Chapter 1: "No Romance Allowed! The Awakened Curse"
The sun streamed through the window of Ryan Harrison's cramped university dorm, illuminating the chaos that had become his life. He groaned, pulling the blanket over his head in a futile attempt to block out the light—and the reality of the day ahead. Classes, papers, and, worst of all, interactions with women. Just a normal Tuesday, right? But today, something was off.
"Good morning, Ryan!" chirped his roommate, Derek, bursting in without knocking. He always had this uncanny ability to ruin the perfect stillness of Ryan's mornings. Derek was a tall, athletic guy, the epitome of everything Ryan was not: outgoing, charming, and decidedly not cursed.
"Morning," Ryan muttered, lifting his head just enough to see Derek's grin. "What's with the cheery vibe?"
"Don't you remember? It's the first day of the semester!" Derek plopped down on Ryan's bed, sending a small avalanche of clothes tumbling to the floor. "New classes, new girls! This is your chance to finally get a girlfriend!"
Ryan winced at the suggestion. Girlfriend? The very thought made him shudder. He had a plan for this semester: attend classes, study, and emerge unscathed by the treacherous waters of romance. "No romance allowed," he whispered under his breath, a mantra he'd started reciting since his high school days when he realized his god-tier attractiveness was more of a curse than a blessing.
"Did you say something?" Derek leaned in, curiosity piqued.
"Nothing, just… let me wake up first." Ryan pushed himself out of bed, running a hand through his tousled hair. He could already feel the weight of the "No Romance" system he had unwittingly activated a month ago. Glancing at his phone, he noticed a notification that made his heart drop.
[System Message: Welcome to the No Romance System!]
[Rule #1: If you fall in love, you die (game over).]
[Rule #2: Every romantic flag must be avoided, destroyed, or denied.]
Ryan rolled his eyes. Great. Just what he needed—a game where failure meant death. As if university life wasn't already hard enough. He felt his phone buzz again.
[Flag Detector: Warning! Romance Flag Detected!]
"What the—?" Ryan exclaimed, staring at the screen. His heart raced. It hadn't even been five minutes into the day, and he was already on high alert. "Derek, we have a problem."
"Your face looks like you've seen a ghost. What's wrong?" Derek frowned, clearly confused.
"Romance Flag! I don't know what it is yet, but I can sense it," Ryan said, clutching his phone like it was a lifeline.
"Why do you sound like a video game character?" Derek laughed, dismissing Ryan's concerns. "Do you want some coffee? It'll wake you up."
"No time for coffee!" Ryan shot back, panicking. "I have to prepare for class. I can't let any romantic flags get triggered. I need to dodge!"
As he rushed to get dressed, Ryan couldn't shake the feeling of impending doom. He quickly slipped on a t-shirt and jeans, desperate to blend into the crowd and avoid any romantic entanglements. He made sure to avoid eye contact with his reflection in the mirror—Ryan had long since learned that his own looks could trigger jealousy and unwanted attention.
After a hasty breakfast of toast and a single piece of fruit—because who had time for a full meal?—Ryan grabbed his backpack and bolted out the door, narrowly avoiding another shoulder bump with Derek, who was trailing behind him.
"Hey! Watch it!" Derek laughed. "You're like a scared cat!"
"Just keep your distance!" Ryan yelled over his shoulder as he hustled toward the lecture hall.
The campus was bustling with students chatting, laughing, and making plans for the semester ahead. Ryan navigated the sea of people like a seasoned pro, avoiding eye contact and slipping past groups of girls who looked like they were ready to swoon at a moment's notice. If only they knew how much he wanted to avoid their affections.
It was the beginning of a new era, and Ryan was determined to keep things platonic. He entered the lecture hall and found an empty seat at the back, where he could remain unseen—at least for the first few minutes. He pulled out his notebook, ready to focus on the professor's lecture rather than the distractions around him.
But then it happened.
[Flag Detector: Warning! Romance Flag Detected!]
Ryan's heart sank. "Not again."
He glanced around the room and his eyes landed on a girl sitting two rows in front of him. She had long auburn hair that cascaded down her back and wore glasses that somehow made her look even more charming. And there it was—an innocent interaction with a classmate as she helped another student who had dropped their books.
"Ryan, are you okay?" A voice broke through his daze. It was Derek, who had taken a seat next to him.
