Benjamin and Liam continued to make their case.


    "Yeah! Crystal is a literal goddess. She requested you to be her boyfriend. You must''ve saved the universe in a past life to deserve this blessing. How dare you reject her proposal?"


    "Call her and tell her that you''re willing to do it. She even made you desserts and begged you for your help. Are you even a man?"


    "Why would this be a blessing? Can''t I have personal matters to attend to? Does she have to be the center of my universe?" I asked.


    "No, William. Crystal has stayed by your side for so long and treated you so well. She''s never asked you for anything until now. She''s just asking you to be her pretend boyfriend. You''d just have to be there to grab a bite and greet her grandma. That''s it. Why wouldn''t you agree?"


    "Yeah. If Crystal could allow me to take up this job, I would do so in a heartbeat. She wouldn''t even need to ask me! I''d be her knight in shining armor!"


    I reflected on their words. Indeed, Crystal had been treating me very well recently.


    She bought me food and drinks. Crystal even apanied me no matter where I went.


    Even though I told her I didn''t need herpany, it still feltforting to have someone there when I was feeling down. It made me feel a little less alone.


    I hadn''t really done anything for her.


    I couldn''t help but sigh. "Fine. I''ll help her this one time as a repayment for her support. After this, we won''t be indebted to each other any longer."


    Just as I was about to call her, Benjamin grabbed my hand.


    "Don''t call her. Just go downstairs to tell her. She''s standing right there!" "Right. Head downstairs to tell her in person and thank her for the desserts." Benjamin and Liam red at me as though they were minions sent by Crystal. Their loyalty to her was excessive. I couldn''t remain firm in the face of their persuasions. Thus, I went downstairs in my slippers.


    When I saw Crystal, she was speaking to her friend.


    "Let''s go, Crystal. It''s been many days. Haven''t you seen through him? He''s just leading you on. His ego gets a boost every time you treat him well. A stranger might think that he was the heir of a wealthy family. He''s just a broke loser who thinks too highly of himself!"


    "Don''t talk about him like that. It has nothing to do with him. I was the one who wanted to follow him around."


    "I don''t understand, Crystal. I would love for you guys to get together, but when I see how you suck up to him while he pretends to be unfazed, I feel like pping him!"


    I inhaled through my teeth. Her friend was brave. How dare she intend to p me?


    Crystal red at her friend unhappily and said, "He has the right to decide whether he likes me or not. I can''t force him to be nice to him just because I''ve a crush on him. Stop talking about him. Help me find a solution. Is there a guy who can be my pretend boyfriend?"


    "No!"


    She sighed.


    "It''s not like you know nothing about those guys who pine after you like wolves. If they knew that they had the chance to pretend to be your boyfriend at your family reunion, they would brag about you endlessly and blow the truth out of proportion. It would make your family gathering extremely chaotic. That poor loser does seem


    to be a good candidate. At least he wouldn''t do anything weird."


    Crystal shook her head. "He refuses to go. It''s fine. I can go alone."


    She frowned. "Your family would mock you if you went there single. I''ve seen how they can get. If you hadn''t held me back, I would''ve beaten them up!"


    "It''s alright. It''s only for a day anyway. Everything will be over before I know it."


    At this point, I realized that Crystal wasn''t lying to me.


    This gathering was important. She would suffer if she turned up without a boyfriend. It wasn''t just to be a nuisance to me.


    I thought about it. Then, I walked over and said, "I can apany you to the family reunion. However, this is a one-time urrence."