"Wish we figured this out years ago," said Phoenix. "Shoulda tried to set you up with a Liverpool player so we could get good seats and free tickets to the games."
"Please tell me you're joking," Talia rolled her eyes.
Trent had gotten Talia and her brothers a box at Anfield to watch the match from. Talia hadn't been super keen at having everybody in the stadium realise she was dating Trent, but she still wanted to see him play live, and this had been the compromise. It was a pretty good compromise, if you asked her. The box was incredibly comfy, and Talia knew that if this had been only a few months ago, she probably would have curled up on one of the beautiful lounge seats with her phone and gone to sleep whilst her brothers watched the game. However, it wasn't a few months ago, and now she had more reason than ever to appreciate watching her brothers' favourite team play. The name on the back of her shirt was enough to confirm that.
"Trent's actually really good," said Talia, as she watched him playing from high up in the stadium.
"You've seen him play so many times in the past, Talia," Dante shook his head in disbelief. "Can't believe you didn't realise this."
"I only paid attention to the game," the brunette shrugged. "This is the first time I've watched one player for an extended period of time."
"Was that an admission?" Asked Phoenix, smirking at his sister. "Sounds like you can't take your eyes off him."
"Ha. Shut up."
"Andy Robertson is better than Trent anyway," Tom shrugged.
"That is so irrelevant. I really don't care if he is or if he isn't."
"He isn't," said Dante. "Trent is better."
"Andy has more assists though," said Tom.
"That's just in the league though," Dante shook his head. "I mean overall..."
"Guys, seriously," Talia groaned. "Leave it."
@talia_harrington:
Liked by trentaa66 and others...
💬Today I learned about Liverpool.
[comments have been limited]
@phoenix.h: thats debatable. You learnt how to watch the right back, would be a more accurate description.
↪️@dante_harrington: init
↪️@talia_harrington: I hate you all
@trentaa66: red looks good on you I'm just sayin 😉
↪️@talia_harrington: if you say so😄
At the end of the game, which incidentally, Liverpool won 2-0, the three boys departed, leaving Talia to go and meet Trent.
"Love this kit," he winked at her, as they hugged in greeting. "Can I kiss you?"
"You don't have to ask, Trent," Talia smiled at him.
In answer, Trent pressed his lips to hers, in a kiss that was short and sweet.
"I want you to meet some people," he said, turning to glance down the hallway.
"Sure," Talia shrugged. "Let's go."
Trent took her hand, and led her down the hallway until he found who he was looking for. A guy who looked about the same age as Trent, or maybe a little older, and a black haired girl who was obviously his girlfriend.
"Talia, this is Joe and his girlfriend Melody," Trent introduced them. "This is my girlfriend Talia, you guys."
"Nice to meet you, Talia," Joe smiled at her. "Did you enjoy the game?"
"Yeah, it was great," Talia nodded. "Nice to meet you both."
"You can call me Mel," said Melody. "You two look great together! How long have you been together for?"
"Aha, maybe a week?" Talia laughed, glancing at Trent, who nodded. "We met when we were both on holiday in Mykonos, but we didn't start dating until we got home. How about you two?"
"We've been together for nearly a year," said Joe, turning to smile at Mel. "Not sure how she's put up with me for that long, but there it is."
"Wow, look at you being so modest for once," Mel teased him, with a giggle.
"Very funny," Joe chuckled, rolling his eyes at her playfully. "Did you two want to grab dinner with us?" He asked Trent and Talia.
"I'd love to," said Trent, "But I think Talia has something on..."
"Yeah, unfortunately, otherwise I would have loved to," the brunette shook her head regretfully. "I promised my brother we'd do a livestream this evening after the game, we play piano on YouTube together, so..."
"Oh wow, that sounds amazing," Mel smiled at her. "And no pressure, go do your livestream. Maybe we can organise a double date another time?"
"I'd like that," Talia nodded, glancing at Trent, who was nodding too.
"Sounds good to me!" Said Joe. "Okay, well we'll see you two later!"
~.~.~.~.~
"Do you think this dress is okay?" Asked Talia.
She was face timing her boyfriend, as they got ready for their double date. A few days after the game, Joe and Trent had organised for the two young couples to go to a rooftop restaurant together.
