“Take a shot Bruno.” Said a man with a long, dark beard sitting at the far end of the table.

Everyone at the table became silent and their cold gazes fell upon a very handsome boy in school uniform. He had a perfectly carved face highlighted by small, pink lips and deep green eyes. His shoulders were very broad revealing he was an athlete. He had a great physique! A lot of women in the bar couldn’t keep their eyes of him. Most of them even wished they could be young once again so they can have him.

“He is scared. Chicken!” The man with a long beard provoked Bruno when he didn’t speak up.

All the men on the table roared with laughter.

Bruno became nervous and felt cornered by all the eyes staring at him, waiting for an answer. It was his first time playing a “Truth or Dare” game with gang members. Knowing how brutal and ruthless gang members were, Bruno regretted ever entering the game. It was too deadly!

Juan Pablo, Bruno’s childhood best friend, became concerned when Bruno didn’t place his shot. “Bro, what is the matter?”

“Anselmo, dare me.” Bruno answered, claiming that he wasn’t just a rich kid from the prestigious neighbourhood of Beverly Hills. Like them, he also had some balls of courage. But deep down, he prayed the dare wouldn’t affect his esteemed family’s reputation. He was the second son of Juan Karlos Santa Cruz, one of the richest men in the West. If his father knew he was at the infamous bar, La Reina, he would send a whole army to fetch him

The men were satisfied with Bruno’s response, so they cheered, raised their beer mugs and toasted.

“Juan Pablo, give the boy a dare.” Anselmo said and winked at Juan Pablo.

Juan Pablo’s face brightened with joy and nodded. He wandered his eyes around the bar filled with many drunkards, gang members and prostitutes. At last, his eyes landed on a tall, blonde woman sitting by the counter drinking tequila. He waved at her and she sent a flying kiss.

“I dare you to make out with her like you do with Blanca.” Juan Pablo pointed at the woman.

The minute Bruno saw her, he refused immediately. “No Juan Pablo!” He couldn’t sleep with a prostitute, to top it off, he couldn’t cheat on his long-time girlfriend, Blanca.

Bruno looked at the woman once again from head to toe with so much disgust on his face. “Certainly not, she is below my status. She’s a prostitute.”

He wondered if his best friend was even serious, or the alcohol got into him.

“What status? Come on man, it is just once! Blanca doesn’t have to know.” Juan Pablo tried to persuade him. “I mean look at her.”

“No!” Bruno disagreed in fury.

Seeing Bruno fume with rage, Juan Pablo shrank back and kept quiet. He didn’t want to ruin his perfect face with Bruno’s fists.

“Is Blanca, Angel Altamira’s daughter?” Anselmo asked pretending he didn’t know. Everyone in California knew the beautiful identical twins of the Altamira family.

Bruno nodded twice.

“Then I have a better one for you.” Anselmo paused and continued, “I want you to leave your little girlfriend and date her twin for a period of three months. She’s not a prostitute and she’s in your status.”

“That’s a good one.” A guy sitting on Anselmo’s right hand commented.

“That is unacceptable!” Bruno slammed the table and rose from his seat.

“Sit.” Anselmo ordered while placing a gun on the table and pointed it towards Bruno. “Sit down.” After Bruno sat down, Anselmo continued and said, “This is downtown; we don’t follow the rules of Beverly Hills. If you can’t do it, here is a revolver with one bullet, take your chance.”

He rotated the gun in his index finger and stared at it with passion making Bruno so nervous that his heart started racing in fear.

“You cannot do the Russian Roulette. It is lethal! Just do the dare.” Juan Pablo encouraged Bruno.

Bruno pulled Juan Pablo closer and whispered. “I should have never come down here with you.”

“No time for regrets, your life or your lover.”

Bruno let go and stared deep into Anselmo’s eyes. “I will do it.”

“Shall we continue gentlemen?” Anselmo asked as he placed his gun back in a pocket.

The silence in the table broke, the men cheered and drank beer.

