Hello Beautiful Humans, Sorry for missing last week's update just had lots of things to do. But fear, not, we'll be back on the regular schedule. 

Enjoy. 

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Levi's P.O.V

The weekend passed by very quickly. After that dreadful Friday, we spent the weekend inside bingeing all the fast and furious movies. It was our favourite thing to do, especially Alex and his unhealthy love for cars. Now it was Monday, and it was time to face the music.

"I don't want to go to school. Just let me go back to bed, please." I whined to Jace, who was putting his shoes on near the door.

"Nope, not a chance if I'm going, you're going too. Plus, you can't run away forever." Jace sighed as he struggled to get his shoes on.

"I can sure as hell try. You can go with Amari, and you, too, suffer together and leave me to wallow in peace."

"Nope, I stayed over yesterday for this exact reason. Otherwise, you would've skipped. Thank god I'm so smart. Good job me." He said as he patted himself on the shoulder.

Yup, ladies and gentlemen, I am friends with a psycho. I gave Jace a disgusted look to hopefully display my utter disappointment.

"I'm not even going to comment on that. But seriously, I don't want to see him, Jay."

"Le sweetie, I know this is hard for you. But you attend the same school. So you are going to run into him. There is no avoiding that."

I know he's right, but I can't help the sense of dread that I feel like if I talk to him, I will break even more. After that phone call confronting him now is just near impossible.

"Maybe you can try and avoid him. Just tell him you're not in the mood to talk and that you're still under the weather, and I'm sure he'll leave you alone." Jace added.

"He won't," I replied.

"Huh? What? Of course, he will."

"He won't, Jace," I repeated.

Jace looked at me, wondering what the hell was I talking about, and then it clicked.

"What happened?" He asked.

"He called me Friday night after we went to bed… and I answered." That was a big mistake on my end.

Flashback…

Kayden 🤤

Calling…

I looked at the screen, contemplating whether to reject or answer the call. It rang a couple more times before I answered the call.

"Hi Levi," His voice came out of the speaker. The hair on my skin stood at the sound of him. I stayed quiet, unable to speak.

"Hello? Are you there?" He spoke again.

"Yes, I'm here," I replied.

"Oh, haha, I thought you hung up or something. How are you feeling? I have been so worried about you since you left so suddenly." He sounded genuinely concerned, which hurt even more. It wouldn't be easier if we just started hating each other.

"I'm just tired," I whispered.

"Yeah, I can hear it in your voice. Sorry to call you this late, but I wanted to check on you. Plus, we've been talking every night these past weeks. It feels weird not to hear your voice before I sleep." I could hear the smile in Kayden's voice. He seriously thought everything was okay.

My heart squeezed painfully like it's been doing the whole day. I just want it all to stop. I want to stop feeling this way.

"I missed you at the party. I was looking forward to celebrating with you." Kayden's voice travelled to my ears, snapping me out of my thoughts.

"Yeah, sorry. I hope you had fun." I wanted to keep my voice neutral because I knew if I spoke longer, my voice would break.

"Yeah, it was heaps of fun. We danced, and there was a bonfire. We had the school band performing too. Sophie and I had a great time slow dancing…"

Kayden kept talking about the after-party, but I stopped listening at the mention of her name. Suddenly I was pulled back to what Amari had said, 'He didn't like her like that', 'He thought your reactions were cute,' and the worst of all, 'He wanted to stay as friends.’

I can't be friends with him. I came to this realisation while in the bathroom, but this solidified my decision. I can't be friends with him. I love him, and my feelings for him are real. They're strong and are not going to go away easily. Kayden doesn't feel that way about me, never has and never will, and it was about time that I accepted that. Staying close is only going to hurt more.

"Kayden." I cut off his rant about the party.

"Yes, bun," the name coupled with his deep raspy voice made me waver a little, but I needed to be strong and end this once and for all.

"Um, listen, I need to tell you something." I pushed through.

"What is it? You sound serious. Are you going to break up with me, bun bun?" He laughed at the awfully close joke, which made me wince.

I ignored his comment and continued with my mission.

"I don't think we should talk anymore." Took a few seconds, but the words finally flowed out.

