It was past seven, and both Emily and James were done with their work. 

"Do you have any plans today?" James said as he watched Emily finish up everything.

"Nope. How about you?" Emily asked him about the same.

"Same as you. Normally I would hang with Justin, but now that he's started to act like a dotted husband, my nights are empty." James clarified.

"I feel you. I miss Fiona badly, but at the same time, I am really glad that she has moved forward in her life with Justin."

"I agree. So do you want to grab a bite to eat together?" James asked her hesitantly.

"Sure." She answered. 

If it were any other guy, she would have said no right away or had made some excuse, but she was not able to do that here.

Her response, however, made James ecstatic. He was expecting a sassy retort or a flat no, but she said yes. Getting Emily to agree to something unrelated to work can be challenging, but at the same time, he knows she wouldn't have agreed if she didn't want to go with him.

"So, what do you feel like eating?" He asked her.

"Surprise me?" She told him.

"Surprise you? I thought you didn't enjoy surprises." He arched his brow.

"Nope, I don’t. But I am not in the mood to think about what I want to eat right now." This made him chuckle and want to react, but he kept it to himself. 

Since the day he had met her, he had felt some kind of a positive shift in her emotions with each passing day.

"Well, I know a perfect place where we can unwind and enjoy a good meal. Come on." James told her and led the way to the parking lot. 

Emily asked him as they sat in his car, "Where are we going?"

"Surprise." He only uttered one thing.

"James," she groaned.

"Be a sport, Emily. You yourself wanted a surprise. Trust me, you will enjoy it, if not fall in love with it."

"Fine," she sighed.

They drove in quiet for a bit. Emily turned on the music and began humming to break the silence. Even though the time was passing in silence, James was having a great time with her. 

It was the norm for them. Emily turned on the music whenever she hitched a ride with him. They would either have a brief, pointless conversation or simply enjoy each other's company in silence.

Others may find Emily's demeanor odd, but they don't know her, and their lack of patience with her doesn't allow them to see things the way he does, so they form snap judgments about her immediately. 

Although he doesn't know her well, he enjoys spending time with her, even when it means quiet time.

After five minutes of silence, Emily recognized the route they were on. "Are we going to Phoenix?"

"Yup, but we are not going into the interiors. There is this incredible place just on the outskirts. It's pretty relaxing. When Justin told me about this location, I knew we had to visit."

"We?" Emily was baffled and glanced at him with wonder. 

His statement made her feel as if he had thought of coming here with her after hearing about the location. He may, however, have said 'we' by accident.

James wanted to smack himself in the face for using the word "we" instead of "I." But, rather than hiding his remarks with a lie, he might as well tell her the truth. 

Or half-truth. 

"Yes! We."

"Why?" She asked him in confusion.

"Why not?" He responded with a question.

"I don’t understand why the hell you want to visit your so-called wonderful place with me." She quoted this with a frown on her face. 

James wanted to pull her cheeks because her mystified expression was too cute for him to resist.

"Why the hell not? You are my friend, and I love to annoy you. It is a win-win for me." Emily was still not convinced, giving him a blank stare as she attempted to fathom the hidden meaning behind his sentence. 

"Don't overthink it, Em."

"You are strange, James," Emily muttered.

"So are you." Her eyes widened as he winked, and the blood surged down her cheeks.

After two minutes, James made a left and parked his car on one of the park's corners. There were a lot of vehicles with families or couples eating their meals. Some were sitting inside, and some were sitting on the bonnet.

Emily read the sign board aloud with a big smile. “DRIVE-IN FOOD PARLOUR”

"Yes. What do you think? Do you like it?" He asked her.

"Yes! I love it, James." Emily exclaimed with delight.

"I am glad." They got out of the car and went to get burritos and chocolate milkshakes for themselves. Even though Emily insisted on paying, James refused.

"For the love of God, James, let me pay you my half.” While they were sitting in his car, Emily said.

"No way, Emily." He stated simply, ignoring her words.

"Why the hell not? First, we're not dating, and even if we were, I wouldn't feel comfortable with you footing the bill." She told him.

"Too bad, I don’t care." James brushed her statement aside.

"Dammit, you idiot. I care. I don’t want you to pay." She huffed.

"Well, this idiot doesn’t care. I am not going to let you pay, date, or no date. I asked you out, and you agreed. It is my treat." James told her. 

There was firmness in his voice. Emily could tell he didn't pay for her because it was the proper thing to do, but because he wanted to.

"I will pay you back somehow." Emily declared.

"Just let it go, Emily," James said. But it was pointless, as she was way too stubborn for her own good.

"Nope," she responded flatly.

"Fine. Do as you wish. But now, can we please eat? I am starving." James looked at her, waiting for her permit. He appeared to be a troubled adolescent, longing to be released from his sentence.

"I never stopped you from eating." Emily rolled her eyes in return.

After a few bites, James said, "This food is too good, and this place is underrated."

"Yes, this is delicious. I have to say; this concept is too good to be true. The perfect spot to relax and enjoy yourself at the same time." Emily was also enjoying her meal.

"You know, there's a movie screening here once a week. Sometimes on request, sometimes at random." James informed her.

"Like a drive-in theatre?" With sparkling eyes, she asked.

"Yes, do you like the idea?" He asked her, intrigued.

