T H I R D   P E R S O N ' S    P O V

Levi took a long swig of the beer in his hand, feeling or showing no burning sensation as it slid down his throat.

He was going to this bar for the past three days now, drinking his sorrows away. It was a week and a half since he's last spoken or even seen Ophelia and it was driving him insane.

He knew that he cared for her more than anything but damn, he realised now that he needed to be with her more than anything.

He had tried countless times to call and text her but she wouldn't answer.

"Hey there," He heard a voice say from next to him. He turned his head solemnly and took note of the breathing creature next to him but didn't spare her another glance as he took another swig of his beer, calling the bartender over to get him something stronger.

The woman next to him was a pretty little thing with blonde hair cut in a bob that framed her petite face, deep brown eyes, and thin pink lips. However, Levi didn't take any notice of this. As far as he was concerned, her hair should've been black, extremely curly, she should've had rosy cheeks and natural plump, pouty lips. Other than that, she wasn't anything perfect.

"Been seeing you around here for the past few days," She tried to make conversation.

Levi paused for a second before looking down at his attire. He was sure that he looked like shit. He had on a long-sleeved shirt that he pulled up above his elbows and dark jeans. His hair was everywhere and faint circles lied beneath his eyes.

Then why was this woman still speaking to him?

Little did he know that she found it extremely attractive.

Once again, he paid her no attention and instead, looked down at the empty beer bottle in front of him.

The bartender slammed down four shots of a liquid in front of him. He wasn't sure the substance in the glass but what he did know was that it was something strong. Throwing his head back, he took all the shots consecutively.

Was this really what it came to?

He was never a drinker. Ever.

In fact, the last time he got a little tipsy was at a college party he attended in the first year of college.

From this morning and the one before that, he knew that he would have an incredibly horrible hangover, but that didn't stop him. As far as he was concerned, he deserved to feel such pain and ache.

"Wanna dance?" The lady questioned as she folded her legs, hoping to get his attention to the long slit in her dress which showcased her legs.

Damn, she was still there?

"No." He said. A simple word sounded incredibly harsh as he continued to look straight ahead.

Feeling that he spent enough time there, he slammed two bills on the counter and turned and stumbled out of the bar.

The cold air slapped him in his face as his eyes squinted to look for a cab. He was smart enough not to drive under the influence of alcohol.

Instead, he found Gerald standing by the limousine by the sidewalk.

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Gerald glanced at his boss through the rearview mirror, passed out in the leather cushions.

He knew that something had happened between him and Ms. Ophelia but he didn't know that it was this serious. Anyone would assume that she was dead.

He had never seen his employer like this. He then knew that it had to be something bad. With that thought in mind, he took a left turn to Elijah's house.

He arrived in twenty minutes and turned on the air conditioner for Levi before exiting the vehicle.

He knocked on the large doors before taking off his hat as the door opened to reveal Elijah in a white dress shirt with the first few buttons opened.

"Gerald?" His eyebrows raised in surprise.

"Goodnight, sir. By any chance is Ms. Ophelia here?" He questioned politely with his thick English accent.

Elijah folded his arms across his chest, "She is. But she's resting. Did Levi send you?" He questioned.

Gerald swallowed before replying, "Hardly, sir. He's out cold in the car. I just picked him up from a bar in which he's been going for the past three days. He barely has enough energy to even leave for work." He explained.

Elijah was shocked but didn't show it. Levi allowed this entire ordeal to come in between him and his work?

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Meanwhile, Ophelia was upstairs lying on her side, teddy bear clutched tightly to her chest as silent tears touched her pillow. She tried not to wake Shalissa since she insisted on sleeping with her again tonight.

Ophelia wasn't even surprised when she felt arms turn her around and embrace her into a hug, "Shh, it's going to be okay." Shalissa murmured reassuringly.

Ophelia sniffled loudly, "I-I'm sorry. It's been more than a week and I'm still crying." She mumbled in Shalissa's chest.

Shalissa laughed at this, "No need to apologise, sweetie."

"I-I just miss him so much." Ophelia's voice cracked.

Shalissa rubbed her back softly, "Then call him, sweetheart. I'm sure he's having a rough time too." Shalissa mentioned.

