"One simple rule in our friendship," Mattheo said. "Stay away from my little sister."

Theodore's heart pounded against his ribs, a sudden rush of heat flooding his face as his throat went dry. His gaze flickered downward, instinctively avoiding Mattheo's eyes, knowing too well that he had already shattered that very rule. A hundred times over.

What Mattheo didn't know was that the moments they shared - he and you - were hidden in the darkest corners of the castle. You had whispered promises of a future neither of you could see clearly, but both of you hoped for.

Theodore was in too deep. He knew it. But more importantly, you knew it.

Yet here he stood, looking at Mattheo, his best friend and he had to lie. He had to pretend that all those stolen moments didn’t exist.

Mattheo's eyes narrowed further, watching him carefully. "Do you hear me, Theodore?" Mattheo pressed. "This isn’t a joke. I won’t let you ruin her—or our friendship."

Theodore swallowed hard, his fingers twitching at his sides. He could feel the weight of the truth in his chest, begging to break free, but he couldn’t let it.

"I understand," he said, the words leaving his mouth heavier than any confession.

The silence stretched long between them, thick with an unspoken tension that seemed to crackle in the air.

Mattheo exhaled a breath, shaking his head, almost in disbelief. "Good," he said, his voice icy but calm. "Because if you ever break that rule, there won’t be a place in this castle where you can hide from me."

Theodore barely flinched. His body might’ve stiffened, but his face remained a mask of calm. His pulse hammered in his ears, his mind racing with a thousand thoughts, but he couldn’t let any of them show.

He doesn’t know. But someday, somehow, the truth would come out.

And when it did, Theodore knew that nothing would ever be the same. But what Mattheo didn’t know—and what Theodore hadn’t had the courage to say—was that the man standing in front of him wasn’t just his best friend.

He was going to be his brother-in-law.