The Rule Ch. 02

There was an incredibly awkward, palpable silence as Kevin thought hard about what he wanted to say next.

Beth, after calling him out, turned quickly around and now was leaning against the counter she had been bent over just moments before. While the shocked fury was gone from her eyes, they still held an obvious amount of disgust. Her intense gaze was locked on Kevin, waiting for his answer.

Kevin felt his eyes awkwardly dart between each of her piercing blue eyes. His heart pounded in his chest- Beth was an intensely intimidating person in the best of situations, and this was probably the worst of situations.

Okay, thought Kevin. Here goes nothing. "...I wasn't."

It wasn't the worst defense, was it? Could she really be 100% sure, from the angle in the mirror, that he was looking at her ass?

A single one her eyebrows lifted gently. "Try again," she said dryly- insulted he thought the strategy would work. Kevin opened his mouth to debate this, but she shut him down before he could make a sound. "Not only was it completely obvious... you've been sitting there red faced for two minutes, Kevin. Not the best poker face."

Kevin sighed. He was really hoping to get out of admitting it, but he was clearly caught. He put elbows on the table and his head in his hands. "Okay. All right. ...I was."

She shook her head, disgusted.

"I mean, to be fair, you bent over right in front of me! It was right there! It was practically most of my sightline."

There was another pause before she replied. "So," she said slowly, "you think it's my fault? You think I was looking for it?"

"No," Kevin responded quickly, realizing how stupid his comment was. God, he thought, Beth always had the upper hand in conversations. "No, of course not. Look, I'm... I'm really sorry. I don't know what came over me there, but it won't happen again. I'm sorry if that made you feel uncomfortable."

Beth looked offended. "Uncomfortable? If I couldn't handle someone staring at my ass, I'd never be able to go anywhere in this city."

"Oh...?" responded Kevin, confused.

"I'm thinking about Chrissy, your girlfriend, Kevin," she spelled out for him, surprised he didn't think of it. "She's one of my best friends- you think she'd appreciate you checking out other women? Her roommate?"

Kevin blinked. Given their Rule, he completely forgot this would be a concern. "Oh!" he exclaimed, eager to clear up that it wasn't a worry. "Oh, no she wouldn't-" Wait. Wait, fuck. Chrissy specifically asked for The Rule to be a secret. Kevin paused, his eyes again flickering back and forth between her still ones. Could he explain why Chrissy wouldn't mind without explaining The Rule? "Uh..." was all he could manage.

A sudden curiosity showed on Beth's face. "She wouldn't? She wouldn't... what?"

"Uh, nothing."

"She wouldn't...care you were checking me out?"

"Well... no?"

"So, you won't care if I tell her?" said Beth, thinking she was calling a bluff.

"Go ahead," replied Kevin without worry.

Beth suddenly looked bewildered. "What? She really wouldn't care?" The disgust was gone, totally replaced with curiosity.

Kevin knew he was in a tight spot now. "Maybe?" God, he thought, I am the worst liar on earth.

"Why not?" said Beth, pushing herself off the counter to stand in front of him.

He looked up at her doing everything in his power to retain eye contact. There was something about her being above him, in this tight yoga outfit, making demands of him... could there be anyone hotter on earth?

He decided Beth was too smart and read him too well to lie. "Look, Chrissy... she asked me not to say."

Beth crossed her arms, her fingers slowly drumming on one arm with impatience. After a second of waiting, she spoke carefully. "Look, you have two options, here. Either I walk out of this room and think you're an asshole, or you tell me your little secret. Your call."

Kevin knew this tone- it was the same she used when closing deals on the phone. It felt like she had all the power here, and Kevin had to just go with it. It was pretty intimidating to be on the receiving end of it.

Kevin sighed once more, giving in. "Okay, okay. Alright. You win. I hate to break my word with Chrissy, but since I was... looking at... well, I think you've earned the truth."

Beth nodded. There was a slight glint in her eye- Kevin could tell she liked to win.

He took a moment to collect his thoughts. "Okay, so... you know how you and Mark are like... the most attractive people on planet earth?"

Beth's eyes widened, and Kevin even noted a slight flush in her ears. It was a very rare moment- Kevin had never seen Beth blush. It was clearly not what she expected him to say. "What?" she asked.

"You and Mark. You're like... statues come to life, or something. You both ooze pure, raw sexuality. It's insane."

