The Only Rule

You descended the stairs, instinctively pulling out your phone.. only to scroll mindlessly. Because now.. you couldn't shake the nagging feeling that recently, people seemed to stare more than usual..? Girls would murmur the moment you passed.. and the boys? Well, they almost.. seemed to.. admire—but nah. Surely that couldn't be it—

"I see you're planning to survive."

Professor Anderson's voice cut through your reverie. You hadn't even realized you were already standing beside his desk as he tended to his belongings, his eyes never lifting to meet yours.

Exhaling a big sigh, you replied, "I'm sorry if it's not allowed either sir—"

"Oh it is allowed," he interrupted. "I just didn't expect such.." he finally looked up, his gaze sweeping over you from head to toe, before declaring, "..drastic change."

A smug smirk tugged at the corner of your lips as you replied, "I guess I just love to perform, sir."

Professor Anderson's expression instantly soured, his displeasure evident in his furrowed brows. But you didn't give him the chance to say a word. "With all due respect, Professor, I'll do my best to excel in your class too." You nodded, ignoring his growing irritation, and added,

"If you'll excuse me, sir, I have a club to attend to."

Leaving him stewing in his own frustration, you walked out of the classroom. Just as you focused back on your phone, a sudden bump from the side caught you off guard. Startled, you looked up.. only to be greeted by a familiar, smug grin.

After making sure he succeeded in getting your attention, he casually checked on his rear—and backed away, eyes still locked on yours. Now leaning against the nearest sandstone pillar, he cockily crossed his arms in front of his chest, giving you a side smirk.

"We meet again, love."

Mimicking his gesture, you crossed your arms, fighting so hard to keep a sin from creeping up on your face. So you just roll your eyes, the usual, keeping a serious look and narrowing your eyes. "What? You bump into me intentionally now?"

He laughed, "Give me some credit, love. I just saved you from tripping."

"Oh, I'm capable of taking care of myself, love."

Retracting his head exaggeratedly in a whistle, amusement twinkled in his eyes at the unexpected retort—a pleasant one, though. "Ooh, that sounded lovely coming out from that beautiful mouth of yours," he teased, winking.

You scoffed, dropping your arms. "Gross," you mocked, turning to walk away—but Dominic easily fell into step beside you while a chuckle escaped his lips.

"What's this? No 'thank you'?" he teased, raising an eyebrow.

"You're the one who threw yourself in front of me—"

"How do you know? You were too busy staring at your screen."

"I was so sure no one was in front of me—" but you paused, rolling your eyes for seemingly the hundredth time. Giving up, you halted just to throw a tantrum, throwing your hands up before slamming them on your thighs. "Fine, Hunt. You win."

"Yeah, I know," he grinned, and you both continued walking again. Silently, Dominic slowed down his strides to walk behind you, glancing at you from head to toe, noticing your slight boyish—but much decent look. Though, he didn't comment on it, just a small smirk playing on his lips.