by Jude Ouvrard
I remembered when I was younger, my mother forbid me to play with my food, but forcing each bite down my throat was beginning to hurt my stomach. The soufflé was delectable and it melted in my mouth, but after eating less than half, I decided I’d had enough and pushed the plate away. I would regret it, later, but I couldn't have possibly eaten another bite.
"Thank you, guys, for planning this evening for me. It's perfect and it exceeded all of my expectations. I feel very blessed to have you in my life." I was getting teary eyed.
"It was all Levi, Nix. If it wasn't for him, we’d have eaten dinner at home. He’s the one to thank here," Bekka admitted
"You got my dress and helped me get ready. You’re always there for me. Thank you," I told her.
Levi excused himself abruptly, saying he had to use the bathroom. It was bad timing because I hadn’t had a chance to thank him yet. Had I said something wrong? Was he upset? He couldn't be, because everything was perfect tonight.
"Any plans for the rest of the night?" I asked Bekka.
"Well, it's up to you at this point. If you want to go clubbing, we can, or we could hang out at the bar or the apartment. You decide."
I didn't know what I wanted to do. Dancing with a full stomach wasn't really appealing, but the bar and apartment were every day options. Maybe we should do something different.
"I'll wait for Levi to come back and then we’ll decide." I smiled weakly, still a little worried that he was upset with me.
Someone tapped me on the shoulder, and I turned around in surprise. I didn't know who to expect, but I was faced with a huge bouquet of gerberas, in different shades of pink. It was an absolutely beautiful arrangement and from the most exceptional boyfriend. Levi stood behind the flowers with a handsome grin on his face. He was obviously happy.
"Levi, my angel, thank you so much for everything. The flowers are incredible and the dinner was unforgettable. I love you. So much!"
"I love you too, Rock Star." He kissed me and I heard Bekka ‘awwing’ behind us. I tried to ignore her, but I got the giggles.
"Sorry." I kissed Levi one last time. "What do you want to do now?"
"It's your birthday, you decide," he smirked. The suit he was wearing was only serving to make me weak at the knees. He was abso-freakin-lutely hot.
"After everything you guys have done, I want all of us to have fun."
"Okay, well, I would love it if I could go back to my comfortable jeans and t-shirt" Tyler admitted with a wry grin. "If you don't mind." He tugged at the collar of his shirt. “This monkey suit is driving me insane."
We all laughed and Levi agreed he’d like to change. They had made the effort for me, and I appreciated it, but I knew they weren’t in their comfort zone. Even I would feel better in jeans and a tank top. I suddenly had an idea.
"Why don't we head home, change and chillax a bit and then we can figure out if we want to do something else?"
"Sounds good!" Bekka agreed and the boys nodded their satisfaction with the plan.
Lev drove us home in his Mustang singing his own version of Happy Birthday. He was funny tonight, in such great spirits. I loved it. Ty and Bekka followed us home in Ty’s Porsche.
I didn't know what else I wanted to do, but I decided the very best plan, was to let the evening plan itself.
Chapter Nineteen
When Levi started plying me with shots of Jack Daniels, I knew we wouldn't be going too far from home tonight. I had already drunk a lot of wine and didn't expect my body would support much more alcohol. Bekka was already way past tipsy and Tyler seemed to think she was hilarious. He couldn’t stop laughing at her antics.
We sat in the living room and the comfort of the couch was making it hard to stay awake. I had to be careful with the shots, if I didn't want to wake up with a migraine again in the morning. I slowed down and drank a few glasses of cold water, certain this was going to help.
When half of the JD bottle was gone, Ty suggested we could hang out at the bar for a while and we all agreed. I finally got around to changing into something more appropriate and we left the apartment in a taxi.
The bar was crowded and the music was louder than usual. There were birthday balloons strung all around the bar and a big ‘Happy Birthday Nix’ banner with my picture emblazoned on it. I was blushing to the point where I could feel the heat from my face. They knew all along that we were going to end up here. As soon as Tiff saw me, she yelled out. "Birthday girl is in the house!" Everyone started singing Happy Birthday and they threw confetti all over the place. My hair ended up full of multicolor dots. It was such a great surprise, it blew me away. I loved my life.
