Chapter 2

2

I never understood why anyone spoke poorly of the color brown,

it was a dream on you

Short, curling hair—shorter than I remember—in the most perfect shade of brown, along with his hazel eyes and melting smiling.

How did he get more handsome?

The Levi Coldwell that I loved in high school. The boy I spent nearly every day with and watched every girl swoon over him in the process while my heart was shattered into pieces. Roaring started in my ears and the room began to sway as past memories flooded my vision. The last time I had seen him was when he walked across the graduation stage our senior year of high school four years ago. I had been silently wiping tears as I avoided his gaze in the crowd, thinking of everything he said to me the previous night.

“Levi?” I was trying to hide any state of panic, but I couldn’t relax my shoulders or lower blood pressure as I took in the man in front of me. I rushed to fix whatever the beer glass just did to my hair as I absorbed that he was real.

“Levi?!” Gabe and Jia whispered from behind me, reminding

me that we are in public, not in a dream.

“You cut your hair,” Levi said in astonishment as if we had been speaking for the past four years. His hand reached toward my face to touch it, but then, his hand moved down to his side quickly. My breath hitched in my throat like a hormonal teenage girl.

Don’t blush, don’t blush, be cool, be cool. He mentioned your hair, not the shape of your lips in a romantic way.

I suppressed my numerous questions about why he was here. Like where he’s been the past four years, if he’s thought of me at all, if he was doing okay. Instead, I said, “I did. Kind of gets in the way while sewing.”

That wasn’t a complete lie, but it also wasn’t the full truth. I cut it short the day after senior graduation because that’s what all the heartbroken main characters I watched did when they needed a change. It seemed like a good next move after finding out the person I was in love with didn’t feel the same way.

His face lit up. “How’s that going by the way—designing?” he asked, sincerity in his eyes and smile.

“It’s good,” I said, “I love it.” Trying to keep myself from rambling, I stopped there, unsure of how much longer I could hold this discussion without asking him a million questions and sounding insane. Not my best quality while I tried to discretely adjust my top in the process.

Did my boobs look okay?

“I’m sorry, by the way,” he winced, referencing to his beer hitting my head, as he reaches for my forearm to enforce his sincerity. The small touch sent goosebumps up my forearm, something I hadn’t experienced in what felt like years. It felt more intimate than any of the sex I had in the past four years. “Let me buy you a drink. Dirty Shirley, right?”

My lips parted in surprise as I said, “Yeah,” despite the drink in Gabe’s hand that was waiting for me.

I followed Levi up to the bar as he made room for us, trying my best not to stare at his long stature as he walked. Or at his lips as he ordered their drinks. Or at his hands as he touched his hair. It was like I was back in high school; my mind reeling as I stood in his presence.

“Are you still going to NYU?” I asked as he leaned against the bar.

“You remember?” A flicker of surprise in his face.

“Of course, you don’t give me enough credit, we were best friends,” I said softly. But I was fully aware that he heard me from the look on his face as I said best friends, despite the rowdiness of the people drinking around us.

“We were,” he said, nodding his head at the memory. “Are you still living with your mom and aunt in the West village?”

“How do you know I live in the West Village?” I asked with confusion. The last thing I expected was Levi to remember anything about me, let alone where I was currently living.

He laughed as if he was trying to prepare himself for what he was about to admit. “I called your mom the day after graduation to find out if you were still moving into the city. She gave me the address in case I ever wanted to stop by.”

My chest tightened. He had never stopped by.

I wasn’t sure how to respond to that information, and honestly, I wish I hadn’t known it at all. I already struggled the past four years wondering what he’s was doing, so knowing that

he’s had this information all these years and did nothing with it…it left a pit of anxiety growing at the bottom of my stomach. With the old feelings rising to the surface, I refrained from responding and waited for him to continue.

“How are they—your mom and aunt, I mean,” he asked, tripping over his words. Was he nervous?

“They’re good,” I said smiling. “Aunt Mandy is running the flower shop and my mom is designing, as usual. How are your sisters?”

His face lit up with joy, “They’re great. Claire and Rhea just entered the 3^rd grade, and Sarah’s getting married, actually.”

I gasped, “To who? Don’t tell me it’s Jeff,” covering my mouth with anticipation.

“You’re not helping the situation,” he said dreadfully, running his hand over his jaw with a groan.

“Oh my gosh, it is Jeff,” I said urgently, trying not to laugh at this horrifying news. “Why would she ever agree to that?” I asked with intense curiosity. I was always invested in his sisters’ lives. I still remember going over to his house in high school and being sucked into their rooms to catch up on all the gossip happening in kindergarten for an hour before I even saw Levi. Sarah was only a year below us, so we usually talked about the cutest guys in class. I never admitted to her that I thought it was her brother.

