arms crossed, eyes avoiding hers. Rae tucked a strand of hair behind her ear and stared at the floor. The tension from their argument still clung to the air, but under it was something softer. Something messier.
"I didn't mean for it to get this crazy," Rae said, her voice smaller now. "At first, it was a way out. A distraction. But now it's like… I don't even recognize what's real."
Milo looked at her finally. "I get that. But I'm real, Rae. I was always real."
She met his eyes. "I know."
"You push people away before they can hurt you."
"That's not true."
"Isn't it?"
She swallowed hard. "I just… I've seen what happens when I let people in. I become headlines. A joke. And the moment I'm not perfect, they move on."
"I haven't moved," Milo said softly.
Her eyes flickered up to meet his again. Something unspoken passed between them — a current neither wanted to acknowledge too soon.
"I liked being your fake boyfriend," he said, almost smiling.
"Yeah?" she asked, a little breathless.
He nodded. "Even when you made me pretend I liked oat milk lattes."
Rae laughed — a real one, light and shaky and completely hers.
"You did like it," she accused.
"I tolerated it. For the bit. For you."
Her smile faltered just a little. "I don't want this to be pretend anymore. Not with you."
For the first time, Milo took a step closer. Just enough.
"You mean that?"
"I do," she whispered.
But before anything else could be said, Rae's phone buzzed. A text from Vivienne.
Vivienne: The director's assistant just called. They're offering you a screen test — TOMORROW. He said your 'online presence is magnetic.'
Rae stared at the message, heart thumping.
Milo saw the look in her eyes. "Good news?"
She nodded slowly. "Yeah. Maybe. I think… everything might be about to change."
He gave her the smallest smile. "Just don't change on me, Rae."
She didn't answer. But her hand brushed against his — and didn't pull away.