The regular customers offered me plenty of beers, shots and drinks. I wasn't even sure I remembered my own name less than thirty minutes after our arrival. The night had suddenly turned wild and completely out of control.
"Star, I think you should probably slow down now. You can barely stand on your own two feet," Levi said, and I thought I’d heard him say the same thing once or twice already.
I was dancing with Bekka and a bunch of complete strangers. Lev and Tyler were standing close by, probably waiting for the apocalypse to begin. I laughed, sang and danced until I was thirsty again. I couldn't remember the last time I had partied so hard and had as much fun.
My vision was getting blurry and my brain wasn’t functioning normally. My thoughts and words didn't make any sense and Bekka was just as bad. We were drunk, so incredibly drunk. The last memory I could remember clearly, was when I climbed on the stage and grabbed a microphone to sing. I remember Levi covering his face with both of his hands. He apparently didn't know what to do with me.
I sang ‘I'm a genie in a bottle’ by Christina Aguilera. I was surprised that I even managed to remember all the lyrics
"I love you sister!" Bekka yelled into the microphone. I kissed her cheek and went back to my song. I had missed a few words and hoped it wasn't too noticeable.
Bekka danced next to me on the stage. We probably looked like two idiots but at that point, we didn't care. As long as we weren't twerking, I thought we were safe. The song ended and I body jumped onto the small crowd in front of the stage. Tyler and Levi caught me on the other side of the crowd. I vaguely remember hearing Levi calling my name but besides the feel of his arms, and the smell of his cologne, that was it for the birthday girl. I passed out.
The birds were chirping, the wind against my skin was cold and sun was lighting my room. My room? I wasn't in my room. I was in the bath tub with a pillow and a towel. My hair felt like I had dreads when I touched them, and I realized with a grimace that my hair was probably glued together with my own vomit. A quick glance down and I discovered my body was partially covered by my underwear. Where the hell was my dress? My throat was burning and my stomach was upside down. I was going to be sick. I struggled out of the bathtub and hovered over the toilet bowl, trying to be as ladylike as I could.
I kicked the door shut as soon as I was done vomiting out my internal organs. My head was so dizzy, I could hardly stand. I stumbled into the shower and turned on the cold water; I needed it.
Someone knocked at the door but I decided to ignore it, needing a few minutes to try and pull myself together. Cold showers were normally my remedy for hangovers. My body was trembling, but I forced myself to remain under the icy cold water until I’d at least managed to rinse out my hair. I shut the water off and a hand appeared inside the shower with a warm towel.
"Th...T...Thank y... you."
"Are you feeling better?" Levi asked quietly.
"I will be, when I eventually warm up."
He wrapped me in the towel and circled his arms around me, taking me into the comfort of his arms. His body was warm and it felt so good again my frozen skin.
"I love you," I whispered. "Thank you for last night, it was amazing."
He looked uncomfortable. "You scared the shit out of me, Nix."
"Why’s that?" I questioned, catching sight of the worry in his green eyes.
"You were so damn drunk, I thought I was going to lose you."
I giggled. "I'm tough."
"I can see that now." He kissed my temple. "I love you too." He rubbed his nose against mine. “I missed you last night, the bed felt too big without you. But after you vomited over our sheets for the second time, I didn't want to risk another nuclear attack, so I came in here with you until you felt better. You fell asleep in the bath." He chuckled at me. How mean was he?
"What time is it, brat?"
"Brat? You call me a brat, after I saved your life last night?" he joked. "It's 3pm party girl. C’mon, I want to spend the rest of the day with you, before our crazy schedule starts up again."
“I would love that." I pulled him to me by the waistband of his jeans. "Thanks again, Angel. For everything. You. The dinner. I’ll never forget last night."
"Come on, little puker, Beauty misses you."
"At least, you won't need to stop if I need to go at it again." I tried to imagine myself vomiting while riding on Beauty, but the images in my head weren’t exactly pretty.