“Because she’s tired of the dating world—those were her exact words,” he said shaking his head, obviously stressed over the engagement.

“Are you dating anyone?” The words were out before I could process what I was saying.

His eyebrows raised. He hesitated before answering. “No. Are you?”

“Not at the moment,” I said. Not at the moment? What was that supposed to mean?

He obviously didn’t think much of it because he responded casually, “That’s good.”

God, this conversation was going into a territory I wasn’t dressed properly for. I think this is the type of conversation I needed to be prepped on before I was allowed to speak freely.

The first time I saw my childhood crush in four years and I was wearing ill-fitting clothes. Someone please save—

“Levi?” Our heads turned at the sound of his name.

“Bella,” Levi said, color coming to his cheeks.

“How are you?” She—Bella—asked as she practically jumped onto Levi in a warm embrace. This was not the kind of saving I was looking for.

“I’m good, I’m good. How are you?”

Should I leave? Honestly, what would you do in this conversation? I obviously had no clue. I stood there for a moment debating my options, watching as Bella and Levi talked, his hand on her arm the entire conversation and her hand on his.

Her hair was the color of the homemade blondies I made on Sundays before working at the flower shop. It had this strawberry blonde tint and was the perfect length, hitting the middle of her back. It made me wish I had never cut my hair.

“I’m here with one of Sarah’s friends, she’ll be at the wedding with us.”

Us?

I glanced at Levi in surprise. She was invited to the wedding? I hated to admit it, but I couldn’t watch him be invested in every word Bella said; it felt like senior year all over again. And hearing about how involved she was in his life—how I used to be that person—was too much.

I stepped away from them before I could do anything pathetic, they wouldn’t notice me blending into the background—but then I was pulled back within one step, a hand in mine.

“Bella, this is Daisy—Dani,” he said, correcting himself in a flustered manner.

Hearing the sound of my name coming from his lips affected my body in a way that other men couldn’t even do when kissing me.

I refrained from looking down at my hand in surprise like a love-obsessed stalker, and instead looked at the girl across from me, who was now climbing off Levi at the sight of our interlocked hands. Now she was looking at me as if she knew me. Did she?

“Daisy?” Bella asked Levi, rather than asking me, with an appalled look on her face.

At the nod of Levi’s head, Bella continued, “I’ve heard a lot about you.” The way she spoke made it sound as if she regretted it.

Before I could speak, Bella kept going. A flirtatious smile painted on her face as she touched his thigh, her body in between his legs. “Did Levi tell you we’re together?”

The comment hit me like a slap in the face, my heart instantly faltering. Did he lie about not being in a relationship to make me feel better about my poor excuse of a dating life? My reaction must have been evident because Levi spoke up immediately.

“We’re not together anymore,” Levi said.

“I was just testing you, calm down.” Bella rolled her eyes and

then flicked one of Levi’s loose curls.

Catching her hand, he said, “Unnecessary.”

I couldn’t help but notice how when he said my name it sounded sweet, but when he said hers, it sounded seductive. Probably the perfect way to describe how the two of us were different; she was all glamour, and I was all…vintage.

“Oh, come on Levi, everyone knows you’re obsessed with me. No hard feelings. I promise it won’t affect my mother’s decision about the job. Maybe,” she spoke with wit, finishing it off with a wink.

“That’s not true.”

Bella continued, not caring for his refusal to agree with her. “Being obsessed with me? Oh come on, Levi, everyone can see it, it’s nothing to be embarrassed about. You haven’t even dated anyone since—”

“I’m dating Dani.”

The only thing keeping my jaw from dropping was the satisfaction I was getting from Bella’s shocked face.

“Excuse me?” Bella asked, her voice iced over with intensity that I only ever saw from my aunt when they messed up her takeout order.

He didn’t miss a beat, his eyes went straight to my face to drive the point home. My knees locked up as he looked into my eyes and said, “Daniella and I are dating.” His words were seductive and determined, like I was his and he wouldn’t sit there and be told otherwise.

I stared back in awe; the moment being broken up by Levi as

he returned to Bella. “So no, it shouldn’t affect your mother’s decision.”

Coldness wasn’t something you’d see from Levi often. I could count on one hand the number of times in which he raised his voice or cut someone off in the four years I spent with him. Seeing this side of him was like witnessing a tsunami in a landlocked country.

“I didn’t think you’d ever do the boyfriend thing,” she speculated. “I assume she’ll be coming to the wedding then,” Bella stated formally, still ignoring me.

“Yes, she will be.” Levi said.

