Page 3 of Scandalous

“Maybe not, but it makes sense.” Liam goes on, “I’ve never minded sharing. Drake and I have shared many times. Adding you two in wouldn’t be a big deal. I trust you. Let’s think about this seriously. Any girl we add between us individually would most likely cause issues. She wouldn’t like how much time we spend together. If we add two in, they might not like each other pulling us farther apart. Add four in, and well, we might as well forget we were ever friends. However, if we found one woman who liked us all equally, we could share her. She would be better taken care of than any other woman we have ever met.”

“It’s unconventional, sure, but the poly lifestyle has become more popular both in the media and day-to-day life. Why can’t we have a relationship like this? I agree with Liam. I trust you guys more than anyone else in the world. Who else would I trust to take care of my girl? Our girl.” I move over to Liam, throwing my arm over his shoulder.

Ezra scoffs. “You think Aurora Blake is that girl? She would never agree.”

“It’s not a no though. So we should invite her to a party. Feel her out.” Liam smiles.

“No. Absolutely not. I’m not saying I couldn’t agree to this type of arrangement, but I do not think Aurora Blake is going to be the one for us.” Ezra remains adamant.

“Let’s not argue about this now. We have only minutes to finish getting set up,” Santi jumps in, moving to check the cameras one more time.

With us all doing the same live, we decided to set up all four of our phones to showcase all of us. Each of us is also signed into our secondary accounts to monitor the comments and answer questions. I put my wireless earbud in so I can hear the audio coming through the feed while not having feedback from us talking in the room.

As we all get ready to start, I make sure to tag Aurora in my video. This is for her after all.

“Hello and welcome. I’m The American and I’ve been challenged by Aurora Blake to post a guy’s take on her most recent Therapy Thursday. To make things even more interesting, I’ve convinced my closest friends to join in. So let me welcome The Boricua, The Brit, and The Aussie to this live feed.”

Each of my friends says hello.

“Right, so let me give you a brief overview of the issue we are addressing. A woman wrote in to the beautiful Aurora asking for advice about her relationship. She told Aurora that she had been dating this person for several months, but she didn’t feel like the relationship was equal. The woman felt like she was giving more than he was. She also mentioned that he often cancels plans with her to hang out with his friends and doesn’t invite her to go, and feels like he only makes time for her when he has nothing else to do. Aurora had some good points from the female perspective and if you haven’t already, go check out her video. We men look at things differently though. So, who wants to start?” I look over at each guy.

Santi clears his throat. “Well, I’m sure this won’t be a surprise to my followers, but my love language is quality time. It’s important for me to spend time with the person I’m dating to get to know them. Spending time doing things we love, whether it’s cooking or going for a hike, or even cuddling on the couch, it doesn’t matter. So from my point of view, this guy is failing. He’s not showing her that he cares because he is blowing her off for people he’s putting above her. If I were this girl, I would quit while I’m ahead. A relationship should be a two-way street. You should be getting as much as you’re receiving. It seems like all you are doing is giving.”

“I’d have to agree with my man Santi. My love language is a little different. I like to be shown that someone cares through gifts. Now I can already hear some of you out there calling me selfish, but it’s not like that. I don’t need lavish gifts. I mean little ones, such as making my favorite meal for dinner or picking me up that candy bar I like because you thought of me. I tend to reciprocate this love language to my partner as well. If he isn’t spending time with you or doing small things to show you he cares, it’s time to call it a day. Actions speak louder than words.” Liam glances over at me, sending me a wink.

I’d roll my eyes at him, but Ezra is already talking, surprising me. He was the last person I expected to actually want to participate.

“It’s not even about love languages, really. It’s about you. If you allow him to treat you that way, then he will continue to do so. I can see in the comments and with everyone who has spoken about this so far that we are all blaming the guy. I think some level of blame has to be with this girl as well.”

I snort. “Of course you would be the asshole. Why don’t you tell us why you feel that way?”

He shoots me a glare but turns back to the camera. “This man didn’t change his personality overnight. There were red flags from the beginning. We are being led to believe that we should pity this girl for the situation she’s in, but she’s already said she has been dating him for months. Has she ever once talked to him about the way he makes her feel? Has she told him what her expectations of the relationship are? I think that in today’s world, we are less honest with one another. Less willing to call each other out on our bullshit. If she is truly unhappy, I agree that she should leave the situation, but I also think she needs to take a look in the mirror and admit that she already knows this. She’s only asking because she’s either seeking validation or for someone to tell her it’s okay to stay.”

“Oh look, Aurora is here. Aurora, you want to pop on and join us?” Liam asks.

I wipe my mouth to try to hide my smile. Ezra is fuming. We have been live with Aurora before. Oftentimes, she and Ezra end up going at it. It’s hilarious.

“Hey guys. Thanks for letting me join. I really want to weigh in on what Ezra is saying.” Her melodic voice flows through the stream as her picture pops up on the phone.

Goddamn, she’s gorgeous. With her shoulder-length light-blonde hair and bright-green eyes, she’s captivating. She’s the picture-perfect woman. From what I’ve gotten to see of her so far through her videos and our personal chats, she is just as beautiful inside as she is out.

Fuck, I’m going to chub out on a live video if I’m not careful.

“Please do, love. What do you have to say about it?” Ezra’s tone is condescending, making me want to punch him.

She smiles. “I agree with you.”

She stops a moment, relishing in the way I think all of our jaws have landed on the floor. Then she continues.

“At least, to an extent. I do feel like, in today’s dating world, things are less honest. We create these profiles and communicate on the computer prior to meeting our date most of the time, which is just us trying to put out the best versions of ourselves. Even if you meet someone the old-fashioned way, there’s still so much of this insecurity in your head, like what am I supposed to say or do to make him like me? Dating today is hard. I won’t deny that. Now, with that being said, I do think this guy may be taking advantage of our girl. She is obviously trying to make this work and he can’t put in the effort.”

“Oh, love. That was beautiful. I’m glad that you are more than your pretty looks. Still, you are putting all the blame on this man when we don’t even know his side of the story. What if this woman thinks they are dating because of some delusion in her head, but he thinks they are just fucking? I think that it’s hard to give advice when we only have one piece of the puzzle.” Ezra rolls his neck, looking toward me. “What do you think, Drake?”

I clear my throat. “I think you make a good point. I have gone on dates with women who have turned around and told people we were exclusive when I never made such promises. I think the issue is a lack of communication. You should openly communicate with the person you are dating to let them know what you are looking for and what your expectations are, that way, if they don’t agree or they aren’t looking for the same thing, they can find someone else. In this case, I think the woman needs to tell the man that she is looking for a long-term relationship with a partner who prioritizes her over the others in his life. That she wants someone who will spend time with her and show her that she’s important to him.”

“What about what you said about a man not knowing a woman’s worth being worthless?” Aurora asks me.

I chuckle, rubbing my chin. “I did say that, and I do mean that. From her point of view, this man is treating her terribly. I would never treat a woman the way he is, but after hearing Ezra’s point, I also agree with him. Not everything is always so black and white. Yes, I think this woman is worth more than a man who isn’t giving her the time and attention she deserves, but I also think that she needs to take her life into her hands and admit that maybe she has stayed with him this long because of her own insecurities or fears. No one can change that for her. She has to be willing to make that change for herself. To go out and find the men out there who do know what a woman’s worth is and are willing to do whatever is needed to make their woman happy.”

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