"Duh-uh. I'd be a fool if I didn't like it. It has a timeless feel to it. I would love to experience it." Emily responded.

"If you wish, we can come back here again." 

James was well aware that he was about to enter dangerous territory. He didn't want Emily to misread him and try to escape from him, but her reaction startled him.

"Definitely. I have to say this aloud. James, you're spoiling me." Emily said without even thinking about her words before. 

She voiced it out in the flow of the moment, but she didn’t regret it. James is a good person, and she kind of does trust him.

"Am I?" He was looking at her intently.

Emily didn't know what else to say, but her honest smile won over James. 

James and Emily returned to their home after finishing their meal. After a fifteen-minute drive, he parked his car in front of Emily's apartment.

Emily rose from her seat, followed by him, to bid her farewell. 

Just when James was about to say something, Emily realized, "James, we need to match our stories for ‘The Great Interfering CC Club.’”

Her statement made James confused. "A what?"

"The Great Interfering Cecelia and Cynthia Club!" She repeated her words again.

"And you called me weird?" James shook his head. 

‘This girl is crazy. Where the hell does she come up with these bizarre names?’

"That you are, but we need to get our stories straight," Emily told him.

"Or we can wing it?" He suggested.

"Wing it? Are you a nutcase? Wait… Of course, you are. We need to have the same basics. Or else CC Grams will know, and we will be screwed." Emily tried to explain to James.

"CC Grams? Cynthia and Cecelia Grams? You certainly do have names for everyone. Well, we can call this our first date."

"This, as our first date? Don’t you want it to be a few months back to sound more convincing?" She asked him.

"Yes, but we'd have to lie much more than we are now. Plus, it will get difficult to keep track of it. So, we might as well keep everything simple." He explained it to her. 

Even though this was not their first date, he wished to consider it one.

"That does make sense, and I don’t want to lie much either. So our story will be…." Before Emily would go into her dilemma land and set herself in panic mode, he cut her off.

"Take it easy, Emily." He softly placed both of his hands on her shoulders. "We can tell CC Grams that we kissed in the heat of the moment and realized that we have feelings for each other. That is why we wanted to give our relationship a chance and see where it lead us."

"Do you really think they will not counter us on this?" She asked him, trying to convince herself.

"If that's the case, I will tell them the truth. The fact that you caught my attention the instant you walked into my cabin for the interview. Just as I laid my eyes on you, I knew that I wanted to know you. Since that, each day, we have been taking one step closer towards each other, regardless of how much we don't know about one another. But that's the fun, right? Knowing something new at the most unexpected moment. You are annoying, violent, and continually seeking ways to assault me and make me go broke because of your cheerios binging; I couldn’t help but still bring myself closer to you. So, it makes no difference if CC Grams think we are bluffing or are moving too slowly or quickly. All that matters is that I like you and will stand by your side. And not even you will be able to stop me."

James' remarks brought tears to her eyes for the second time that day, which she somehow managed to keep under control. 

“Jam…” He, on the other hand, cut her off.

“Don’t, Emily. I know we have decided to fake our relationship, but honestly, I want to keep it real. As real as we could. So, instead of making things up, we can tweak things here and there while still not fully lying to them."

"You're a one-of-a-kind." She said it quietly. She wanted to applaud him for his honesty.

“Is that a good thing?” He asked her nervously.

"Yeah! But don’t let it get to your head. Or else your inflated ego won’t let you enter our cabin."

This made him laugh. Leave it to her to destroy any possible romantic moments they could have had.

"Anyway, it is getting late, so…" But James interrupted her before she could finish her sentence.

"I know." 

Trying to prove nothing to anyone, James took a step forward and lightly kissed her left cheek. It was just a simple expression of how much he liked her company.

Befuddled by his action, Emily instantly placed her palm on her face where his lips touched. 

Emily's reaction made James understand that Emily was far more sensitive than he had previously assumed. He even adored this side of her, which was diametrically opposed to the furious Emily.

Before James could leave, Emily told him. "James. Thank you for tonight. I had a good time."

"Me to Em. But get used to it. I am a fantastic companion, and we'll be spending a lot more time together now." With a gleam in his eyes, he told her. 

Merely thinking about spending time with her brightens his day.

"I'm giving you a heads up, James. Don't flee screaming because I'm a toxic person." Emily challenged him. But there was truth in her words. 

She doesn’t let people come close to her easily, but James is one of those exceptional people who is slowly making her barriers tumble down.

“To others, maybe. But not to me. Do you know why? Because I am the remedy which can curb your toxicity.” James said. 

He was well aware that it was a silly line but effective as it did make Emily chuckle. A real genuine smile with a hearty chuckle.

"That was a terrible pick-up line." But Emily couldn’t help herself from smiling.

"But you liked it." Emily continued smiling, which she has been doing a lot lately.

"Good night, Mr. Remedy," Emily said.

"Good night, Ms. Toxicity," James said.

He drove away from Emily's building once she was inside. He kept a slight smile on his face the entire journey. He couldn’t pretend to deny it any longer. Emily was not his friend or his colleague. 

She meant something more to him—a lot more.

He was mighty aware that he was in for a major heartbreak, but he didn’t care. He knew in his heart that Emily was worth it.