We played countless different tables and machines, and I learned a lot about Tyson. I learned fact after fact about him, desperate for something that Bella would deem useful. He lived a quiet life on a small-town dirt road. If he wasn't surfing or spending time with his family, he was at his shop working for a customer or working on his race car project. He was a big family man. Phone screen a picture of his nieces and nephews, he spoke highly of siblings. He was a great guy, and it had been an enjoyable night. True to Bella's prediction, Tyson didn't pull a single move. He kept a respectful distance all night, with no lingering gazes or dirty smirks. Which was fantastic. But as we sat at the poker table, our chosen last game of the night, I was slightly disappointed by the lack of Bella's promised life-changing conversation.

      "You've really no idea what we're supposed to be talking about?" I prodded again as the dealer shuffled the deck of cards.

     "I mean I have a little suspicion," Tyson admitted. "But I don't fancy making assumptions."

     I huffed exasperatedly. "I'm kind of having an early life crisis, even the smallest clue might be helpful."

     Tyson chuckled, rolling his thumb as he hesitated. "Did Bella tell you anything about me?" he treaded lightly.

     "Not much other than the fact that you definitely would not be into the idea of getting into my pants."

     Mildly surprised, he snorted. "You've got to appreciate her brutal honesty."

     "Am I that far off your usual type?"

     "I wouldn't say far off, but yeah, you're not my usual type." Honesty ran in the family it seemed. I felt the need to inform him that he wasn't my type either, but I didn't know my type, so...

     "There's also the fact that I'm kind of seeing someone," he added.

     "What?!" I nearly dropped the freshly dealt cards in my hands, chair shaking from my outburst.

     "No worries," he laughed again. "She knows about tonight. This is a friend date, afterall." He air-quoted and rolled his eyes.

     I nodded absentmindedly, mind once again spinning with ridiculous ideas of what outcomes Bella foresaw from this. She had set me up with a man that was taken. I couldn't even handle one person; did she expect me to hobble down the polyamory route?

     "We're not official yet," Tyson added. "So, no need to worry about becoming a human omelet."

      "Of course, she told you about that." I laughed at myself. This girl was a lot kinder than Oliver's ex, if the look in Tyson's eyes was anything to go by. "Are you planning on making it official any time soon?"

     "That's the plan." It was the first time I saw him timid, meekly unsure of himself. "We'll see how it goes once the matter of my sexuality is discussed."

     I masked my surprise by studying the king and jack of hearts in my hands, and the first overturned jack of spades turned on the deck. Was Tyson bisexual? Pansexual? Sabi had been afraid of telling her high school boyfriend that she was bisexual. As if this revelation would massively affect their relationship. I understood her fear, considering the existing biphobia, but I thought the idea that someone might turn away their partner because they've admitted to liking more than one gender, ridiculous. I hoped Tyson's love interest was as open minded as Ethan had been.

    "Must be scary," I sympathized. "And I know this probably won't make you feel better, but if she can't accept you for who you are, then she doesn't deserve you."

     The corner of his mouth twitched into a half smile, eyes sparkling as if he knew something I didn't. He looked pensively at the cards that I was letting him see (I very much needed help, if I stood any chance at poker). Just as soon as the smile had appeared, it disappeared.

     "I wouldn't blame her for calling things off." He shrugged unceremoniously. "She'd probably still want to be friends, but I wouldn't be angry if she didn't want to pursue things. I understand that everyone has different needs in a relationship, and my sexuality may prevent me from meeting those needs."

     I turned away from my cards to watch him curiously. I wanted to ask, but I didn't know how comfortable he was about it. He laughed as if he could see the silent question behind my eyes.

     "I'm asexual," he explained.

     I smiled encouragingly at the confession, but confusion remained on my features. I prided myself for the knowledge of and my involvement in LGBTQ+ movements. I had my friends to thank for my education in the matter and it was incredibly important to me to support them and their community when needed. But there were definitely still matters that warranted more learning. This situation case in point.

     "It's okay if you don't know what that means," he assured.

     I smiled sheepishly. "I'm not as educated as I'd like to be on certain letters of the acronym." It really ought to have been something that was spoken about in school.

     "That's okay. Not enough people talk about it." He paused to look at the next turned over card, a ten of hearts. Tyson placed his bet and then the dealer was waiting for my answer. I wasn't overly confident with my hand, but I still had the pair. Plus, I had angled my cards for Tyson to see and he had yet to advise me to fold... So, I matched their bets.

     As we waited for the other players' responses, Tyson turned in his seat.

