After he left Eloise, Levi visited his usual spot at the café. He got a call just as he reached his writing goal for the day. When he checked the number, he recognized the person immediately. It was Pearce, a good friend that he had known for a few years. 

Pearce was the first professional editor who looked at Levi’s early work all the way back when he was still only writing as a side gig. Levi often felt like an imposter in the writing scene, but Pearce was one of the few people who made him actually feel welcome as a newcomer. 

It had been over a month since they last spoke. They used to talk more often, but since he met Eloise, his life shifted in trajectory. It was what it was. Neither good nor bad. Levi had become even more of a loner than he was before, but he liked his life at the moment. Still, it wouldn’t hurt to keep in touch better with his friends.

“Hello?”

“Levi! It’s been ages since I got ahold of you.”

“Hey, Pearce. Yeah, sorry. I haven’t been around much.”

Levi’s way of speaking was a bit stiff. It was like he needed to relearn how you were supposed to sound when talking to a friend.

“That’s alright. Do you have time today? Daniel’s last book made it on the bestseller list yesterday, so a few people are getting together at the pub for a drink and to tell him ‘congrats’.”

He mulled over the idea for a few moments before he decided to accept the invitation. Levi wasn’t really a pub and bar kind of person, but he figured he shouldn’t stay so isolated. 

“I suppose I could stop by. I’ve been out of the loop for a while now, so it would be nice to catch up.”

“That’s great! A couple of us are already here, so head over whenever.”

“Alright. I won’t be long.”

After Levi hung up, he checked the time. There was still a couple hours until Eloise would return from class. He decided that he would only stay a short while to be polite. Levi didn’t want Eloise to come home to an empty apartment or he might have one less neighbor once he got back.

The pub was only a short walk away. Even in the early afternoon it was fairly rowdy, but it wouldn’t really hit its stride until the nine-to-fivers got off work. Levi stopped in the doorway scanning his eyes over the place before he noticed a man with a blonde ponytail waving him over. That would be Pearce.

He wasn’t alone. Sitting around Pearce were a few other familiar faces. All of them were either writers, editors, book reviewers, or the like. Levi made his way over to their table. 

“Holy crap, he actually showed!”

“Told ya. You’re buying the next round.”

There was laughter all around. One glance and Levi could tell these guys were already a couple beers deep. Pearce was the first one to talk directly to him.

“Good to see you, Levi! Tell us what you’ve been up to lately.”

“Ah, you know. Mostly just writing, same as always. I did go to one convention a week back. And a little before that I released an anthology with some recent stuff.”

“Right your anthology. I heard that it’s pretty experimental.”

“Experimental? I don’t know about that. It’s been doing alright though as far as reviews go.”

Levi couldn’t help but smile wryly. No one in his circle had any faith in his most recent work. Luckily, after dipping his toes into the indie horror scene, he found that there were at least a few people who liked what he was writing. 

“That’s good. Honestly, we were wondering if you were still keeping up with your work. All I ever see on social media is you and that girl together.”

“Her name’s Eloise.”

Pearce acted pretty natural, but a few of the others gave each other an awkward glance at the mention of Levi’s new girlfriend.

“Yeah? She just a quick fling or..?”

“No, we’re serious. She moved in with me not that long ago, actually.”

“Really? Isn’t that kinda fast? You’ve only known her for like a month or two.”

“I guess it did happen a little fast. But we really like each other, so that’s alright. Things are going well for us.”

Levi watched as Pearce scratched the side of his nose and glanced back at the rest of the table. The air had begun to turn strange between them. He clearly had more to say, but was hesitating about whether to bring it up.

“Don’t you think she’s a little young?” Matt, another from their circle chimed in at this moment.

“Uh, she’s 18.” Levi glanced at him from the corner of his eyes.

“Yeah and you’re 25. I mean, she hasn’t even finished highschool and you’ve moved in together.”

“...Eloise’s circumstances are a little unique.”

“I don’t mean to pry into your personal life, but you seem like you’re rebounding pretty hard after your last relationship. You shouldn’t rush serious things. This girl’s young, you two can’t even have much in common.”

Levi narrowed his eyes and grew noticeably colder. He maintained a deadpan expression and was silent for a few seconds. What was he supposed to say to something like this? Why did they care so much about his relationship? 

“It sure feels like you’re prying. My personal life is private, alright? Things are fine between me and Eloise.”

“Alright, Levi. Whatever you say. I just wanted to look out for you. It seemed to be like you were getting distracted by other things. Afterall, the only thing you’ve released recently is a couple short stories.” Matt put his hands up in a gesture of surrender and bit his cheek.

“I’ve got something bigger in the works, it’s just not finished yet.”

“That’s good. Will you be back to your bread and butter then or is it in the same experimental style?”

“There’s nothing ‘experimental’ about it.”

Levi’s patience was beginning to wear thin. He ended up snapping and answering back louder than he intended. As a result, the whole table was giving him strange looks. 

It was a mistake to come out here. He didn’t need to be looked down on just because they didn’t ‘get’ his writing. He had thought before that Pearce was one of the ones who didn’t have that elitist attitude, but now Levi felt like he was wrong about him.