He had my helmet, jacket and backpack ready in the kitchen.
"Hold my hand, Rock Star." God, I loved it when he said that. He held my hand proudly and rubbed his thumb against my skin.
"Where are we going?"
"I just want to go somewhere with you. I’ve already prepared some snacks for us too, in case you get hungry."
I wanted to squeal at him because he was truly the most thoughtful man I knew, and I would have, if I wasn’t still under the weather. He always made sure I felt special and loved and this ride was going to be a great way to end our weekend. I had no clue where we were going, but I was starting to suspect we were heading out of town. The weather was cooler today, despite the sky being the perfect shade of blue. I couldn't see a single cloud anywhere in the sky around us. Levi hummed as he rode, sitting a little above the speed limit. After a couple of seconds, I recognized the song, it was the song from last night, ‘Genie in a bottle’. He was gently making fun of me. Not so subtle, Levi, and I laughed at him.
After a few more miles, he took the next exit and drove down a small road, He parked Beauty under a very tall tree and helped me off the back of the bike. We were in the woods, somewhere I’d never been before. He took my hand as he led the way along a narrow rocky path. We ended up by a lake and the view was breathtaking, the surrounding woods wild and pure. The only sound was the birds and leaves dancing in the wind. I adored it
I took a deep breath, it smelled clean and fresh. "Thank you for bringing me here," I said, gazing at the nature surrounding us.
"My mom used to bring me here during the summer. She loved to paint or take pictures. We always had a great time." He never looked at me while he spoke, he stared out at the horizon or at the small rock he was holding.
"Lots of memories..."
He smiled and drew me into a teddy bear embrace. "Yeah. I want my new memories to be with you from now on."
"They will be. I'm not going anywhere."
He kissed my cheek. "I have something to ask you." I nodded cautiously. "Next weekend, there’s a tattoo convention and I’d like it if you would come with me. I know it's not going to be much fun for you, but I’d still like to have you there."
"Where is it?" I asked curiously. It didn’t matter where it was, because I already knew my answer was yes.
"Las Vegas."
Did he say Las Vegas? "Yeah, I’ll go with you."
He couldn't hide how happy he was. "Great, this is going to be great. Kyle is coming along too." Our lips met again and I didn't want to let go. "We’ll leave Friday afternoon and come back on Sunday."
"I can't wait."
"I’ll be pretty busy. Lots of people want to get tattooed and I don't really know what to expect." His voice grew husky, suggestive. “We’ll spend the night together though, just the two of us."
"Sounds good to me."
"Let’s eat." He pulled me with him onto the grass, opened his backpack and pulled out a blanket. He placed it on the ground so we could sit on it. Levi had brought cheese, sandwiches made with French bread, fresh fruit salad, wine and cupcakes. He kept me sitting in his lap the whole afternoon, as we ate, cuddled, laughed and kissed. I wished we could spend every day like this.
"I got you a red velvet cupcake with vanilla icing. It's fresh from the bakery."
"I feel like an idiot. You always spoil me rotten and I never have anything to give you."
"You give me a lot every day, with your smile." He paused for a second. "Maybe more than I deserve."
I wasn't sure what he meant by that last comment. The ex-girlfriend situation was already forgotten, and he’d better not be talking about it again. It was over. "What are you talking about, Angel?"
"I think I'm the luckiest man. You’re beautiful, funny and everything I’ve ever wanted. You forgive me when I'm an idiot. You don't give up on me. You’re always so good to me." His eyes watered up. His words were sincere but for some reason, I felt something was wrong.
"Is everything okay, Lev?" He had me worried, I’d never seen him so emotional.
"It's the anniversary of my mother’s death tomorrow. I miss her, that's all." He shrugged his shoulders as if it was nothing important.
