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Chapter Twenty-Five
Abby
The apartment is so quiet.
Nothing has held my attention since arriving home from dinner with Levi. I turned the television off an hour ago, unable to get into the high-drama reality shows they’re airing this evening. I sat down to work, but my mind just wasn’t in it. I read the same sentence three times, and when I realized I still missed the misspelling of the word cable, I shut down the program and stared at the blank screen.
The dating app taunts me, so without giving it any further thought, I click on the icon. Instead of skipping over the usual requests I get to introduce myself to others on the site, I click on a few of the faces. Three new guys have liked me, giving me the perfect chance to connect. But I’m not interested.
If I was being honest with myself, I wasn’t really interested when I started this whole hoopla. My heart and my head have always led me towards one man; one that I thought was unobtainable until recently. Levi seems determined to prove to me, and maybe himself too, that he’s capable of sustaining a real relationship.
And he wants that with me.
I find myself back at my previous conversation with SimpleMan. He mentioned wanting Chinese food and Levi took me to Chinese food. That was just one of the few similarities I’ve discovered in the last week or so, but when I asked Levi about it outright–and during a confession time, no less–he denied knowing anything about it.
My gut still tells me something isn’t right.
Another thirty minutes later and I’ve tossed and turned in bed, unable to get comfortable. The clock reads nearly ten, and I’m still wound tight. Finally, I jump up and head for the kitchen. Grabbing a bottle of water from the fridge, I glance through the peephole like a crazy ex-girlfriend and wonder if he’s back yet.
Of course he’s not back yet. He said he’d come over.
Unable to stop myself, I grab the spare key to Levi’s apartment that he keeps here for the same reason he has one of mine. Maybe I’ll just head over and wait for him to get home. I know he said he’d come to me after a shower, but wouldn’t it be a nice surprise if he found me already in his bed, waiting? That sounds way better than sneaking over and sniffing his pillow, huh?
A wide smile crests my face as I slip across the hall and enter his place. There’s a light on above the sink, but I still manage to smack my knee into his coffee table. It must be moved out further from the couch. Rubbing the tender flesh on my leg, I plop down on the couch, worried that I’ll have to limp my way into his bedroom.
Levi’s laptop is sitting on the table and the jarring of the table must have woken it up. It’s bright in contrast to the darkened room, and after a few moments, my eyes adjust enough to focus on the screen. And not just any screen.
PerfectDate.com.
I’d know it anywhere, even if I didn’t see my own profile name at the top of the message screen.
AngelEyes: What’s for dinner tonight?
SimpleMan: Chinese. I’m starving, angel.
AngelEyes: Busy day at work?
SimpleMan: The busiest. I’m exhausted.
AngelEyes: Maybe you should order in and crash early tonight?
SimpleMan: I would but I’m taking my girl to dinner. She’s the best part of my day.
AngelEyes: *winky* Good for you, Simple. I’m off to get ready for dinner.
SimpleMan: Bye, Angel. Have fun.
AngelEyes: Bye.
I cry out, my hand covering my mouth as I read the screen a second, then a third time.
All this time.
Since the very beginning.
Levi is SimpleMan.
SimpleMan is Levi.
