Page 52 of Breaking the Habit

“Jesus, your alarm has been going off for forty-five minutesliterally,” Gage said.

And that’s when Levi noticed it. The soft church bells that woke him up on the first try any other day. Except for today.

Which came as no surprise, really. As Levi hauled himself onto his back, the unsettled wave that coursed through him made him think he was probably just still drunk. He had no recollection of getting home. What time it had been when he’d gotten here. If he’d thought to drink even an ounce of water.

Levi launched an arm toward his phone on the night stand, his tongue sticking to the roof of his mouth. Ten thirty. Which meant he was late. So late.

“Fuck,” Levi croaked. “Wait. Why aren’t you in school?”

Gage’s eyes narrowed. “It’s an in-service day. Which you knew about.” Gage tutted and backed out of the doorway. “And like…good morning or whatever.”

Levi’s eyes drifted shut again as he pressed a palm to his forehead. He couldn’t do this. Hecould not. The day that awaited him…it was too much. He needed like eighteen more hours of sleep and an entire gallon of water, administered intravenously.

But at eleven he needed to be at Holt for training. Like the overeager, overzealous, overachiever he was, he’d agreed to an early start time on Monday knowing full well he’d use his one night off to go get fucked up.

But he’d make it work. He always did. This was his MO, after all. Even if it was starting to feel like a bad habit he wished he could quit. Levi groaned as he hauled himself out of bed. His knuckles stung. Dried blood had caked there. Had to be a remnant from last night. Hell if he remembered.

Levi zombie-walked through the morning—bathroom, workout clothes, something resembling conversation with Gage and Tammy, and then out the door. He chugged water as he waited for the ride share, because fuck if he was going to add driving in LA traffic to his task list today.

But as he waited, he used the opportunity to sleep standing up. His eyes drifted shut of their own accord. This was a very bad start to the day. But he had to rally. He had to get the rest in now, so that when he showed up at Holt, he could fool the world.

That was what the mornings after looked like for him.Fake it till you make it.Or in his case, faking sobriety until the hangover passed.

It wasn’t until he stumbled out of the ride share and toward the big steel front doors of Holt Body Fitness, that he noticed the guys lurking around the edges of the landscaping. Dressed in jeans and T-shirts, they could have been anyone. The epitome of regular people.

Until the cameras started snapping. That’s when Levi realized.

Photographers had scouted the gym, waiting for him to get here.

Levi kept his head down as he hurried toward the front door. As the cameras clicked, one of the two guys asked, “How’s your fist feeling after that beatdown last night?”

“Your payout probably wasn’t as big as the fight, though, huh?” the other one said with a laugh.

Levi didn’t respond, just pushed inside the building and beelined for the locker rooms. But Travis and Co. were already waiting for him at the front desk. Riley was there too, which sent a ripple of guilt through him that he didn’t understand. Maybe because he’d wanted to text her all day and all night, and never did. Maybe because he’d already convinced himself, and even more in his drunken state, that pursuing her was a bad idea. Maybe because the sight of her made him long for something he didn’t have words for.

“Look who finally decided to join us.” Travis didn’t look happy, and the flat line of his mouth combined with his crossed arms sent anxiety streaking through him. Already, this was the worst day ever.

“I’m sorry. I swear.” Levi hoisted his duffel bag higher on his shoulder as he paused at the reception desk. He didn’t bother taking off his sunglasses, even though he was inside. He needed the extra buffer. For personal and for hangover reasons. “I slept through my alarms.”

“Yeah? Why’s that?” Travis’s tone was bait. Like if he said the wrong thing, he’d really regret it.

Levi shrugged. “Just did.”

Riley rolled her lips inward. She hadn’t bothered to unpack any cameras yet. He should probably tell her to leave. This wasn’t a practice he wanted immortalized.

“Does you being late have anything to do with the photographers outside?” Travis pointed toward the front doors, where they still waited, barely out of sight.

“Uh…” Levi’s head throbbed under the scrutiny. He couldn’t process this. He could barely stand. “Maybe?”

Travis swore under his breath and headed for the hallway to the training camp. “Come on.”

Levi and Riley followed him. Riley sent him a concerned look.

“Are you okay?” she whispered. “You haven’t taken your sunglasses off yet.”

“Yeah. I’m fine.” He sniffed. “Just got this shiner, you know?”

She didn’t look convinced.

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