PART ONE - APOLOGY
ROCKY DID BRING TOM, but Levi had expected her to. The two had been inseparable since they started dating, and since Rocky was nominated for an award, Tom had come for support.
But that meant the cast of Captain America: Civil War came with him. And that meant Chris Evans.
Of course (with Tom being the nerd that he was) brought the Captain America shield with him, but it only made Levi want to throw it in Chris's face.
After a rather embarrassing near-faceplant on the red carpet, Levi made her way to their assigned seats. Still, she had only just gotten inside when she ran into Chris.
"Sorry," he said as he caught her arm. "I wasn't watching where I was going."
Obviously, Levi thought, but shrugged it off and replied, "No big deal. I already tripped once today. Another one won't make much of a difference."
Chris laughed. "True."
Looking at Levi, he had forgotten how small she was compared to him, even in the four inch heels. But not much else had changed since middle school - other than the fact that she was world famous.
And the dress.
Chris never knew that she could look so mature for someone who was only 27, but from what he'd seen from her in the past year, she was definitely maturing.
He noticed that Levi was looking at him in a funny way, and he realized he was staring.
"So, you nominated for anything?" he asked quickly, trying to cover it up.
"Yeah," Levi said. "Best Single for Focus, and Best Collaboration for Faith. You know, the one I sang with—"
"Stevie Wonder," Chris finished. "I know, I love the song." She looked a little uncomfortable by his words, so he tried to brush it off, offering Levi his arm. "Shall we go find our seats?"
She warily took his arm, but as they walked she whispered, "This doesn't make you my date, you know."
"I never expected it to," Chris replied.
"Yeah, there's a lot of things you 'never expected', Chris. Like you never expected me to kick your ass."
Chris sighed. "Levi, we were just kids. You need to let it go."
"No, I was the kid. You were the teenage asshole who called me 'Teeny Fettuccini' because I'm small and Italian."
"I thought it was cute," Chris muttered.
"And what happened because of that thought? A black eye, bloody nose, and busted lip, that's what."
"I think you overreacted—"
"People made fun of me because of it, Chris! For years!"
Chris stopped and put friendly hands on her shoulders. "I'm sorry. I was an asshole. I shouldn't have insulted you like that."
Levi glanced over at Rocky, who had was resting her chin on her fist with a look of smug amusement on her face. Levi shook her head at her friend and promptly flipped her off before facing Chris. "That's all I ever wanted to hear from you. Apology accepted."
Levi took her seat by Rocky and shoved her shoulder. "What the literal fuck was with that face, Rocky?"
"I enjoyed watching you and Chris Evans eye-hump each other," Rocky replied with a grin.
"Bitch, please." Levi rolled her eyes. "I'd rather physically hump a tree."
"Nope, Katy Perry already did that when she was in middle school. So that option's taken."
"She did?" Levi shook her head. "To be honest, I'm not surprised."
Then the lights dimmed, and the show started.
••••••••
That story about Katy Perry is real, she really did hump a tree in middle school. Here she is on Jimmy Kimmel to prove it:
~Mae