Kate nudged Sarah and the two shared a look when they caught the identical stares Reid and Tyler were throwing at another table.

Jane laughed and cuddled herself under Johnny's arm further. As if sensing the two's look, she glanced in their direction and smiled.

Reid petulantly looked away, refusing to show how much he missed the girl now that she had taken to eating lunch with her boyfriend.

Tyler looked on and Jane smirked. Bringing up her phone she began to press the buttons fiercely. Tyler wasn't surprised when his phone vibrated.

What are you doing later?

-

Tyler opened the door to Jane, who presented him the Chinese take out with a smile.

"Hey," he said with a wide grin. He took the boxes from her and nodded at her 'thank you.' Putting them down and beginning to set up their spread, he asked her, "So, what did you want to talk about?"

Jane gave him a weird look.

"You must want to talk about something if you asked just me to hang out rather than me and Reid," Tyler said with a knowing look.

"We've hung out by ourselves before, Tyler. Its not like I can't stand you without Reid being here to liven things up," Jane said almost angrily. "You know that, right?"

"Yeah," he assured her, smiling happily and looking at her peculiarly, "I do."

"Good," Jane said in satisfaction.

"Good," Tyler parroted. "But…"

Jane gave a defeated sigh. "Sometimes I hate you guys for knowing me so well," she told the blue-eyed boy with a small, sad smile.

He handed her chopsticks. "No, you don't," he replied seriously. "You love us."

She took the pair without hesitation. "I really do," she agreed, biting her lip and looking away.

He took a seat next to her on his bed and began to reach for the Sweet and Sour Chicken. "So, what's up?"

Jane sighed again and Tyler knew that what she was about to say was big – two sighs in three minutes? Not a good sign when it came to talking to a girl.

"I think," she paused and took in a deep breath before starting again. "I think he might be The One." She said the last part with reverence and Tyler almost winced. She didn't need to say who he was. He was the one who had been monopolizing her time lately. He was the one who had been picking her up and taking her out. He was the one she sat with while she ate. He was the one who had been causing her grades to fall.

He was honestly the one person Tyler allowed himself to envy without qualms.

Tyler sighed and put down his box, suddenly not hungry. "The one?" he echoed, dreading the answer.

Jane didn't speak for about a minute. She stared into her rice like it held the answers to the universe.

"You might have a better chance finding out what you should say if it was the fortune cookie you were looking at," Tyler joked half-heartedly. Neither of them smiled.

Prodding her rice with her chopsticks, she answered without looking at him. He was glad because all semblance of comradery fell off his face when she said simply, "My first."

Tyler stopped breathing.

"I mean," she continued on, "we have been dating for about a month and a half, which I can safely say is longer than any other relationship I've ever had with a boy."

Tyler had to control himself from screaming, 'Me – we've been friends for as long as my life has counted.' He didn't dare say it aloud – after all, he had always been the one who let others take the initiative.

"And I don't really think I'll ever find anyone more suited to me," she went on, oblivious to his inner turmoil. "So, I think this is it. He is it." The last three words sounded like a gavel to the heart-stricken boy.

"I don't think you should do this," Tyler finally spoke, pushing aside his usual behavior.

Jane looked at him in the eye for the first time since she came in the room. "Why?" she asked incredulously.

"I don't think he's the one," Tyler answered honestly. It seems that once he found his voice it was hard to silence it. "He doesn't seem perfect for you. Yeah, I know you are independent and self-reliant, but he doesn't take care of you. He doesn't know your hopes and dreams. He doesn't know your favorite foods and your favorite places."

"Well, yeah," Jane interrupted, hands waving around frantically to match her words. "Of course he doesn't. We've only been dating a month and a half."

"Exactly!" Tyler cried. "So how can you be so sure?" His hands curled into fists in his lap and he could not relax them no matter how much he tried, which, admittedly, was not a lot.

"How can you?" she countered. "No one else will ever want me the way he does."

Tyler laughed. "He wants you like any other teenage boy. You deserve better."

"But what is 'better'?" she questioned softly, no mockery in her voice.

"You really don't know?" he asked almost bitterly. His knuckles were turning white and he could feel his muscles cramping. He looked her in the eyes and her expression was so earnest that he could feel the tension seeping out of him slowly. Jane wasn't trying to be difficult; she would never try to hurt him deliberately.

"Tell me," she beseeched, putting her hand on his arm.

Tyler looked at her and his hands unclenched. Slowly, cautiously, his hands came up and cupped her face.

Jane made no move to stop him, seemingly spellbound.

And the he kissed her.

The door banged open. "I smell Chinese!" Reid cried, his arms spread in excitement. Jane and Tyler sprang apart almost instantaneously, but the blonde boy still saw.

For a few seconds nothing was said, and then Reid turned around and ran.

Jane pushed Tyler away immediately after their best friend's exit.

"Wait," he implored desperately, arms reaching for her again, but this time she wasn't so entranced.

Jane batted his hands away and looked at him with watery eyes. She blinked and the tears started leaking. The next thing that came out of her mouth nearly left him undone. "You ruined everything," she said it like it was the one truth she would forever know.

And then she left, and Tyler was left alone in an empty room with only the company of chilling Chinese food and unopened fortune cookies.

TBC.

Disclaimer: The Covenant is really not mine.

Author's Note:This played out a hell of a lot simpler in my mind. I kind of wanted it to be short and to the point so as to get it over with. Apparently Tyler and Jane had other ideas for how it was going to go down, though. Lol. You all thought she was going to kiss Reid first, didn't you? I just realized that this fic generally leans towards Tyler, which isn't a bad thing – he's really cute. Lol.