Beth blinked at him.

"Oh, come on, you must realize it to some degree! Look, I mean- let's talk about Mark. I'm comfortable enough with my sexuality to say that Mark is a pretty perfect specimen of a man. I've seen him with his shirt off. If I bought a comic book for some super hero, and an exact depiction of Mark was on the cover, I'd complain to the editor that they were perpetuating unrealistic body types for men. Do you know what I mean?"

Beth stared at him. "What does this have to do with you staring at my ass?" She was genuine in her question.

Kevin worried he was sounding crazy here. "I just need you to understand what it's like for two average people to be around you guys, otherwise, this will make no sense."

She paused before nodding.

"So, we have Mark, who's built like some bodybuilder demigod, put on earth to tease women. And you. I remember the other day, I was walking past a big billboard for Victoria's Secret, with all the new models, and I remember thinking, 'Wow, they're hot! I mean, not Beth hot, but hot!' Like, I think if you were on the billboard across the street, I think most people would be looking at you, not them. You know?"

"These analogies," said Beth with dry humor, still staring down at him, "are really awful."

Kevin smiled, relieved her disgust with him seemed to have slipped away. He continued. "I know, I know. But here's the problem: Mark's not in a comic book, and you're not on a billboard. You're here, every day, with us. Plain old Kevin and Chrissy, average couple, have to look at you, eat dinner with you... see you both in towels. We have to be around it every day. So one day we just... we just had to admit it to each other." Kevin carefully avoided the story of why this happened. "We said we loved each other, and we were happy with each other, and we found the other very attractive... but we live with absurdly attractive people and it's OK to admit that. Rather than burying these thoughts, we're more... honest about it."

"Honest?"

"Well... we came up with what we call The Rule. If we're ever in a situation where we feel like we want to check you out, we can. But for no more than two seconds. That's it. So, in that instance... instead of just looking at the ceiling or staring into my cereal bowl while thinking what an awful boyfriend I am for having these thoughts, I just take two seconds, think, 'Yes, that's the greatest ass I have ever seen', and then, I move on."

Beth's lips pursed thoughtfully.

"So," Kevin added, "I'm sorry I was staring... and I'll stop if it's weird. But don't think for a second I was betraying Chrissy or anything, because she has a special two seconds of her own right when Mark gets back from the Gym."

Beth looked at Kevin in thoughtful silence, her face unreadable. Kevin simply sweated it out as she seemed to analyze him.

Finally, her gaze broke. She picked up her yoga bag from the corner of the Kitchen, and headed towards the door. "Well," she said without looking at him, "I don't think you're an asshole." And left through the door.

Kevin sat in silence, the only one left in the apartment. He took a bite of soggy cereal, feeling nervous that he wasn't out of the woods yet.

***

Since the whole incident with Beth in the morning, Kevin decided to dive into his work and try not to focus on it. He had to tell Chrissy soon that he had spilled the beans- would that impact her relationship with Mark? He hoped she wouldn't be mad, anyway.

He was in his and Chrissy's bedroom. He would work at his desk until around dinner time- usually Chrissy would hang out in the common room until he was done. Her teaching schedule meant she was off the clock way earlier than he could be.

He was deep in some code, fixing bugs, when his phone went off with a text message notification.

Chrissy: Did something happen today?

Kevin felt his heart pound. He completely lost his train of thought with the bugfix. "Ah, shit," he said under his breath for so many reasons.

Kevin: What do you mean?

It took a few minutes for her to reply.

Chrissy: Lol it's just Mark has been sitting in the common room with me shirtless for like an hour. Hard for me to pick my two seconds...

Chrissy: Thought maybe you gave him 5 bucks to do it :P

Mark was also on an early schedule. This was very common- Beth and Kevin would have their mornings together, while Mark and Chrissy would have the late afternoons.

Kevin looked at his phone, bewildered. It wasn't like Mark to do that. Could Beth have told him about their conversation this morning? Kevin sighed. Maybe now that Mark knew Chrissy found him irresistible, he was trying to flaunt it. Classic Mark.

Kevin: Er, yeah, actually there's something I needed to talk to you about.

Chrissy: Oh... what's up?

Kevin: Can you come in here?

Chrissy: Even though you're still working? You sure?

Kevin smiled. She was so respectful of his space while working, even though it was their bedroom. He loved that.

