I wasn’t sure where I was going or how long I had been running for but once I stopped in a narrow alley way off to the side where I thought it would be safe to catch my breath, I felt warm and salty tears trickle down my cheeks from my eyes and quietly sobbing, I slid down against the side of a building until I hit the ground. Hugging my knees close to my chest like a child, I sulked with a cloud of misery hanging over me and kept my eyes down looking at my lap until I heard footsteps approach.

“You know....”, the voice spoke quietly with a huff, “I don’t ever remember you being able to run that fast.”

Realizing that the voice was Uncle Alex’s I let out a slight chuckle and relaxed my arms around my legs once I noticed he had taken a seat beside me. This was embarrassing; I felt my cheeks flush a deep crimson shade and my shoulders drop. With an arm wrapped around my shoulders, I felt Uncle Alex ruffle my hair up like he use to when I was a kid and pause for a moment before making a suggestion.

“Your parents will be over soon.”
“I know.”
“What are you going to do?”
“Run away... dig a hole and bury myself in it.”
“No...”, he laughed causing me to shake from the vibration, “You’re just going to tell them the truth. They’re your parents. They love you. They’ll understand.”
“You think Uncle A?”
“Trust me.”
“Alright...”

After our small talk, it didn’t take much to get me onto my feet before I brushed myself clean of everything off the skirt I wore. Lifting my head up with his hands on either side of my face, Uncle Alex wiped any tears I had still on my face off swiftly before nodding his head to one side in gesture of us going.

“Your need me to carry you?”, he asked pushing his hands deep into his pockets, “I mean, you’re much bigger now than the last time I ever offered but I’m sure a piggy back might get you into a better mood, or we could get ice cream?”

“No thanks...”, I stuttered with a wince, “I just.. need to get back to the bar and get all this sorted out and over with.”

Once we had made it back to The Lost Voyage, I felt an air of relief wash over me and my throat begin to un-tighten as I stepped inside. The place was busily filling with customers and before I had a chance to look around and spot if my parents were here, I felt a warm presence before me and arms wrap tightly around me in a sweet, concerning manner.

“You okay?”
“Yeah, I’ll be fine Liam..”

We had only just met 15 minutes ago and already, it felt like he was treating me like a little sister. With his hands on my shoulders and shooting me a very sweet, half smile, Liam walked me back over to the bar we’d been at before and pulled a stool out for me to take a seat. I noticed Louis behind the counter serving customers who shot Uncle Alex strange looks as he wanted back to where unassumingly, he’d run off from earlier to chase me down and felt a soft tissue dab beneath my eyes in a caring nature.

“Liam... I’ll be fine”, I muttered in a fluster.
“Hush..”, he smirked, “I just want to make you presentable to your parents.”
“So much for Mr Perfect huh?”, I heard Louis bluntly speak as he set down a glass in front of me.
“Shut up!”, Liam sternly warned him, “You’re not making her feel any better.”
“I’m just saying... a real Mr Perfect wouldn’t make a woman cry.”

Before Liam had a chance to respond, I took the tissue from his hands and wiped my make up off which had smudged. “It’s fine... Louis is...”, I fumbled over my words like a 3rd grader being told off by their parents and then having to apologize, “..he’s right.”

Hearing a door click shut behind me, I took a deep breath and exhaled slowly as I heard a set of footsteps make their way up to the bar.

“Your mom and dad are here”, Niall explained with a reassuring pat on my back, “I showed them the private bar room, they said they’ll wait in there for you.”

Biting my bottom lip and swallowing both some air and my pride, I pushed myself up off the seat I was in, chugged down the glass of water which had been left in front of me and brushing my fingers though my hair after making sure I caught my reflection in a window, asked Uncle Alex to show me to the private room.

“You know.... you don’t have to go in there alone”, he explained as an almost suggestion, looking down at me as if I were still a child.
“I’ll be fine.”

Taking a deep breath, I mustered up all the courage I could and walked inside.

“Phillipa... oh darling --- look at you!”

The squealing excitement of my mother’s voice pierced through my ears as I walked over to her only to be embraced in a hug tighter than the one Liam had given me before. My father patted me on the back the same way Niall had earlier and my mother walked me hand in hand to the couches set up facing each other where it seemed Niall had left them to wait for me in privacy.

“What’s wrong baby girl?”, my mother asked catching a glance of my face for a moment without internal excitement rushing about her. I bit my bottom lip and forced a smile, feeling that my eyes were still red and most probably raw.

“So... where is he?”, my father asked with a curiosity in his eyes. I was never one to be able to hide even the smallest of white lies from my father so I sat down quietly and tried not to make an over exaggerated sighing sound.

Biting my bottom lip hard before running my tongue gently over it like a child would, I shut my eyes - trying to catch my breath and felt my mother reach over to place her hands over my own which sat nervously in my lap.

"It's okay dear", she smiled with her gorgeous subtle grey eyes, "...everything will be fine."

Her voice was angelic and as soft as snow although I knew I had to tell them the truth before things got out of hand and I had time to over think the situation. Forcing a smile at my mother who slowly returning to her seat beside my father; I noticed as he checked his watch beneath his silk business suit - sighing heavily when he noticed the time and circling his head as if to loosen tension before he spoke.

"I didn't think your fiancé would be late..", he spoke with heavy, stern words.

A wave of apprehension washed over me again before I found the right words I wanted to say. Rubbing the back of my neck lightly and sitting up a little straighter than I had before, I brushed some hair out of my eyes; wiping them clear of tears too before I faced both my parents.

