Move My Heart (Lev Haiba x Reader)

Chapter 25: Say Cheese!

"Alisa, how much longer are we going to be here?" you asked, yawning, as the florist placed a bouquet of roses on the table.
"I'm almost done," she said, eyeing the flowers. "The color isn't right. Do you have any others?" The florist nodded, looking fed up, and walked back into the storage room.
"I thought you wanted white?" Lev asked from the other end of the room, rubbing his eyes and looking equally as bored.
"I'm looking for porcelain white. See how these have a tinge of yellow? That's cream white," she explained.
"Right...," Lev said, looking confused. You had been there for three hours, and it seemed like Alisa had barely made any progress. She spent the majority of the time finding something she liked, then changing her mind a couple of seconds later and looking for something else. It didn't help that Lev was there, and the two of you had barely said a word to each other since you got there. He looked equally distracted, drumming his fingers on the table he was leaning against and staring aimlessly at the display of succulents.
"Y/n, are you even listening?" Alisa asked, waving to get your attention.
"Sorry, what?" you replied, rubbing your eyes.
"I said, which one of these do you like better?" She held up two bouquets, and you examined them.
"Aren't they the same?" you asked, confused, and she glared.
"They're two different types of flowers, you imbecile! Lev, what do you think?" She pointed them at Lev, and he narrowed his eyes.
"They look... very similar?" he said cautiously, and she clucked her tongue.
"You guys are useless..." Lev raised his eyebrows at you, and you shrugged your shoulders.
"Shouldn't Haru be here too, since it's his wedding and all?" you asked, masking another yawn with your hand.
"And was it really necessary to wake us up at 6am for this?" Lev added tiredly.
"Can you guys be any more pessimistic? I asked you here to help, not to complain," she muttered, placing the bouquets back on the table.
"We've just been here for a long time... and I haven't even eaten breakfast yet," you said, and Lev nodded in agreement.
"Maybe we could take a little break?" he asked, and she furrowed her brows.
"Fine, there's a Starbucks down the street, go quickly to re energize yourselves," she mumbled, taking the next bouquet from the florist.
"Are you sure?" Lev asked, but you were already up and heading for the door.
"You're the best, Alisa, we'll be back soon!" you called over your shoulder, and she rolled her eyes. You pushed the door of the floral shop open, searching for the Starbucks.
"Y/n, wait up!" Lev called, jogging to catch up with you. You immediately tensed, realizing you would be awkwardly walking next to him. The two of you headed down the crowded street in silence, and in trying to avoid the passersby, bumped into each other.
"Sorry," you said in unison, making the both of you chuckle.
"Lev, I'm really sorry for getting so... intoxicated yesterday," you said quietly.
"It's fine. I feel bad that I didn't stop you earlier, when it was obvious that you were having too much..."
"I don't really remember that much, but I didn't mean to say anything hurtful, if I did," you said, looking up at him. He had an unreadable look on his face, but when he noticed you looking at him, he smiled softly.
"Don't worry about it. Do you... not remember anything?"
"No..."
"Oh."
"It's ok Lev. I just hope you're happy." You sounded defeated, and he sighed.
"Y/n, it's not like that..."
"Then what is it like?" you asked, and he remained silent. "Exactly." He looked hurt, and you wished you could reach over and grab his hand. You noticed the Starbucks logo up ahead, and you pointed towards the store.
"There it is." Neither Lev nor you mentioned the previous night again, and you forced yourself to forget about it altogether. You headed to the register, taking out your wallet, but Lev leaned over you and handed the cashier the money.
"I got it," he said, and you thanked him. It seemed like at least some things wouldn't change.
"God, I had no idea my sister was going to be like this...," he muttered as the two of you sat down at a table near the large window. You laughed, shaking your head.
"Honestly, I kinda get it. Every girl always dreams about their wedding day, imagining what'll be like, so I guess that once the day actually comes, you feel an immense amount of pressure to make it perfect." You took your drink, which Lev had been holding for you, sipping slowly.
"I see. Sounds like you're saying that from experience."
"I mean, I won't lie and say that I've never thought about my own wedding. Ever since I was young, I always imagined wearing a beautiful dress and...," you trailed off, embarrassed from what you were about to say.
