I Agreed to Be Her Fake Fiancé at a High School Reunion — Then I Uncovered the Dark Secret She Was Running From
Chapter 14
Twenty years after the first reunion, Emma and Daniel returned to Westbrook High for a charity event.
The gym had been renovated.
New floors.
New lights.
Different faces.
But the old photographs remained.
Emma found her graduating class picture.
She stared at herself.
Sixteen.
Smiling.
Naïve.
Terrified of the future.
Daniel stood beside her.
“You were cute.”
She laughed.
“You were never here.”
“I’ve seen the picture.”
“You still can’t judge.”
He smiled.
She touched the glass.
“I wish I could tell her something.”
“What?”
“That everything will be okay.”
Daniel nodded.
“What else?”
“That she doesn’t need to become someone else to be loved.”
He took her hand.
“She eventually figured it out.”
“She did.”
They walked into the gym.
Students were setting up tables.
The place felt alive.
Emma looked around.
The old fear was gone.
She had returned to the place where she once felt powerless.
Now she was there because she wanted to help.
After the event, she and Daniel stood outside.
The evening was quiet.
She looked at him.
“Would you still pretend to be my fiancé?”
He smiled.
“Only if you pay me.”
She laughed.
“How much?”
“One lifetime.”
She kissed him.
“Deal.”