Kevin: Yeah, come in here, just a minute.

He heard her footsteps before the door swung open, revealing her smiling face. "Hey!"

"Hey," he replied, softer.

She shut the door behind her. She wore one of her classic baggy sweatshirts, and her hair was pulled into two ponytails. "What's up? Better make this quick, I'm missing quite a show outside," she teased with a cheeky smile.

"So, yeah... that's what I wanted to talk to you about."

She cocked her head, now serious. "What?"

"I told Beth about The Rule."

Chrissy looked surprised for a moment, then completely mortified. "What?! Why?!"

"She caught me! She caught me looking at her butt, and it just seemed like she thought I was the worst person on earth for betraying you. So she was ripping into me and I just had to tell her."

Chrissy groaned and sat on the bed. "Ohh, Kevin, no. No!"

"I'm sorry."

She groaned again, louder. "Now they know what perverts we are!"

"Well, I didn't tell them...obviously not that we... fantasize about them."

"Thank god."

"I just told them we found them attractive, and we were okay admitting that!" Kevin shook his head. "They must know how hot they are... do they really not know?" he mused quietly.

"Well, Mark definitely knows it," she said, looking at the bedroom door. The realization struck. "Oh, god, that's why he's out there without a shirt on? Because he knows I...?"

Kevin nodded. "I think so."

"Oh my god. This is mortifying."

"I'm really... really sorry."

She groaned a third time then sighed. "Okay. Well, fine. I guess it's not so bad if all he wants to do is flaunt his body at me. I'll let you get back to work, but you... you are in trouble for this one."

Kevin smiled. She didn't really sound too angry. "Oh yeah? What's my punishment?"

She stood up and headed for the door. "He's out there without a shirt on! I get waaay more than two seconds."

Kevin laughed, knowing he was getting off easy. "Deal."

***

The rest of the evening was uneventful- after his work, they all saw each other, but everything seemed normal. Kevin was relieved- he was worried this might have impacted their friendship. Chrissy teased Kevin endlessly in bed that night for giving up their secret, but it all was lighthearted.

The next morning, however, things began to change.

He sat at the breakfast table again, eating the same brand of cereal he ate the previous day. Mark and Chrissy had left the apartment hours ago, so the only other person home was Beth. He knew she would be in the common room any minute now- he wanted to clear the air and make sure they were okay.

He heard the door to Beth and Mark's room swing open.

"Morning," he said cheerily, though this morning he was forcing it a bit more.

"Morning," said Beth in her usual monotone.

Kevin stared into her cereal as she got her tablet, getting ready to read her morning news, as she always did. "Ah, Beth, I just wanted to say sorry again- I know I put us in a bit of a weird situation yesterday, but I'm hoping we can put this beh-" As Kevn's eyes looked up, the words suddenly caught in his throat.

Beth had bent over the same counter she had the morning before, reading on her tablet. Her ass was, again, right at his eye level.

But she wasn't wearing any pants. She wore a loose tank top... and lace panties. That's it.

There it was. The perfect ass. The one he had fantasized about countless times. Except all those other times, he only had yoga pants to work with. Now all that covered it was a purple, lace thong. She was arching her back ever so slightly, which really accented the heart shape of her ass. He noted the little freckles on one cheek that he hadn't expected. And they lead down to those thighs, thick yet toned from hard work at yoga.

For a moment, Kevin felt his brain turn off, totally in awe of the sight before him.

"What you were saying?" she asked casually, not taking her eyes off her tablet. "You were sorry about... something?"

Kevin's brain turned back on and felt his adrenaline spike. He realized his jaw was hanging open- he snapped it shut. His head and eyes snapped down to his cereal in an absurd attempt to stop staring at her.

He felt his heart pounding again. What was this? Was this a test of some kind?

"That," she said dryly, "was a long two seconds."

He looked over at the mirror and caught her eyes- she had watched his reaction. Her expression was unreadable. The mirror provided a new angle of Beth- a side profile of her bending over the counter. It took every ounce of willpower Kevin had to keep his eyes locked on hers.

If this was a test, he was no doubt failing.

"So... what were you trying to say?" she asked again.

"I was... trying to apologize for... making things weird. If I did that."

"I think we're fine. Don't you?"

Kevin blinked. "Um..."

She stretched casually, arching her back a bit more. "Why, do you feel weird?"

