A Pirate's Life for Me

Chapter 16: Pirate's in Your Blood, Boy-You'll Have to Square with that Some Day

Levi had promised to show her the CM parking lot, which really wasn't much to write home about. But considering it was Nora, she would probably think the cement was infused with pixie dust.

She didn't say a word, not even when they got to his car.

He locked his jaw, cursing Oliver. He started his car, heading out the gates and towards Epcot as he tried to figure out what Nora knew. He doubted it was much considering she introduced them and wasn't yelling or crying. "I didn't know you knew Oliver."

"I don't."

His hands gripped the wheel tighter. "Just met him, then?"

"Yep."

His seatbelt squeezed his chest, making it difficult to breathe. "I've known him since elementary school. I didn't get along with him, even back then."

"So...he's the same guy you were talking about the other day?"

"Yeah."

"Why don't you get along with him?"

His hands slickened. He turned the air conditioning up. "I had select mutism until halfway through first grade."

"I hope this doesn't sound rude, I just want to understand...what is that, exactly?"

"Like it sounds." Levi winced. "I wasn't mute all the time. Just at school. A sort of anxiety induced thing."

"And he made fun of you for that?"

"Everyone did." Which really didn't help the anxiety thing. And Oliver had caused the worst of it.

"I'm sorry. Kids can be mean." She paused. "Is he still like that?"

"I wouldn't really know. I try not to talk to him. Everyone loves him, though." Except himself, of course. It's not like Levi had ever gotten an apology. Not to mention everything else he'd done lately was pretty hostile.

"Do you still have select mutism?"

"I don't think so. That took a lot of therapy. I mean, you know I'm not much for talking to people though. I guess I always expect to be made fun of or for people to ignore my existence, like I don't matter." His face paled. "I always wanted to act. You know, like in plays at school. But..."

"You thought you'd freeze up."

And go through the shame and misery of looking like an idiot again, except this time as a low self-esteem teenager. "Yes."

Which was why he'd given being a face character a shot. Because if no one knew he was Levi, what did he have to fear? If he didn't have lines to mess up because everything was spontaneous, what could go wrong? He had one role to play and he got to be someone everyone loved. It was the most freeing experience he'd ever had.

And he wanted to tell Nora that. Instead, he said, "I still hate him. I'm sorry, Nora. When I see him, I think about how he's always breezed through everything. Not only was he the lead act in every play, but he was on the football team. Top of the class. I'm pretty sure he won full ride scholarships to every university in the country. Not to mention he's famous on TikTok."

"I mean, he's Gaston."

"No, I mean he has his own non-Gaston TikTok. Because of course he does." Oliver had a kid sister, who he doted on relentlessly, which meant he had about a million followers, almost all of them women who would marry him in a heartbeat.

Not that Levi was salty about it.

"Surprised that appealed to him." Nora shifted. "The way he was talking he made it seem like he doesn't like attention."