Some say getting out of The Friend Zone is hard. Well, try getting out of The Sister Zone.
Vanessa Hayes-Wong has been best friends with Oliver Morrison for five years, one month, and fourteen days. Just as she starts to realize her feelings for him...
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Before Ollie and I head to the mysterious place he refuses to talk about, we make a quick stop at Target. According to him, my rather glamorous nightgown will draw too many people's attention—and I wholeheartedly agree with him.
Nevertheless, because I have zero clue where we're about to go, I'm having trouble deciding what to wear.
"Oh, come on, Ness. It's been fifteen minutes already," Ollie groans. "Would you please just choose something so we can get the hell out of here? People are staring at us as if we came from a circus, for crying out loud."
"Relax, Ol. It's only been fifteen minutes. Besides, how am I supposed to choose the right clothes if I don't even know where we're going, huh?"
A bizarre idea pops into my mind when I spot a gorgeous white lace skater dress. Oh my God. What if Ollie is taking me to Las Vegas to elope?
I draw a sharp breath at the thought, and a mixture of excitement and fear rushes through my veins. What am I going to say? We haven't even been dating yet and he's asking me to—
Ollie clicks his tongue. "Just pick something comfortable, okay? It's not like you're buying a wedding dress."
Disappointment and relief set in at the same time. Right. What were you thinking, Vanessa? This is Mr. Dumpy we're talking about.
With a frown, I return the sexy burgundy dress and the pastel-pink ruffle blouse to the rack. The mischievous part of me wants to torture Ollie a bit longer, but the misery in his eyes tells me he might get a heart attack if I continue doing this.
"Fine." I settle with a roomy blouson cami dress I've spotted earlier, something that doesn't scream we're on a 'date' date, but not a friendly hang-out either. "Let's go."
"Yes, thank you!" Ollie throws his hands up in relief. As we walk to the checkout counter, he asks, "So how are things between you and that creep?"
"Ryan," I correct him, fighting the urge to grin, "and I aren't dating anymore."
"Hmm?" Ollie's eyes sparkle with exhilaration when he flicks them to me.
"Not for the time being, at least. He's so busy with work and I'm busy with work too, so we're just taking some time off to . . . evaluate things."
The truth is I'm tired of manipulating Ollie into realizing his feelings for me. Tricks and lies are never a good foundation for any kind of relationship, and the last thing I want is to force him to say those three magic words before he's ready.
When he finally does say those words to me, I want him to do it because he wants to. Not just because he feels the need to. So, I've decided it's time to end the lies.
Well, I'm ending the lie with another lie. But this is a good first step . . . right?
