friends to lovers | duke dennis

seventeen

It's late August and Renée eagerly planned a surprise date with Duke. She loved that she could go on little dates with him, they always ended up having the most fun.

After entering her car, securing her seatbelt, and starting the car, she called Duke at a stoplight.

"Hi, my love," she sang as his face appeared on the screen.

"Hi, my love," Duke playfully sang, mocking her. Causing them to laugh.

"Get dressed. I want you to be my passenger princess," she exclaimed, met with Duke's teasing response.

"Man, stop with that gay shit," Duke sucked his teeth. Renée's mouth dropped, pretending to be offended.

"Man, get dressed and get off my phone," she said, pressing the red button, hanging up the phone. She quickly glanced at her phone when she saw a notification, and it was a text from Duke that read, 'Bet, causing her to laugh.

She pulled into the AMP house. She greeted one of their crew members as they opened the door for her.

She walked up to Duke's room and knocked on the door. He opened it, and she was greeted by Duke's smile. She smiled and reached for a hug while he opened his arms out, but he caught her off guard. He quickly bent down, grabbed her legs, and swiftly lifted her onto his shoulder, causing her to scream.

He playfully carried her to his bed and dropped her, causing her to bounce. As he started tickling her. Laughter filled the room as he began to tickle her. Renée cried out, laughing, "Denzel, stop!" She despised being tickled, finding it unbearable after a while.

"You gon hang up on me again?" he teased.

"No, I'm sorry!" she screamed amidst laughter and tears. She let out a huge sigh as she wiped her tears. She sat up and playfully hit Duke's shoulder, exclaiming, "Stop doing that, nigga."

She jokingly threatened to yank his locs, but he quickly grabbed her hand, pinning her down for another round of tickling. "Okay, okay, I'm sorry," she surrendered with a laugh.

After finishing up, Duke put on his shoes and headed downstairs with Renee. Once they reached the car, Renée opened the passenger door for him. Duke looked at her, trying to suppress a laugh.

"You're really into this shit, huh?" Duke chuckled, shaking his head.

"I definitely am. Hop in, sexy," she teased.

Duke thanked her as he got into the car, and she closed the door behind him. Renée walked around to the driver's side, got in, closed the door, buckled up, and started the engine. She then made sure her phone was connected to the Bluetooth and began searching for music.

"Where are we going?" Duke asked as Open (Remix) by Dylan Sinclair, Destin Conrad, and Jvck James played softly in the background.

"You'll see when we get there," she laughed, pulling away from the curb.

As she drove, Renée reached over to caress his thigh. Duke glanced down at her hand and laughed, "Really?"

"Left hand is steering, the other is gripping your thigh," she sang with a grin, squeezing his thigh playfully. Ever since she first heard 'Don't' by Bryson Tiller, she'd wanted to act out that line.

Duke picked up her hand and moved it away, but she promptly put it back. This playful struggle went on for a while until Renee finally sucked her teeth and snatched her hand away, mumbling, "You're no fun."

He tried not to laugh, amused by how much she wanted to keep her hand on his thigh. In truth, he enjoyed it, but he knew that her caressing his thigh would turn him on, and they'd end up having to head back to the house.

"You trynna pull over and hop in the back seat?" Duke mumbled, leaning over the console to plant a kiss on her neck.

Renée was a bit frustrated, as she had to stop at a red light and look at Duke, knowing she'd give in.

She turned to him and hummed innocently, pretending she didn't hear him.

"You heard me," Duke laughed, leaning back in his seat. "Rubbing on my thigh and trying to get me hard."

Renée laughed, not realizing until then why he didn't want her touching him and the effect she had on him. "I'm sorry," she giggled, leaning in to quickly kiss his lips before focusing back on the road as the light turned green.

He grabbed her hand, interlocked their fingers, and placed a loving kiss on her hand.

After the drive, Renée pulled into the parking lot, and Duke's face lit up with a mischievous grin. She glanced at him, smiling in return.

Renée maneuvered into a parking spot and shifted the car into park. She reached to unbuckle her seatbelt and turned to see Duke's eager expression.

"I'ma bust yo ass," Duke laughed, unfastening his seatbelt, clearly ready for their bowling showdown.

"You're not beating me," Renée laughed, shaking her head confidently. She prided herself on being the best bowler among her friends and was excited to show her skills to Duke for the first time.

"And who told you that lie?" Duke joked, stepping out of the car. Renée followed, grabbing her bag and laughing. "Stop playing with me," she said teasingly.

"Stop being delusional. You've never seen me bowl," Duke chuckled.

"And you haven't seen me either," Renée retorted.

"Let's go then," he challenged, a playful gleam in his eye.

Hand in hand, they walked towards the bowling alley. Duke glanced down at her and mumbled, "You look nice."

Renée's face lit up with a bright smile. "Thank you," she said, puckering her lips for a kiss, which Duke gladly obliged.

"You stay trying to be like me," Renée laughed, eyeing his outfit. He was wearing a hat, a long-sleeve shirt, cargo pants, and Rick Owens sneakers.

"But who was wearing them first?" he asked with a smirk.

"Who bought them for me?" Renée countered, giggling. They both laughed, knowing he loved when they matched.