Look who's Whipped now

The three boys from the club; Travis, Brian, and Rick all rushed out of there as fast as they could. After they received the calls from the girls that said they better get home soon, so they all left. Travis was dating a girl named Raven, Brian was seeing her sister Lilith, and Rick was in a long term relationship with those girls' best friend and roommate Kristin. The three girls have been living together for a while now and since the boys are dating them, they all hang out a lot. The other night the boys were growing tired of all the girl talk and all the constant nagging from the girls so they took a guys night out. After a night of watching the Cullen's and learning a few new lessons these guys received calls from their girls saying that they better get back home because they were not given permission to go out that night. Before Travis and the others had gotten too far, Edward rushed over and handed him a ripped out piece of magazine. Travis was just going to crumple it up and throw it out until he glanced at the title again. Attention guys: 9 ways to show your wife she's a priority in your life! This didn't seem like something he would need to read, to him but Travis thought it might be a good laugh so he brought it home with them. On the way back Brian was driving and Travis was reading the article while Rick sat silently in the back of the car.

"This is all such bull!" Travis yelled at nothing as he read.

"What is that anyway Trav? That guy give you some sort of self help shit his girl made him read?" Brian asked after a while of driving, he was hoping to get a good laugh at the whole thing.

"Its an article about making your wife a priority! What kind of carp is that?" Travis said as he tossed the thing in the back where it landed in Rick's lap. "I mean, really? What guy is going to read THAT and say, 'hey, that makes sense!' Bull, it is nothing but a bunch of gibberish! Why we he even think that I'd want that?"

Rick sat silently in the back and just started reading the article for himself. The more he read the more he thought about his girl friend of over five years now, Kristin. Rick and Kristin had met in school and started dating, they have been together ever since but Brian his older brother and Travis had never understood why he liked her so much. Rick didn't really care much about the jokes the boys made at the club but he was always with them so it was easier to play along. The article was interesting to Rick, sure some things were a little strange but not completely unreasonable. He understood that men would probably have a better marriage if they followed this but at the same time not every girl would like everything here.

…

Attention guys: 9 ways to show your wife she's a priority in your life!

1. Be home on time. When you say you are going to be home at a certain time you need to be there.
2. If your wife calls, answer the phone. It is one thing to say that my wife is a priority to me; it is another thing to show it by my actions.
3. Remember important dates. There are these things called anniversaries and birthdays (not to mention Christmas and Valentine's Day).
4. Continue to date her. We have to continue to pursue our wives after we marry them.
5. Help her around the house. Guys, the most important piece of advice I can give you is go ask her what you can do to help her
6. Be perceptive. This means we need to respond to her, to practice active listening and seek to understand how she feels and what she needs. God made her unique and gave her to us to serve her and take care of her. The only way we will do this is by really listening to her and being perceptive and responding to what she needs.
7. Never make disparaging remarks about her. We must honor our wives by the way we talk about them in public. Be open with your emotions and tell your wife how much you love her and why. Guard your tongue and don't make sarcastic comments about her in an attempt to be funny. Do not bash her to others.
8. When you are home, be home. I know that many of us are very busy and our jobs demand a lot. But when we get home, we need to drop the craziness that is our daily job and focus on our wife
9. Take care of yourself physically.

…

This was starting to make more sense to Rick and even with what Travis and Brian had been saying he knew they could see reason. Travis and Brian were mostly just talk and little of it was truth. Travis and Brian could both be really sweet and caring when it came to their girl friends, it was out in public with the guys that they acted like this. … Like jerks, and like they didn't care. Sure none of them were married to these girls and they didn't follow all of these guild lines but the did love the girl they were with. Even if they didn't always show it to the rest of the world, they still cared for them when they were all alone. In secrete they loved them! But secrete wasn't going to be good enough for very long so Rick kept the paper and hoped in time it would become useful for everyone.

"Maybe, … maybe its not so bad. Guys, I mean I know you wouldn't want to upset the girls so why not show we care just a little more than we usually do?" Rick commented from the back.

"Dude? … Don't you start with all that lovey dovey crap too!" Brian complained.

"Come on, Man! We just want to get home and forget all about those stupid punks. Nothing on that page would ever work on any chick out there." Travis said just as the car parked.

