Levi was upset with himself. He was very lost, and he had thrown away the paper map in his fit of anger. While wandering the campus he came to the library and decided he would hide from the sun inside.
Inside the library did not look very different. Levi decided since he was in this new world he could spend his time on something he hadn't done in ages. He went to the hobby section and looked for more pieces to play. It had been a long time since he had played the piano, and now that he was gone from everyone and everything, he wanted to enjoy himself.
In the hobby section, he met someone who looked familiar. He was wearing a yellow hoodie, white jeans, and had white rim glasses that seemed too big for him.
"Is that you, Dexter," Levi asked. "Why are you here?"
The young man shook his head no. "I'm not Dexter," he mumbled. "My name is Michael James. I go by MJ." Levi's head went around in circles, wondering if he had found Mary Jane. He decided to do an investigation.
"I think I might know you," Levi replied. "Do you have a bro-, I mean sister… two years older?"
"Yes I do," Michael James grinned. "Her name is Brook."
The names weren't similar at all, but name similarity meant nothing. Levi was positive that Michael James was who he thought he was. "What kind of books are you looking for," Levi asked.
Michael James was quite shy compared to Mary Jane, who always had to make sure people looked at her whenever she walked into a room. She was frequently banned from the library, so Levi started to think that there was no way possible Michael James was her mirror image.
"I like to play instruments," Michael James whispered. "Right now I'm learning how to play the piano." This sparked Levi's interest.
"I play it too," he shouted. A shhh could he heard from a few isles over and Levi turned red. This made Michael James grin wide.
"Do you have any advice," Michael James asked. Levi had a lot. They became quite chatty, and they had to leave the library. When they exited outside, Michael James pouted.
"Someone is parking in a no-parking zone," he grumbled.
Michael James was a true stickler for the rules. He did not even drive, but he still respected the rules of any, almost religiously. With one finger he pushed the car out of the way. "Don't tell anyone," he whispered. "I just like fixing things is all."
Levi still wasn't sure they were the same person. They were extremely different. Mary Jane and Michael James had the same ability, looks, and similar body frame. Michael James wasn't as short as Mary Jane, but he was still quite short. For women being seen short was cute, for men it was seen as weak or feminine.
Mary Jane was allowed to have her bold personality develop while Michael James became a shy man that kept to himself. Unlike Mary Jane who always wanted to do things with people, Michael James preferred to spend his time alone mastering many skills. He was never lonely even though he was alone, and he became easily tired out socially interacting with others.
Mary Jane hated being alone, was always mastering anything that had to do with physical traits, and these things made her a natural leader over time.
Michael James led Levi to the Arts Building, and Levi was still comparing them inside his mind. They went to one of the open music rooms and Levi passed the time by showing him how to use the piano, how to hold his hands correctly, and gave him advice on what he should get for his new keyboard.
Levi was so excited to finally talk to someone about his number one passion, and he was even more excited that the person shared a familiar face. They sat next to each other on the long wooden playing bench, and Michael James was mastering the basics quite quickly. Levi was impressed.
"How are you able to do this so well," Levi said in awe.
"I have a lot of hobbies," Michael James said quietly. "I like to learn a lot of things. I already know a few instruments." He took off his large glasses and cleaned them with his hoodie. Levi's gaze was very intense now that he saw him without his glasses.
He was very handsome, and Levi suddenly felt strange about the two of them being alone, even though they had got along quite well throughout the day.
"You look better without glasses," Levi mumbled. Michael James gave off a small smile.
"Everyone says that, but I don't like the way contacts feel in my eyes." Levi continued to show him different notes but specified that he should only master a short-range and then slowly expand so he wouldn't overwhelm himself. The more they spoke, the more Michael James began to open up to him, and Levi started to think that maybe this strange place wasn't so bad.
Just like Ace, he started to think that nothing had consequences in this new world. He was emboldened and wanted to be much closer to Michael James.
Levi was not very good at flirting. He was not very good at kissing either. If it had anything to do with romance, Levi was not even able to dip his toes in the water. He was still standing in the sand, staring at the water, wondering what the temperature was like instead of checking for himself.
Michael James easily saw through his very horrible attempts at flirting but said nothing because he was too polite. He found it funny how the person that looked like Vanessa was interested in him, but Vanessa herself had turned him down.
Levi scooted closer to him and smiled. "You're really smart," he mumbled.
"Thanks," Michael James replied. "I like to think it's just hard work though." Michael James was playing but he had to sometimes stop because his hair got into his face. His bangs weren't properly trimmed and he soon became frustrated.
Levi took it upon himself to move the hair away and tell him that he shouldn't hide his handsome face. Michael James nodded and kept playing. "You're not holding your hands upright," Levi told him. He wasn't but Levi took the opportunity to touch his hands longer than necessary.
Michael James was now nervous and realized that he had to say something or else Levi would get the wrong idea. He was also worried that he was getting the wrong idea, so he decided to say nothing. Every time his position went wrong, Levi took it upon himself to fix it. At first, he was quite helpful, now he was just overbearing.
"Your back isn't straight," he chided.
He put his hand on Michael James' back, and he sat up straighter. He did this a few times, but the third time he scolded him, his hand never left. Michael James' cheeks burned bright like fire and he stopped playing.
"What's wrong," Levi asked.
"I think I'm not cut out for this," Michael James said. While he was speaking Levi quickly moved his hand from his back to his waist, and Michael James didn't notice. "You're probably just tired is all," Levi said. "We should take a break." Levi moved his bangs again away from his eyes and his heart started to race.
"Uh, I think we should….,"
Michael James didn't know what to say and trailed off. He was not good with a confrontation of any kind. Michael James looked away and Levi took this as simply shyness since he never told him to stop touching him.
