Chapter 8 – The Rules
Lorenzo shuffled into the kitchen and made his way over to his seat next to Chet, while Rock and Spud were introducing themselves to his dad. Alice pulled Lorenzo's ice pack out of the freezer and handed it to him, and he put it back on his black eye. Chet silently asked him how it went, and Lorenzo gave a thumbs-up.
"So Chet," his dad began, turning to face his sons, "I talked to Lorenzo, and I decided that as long as you two live here, we should establish some rules."
Chet and Lorenzo looked at each other, silently agreeing that this was not going to be good.
"First of all, Chet, we'll move your stuff into the spare room, and that will be your room from now on, and under no circumstances are you two allowed to go into each other's rooms unless I say otherwise." He stated.
"What if it's an emergency?" Chet asked.
"I can't think of any situation where you need to enter Lorenzo's room urgently. Which brings me to the second rule: no sex."
"Aw, come on!" Chet complained. Lorenzo snorted.
"I mean it, Chet. You will not have sex in my house."
"But-"
"Chet, how would you feel if I had sex with your mother?"
Chet blushed, while Lorenzo, Rock and Spud sniggered, causing Chet to glare at them.
"Lastly, any breaking of rules 1 and 2 will result in immediate grounding, meaning no TV and no videogames until you go off to college."
Chet looked like he was going to either burst an artery or break something. Lorenzo put a hand on his shoulder and gently squeezed, a silent signal telling Chet to not to do anything stupid.
Chet calmed down a bit. "Any rules against making out?" he asked.
Lorenzo's dad looked at his wife, who shrugged her shoulders. "I guess not." He replied. Chet grinned and turned to face Lorenzo, cocking an eyebrow. Lorenzo stuck out his tongue at him.
"Dudes, get a room." Spud interjected.
"They can't, remember? Rule number 2: no sex. That's gotta suck, dude." Rock joked. Chet scowled at him.
"Hey guys, how about we play Rock Storm?" Lorenzo cut in. The Rockers cheered and the boys went into the living room, Rock and Spud crashing onto the couch while Chet and Lorenzo set up the Game Box.
They played Rock Storm until it got dark, and Rock and Spud had to go home. When they left, Lorenzo turned on the TV to watch the Race, shuffling closer to Chet and wrapping an arm around him.
"So, who do you think is gonna get sent home this time? My money's on the Best Friends." Lorenzo stated.
"Same. They're so boring." Chet replied, laying his head on Lorenzo's shoulder.
"You two look cosy."
The boys looked up to see Alice standing in the doorway holding a bowl of popcorn.
"Do you boys want some?" she asked.
"Yes, please." They replied. She set the bowl on the coffee table and sat down on the couch, while Lorenzo reached out to grab a handful of popcorn.
"Gimme some?" Chet asked. Lorenzo looked at him and held a piece of popcorn in front of his face, before putting it into his own mouth. But Lorenzo didn't have a chance to chew, because Chet kissed him, reaching into Lorenzo's mouth with his tongue and snatching the piece of popcorn, pulling it into his own mouth and already chewing on it before Lorenzo could register what happened.
"Thanks, babe." Chet joked. Lorenzo rolled his eyes, but also smiled. He looked back at the TV, and for once, he was happy to be home.
The End