# CHAPTER 7: The Friend-Zone Plot – Setting Her Up to Win Her Over
Hello everyone, it’s me again! How are you all doing? Today, I’m thrilled to walk with you through another juicy, heart-wrenching, and wildly entertaining chapter of *Just for the Plot*. Buckle up, because Chapter 7 is packed with awkward plane conversations, bad advice from the most chaotic teammate ever, a devastating text that stabs Bennett right in the heart, and the birth of a plan so risky it might just be genius—or a total disaster. Let’s dive in!
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The moment Bennett snaps his book shut and shoves it beside him, he already knows he’s been caught. There’s no escaping Nolan’s radar. The guy has the instincts of a bloodhound when it comes to sniffing out secrets—especially embarrassing ones.
“What are you reading?” Nolan asks, not even pretending to mind his own business. He’s sprawled across the seat in front of Bennett, arms resting on the headrest, watching him with the smug grin of a man who already knows the answer.
“Nothing. What are you reading?” Bennett deflects, but it’s useless.
Nolan points at the fabric cover—the one with the old-lady pattern that Bower thoughtfully provided. “There’s a fabric cover on your book, one of those old lady ones that my grandma used to use to be discreet when reading her Fabio books.”
Bennett plays dumb. “What are Fabio books?”
“Romance books with bare-chested men on the front. And given that you’re covering up your book and hiding it from me, you must be reading such a book. So, let me ask you again... what are you reading?”
Bennett sighs. There’s no escape. He pulls out the book, confessing it’s a baseball romance that Bower gave him, with the cover so he wouldn’t get mocked by the team.
But Nolan doesn’t mock him. Oh no. Nolan *validates* him.
“Why would we make fun of you?” Nolan asks, then flips over the seat, landing like a graceful giraffe having a seizure—banging his foot against the plane window in the process. Once settled, he declares, “This shit is gold. I’ve learned some good moves from reading romance.”
Bennett blinks. “You read romance?”
“Listen, my man.” Nolan taps his ear. “I listen to the books. Nothing gets me pumped up more than a male narrator telling the girl he’s spanking to come on demand.”
Bennett’s face contorts in horror. “That’s what you listen to before a game?”
“No,” Nolan laughs, clearly loving the reaction. “But, fuck, the look on your face was great. I listen to them at night, before bed, to calm myself down. I also enjoy mysteries, and I’ll be honest, I almost never guess right who the killer is. It’s a shock for me every goddamn time, and that keeps me coming back for more. But romance, dude, excellent choice. And are you reading it to impress the girl who you couldn’t land the other night despite my best efforts?”
Bennett groans. “Your best efforts almost had you telling her about my crush and getting us drunk. If that was your best efforts, then remind me never to come to you for help again.”
But Nolan, ever the philosopher, has a rebuttal. Communication is vital! Getting drunk is a surefire way to get handsy! And he *saw* the cuddling, okay? That was practically foreplay!
Bennett shuts that down. It was *only* cuddling. And he can’t just tell Bower how he feels. She doesn’t see him like that. She sees him as her best friend’s little brother. Needy. Immature. A childhood crush that would make everything awkward.
Nolan’s solution? Crude, ridiculous, and destined to fail: “Just whip your dick out, put it on a plate, and say dinner is served.”
Bennett’s face says it all. “What the fuck is wrong with you?”
Nolan shrugs, completely serious. “Nothing. I did that once to a girl, and she sucked my dick to the back of her throat in one breath. Respect the plate, my man.”
Bennett wants to scream. Instead, he buries his face in his hands, begging for quiet time. But Nolan isn’t done. He tells Bennett the hard truth: to make this work, he has to tell her how he feels.
“And I said, I can’t just tell her that. She just moved here, I’m her only friend, and I don’t want to make her feel uncomfortable.”
Nolan, in a moment of surprising wisdom, offers a different path: “Then build that trust.”
But before Bennett can process this, his phone buzzes. It’s Bower.
Nolan immediately leans in, trying to peek. Bennett tries to shoo him away, but Nolan reads the message over his shoulder anyway.
The text changes everything.
Bower is texting about a conversation she had with Gabby—about how she’d love to meet someone romantically. And Gabby suggested she ask Bennett about the football guy he knows. Beneath all of that, there’s a little description: a five-foot-five girl with green eyes, bendy limbs, and an adventurous side.
Nolan lets out a low whistle. “Ooof, fuck, dude. She’s asking you to set her up?”
Bennett’s blood runs cold. He shoves his phone away, annoyance simmering into a genuine headache. “I told you not to read it.”
“My dude, that’s painful. She has completely friend-zoned you.”
“I’m fucking aware.”
Nolan repositions himself, pulling a sweatband over his eyes like a makeshift sleep mask. Then he drops the bomb—the *terrible, brilliant* bomb. “Now, the question is... what are you going to do about it? Are you going to set her up?”
“Why the fuck would I set her up?”
Nolan sighs dramatically, folding his hands over his stomach. “I love you, dude, but your foresight is lacking. If you set her up with someone, then that gives you the opportunity to show her just how much better you are.”
Bennett is confused. “How the fuck does that work?”
Nolan lifts one side of his sweatband, revealing one mischievous eye. “Hey, dumbass, this could not be clearer. You set her up with a real loser, and when she figures out that the man she’s seeing is a total dud—and the entire time you’re catering to her every need—then you have secured yourself as the guy of her dreams. Basic math, brainiac.”
