You And I

Chapter 38: Courtroom Chaos: The Battle for Levi

It was a regular day, or at least it started off that way. Liya was lounging around in my room while I lay on my bed, staring at the ceiling, trying to figure out how to kill time. Suddenly, my mom called from downstairs.

"Levi, Liya, come down here for a second!"

We both headed down, and my mom stood by the door with Amelia, holding some packed bags. "Your dad wants us to visit him in Jakarta for about a week. Do you want to come along, Levi?"

I shook my head. "I can't, Mom. We've got school tomorrow. But... have a good time, okay?"

She smiled, then pointed at us with a playful look. "You two behave yourselves, alright? No funny business while we're gone."

I sighed, exasperated. "Mom, we're not-"

She laughed, cutting me off before I could even finish my sentence. "I know, I know. Just kidding. Take care of the house for us!"

After a few minutes of helping them load up their bags, they left, and the house fell into a strange silence. Liya wandered off to the kitchen, leaving me to head back to my room. The quiet was already making me restless, so I grabbed my phone and sent Ryan a message.

"Bro, it's just me and Liya here, and it's so boring. What are you up to?"

A few seconds later, I saw the "Read" receipt, but no reply. I groaned, tossing my phone on the bed.

---

Ryan's POV

My phone buzzed, and I glanced down to see Levi's message. A smirk crept across my face as I read it. "Just the two of them alone? Interesting..." I thought, getting an idea. Without hesitation, I forwarded the message to Mei, Jane, Kris, and Yvonne. This was way too good to keep to myself.

---

Levi's POV

I was about to start a game on my phone when I heard a knock on the front door. Confused, I called out, "Who is it?"

When I opened the door, I was greeted by the whole crew-Mei, Jane, Kris, Yvonne... and of course, Ryan, who stood in the back waving like a total idiot. Mei was standing at the front, clearly forcing a smile that did little to hide her irritation.

"Hey," Ryan said, leaning in with that signature grin of his. "What a coincidence, Levi! We were just walking by, minding our own business, and I couldn't help but notice that your slippers were, uh, dirty? So, being the good friend I am, I knocked to tell you!"

I crossed my arms, raising an eyebrow. "Seriously, that's the most obvious lie you've ever come up with. You could've at least tried to be believable."

Ryan gave a sheepish laugh, but before I could say anything else, he pushed past me. "Anyway, excuse us! We're coming in!"

The others followed, and in no time, my quiet house turned into a whirlwind of chatter and chaos.

Liya finally wandered into the living room, yawning but smiling as she joined us. We all started playing card games, the energy in the room lively and competitive. Ryan, of course, couldn't resist stirring the pot at every turn.

"Okay, everyone, let's see who's got the luck tonight," he said, shuffling the deck. We played a few rounds of poker, and it wasn't long before the teasing began.

Kris threw his cards down in frustration. "How does Ryan keep winning? He's gotta be cheating!"

Ryan shrugged with a sly grin. "It's just natural skill. I can't help being awesome."

Liya glanced at Mei and smirked. "Maybe Ryan's just blessed, huh?"

Mei rolled her eyes, but she was trying not to laugh. "Sure, 'blessed'... with an annoying personality."