"And what?" he asked, looking intently at you.
"Ok, don't make fun of me... but I always thought it would be cool to arrive at my wedding in a carriage, pulled by a white horse," you said, laughing. "It's childish, right?"
"No, I actually love it," he said, sounding sincere.
"What about you, have you ever thought about your own marriage?" you asked. Lev's eyes softened, and he fiddled with the lid of his drink.
"Of course... like you said, when we're younger, we always imagine what the day will be like. Hopefully whoever I marry won't be like Alisa is now..." he trailed off. Talk about uncomfortable.
"I know I won't," you said softly, and the corner of Lev's mouth twitched. "I bet your girlfriend wouldn't either." You looked pointedly at Lev, sipping your drink, and he frowned. Was that comment unnecessary? Yes. Did it feel good? Also yes.
"Really? You're going to be like that?" Lev asked, leaning back in his chair.
"Be like what?" you replied, cocking an eyebrow, taunting him. He sighed, narrowing his eyes at you. A slight smirk creeped onto his face.
"You sound jealous," he taunted back, and now it was your turn to frown. Two could play at this game.
"Jealous? No. It's not like I haven't been with another guy since you, Lev," you said calmly, and his coy expression dropped. Lev bit the inside of his cheek, toying with his fingers. You stared back at him, a satisfied look on your face. Lev was never a confrontational guy, and you knew exactly what to say to provoke him. You lazily ran your finger along the rim of your cup, smirking.
"Looks like you're the one getting jealous now."
"Me?" he said, scoffing. "Obviously not. After all, I'm the one in a steady relationship."
You rested your chin on your hand, narrowing your eyes at him.
"Well, for your girlfriend's sake, I hope you don't give up as easily on this relationship as you did on ours." A look of disgust flashed across Lev's face, and his mouth dropped momentarily. You knew that saying that was reopening an old wound for the both of you, a wound you had promised to let permanently heal, but you couldn't help yourself. As twisted as it sounded, saying something to hurt Lev helped satisfy your own need for closure. Lev looked like he wanted to either burst out crying, or punch a nearby wall, and he clenched his fists tightly.
"You're such a f*cking hypocrite," he muttered, staring at you. You sneered, shaking your head. You were about to unleash seven years worth of bottled pain and anger, and finally tell him to his face all the things you had imagined saying. Finally, you would get the satisfaction of releasing every insult you had kept in your head, prepared for when you would see him again. You opened your mouth to reply, until out of the corner of your eye, you noticed a bright flash. You froze, turning your head slightly to the right. Through the glass window of the store, you saw a swarm of people with large cameras, pushing and shoving each other, pointing their cameras directly at you.
"Um... did they just take a picture of us?" you asked, motioning towards the cameras. Lev's expression changed from annoyance to surprise, and he looked to where you were pointing.
"Oh, sh*t," he mumbled, getting up immediately. He grabbed both of your drinks, chucking them in the trash.
"Seriously? I wasn't done with that!" you said, but he grabbed your arm, ignoring you.
"We need to go," he whispered, gently pulling you up and towards the exit.
"Huh?" You looked back at the crowd of people, who were making a beeline for the door. "Wait a minute. Are those paparazzi?" Lev nodded, looking annoyed.
"How did they even find us so fast?" he muttered, cursing under his breath. He looked back at you, tightened his grip on you. "If... if they ask you anything, just don't respond, ok?"
"Uh, sure, but how did they even know you were here? I'm surprised we didn't notice them earlier," you commented, and Lev sighed as he opened the door to the Starbucks.
"Word travels fast," he whispered, pulling you quickly in the opposite direction of the crowd.
"Lev! Lev Haiba! Do you have a minute?" someone yelled, and the crowd started to surround you. Lev was attempting to walk away, but they formed a barricade around the two of you.
"Sorry, not right now," Lev said loudly, putting his hand up. The crowd grew closer and closer, and Lev pulled you in nearer to him, holding you protectively close to him. Your eyes darted from person to person, and you began to feel slightly dizzy from the flashing lights of the cameras being shoved in your face.