Flowers, Fame and Unforeseen Facades

Chapter 16

                                                     Purple Hyacinth:Forgiveness
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Zoe's POV

I walked backwards, trying to process the information that Levi had just given me. He wouldn't hurt me... right? He couldn't. He was nothing like Riley. I felt as if my past was repeating itself, coming back into my life to haunt me.

Although I knew that Levi wouldn't r*pe me, the fact that he had I.E.D was like a reminder. A constant reminder of the past that I tried so hard to get away from. And although I knew that one way or another, I would have to accept it, I just wasn't ready. But then, I made my decision.

I took a deep breath, looked straight into Levi's eyes, and said,"I forgive you."

To which his response was, "Zoe?"

I nodded, relieved that he was finally able to tell that it was me in front of him. The smile that adorned his face made my heart skip a beat, and I felt myself calming down. The fact that I had just forgiven him made me proud.

In a way, it was as if I was letting go of my past. The exact thing that was one of the most difficult things for me to do. And as he smiled at me, I felt myself smiling back, feeling happy that I was being strong for once. I felt as if one piece of the puzzle that is me was found, and put back in it's original position.

Levi looked at me, and opened his arms, offering me a hug. Without any hesitation, I accepted his offer, and wound my arms around his waist. The strong smell of alcohol was clear on his clothes, but at that moment, I was only thinking about the warmth that he gave me. As if he was a warm and cozy fire in Antarctica. The only source of survival in an endless land of entities that want nothing but to kill you.

This was the main reason that I trusted Levi so much. Over the limited time that we had known each other, he was always looking out for me, checking if I was safe. And now that I thought about it, I was sure that he had "un-friended" me just so that I was safe from his violent outbursts. But I didn't always need saving. I wasn't a damsel in distress. Now that I knew what I was facing, I knew exactly what to do to handle it.

Levi's head snuggled into my neck, and I fought back a blush. To be honest, there wasn't even any point in trying to hide it, because first of all, he was drunker than a divorced man, and secondly because he had seen me blush enough times to know that I was an innocent little duckling.

He whispered, "I am so sorry for doing that to you Zoe. And thank you so much for forgiving me. I won't let you down again."

At his slurred voice, I remembered that he was drunk beyond recognition, and I quickly moved away, setting the sofa so that he could sleep his intoxicated state off. Thankfully, he wasn't wearing any shoes. Just a t-shirt and a pair of sweatpants.

Realizing that I couldn't change his clothes, I blushed and said, "Uh... can you please wear your pajamas?"

He looked up at me, his beautiful eyes squinting, and took off his shirt, making me yelp and turn away. As he chuckled, the embarrassment flooded into me. Seriously?! How could he tell that I was embarrassed when he was drunk off his a*s? I cleared my throat, heading into my room with a small smile on my face. Like he had done earlier in the morning, he grabbed my wrist, gently, and made me turn around.

"Once again, thank you so much Zoe."

To be honest, I feel like he did that just to see my reaction to his defined abs and chest, because I could clearly hear the smirk in his voice. Still, I nodded, my eyes moving here and there, trying desperately to not set themselves on the Greek god that was Levi.

I snatched my wrist out of his hand, and speed-walked to my room, slamming the door as I got inside. I could clearly hear his laughter ringing out into the apartment, and I could've sworn that he said, "She's so cute." But I wasn't sure, and just wanted to sleep.
I had had a hectic day, and I did not need to ruin my sleep by thinking about the devil that usually occupied my thoughts.

As I brushed my teeth and used the bathroom, I couldn't help but think about the accomplishment that I had achieved today. The fact that I was able to forgive Levi, and not be scared of him was still mind blowing, but I was proud of myself. Maybe I was batsh*t crazy for forgiving him. But I guess that that was my kind side showing it's face.

Over the years, I had gotten pretty good at reading people's emotions. It was the one thing that determined their value in my heart. Could I trust them? Could I not? The answers all came from their actions, eyes and their attitude while talking to me. It was mostly my paranoid self, making me check every single detail of a person to make sure that no one could hurt me like Riley did.

There were, and always will be, many people in the world who I would and will never know. And when I happened to stumble across one of the billions of beings that occupied this planet, I was sure to make sure that I was able to trust them. Because if I didn't, everyone would hurt me.

Unfortunately, that's what most human beings do. "Befriend" someone, get what they want out of them, and then leave them in the dust, sad and betrayed. The ability to read people made me sure that Levi was someone I could trust. And there was one important lesson that my parents taught me in life.

The art of forgiveness.

Doneeee! Phew, that was hard work! But I enjoyed every second of it! XD Anyway, I wanted to write a more lighthearted chapter to give you people a break from the drama. You're welcome! So, did you like it? Anything I should change? And also, can you click the little star icon if you liked it? Thank you so much for reading! Love you guys! Peace out!