My mom told me to go on a blind date.

But my blind date was my ex-boyfriend.

He and I stared at each other, dumbfounded, but our parents were quite pleased.

"How about you two get to know each other first and see if feelings develop?"

But… holding hands, kissing… we'd already done all the "developing" we needed to do!

1

"Hello, hello. This is my daughter, Hanna Dawson."

"Hello. This is my son, Aiden Hale."

Bringing my mom to a blind date, watching my future mother-in-law meet *her* future mother-in-law… I thought this was some top-tier matchmaking.

What I didn't expect was something even more next-level: my blind date was my ex-boyfriend.

Just last month, I was pointing a finger in his face and calling him a scumbag. He swore that if he ever so much as spoke to me again, he was a dog.

Good thing I hadn't made any rash promises of my own.

As the old saying goes, "Don't burn all your bridges."

The old proverbs don't lie!

I smiled at the man in front of me, waiting for him to bark. We were both practically suffocating, determined not to be the first one to speak.

"Why aren't you talking? Are you mute?"

My mom tapped my hand on the table, but I feigned ignorance and kept waiting.

Finally, Aiden Hale broke the silence.

"Hello…"

'Great,' I thought. 'I could see him gritting his teeth.'

"Oh, young people are just so shy."

"Exactly! It's their first meeting, so it's to be expected."

After our parents exchanged a few more pleasantries, their battle began.

"Our Hanna is on her first blind date. She was so nervous beforehand, worried she'd end up with a difficult mother-in-law and get bullied. She's a timid girl, this one."

Aiden Hale's mother responded instantly, her smile perfectly amiable.

"Don't be nervous. I'm not an unreasonable person, and I don't like to meddle in the lives of young people. Our family has several properties, and Aiden has his own as well, so you wouldn't have to live together. I'm quite modern, you know—I'm even taking swimming lessons now."

'I was inwardly stunned. The way Mrs. Hale was selling her son, you'd think she was afraid Aiden Hale would never get married.'

'And to think someone once claimed he'd find someone new the moment he left me.'

At that thought, I shot a smug look at the man across from me.

Aiden Hale adjusted his gold-rimmed glasses and shot back a defiant smile.

"May I ask Ms. Dawson what caused the end of her last relationship?"

I answered instantly, "He cheated. A total scumbag!"

Aiden Hale looked like he was about to grind his molars into dust.

My mom quickly interjected, "Our Hanna is just kind-hearted and too trusting. That's why she was deceived."

"Is that so? Hanna really is a kind soul. There are so many scumbags out there these days, but our Aiden isn't that type of person. He has a very strong moral compass; he'd never do something like cheat!"

I nodded silently from the side. Apparently, Mrs. Hale still didn't know that the "scumbag" I was talking about and her son, Aiden Hale, were one and the same.

After the blind date ended, Mrs. Hale pressed two movie tickets into our hands, saying Aiden Hale should take me to see a movie.

I laughed as I looked at the movie tickets.

Before we broke up, we'd already agreed to see this very movie together. I just never thought we'd break up before it even premiered.

My mom linked arms with Mrs. Hale, and they went off shopping together.

Perhaps friendships between women really do form that fast. The two of them acted like they were long-lost best friends.

Before she left, my mom pulled me aside.

"I know you're not happy about this blind date, but at least try to develop some feelings for him, okay?"

: Putting on a Show

2

'Thanks, but that's not the point.'

'We already did all the "cultivating"—the hand-holding, the kissing, all of it!'

'Now that our relationship is shattered, what's left to cultivate?'

Outside the movie theater, while I was plotting my escape, Aiden Hale had already grabbed my hand and dragged me inside.

'Are you seriously planning on watching this movie?'

'A romance, of all things. The theater is full of couples. It's hardly the right place for two people who just broke up.'

"The tickets are paid for, so of course we're going."

He shot me a look. "You're not chickening out, are you? I haven't even gotten back at you for slandering me and saying I cheated!"

"Who says I'm chickening out!"

'It's just that watching a movie with this man feels like bad juju.'

When Aiden Hale and I first got together, we were very high-profile.

He sent me love letters and flowers, and our whirlwind romance was common knowledge among all our friends.

Which is why our breakup was so ugly.

"All our friends know we're together. If they ask about it later, we'll have to explain. Why don't you just call them all, one by one, right now and tell them we broke up."

But I can be ruthless. So I actually did it, calling them one by one. With every call I made, Aiden Hale's face grew darker, until it was as black as the bottom of a pot.

"You're happy we broke up, aren't you?"

"Yes. I'm ecstatic. So happy I could go run half a mile right now."

"Fine! If I ever speak to you again, I'm a dog!"

Our breakup was so nasty, it's a miracle we can even sit together and watch a movie now.

What's even more of a miracle is that we'd be caught red-handed by one of our friends.

"Aiden? Hanna? You guys are here for a movie?"