"You look beautiful in anything, Talia," Trent shook his head, with a smile. "But I like this dress on you."
The dress she was wearing was a sky blue knee length dress, and it suited her complexion well. The restaurant was not super formal, but they had decided it would be nice to dress up a little. Trent was wearing a button up shirt and dark coloured jeans.
"Okay," Talia breathed out, feeling a little more at ease.
"Are you nervous?" Trent chuckled. "Oh wow, you actually are."
"Well I don't know either of your friends very well," she told him. "I want to make a good impression."
"You already have, you know," he smiled. "Just be yourself, okay? If they don't like that, then what's the point? But they will, I know them."
"Alright," Talia finally returned his smile. "Thanks Trent."
"That's okay. I'm leaving now to come pick you up, okay? I'll see you in a bit."
"Yep, see you."
@talia_harrington:
Liked by melody and others...
💬double date ting
[comments have been limited]
@melody: you look stunning hun!
↪️@talia_harrington: thank you! See you soon💚
@trentaa66: 😍😘
↪️@talia_harrington: 🥰
When they arrived at the restaurant, Joe and Melody were already waiting out the front for them. Joe was dressed similarly to Trent, and Melody was wearing a pink dress of a similar style to Talia's.
"Hey Talia, how are you?" Mel smiled at the brunette as soon as she saw her, pulling her into a hug.
"Well thanks," Talia smiled. "Hope you guys haven't been waiting too long, it's a bit cold out here!"
"Nah, not too long," Joe said. "Let's go in."
They entered the building, and rode the lift to the top floor, where the restaurant was spread out under the slowly setting sun. It was not cold up there, as it had been down below, due to the heaters that were set up at intervals between the tables. Joe and Trent spoke to a waiter, and they were led directly to a table for four right at the end of the roof top, giving them a perfect view of the city below.
"I already love this place," said Melody, as she gazed out over the streets of Liverpool. "This is amazing! Can't believe I haven't been here until now."
"It hasn't actually been open that long," said Trent, "So that's probably why."
"Well they've done well for themselves then," said Talia, as she glanced around. "It's already super popular! There aren't many empty tables."
"That's not surprising though," said Melody. "It's pretty conspicuous."
The decor of the restaurant was a strange mix of rustic wood, with black and white modern accents that worked really well together. Talia particularly liked the centrepieces that were on each table - a large candle inside a wooden structure that cast odd looking shadows over the table.
Trent was already looking at the menu, and he turned to look at his girlfriend with a grin.
"I bet I can guess what you're going to have," he told her.
"Okay then," Talia laughed. "Is that a challenge to pick something unusual?"
"It's a challenge to see how well Trent actually knows you," laughed Joe. "Maybe it's not as well as he thinks he does."
"Don't turn this into 'am I a good boyfriend,' Joe," Trent complained. "We've been together for nearly two weeks? You've been together a year. How about you guess what Mel's going to eat?"
"That's impossible," Melody laughed. "I eat something different every time. I know that Joe will have surf and turf, though."
Joe's eyes widened, and he gave her an impressed look, before turning his menu around to show them the page he had been looking at. A large picture of a steak covered in prawns was right in the middle, and the other three burst out laughing.
"Why are you so surprised she got that?" Trent laughed.
"I don't know? I don't have it that often, do I?"
"Yes you do," Melody giggled. "Can I collect my brownie points now, Trent? I guessed correctly?"
"Sure," Trent rolled his eyes at her playfully. "Well then, my guess for Talia is that she will order the seafood platter."
Talia laughed, and smiled at him happily.
"You better give him his brownie points back, Melody."
"Yes!" Trent exclaimed.
The rest of the dinner went well. Talia got on as well with Joe and Melody as Trent could have hoped, and they took ages with their food, as they spent more time talking than they did eating. Pretty soon, they were discussing the upcoming awards night for Liverpool, with Melody wondering if she needed to go shopping for a new dress to wear.
"I forgot to ask you if you wanted to come with me to the awards night," Trent told his girlfriend. "I'll text you the details later, let me know if you're free."
"Sounds good," Talia nodded. "I can't imagine I'll be busy, I don't have a lot on during evenings."
"Yay, that means we can go shopping together!" Melody exclaimed happily.
"Ha, lucky you, Talia," Joe rolled his eyes. "I hope you survive."