And what the hell was this interrogation about his relationship? Was his life with Eloise anyone else’s fucking business? What did they get out of being so judgmental? The two of them were happy together. Is there anything else that matters other than that?

Levi had intended to stick around long enough to be polite, but now he didn’t have the inclination. He had never even sat down or ordered a drink when Levi turned around to leave. It wasn’t as though he was fragile enough to be upset just because a couple people criticized his writing. However, it was another matter entirely when they brought up him and Eloise. They didn’t even know anything about her, they were just making assumptions.

As he was storming off towards the door, it opened from the outside and two more people arrived. Levi wasn’t surprised to see Daniel show up, but the person standing beside him made Levi pause. There leaning into Daniel’s side with her arm hooked under his, was his ex, Sophie.

Levi was hovering right in front of the entrance, so the pair immediately came face to face with him. There was no way to avoid it. Levi’s mind drew a blank… The person Sophie had started seeing while she and Levi still hadn’t broken up was Daniel. 

Perhaps most people would have exploded in a tantrum in such a moment. Levi probably would have too if it had been just a month earlier. But he didn’t burst with rage. In fact, he didn’t feel much of anything at all towards the realization. Just complete impassiveness like he was a slab of stone.

If he had to point to one emotion that came to his mind, it would be embarrassment. Levi felt embarrassed with himself that he hadn’t seen through all these people sooner. He felt like an idiot for ever worrying about fitting in with them. 

Daniel gave Levi a big, goofy grin like he didn’t even realize he had Levi’s ex-girlfriend pressed into him. Sophie saw the blank look he was wearing and smirked with a roll of her eyes. She probably thought Levi was still pining after her and was devastated by the sudden revelation. 

“Levi, my guy, good to see you!” Daniel clapped him on the shoulder as he stepped forward.

Levi didn’t give any response. He just furrowed his brow. Several times, he opened his mouth about to say something, but changed his mind halfway. Finally, he squeezed out a single stiff sentence.

“Congrats on your book.”

With that, Levi made towards the exit while brushing past Daniel and Sophie. He planned to never associate himself with this group again after today. As he was reaching for the door, Sophie said something that made him stop dead in his tracks.

“Looks like he’s off to the local highschool to see if he can snatch up any more easy girls.”

His hand hovered over the handle as he froze there. Levi slowly turned back to face the two of them once more. He stared straight past Daniel with baleful eyes dripping with malice towards his ex-lover. 

“What..?”

Now Levi really was in danger of losing control over himself. How could he not be boiling with anger after hearing something like that? The girl who cheated on him was calling Eloise easy? 

Daniel and Sophie must have both picked up on something in his tone, because their expressions changed from mocking to deathly serious. Levi clenched his fist so tightly that his knuckles cracked. Daniel stepped forward while Sophie ducked behind him like a startled chihuahua. 

“Levi, calm down. Don’t do anything that you’ll regret.”

Levi’s shoulders shivered slightly. He breathed deep and closed his eyes, forcibly holding back the urge to resort to violence. He had almost succeeded too, but Daniel just couldn’t resist adding in one more quip.

“That’s right. It’s not worth it to catch an assault charge over an offhand comment made towards your quick lay.”

Maybe Daniel was intentionally trying to provoke him. Or maybe he really thought that Levi wouldn’t dare hit him in public. If that’s what he believed, he was wrong.

Levi’s body acted faster than his mind could keep up with. His fist swung straight for Daniel’s chin. Levi clocked him so hard that he nearly dislocated Daniel’s jaw. Daniel fell backwards to the ground and toppled a table with him as he went. The drinks spilled all over him and the glasses shattered.

When Levi came back to his senses, he was standing over Daniel. A distressed Sophie was freaking out as she helped him sit up. Daniel had a split lip and Levi had blood on his knuckles. 

Just as Eloise had managed to do earlier in the day, Levi had drawn every eye in the room towards him. They were staring at him like he was an unhinged maniac. He wanted to say something to defend himself. To justify his actions. But he knew it was pointless. No matter what he said, he would always be the one in the wrong.

Without a word of explanation or apology, Levi turned and left the pub. He left behind his circle of friends. Even if he wanted to reconcile some day, they would never accept it. He was an imposter and not really one of them, afterall.

***

Later that evening, Eloise returned to Levi’s apartment still in a depressed mood from the way she was treated by her classmates. She was silent as she stood in the corridor. Levi met her at the door.

The two made eye contact somberly. Eloise looked as though she was on the verge of tears. Neither needed to say anything. They both understood that the other had a terrible day, even without knowing exactly what they experienced.

Eloise moved in close and laid her head on his chest. Levi wrapped his arms around her and ran his fingers through her hair. As he held her, he swayed them both gently side to side. 

After a long time, Eloise finally felt good enough again to look up at him. She lifted herself onto the tips of her toes so that her lips would reach his and kissed him. Without pulling away from her, Levi closed the door behind her back and shut out the rest of the world.

They were outcasts. Alone in this world with only each other to rely on. But that was fine, they didn’t need more.