Chapter 157

Olivia

When I opened the door, my heart nearly stopped. There stood Nathan, his face etched with anger and confusion. My breath caught in my throat, and for a moment, neither of us spoke.

“Olivia,” he finally said, his voice filled with disbelief. “What is going on? How could you move on so quickly?”

His words hit me like a slap in the face, and I stumbled back a step. “What? What are you talking about, Nathan?”

He reached out, his hand wrapping around my wrist, and pulled me outside. The door clicked shut behind us, and I found myself standing on the porch, my heart pounding in my chest.

“You and Levi?” Nathan spat, his face twisted with anger. “How could you, Olivia? How could you do this to me?”

“Do this to you?” I echoed, my voice rising. “Nathan, we were never together. We hooked up once, and then you decided to leave when I begged you to stay. How dare you come here and accuse me of moving on when you’re the one who left!”

Tears stung my eyes, and I quickly wiped them away, refusing to let him see how much he had hurt me.

“You begged me to stay?” Nathan said, his voice softening. “Olivia, I—”

“Don’t,” I interrupted, my voice filled with anger and pain. “Don’t pretend like you care now. You made your choice, and I have to live with it. But don’t you dare accuse me of moving on when you’re the one who walked away.”

His eyes widened, and for a moment, he just stared at me, his face pale. “You’re not dating Levi?”

“No!” I exploded, my hands shaking with anger. “He’s living with me because I needed help around the house. Because I’m pregnant and alone, and he’s been a friend to me. Nothing more. And it’s none of your business anyway.”

Nathan fell silent, his face betraying his embarrassment. His cheeks were red, but I couldn’t figure out if it was from his nerves or from something else.

“You’ve been drinking tonight, haven’t you?” I asked, peering behind him and letting out a sigh of relief to see that he hadn’t driven here, but had clearly walked.

“Maybe a little.” His face turned a deeper shade of red. “I’m sorry, Liv.”

“It’s Olivia. I don’t use that nickname anymore.”

Nathan’s eyes widened slightly. “Why not?” he asked.

I shrugged, sinking down onto the bench on the porch with a sigh. Even the simple act of sitting and standing was becoming a bit of a chore lately. “I just don’t like it,” I lied. “Too many bad memories.”

Nathan said nothing. After a moment, he sat beside me, the silence between us punctuated by the lively sound of the crickets. It was officially summertime, and the air was hot and still. The occasional breeze blew in from the ocean, which made it bearable.

“You two really are just friends?” he finally asked, breaking the silence after a few minutes. “I thought… I remember you crying on his shoulder. I thought that you did have feelings for him after all. Maybe I was just in the way of them back then.”

“Nathan,” I said, crossing my arms and looking at him, “I can’t believe you’re still going on about Levi and me. So I cried on his shoulder once, how many months ago? So what? We’re friends. It never meant anything more than that.”

Nathan's eyes narrowed, and he frowned. “I saw the way you two looked at each other, Olivia. I’m not being ridiculous. I’m just concerned.”

“Concerned?” I scoffed, rolling my eyes. “Or maybe you’re just jealous?”

“Jealous?” Nathan shot back, his voice filled with indignation. “I’m not jealous. Why would I be jealous of Levi?”

I couldn’t help but smirk at that. “Really, Nathan? You’re not jealous? So you just decided to come here and confront me like this for what? Fun?”

He opened his mouth to protest, then closed it, his expression softening. “Okay, maybe I am a little jealous. But I have a right to be, don’t I? After everything that's happened between us?”

I looked at him, my heart aching with a mixture of love and frustration. I wanted to yell at him some more, to scold him for bringing up ‘everything that happened between us’ when he was the one who officially ended it all. But I didn’t.

“If you’re so jealous, Nathan, why don’t you come inside for dinner?” I asked, feeling an unexpected sense of hope swell inside me. “Levi’s here, and you can see for yourself that there’s nothing going on between us.”

Nathan’s eyes widened, and he looked at me, his expression unreadable. “You want me to come in? Have dinner with you and Levi?”

“Why not?” I said, shrugging. “You’re here now, and I’m sure Levi won’t mind. You can see for yourself that we’re just friends.”

Nathan hesitated for a moment, then nodded. “All right. I’ll come in. But only because I want to see for myself that there’s nothing going on between you two. Because I’m worried about you.”

“Right,” I said, standing with some effort. “Worried.”

I led him into the house, and we found Levi in the kitchen, setting the table. He looked up as we entered, his eyes widening in surprise.

“Nathan,” he said, extending his hand. “Good to see you.”

Nathan shook his hand, his expression guarded. “You too, Levi.”

We had dinner together, the three of us, and despite the awkwardness, we managed to have a good time. We laughed and joked, and I could see Nathan relaxing as the evening wore on.

After dinner, we played charades, and I was surprised by how much fun we had. Nathan was surprisingly good at acting, and he had us all in stitches with his impersonations.

As the evening wore on, Angela showed up, and she joined in on the fun. I noticed that Nathan kept glancing over at Levi and Angela, and I couldn't help but smile.

They were sitting close together, laughing and flirting, and I could see that Nathan was starting to realize that there was nothing going on between Levi and me.

As the evening wore on, I could see Nathan relaxing, enjoying himself, and I felt a sense of satisfaction. I had proven to him that there was nothing going on between Levi and me, and I hoped that he would finally trust me.

It wasn’t just that that left me satisfied, though. It was the fact that we were all here, friends, and happy. I was happy. So happy I could cry; and I almost did a few times, but masked it with my laughter.

Eventually, it was time for Nathan to leave, and I walked him to the door. As we stood on the porch, I looked up at him, my eyes twinkling, urging him to come back again, to rekindle at the very least our friendship that I had so sorely missed.

“See?” I said, smirking. “Levi and Angela have been flirting all night. Do you still think that we’re together?”

Nathan’s cheeks flushed a slight shade of red and he ran his fingers through his blonde hair with a smirk. “Yeah,” he said. “I guess you’re right. I’m sorry; and I won’t bother you again.”

I watched as he walked down the steps. My heart ached to see him leave, and in the spur of the moment, I called after him.

“Come back for dinner again, Nathan Ford,” I called out. “Or you’ll be in big trouble.”

Nathan paused, slowly turning to look at me.

There was a slight smile on his lips.