"Eyyy, girlieee, come onnn, spill! Right. now!" Reed pleads with puppy eyes, shaking your body in desperate curiosity.

To add more context—she's been like this since morning. Because of who? Oh, her Gossip King boyfriend of course. She wasn't there when.. our pool moment happened. Because where was she? The toilet. And now, she has the audacity to guilt-trip me—when regretting her excessive kombucha consumption. LOL.

"Your fault for being so glued to the toilet, girlie~" you tease her in amusement, a smile dancing on your lips as you turn your head to the ceiling with closed eyes. Oh you've been in such a good mood since this morning. You continue to eat your lunch, ignoring her pouting face beside you. However, the atmosphere shifts when you sense her enthusiasm returns as she straightens up—letting out a delighted squeal,

"Speak of the devil!"

At her sudden outburst, your head jerks forward, oblivious to the chunk of food still bulging on your cheek. And sure enough, there they are. The trio. First, you catch Wyatt with an amused grin, undoubtedly because of his girlfriend—no brainer. In the middle is Tyler—and an uneasy feeling washes over you. He hasn't noticed you yet, busy with his girlfriend next to him and you simply roll your eyes. You see Taylor's friend—ok skip. However, your attention sharply focused when your eyes land on..

Him.

And he's already gazing back at you, standing there, hands casually tucked on his pockets, giving you his charming lopsided grin. The moment you realize he's already noticed you, you instinctively gulp down the food in your mouth and blush uncontrollably. Eve, catching your reaction, lights up with excitement, exclaiming,

"Oh my gosh! You. are. in trouble, bestieee!"

You playfully shove Eve, embarrassed of her teasing, but your attention is still drawn back to him. Just then, Wyatt calls out, "Girls!" and without hesitation—he dashes towards your group, leaving the others behind!

This is when Tyler finally notices you, and his demeanor becomes rigid. His expression becomes somewhat—tense, as if he's grappling with numerous thoughts. You, however, choose to ignore him, as your focus is now on the fact—that Hunt is heading your way, following Wyatt, his eyes not moving from you.

Eve stands up and hugs Wyatt, who reciprocates by giving her a playful pinch on her cheek. She leans in to vent to her boyfriend, discreetly.. not. saying, "Ugh, she really won't spill the tea, babe! So annoying," just as Dominic arrives at the table.

He smirks, taking a seat in front of you and leaning both forearms on the table, moving closer with a mischievous grin. You reciprocate with a shy smile, maintaining eye contact. As the two of you exchange glances, Wyatt chuckles in amusement as Eve playfully exclaims, "Look at that, babe! They're openly flirting in front of us now!"

Wyatt saunters over to the table, playfully whispers to Dom while raising an eyebrow, "So, what's the verdict?"

Dom cackles with an open mouth—the tip of his tongue showing, briefly darting his eyes to Wyatt on the left, then back to you. You giggle cheekily and shake your head, amused by your two friends. Just as the hilarity ensues, Tyler appears with the two girls. Making the scene awkward, at least for you, and takes a seat next to Dom while glancing at you.

Wyatt and Eve are engrossed in their own world of affection as Tyler, arm wrapped around his girlfriend, appears deeply involved in a conversation. Still, he can't help but steal occasional glances in your direction. Taylor's friend, seated not too far from you, maintains a considerable distance but also—still—gawking at Dom.

As he enjoys his meal, Dominic's gaze stays locked onto you, maintaining eye contact with a smirk. "How's your day?" he whispers, giving you a lopsided grin.

Returning the playful banter, you chuckle, "Great! How's yours?" and respond with a smile that reaches your eyes. Then, bouncing his eyebrows at you, he gives you a sweet lopsided smile.. and says,

"Fantastic."