Kevin thought about it before answering. "...I don't know how I feel."

She studied him carefully in the mirror, before turning back towards her tablet, tapping it casually. "So," she said, "there's something I don't understand. About your Rule."

"What's that?" he asked, failing to match her casual tone. His throat felt dry.

"What happens if you fail?"

"What do you... mean?"

Beth began to slowly, rhythmically and very gently shift her weight back and forth from one foot to another. As she did so, her ass gently tilted back and forth, changing its angle from one side to the other in a hypnotic swing. Back and forth. Back and forth. She did it very casually, as if it was a type of pre-yoga stretch. The movement was small, subtle- she wasn't putting on a show for him. Or at least that's how she wanted it to appear.

Kevin felt his cock growing in his pants. He could only appreciate this new movement from his peripheral vision, of course. He didn't dare look again. Half of his brain was demanding he stare at the insanely erotic site before him, but the other half didn't dare risk pissing Beth off. Not to mention, he had already used up his two seconds.

"I mean," she spoke slowly, still looking at the tablet, "What if..." Back and forth. "You looked..." Back and forth. "For more than two seconds?" Even though she spoke slowly, her tone stayed completely casual, as if she was asking him what he wanted for lunch. Her eyes never left the tablet.

Kevin decided it was best to stare at his cereal again, though most of his brain power was focused on the subtle tilting motion of the perfect ass in his peripheral vision. "I don't know. That's just the... the boundary we set for ourselves."

"But what happens if you cross that boundary?"

"I don't... I don't know."

"Well, let's say for example, I told you I'm about to take one hand..." The shifting stopped. She took one hand off her tablet and placed it gently on her ass. "And spank my ass. Would you want to look, even though you've already used your two seconds? Would you want to see how it jiggles?" Kevin couldn't believe how casual her tone stayed while speaking about this.

Kevin wasn't sure if this was a trick, so he stayed quiet.

"Answer me," she said. It wasn't a demand, exactly- it wasn't impolite. It just had the authoritative air of someone who knew she would be obeyed.

Kevin was still unsure. If he looked, would she call him an asshole for crossing the boundary? What was she up to? "Maybe?"

"Answer me truthfully." Her voice had a hint of annoyance that she was having to ask twice. "In fact, to make this easier for both of us, why don't you just tell me the truth about everything from now on."

"Okay."

"Good boy." Oh, god. Kevin melted a bit as she said that. "So?"

The more power she took in this conversation, the harder his cock got. "Yes. Obviously, yes, I'd want to."

"But you couldn't. Because of The Rule."

"Right."

"Do you think you'd resist?"

Kevin was quiet.

"Well, let's see, shall we?" She lifted her hand above her ass, though her eyes were still reading the morning news. "I'm going to spank my ass on the count of three. And let's see what you do."

Kevin focused hard on his cereal bowl.

"One."

Was she really about to do this? Right in front of him? Seeing Beth, in her lace panties, spank her own ass right in front of him was a fantasy come to life. Would he really not look?

"Two."

But there was no telling if she'd actually spank herself. Maybe this was all a trick! In fact, it probably was. Was it worth it to look up, when it was more than likely just a trick she was playing on him? He'd just look up and she'd be flipping him off or something.

"And. Three."

Oh, who was he kidding. Kevin knew there was no way he'd be able to resist.

He looked up.

She was still reading the tablet, almost looking bored. It was as if she didn't need to look in the mirror to see if he was looking- as if she knew he wouldn't be able to resist.

The spank wasn't rough, but deliberate and firm. Her hand landed on one cheek, and it filled the room with a loud smack which caught Kevin off guard. Her ass, though firm from yoga, was thick enough that it jiggled back and forth erotically for a moment before settling back into place.

Okay, thought Kevin. That was worth it.

"Oops," said Beth without a hint of emotion in her voice. "I think you broke your Rule."

She finally stood up, turned around and walked towards her room. She stopped next to him, without turning her body towards him.

Kevin was too embarrassed to turn his head towards hers, but he couldn't believe how good she smelled. Did she have any flaws?

"What's that?" she asked. He looked up at her and saw she was looking at his crotch, face neutral and one eyebrow raised. There was an obvious tent from one of the biggest erections of his life.

Kevin's face flushed. "Um..."

Beth tsked as if disappointed, then walked to her room. She put on her yoga pants, and without saying another word, left to go to yoga.