It was silent for a few seconds. I had to look at my screen to check if the call was still connected, and it was. Kayden was just quiet.

"W-what? Are you serious? Please tell me this is a joke." His voice trembled nervously.

Keep going, Levi. You are almost there. Just end it. Rip off the bandaid.

"No, Kayden, it's not a joke. I don't think we should keep being friends. It's… for the best for both of us." That's it. Keep your voice nice and steady.

"But- um, this is so sudden. What happened? We were fine at school." Kayden asked.

"Are you seriously asking me that?" My restraints were starting to weaken. Does he seriously not understand what's happening?

"Yes, I want to know what changed?" He questioned.

"You know why, Kayden. I know, you know." My voice cracked as tears started to form in my eyes.

"Levi…" his voice got softer. Usually, it would comfort me, but this time it only made me angrier.

"Don't just… don't. I can't do it, Kayden. I can't be next to you and be the happy-go-lucky guy who supports you. I can't. I just can't. So let's do what's best and go our separate ways." The hold I had on my tears crumbled as they drizzled down my cheeks, creating an endless stream.

"Levi, look, I'm sorry you feel this way I am, but don't rush into things. Let's talk about this when you've calmed down, okay?"

"Talking about it is not going to change my mind, Kayden. Let's not complicate things more than this. You take care, Kayden." I managed to say through my sniffles.

"NO," Kayden yelled. "Just… Please, I don't want to lose you. Let's talk on Monday, okay? I'll find you, and we'll talk. If not, Monday the day after. I'm not accepting this until we talk." You could hear the desperation in his voice.

What a fucking mess.

"You go and rest now. I'll see you Monday, Levi. Good night." Kayden said before hanging up.

End of flashback…

"That son of a bitch, I knew I should've punched him. What the hell does he think he is?" Jace mumbled angrily.

"Pufft, please, for you to reach his face, you'd be reaching for the stars." I laughed.

Jace's body froze, his eyes met mine, and I gulped. Ohhh no, what did I do??

"Jace honey, I-"

"So you've chosen death, huh?" Jace got up and stalked closer to me. Just as he was about to reach my neck, the doorbell rang. Literally saved by the bell. Thank you, Amari, for showing up early.

"Oh, that must be your boyfriend. Why don't you go open the door? You don't want him waiting, do you?"

"This ain't over, smart ass," Jace said as he flicked my forehead and walked to open the door.

"Ouch," that shit hurts.

"What are you doing here?" I heard Jace ask. Oh, it wasn't Amari at the door, then?

"I wanted to talk to Levi. I thought I'd drive him to school." My heart dropped at the sound of his voice. Kayden was here? At my door.

Oh no, I can't do this. I can't talk to him alone in a car. I'd have a heart attack. I was panicking internally and externally. Who am I kidding? I was panicking all over.

"Well, if you want to talk to him, you'll have to do it in front of me. I'm not leaving him in a car alone with you."

Seriously, Jace, I am falling in love with your short ass right now.

"A-alright then. Sounds good. Can I come in?" Kayden's question had me frozen in place. Oh my god, he's coming in okay, okay. Levi's, you've done this before. Act as if nothing is happening. In the name of Queen Elsa, don't let it show. Here we go.

I saw Jace's head pop in from behind the wall to get the OK from me, which I approved with a nod.

"Alright, come in. Amari should be here soon. But it seems we might skip today altogether." Jace's voice sounded harsh, but you could spot a hint of excitement for not having to go to school.

Kayden's figure appeared, and I felt like the air got knocked out of my lungs. Everything was breathtaking with his tall figure, shiny purple hair, and dark eyes.

"Hi, there, bun." Kayden smiled at me. It hurt, but I couldn't help but smile back.

"Hi, Kayden."

We all sat down in awkward silence. Neither one of us was willing to break.

"Oh, for god's sake, just talk. Otherwise, Kayden, if you're waiting for Levi to start, we will be here for eternity." Jace yelled, pulling us out of that silence.

Kayden smiled before looking at me, "I just wanted to make sure he was comfortable."

"I'm okay," my voice came out slightly above a whisper.

"Alright, then I-" Kayden started, but the doorbell interrupted yet again.

