The First Rule

Chapter 8b: Love Me Not

Pausing in the face of your shared determination, Tyler, about to squat down, turns in slow motion to find you crossing your arms like you're at a sassy penguin convention. The two of you share a glare that could power a small village. Your pride’s at stake here. You should be determined.

"So it's a deal?" Wyatt skips to be beside the both of you, and tilts his head like a hyper puppy caught between your death glares. It's like a WWE match, but instead of body slams, it's a showdown of raised eyebrows and pursed lips. No need to nod, the clown already knew the answer by your heated glare. With a theatrical flourish, he shouts, "Fire! It's. a. deal~ Ladies and gentlemen, hurrah!" celebrating as if he just discovered t****k, invented t****k, and found t****k all at once.

In a fit of joy, he sprints towards his girlfriend like he's auditioning for a rom-com marathon, plants a kiss on her forehead, and whispers, "Evangeline Reed, you're my eyes and ears ok, baby?" Chuckling, Eve enthusiastically nods like she just won a lifetime supply of chocolate—and retaliates with a peck on his lips. It's a scene so cheesy it could be sponsored by Dulux.

Meanwhile, Dominic, taking on the role of a parent babysitting his mischievous children, yanks Cavill and Wyatt away from their girlfriends, not even caring that their backs are in the front. Why? Because their eyes are still adorn with sweet glances—or, in terms of you and Tyler—heated glares—until they're unceremoniously thrown out by Dom!

But then, Tyler saunters back in, just to casually toss an apple into the trash can from a distance. This time, it goes in perfectly. And with a smug expression, protruding his tongue on his left cheek, he throws you a pair of bouncing eyebrows—to dramatically slam the classroom door shut. The loud bang echoing through the hallways, leaving you with the whirlwind of thunder and lightning behind you.

From the outside, through the window glass, you see Tyler quickly encircle his arms between his two bros, and deliberately shout, probably making sure you can hear them, "So, guys—" then he shoots you a sideway glance so sharp—you're surprised it didn't poke a hole through the window—and shouts,

"What do you think about Bianca?"

And smirks, effortlessly shifting his attention to his two bros again. Grinning ear to ear, Dom slams a hand to the back of his head and exclaims "Ayyy, my maaann," before Wyatt suddenly take a sharp turn with a wide eye and big grin—looking like Valak—and the other two halts with the same knowing look, and howls,

“BRO! BRO! BRO—BRO—BRO! BROS BEFORE HOES~”

While doing their so-called ‘handshake’ before the trio finally saunters away, their diabolical laughter echoing through the hallway. Blood boiling in your veins, you turn to Eve, switching your heated glare to her and complain, "Eve, did your boyfriend knock himself out when he's a baby or something?!"

Hugging you in an apologetic smile she confesses, "He's a wild card that one, sorry girlfriend—"

"Sheesh—don't remind me! Do not. ever—call me girlfriend again—"

"Excuse me.. can I ask you a question?"

When suddenly, a trio of curious girls with ponytails approach you. Sharing a confused glance, you and Eve tilt your heads and nod as a reply, in a synchronized display of ‘what's going on here?’

Without skipping a beat, the second girl fires away, squealing, "What do we have to do to have cute boyfriends like the two of you have?!"

The third girl eagerly joins in, matching her girlfriend's energy, "Did your heart skip a beat when Tyler’s that close to you?!"

The three of them seamlessly transition into swooning and daydreaming, resting their heads on their palms. Your jaw drops to the ground, while the corner of Eve's mouth twitches in disbelief. Dismissing them with a heavy dose of disgust, you retort, "Just imagine a dragon this close to you," making a hand gesture to emphasize the proximity, but then, with a cynical sneer, you add, "but his breath smells? Yeah, that's Tyler."

Then making a dramatic exit to the door, you slam the door behind you, leaving the girls in confusion as their eyes start to glisten with tears. Eve, feeling like she's carrying the burden of the entire universe today, offers the girls an apologetic smile—once again—and flees.