     "It means that I don't experience sexual attraction," he began. "As much as I like Alexandra, as much as I do enjoy the companionship, the kissing and the hand holding, I won't ever want to have sex her, or anyone for that matter."

     "No sexual attraction," I mumbled mostly to myself. My chest rumbled with anticipation. Something told me this could be compared to moment before the apple fell on Isaac Newton's head. Perhaps not as monumental in terms of its effect on the world, but still quite colossal in the small world of Yasmine Sarraf. "Like looking at a painting. You can admire it, but you don't ever want to fuck it."

     Blue eyes shone with amusement; lips tight to withhold a chuckle. "Weird way to put it, but yeah, I guess so."

     "Wow," I marvelled aloud. It took no genius to put two and two together. Bella's intentions were suddenly clear as day. "Bella thinks I'm asexual."

     Tyson shrugged passively, but I saw the answer dancing across his pupils. "Doesn't so much matter what she thinks, but yeah, it definitely seems like she thinks you're at least somewhere on the ace spectrum," he said. I didn't even need to ask, Tyson went on, offering the explanations he knew I needed. "There are a lot of different ways asexuality can manifest. Not everyone feels the need for a label, but grey-sexual is typically used for people who do experience some level of sexual attraction, but rarely or in a limited amount. Others, like demi-sexuals have to get to know a person before the sexual attraction kicks in, and even then, it can be infrequent." He stopped again, gaze towards the center of the table. A 10 of diamond was turned and we placed our bets accordingly.

      "While I'm not interested in sex, some asexuals have sex for the physical release despite lacking the sexual attraction. I could name a few more variations, and each is as valid as the other... Some people on the ace spectrum identify as aromantic." I wasn't sure if I was imagining it or not, but his next words seemed to hold an extra emphasis, as if he was willing my full attentiveness. "Aromantics don't experience sexual attraction nor a desire for romance. Again, they could want to have sex for the physical release, but the attraction and desire for a romantic or physical relationship isn't there."

     The poker chips and cards blurred in front of me, my attention focused solely on his words. Could it really be that simple? No sexual attraction. My heart flickered in my chest. No relationships. My heart flickered another few beats.

     "So, these people... Typically just stay single? They're not into the dating thing. Or the marriage thing? They're simply not looking for a romantic partner?"

     Tyson hummed in agreement. "And that's completely valid." He looked at me then with a knowing smile. "A lot of people seem to think that means that aromantic people are loners. They think they're the forever lonely type or that they lack proper social skills, but their sexuality has nothing to do with their personalities. I have an aromantic friend who's the life of the party; he has more meaningful relationships than I own pants."

     I chuckled half-heartedly, wishing I could offer him a better response, but my mind was a jumble. I couldn't decide if what I was feeling was relief, confusion, or fear. Probably a mixture of all three.

     "Fold." Tyson's voice startled me. I looked up in surprise. I'm not sure why I was surprised, it's not like he could control the cards he received. Still, I suspected that if he folded, he knew with utmost certainty that he didn't stand a chance. How he knew rather than suspected? I don't know. Tyson Molino was a man of many secrets.

     Instinctively, I made move to follow suit, as if Tyson standing no chance, meant that I had also been dealt a shitty hand. Even though they were right in front of me, I didn't think of looking at my cards, game plan completely forgotten.

     "Don't," Tyson whispered through unmoving lips, careful not to give the others any indication of my odds. Subtly, he nudged my arm as if to encourage me to match the bet. Call me stupid for trusting a near stranger, but I did. The bets were steadily growing; losing would cost me a pretty penny. It was a risk, but I couldn't find it in myself to care. If this went south, I could drown myself with work and forget about the distressing thoughts haunting my conscious.

     I pushed my chips forward, waiting for the others to play. I couldn't change the cards I had been dealt, but I could try to make the best of it. Maybe that would have meant folding, but I was choosing to believe that the unlikely would earn me a win. After my risky move, only three players of the original eight remained.

      "How did you know?" I asked Tyson.

     "How did I know I was asexual?" he asked, and I nodded. "It took me awhile to figure it out. I had a few crushes in elementary school; enjoyed the typical pecks and hand holding, so it wasn't until high school that I really noticed something was different. People started talking about sex. Nights out with friends that used to entail running around the neighborhood playing manhunt, turned into parties and school dances, desperate attempts to find their next dates. Parties weren't just playing games and hanging out anymore, it was people making out in every corner. And I didn't care that their priorities changed, but I couldn't relate. I didn't understand it." He took a sip of his water, either unaware or uncaring of the people at the table listening to our conversation. Not a single pair of eyes weren't resting on the blond. "I love being a twin. Tyler is my absolute best friend; we're used to sharing everything. But there used to be a lot of oversharing. I heard all about his sexual fantasies and porn preferences. And when I didn't share my own, he assured me that one day it would come. Pun intended. I just figured I was slow to mature. So, I tried to push it. One night I found Tyler's porn stash and I figured it was worth a shot." Tyson made no reaction to the mixture of raised brows, wide eyes, and tinted cheeks around the table. He went on unashamedly. As he should. "It did nothing for me. And I was really concerned that something might actually be wrong with me, that my dick might be defective."

