𝘽-𝙎𝙞𝙙𝙚

Ｐｏｋｅｒ ｗｉｔｈ ｆｅｅｌｉｎｇｓ

Ｆｏｒｔｙ- Ｓｉｘ - Ｐｏｋｅｒ ｗｉｔｈ ｆｅｅｌｉｎｇｓ

"What? Girlfriend? When?" All types of questions pop out of my mouth as I look at Rhys with a questioning look. He slightly pulls me down to the dinner table and slides me my dinner, gesturing for me to start eating.

"You know how I would always be talking in Korean when I thought I was alone?" He asks as I stab my fork into the salad, making a satisfying crunch. As I chew the lettuce I nod gently, making sure to keep eye contact.

"Well, my best friend is getting married next week and I've gotten invited. I'm going, but I'm also going to meet my parents there." He pauses just as I finish my food, looking at me to make sure that I don't have any questions. I put my fork down,

"So how does that involve me being your girlfriend?" I ask, putting both my legs in the chair, sitting in a criss-cross formation.

"Whenever I go to Korea, my parents always try to set me up with somebody, and ImighthavetoldthemthatI'mdatingyou." He rushes the last part out so quickly that my brain couldn't piece it apart.

"What do they do?" I ask, shrugging my shoulders and moving to the couch. Rhys follows me, clearing his throat,

"I told them that I was dating you." My eyes widen as I whip around to face him,

"Why would you tell them that?" I ask with my eyebrows raised as I get comfortable on the couch.

"It just came out. My friend was asking about my relationships and your name just popped out." He says, letting his statement hang in the air. I nod, trying to comprehend everything that was hitting me at once.

"So you need me to go to Korea and be your girlfriend?" I ask, with a hint of uncertainty in my tone.

"Pretty much sums it up." He says and I slap him playfully,

"Why did you just tell me?" I whine childishly, leaning my head in his shoulder. He shrugs,

"I didn't want you to be dealing with too much at once." He says, leaning over me to get the TV remote.

"When are we leaving?" I ask, wanting to know the basics of this mysterious trip. Rhys's eyes light up as he turns towards me,

"You're coming? THANK YOU, THANK YOU!" He gets up and starts jumping all around the living room. I chuckle as he takes my hands and jumps with me in his hands,

"Calm down Tigger," I say and he finally sits back down on the couch.

"Friends?" He asks, referring to the tv show. I nod,

"Sure, I was looking for some comedic humor," I say, extending my legs across the couch. As soon as we get to the theme song, the doorbell rings. I look at Rhys and get up to open the door,

"I swear, if he's ordered another Russian Nesting doll, I'm gonna throw out his Vans," I mutter as I look through the peephole. Rhys responds right back to my threat,

"If you throw away my Vans, I'll throw away the thousands of stamps that you hoard." I was about to reply with a snarky response but suddenly I see Charlotte and Tommy through the peephole.

"Um, did you order a Tommy?" I ask, my hand hovering over the doorknob. Rhys furrows his eyebrows and shakes his head,

"Not that I remember. Why?" He asks, standing up from his position on the couch and moving next to me.

"They're standing in front of our doorway, showing no hurry to leave." I turn towards him, my back facing the door, and point towards the one thing preventing Tommy from storming into my room.

"What are you going to do?" He asks as I turn around, putting my fingers around the doorknob. My hand twists around it,

"I'm going to let them in. I'm also gonna see if Tommy lies about the process." I whisper, opening the door.

"Hey," I whisper, rubbing my hand over my arms when a strong breeze comes along.

"Hey. Can we come in?" Rhys asks, craning his neck around the door frame.

"Um, sure" I whisper, stepping out of the way and welcoming them into my humble abode.

"Thanks." Charlotte murmurs, stepping inside, Rhys following shortly after. My tense shoulders start to loosen when I feel Rhys's hand at the small of my back, trying to show me support.

As Tommy and Charlotte get comfortable on my couch I close the door, hovering my hand over the knob. There was this debate in my mind about why I let them in.

"Talulah?" Charlotte asks, snapping me out of my trance. I sigh and turn around, slowly making my way to the couch. I make my way towards Rhys and slowly lift my head up to face both of them.

"Yes?" I finally reply to her question and both of them wear a guilty look on their face from hearing my voice.

"We're sorry," Tommy speaks up, his voice sounding like he had just cried.

"And we're hoping that you can find it in your heart to forgive us," Charlotte adds, intertwining her hands together. Both of them look up at me and I start to stutter,

"I-I don't think- I'm not sure," I say, looking down from all the pressure.

"We didn't want him to steal your songs. We tried to stop him." Charlotte says, looking down at her fingers.

"You're lying," I mutter underneath my breath. Charlotte's tell was when she played with her fingers, I had noticed it when I had first met her.

"You're lying." Rhys booms out, narrowing his eyes at the duo. Charlotte freezes in her place as Tommy looks up, tears forming in his blue eyes.

"He's not," I whisper to Rhys, nudging him in the ribs. Tommy manages to hear me and his eyes widen,

"You believe me?" His voice holds a tone of astonishment.

"I do, Archie told me what happened," I tell them and Charlotte's brown eyes widen. She opens her mouth but Rhys interrupts her,

"Along with telling her that he has a crush on her." He says, rubbing my back softly. Charlotte finally snaps out of whatever trance she was in,

"And you believe him?" I exhale sharply,

"I don't know who to trust. I need time."