𝗽𝗵𝗶𝗹𝗼𝗽𝗵𝗼𝗯𝗶𝗮 ᵖʰⁱˡ ᶠᵒᵈᵉⁿ

𝟬𝟬𝟰

𝗰𝗵𝗮𝗽𝘁𝗲𝗿 𝟰
𝘴𝘰𝘣𝘦𝘳 𝘪𝘯 𝘢 𝘳𝘰𝘰𝘮 𝘧𝘶𝘭𝘭
𝘰𝘧 𝘥𝘳𝘶𝘯𝘬 𝘱𝘦𝘰𝘱𝘭𝘦

———

MAEVE'S ONLY PRIORITY right now is ensuring her best friend has the birthday she deserves; the upcoming family function is something future Maeve can handle because present Maeve doesn't care right now.

"What did you order?" she asked Arabella, who was leaning over the bar, ordering far too many alcoholic drinks for the two of them to handle. Maeve had to shout over the loud music whilst the bartender had turned his attention to preparing the drinks.

Arabella turned around with an uncontrollable grin "Like a bottle of tequila's worth of shots. We're going to have so much fun!" She yelled, throwing her arms in the air, ecstatic.

"Yeah, or die of alcohol poisoning," Maeve cringed and nodded slowly. The short-haired girl ignored her friend's sarcasm and took one of the many shots left beside them.

"Happy Birthday," Maeve said as she took one and clinked it with Arabella's. After that, the pair drank another shot, then another, and soon the drinks were doubling, at least for Arabella. Maeve came to a halt after the fifth drink. Someone had to get them home safely, and Arabella wasn't going to be the one.

The friends made their way to the dance floor, and soon Arabella began chatting up a girl - they began grinding up against one another while Maeve stood a little further away; it was difficult to be painfully sober in a club full of drunk people. She was only having fun rejecting guys who approached her.

Maeve looked over to her short-haired friend to make sure she was okay, and when she saw her making out with the woman she had just met, she knew Arabella was just fine.

Maeve decided to go to the bar and see if they served a non-alcoholic drink after getting tired of watching her friend and literally everyone else in the club have fun. The chances are slim, but they are never zero.

She arrived at the bar, which was crowded with people demanding drinks left, right, and center; there were only three bartenders working, so they appeared to be under a lot of pressure. For a moment, the girl stood silently, not wanting to start demanding a Diet Coke or a glass of water while they were much busier.

A few moments passed and a surge of drunk people also passed, giving the three bartenders a moment to breathe before it picked up again. "Excuse me," Maeve said, catching the attention of a tall man her age, maybe a little older.

He walked over to where she was sitting on one of the bar stools, his elbows resting on the surface of the bar. He raised one of his dark brows, waiting for Maeve to say something. Perhaps it was the dim club lighting, but she was almost speechless at how attractive he was.

She coughed to clear her throat and asked, "Do you have anything non-alcoholic?" he laughed, lowering his head for a moment. "I can't lie, I've never been asked that before,"

"Yeah, I've never asked that question before."

The nameless bartender straightened up but continued to stare at Maeve. "I'll find you something." She said thank you before he went to the other side of the bar to get her a drink.

While she waited, she looked around at the packed club and checked her phone. He returned quickly with a glass full of Sprite, "It's just a glass of sprite, you can pretend it's vodka," he joked as he set the glass down.

"I will be doing that." Someone interrupted the conversation by shouting at the hot bartender Maeve had been distracting herself with, "Mate, can I have two beers?" A man with a Manchester accent yelled.

Maeve's new friend - if you can call him that - returned to work, while the brunette sipped her drink, ignoring the guy next to her until he said, "I wonder what Mason would think of him." When she heard her brother's name, she turned to see who was speaking.

It was the one person she didn't expect to see here on a Saturday night in London. Phil Foden.

———

MAEVE MOUNT AND Phil Foden rarely see each other, but when they do, they always seem to argue about petty issues. There was no dramatic moment that caused them to dislike each other, as is common in movies; they simply clashed.

They were first introduced when Mason was called up to England's U18 squad. Maeve went to a dinner for footballers and their families because she thought it would be a fun evening with a bunch of good looking lads.

That is, until Phil began hitting on her in front of Mason. The boy had no filter and had made the situation extremely awkward. Her father was on the other side of the room. She was completely unaware of what he was doing or why he was doing it.

Long story short, she gave him a mouthful of her opinion, which in retrospect was quite rude and only prompted him to retaliate - in a minute, he went from complimenting her to insulting her. Although she wasn't particularly interested in what he had to say.

The last time she saw him in person was during the Euros, when he had a bad haircut and a failing relationship. He no longer possessed either. "I see you got rid of the hideous color in your hair," Maeve said as she turned back to face forward, crossing one leg over the other.

He laughed dryly, but not because he thought she was amusing. "Aren't you observant?" She pulled a face of annoyance. "What are you doing here?" she scoffed, crossing her arms, coldly. "Are you not supposed to live in Manchester?"

"We were playing Spurs today, won 4-1 so I thought I'd celebrate," Phil said, leaning against the bar and staring out at the crowded dance floor. Maeve nodded, a disgusted expression still on her face. That was common when he was present.

The bartender returned with the two beers Phil had asked for and handed them to him. The footballer thanked him before reaching into his jeans pocket and pulling out a twenty-pound note.

He threw it down, picking up the two beers with one hand and turning to face the girl he found annoying, as childish as that sounds. "Jack's somewhere around here," he said briefly, "and it's been a pleasure, Maevey." That name. It irritated her and he knew it.

"Have a shit night, Philip."

———

authors note :

maeve hates phil but does phil reallyyyy hate maeve?????

word count | 1108