"I don't know about that. I think it would help a lot. I'm sure Raven and the others would love it if they read this article. Its possible that they already have." Rick responded back.

"I bet that crap would never work on any girl!" Travis challenged and then he got an idea. "Alright, Love-Brain. If you believe all that mushy gushy crap then prove it!"

"What do you mean by that Trav?" Brian asked as we all got out of the car and just stood there talking.

"I mean … I'll make that bet! Rick goes through the check list on that stupid article for, uhh I don't know a week or so and we will see how Kristin reacts to all that junk." Travis explained.

"How will that prove anything? One couple doesn't prove it works for everyone. How about we all try it out for a month and then we will know for sure?" Rick adjusted the bet to work better.

"You want all of us to do this shit?" Travis and Brain both asked together.

"Well, it will be the best way to know for sure!" Rick smirked because he knew they would have to agree now.

"FINE! … But we start tomorrow because I'm too tired to reread that crap right now and the girls are all waiting for us so we better get in there before they completely go nuts!" Travis agreed.

Travis never thought this was really going to work but he wasn't too against the idea of trying. Maybe Raven would like some of the things on the list more than he would be willing to admit. Brian really didn't care much either way but he would agree to anything Travis was willing to do even if he thought it was stupid. If nothing else Rick had the great pleasure of knowing he had just tricked the boys into a month of good behavior. Something that would have seemed to be a miracle to anyone that knew them all. Rick was just getting tired of all the jokes and annoying fights because Travis never knew when to shut his mouth and when to keep his hands to himself. He often wondered if Travis ever treated on Raven but since Rick had no proof he never said anything to anyone.

"WHERE THE HELL HAVE YOU BEEN?" Lilith yelled from the door way as the boys made their way up to her.

"Come on, Lil. I'm sure they have a good enough explanation so just relax would you?" Kristin came to place a hand on her shoulder just as the boys reached the door.

"OH, Babe. We just went out for a little fun. No big deal!" Brian said as he walked past the girls and plopped down in one of the chairs.

"FUN, Huh? Well what kind of fun? Did you know we had no idea where any of you were?" Lilith glared at him with her arms crossed in front of her again, she has a bit of a temper.

"Babe, Chill. Nothing happened and now you're blocking the TV. Maybe if you just moved to the left a bit?" Brian said not really caring that she was upset or about anything really.

"What's the big deal? So we took a guys night out? I left a note saying we'd be back before too late." Travis said as he sat down on the couch. "Where's Raven anyway?"

"Lilith, calm down or I'll make you meditate again." Raven said as she walked in and sat by Travis on the couch. "Oh and by the way, if you ever leave a note without saying where you are going again I'll be happy to leave you all out side on the lawn for the night." Raven said simply, with no emotions as she placed a small chaste kiss to his cheek, she was scary that way sometimes.

"Got it Rave. Whatever you say." Travis answered with just a hint of sarcasm in his voice, Raven wasn't too happy but let it go.

"Hey, Kristin we really didn't mean to upset everyone." Rick said once he got into the house and lightly kissed her.

"I know, its fine." She answered back before leading him into the back where her room was so they could talk without the others around to complain or joke about everything.

Travis and Brian spent the rest of the night watching TV with Raven and Lilith in the living room. The girls weren't happy about what happened but didn't bother to say anymore about it that night. Rick and Kristin stayed in the back of the house out of every ones way and to keep away from the unstable rath of Lilith. Raven had a subtle temper, she would always seem calm to everyone around her but if you really looked you could see the anger in her eyes, hear it in her calm and emotionless voice. The other boys never saw these things; the only time they knew she was upset was when it became too much and she blows up at everyone. Nothing would please Rick more than for them to just learn a little something after this month, he hoped for Travis and Brian to at least understand the girls a little more or behave a little better. He hoped but didn't expect much to come from this little bet. Nothing would change.

