Chapter 12
Austin
The fear that Levi is going to show up at my apartment, see whose place it is, then turn around and leave, has put me in a nervous state all day.
When Levi texted me last night inquiring about the room, I was fucking thrilled. My plan worked; he called, and he wants the room.
Only, will he still want it when he sees it’s mine?
I’m playing with fire, and I really hope I don’t get burned. But if I do, it’s my own fault.
A part of me feels like an asshole for all the little white lies and schemes I’ve been doing, but my delusional brain has convinced me that it’s not that bad.
It’s all in the good of making Levi mine. Officially.
Ugh. If my therapist knew what I was up to, she’d be so pissed. Good thing I haven’t told her... yet.
A few people called the number, and I had to turn them down, saying the room was already taken.
I was getting ready to go to sleep, hoping he would see the flyer the next day, but I was wired.
He didn’t text me back all day, and my needy ass was checking my phone every few minutes for either a response to the texts I was sending him or for him to call or text me about the apartment on my other phone.
It was around three in the morning when my brain started to shut up enough to let me start to drift off to sleep.
Then I got not one, but two text messages back to back. One from Levi letting me know he wasn’t going to be able to make coffee. And another on my other phone asking about the apartment.
My dumb ass was grinning like a fool. It took everything in me not to respond to both of the texts, but it would be kind of suspicious to get two responses at three in the morning.
So, I waited until I woke up. The first thing I did was wish Levi a good morning and hope he had a good day, understanding his need to miss our morning coffee meetings.
Then I had to let him know I was going to have to miss lunch.
I told him I had an appointment, but what I really needed to do was spend the day moving things around my apartment and going to get the furniture he would need for his room, like I had listed on the flyer.
Another lie. God, I'm gonna go to hell, aren't I?
Wanting to space out the messages, I showered and made myself something to eat before grabbing my other phone and texting Levi back. I told him the place was still available, and if he wanted to come by this evening to see the place, he could.
I didn’t realize how desperate he was to get a place, because he told me that if it was alright with me, he would just move in tonight. He didn’t want to see the place beforehand. Didn’t want to even meet the guy he was supposed to be rooming with.
I didn’t put my name down on the flyer, so as far as he knows, I’m a stranger.
Part of me wants to spank his ass for being so irresponsible about his safety. Hell, I could be a serial killer for all he knew!
I mean, I'm not. Just a very obsessed, slightly needy man who’s head over heels for his best friend's little brother. Nothing to be concerned about at all.
Now, I’m in the middle of Walmart, grabbing everything he might need for his room. I’m trying not to go overboard and spoil him, but I want him to be as comfortable as he can be.
I also don’t want it to seem like I was shopping for him specifically. So, I went to the mattress place and got a bed set. Something basic but still nice. Although I did spring for the memory foam mattress. I have one, and it’s like sleeping on a cloud.
Then I came to Walmart for a dresser, some bedside tables, a lamp, and some other room accessories like a basic black comforter set, a trash can, and a little simple desk he could do work on.
Listen, after he moves in, if he voices any of his needs, I will be out to the store within the hour to get him whatever he wants.
I have money and I want to spoil that man like a king. And when he’s officially mine, I plan on it. Hopefully, he doesn’t argue with me too much about it.
Packing everything in my car wasn’t an option, so I dished out a hefty amount for same-day delivery.
While I was waiting for things to get here, I’ve been cleaning out the spare room, moving all my gaming equipment from the spare room, now formally my gaming room, to my living room. Thankfully, my place is big enough to get everything in my living room without it looking too crowded.
I might hate my father, but I have no issues spending the bastard’s money. And it pays for a pretty nice place.
I’m just getting the last of the things out of the spare room and into the living room when my buzzer rings. Shit, it’s too early, Levi can’t be here yet.
Racing to the intercom, I press the talk button. “Hello?”
“This is Leo, I’m delivering your order from Walmart.”
“Oh, shit, yeah, come on in.” I buzz the man up and let them bring everything in. Once they leave, I move everything into the room and spend the next few hours setting up.
“Fuck.” I groan, stretching out my back once I’m done. “I’m starving.”
Looking at my phone, I see there’s about an hour before Levi is supposed to be here. That should be enough time to order something and have it be here by the time he gets here.