Silently observing the two of you, Cavill releases his arms on Taylor, darting his eyes to Dom with a sour expression—causing Taylor to knit her eyebrows at her boyfriend, then at the scene before her. Meanwhile, Eve unexpectedly interrupts with a question, "Hey, is it good if I style my hair like this? Babe, what do you think?" She shows her phone to Wyatt, who nods approvingly while chewing his food. Eve then turns to you, suggesting, "We should try this tomorrow!"

Contemplating, you squint your eyes and tilt your head, imagining the scenario. As you do, a cringe overtakes your expression—and you disagree, "It'll look good on you, but on me.. nah." However, being the cheeky Evie that she is, she points her phone to Dom, and asks,

"What do you think?"

Your eyes widen in realization, and you nervously turn your head between Reed and Hunt in a panic. In your line of sight, Wyatt cackles with amusement, both at your reaction and his girlfriend's playful antics. 'That's my girl,' he thought.

"Don't know," Dom responds nonchalantly. Surprised, Eve and Wyatt seem to be on the verge of disappointment, and oddly enough, you as well, unconsciously lowering your gaze in dismay. You had hoped for some encouragement.. or.. a compliment? Not expecting such a casual and cold response. But just as those thoughts swirl on your mind, he adds,

"She looks good in anything, anyway."

Regaining your light, a sheepish smile surfaces back on your lips as you lift your gaze towards Dominic.. to see him rubbing his chin as he gives you a lopsided grin. Wyatt gapes in amusement—then abruptly leans forward towards the table, in awe of Dom's response—but instinctively, he checks on Tyler beside Dom. Witnessing his visible irritation, Wyatt gulps as Tyler hastily gulps down his drink—to slam it on the table! However, Dom casually ignores the brewing storm beside him.

You also observe the girl who had been gawking at Dom—as she promptly ceases her admiration and rolls her eyes. A sense of satisfaction washes over you as you notice Taylor's disapproving glare when she observes her boyfriend's continued unusual behavior—which has been going on since last week. Having finished his meal, now Dominic's attention centers on you as you conclude your own food.

Why haven't I finished my food you say? How can I when I've been on edge this whole time?! When I have this blonde hottie across from me.. who kept staring at me.. kept flashing me those so so attractive lopsided smiles.. kept giving me those charming grins.. Damn, I feel like I'm in a Wattpad delulu story—

Chewing your food, you purposely avoid looking ahead. With a left arm on the table, he runs a hand through his hair.. press-playing against the bone under his ear.. all while his eyes remain fixed on you. His body opens to Tyler's way on his right, maybe also trying to rub it off on him.

Unable to resist, you finally meet his gaze—to quickly avert them in embarrassment. Playfully groaning as you chew your food, you knit your eyebrows at him, signaling a 'stop looking at me—'

"What are you staring at, Hunt?"

Tyler's serious tone puts Wyatt on high alert. Even his girlfriend beside him seems confused, her expression betraying a growing sense of frustration. Ignoring the fact that this is the first time today that Tyler has ever spoken directly to him—in a cynical tone at that—Dom remains unfazed.

"You mean, who?" he responds, not shifting his gaze from you despite your alertness as you start glancing at Tyler—just like everyone else at the table. Pausing his sentence until you focus on him again, Hunt finally speaks, delivering a statement that leaves the entire group momentarily dumbfounded.

"The prettiest girl in the room."

Hunt proudly declares, and your eyes gradually widen. Cavill, caught off guard, sits there for a moment, not expecting those unexpected words to come out of his bro. He observes you blushing sheepishly, heavily impacted by the charm of Dom's words—

And he stands up. Wyatt, sensing the seriousness of the situation, also stands and briskly holds him. Surprised to see Cavill pull out a lighter, he asks hastily, "Where are you going, man?"

Taylor, initially about to say something, halts as she sees Wyatt's subtle shake of the head. Until, in a low.. angry tone, Tyler brusquely leans in toward Liam's ear—and sneers,

"Need a fucking smoke."

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Cecylia Costania @rcpcs.writes

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