He taps Bennett’s head, then covers his eyes again. “You’re welcome.”
Bennett hates to admit it, but... it’s not a terrible idea. In fact, the more he thinks about it, the more he sees the twisted genius in it. If he sets her up with someone incompatible, and he’s there to catch her when it falls apart, she might finally see that he’s the one she should give a chance to.
So, despite the twisting in his gut, Bennett texts Bower back: *Let me see what I can do. I’ll ask, but not making any promises.* He makes up an excuse, saying Graydon isn’t the kind of guy who enjoys matchmaking.
Bower’s reply is pure sunshine. *Ahh, you’re the best! And I’ll owe you for sure, even if it’s more Moon Pies, I’ll repay you.*
Bennett swallows the lump in his throat. *Don’t worry about it. Just want you to be happy.*
And then Bower says it. *Ahh, I love you! Thank you.*
Those three words nearly burn his retinas. He knows she doesn’t mean them the way he wants her to. He knows they’re friendly, casual, grateful. But still—seeing her name next to *I love you* sparks a fire in him. It drives him to make her his, no matter what it takes.
This plan might be unconventional. Risky. Possibly destructive. But Bennett is desperate. He needs Bower to see that she deserves better—and that *better* is him.
Now comes the hard part: roping Graydon in.
Freshly unpacked in his hotel room, Bennett sits on the bed, pulls out his phone, and opens the group chat. The moment he sends his first text, he regrets it. Because if there’s one way to ruin Graydon’s mood, it’s getting OC involved.
OC is the bane of Graydon’s existence. Where Graydon is a brooding grump, OC is the sunlit menace who called their group chat the “Gladdy Daddies”—because, as he explains, they’re “daddies” in the Pedro Pascal sense, not the literal sense. Graydon wants nothing to do with him. Yet, for some reason, Graydon hasn’t blocked him. Which suggests, maybe, just a tiny bit, that Graydon doesn’t *completely* want to punch OC’s face in.
OC replies first, naturally. He’s getting dinner, complaining that Graydon refused to join him. Graydon claims he was busy—with Maple. Of course, OC has to hijack the conversation with a wildly inappropriate story about being edged while a girl talked to her father on the phone.
Graydon and Bennett both respond in sheer horror. “What the fuck is wrong with you?” / “I usually defend you, bud, but... she was on the phone with her dad?”
OC defends it as “taboo.” Graydon and Bennett are unified in disgust. OC, defeated, tells them both to fuck off. Classic.
Finally, Bennett sees his chance. He switches to a private chat with Graydon, leaving OC to his bath. No distractions. No chaos. Just Bennett and the grump.
Bennett takes a deep breath. *Here goes nothing.*
He explains he has a favor to ask. A friend is looking to meet someone, and yes, it’s ridiculous, but—is there anyone on Graydon’s team who might be single and maybe border the line of being a complete and utter douche? She likes them like that.
A lie. But it’s all part of the plan.
Graydon’s reply is blunt: *Are you serious right now?*
Bennett grovels. He knows it’s weird. He swears it’s not his style. But it’s not for him—it’s for a friend. He claims she’s not into baseball players, so his teammates are out. He needs Graydon’s help.
Graydon questions everything, because of course he does. “Why are you desperate?”
Bennett deflects, promising to explain later. *Rain check?* He begs. Just help a guy out.
Finally, Graydon caves. “There are plenty. More than I care for.”
“Are any of them single?”
“What do you think?”
“I’m going to take that as a yes.”
Graydon doesn’t love this, but he agrees to ask Hutton for help. Then he asks the crucial question: “How much of a douche do you want him to be?”
Bennett doesn’t hesitate. “If you looked up douchebag in the dictionary, it would be his face.”
A pause. Then Graydon replies with a name that makes Bennett’s plan click into place: **Cougar Vajeen.**
And just like that, the trap is set.
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Oh my goodness, this chapter was a rollercoaster of cringe, hope, and absolute scheming! I have to say, I felt so much secondhand embarrassment watching Bennett go through this emotional wringer—from Nolan’s utterly unhinged advice (“Respect the plate, my man” is now seared into my brain forever) to Bower’s casual “I love you” that probably gave the poor guy a heart attack. There’s something so poignant about watching a man who is clearly head-over-heels trying to play chess while everyone around him is playing checkers. I love that Graydon stayed completely in character, all gruff and suspicious, but still agreed to help. And OC? Absolutely unhinged as always—he’s the comic relief we never knew we needed.
This chapter gets a heartfelt ⭐⭐⭐⭐ (4.5/5 stars) from me. It’s building beautifully, with just the right blend of humor, pain, and anticipation. I’m knocking off half a star only because I need Bennett to stop being so dense about his own feelings—but honestly, where’s the fun in perfect decisions?
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**Next Chapter Prediction:**
Oh, I can already feel the chaos coming! Bennett is going to set Bower up with Cougar Vajeen—and let’s be real, a guy with that name is probably a walking catastrophe. I predict Bower will go on the date, realize the guy is an absolute nightmare, and Bennett will swoop in like the knight in shining armor he’s desperate to be. But there’s bound to be a twist—maybe Cougar won’t be as bad as expected, or maybe Bower will see through Bennett’s scheme and confront him. Either way, the friend-zone walls are about to crack, and I can’t wait to watch the rubble fall!
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