“Okay, but do you really think a fake date will be enough to stop this troll? I mean, after all the lengths they went to just to shit on the Diary?”

“I’ve got it covered, Becca,” I say. She hasn’t exactly been super reliable lately, so it’s probably easier for me to handle it myself anyway. “And once Drew and I fall desperately in love with each other, it won’t matter what some troll has to say about it.”

Becca lets out one of those deep God, you’re naive sighs. “Just promise me that if he steps out of line, you won’t let him walk all over you.”

“I wouldn’t do that.”

“You did that with Gustavo!”

She’s right, of course. Gustavo was my first date freshman year, back when I was still trying to convince myself that maybe I could be a girl if I just tried hard enough. We went to a movie, and I bought him popcorn, which he refused to share with me. Then he shushed me the whole movie and ditched me at the theater, so I had to call my mom to pick me up. And sure, I would’ve gone out with him again if Becca hadn’t stepped in and burned that bridge, but Drew’s not like that. He’s been nothing but kind to me. And I’m different now too. I know who I am. It’s fine.

“I just don’t want you to get so caught up in your fairy tales that you ignore what’s right in front of your face,” she says.

“Yeah, yeah, I know,” I say. “I don’t need you to look out for me anymore, okay? If you can handle your love life, I can handle mine.”

Brian knocks on the door, peeking his head in long enough to say, “Hey, Maggie just left if you wanna catch me up on things.”

I smile at him. “Yeah, just a sec.”

He closes the door, and I tell Becca I should actually go hang out with him for a bit.

“Yeah, go,” she says. “Your fifteen minutes are pretty much up anyway.”

“I’ll update you tomorrow. Oh, and don’t forget to check the Diary.”

Brian waits for me in the living room, a small plate of pastelitos on the couch. I plop down next to him and ask, “Is this my share?”

“If you want it.”

But I’m not sure I do knowing that Maggie’s been all over it. Actually, Brian’s got a bit of a lipstick mark on his cheek, which tells me that not only have they been all over each other, but Maggie doesn’t even buy smudge-proof lipstick. Wow.