Sidequest for Love by L.H. Cosway

“I doubt you’ve ever had to pretend you were someone else. You’re beautiful,” I said because it was the truth.

“Thank you, that’s very kind, but I didn’t always look like this. I was very overweight as a teenager. I still have to exercise all the time and watch what I eat to maintain a healthy balance.”

My eyebrows rose, and a few things became clearer. Was this why she hadn’t outright rejected me at the café the other day? She knew how it felt not to fit society’s conventional beauty standard? Or, in my case, to not be over six feet tall with a jawline that could cut glass and muscles bigger than my head.

“I guess we’re not necessarily what people think we are when they look at us,” I finally replied.

“Definitely not,” she agreed.

We continued chatting and were almost done eating when the door that led to the gym opened. Callum and Isaac emerged, looking like they’d both just showered after a morning of exercise. I glanced at Annabelle, but she didn’t seem to display any kind of overt reaction to seeing Callum.

“Hey, Neil,” Isaac said, looking from me to Annabelle. “Who’s your friend?”

“Isaac, Callum, this is Annabelle. Annabelle, this is Isaac and Callum,” I said, introducing them.

Annabelle shot me a little smile. “You know I already know who they are, Neil.” She stood and reached out to shake both of their hands. “I’m a gigantic fan of the show.”

Callum shot her the practiced smile he used during interviews and events. “It’s always a pleasure to meet a fan.”

“Oh, the pleasure is all mine. I actually started doing parkour because of you guys. Obviously, I’m nowhere near your skill level, but it’s a fun hobby.”

“Well, I’m glad we inspired you,” Callum replied, then glanced at me. “We’re heading out for lunch. I was going to ask you to join us, but it looks like you’ve already eaten.”

“We could always grab dessert, couldn’t we, Neil?” Annabelle said sweetly, then chuckled. “Those tiny veggie bowls never satisfy my hunger.” There was a note of eagerness in her voice that set off some alarm bells, but I tried to give her the benefit of the doubt. She was meeting two of her idols. Of course, she’d want to go and have lunch with them.

Annabelle glanced at me then in a sort of pleading way. “Sure,” I said. “Dessert sounds good.”

“Great, let’s go. I’m starving,” Isaac replied.

We grabbed our things and made the short walk down the street to the same café where Annabelle and I had first met two days ago. When we were seated at a booth in the back, I noticed she was quick to slide in next to Callum. She removed her denim jacket, revealing the tight, low-cut workout top that matched her sculpted leggings. I watched as she picked up the menu and scanned it.

“Oh, wonderful, they have vegan desserts. I think I love this place already.”

“We eat here a lot since it’s so close to the gym,” Isaac told her.

“Is that so?” Annabelle chirped.

“Yes, and Neil practically lives here,” Callum added. “If he’s not at the gym, I always know where to find him.” A pause as his attention went between us. “So, how did you two meet?”

It was probably stupid of me, but I hadn’t been ready for this question. Luckily, Annabelle swooped in with an answer. “We met at the supermarket. I was looking for the oat milk, and Neil was happy to point me in the right direction. We hit it off from there.”

“That sounds like something that happens in romcoms rather than in real life,” Isaac commented, and Annabelle laughed softly.

“I know, right? It was the perfect meet-cute.”

I noticed Callum’s brows furrow a little in confusion. I’d told him I met a girl online but that we’d yet to meet in person. Clearly, he presumed correctly that Annabelle was this girl and that we’d finally taken the plunge to meet. Her fake story about bumping into each other at the supermarket didn’t match up.

He shot me a questioning look, but I just shrugged. It was possible, after all, that she was a completely different person to the internet girl since I’d never told him her name.

“What about you and Leanne?” Annabelle asked, snagging his attention. “Did you both meet on the show, or did you know each other from before?”

So, she was aware of their relationship. That benefit of the doubt I’d given her earlier was wavering thin.

Callum’s easy demeanour grew somewhat wary. I knew he liked to keep details of his relationship as private as possible these days. Though, he had asked her the same question, so it didn’t come too out of left field. I, on the other hand, was beginning to wonder if Annabelle’s lack of enthusiasm to tour the gym and meet the cast earlier was carefully woven to lure me into a false sense of security. There was just something about how she looked at Callum that deepened my suspicions. She seemed far more alert when she spoke to him than when she spoke to me.

“We met on the show,” Callum answered, not giving any further details.

“It must be difficult to have your relationship viewed and judged by millions of people. I’m in awe of how you both manage to make it work.”

“It certainly wasn’t easy in the beginning,” he replied.