…

The next day the boys sat down together, after the girls ran off to work, to look over the article again. They worked out all the terms of the bet and conditions involved. They all decided that it would be a full month thing starting at the first of next month, as it was February. That would mean that Valentines day will be a part of the bet as well this taking care of number 3. Since none of them were really married number 4 wasn't really important. Travis and Brian weren't too happy about the rules for number 5, 6, or 7 but they had to agree and number 8 and 9 confused them both. Rick had to explain it and then the boys were complaining even more. Finally after the check list was made up, then the rules of the bet were taken care of. Travis was always in the mood for a good challenge and he was so set in his belief that it wouldn't work on a girl. So instead of trying to prove that this article wouldn't work he wanted to challenge that he could get it to work on Raven but the other boys wouldn't be able to. Brian, always up for anything, had agreed and Rick thought it was better that way so he agreed. If Travis won the bet the other boys would have to wash his car for a year, if Brian won the other boys would have to do his laundry for a year, if Rick won the other boys would have to agree it was a better way to do things and continue to behave this way, and if none of them were able to succeed than they would burn the article and pretend that this was just a wasted month and move on.

…

February 1st came much more quickly than Travis and Brian would have like and not quite soon enough for Rick but it came and the bet was set into motion. Days came and went with all three boys following all the rules. They came home on time, answered the girls' phone calls, stopped using sarcasm when talking to them, helped around the house, focused more on the girls and how they were feeling -Travis and Brian learned a lot with this one-, they even stopped talking bad about their girl friends in public and started talking more about how they felt about their girls. Before any of them new it, February 14th was just the next day and that meant it was time for number 3 to come into effect. All three boys planned very romantic surprises for each of the girls. Brian went for the simple dinner and a movie. Rick took Kristin out for a romantic picnic, while Travis took Raven for a walk in the park and spent all night star gazing with her because that was her favorite thing to do. Raven and Lilith were becoming very aware that something was very different about the boys and how they were behaving but the boys liked to play games. They often did stupid things, made bets and all that so they didn't think too much about what was going on. In truth, all the girls were liking the new differences so instead of talking about it they wanted to see how long it would last. Lilith was very skeptical about what was happening, at first she thought Brian was trying to mess with her but after a few days of good behavior she decided why mess with a good thing? Rick was never really that bad when it came to Kristin so all the extra attention was just an added bonus for her but not as shocking so there was nothing to question for her. Raven on the other hand was completely floored when Travis had first come home on time, kissed her cheek and asked if there was anything he could do to help her. She instantly grew suspicious and continued to ask him repeatedly what had him acting so strange, a good strange but still bizarre. Raven was slowly growing used to the new Travis. The night she found that an old friend had pasted away he stayed up all night with her while she cried and he was comforting. Travis took care of her while she mourned for her loss. Rick was becoming very proud of how well everything was going, Brian wasn't as good as Travis but at least he was a little better.

"I have no idea what alien came down and traded you boys for the real ones but I'm almost glad they did." Lilith said one evening when everyone was sitting by the TV together.

"Almost, huh? Well then maybe we should be returning to the mother ship!" Brian joked as he pulled her into his arms and started ticking her until she screamed and begged for him to stop. "Maybe you shouldn't get so used to all the alien behavior because you never know when the leaders will call us back home and return your beloved Brian."

"Oh cut it out!" Raven yelled as she saw that Lilith needed to caught her breath. "If you were all aliens then that would mean we are cheating and I SO DO NOT CHEAT!"

"Of course you don't Sweet heart." Travis said with a soft chuckle. "But maybe we aren't aliens maybe we are just clones so technically you're cheating on me with me!"

"Oh come off it!" Raven tried to sound angry but her laughter was too uncontrollable to help. "Oh fine, that was funny!"

Rick mostly sat back with Kristin in his arms and watched how the other boys reacted with Raven and Lilith now. He was hoping that things would stay this way long after the bet. By the way that Travis was acting, Rick was starting to think it might. Travis really did seem to be different now, Brian wasn't doing that great a job but if Travis changed it was only a matter of time before Brian did to. Brian never did anything that went against Travis, he followed his lead and even if he went to the extremes sometimes he always changed again. All in all Rick was very pleased with how things were working out and the chances of this new behavior sticking around was looking very good. The month was almost coming to an end, Brian couldn't be happier, Travis barely noticed anymore and Rick was sitting on pin cushions waiting to see if things were really going to change or not. He thought they would but at the same time he knew how much Travis loved to win and he would do anything to complete a challenge so it could all be fake.