     I couldn't help but smirk then. Despite the conversation at hand, I could only be amused by the listeners' expressions. It took great will power to contain my laughter.

     "I even thought it might just be the girl part," Tyson went on, stretching in his chair. "My older brother's gay, so I went looking through his stash... That didn't do anything for me either. It took a while, but from then I kind of just accepted that I was different, even though I didn't have a word to describe how I was feeling.

     It was a few years ago, after Isaiah came out that I first heard about asexuality. My mom's very religious, and she struggled with Zaha's sexuality. But she tried. Our family had already gone through so much, so she tried really hard to understand. Isaiah took every opportunity to educate her. And she was genuinely curious, ready to learn. I woke up a random morning and they were already deep into one of their study sessions. Zaha threw out the Ace word and it felt like both a slap to the face and I like I had been handed a gift... And now here I am." He shrugged a shoulder, marking the end of his story. He remained nonchalant, as if every word that had parted his lips these past five minutes hadn't rocked my entire perception of reality.

     As if they had momentarily forgotten their job, clumsily the dealer flipped the next card. The smirk Tyson hid behind his hand caught my attention before the turned over card did. The smirk was for my eyes only, a secret message. It was a good sign. I looked down at the table expectantly.

     A queen of hearts. I tried to hide my surprise. I saw what Tyson was hoping for. If that one card pulled through, I'd have a royal flush and the odds of losing with a hand like that were slim. But the odds of getting the card I needed were equally slim. A 45/52 chance in my books... But I had never been good at math, and Tyson's subtle hand gesture, urged a bet with utmost confidence.

     Why not? I pushed the remainder of my chips ahead. "All in."

     Even Tyson was surprised by the move. Every player after me folded, except the one man in the seat across from mine. He witnessed Tyson and I's odd exchange and called me on my bluff. He matched my bet and I cringed. I had good reason to worry about his cards. But I didn't let myself get too worked up. A month of distraction worthy overtime, it would likely be.

     Though initially surprised by the risky move, Tyson was back to his confident self. He met my gaze of doubt with certainty and delight. Those blue eyes said that he knew faith was on our side. I couldn't imagine how on earth he could be so certain.

     Seconds ticked away, anticipation growing. The dealer either got paid by the hour or had a flare for the dramatics. With the slowest turn of hand that I had ever witnessed, they flipped the last card.

     An ace of hearts.

     I almost laughed aloud at the irony. Tyson was grinning like a mad man, before the man in the red blazer, my last competitor, flipped his cards. It didn't matter what he had. There was no beating my hand. The man displayed a four of a kind. It was a good hand, but not enough in this case.

      With a purse full of cash, I was still buzzing when we swept across the parking lot. Cold breeze of the night blowing in my hair, Tyson laughed at my excitement, refusing to take any part of my earnings. I wouldn't have won without him, but he was adamant. I'd repay him by finding unnecessary problems with my car.

     "Fine," I grumbled half-heartedly when it became clear that he wouldn't budge. "But I'm buying you and Alexandra supper when I stop by for the oil change." I made sure to add air quotes to my last words.

     Tyson chuckled. "That I can agree to."

     I whooped, pumping my fist victoriously. We walked a few more steps, both our cars in sight when Tyson reached into his pocket. While I expected car keys, he pulled out a playing card.

     "Before I forget." He held out the card. "I thought you might like to keep this."

     Taking the card between my fingers, I smiled softly at the ace of hearts. Of course, he had stolen it. I wondered how long it would take one of the employees to realize that a card was missing. How many games had Tyson just thrown off?

     I smiled down at the card for many moments before pulling it to my chest. It didn't matter how many games would be tampered with because of this missing card, I wasn't letting it go any time soon. "Thank you, Tyson." I smiled genuinely. "Not just for the card, but... You know."

     Reaching for his door handle, he nodded with a returned smile. "If you ever have questions about... stuff, or just want to talk, don't hesitate to call."

      With a nod of gratitude, I watched him leave. I stood there until his car was long out of sight, staring down at a single playing card as if it held the answer to all my troubles... Maybe it did.