I speed the Mustang through the empty streets, narrowly dodging a few students who look like they're on the way to some party. I see one of them fling their arms up in annoyance at me, but the adrenaline coursing through me makes it difficult for me to pay them much attention. I have my focus set on my destination and the person I need to talk to right now.

Levi opens the door a few seconds after I knock, and I'm surprised when his signature easy smile graces his face. "Here to apologize?" he asks.

"I need to talk to you," I say bluntly.

"I'm actually heading out right now," he says without even hearing me out. "How about you wait here and I'll take you to dinner afterward." And I'm stunned by his demeanor. As if our conversation earlier today never even happened.

I think back to all the times Levi burst into my room unannounced, and a bit of red-hot anger fizzles to the surface of my emotions. "Let me rephrase that. I need to talk to you now. I don't care where you have to be," I say, firmer this time.

His eyebrows draw together, surprised by my tone. Then an annoyed look rises through the cracks of his laid-back demeanor. "Is this about your little research?" he asks. "Because I'm pretty sure you've already found all there is to know. Now if you'll excuse me—"

I refuse to move out of the way. "You're right, this is about my research. Now I know exactly why you were so angry about me looking you up," I reveal. "How long were you planning to wait before telling me about your brother?"

He scoffs, and the easy smile is totally gone now. "That my brother died? This again? I don't know Scarlett, how long do you think it takes someone to mourn the death of their only sibling?" He's choosing to play dumb, acting like his brother's death is the only surprising thing about his past. I stare into his eyes for a second, realizing that he has no intention of telling me just how deep his brother's death goes.

I wonder how many more times I'll have to stand in front of someone as they lie straight to my face.

All his talk about cutting off people who keep things from me, and here he is, acting like he cares about me while keeping this huge secret buried. "I can't believe this," I say almost too quietly for him to hear. "You're impossible."

I'm not gonna waste my time trying to pry the truth out of him when he's obviously content to build a relationship on mistrust and lies, so I turn to leave. Just before I can take a step toward the staircase, his hand reaches out and grabs my arm, jerking me back.

"Scarlett, listen," he says, forcing me to turn toward him. "Are you really gonna make me the bad guy for something you learned on the internet? What I did before you doesn't matter. My brother doesn't matter when it comes to us."

"This isn't just about your brother, Levi," I exclaim, wrenching my arm from his grasp. "This is about you being arrested for his murder. I thought we agreed on no secrets between us. How long were you going to wait before telling me that you were under investigation for his death?"

I watch as his Adam's Apple moves with his swallow. "I was never charged for anything," is all he says. I want to scream. There are a million other things I want to ask him, and looking into his hardened eyes only makes it more difficult for me to organize my thoughts.

"That's not the point," I say, frustrated with this conversation. "The investigation, the evidence against you, the authorities dropping the case for no reason. Or the fact that you're apparently from South Dakota, not Virginia. None of it makes any sense, and you're not helping at all. Why won't you just tell me the truth?"

"I don't know what you want from me," he says, raising his voice. Then he steps outside with me, closing his front door behind him, as if the thin wooden door will muffle the sound of his yelling.

For the first time since coming here, it occurs to me that I should be afraid of Levi. His voice is rising and he's taking steps toward me, and I make the mistake of letting that fear slip through my expression.

Immediately, something changes in him so quickly that I almost think I imagined it. The curl leaves his lip, and his eyebrows furrow together in a way that reveals sadness. "You have to understand . . . my brother was struggling. With my parents, with his sexuality." His voice cracks, and his gaze drops to the floor. "His depression got the best of him, and the police spun the whole thing out of control. Everything was falling apart, and it was the hardest thing I've ever gone through."

His eyes meet mine, and he reaches a hand out to me. "You of all people have to understand how I much I cared about Zeke," he says, his voice weary. "You get me like no one else does."

Levi takes another step toward me, but I mirror it by retreating back. I tighten my crossed arms across my chest, shaking my head at him. "No, I don't believe you," I manage to say, and I can tell that Levi wasn't expecting for me to say that.

Then it happens again; his expression flips faster than I can comprehend. The anger in his body language returns. His voice takes on a sharp edge, making me flinch. "I don't know why it's so hard for you to believe me right now. Whatever you read online is a load of bullshit, meant to make my family seem like the bad guys when all we were was a grieving family. And you're sounding a lot like those fucking reporters right now."

