“Honey, you put out the moment my eyes met yours.” I smirk and bite my lip.
“Best birthday of my life.” I smile, pulling away from the beach. She flips down the mirror and looks at herself in the small rectangle. She tries to fix her windblown hair and her wet mascara from our intense splash session.
Before we pull away, I hurriedly jump out of the car and run up to the small window of the old building on the corner. “Hello!?” I tap quickly, knowing they just closed two minutes ago. An older lady opens the window, “Hello, ma’am, I know you are closed, but could I possibly get a red and blue slushy? Please? It’s my first date, and this is the last stop.” She smiles widely before nodding her head and moving to make the slushy. I give her a twenty and thank her enormously before rushing back to the car. I jump in and hand Maddie the slushy. “You didn’t!” She smiles before slurping the first sip. “You hardly had the car inpark before you jumped out, I thought you ran something over,” she chuckles.
“I needed to beat the time; we were two minutes late, but the nice lady made one anyway.” We start the drive while she experiences multiple brain freezes and tries to convince me to get one as well. Knowing I'd never say no to this girl, I indulge in a quick sip, resulting in stained blue lips and a brain freeze. She opens the mirror and sifts through her hair, while trying to remove the blue and red stains from her tasty lips.
“You look beautiful, just as you did when I picked you up. Stop trying to fix yourself when there is nothing to fix.” I shut the mirror, and she sits back in her seat. Pulling into her driveway, she smiles, the smile lines crease on the outside of her eyes, and her dimple shows.
I walk out and around to open her door, taking her hand. We walked up to her front door. “Good night, my beautiful girlfriend.” I place a gentle kiss on her lips before walking to my car.
“Good night, boyfriend. Text me when you make it home.” She blows me a kiss and shuts the door.
Driving home, there is no music on; the only thing on my mind is Maddie, and the way she makes me feel. Tonight was everything I could have imagined; it was easy, but so magical. Is love supposed to be this effortless? I shoot Scarlett a message telling her I’m on my way home, and just before I turn into the neighborhood, my phone goes off.
Letty
come to Spencer’s; we are all waiting for your arrival!
I can feel her excitement through the text. I must thank them again for everything, including the dessert, their support, the courage they gave me, and the valuable advice they provided. I have never had someone see me as worthy, and tonight I felt it more than ever. I felt the love they had for me, and damn, it felt good to be loved.
Walking in the door, Anna comes running from the dining room. “LEVI!” She basically jumps and wraps her arms around me. “Tell us everything!” Her excitement makes me smile so damn big.
Walking into the dining room, everyone is sitting around the table playing cards. Spencer’s voice yells with urgency, “Mom says, tell us everything, but please, for the love of my ears, do not, I repeat, do not tell us about freaky deaky time.” David busts out laughing, and Scarlett slaps her forehead.
I sit next to Spencer, shaking my head. “Well, for starters, there was no ‘freaky deaky’ time; we just kissed. She loved dinner, the dessert, building sandcastles, and going for a walk on the beach. We finished up with some stargazing, and then I took her to a slushy place her mom used to take her to. It was perfect. She didn’t touch one doorknob or chair.” I nod at David, and Anna shakes my shoulders in pure delight.
Anna hugs me. “David, our little lady's man is in love!”I am, aren't I?
I look at Scarlett and give her the biggest smile I've ever had, “I think I might be.” Spencer hits my shoulder in approval.
“Thank you all for everything. It’s nice to have this. A family. Scarlett and I aren't familiar with this kind of love, but damn, it feels good.” I lean back in the chair.
David leans over, dealing me into the card game. “Welcome home, son.” I can feel my emotions rising in my throat as I choke on pure happiness and joy.
“Thank you for teaching me how a man should be.” I take the cards. Spencer looks up and laughs.
“You’re learning from the best, and I gotta admit, it feels good to have a brother finally.”
Home, never had one. Son, given the title, but never the father. Family, something I craved but never had. Now, I sit here surrounded by my family, in a home, and a second son to these fantastic people.
This is what it feels like to belong.
Chapter 40
Bring It On
Scarlett
The weekend flew by, with Levi riding the high of his new love. I’ve been pushing myself to run more miles as well as working out twice a day, and training damn hard with Spencer. I thought it would be hard to continue training together after I told him I needed space. Honestly, it’s been amazing; he’s patient with me, while also maintaining his lingering touches and constantly expressing his need to devour me. I know, I feel it too, but my battle is not yet over. I am getting stronger, wiser, and growing in the best way. I feel strong, mentally andphysically. The thought of burning has not once crossed my mind. Anna will be pleased to know this at our Tuesday session.
Going back to school makes the weekend feel like a blur. Honestly, I spent most of my time at the Collins’ house, because it just feels like home. The space reminds me of everything I’ve been missing. The love is overwhelming, and the tenderness, the soft loving touch of a hug, or the funny jokes, that remain funny. The jokes at our house would start as jokes, then turn into ‘shouldn’t have laughed’ real quick. Everything is different there, and it is a kind of excitement I knew but never once felt until now.
Levi is jumping into his car later than usual as I slam the last bit of a granola bar into my mouth and smile with a full mouth. “Morning, sleepy head.” He looks over and gives a cheerful grin.
“That it is.” Driving us to school, Levi blasts iconic love songs, and the smile that spreads across his face while he belts every lyric makes me laugh and feel nothing but joy for him. Have you ever wanted someone to be happy, but know you, yourself, can never give the level of feels they need? That’s me. I wanted him to find love, to be happy, and to smile genuinely. Here he is, singing his heart out and feeling every word.
Maddie is sitting in the school parking lot, talking to Spencer, when we pull up. Maddie runs over and throws her arms around my shoulders, hugging me. “Thank you for the brownie cookie.” She kisses my cheek before moving on to plant a big, fat, juicy kiss smack dab on my brother's lips. I turn away quickly, looking for any eyes that could be on them.
