Competing for His Heart

Chapter 1: "Tell Me the Plan Again"

"It'll be fine! They'll love you!" Levi insisted for the 1,000th time. 

I rolled my eyes. Meeting his family is nothing like I expected meeting my first boyfriend's family to be like. Then again, Levi is much different than any boy I've ever been interested in before. Levi comes from money. Crazy money. The kind of money that makes you wonder how it could even be legal to be that rich. But I guess that's what you get when you live in the Upper East Side and own your own Law Firm. If you're thinking their lifestyle sounds like it's straight out of Gossip Girl? You'd be pretty close. I'd never in my life seen money like his in real life- only movies and tv shows. 

Me, on the other hand, my story is more like Gilmore Girls. I'm just a small town girl, from a little town off the main highway cutting south past Atlanta. Everyone knows everyones name and business in that small town, and I couldn't wait to get out. When my mom got pregnant with me at 17, she was already on her own. Her parents both passed away when she was 15.  My dad? He couldn't bother to stick around past the first sonogram. 

So it was just me and mama growing up. We never had money, my mama worked hard at as many jobs as she needed to so that I was always taken care of. I have so many memories of doing homework at the back booth of our town's only diner, and staying there until Mama locked the doors at 2 a.m. Eventually, I started working there too. That's how I saved money for college. Our town may not be big, but because it sat right off the main highway, we got some big wallets passing through on business trips or scandalous rendezvous. That's really how I saved enough money. If you saw someone in a nice suit, you made sure to smile extra pretty, and fill their coffee as many times as they needed it, as fast as you could. Normally, they'll give you a nice, big tip and say "Why aren't you a pretty little thing? What are you doing stuck here in this small town? Here's something extra...go catch your dreams." My Uncle Jim owned the diner, so  I worked there from the age of 10 until I was 18 and off to college, and using every last cent  to pay for what my scholarships didn't cover. 

Anyways, back to meeting Levi's family.

In any normal situation, I feel like I wouldn't be so horrified to meet his parents, but he doesn't have a great relationship with them. He barely spoke to them the whole time he was away at school. They're the typical "Upper East Sider, vacation house in the Hamptons" kinda people, and they don't know about me...at all. In their minds, I don't exist. All they're expecting is for their "golden child son" to come home after graduating from college. I don't mind that he didn't tell them about me. Neither of us really expected anything to come out of one college fling...but we're just lucky I guess. 

Oh, and about that metaphorical vacation house in the Hamptons? It's real, and that's where I'm heading for his parent's 25th Wedding Anniversary Party.

"Okay! Okay! Just...tell me the plan again!" I mumbled through the phone as my Uber driver snaked through the traffic towards the train station. 

"I'll pick you up at the station when you get in, we'll hit that 4 for $4 at Wendy's to calm your nerves, then head to my parents house in the Hamptons. Their Anniversary Party isn't until Saturday, so that gives us two days to break the news that we're dating."

"How do you know I'll want a 4 for $4?"

"Olivia. You always want a 4 for $4."

"Okay! Well, I still don't know what I'm supposed to wear to that! You know I don't have anything fancy enough for your parents and their friends!" My heart started racing at the thought. All this High Society mumbo jumbo is enough to turn your brain to gravy.

"I told you I've got you covered! My sisters have hundreds of dresses, and if none of those work, they'll take any excuse for a shopping spree. They're the only two people that know about you, well, them and Blake. The girls can't wait to meet you. Seriously. They've texted me 100 times about it already--"

Levi abruptly stopped talking, and I heard a mumbled announcement through the phone.

"--Hey, listen, they just called my boarding group, so I have to jump on the plane. I hate that you're so scared of flying- one day I'll help you get over it. Okay, gotta go, love you!"

I try to hide my blush behind my hands as I smile to the train attendant scanning my ticket. I really hit the jackpot with Levi. He always knows what to say when I feel anxious.

"Have a safe flight! Love you too!" I threw my bags into the seat next to me and slumped down into my own seat. It was going to be a long ride, so I popped in the AirPods Levi gave me for my birthday last year, and closed my eyes.

.........................................

Okay, about Blake and Levi's sisters. 

Blake has been Levi's best friend since diapers. They've done everything together from primary school, to their first lacrosse game, to family vacations. Practically brothers. When Blake first met me he tackled me to the ground in a bear hug like he'd known me for years. But that's just the kind of person he is. He's your typical fun loving "bro". All of our fraternities tried to recruit him while he was visiting, I think he might even be an official member of a couple of them... Blake didn't need to go to college. Right after high school, he became partner in his father's multi-million dollar construction business.  So on his visits, he made sure he got a true college experience. Most of the girls on campus call him "Heartbreak Blake" because he could never stay, he always had to leave and go back home, and back to work. I get it, he just has one of those personalities that draws you in. He's hilarious, but also the kinda guy that would help you move, ya know? Just a good kid. 

Levi's sisters on the other hand, I'd never met. Only talked to on FaceTime for like, ten minutes. Katie and Cassie. They both seem super nice, and Levi's extremely close with them.

 Katie's two years older than Levi and I, making her 25. Levi describes her as a classic oldest child, protective,  reserved, and has her life totally together. She graduated top of her class from New York Fashion Institute, and owns her own design studio in Manhattan. She's engaged to Mark, a junior partner, in Levi's dad's Law Firm. Levi always told me that growing up she thought she was the second mom, but ultimately, just wanted what was best for them. So, she's basically perfect and completely intimidating, and you could say I'm a little scared to meet her.

 Cassie, on the other hand, is the 21 year old wild child, and the youngest of the three siblings. She just finished her junior year of college with a 4.0 GPA. From what Levi tells me, she's a spitfire, super bubbly, and totally dominates any lacrosse field. She has tons of friends, and is the life of any party- still intimidating, but, ex-party girl to current-party girl,  I think I can manage to win her over pretty quickly. 

.........................................

I was jolted awake by the sound of the train coming to a screeching halt. An automated voice rang out over the speakers- I was here, the Hamptons- did I seriously sleep through the whole ride? I looked down at my phone and saw ten missed calls and fifteen missed texts from Levi. Oops. My bad. That's on me. My heart sunk to my stomach...he never blows up my phone like this unless something is really wrong. Without reading any of the messages, I called him.

A frantic Levi answered on the first ring.

"Hey! What's going on? Is everything okay?" I asked, panic rising into my throat.

"I called and texted you a million times, did you read any of my messages?!"

"No! I slept through the whole train ride, you know I sleep when I'm nervous, what's going on!? I had to get off the train and thought it would just be easier to call and find out what's going on."

"Okay...uhm..so don't panic but, we have a problem."