Michael James made a small noise in surprise when Levi kissed him, and another when he stuck his tongue in his mouth. He wouldn't stop, so Michael James tapped him on the leg.
It was enough to get him to stop, because just like Mary Jane he forgot his herculean strength and Levi screamed out, clutching his bruised leg.
"Why did you do that," Levi screamed.
"Why did you think you could do that, " Michael James asked.
"I… you look like…. My girlfriend…."
Michael James took off his glasses and squeezed the bridge of his nose. He was tired of this. He didn't like being objectified by big men with emotional issues.
Michael James worried sometimes if he was different in that sort of way because people called him cute, little, and soft. He did not get much attention from girls, but he did from men, and he wondered what he possibly could have ever done to give off the idea that he was interested in them.
Levi was still coming down from the high of finally kissing someone and not feeling deep Catholic guilt. Levi was so focused on finding someone he wouldn't feel guilty about kissing, that he never considered the other person's feelings .
Michael James put his glasses back on and felt terrible about what he had to say. He knew that from their short interactions that Levi was one of those people that you just had to be completely direct with, and Michael James didn't like that. He felt good about kissing Levi while it happened, but now that it was over he felt weird about it and didn't want to do it again.
"I'm sorry," Michael James whispered. "I don't think I'm gay." Levi thought he was joking and laughed, but Michael James was silent and now it was even more awkward than before.
"I thought I was for a while," Michael James admitted. "It felt good while I kissed you, but now it doesn't. "
Levi opened his mouth to argue but quickly shut it. He always felt the same way about Mary Jane, he just didn't know how to put it into words. "It's okay," Levi sighed. "I understand."
"You do," Michael James said incredulously. He expected Levi to deck him in the face and scream about leading him on.
"My parents are trying to set me up with this girl, and I don't like her," Levi sighed. "I'm afraid they know about me." Saying it out loud like that was the closest Levi had ever gotten to admitting that he wasn't attracted to women and it was possibly the closest he ever would until several years later.
"That's crazy," Michael James whispered. "So are mine!" This didn't surprise Levi at all. The only thing that seemed to be different in this new world, was that almost everything was flipped.
"Vanessa looks like you so I thought maybe I was… of a different persuasion," Michael James mumbled. "Maybe I'm not just into her. I thought I was, but now I don't think so."
"That makes sense," Levi nodded. "I don't think I'm into Mary Jane either."
"Who's that?"
"The girl they're making me see," Levi groaned. "I'm not into her."
"We should be with people we like! I'm too nervous to tell my parents no though…."
"All the other rich kids I know are getting set up as well...I feel like I'm crazy when I talk to them about it! No one does arranged marriages anymore!"
Michael James nodded rapidly, and they began to open up about their life problems to each other. "I think I'm just confused," Levi sighed. "I'm not like that, I just don't like Mary Jane." Levi never considered the possibility that he was also gay and uninterested in her, and it would take him a very long time to learn any lesson that had to do with emotional vulnerability.
"We're in the same boat," Michael James said. "Let's not listen to what other people tell us to be!"
"You're absolutely right," Levi shouted.
The only person who truly understood their lesson was Michael James, and Levi instead was even more personally conflicted before they arrived. After some more discussion about how to deal with their parents, Michael James and Levi decided that they would just wait until they finished training and could do as they pleased away from the pressure of both of their wealthy families.
Michael James got up to leave and all of a sudden felt very flustered. "I'm glad that you don't hate me," Michael James said quietly.
"Why would I hate you? I can't force you to like someone you don't."
"I'm a bad guy," Michael James sighed. "Vanessa turned me down and I hated her."
"No, you're not...You were just hurt."
Michael James grabbed his library books and stuffed them in his backpack. He didn't want to be there any longer, because all of this was just too much. He muttered a quick goodbye and went straight for the exit.
He stopped right at the door, and had to make sure everything was fine. "Don't tell anyone about this please," Michael James mumbled.
"I am going to pretend this never happened. "
Michael James ran out of the music room and Levi groaned, having wasted his time on flirting instead of trying to leave. He was sure that he was just going through one of those things that happens when you're young, don't look too deep into it, okay?
"At least I'm not one of those filthy freckled freaks. Those are the worst," Levi muttered under his breath. Deep down he was still a bully, and would always feel fine as long as there was someone to punch down.
A creeping feeling went up his back and Levi felt like someone was watching him. It was impossible as the music room had only one entrance. The back wall was nothing but mirrors and a bar for the dancers to practice on. Levi felt the stare coming from that direction and inspected the back wall.
Lush appeared in the mirror and frightened him. "How long were you there," Levi screamed.
"Don't worry, I didn't watch," Lush groaned. "You looked like you were going to eat his face off anyway."
"You did watch!"
"Don't yell! We're indoors."
"Take me home! Now!"
"Yes I will, don't worry," Lush exclaimed.
"You….will….?". He expected Lush to argue with him, but instead Lush clapped his hands in excitement.
"You learned your lesson! I'm so proud of you," Lush cheered. Levi had no idea what he learned, or even what the lesson was, and just decided to nod and agree so Lush would take him home.
"Return to the room and I'll send you home," Lush told him. "You seem much more capable than the other one! No wonder you understood so quickly!"
"Thanks," Levi boasted. "It's just in my genes. " He was smug and felt victorious, taking any chance he could get to prove he was better than everyone else. Levi quickly left and tried to make his way for the original mirror Lush was in.
"True beauty can only be achieved if you choose to accept every part of yourself. I am so happy he finally realized he has to accept his sexuality."
He did not.