Just Friends

53

୪𝚃𝚎𝚜𝚜୪

"Tess, do you play the piano?"

This is the question that Levi starts our day with. It's the weekend and all we've been doing is lounging around his apartment like we've been married for thirty years and have nothing better to do.

I look his way curiously. "The piano?" I repeat quietly. He nods simply.

He's sat comfortably right beside me on the couch, lounging with Cheshire right on his lap. All morning, we've sat in comfortable silence with just the sound of the tv and the occasional needy meow of Cheshire to fill it.

"Do you play?"

A smile starts to tug at the corners of my lips when involuntary memories flood in. "I used to." I offer.

"Used to. Not anymore?"

I shrug softly. "I don't have a piano."

We only had one at school. I was never in band at school, but I still enjoyed stopping by to play with the piano. I think I got hood somewhere in senior year, but never went anywhere with it.

I tilt my head curiously. "Why do you ask?" I don't think I ever mentioned the piano to him. I sort of forgot about it, for the most part.

"I was talking to my mom." Levi hums as he looks away from me, towards the tv. But he's not watching it. "She mentioned what you told her about a piano. That you liked it. I was wondering if it was true."

"Oh," I acknowledge quietly and with a little smile, quickly remembering the conversation he's talking about. "It's true."

Levi looks back at me. He smiles softly. "I'd like to hear you play." He decides.

I laugh. "Maybe I'll get one of those keyboards you can rest on your lap."

The smile Levi gives me is one that tells me the next time we're together, I'm going to have one. I narrow my eyes at him, silently daring him to do it. He only smiles.

I take a breath as I sit up more and turn to better face him, raising my arm to lazily rest on the back of the couch as I do and pulling my knees up close to my chest.

Levi tilts his head back against the back of the couch with a smile as he waits for me to ask the question I'm sure he's already predicted.

"Do you think it's a good idea for me to get a ferret right now?"

He squints with that same soft smile. "Right now, right now?"

I shrug.

I meant right now as in this year, but right now, right now sounds really good too.

"You've been ready for one since you were a kid." Levi offers. I nod, as if he was asking me. "And I assume you've already checked prices on homes." He knowingly adds. I grin.

I have been checking prices recently since I realized it's a real possibility. I could have my ferret friend by this time next month.

"Yeah." Levi murmurs quietly. "Do you want some help or is this a solo mission?" He playfully asks. But it's still his way of asking if I want him to spot me.

Which, in his terms, means he pays for the entire thing while all I get to do is hand his card over. It's an important job.

"It's a solo mission." I declare proudly. "But you are welcome to accompany me and hold my hand through the store." I quickly add. He smiles wider at my offer, silently letting me know he'll be there.

I love our silent conversations mixed in with our out loud ones.

"Maybe we can even get Bryce and Charlie a wedding present while we're there." I playfully suggest, knowing damn well it's not going to happen. I doubt Bryce can even keep a gold fish alive.

Levi groans immediately. "Bryce and Charlie."

I laugh as I quickly start scooting even closer to him. Cheshire lifts his head with our movement but doesn't leave yet. "What is it now?" I curiously ask with a grin.

They've been engaged for a total of two weeks. Levi already hates them.

"Bryce won't stop talking about flower patterns and Charlie likes shoving her ring in my face."

"Aw, they're excited." I murmur. Levi sends me a dry expression that I laugh at. "Do they have a day yet?"

He shrugs.

I narrow my eyes. "Did you ask like I told you to?"

"Yes." Levi makes a face at the fact that I asked him. "Charlie said something about the very beginning or the very end of autumn."

"So, you do know! You lied."

"I did not." Levi argues with a smug smile. "You asked if they had a day."

"I hate you."

"Yeah, you love me." Levi smugly corrects. "You'd marry me if I asked you." He adds in a childish taunting tone, only using that threat because we were just talking about Bryce and Charlie'a wedding.

"I would not." I argue simply. "We haven't been dating long enough." It's my turn to be smug with him, so I grin.

"Fine. I don't want to marry you anyway."

"You do!" I argue with a loud laugh that startles Cheshire. "Because you've loved me since high school."

"I had a crush." Levi playfully scowls. "Which is far from love."

"You're infatuated." I accuse happily.

"Wrong word." Levi calls me out immediately. I purse my lips in genuine confusion. "Infatuation means temporary love." He smiles. "Almost like a phase. You are not a phase."

"Aw," I murmur as I press my hands to my chest. "That almost makes me forget the fact that you told me you didn't love me!" I reach behind me for a couch pillow and throw it at him to highlight my words.

Cheshire shrieks, even though the pillow doesn't touch him. It hits Levi in the face but Cheshire still goes running.

We go silent as the pillow falls onto Levi's lap then slips down to the ground. We both watch it, even.

Levi stares at me with another look that if you didn't know him, you wouldn't know what he really feels. If you didn't know him, you'd think he's angry.

But he's not. He's pretending to be, and he's not all that great at it. I still recognize the slight curl of the corner of the right side of his mouth. It's subtle, but it's there.

"You're very lucky I love you."

I narrow my eyes. "What would you do if you didn't?" I curiously question.

Levi starts to stand from the couch. Before leaving it completely, he leans down to pick the pillow up and tosses it onto the cushion behind him.

"I'd withhold all of the cold things in this apartment from you."

I perk up immediately at the sound of something cold. "But you love me." I point out happily.

"I just got this new ice cream that has fish shaped chocolate bars in it."

My jaw drops. "Fish shaped chocolate?"

All he does is smile before he turns away to leave me here. I'm quick to get up and rush after him.

The very first time something cold was mentioned, I was drunk and sad. Levi wasn't as drunk and sad as I was, but he was quieter than he is now.

The one thing I love more than our silent conversations is the brief moments we share while we get our something cold together.