"It's a lot, Levi. Don't make it sound like it's not a big deal. Believe me I know. Talk to me. We’re both in this together. It's okay to miss her." I turned around to face him in his lap. "I love you, Angel." We stared at each other for quite a long time. He slowly manoeuvred us so we were both laying on the blanket. I was lying on top of him and I knew what he wanted, but this place wasn't the place for it. I didn't want someone to catch us butt naked in the woods. Instead, my body remained against his for a long session of making out. I felt like a teenager, it was definitely PG.13. His hands were on my skin, loving each of my curves and occasionally tickling me. I loved it, we had fun and we were enjoying teasing one another. The sexual tension and desire was raising sky high. It took everything I had not to take the next step and make love to him, but I had to be responsible and act intelligently, like an adult. I was twenty-two years old now, after all.
Not that our playing around bored me, but I fell asleep in the comfort of his strong arms. My head rested on his shoulder and his arms circled my waist. Knowing Lev like I did, I was certain he was only relaxing, watching me, giving me time to take a nap and recover from my birthday party. Hangovers really sucked my energy.
I lost track of time, I had no idea what time it was when he woke me up. My body felt much better after the nap. We rode back to Seattle and the wind was even colder than it had been earlier. I was sad to leave this little slice of heaven Levi had introduced me to. I loved it and I was touched that he had shared it with me. I knew his mother was very precious to him.
When we got home, Bekka and Tyler were cooking dinner. It smelled great. I had no idea what they were cooking, but I could tell from the aroma it was going to be delicious. I heard them mentioning shrimp and rice noodles and I assumed they were going to cook Thai food, as it was Bekka’s favorite.
"What are you guys cooking?"
"Spring rolls with wonton soup and Pad Thai. All homemade," Ty announced proudly.
"Yes! Bekka makes the best wonton soup." I walked over to the stove and smelled the tasty food. "This is going to be so good, I can't wait." Even with a fragile stomach, I was going to eat.
I took the plates and glasses out of the cabinets, along with the tablecloth and was getting ready to set the table when I saw this God-like specimen standing a few feet away from me. I almost dropped everything. Levi was wearing navy jeans and a black sleeveless top, showing off his tattoos. He was so handsome. He took the tablecloth from my hands and placed it over the table and then helped with the glasses.
For a moment, I was enveloped in the perfect image of my perfect family. I imagined us with one or two kids running around and us getting ready for dinner after a long day at work. Could it really be our fut
ure? Were my dreams possible? For a few seconds, they’d seemed so real and I had to hold on to them. Not for now, I knew, but later.
Levi brought me back to planet Earth when he kissed the tip of my nose. "Do you need help, Rock Star? You look a bit tired."
"I'm okay. I was just daydreaming."
They all laughed at me. They probably guessed why I was daydreaming. Bekka never really said much, but I knew she thought Levi was cute. I was a lucky girl to have such a hot man by my side.
Two nights in a row, I’d been blessed with an amazing dinner. The spring rolls were perfect, a bit spicy, just the way I like them, and Bekka’s soup was absolutely delicious. The shrimps had been cooked in coconut water and my plate was filled with colorful veggies. It was delicious and again, my belly was full. The night flew by with my friends and Levi. Tyler left at nine to head to the club. He had given us another night off. Two nights in a row, I could easily get used to this.
We watched a movie and called it a night. It was early but I’d had a rough weekend and another busy week was coming up.
Levi woke me before my alarm went off. He showered me with kisses and offered me a ride to school. The sun was already shining and the weather was what I would generally call ‘hoodie weather’. I suggested he walk me to school, that way we could walk hand in hand and enjoy the beautiful morning. I wore my University of Washington hoodie with a pair of tight blue jeans. Lev looked like the typical bad boy. He had his worn out jeans on, with a ‘Feather Ink Tattoo’ zip-up hoodie. He was so damn sexy, I wanted to do bad things with him. I smiled and blushed at the thoughts running through my mind.
We sat on the grass together, until I only had enough time left to make it to my first class. We kissed, hugged and wished each other a good day. He walked to work as well, as he’d decided to start early. If I remembered correctly, he had mentioned an appointment with one of his regulars this morning. I think he wanted to start working on a sleeve but he had a couple of different ideas. Being the artist that he was, Lev probably wanted to draw a few sketches before the appointment.