He rubs his jaw with his hand. "And what's with this sudden investigation into me. Did your ex-boyfriend put you up to this? Or was it someone in that family of yours?"

"What?" I say, confused almost to the point of tears. I feel like I'm a child trying talk, but everyone around me refuses to listen. "What does my family have to do with your lies?"

"Why are you still defending them? After everything they did to you?" he asks. "This. This is the fucking problem. You know, maybe I would've told you about Zeke's death earlier if you weren't so fucking attached to them. God, it's like I'm not even dating you, I'm dating the entire goddamn Brady Bunch."

I raise my eyebrow, taking a step back and crossing my arms. "Oh, so was that your plan all along? To distance me from my family, and only then would you tell me about your past?" I clap my hands slowly, walking backward. "I'm amazed at how you somehow managed to turn the blame onto me right now."

"Because I'm always in the wrong, right?" he laughs emptily, rolling his neck. "I'm sorry I tried to get you to think for yourself for once. I was hoping that once you detached yourself from them, you'd see how weak your dependence made you."

I flinch back at his elevating volume, catching onto the anger soaking his every word. It all falls into place. "I'm not you, Levi," I remind him. "Dani isn't Zeke, my parents aren't your parents, and I'm not you." I press my lips into a thin line, mustering the courage to say my next words. I decide that I'm fighting a losing battle with Levi; I have been for a while.

It's like a dam is breaking between us, and this conversation is a drop of water in the river I knew was bound for destruction.

"Whatever this is" —I gesture between us— "it's over. If you're not gonna be honest with me, I don't want you in my life."

His lips part slightly as my words hit him. I imagine his eyes widen as well, but the night's darkness cast a shadow over his face, causing his eyes to look like endless depths of black. "So that's it then?" he says, his voice tilting like a question. "You're ending things because of some comment I made about your family? Because of some internet lies?"

"You can't possibly believe that's the only reason," I say breathlessly. "I really trusted you, Levi, and loved having you in my life. But you're not the person I thought you were." I take one last look at him before turning around for the last time.

But I feel Levi's hand wrap around my upper arm again, tugging me back toward him. "Let me go," I snap, trying to break free from his hold. But it's much firmer this time, and his grip only tightens with my struggles.

Suddenly, his arm forces me to face him, my face inches from his. He stares down at me, his hand holding me in place like it had so many times before. But this time, something darker taints his deep brown eyes, making them look almost pitch black, and fear paralyzes every inch of my body as he presses me against him.

"Crimson," he murmurs, my nickname lingering on his tongue, "you sound crazy right now."

My breaths feel shallow him my chest. "Let me go, Levi, now." I try to put strength behind my words, but the voice that comes out of my mouth sounds too small and afraid to be mine.

"You're just like him," he says, his voice strained. "You have no idea of the things I've done for you. And you don't listen, even when it's good for you."

"Get away from me," I yell, feeling some of the fear melt from my body. I give the strongest push I can, propelling myself away from him. "I never want to see you again. Just stay the hell away from me."

"You don't know what you're doing," he says ominously. The anger has left his voice, but his words are twisted in a different way that scares me even more. My feet carry me down the staircase faster than they ever have, urged by the possibility of him following me to my car.

I practically run to my car, fumbling with the keys to unlock it. As I drive away from his apartment complex, I look in my rearview mirror.

My blood freezes as I watch him. Standing in the exact same spot, watching me drive away.

♔

Back at my dorm, I make sure to lock every lock on my door before scrambling onto my bed. My chest thrums with every heartbeat as I try to erase the memory of Levi's depth-less gaze from my mind. My bicep throbs under my sleeve from where he grabbed me.

I slide my phone from my back pocket, hovering my finger over a number that I haven't called in a while. I chew the inside of my lip as I press the screen.

It rings twice before the other line picks up.

"Hello?" The voice on the other end immediately soothes my anxiety.

Tears thicken my voice as I utter two shaky words. "Hi, Momma."

♔

voting

jack

levi

thought corner

1. Do you think Levi is telling the truth?

2. Was Scarlett's reaction justified? Was Levi's?

♔