Page 25 of The Broposal

“What’s your point, Kenny?” I probably sounded too exasperated to be polite, but I didn’t care. I wasn’t trying to talk about Kenny’s feelings about my sad little life.

Kenny looked up at me, and I looked at the ceiling. “My point is… we should do something about it.”

Wow. I stopped with the crunches again, sitting up and shooting Kenny a glare. “Are you gonna take down ICE all by yourself? ’Cause I don’t have any other ideas.” My words might have come across harsher than I’d meant them. I was just so frustrated. This was exactly the topic I wanted to avoid, and here Kenny was forcing it to the surface.

Kenny didn’t look away. “Have you considered marrying someone for citizenship? Maybe Tatiana?”

“That’s not an option.”

“Why not?”

“For one, Tatiana and I broke up.”

“Okay, but you’reyou. There’s no way you don’t have, like, twenty girls who would gladly line up to marry you if you asked.”

“That’s the thing. I can’t just ask someone to stall their whole life for me. I’m not gonna use someone like that.” I stood up and crossed my arms. Of course I’d thought about marrying someone for citizenship. But it wouldn’t be right. How could Kenny bring this up like I’ve never thought about it myself?

Kenny stared intensely into my eyes before saying anything.

“Use me.”

I wanted to check my ears to make sure I was hearing him right.

His eyes never left mine as he spoke. “I’m serious, Han. Useme. Marry me.”

My face got hot. “This isn’t funny. This whole thing is so fucked up, and all you have are jokes?”

“I’m not kidding,” Kenny said, eyes still intensely on mine.

“I… Are you—” I couldn’t get words out. Was he serious? “I can’t—wecan’t just—”

Kenny interrupted, which was something heneverdid. “What if I couldn’t calm those guys down today? What if it happened when I wasn’t there?” I just stood there while Kenny rambled, dumbfounded and unable to form words. “Think about it. You could become a citizen! No more panic attacks. We can save on taxes. Everyone already thinks we’re secretly in love.” Kenny laughed, but I was having a hard time catching my brain up. “Plus, it would piss Jackie off.”

Theeereit was. Kenny was always trying to distract himself with a project for someone else when he was going through something. The last time he and Jackie broke up, he helped Tatiana get her job at the restaurant. When Jackie cheated on him, he convinced his parents to do couples counseling. He’s always putting other people before his own pain. But I didn’t want to be his breakup charity case.

“Bro, you’re not about to marry me just to make your ex jealous.” I laughed, because if I didn’t laugh, I might get my hopes up. I knew better than that when it came to relying on other people, even if that person was the most trustworthy guy I knew.

“I’m just saying. It could be a game changer. It’s not a bad idea…” Kenny started mumbling, which meant the gears in his head were turning.

“Stop fucking with me,” I said humorlessly. I still couldn’t tellif Kenny was being serious. We’d joked about getting married before, but only because of that vote from high school.

“I’m not! The pros totally outweigh the cons. I’m dead serious.” Kenny’s dark eyes looked even bigger under his glasses, intense and unblinking as he spoke. “Han, you could stay. Like, legally, you could stay.”

I couldn’t lie, though, the thought of being a legal citizen was hard not to entertain. And don’t get me wrong, I was totally aware that becoming a citizen was more complicated than a wedding, but getting married was ahugestep. Still, there was no way this was a good idea.

“Han.” Kenny got up and walked over so we were face-to-face, and his eyes bored into mine. “I know how serious this is. I’m serious, too. Do you really think I’d mess with you about this?”

I had to look away because meeting his eyes felt too intimate. “I guess you wouldn’t, huh?”

Without hesitating, Kenny dropped down on one knee. “Han, will you fake marry me?”

I had to laugh. “Not happening.”

It was a ridiculous idea. Way too risky. No way would I put Kenny at risk like that. I was sure the consequences of a fraudulent marriage weren’t pretty. I’d definitely be deported, and Kenny would probably get thrown in jail or something.

“Why not?” Kenny looked disappointed.

“You’d probably go to jail if we got caught.”

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