Chapter Text
Rhett was perplexed—there Link sat, on their couch, with his arm around some cute, petite blonde. Link had never showed true interest in anybody in their adulthood. The taller man cleared his throat from the doorway leading from the hall and both their heads shot around. “Rhett! I didn’t wanna wake you, this is Christy, the girl I told you about.” Rhett desperately wanted to say ‘you never told me about any girl’, but he knew that wasn’t appropriate with her sitting right next to Link.
It took Rhett nearly a minute to realize Christy’s hand was extended outward and he shook it as quickly as he could. “Rhett.” He said briefly and went back into his room without another word. Link’s brow furrowed at his friend’s hasty greeting, but continued his time hanging out with Christy, trying to get a laugh out of her as many times as he could and she returned the favor.
Rhett stood with his ear pressed to the wood of his bedroom door, listening as Christy gained laugh after laugh from Link; those were Rhett’s giggles to be earned. His blood was boiling and the second he heard the front door clock shut and silence fell upon the apartment, Rhett swung his bedroom door open. “What the hell, man?” He growled out at Link, who raised his arms in defeat. “I have no idea what’s the matter with you right now. I told you I-“
“You didn’t tell me shit.” Rhett protested.
“I like her a lot. I’m sorry that I forgot to mention that I was seeing somebody.”
“You didn’t tell me and you just... you had her in here, on the couch—on our couch. I woke up to you on a... a date on our couch, man. What if I had been in my underwear or something when I walked out?”
Link licked his lips at the thought. “I’ll tell you next time, man, I’m sorry.”
“I just can’t believe you didn’t tell me something as big as you liking a girl enough to bring her home and just... talk to her.” Rhett shook his head.
Link scoffed and rolled his eyes. “Can’t you just be happy for me for once? What is it with you? I score a soccer goal—could’ve been two. I get an A on the final that we studied all those weeks for—could’ve been an A+. It’s like you undermine everything I do. What is it with her? I brought her home, I like her... what’s the could’ve been, huh?”
Rhett clenched his fists and furrowed his brow. He tensed up, holding back from saying ‘me, it could’ve been me’, he didn’t need to speak anymore, hell, he shouldn’t speak anymore. “There isn’t one. It just took me by surprise.” He said and walked past Link to the kitchen, getting a glass of water and silently passing Link again and locking himself in his room.
Link stood in the hall, brows furrowed in confusion and mumbled, “what the fuck?”