"Seriously, bro. Where are we going? Why do I feel like we're in the middle of nowhere?"

You've been sitting in the car for an hour—and a half, if you count the pit stops for your frequent bathroom breaks. You know. Sugarcane. Laughing behind the wheel, Tyler—in his leather jacket—glances at you, taking amusement in your confusion since you went down the stairs of your house.

"Guess."

He challenges with an eyebrow raised. Huffing in frustration at his secretive attitude, you finally give up and pull out your phone, trying to find clues. Opening Google Maps, you pinch out the screen to get a broader view. You look at the names of streets.. the places.. hoping something familiar—

Until you notice a place, so familiar you might've already seen it for a hundredth time before. Squinting, you scan the surroundings—and slowly.. your eyes widen, mouth drops open. When you look at Tyler, you see him holding a suspicious grin . You double-check, finally daring to search the name and hit directions—

"OH. MY. GOD. YOU. DO. NOT! EEEKK!!!"

You're so excited you throw your arms around him. Tyler ruffles the back of your head but pushes you away, laughing, "Hey, hey! You want me to crash?!"

The soft light of the sun casts a warm embrace around you. The mountains stand majestically, and the lake lies tranquil. As you both munch on your burgers, you share a moment of contentment, enjoying each other's company and the simple pleasure of good food amidst the beautiful scenery.

Tyler nods in amusement, taking in the serene surroundings before a mischievous grin spreads across his face. "I've been wanting to come here since forever," he remarks sarcastically, taking a sip of his sugarcane drink. "This place is so cool, right?!" he teases, nudging you playfully.

Pursing your lips, you nod enthusiastically like a Bollywood star, cheering, "And the fact that it's even better than I imagined~" Taking another sip of your sugarcane juice, you relish the sweet taste, mentally checking off a box on your imaginary bucket list.

"Which is better—this place or the one I created for you?" he asks, raising an eyebrow cockily, wrapping an arm around you while staring at you adoringly. "Well, with the help of the big bosses of course—"

"This one, of course!"

Offended, he immediately drops his arm. You laugh and quickly add, "Yours! Yours is better, of course~"

"Free burgers for a week?" he negotiates, grinning. You slap his head lightly, making him laugh as he takes another bite of his burger.

"It's been a long time since I drank sugarcane juice with burgers," he says, savoring the moment before he adds, "yeah, been like—30 years since I had this combo—"

"Every year you add 10 more, huh?" you nag, rolling your eyes as you sip another sugarcane.

He laughs. But then, after a moment of comfortable silence, he raises an eyebrow and slowly turns to you.. and with a familiar look, he exclaims, "You know what's missing?"

Smirking, you pull out your phone and play your song. "In that case—" you drop your burgers and stand up. With a wide grin, you extend a hand to him, asking for the dance.

Chuckling in amusement, he accepts and stands up with a pull from you.. and you both dance slowly under the open sky, Jeremy's voice playing softly in the background. "How's the date? Better than your Wattpad stories, huh?" he asks with suspicion in his eyes.

Mirroring him, you let out a suppressed smirk as you teasingly stay secretive, "Hmm~ Should I say it or noooot~?"

He looks away, then turns back with a smug face to say, "No need no need, I know your secret,"

"Oh, really?"

"You don't want this date to end, do you?"

Giggling, you slap his cheek playfully before cheekily laughing in a sarcastic teasing, "You know, when I was heartbroken because of you—" shooting him a squinted eye while he rolls his eyes before revealing, "I made a secret rule."

"What?! That was forbidden—" initially, his face contorts into annoyance—when he seemingly realizing something—then guiltily reveals, "Nevermind, I did too,"

"What?!" you exclaim, grabbing his hand in surprise. "What is it?!"

"You first," he says, leaning back slightly with a look of serious suspicion—then sits down again on the picnic blanket, propping himself up with his hands.

Eagerly—you sit down too, eyes wide with curiosity before carefully.. tilting your head, you suggest, "Say it at the same time?"

