Ethan and the boys could be seen walking back home, eating something. Ryan was grinning from ear to ear.
"This hamburger is so delicious," Ryan said as he bit into the burger and licked his ice cream hungrily.
"The ice cream is really nice. Ryan, why don't you take Layla there tomorrow?" Blake suggested.
"NO! Why don't you replace me and go on the date with her?" Ryan retorted.
"Dude, calm down. I was just trying to help. That doesn't mean you should swallow me whole," Blake said, creating some distance between him and Ryan.
"You guys should stay outside with all that noise. We don't want any disturbance inside the house," Bassam said with a smirk.
"We should go mute, right?" Blake and Ryan said at the same time.
The door opened from inside the house.
"Both of you should go for a blabbing competition. I want to see who's better," Diana said.
"Well, if it comes to that, I'll leave the award for Ryan," Blake said, dusting his hands with a smile. We all laughed as we walked inside the house.
"You guys bought burgers and ice cream? Where's mine?" Diana asked with a playful smile.
"Well, we almost didn't get you anything. Ethan walked back to the shop to get yours," Ryan said.
I handed her the bag containing what I bought for her.
"Thanks."
"There's no need to thank me," I replied.
Diana walked to the couch on the right and sat down. "I think we should be careful."
Ryan and Blake, who had been murmuring to each other, quickly shut their mouths as the funny atmosphere shifted to something more serious.
"Why do you say that?" Blake asked as he sat down beside her.
"I was just thinking about something. When I thought about Billy attacking Ethan, doesn't it feel weird?" Diana asked.
"Well, it doesn't feel weird to me. It just feels good that he got his butt kicked a second time," Ryan said, though he didn't laugh because of the way Diana looked at him.
"Dude, be serious sometimes," Blake said plainly.
"That's normal. We all know Billy isn't a fan of Ethan; he hates him. The question is, how did he know you were home?" Diana said seriously.
We all began to frown as we considered what Diana said.
"I don't think there's a spy among us or anything. It might've been a student from school who informed Billy. All I'm saying is, we should stay on guard and be careful about what we do," Diana stood up and walked to her room a few seconds after finishing her statement.
"Ethan, tell me when ten minutes are up," Bassam said as he crossed his legs and began to meditate. After ten minutes, I tapped his shoulder to let him know.
Bassam looked at his stats as he stood up.
(MINI SYSTEM)
Name: Bassam
Level: 3
Class: None (not available until you gets to level ten )
Health: 100/100
Exp:170/300
Strength: 15
Agility: 14
Endurance: 13
IQ : 10
(Daily task:3)
Run thirty kilometers 2x=30 exp ( completed)
Do sixty pushups =20 exp ( completed)
meditate for ten minutes = 20 exp ( completed)
"A bit closer to level 4," Bassam muttered to himself.
"Guys, I have to go home now. It's already seven o'clock; my mom is going to kill me," Ryan said as he grabbed his bag and began walking towards the door.
"Mama's boy, be safe!" Blake shouted.
"Papa's boy, I will," Ryan replied with a grin.
"Ryan, be safe and send my regards to your mom," I said seriously.
Ryan nodded at me and waved at Bassam as he walked out of the house. The sound of the door closing echoed across the rooms.
I stood still with a frown on my face.
"I think we should probably go to bed early. You're going to school tomorrow, right?" Bassam asked as he patted my shoulder.
"Sure thing," I said as we all walked to our rooms.
As I lay down on my bed, I thought to myself, **I have to get stronger, and I need it fast.** Ethan drifted off to sleep.
"I almost can't believe that I slept at all. How long was I asleep for?" I mumbled as I tried to grab my phone from the nightstand.
"Ugh, I was supposed to get a new phone yesterday," I sighed. "We were supposed to stop by the store after we came back home last night."
**KNOCK! KNOCK!**
"Ethan, I'm not sure you want to go to school today," Blake called as he knocked on the door.
"I'm awake! I'm not sleeping!" I shouted back.
I got out of bed and opened the door. Blake was already walking down the stairs, still in his pajamas.
"What the hell! I thought you were dressed for school, which is why you knocked!" I shouted after him.
Without even looking back, Blake just lifted his middle finger.
"The time is only 7 o'clock, bro," Bassam said, patting my shoulder as he walked past me.
I could feel my left eye twitching as Bassam casually made his way downstairs. I sighed and walked back into my room to check on the pup.
I carefully picked up the pup, cradling it in my arms. I opened the system, hoping I could check its stats, but I was a little disappointed to see nothing related to it yet.
"Well, at least its body temperature has calmed down," I thought, nodding in satisfaction at its improved condition. I gently placed the pup back on the bed and left the room.
Heading downstairs, I found Bassam, Diana, and Blake sitting at the table, eating breakfast: bread and tea.
"Is there no jam in the fridge?" I asked.
"There is," Blake replied.
"Then why are you having bread and tea instead of bread and jam?" I asked, puzzled.
"We eat what we want to eat. You can eat what you want," Diana said with a smile.
"Why is everyone antagonizing me this morning?" I asked, feeling a bit exasperated.
"Maybe we just feel like it," Blake answered without looking up.
I felt my mouth drop open as I stared at them in disbelief. Shaking my head, I turned and made my way to the bathroom to take a shower.