𝐡𝐨𝐰 𝐲𝐨𝐮 𝐝𝐨𝐢𝐧' ━ F.R.I.E.N.D.S. [Joey Tribbiani]

19; The One With The Poker (pt. 2)

The group sat around the table at Monica and Rachel's apartment, cards in their hands and some snacks on the table as the boys taught the girls how to play poker. Lisa was slowly getting annoyed because they were teaching them as if they were kids. Poker isn't a game for kids. Chandler glanced at Monica. "Okay, so now we draw cards."

Monica chuckled with a shrug. "So I wouldn't need any, right? Cause I have a straight."

"Oh, good for you!"

"Congratulations!"

Lisa gaped at the two blondes before looking back to George, who gave her tight lipped smile, trying to hide his amusement as he placed a kiss on her cheek. Monica got up as the microwave timer went off. Chandler turned to Phoebe. "Okay, Pheebs, how many do you want?"

Phoebe nodded, looking down at her cards. "Okay, I just need two...the, um, ten of spades and the six of clubs."

"Phoebe, no," Lisa shook her head.

Ross huffed, hiding his annoyance with a chuckle. "No. No, uh, Phoebs? You can't—you can't do..."

Rachel gasped. "Oh wait, I have the ten of spades!" She handed it over to Phoebe from her cards. "Here!" 

Ross shook his head. "No, no. Uh...no, see, uh, you-you can't do that."

Rachel waved a hand with a smile. "Oh, no-no-no-no-no-no, that's okay, I don't need them. I'm going for fours."

"Oh, you're..." Ross pursed his lips, giving up.

Monica returned to the table with plates of food. "Alright, here we go. We've got salmon roulettes and assorted crudites."

Joey held up a hand, stopping the dark haired girl. "Whoa, whoa, whoa, Monica, what're you doin'? This is a poker game. You can't serve food with more than one syllable. It's gotta be like chips, or dip, or pretz..." He trailed off, a look of realization crossing his face.

Chandler looked around awkwardly before changing the subject. "Okay, so at this point, the dealer..."

Monica set down her plate quickly, taking her seat with a slight huff. "Alright, you know, we got it, we got it. Let's play for real. High stakes...big bucks..." 

"Alright, now, you sure?" Ross asked. "Phoebe just threw away two jacks because they didn't look happy..."

Phoebe frowned. "But...I'm ready, so, just deal."

"Okay, alright, last minute lesson, last minute lesson," Chandler held up two cards. "Joey... three... eight. Eight...three." Joey pursed his lips, unamused. Chandler looked to Ross. "Alright, deal the cards."

It had been a full hour, and well, almost everyone was enraged. Monica threw down her cards on the table angrily. "Dammit, dammit, dammit!" Lisa gulped, grabbing the glass plate of snacks and pulling it towards her, earning a glare from the younger Geller and a laugh from the others.

Phoebe scowled, looking at Joey. "Oh I see, so then, you were lying."

He looked at her confused. "About what?"

"About how good your cards were."

Joey smirked. "Heh...I was bluffing."

"A-ha! And... what is bluffing? Is it not another word for...lying?"

"Not in this game," George told her, raising his brows.

Rachel sighed, getting up to leave. "Okay, sorry to break up this party, but I've got resumes to fax before work tomorrow..."

"Woah!" The guys stopped her.

Chandler shook his head. "Rach, Rach, we gotta settle."

"Settle what?"

"The...Jamestown colony of Virginia. You see, the King is giving us the land, so..." Lisa spoke, nodding to herself.

"The game, Rachel, the game. You owe us money for the game," Ross told her.

"Oh. Right."

Joey waved a hand. "You know what, you guys? It's their first time, why don't we just forget about the money, alright?"

"Hell no, we'll pay!" Monica yelled, reaching for her purse.

"Okay, Monica?" Phoebe laughed nervously. "I had another answer all ready."

Monica ignored her. "And you know what? We want a rematch."

Ross shrugged. "Well that's fine with me. Could use the money."

Rachel scoffed, looking at Ross. "So basically, you get your ya-yas by taking money from all of your friends."

He paused. "...Yeah."

"Yes, and I get my ya-yas from Ikea," Chandler mentioned, voice dripping with sarcasm. "You have to put them together yourself, but they cost a little less."

"Look, Rachel, this is poker. I play to win, alright? In order for me to win, other people have to lose. So if you're gonna play poker with me, don't expect me to be a 'nice guy,' OK? Cause once those cards are dealt..." Ross clapped his hands three times, trying to look intimidating, but really, Lisa almost started laughing.

The room remained silent, and Joey looked at Ross. "...Yeah?"

Ross huffed. "I'm not a nice guy."

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