Behind the school buildings, the three rascals are stealthily stealing moments to smoke. Waiting for their baseball practice, the three of them lean on the wall in unison. One person struggles to light his cigarette, while the other two are already puffing away on their own pods. After a few attempts, the distinct sound of a lighter finally clicks as Dom takes a drag, exhaling a ring of smoke upwards, creating a circular shape.

"So," Dom asks with an eyebrow raised and squinted eyes before taking another smoke, and smirks, "sappy romance novels, huh?"

Taken aback by the sudden assault, Tyler coughs by the smoke he inhaled as he bends his body downwards. Thoroughly entertained by Cavill's reaction, Wyatt and Hunt burst into euphoric cackles as they watch their best bro try to fix his composure. Raising one leg against the wall, Tyler scoffs, restarting by exhaling a puff of smoke that somehow forms another shape of rings.

"That brat."

He mutters under his breath. After letting an intentional curse to you, he points a finger to Hunt—then to Wyatt in eagerness to say, "Ok since now it's just the two of you—I'm gonna lay it bare on the grass—" before leaning in like he's about to spill the biggest secret of the century. He waits until both of them lean in with the same anticipation, and then..

"It's not a romance novel."

He says with a deadpan expression, and the three of them stare blankly at each other. For a moment, the world pauses, and you can almost hear the imaginary crickets chirping in the background. But then Tyler throws them a naughty glance—and suddenly, they all bark in unison, a chorus of disbelief echoing through the air, blending seamlessly with the distant giggles of passing students.

"f**k! Winters is duped!" Wyatt roars, clapping his hands in a mix of amusement and admiration, the punchline is just. too. good.

"I just picked whatever book I have for precaution bro, that window is the gates of hell—I swear—I didn't know that she knew the book—damn that girl." Tyler confesses as he shakes his head in disbelief.

"Well if that's the case—we all have that one for sure," Hunt confesses with a lingering smirk, his laughter trailing off. As he spots a group of girls passing by, he raises an eyebrow playfully, eliciting giggles and shy reactions as they hurry away, seemingly swooning.

Taking a puff from his pod, Cavill suddenly refocuses on the conversation and says, "Ok, back to the matter at hand, where should I start?"

"He needs to have a girlfriend, right? Not just a date?" Dom inquires, turning to Liam with genuine curiosity, seeking confirmation—which met with a subtle raise of Liam's eyebrows, verifying his statement. Dom suggests, "Well that's about it, then. What you gotta do for this week is to ask people on dates."

With a slow-motion rolling of his eyes, Cavill contemplates Hunt's suggestion, "Ok who else besides Bianca—"

"Monica, Fran, Zoe—bro just take em all out and decide man," Dom intervenes, tossing several names while smoothly taking another drag from his cigarette. For a moment, Cavill appears deep in thought. Then, seeking affirmation, he turns to Wyatt. Instead, the man retorts with a cheeky grin, saying,

"What makes you think I'm on your side, bro? I want to win!"

Liam makes a clicking sound with his tongue as he flies him a wink. Glaring at his bro as he rolls his right shoulders, Tyler stretches his head to the side, scowling, "You really are a b***h—" but then he tilts his head as if experiencing a massive realization and says, "wait—you haven't even tell us what's in it for me if I win, asshole."

His question hangs in the air. As Dom also squints his eyes in curiosity, the prize quickly overshadows the who. Liam, undeterred by the provocation, leans back flat to the wall and crosses his arms. "I haven't even told you the condition, bro," Liam replies, a smirk playing on his lips.

"There's a catch? Hell, Wyatt you're damn good at this," Dom shouts and hits the air in excitement as Tyler squints his eyes, both twitching in seriousness.

"Here’s the catch—it has to be both of you. I'm not interested in half-assed deals." he declares, pointing an index finger to Tyler as he explains further, "Because~ if it's only one of you, it'll still raise all the suspicions living in my core." Cavill's scowl deepens as he glares at him. Dom nods at the condition with amazement.

"Now you wanna know what's in it for ya?" he questions in mockery, eyeing him like he's the dumbest person alive as he finally reveals,

"You'll win the love of your life, moron."