My not-boyfriend said we weren't a couple, so I introduced him to my actual boyfriend.

My not boyfriend said we weren't a

couple, so I introduced him to my actual

boyfriend. For eight months, Zayn acted

like my boyfriend in every way possible.

We hung out four times a week. He'd

sleep over constantly, even had his own

drawer at my place. He'd get visibly

jealous whenever other guys talked to me

at parties, always finding excuses to

interrupt conversations or pull me away.

He bought me flowers just because,

remembered my coffee order perfectly,

and we'd spend entire weekends together,

binge watching shows, and cooking dinner

like a real couple. My friends all

assumed we were dating. My family

invited him to barbecues. Even his mom

would ask about his girlfriend when she

called. But whenever anyone directly

asked if we were together, Zayn would

laugh it off awkwardly. Oh no, we're

just really close friends. I'm not ready

for anything serious right now. It stung

every single time, but I kept hoping

he'd come around. I thought maybe he

just needed more time to feel

comfortable with labels. Last Friday

night changed everything. We were at

Kelsey's birthday party, and this girl,

Alexis, from his work showed up. She was

clearly flirting with him all night,

touching his arm, laughing way too loud

at his jokes. Finally, she looked me up

and down and asked directly, "So, are

you his girlfriend or what?" Without

hesitation, Zayn immediately said, "Oh,

no. We're definitely not together. I'm

completely single actually. He even

stepped slightly away from me when he

said it. The humiliation hit me like a

truck. Everyone with an earshot was

staring. Kelsey looked mortified for me.

I felt my cheeks burning with

embarrassment. But instead of running

away crying like I wanted to, something

clicked. I was done being his convenient

placeholder. I smiled sweetly and said,

"You're absolutely right. We're not

together. Actually, my real boyfriend is

picking me up in about 10 minutes. I

should probably go wait outside for

him." Zayn's confident smile faltered.

Wait, what boyfriend? Oh, you know

Nicholas from my yoga class? We've been

officially dating for 3 weeks now. Since

you and I are just friends and you're

completely single, I figured you

wouldn't mind. The color drained from

his face. Three weeks, but we hung out

Tuesday night. Yeah, as friends, like

you said. I pulled out my phone and

started texting. Let me just tell him

I'm ready. Right on Q. My friend

Nicholas walked through the front door.

I texted him 20 minutes earlier asking

if he could pick me up and play along

with something. Nicholas and I had gone

on a couple of casual dates recently, so

it wasn't completely made up. I grabbed

Nicholas's hand and said loudly enough

for everyone to hear. Hey babe, perfect

timing. Ready to go. Nicholas, slightly

confused, but immediately catching on,

smiled and kissed my cheek. Always ready

for you, beautiful. Zayn stood there

with his jaw literally hanging open as I

introduced Nicholas to everyone as my

boyfriend. Alexis looked between us

awkwardly, clearly regretting her

question. As we walked toward the door,

Zayn grabbed my arm. Wait, can we talk

privately for a second? I looked at his

hand on my arm, then at Nicholas. Sorry,

but my boyfriend and I have dinner

reservations. Maybe we can chat later as

friends. Nicholas wrapped his arm around

my waist protectively. Everything okay

here? Everything's perfect, I said,

looking directly at Zayn. Just saying

goodbye to my friend. We left Zayn

standing there speechless while everyone

whispered around him. My phone started

buzzing before we even reached

Nicholas's car. Text after text from

Zayn. What the hell was that? Since when

are you dating him? I thought we had

something special. Can we please talk

about this? The next morning brought

even more messages. I've been thinking

all night and I realized I made a

mistake. I do want to be with you. I was

just scared of commitment, but I'm ready

now. Please don't throw away what we

have for some random guy. For 3 days

straight, he called and texted

constantly. Suddenly, he wanted to

define what we are and make things

official. He sent flowers to my work

with a note saying, "I want to be your

real boyfriend." It was hilarious how

fast someone could discover their

feelings when they realized you weren't

going to wait around forever. Like a

backup option. Seeing Zayn's reaction

made me realize I deserved someone who

was proud to call me their girlfriend

from day one, not after eight months of

treating me like a secret.