Page 11 of The Break-Up Pact

The guy just scowls at Levi, curious and discerning. Then he turns to me just long enough that Levi takes another forceful step forward, one that doesn’t seem to deter him in the slightest.

“You are the Revenge Exes, right?” the photographer asks. “The ones from that tweet?”

Levi reaches for the door to the condo, but it’s shut behind him and clearly locked. The stranger lifts his finicky camera again, but before he can take another shot, Levi surges forward, grabbing me by the hand and pulling me toward the beach.

Chapter Five

REVENGE EXES: Kelly Carter’s & Griffin Hapler’s rejects find love—with EACH OTHER!!

The ex-fiancé of Roman Steele’s hot new flame Kelly Carter and the ex-girlfriend of Business Savvy’s Griffin Hapler apparently wasted no time moving on! After the two suffered separate (and publicly humiliating!!) breakups last month, Levi Shaw and June Hart (you may know her as “Crying Girl” on TikTok) seem to be very much in love. After an eagle-eyed Business Savvy fan account unearthed this photo and tweeted it on Tuesday afternoon, users immediately took to the platform to brand them the “Revenge Exes,” with hundreds tweeting their support.

Huddled under the boardwalk together, Levi and I watch my screen in mutual shock as I scroll down the tweets embedded in the trending article. GET! THAT! ASS, CRYING GIRL!!!! one of them reads. He’s hotter than Roman tho???? Like just sAYINGGGG, says another, followed by um i love this so much i’m gonna throw up glitter.

After I exit out of the screen, we both go so quiet that it feels like a breath-holding contest. I squeeze my eyes shut.

“Maybe this is a dream,” I say hopefully. “Or a really elaborate, absurdly orchestrated prank.”

Levi’s voice is flat. “If it is, the prank just reached BuzzFeed.”

My eyes fly open again. Shit. Five minutes ago, I was worried about how he’d react to the cross-country team seeing the photo. Now we’re dealing with thousands of strangers and counting.

“I’m so sorry,” I blurt, turning around to face him.

Levi’s frown travels from his phone screen over to me, his eyes searching my face. “Why are you sorry? This isn’t your fault.”

His calm somehow only makes me flounder even more. “I just mean—I’m sorry about the situation. You said you and Kelly didn’t break things off, so I imagine it’s, uh—not ideal, if she sees this.”

Levi doesn’t say anything for a few moments, and that’s all it takes for the dread in my stomach to harden.

“The deal is that we’re giving each other space right now,” he says carefully. “She’s seeing Roman. So even if she does believe this silly Revenge Exes thing, she can’t be mad about it.”

The mounting adrenaline fizzles away at those words, replaced with something else. That pang for Levi that is now a full-on ache.

“Levi,” I say quietly. “Kelly cheated on you.”

He lowers his eyes before they can meet mine. “Anyway, I should be the one apologizing. I’m the one who knocked us over and set up that shot.”

It’s a clear brush-off, and it stings to hear. Levi might want us to be friends again, but evidently not enough to tell me whatever it is he’s thinking right now. Whatever is justifying this “space” that just looks like Kelly having her cake and eating it, too.

I lighten my tone, masking the hurt. “Karmic punishment for sabotaging my win,” I say. “Seems like you should submit The Sky Seekers after all.”

This wrestles a faint smile out of Levi. “Nice try,” he says, clearly relieved for a change of topic. “But I’m barely going to get the other book finished in time as it is.”

I wince. I haven’t mentioned it, but it has seemed as if there has been a lot less of Levi typing and a lot more of Levi staring at his screen. He came here to write a Great American Novel and all he’s got is a Great American Empty Word Document. Now with the Revenge Exes trending, he’s going to be more distracted than ever.

I hate asking it with every bone in my body, but I’d rather rip the Band-Aid off now than walk past an empty condo tomorrow. “Are you going to go back to New York?”

Levi’s brow finally lifts, his eyes meeting mine with a determination edged with a faint hurt. “No.”

“I wouldn’t blame you,” I say quickly.

Levi’s voice only gets firmer. “I said I was staying for a while and I meant it.”

“Really, Levi.” I press on, taking a step back from him. “You can still help with the wedding from the city. And you and I—we’ll stay in touch. It’s okay.”

I don’t even know if I believe what I’m saying. I just know that it’s easier to give him this out. If I can blame myself for Levi leaving this time, I don’t have to be angry with him anymore. Staying angry with Levi all these years is the most exhausting thing I’ve ever done.

I almost quiver with relief at the way he leans in, leveling his gaze against mine. “I wanted to come back before all of this,” he says. “The reasons I haven’t—I’m not proud of them. But I was going to come back before any of this happened, and I’m certainly not going to leave because of it.”

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