"Do you see that girl?" Ryan whispered, trying to keep his panic under control. "I think she's about to fall for me."
Derek followed his gaze and smirked. "You mean the cute one? You should go talk to her!"
"No! You don't understand," Ryan hissed, glancing at the girl again. "If I get involved in any way—"
[Mission Debuff Activated: Affection Points Increasing!]
Before he could finish his sentence, Ryan felt a cold sweat trickle down his back. He couldn't let it happen again. He had narrowly escaped romantic disasters in the past, but the stakes were higher now—death, game over, and all that.
"Just breathe and act nonchalant," Derek suggested, clearly misunderstanding the severity of the situation.
Ryan shook his head vigorously. "That's it! I need to deploy my dodge skills." He closed his eyes for a moment, focusing on activating his passive abilities.
[Activating Dodge Skill Boost: Trip and Fall into Awkwardness Lv.5]
And just like that, Ryan executed a perfectly timed maneuver. He pretended to cough dramatically, choking on absolutely nothing, forcing himself to double over and create a scene. It worked flawlessly; the class turned to look at him, and for a brief moment, all eyes were off the girl.
"What's wrong?" Derek asked, trying to stifle his laughter.
"Just... keeping things awkward," Ryan replied sheepishly as he sat up straight, giving a thumbs-up to Derek who was now snickering uncontrollably.
Class continued, and Ryan managed to survive the first half without raising any red flags. But as soon as the professor dismissed them, a new wave of panic washed over him.
The moment students started packing up, Ryan felt an overwhelming urge to run away. He stood up too quickly, almost knocking over his chair in the process.
[Flag Detector: Warning! Romance Flag Detected!]
His pulse quickened as he spotted the auburn-haired girl approaching him.
"Hey! Are you alright?" she asked, concern lacing her voice.
Ryan could feel everyone's eyes on him; it was like an audience waiting for a love story to unfold. "Uh, yeah! Just… tripped over my own feet!" He chuckled nervously, wishing he could disappear into thin air.
"I'm Lily," she introduced herself with a warm smile that made Ryan's heart skip a beat. "I saw you coughing earlier. You sure you're okay?"
That smile! It was like a spotlight shining right on him, and he could feel the romance flag waving furiously overhead.
"Yeah! Totally fine!" he blurted out, now sweating profusely. "Just trying to stay away from… um, romance?"
Lily raised an eyebrow, clearly caught off guard by his response. "Oh? You don't like romance? That's kind of refreshing."
"Yeah! Very refreshing!" Ryan nodded vigorously, unsure if he was helping or digging himself deeper into a pit of doom.
Before he could say anything else to sabotage himself further, a loud commotion erupted behind him as Derek and a group of friends began joking and laughing. Ryan took that chaos as an opportunity to excuse himself.
"I have to go!" he blurted out, turning on his heel and making a beeline for the exit.
"Wait! Nice meeting you!" Lily called after him, but Ryan didn't look back. He didn't need to see the look of confusion—or worse, pity—on her face.
As he stepped outside into the fresh air, Ryan leaned against the wall and let out a deep sigh of relief. He had narrowly dodged disaster yet again.
[System Message: Mission Success! No Flags Raised!]
His phone buzzed with another notification that made him groan.
[Cringe Points Earned: 50]
"Great," he muttered sarcastically. "Just what I needed—more cringe points."
He walked across campus in a daze, mentally preparing himself for the next class while simultaneously trying to shake off the encounter with Lily. Why did every nice deed he did trigger romantic interest? It was maddening! All he wanted was to graduate quietly and escape this ridiculous love story that everyone else seemed to have written for him.
As Ryan headed to his second class of the day, he could feel the tension still lingering in the air around him. But he steeled himself; today was just the beginning of a long journey filled with distractions, misunderstandings, and a plethora of romance flags awaiting him at every turn.
He could feel it in his gut: this semester was going to be chaotic.
[Mission Debuff: Affection Points Increasing!]
Ryan sighed deeply as he entered the classroom. It was going to be a long day.
Here's the corrected version of your author's note:
"[A/N: Yo! The author here. This is my new book, 'No Romance Allowed! (I Swear...),' a story about Ryan Harrison's chaotic love life. Support me if you like this concept of the story!]" –– «By LonerWolF_23»