Growing Together

PickRome: I'll Be There pt.1

"Ey, Rome!" Emma had called out to him for the nth time.

"I'm really sorry, Em'. I spaced," Rome said finally turning his attention towards his friend. He really did feel bad about continuously spacing. Especially, since Emma had been sharing her own worries about her newborn child.

Emma's face had softened a little seeing Rome's face crease into a frown once again. Ever since she had come home, Rome had been spending time with her after classes trying his best to catch her up on what she missed during her time in the hospital. Despite his own worries tormenting him, he was trying his best to be a good friend to her. She had reached her hand out to hold his, "You should talk to him," Emma said in a soft voice as an equally careful smile, "Rome, you can't run away from him forever. Eventually, you'll have to talk to him."

"I know..." Rome said with a small sigh as he squeezed her hand back trying to ease her mind from his worries with that small gesture. "I'm scared, Emma. P'Pick is so unpredictable and I can't afford to give him the time to figure things out anymore," he said with all the honesty and dread he felt in his heart.

The truth was Rome couldn't afford to play anymore. In fact, there was so little he could afford at the moment, and that was something both she and her brother, P'Oh, knew. That's why P'Oh had been very persistent in protecting him from P'Pick. Because of him, Rome had already been put in a difficult situation that he had no way out of. At least, not in a way that wouldn't leave a scar in his heart.

It was hard not to feel his pain when she had gone through the same with Porsche. Rome had made his mind, but unlike her, her dear friend's decision had not been received with the support of his family, and was forced to lean on them. Rome had always been like a son to her parents, so they had promised to help him with anything he needed for as long as he needed. She still remembers crying with Rome that night when he had come to them with a bruised cheek.

"Er...but P'Pick is still his daddy. You should give him the opportunity to make his decision on his own." Emma said motioning to his belly, which had Rome's hands instinctively shooting up to wrap around the bump. "He might surprise you."

Rome wanted to protest but Porsche's voice behind him had both of them panicked.

"What did you say?!" Porsche's voice had come out a little louder than he had expected, but walking in on that had his eyes nearly popping out of their sockets. He had been shocked beyond belief that his mouth had no consideration for the sleeping infant in his very arms at that moment. Which ultimately had made the infant in his arms burst into tears, being startled awake by his daddy's loud voice.

"Porsche!" Emma had scolded putting her pencil down as she got up from her chair to go take Phana from his arms to try and calm the baby. Her eyes had raised up from her child for a moment to give Rome an apologetic look. She had never meant to have her boyfriend hear her and she was worried that Rome would be upset with her considering their 'boyfriends' are best friends.

"Rome...is it true?" Porsche had asked as he approached the smaller boy, as he watched him struggle to his feet to back away from him. The motion had only made the fact seem very obvious as his hoodie seemed to bend against his frame for a moment before it seemed to fade beneath the baggy hoodie that it left him wondering if he had seen correctly.

"Please, don't tell P'Pick," Rome had begged as he grabbed onto Porsche's hand. "Please, don't tell him."

"How can I not?" Porsche asked pulling his hand away from Rome as he rose it to cover his mouth in frustration. His eyes had found Emma's eyes and asked, "You knew about this? How long have you been keeping this a secret?" He asked her as she carefully shifted Phana in her arms.

"Since Rome found out," P'Oh said coming into the room. He had pulled his arms out of his pockets and folded them against his chest in obvious disapproval at the topic. "I don't see how this is any of your business, Porsche. Taking care of my sister and nephew is as far as you should be concerned."

"P'/ P'Oh!" Both Rome and Emma had said in two different tones. Rome was worried P'Oh would start a fight with Porsche, while Emma was upset at P'Oh's tone with Porsche. She knew her brother still had a bit of a distaste for her boyfriend but he was Phana's father and he wasn't going to stop ever being that.

She wanted them to get along for the sake of her son. The last thing she wanted was for Phana to grow up seeing them fight all the time.

P'Oh, though, had only scoffed as he unfolded his arms, "What?" He said looking at the two for a moment before turning his gaze back at Porsche, "THIS really isn't any of his business. If Rome wants to say anything, it's for him to decide without ANYONE trying to convince him it's the 'least he can do' for Pick." It clearly came out a little too aggressive, because Rome had only moved between them and clung to his arm trying to pull him out of the room before the tension got worse.

"Please," Rome pleaded, not just for his own sake, but for his dear friend Emma's sake, "Please, let's go, I'm getting hungry, P."

One look at Rome's face had P'Oh letting out a sigh before his features had finally relaxed a little, "Okay, let's go then." He said letting himself be tugged out of his sister's bedroom without much protest.