A slight scoff escaped Ophelia's lips, "I doubt it." She chastised. She paused for a while before asking shyly, "Do you think he's thinking of me right now?"

Shalissa didn't get time to answer because they heard a knock at the door.

"Come in," Shalissa replied softly.

In sauntered Elijah. His hands were stuck into his slacks as he had a distant look on his face, "Levi's downstairs." He said.

Ophelia bolted up in a sitting position as she looked at Elijah with wide eyes, "Don't worry, he's out cold." He stated. "Gerald picked him up from a bar. His ass was drunk," He spoke.

"What— I-Is he okay?" Ophelia asked worriedly. She didn't care what happened between them, she needed to ensure that he was okay.

"He is," Elijah paused as he looked at Shalissa. "But that isn't what I'm worried about." He said.

Elijah wasn't foolish. He knew his brother better than anyone. There were always two sides of a story and he had only heard Ophelia's. Nothing, and he meant nothing, could ever come between Levi's business. And resulting to alcohol? Nada.

The way that Levi always came for Elijah to ask about where next to take Ophelia for a date, or every time Ophelia was acting even the slightest bit weird, how he would call Shalissa or bring her Chicken Alfredo was not something that he would do to everybody.

Unlike himself, Levi was never the fuck-and-dump sorta guy. However, he was never used to committed relationships and even now, anyone could see that Levi would do anything for Ophelia. He wasn't sure what Ophelia saw, or how she saw it, but what he was sure about was that Levi had been shit the last few days without his woman.

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Levi woke up in a bed the next morning. He knew it wasn't his own bedroom, in fact, it was one of Elijah's guest bedrooms.

He sat up and swung his feet over, embracing the hangover whole-heartedly. He looked at his side and saw two tablets and a glass of water to stop his headache. However, he completely ignored it. As mentioned, he knew the consequences of the aftermath of drinking as much alcohol as he did last night but yet, he still did it as purposefully.

He held his head in his hands even as he heard the door to the room open and footsteps stop in front of him, "Take the pills, Levi," He heard Shalissa sigh.

Ignoring her, he continued to keep his eyes closed.

He needed to get out of here, the simple thought that Ophelia was just in the next room, seemed to make his hands itch in anticipation. He knew that Ophelia needed space and he tried to give that to her.

Hearing no reply, Shalissa frowned to herself. Damn, she's seen both Ophelia and Levi and they both looked horrible. She thought it was a minor you-cheated-on-me-thingy and might've even gone to say that they were exaggerating a bit but with how Levi was looking, she knew that these two had to talk, "What are you doing to yourself, Levi?" She spoke softly.

Without answering, he grabbed his keys on the bedside table, along with his phone and brushed past Shalissa with an emotionless expression on his face as he made a move to leave.

He froze in his spot once he saw Ophelia on the other side of the door, seemingly questioning whether or not to enter.

He swallowed thickly as his mouth formed in the shape of an 'O'. A week and a half since he had seen her face and for some, it didn't seem like much but for him, it was an eternity. Even with her tear-stained cheeks, she still managed to look like the most beautiful woman he had ever seen. His heart clenched at the thought of her tears being because of him.

Ophelia couldn't believe how tired and weary Levi looked. He always looked so polished and clean. But now, the light stubble that used to adorn his chin was soon becoming a beard and his hair was sticking up all over the place.

Ophelia awkwardly cleared her throat and shuffled on her two feet when she saw that Levi was still staring at her, unable to find any words to say.

She wanted to cry as she looked at him, the man that she cared about, had a woman on his lap kissing him. She knew what she saw.

"Ophelia..." She heard his husky voice mumble in awe. Her eyes squeezed shut as she heard his voice. "Can we talk?" His hand gripped the doorknob tighter.

She opened her mouth to reply with a solid 'no,' but then he added, "Please." He pleaded. She had never heard him sound so vulnerable.

She thought to herself that talking wouldn't make a difference or change her mind. She had a lot of time on her hands, with Rachel cutting down her workdays and all.

"O-Okay." She replied meekly.

She made up in her mind that she wouldn't forgive him, no matter what he said. After all, he cheated on her.

Or so it looked.