"For fucks sake. YOU GOT THE WORST TIMING, ASSHOLE." Jace yelled.

"WHAT DID I DO? I JUST GOT HERE." Amari yelled back from outside. Poor thing.

"Ahm, excuse me for a bit." Jace got up and opened the door for Amari.

"Good morning, beautiful. What's got you all worked up?" Amari asked.

"Just come in, and you'll see," Jace replied.

Amari walked in and froze in place. "Oh, that's why."

"Yeah, so let's just sit." Jace pushed Amari's back and sat down on the couch.

"Um, so Levi, we should probably talk about that phone call." Kayden started.

"There isn't much to talk about, Kayden. I said all I wanted to say." I was fidgeting with my hands because I didn't know what else to do. I couldn't bear to look him in the eyes.

"But I didn't want to ruin things between us. I really love hanging out with you, and I wanted to stay like that." Kayden sounded so stupid right now.

"You sound like a broken record. You keep repeating the same thing, but Kayden, you're not seeing this from my perspective, and you are not listening. I can't be friends with you, Kayden. It hurts being near you right now hurts." I couldn't take it anymore, so I yelled.

"But Le-"

"You don't get it, do you?" I interrupted. "You knew about my feelings for you, Kayden, and you chose not only to ignore them but trample them completely. All you could have done was say sorry, not interested. Instead, you decided to lead me on, let me hang on a rope of hope, and then cut it completely. How is that fair?"

"Look, I'm sorry, okay, I really am. I came at this completely wrong. I should've talked to you. I didn't mean to lead you on. It's just that suddenly I didn't know who you were, and then you became someone I think about every day, and I want to spend all my time with that. I panicked. I should've talked to you and explained. I'm sorry."

My eyes welled up with tears. His words and his actions didn't match up at all. He said he cared about me but hurt me. He said he couldn't stop thinking about me but got a girlfriend. What the hell is even that?

"Okay, and now what. Stay friends and pretend that nothing happened?" I asked. Kayden's eyes were filled with panic. Good to know I'm not the only one.

"Of course, I can't ask to pretend that nothing happened, but I don't want to lose you, Bun, please." He begged, and I actually thought about it for a minute.

"I don't think I can do that, Kayden. Staying close to you, watching you be with your girlfriend. I'm not going to be able to be happy for you. I won't be able to cheer you on or give you advice. So all that leaves is just an empty friendship. It just won't work out."

I walked closer to Kayden, cupping his cheek and caressing the soft skin. "Maybe one day we can meet again once I've healed. Maybe then we'll be okay." My tears trickled down my cheeks like a waterfall. "But not now. I need to think about myself. My feelings for you are big, Kayden, so I need time."

Kayden's eyes teared up as I smiled at him. He brought his forehead and rested it over mine before kissing it.

"I really am sorry, and I hope I can make it up to you one day." Kayden's voice broke, which made me cry even more, and then he just left.

That was the last time I spoke to Kayden. We did everything we could to avoid each other, but we did come eye to eye many times. He smiled, and I smiled back before moving on. Before I knew I had graduated, but my heart was still in pieces.

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End of past Flashback…

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Present…

Levi's P.O.V

I closed the laptop as I was finally done with writing the story. That last moment could've been so romantic before if it weren't for the context. I was at Jace's place helping him clear up some space for Amari, who will be moving in today. We were taking a break since Jace was being a drama queen, complaining about how he was not going to have enough space for his Crocks collection.

"Would you stop pouting? Just get a cupboard and put them in it. Or do us all a favour and throw them out." I yelled, frustrated with his pouty face.

"How could you?" He gasped. "You want me to throw such masterpieces out? I thought you loved me?"

"I do love you, but you need to set your priorities right. Amari is coming soon, and we haven't done jackshit because you keep throwing a tantrum," I replied.

"Okay, fine, let's get this shit over with." he finally put his box of Crocs away before getting up to finish what we had started. 

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Andddd this was the past story of Levi and Kayden. Now we'll be getting to the real timeline. How exciting. 

Don't forget to like and comment your thoughts, and as usual, I will see you all in the next one. 

Izzy out.