Serendipity

Chapter 24. Forgiveness & Love

Chapter Twenty Four ~ Forgiveness & Love. 

             Levi and I got burgers at a local diner in the middle of town.

            As we sat, I noticed people giving me looks. Rich people stared at me with vacant looks and shook their heads in disapproval. Everyone else just stared at me with curiosity, then back at the TV screen where my face, along with Dad’s, was displayed.

            It got the point where I thought Levi was ashamed to be seen with me. But he didn’t seem to care at all and he even introduced me to everyone who stopped by to talk to him.

            It made me feel uncomfortable because now, everyone knew me. Dad and I tried so hard to stay in the shadows for eleven years and it was all gone.

            “So,” Levi announced, clapping his hands together. “I did my research on you over the past week and you’re very interesting.”

            “You researched me?” I questioned as I leaned forward in my seat, lifting a brow.

            “Yeah, so first thing’s first. Your real name is Cooper Lancaster. It’s not as catchy as Damien, but I like it. You’re actually twenty-one which means you’re not that much older than me, thank God. You and your dad seemed to go off the map in 2001. Almost like you vanished! You’ve never had a real-paying job or went to school, so it makes me wonder why-”

            “Why did you bail me out?” I interrupted.

            He blinked rapidly, obviously not expecting my reaction. “I told you why.”

            “No, no you didn’t. I robbed you. More or less, I was a part of it. I was going to disappear and you were never going to see me again. What we had was fake, I was pretending. I don’t like you. I was only using you.” It felt wrong to lie about my feelings. I liked Levi more than I should have, but he deserved better.

            He deserved someone who didn’t keep secrets from him.

            Levi glanced down at the table, playing nervously with his thumbs. It took him a few seconds before he connected his gaze with mine again. “My mom left us.”

            My brows furrowed. “What?”

            “She left us,” he choked out. “Turns out, she was cheating on Henry, with your dad. She felt horrible after finding out what happened and she left. No goodbye, no nothing.” He chewed on his bottom lip, attempting to stop it from quivering.

            “Levi, I’m-”

            “That’s why I bailed you out. When I found what you did, I didn’t know what to feel. For a second there, I felt hatred. I don’t know what I did to anyone to have this keep happening to me. When she left, I wanted someone to talk to. You’re the first person that came to my mind. You can say that you were just using me, but the person I fell in love with wasn’t a criminal.” He reached out and covered my hand with his.

            I ripped my hand away from his and sunk back into my seat. “You don’t get it, Levi.”

            “What don’t I get?” he asked, quirking his brows. “I know what it’s like to want what other people have. Hell, I’ve wanted a normal life for as long as I could remember. You don’t have to shield yourself off from the world, Cooper.”

            I fell silent and stared blankly at my burger. It felt weird to hear him call me Cooper. It was my name, yes, but I had grown so accustomed to hearing Damien. It seemed like second nature. Until now, of course. The name Damien disgusted me.