He was upset. She had the ability to make him upset. Levi liked this girl. It was obvious from the way his face lit up the second he saw her. He had always attracted girls though; it was no surprise. From his flirtatious charm to his hazel eyes and dark hair. It was like the angles and structure of his face were made to be replicated by artists and stared at by beautiful girls.

Just the way he would look at you with this absolute intensity that let you know he was paying attention to every word you said like you were an addictive drug. Everyone desired to be with him and be around him. But I had never seen Levi reciprocate those feelings to the girls that followed his movements.

I was going to vomit.

“I guess I’ll see you both at the game tomorrow then,” Bella said.

Game?

“See you tomorrow,” he finished without looking at Bella, his hand now catching mine as he pulled us out of the bar and around the corner. Before he could walk any further, not having any clue

where he was headed, I came to a halt.

“You need to explain, right now.” I let go of his hand so I

could think clearly.

The sky was only just darkening as the sun made its escape, the streetlights clicking on and illuminating the brownstone townhouses and shops.

As Levi turned around, I realized that it was the first time tonight that I saw a look of distress sweep over his features, his hand pressing his temple. “I did not plan for that to happen,” he said leaning against the wall, not far from my home and the flower shop.

“God, I would hope not, because you should know that I am the worst person to pick when it comes to lying. So, explain to me what just happened,” I said.

“I panicked.” He rubbed the back of his neck.

“You panicked?” I asked with astoundment. “If that girl looked at me one more time, I’m convinced it would’ve been the last thing I saw before she knocked me out!”

He laughed, a smile appearing across his tan face. As our eyes met, all the anger in my body extinguished.

“What happened?” I asked. Expecting some horror-filled break up story based on the way Bella reacted to Levi dating someone else.

“She’s a friend of Sarah’s. We went on a few dates throughout the year, but it didn’t turn out how she wanted.” It sounded like there was more to be said, but he looked conflicted.

As much as I wanted reach out to him, similar to the way we used to hug one another every Thursday night before I walked back to my house or when we passed our dreaded Friday physics exams, I kept my hands together. We weren’t those people anymore.

“Why would you tell her we’re dating then?” I asked, genuinely curious.

He shook his head. “I’m trying to stay on her good side, and she knows that. Her mother runs the Arts department for The New York Times

and has the power to hire me. She’s convinced that I’m a loose cannon though.”

“What? Why? That makes no sense,” I shook my head, even more confused than before.

“She thought I was a qualified candidate for the position before finding out about me dating Bella. She’s convinced I won’t stick around in the city—that I’m not serious about my future because I can’t commit to a relationship with her daughter.”

“She said this to you?” I asked in disbelief; my face hurt with surprise. This sounded…illegal?

He had something to say, something that he didn’t want to share. The reason…I didn’t know why. But often he held back when it involved his personal feelings. There was something about this relationship, or lack thereof, with Bella that he wasn’t saying.

“She’s her mother. I couldn’t blame her for putting her guard up.”

Protective, caring Levi as usual. “And I come into this how…”

He groaned with embarrassment, “I promise this was not planned. I panicked. First I saw you, then her.” My heart swelled at those three words. “I know if Bella sees me in a relationship, she’s likely to tell her mother.”

“I don’t know. We’re talking about pretending to be a couple here, and I haven’t even seen you in years. The last thing I want is to deceive your family and intrude on Sarah’s wedding.” This was much easier to say than explaining my unrequited feelings for him,

even as fizzled as they were after all these years.

Pushing off the wall, Levi strode across the wide sidewalk in one fluid step. “What are you talking about?” he asked, shaking his head, perplexed. “Sarah would die to see you again; my family has always loved you.” The confession made me nostalgic, missing the large family dinners and chatter of Levi’s siblings. And that quick memory appeared on my face because the tension in his shoulders relaxed. How was I supposed to say no? This used to be my best friend.

“You’d be doing me a huge favor.” He gave me a childish smile that made me snort with laughter.

“It’s not fair,” I said like a child.

“What?”

“I’ve never been able to say no to you,” I said, knowing that he would take it as a sign of our friendship and nothing else.

Kissing me on the head in excitement as if nothing had changed, he said, “You’re amazing, Daniella Maria!”

“You owe me, Levi Coldwell,” I replied with a finger in his chest, trying to recover from the ghost of the kiss on my forehead.

“Free strawberry shortcake for the rest of your life,” Levi cheered with joy as I pulled his hands from my face.

“How do you remember this stuff?” I laughed in response, surprised that he would remember something so specific.

“Friends, remember?” He spoke nonchalantly, having no idea that those were the last words I wanted to hear.

Friends.

“Now, how is this going to work, and what is this game?”

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