Would it be too suspicious if I ordered his favorite food? I mean, I like Chinese too, so it wouldn’t look that weird.
Taking one last look around the room, I smile at my hard work. It’s not perfect, but it’s what one might expect when they rent out a fully furnished room.
And like I said, if he wants anything changed, I’ll do it in a heartbeat.
I place an order for some of Levi’s and my favorite Chinese food dishes, and fill the time by cleaning up the rest of my apartment. It’s that or pace around the apartment overthinking everything and driving myself crazy, wondering what I’m going to say to him.
There is no plan here. I’m going in blind. And everything could crash and burn.
I’m crazy. Yup, that's it. A crazy man.
Levi is going to realize it and run for the hills. I don’t blame him, I would too.
Although that doesn’t mean I wouldn’t run after him. But still.
I’m just finishing up wiping down the kitchen counters when there’s another buzz. Shit. Rushing to my phone, I see it’s around the time Levi should be here.
So, that is either Levi or the takeout.
Why do I hope it’s takeout? I’m not ready to face Levi. Ugh.
Heading over to the intercom, I clear my throat and press the button to talk. “Hello?”
“Hey. This is Uber Eats.”
I let out a sigh of relief. “Come on up.” I buzz him in and wait for him at the door.
When he gets to the door, he knocks, and I open it to find a sweet older man named Dave.
He’s often the Uber driver who delivers around my area.
One time, I came home drunk and couldn’t get into my apartment because I left my keys in Charlie’s car.
So I waited for him to come back with them, but I was starving, so I ordered food.
Dave was the one to deliver it to me. He was so sweet and sat with me while I waited for Charlie.
We got to talking and he told me his story.
He drives for Uber as a way to help make extra money for his family.
A few years ago, he got into a bad accident and couldn’t go back to his job in construction.
I could see the look in his eyes, like he failed his family.
It fucking crushed me. Now, any time he comes, I always tip him extra.
“Hey, thanks.” I take the food from him. “I added a tip on the app, but here’s something extra.” I hand him a twenty. His face lights up.
“You’re too good to me, Austin.” he takes the money, patting my hand.
“How can I not be!” I grin. “You bring me food. It’s the way to my heart.”
“It’s my job,” he chuckles, shaking his head.
“Yes, but I trust you to always have it here fresh and hot.” I wink.
“Enjoy.” He waves me off.
“Until next time, Dave!” I call after him. And that's the moment Levi rounds the corner.
I stand there frozen, bags of Chinese food in my hands. He nods his head to Dave in passing, but stumbles to a halt when he sees me.
“Austin?” his brows furrow.
“Hi.” I wave lamely. Fuck, my brain is broken right now. What do I do?!
“Do you live here or something?” Levi asks as he looks around.
“Ah, yeah.” I chuckle, rubbing the back of my head. I’m sweating now, like I’ve been caught doing something I’m not supposed to.
“How did I not know that?” He blows out a breath. “Well, hey, it looks like we’re going to be neighbors,” he chuckles, his own nervous look on his handsome face. “By any chance, do you know where 402 is?” He asks, looking at the other doors on this floor.
There are only four other apartments on his floor, so when he’s done, he turns back to me.
“I actually do.” I chuckle, feeling like I might spew all over the floor. Stupid plan, Austin. Stupid, stupid plan! Taking a step to the side, out into the hall, I show him the number on my door.
His brows furrow, eyes flicking between me, the number, and back to me. “I don’t understand...” he says slowly. “I’m here because I’m renting a room. This was the address they gave me.”
“Then yup.” I laugh again. “You got the right place.”
“Wait, you’re the one with the room for rent? How come I didn’t know you were looking for a roommate?”
“I could ask you the same thing.” I raise a brow, unable to keep the smile off my face. “You didn’t tell me you were looking for a place to stay.”
I should feel bad about the guilty look on his face, but I think his pink cheeks are cute. He shoves his glasses up his nose with his finger and shifts from foot to foot.
I’m not the only one keeping secrets. Although I’m pretty sure his are less meddling than mine.
“So you were the one I was texting about the room...” he says, sounding confused. “But that wasn’t your number on the flyer.”