Our friend stared at us, shocked, before finally breaking into an awkward smile. "I knew it! You two breaking up had to be fake."

I chuckled, my attention fixed on the green tea girl trailing behind our friend.

'She was probably thrilled when Aiden Hale and I broke up. Now, seeing us walk into a movie theater together, her eyes look like they could eat me alive.'

And so, I linked my arm with Aiden Hale's.

"We just had a little fight. Don't mind us. We're here to catch a movie together."

Aiden Hale glanced at me but didn't push me away, tacitly going along with it. Across from us, the green tea girl's hands balled into fists.

"But Chloe, you don't look very happy. Are you displeased that Aiden Hale and I have gotten back together?"

The green tea girl snapped out of it and quickly forced a smile.

"Of course not! Seeing you, Hanna, and Aiden doing so well, I couldn't be happier."

'Thanks, but your fury is written all over your face. Only a blind person would miss it.'

'If you're going to put on a show, you have to go all the way.' I told Aiden Hale to go buy us some popcorn.

He stopped and gave me a half-smile.

"Is this how you ask for a favor? You're certainly shameless when it comes to ordering people around."

"Of course. Otherwise, when I get home, I'll just tell my mom it's because you're too cheap to even buy me popcorn!"

3

Holding a large bucket of popcorn, I walked into the theater, completely satisfied.

As luck would have it, Chloe Jordan's seat was right next to ours, to Aiden Hale's left.

The moment we sat down, Chloe Jordan grabbed Aiden Hale's hand and launched a full-on coquettish assault.

"Aiden, you haven't taken me to a movie in ages. Do you like this one?"

Her brother, sitting beside her, was mortified. Chloe Jordan was his own sister, so he couldn't really say much, and just tried to quickly pull her back.

"Aiden is obviously on a date with Hanna. Stop bothering them."

"Why? How am I bothering them? I'm sure Aiden won't mind, right?"

'What a joke. Why don't you ask if *I* mind?'

Aiden Hale shot her a glance. His eyes fell on her hand, which was gripping his sleeve, and he immediately yanked his arm away.

I watched their little back-and-forth and laughed to myself.

The movie began. Back then, everyone online was saying it was a must-see romance for couples.

I was expecting some touching love story, but to my surprise, it turned out to be a film with definite horror elements.

Ten minutes in, we'd already had the third jump scare, and Aiden Hale's face was white as a sheet.

Don't be fooled by his usual cocky, I'm-six-feet-tall-and-don't-give-a-damn attitude. In reality, he's a firm believer in the supernatural. He's never set foot in a haunted house and exclusively watches comedies.

The plot built to a climax, and everyone was completely engrossed. Right at that moment, a jump scare hit, and the entire theater screamed.

As someone with nerves of steel, I calmly observed from the side, watching with my own eyes as Chloe Jordan let out a scream and, quick as a flash, threw herself into Aiden Hale's arms.

???

'Her brother is sitting right there. Is she for real?'

But the best part was, Aiden Hale's expression changed instantly. Before anyone could react, his reflexes kicked in and he shoved the person beside him straight to the floor.

With a loud THUD, Chloe Jordan hit the ground before she could even process what happened, staring dumbfoundedly at Aiden Hale.

"Aiden, I..."

"What the hell are you doing? Keep your hands to yourself!"

Aiden Hale was clearly terrified. All his usual refined manners had vanished without a trace.

The man in the row ahead of us couldn't stand it anymore. He turned around and glared at Aiden Hale, displeased.

"Hey, buddy, how can you be so rough? Shoving your own girlfriend onto the floor like that. Do you have any idea how hard it is to find one these days?"

"So what? She's not my girlfriend. My girlfriend is right here."

As he spoke, Aiden Hale pointed at me.

I was still laughing my head off when I was suddenly put on the spot.

Everyone's eyes landed on me, then shifted to Chloe Jordan on the floor.

"Whoa, that girl has no shame."

"I know, right? Throwing herself at a guy when his girlfriend is sitting right next to him."

In the end, her brother apologized to us profusely before dragging Chloe Jordan out of the theater. Aiden Hale, still shaken, pulled me out with them, and we left early too.

We were much quieter after we left the theater. The streets were bustling with people, but I'd lost my appetite for dinner with Aiden Hale. I just lowered my head and started walking home.

"Hey, what are you going to say back home?"

Halfway there, Aiden Hale suddenly spoke up, and only then did I remember that we were on a blind date.

"I'll just say we didn't hit it off."

"No way. I got the feeling Mrs. Hale really likes me."

He rubbed his chin, a smug look on his face. "With a face like mine that charms young and old alike, there's no way she doesn't like me. If you say you weren't interested, Mrs. Hale will just say you have terrible taste."

"Then what am I supposed to say? That we used to date but broke up? Speaking of which, you still owe me a dog's bark!"