Intrigued, he sits up straight—and you both face each other like you're about to duel, leaning in close with intense expressions until you shout,

"If you start to fall in love with your bestfriend, you keep it a secret—!"

You both stop—shocked at the identical rule. You hold a laugh, eyes round in amazement. However, with a serious face, he continues,

"and print the ugliest picture of her—put it on a wall.. then play darts on her face."

Aaand you stare at him with a 'wtf' look on your face, yelling, "WHAT?!"

He bursts out laughing—and you attack him, tickling him as you both roll around, ending up wrestling each other. You both collapse, tired from laughing like maniacs—tangled around each other as you lie on the picnic blanket. Until, with a soft look in his eyes, he chuckles, "But it didn't work though."

You fall silent, curiosity piqued. Glancing down at you for a moment, he flips you over so you're beneath him. You shriek in surprise as you stare at him, hair fanning out around you like you're Aphrodite.

From below, his hair falls around your face softly. The bouncing of them tickles your skin—but you don't care. His gorgeous face is all you need as a redemption. You stare at him as he grins widely against the majestic backdrop of the sun, looking like Ares himself.

Transforming his grin into a lopsided smile, he leans in closer.. until your noses touch, giving you a gentle nudge. You close your eyes—smiling, and nudge back. Your hands roam from his chest.. to his cheeks.. until you tangle your fingers in his fluffy hair. Then, as sweet as the morning breeze, he whispers, "I just keep falling in love with you."

You can't help but let out a big grin. Matching yours, he finally closes the gap—and your lips meet. Your fingers find each other, and you slowly intertwine them. His rough hand pins yours above your head as he gently tilts his head, kissing you deeper. You exhale a breath you didn't realize you were holding—feeling the tension in your chest release as your lips connect like the raging seas. He strokes your cheek and pulls away—both blushing, looking into each other's eyes. When he smiles, a question of promise escapes his lips, eliciting a soft smile from yours.

"Forever?"

You smile as you both lay on the ground, heads close together—replying softly,

"Forever."

You nudge your noses together, giggling, and kiss his nose before flipping him over so you're on top of him! Looking surprised, he stares at you in awe, before a laugh escapes his lips. With a flirty look on your face, you sit up—shouting, "Ok! Since this is our first time, we have to make the rules!"

Smirking, he folds his arms behind his head. "Winny Winny~ Surprising how you want to make another set of rules since you're usually against them—" he pauses, raising an eyebrow suspiciously, "do you want something?"

With a smug look, you purse your lips and look away with amusement, ignoring him as you shout, "Rule #11! For Tyler—!"

Startled, he breaks his arm-fold, shouting, "What?! Why only—"

"Maximum girl friends: only 1!"

For a moment he stares at you.. before with a knowing look, he mutters, "Ah," sitting up and circling his arms around your waist. As you sit face to face, he pulls you closer with a proud, smug expression and says, "I don't have any?"

"Only Eve is allowed," you say nonchalantly, hands circling around his shoulders—slipping your fingers through his fluffy jet black hair while revealing another—

"Rule #12! For Tyler—"

"Hey! Nu uh! Rule #12! For Emily! No guy friends, only gay friends!"

"What?! What about Wyatt—"

"Rule #12.1! The Five Feet Apart Rule must be applied!"

"What about Dom—"

"Rule #12.2! Exes cannot be friends!"

"Wait what—?!"

Heh—wanna know a secret?

Remember when he brought Tumba to your ceremony? When.. he even missed seeing you get buried because of it? Honestly, after that, I kept wondering. What was that feeling I felt back then? That feeling of.. realizing something's missing suddenly found. That contentment. That relief. Was it solely because of Tumba's presence.. or...

As you two continue bickering—caught up in a heated banter, your hands grip his arms while his grips on your thighs. Each yelling your respective rules over the other madly.