"I'm sure I will," Talia chuckled at him. "I actually enjoy shopping, so..."
"Yeah, if it's for hats," said Trent.
He and Talia looked at each other for a second, and then they both burst out laughing, causing the other two to look at them in confusion.
"Okay, explain," said Joe, shaking his head. "What's the hat joke?"
"We literally met because Talia was wearing this massive hat on the beach when it was windy and it blew off her head, and I saved it from going into the water."
"Aw," Melody grinned at them, as Talia felt her cheeks go a little pink. "How romantic, you guys!"
"Let me know when you're free to go shopping, Mel," said Talia.
"Okay!" Said Mel, the excitement evident in her voice. "You'll be able to meet Grace. She's my shopping buddy, and she's really sweet. You will love each other, I promise."
"Looking forward to it," Talia smiled at her new friend.
"Well I'm definitely gonna win an award, so you're gonna need a nice dress to get photos with me in," Trent grinned at her.
"Alright then," said Joe, his eyes widening. "Mr big head over here. Calm down mate."
"Tom says Andy Robertson is better than you anyway," Talia teased him. "Dante didn't agree with him though... I'll have to ask Phoenix to get a final opinion."
"Then Dante is my favourite of your brothers," said Trent, with a laugh.
"I'm not telling him that, his head will be bigger than yours!"
"You have three brothers?" Asked Melody, looking interested. "Any sisters?"
"Nope," Talia shook her head. "It's just the four of us. We're all really close as well, which has been amazing, especially recently. Do you have any siblings?"
"I don't," said Melody, shaking her head regretfully. "That's great that you're close with yours, though."
"You two are quite similar, in that aspect," said Joe. "No wonder you get on so well together."
"Talia and Dante actually have a YouTube channel," Trent told them. "They play piano, they're really good! You should check them out some time."
"Oh yeah, I remember you saying you had to go do a livestream the other day," said Melody. "How did that go?"
"It went really well," Talia smiled. "We stream it from YouTube, and then the steam gets posted to our channel once we're done so you can watch it as a video, but we basically get requests from the stream chat for what they want us to play. People love it, and it's fun for us as well, so we try to do it maybe once a month? Can't really do it more often than that or it will lose its charm, but it is fun when we do it."
"Sounds like you have a pretty big following," said Joe.
"Yeah, we support ourselves from the money we earn, so we have a decent amount of people who like our music."
"That's so unique," said Mel. "Have you ever done concerts before?"
"Once or twice," said Talia. "It's been for special occasions, but we want to do it more, we just have to decide how it's going to work. What do you do for work, Mel?"
"I do portrait photography, and family photography," said Mel. "I have my own business, I don't think I'm as successful as you are, but I do pretty well off it."
"That's sounds great," Talia smiled. "You'll have to show me some of your photos."
As they were leaving the restaurant, Trent insisted on paying for Talia, which Talia wasn't entirely comfortable with. It hadn't been part of their agreement they'd made - if it was your idea for the date, then you paid. But this had been neither of their ideas, and she wished Trent didn't feel like he had to do it. She wasn't sure if it was because he was trying to show off, or for another reason. However, she didn't want to cause a scene, and waited until they were on the way home to speak to him about it.
"You shouldn't have paid, you know," she said. "That wasn't part of our agreement we made."
"I know," Trent shrugged. "I just... I don't know, I like doing things for you."
"I get that," said Talia. "But you don't need to. I like the fact that I can support myself, that I can be self sufficient. That's why I said that to you the first time we went out together."
Trent sighed, and they were both silent for a while. Talia didn't know what else to say, and she began to fear that things would grow awkward. However, eventually, Trent reached for her hand, and took it into his own, leaving his other hand free to drive his car.
"I'm sorry," he shook his head. "I know you're more than capable of handling yourself. How about in the future, for both of us, we ask first?"
"Okay," Talia nodded, feeling relieved. "And sorry to make such a big deal about it, but that's just how I was raised, you know? My dad always told us that we all have to make our own way in the world, and no one gets special treatment just because of who they are, but it's still a balance, and we still have to look after each other. So... yeah. Sorry."
"You don't need to apologise," Trent shook his head. "I'm glad you told me. I'll remember from now on."
~.~.~.~.~.~