"About that.. I.. we... you see--", I managed to fumble out like an anxious kitten before I heard the bell of the bar door ring as it opened.

"Sorry that I'm late..", a voice spoke, and I almost choked at the situation I'd fallen into, "You must be Pippa's parents. I do apologize if I kept you waiting."

The expressions on my parent’s faces changed from underwhelmed to ecstatic in just a few seconds. My mother quickly brought her hands up and clutched them to her chest before I noticed my father nod slightly as if to approve at first glance.

Feeling a cold kiss pressed to my cheek, I didn't have enough time to turn and look at who was sitting beside me before I heard quietly whispered in my ear in an alluring and enthralled tone.

“Just play along... I have a favour to ask of you later on”, the voice explained, “Oh, how rude of me, allow me to introduce myself properly.”

I felt whoever it was stand up from beside me and offer his hand out to my father’s for a shake, “Louis Tomlinson, I’m an English teacher at St Bernadette’s.”

“Oh that elitist all girl school up North”, my mother let roll of her tongue with a sheer and shallow glow of amazement, “Pippa you never said anything about your fiancé being a teacher.”

“I like to keep my private life just that Mrs Monroe”, Louis explained with a pearly white smile as he shook my father’s hand and then my mothers, “I’ve asked her to keep a lot about our relationship on the down low until we both comfortably settle into a routine that works for us.”

“Oh.. aren’t you a charmer..”, my mother giggled, “And there’s no need for formalities Louis, just call me Julie”, she explained on a whim before snapping her few last words, “And this is my husband Charlie. Charles... say something.”

My father had never been one of many words but this afternoon; with Louis about, he seemed not to be able to keep his mouth shut.

---

“You’ll have to tell us once you set a date.”
“Oh, in that case you’ll know shortly – we’re looking at having the wedding in spring.”
“Well it was nice seeing you both. Please take care of her for us Louis – we know she can be a hand fun at times.”
“Dad!”

After a few hours of endless banter which seemed to be enjoyed by everyone except myself and my parents not only being catered for my Uncle Alex but also being introduced to Niall and Liam, they had finally left on their return trip back home. It was selfish of me to have dragged them out this far for only half a day and it was even more selfish of me to lie to them. The moment I heard the front door click shut and I noticed after glancing around that the patronage at the bar had declined, without thinking I slapped Louis across the chest and crossed my arms with a huff.

“What the hell do you think you just pulled off back there?”
“Hey.. sweetheart – don’t act so hostile. I just saved you from absolute humiliation.”
“No.. you’re wrong; absolute humiliation is the moment I have to explain to my parents that all this, is a sham.”
“It doesn’t have to be”, he uttered rather comfortably.
“What are you getting at?”, I asked raising an eyebrow, “How am I not going to look like more of a reject in my parents eyes after I break the news to them that everything we just made them believe for the last four hours is a lie? How do I break off an engagement with someone I’m not even engaged to?”
“Marry me.”

I almost stumbled back on my own un-solid stance when the words were said so unceremoniously and in-eloquently. I felt my heart want to race up my throat again as if it wanted to escape from my chest and explode before I could respond in any way, shape or form.

“No..”, I shook my head horrified at the concept of marrying a complete stranger.
“Not for real—“, Louis sighed dropping his shoulders like he was over the frustration of having me around and snapped his fingers like he needed to order another drink.
“Then what are you saying?”, I poked at, taking a seat at the bar.
“Just pretend you’re married to me.”
“This is some kind of joke right?”, I coughed.
“Look, I helped you out, I said I needed a favour, the least you could do is act like you’re interested in helping me.”

“Oh I’m sorry for the hostility but pretending to be married to someone doesn’t really seem like the sort of thing one asks as a favour.”

“Your loss....”, he exhaled taking another sip of the drink in front of him, “Guess we just go find your parents now and explain everything.”

Remembering how elated and ecstatic my mother looked only minutes ago and how proud the expression was my dad had on his face, I pulled Louis back down onto his seat by the wrist before he could get away.

“Okay... let’s pretend I said yes to this favour of yours. Why do you need someone to pretend to be your wife?”, I pushed, “I mean, from the look of you – it doesn’t seem like you’d struggle to find a girl.”
“I need one for work.”
“For work?”
“That elite girl school I work for. They only hire married men.”
“So....”
“So I lied on my application and told them I only recently got married. That I hadn’t filed for a marriage certificate yet but would be getting one soon”, he explained, “Anyhow – I think a few of the teacher are catching onto me..”

It took a few seconds to process everything that was going on.

“Plus...”, Louis continued, “Now that you’ve left Tokyo and moved out here... you’ll need a place to stay.”
“I can find my own place thank you..”
“Yeah?”, he laughed, “With what cash flow? Alex explained the other day once he knew you were coming out that you had given up and turned your back on everything for this ‘Mr Perfect’.”
“Think of it positively Pippa”, Liam threw out there trying to help the situation, “You get a place to stay and someone to keep you company.”

Not wanting to dwell over the fact or thought or idea any longer, I requested a tequila shot and without making time to use salt and a lemon, drank it with a swift, simple flick of my wrist.

I guess the phrase ‘beggars can’t be choosers’ applies right about now.










“Fine”, I stammered, “You got yourself a deal.”

Notes

No... this isn't a happily after story - I'll give you that much ;)
Either way, let me know what you think xo
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