Chapter 193
I woke up in the middle of the night to find Levi sleeping while holding me. He was holding me tight. Maybe because he was so tired, he didn't wake up when I pried his arms open.
My stomach didn't hurt anymore, and the rash on my body had completely disappeared. This time, I discovered I was allergic to seafood.
I stood by the window. We weren't far from the beach, and I could still smell the ocean air.
The sea breeze wasn't gentle - it kept making me want to recall the past.
I used to imagine walking and playing with Levi by the beach, and now it had all come true.
This wasn't the joy of things finally working out in the end. It was more like a sense of fulfillment from having the emptiness in my heart filled. I liked the feeling of having him by my side.
All these years, though we'd been together, most of the time it was just my one-woman show.
His changes these past few days made me feel like I was actually in love. They say feelings can be cultivated - it seemed like we were just getting started.
I still thought about Jessa, about Ava, about all the women who might appear by his side. Once you start worrying about losing what you have, it's hard to stop. It pops up in certain moments to remind you that happiness could disappear at any time.
The wind made my eyes feel a bit dry. I went back to bed and lay down beside Levi. Timidly, I reached out and put my arm around his waist. I closed my eyes, not daring to look, praying in my heart that he wouldn't wake up, wouldn't push me away.
This was one of my rare moments of taking initiative, and it felt very much like stealing.
Suddenly, Levi's hand covered mine. I couldn't tell if he was awake. I held my breath, staying quiet, and gradually fell asleep again in my nervousness...
The next day, I was woken up by the scent of flowers.
I opened my eyes and saw a large bouquet of roses on the nightstand.
Where is he?
I sat up and noticed that the vase by the window already had fresh flowers in it. This definitely wasn't the work of hotel staff. Besides me, only Levi was here.
He must have done all this.
Joy and surprise rose in my heart. I picked up the roses and took a light sniff. It would be even better with a stargazer lily added.
Just one would be enough.
I got out of bed, planning to wash up first and then go find Levi.
I had just put on my shoes when I heard the door open. It must be him coming back.
"Don't move, I'll do whatever you need."
Levi put breakfast on the table nearby and walked toward me with concern in his eyes.
"I'm going to wash my face. You can't help with that."
I smiled at him, hoping he wouldn't look so serious.
I walked past him to the bathroom.
I heard rustling sounds - probably him setting up breakfast.
Sure enough, when I finished washing up, he was already sitting there waiting for me.
"Is your stomach better?"
"Yes."
I sat down across from him. The roses on the table looked beautiful, and paired with Levi's face, it was easy for me to fall.
"Then let's eat."
"The hotel has a restaurant. Why did you go out to buy food?"
The whole table was covered with a variety of breakfast dishes. It was a bit much.
"The restaurant mainly serves seafood. You can't have that."
Had he already been to the restaurant? And specially prepared a seafood-free breakfast for me?
"Thank you."
After thinking it over, I was so touched that I said thank you. But as soon as I said it, Levi's face turned sour. Did he think I was being too formal?
Seeing his mood drop, I took the initiative to serve him food. "Eat more. I'm meeting Nola for shopping later."
He didn't say anything, just took a bite.
"You'll come with me, right?"
I bit my lip. "If you don't want to go, you and John can go somewhere else. We can split up."
"I will."
Levi's answer caught me off guard. He agreed to go shopping with me. I could count on one hand the number of times we'd gone shopping together.
We'd only gone together before to pick out gifts for elders, never just the two of us alone.
"Um, the flowers are beautiful. I really like them."
After saying this, I lowered my head, afraid Levi might say something like the flowers were from the hotel.
After a while, he responded.
"Nola said you like roses."
So he had consulted my best friend. But taking the initiative to send flowers already made me feel warm. At least he was putting thought into pleasing me now.
"Thank you" was on the tip of my tongue, but remembering his earlier reaction to those words, I quickly swallowed it down with some food.
"Let me call them to come eat with us."
There was so much food on the table that we couldn't possibly finish it all. Throwing it away would be wasteful, and I've never liked wasting food. Plus, I thought it would be livelier with more people.
It was a bit awkward with just the two of us eating.
Levi pressed down on my hand. "Isn't it good with just the two of us?"
"Uh..."
I was at a loss for words.
I slowly pulled my hand back. "Okay, okay."
He meant he wanted us to have a quiet breakfast together. I lowered my head and ate in big bites, not saying anything more.
"I got some topical medicine from the hospital. If you need it, I can help you apply it."
Levi wanted to help me apply medicine?
"It's all better now. Don't need it for now."
I quickly declined. I'd never had him help me with such detailed tasks. I could apply medicine myself - no need to trouble him.
I felt like Levi had completely stepped into his role as my husband, but I was becoming less and less used to it. It was as if all the time we'd lived together had been for nothing.
"You went to the hospital so early? Were the doctors even at work?"
I had glanced at the time earlier when I was about to make a call. It was only 8:30 now.
"Emergency room."
To get me medicine, he went to the emergency room?
I was really impressed by Levi's attention to detail. He used to ignore me, and now he was caring for me so thoroughly. This contrast left me amazed.
"In that bag by the door..."
Levi got up, brought the bag over, and placed it on the chair next to me.
"Clothes."
I opened it and saw new clothes.
We had left in a hurry, and the climate here was completely different from back home. Nola and I had planned to go shopping to buy some clothes because I noticed Levi's suitcase had almost none of my clothes in it.
Every time he prepared things for me, I couldn't help wanting to say thank you. I never thought there'd be a day when he'd take the initiative to do so much for me.
"I'm full. Let me go change."
Nola and the others must have already gotten up, or Levi wouldn't have known I liked roses.
"Where are you going?"
Levi stopped me as I was tiptoeing away.
I pointed toward the bathroom.
"Just change here."
Levi stood up, drew the curtains, then stood facing them without turning around.
My face instantly heated up. I fumbled with the clothes while also keeping an eye on him. If he turned around, if I screamed, wouldn't that be too ridiculous?
"Take your time. No rush."
These words seemed to ring right above my head. I shivered, my face burning even hotter. Looking at his back, I couldn't imagine his expression...