"RULE #27! FOR TYLER—"

"HEY! NO—RULE #27! FOR EMILY—"

And remember when I asked Eve why I kept coming back to him despite so many people in this big wide world? Right here.. right now—bickering with him.. Despite his stubbornness.. his jealousy over everything that moves.. his annoyingness—even every time I catch a glimpse of you in him? At this moment, he feels..

Just right.

You slap him, catching him off guard—his eyes widening. He's about to retort—when a burger is muffled to his mouth. Rolling his eyes, he angrily bites down on the burger—and you quickly reach over, catching the rest that falls from his mouth. With a guilty expression, you purse your lips, trying to stifle a laugh as you set the burger back to where it was. You burst into laughter as he chews the burger with an annoyed look on his face—he ruffles your hair.

And after everything.. as I draw the line once more, after seeing everything from this side.. from this perspective.. Everything connects. Everything. Whether it's Tumba, or you—mom, Greg.. or Violet—sugarcane? Burgers? It all.. leads back to one.. person.

Tyler.

As you grab his hands and lower them to rest beside you—swallowing the last bit of the burger, a suppressed smirk spreads across his lips. Eventually, holding each other's eyes, the two of you break into laughter.

You said I would find my constant throughout this life. Heh—I never thought I'd find it this fast though, Dad. Seeing his smile.. feeling his warmth.. and after all this time..

In unbridled joy, you smile.. and extend your pinkie. And with a lopsided smile, he carefully wraps his pinkie around yours.. and gently pulls it. He pulls it..

I decide.. from this moment on..

Not moving his gaze from you even once, he brings your entangled pinkie in front of him. And when the entwined heart shape arrives in front of his lips.. he kisses them tenderly.. before finally, he lets out that charming grin of his.

He is my constant.

December 2012

Under the sprawling branches of the majestic tree, a thick blanket of snow covered the ground, transforming the world into a winter wonderland. The lake nearby lay frozen, reflecting the crystalline beauty of the falling snowflakes. Two children, bundled up in their winter gear, sat together on the icy ground.

"Do you want to make a rule?"

The little boy with hazel eyes asked eagerly, a bob cut peeking out from under his woolen hat, cheeks rosy from the cold. Across from him, a little girl with dark brown eyes gazed at him curiously, her puffy coat and knitted scarf wrapped tightly around her. She tilted her head, her breath visible in the chilly air as she asked, "Like what?"

With uncontainable excitement, the boy leaned in closer, causing the girl to shuffle forward in her snow boots.

"Rule #1! Bestfriends Forever! Deal?"

She pouted thoughtfully, her mittens clutching her scarf—before nodding vigorously, shouting, "Deal!"

Grinning widely, the boy added, "But we always have to answer when the other asks. No one can ignore the other! Deal?!"

Still pouting, she pondered his words—eyes darting around until she declared, "Deal!"

"Now, we do this," the little boy said, lifting his mitten-clad hand, extending his small.. pinkie finger.

The girl watched in amazement, her eyes wide. "Wooowwww," she murmured in awe.

"Follow me, okay?" he instructed, face serious—and she nodded eagerly. Taking a deep breath, he finally said,

"Bestfriends?"

Lifting his pinkie finger in front of her face, he chanted the promise. She looked at it in confusion at first—glancing between his face and his outstretched finger. The little boy nodded encouragingly, and after a moment of consideration, a light of understanding finally dawned in her eyes. Quickly, she wrapped her own pinkie around his in eagerness, and the boy breaks off into a broad grin.

The majestic tree under which they sat bowed, welcoming the beginning of a chapter. The frozen lake shimmered under the winter sun, its sparkles dancing around as if joining the celebration. One by one.. crystal snow fell upon their little heads. In the quiet promise, a delighted shrill echoed through the still air, as if giving life to this loud promise of—

"Forever!"

Rule #1: Bestfriends Forever

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Cecylia Costania @rcpcswrites

You can elevate your experience by also listening to songs I added to this story's playlist! Full Playlist on bio💖

The song that matches this Chapter's vibe:

https://youtu.be/NM4e606yFJg