…

The month was finally over, the girls still have no idea what happened to the boys but at this point they really didn't care. Lilith and Raven still joked with them but they were more appreciative than they were letting on. All of the girls loved the new boys and hoped things would last like this almost as much as Rick did.

"OK, Buddy! The month is up … sooo How do we figure out who won this stupid thing?" Brian asked in the morning as soon as the girls took off.

"Well its clear that I WON because Raven totally loves all that stuff I've been doing lately." Travis said confidently.

"No technically we all won." Rick announced. "The bet was to see who's girl friend would like these new behaviors from the check list. Since all of the girls love it so much we all won, which also means that we all lost."

"What do you mean by that Short-stuff?" Brian asked looking very confused, not the brightest in the family.

"What do you mean we all win but we all lose? How does that work?" Travis asked probably more upset he didn't really win.

"Well since all the girls liked it, we all win. Because we all won, we ALL have to pay the prices set from the others." Rick told them then turned towards Brian. "WE have to wash Travis's car for the next year, Travis and I now have to do your laundry for the next year and you both now have to agree this is a better way to do things with the girls and continue to behave this way!"

"HOLD THE PHONE! … What? Do you mean we have to do all that?" Brian started yelling now. "If we all won then all that crap should be thrown out and forgotten. GAME OVER, RESET! If we all won then none of that matters anymore. If you think I won and I'm still going to fucking wash his stupid ass car for a whole year, you all have lost your minds!"

"Chill out Brian. … If those were the rules then I think doing your laundry for a whole year is WAY worse than my car which never gets dirty?" Travis argued with him if for no other reason just to shut him up.

"If the punishment is too steep for you then how would you like an adjustment?" Rick offered calmly while the others huffed over the year long torturers they would face.

"What did you have in mind Small fry?" Brian asked at the same time Travis said, "What adjustments?"

"I'll take responsibility for the year long punishments. I will do both the car and the laundry." Rick told them honestly.

"… Ok, what's the caught little man?" Brian asked after a while of no one saying anything.

"Why would you take all of the punishments for yourself?" Travis asked more confused than before.

"Because I'm not taking all of them… not really. I'm taking the year long punishments but you both still have to stick with mine!" Rick told them smugly, sure that they would see it a good enough trade without thinking about it too much.

"Alright, you got yourself a deal." Brian agreed quickly enough just as Rick guessed he would.

"Wait… you are going to take our chores just so we will continue to what … Do a bunch of things for our girlfriends? To act like that article says a husband should act towards his wife? You want to take our punishments for that, WHY?" Travis asked.

"Because it is how you should behave anyway and now you have to. You have clearly proven it to yourselves that the girls prefer this behavior and so I will do the what I agreed to as long as you both do the same. Treat them how you should've all along and I will wash your car and laundry without complaint." Rick said.

Travis and Brian were both very confused but willing enough to agree. Brian didn't really think it mattered much either way but if his brother was going to do his laundry then why not. Travis on the other hand was already planning to keep this new behavior and almost felt bad for making Rick wash his car, almost! Rick didn't really care that he had to deal with this punishment because most of the time it was him doing everything around the house anyway. The laundry, washing the dishes, picking up the trash. Rick was always doing those things so the girls didn't have to all the time.

…

It turned out that Kristin had left her keys in the living room when she left that morning and so when she came to get them she heard the boys talking in the kitchen. None of them heard her but she listened to the whole conversation, down to the end where Rick explained why he wanted to take that punishment. Later that night Kristin confronted Rick about the whole thing and after he explained it again, thinking she was upset with him, he realized she was grateful. Kristin loved Rick even more because he was willing to take on really horrible jobs just so her best friends would be treated better by their mostly rude and inconsiderate boyfriends. Rick was the sweetest guy she had ever met and she thought herself lucky to have found him. Rick felt the same way every time he woke up and saw Kristin still asleep in his arms. One day he hoped to make that permanent, one day he hoped to use that ring he bought just for her! One day he hoped she would give him a new reason to reread the magazine article that Edward gave the guys that night in that club. He also hoped to thanks Edward one day!