Bruno folded his arms and reclined back on his seat. He wasn’t in the mood to celebrate after being told that he should leave his lover and if not, he would die. After a long time, he said, “You know, this isn’t fair at all.”

“What is not fair is your father demolishing our homes to build a shopping mall.” Anselmo said in a cold, frightening voice. His eyes were boiling with anger.

Bruno was stunned. He couldn’t believe he was paying for something he had nothing to do with. “So, this is your revenge? Leave me out of it and face Juan Karlos like a man.”

~~~***~~~

Blanca eagerly waited for the bell to go off to lunchtime. She sat on the desk covering her cheeks with her hands and stared at Mr Martin, wondering if he didn’t feel the heat wave. Blanca was agitated and wanted him to stop teaching. It was way too hot to learn Physics, she grumbled.

Finally, the bell went off.

Blanca got up and took her vintage bag from the chair. It matched the pink sweatshirt and the grey swag pants she was wearing. She had long black hair; blue eyes; small perfectly shaped lips and a light Mexican skin. She was Hispanic, a math genius and the head cheerleader. Why wouldn’t she be the head cheerleader with her perfect small hips? It was beauty with brains.

She sashayed down the hallway with her two friends or rather her little minions, Lola and Veronica, each on her side. They talked about what to wear for Prom. Everyone was head over hills. It was just a few months away.

Blanca hoped to be the next homecoming queen following her family tradition. Her elder sister was crowned; her mother was and even her grandmother! It would be evil of her if she didn’t get the crown. Ever since middle school, her mates knew the crown would be given to her.

A group of guys walked towards them. The girls stopped. Blanca smiled at Bruno, her boyfriend, the captain of the soccer team and one of the hottest guys at Beverly Hills High.

“Please come with me.” Bruno said.

“Okay.” Blanca agreed. “I will see you both later.”

“You will find us at the gym. Bye Bruno.” Lola said making a seductive pose at Bruno.

He ignored as always.

“Bye Bruno!” Veronica waved with her free hand as Lola pulled the other.

“I don’t know why she always gets the good ones!” Lola complained silently making sure Veronica didn’t hear her.

Blanca and Bruno turned back and walked down the hall. She wrapped her left arm around his waistline and dug her head on his shoulder. He placed his hand around her neck.

They got to the locker room. Bruno told the guys to give them some space. They didn’t resist as he was their captain.

Blanca leaned closer to Bruno to kiss him, but he drifted his head away and removed his hand from her waist.

“What was that all about? Don’t you want to kiss me?” Blanca asked in fury.

“I have something to tell you.” Bruno said.

She motioned for him to speak.

“Blanca, we have been together ever since 9th grade. I loved you from the first time we saw each other at the gym, and I will always-

She cut him. “I am confident about your love for me, so get to the point.”

“Okay.”

“Damn this is tough!” He hit the locker behind him with a fist. It was either this or the Russian roulette. After hesitating for a while, he said, “I want us to cut out for a while.”

“I don’t understand you, Bruno.”

“Let us break up for-

“Are you nuts?!” She shouted while unfolding her arms and pushed him away. She sat on the bench and looked at him with so much unbelief. “You say you love me, but why…why are we breaking up?”

She stood up and touched his face. “Is it my parents? Did you meet a new girl, better than me?”

“Calm down. It is far worse than that.”

Blanca raised her hands, sighed and carelessly let them down. “Then tell me what it is, Bruno?”

“I… I will only put you at risk.”

“Do you even hear yourself Bruno? What did Juan Pablo show you this time?” She thought Juan Pablo had a hand in it as always since he liked her.

“He has nothing to do with it.” Bruno denied immediately.

He touched Blanca’s hands and looked at her with so much affection. “I assure you, by Prom we will be together, and I will be your date. But right now, please give me some time to fix the mess I have created.” He pulled Blanca closer to him and placed a gentle kiss on her forehead. “I promise we will be together at the end of all this.”