Levy gave me a serious look as he answered. "I won't eat without you. I will wait until they bring something that appetizes you." Yet again he left me without anything to say. My mouth almost dropped. What possessed him to do the things he did? Now I felt awkward that he could go hungry if I didn't choose anything. I looked at the dishes again and hesitantly pulled the eggplant parmesan toward me. "On second thought, this isn't that bad looking." Levy laughed, quietly. "I was right. You are a funny girl." I smiled and picked up one of the many forks beside my plate.
I began eating and found it odd that Levy waited until I took the first bite before starting his meals. Luckily, it was late enough in the day that I could eat without experiencing nausea immediately so I could enjoy my entrée for the most part. However, I was more interested in the way Levy ate. He somehow made chewing seem elegant, and he had perfect table manners. He never slouched, and he brought his food up to his mouth with a form of carnal gentleness. The most surprising part about the way he ate was how slow it appeared, yet how fast the food on the table vanished.
The waiter would bring at least four dishes at a time and they would all be gone by the time the next round was ready. He had finished at least ten plates by the time I was finished with mine. There was so much that I decided to help him with the salads and appetizers so that I wouldn't just be watching him eat the entire time. With how much he ate, I expected him to end up like one of those people from hot dog-eating contests that grew a whole new gut by the time the bell rang. But as time passed, he didn't get any wider. If anything, he looked stronger than before. I was a little freaked out but Levy wasn't a normal man. I had learned that a long time ago and I was just happy to be on a date with him.
I started to have fun once I became more comfortable around him, and before I knew it, he was feeding me sushi like I was his lover and I was enjoying every second of his attention. I originally thought that he was a strictly serious person, but soon found out how easily he could engage in my silliness. I found this shocking, considering how serious his life sounded. But halfway through dinner, we were having mini sword fights with the excessive amount of silverware and he told funny stories as if he were a professional comedian. I couldn't believe how much I laughed in just one afternoon. It had been so long since I laughed so much.
We had our own wine tasting once the beverages and sides arrived, and Levy put the end of a breadstick in his mouth and curled his finger at me, inviting me to 'Lady and the Tramp' him. I blushed deeply but forced myself to push past it and wrapped my lips around the other end. We nibbled until we reached the middle of the breadstick, and once our lips touched, a zing electrified my nerves. He grabbed hold of me so that I couldn't pull away, and romantically seized my mouth within his for a moment longer. Once he let go of me, I felt my embarrassment return until he booped me. "Cutie." His comment didn't help my shortness of breath and I tried my best to move the evening along so I wouldn't lose my ability to speak.
My efforts didn't make a difference once the desserts came. I found out that Levy had an unspoken policy of only being able to feed each other when it came to dessert. Raising the various cakes, ice creams, and cobblers to his mouth and seeing those shining pearls he had for teeth was slowly killing me. It was getting even more impressive now that it was later in the afternoon and he still had an appetite after eating everything he did. "This is unfair. I'm feeding you way more than you're feeding me," I said as I fed him another bite. He never responded when his mouth was full, so it was a moment before he answered. "It wouldn't be if you agreed to eat more."
I pursed my lips for a moment. "I'm sorry that I'm not a freaking black hole, like you. Seriously, where does it all go?" His eyebrow flicked with amusement at my response. "I never said you had to eat like me. Are you nauseous, Lavender?" I thought about it for a moment. "Not really. I am stuffed though. It's been a while since I've been stuffed." He then gave me an evil smile as he leaned closer. "Save some room in there for me." I almost choked and I didn't even have any food left in my mouth. Damn, that was smooth. But why the heck would he say that? Was something going to happen tonight? Couldn't be. I was just in my head again. I needed to stop getting the impression that he was serious when he took a sexual turn in a conversation.
Levy had finished the last of everything he had ordered and it didn't take nearly as long as I thought it did. How he was able to eat so fast was a complete mystery, and I was fascinated as he filled out the receipt for the check. I made it look like I wasn't paying attention, but I snuck glances whenever I could. I was too curious. I couldn't see the total, but I did see that he left a three thousand dollar tip. My mouth dropped. At this point, I was just waiting for him to take me back to the place he really lived because it couldn't be those horrifying rooms underneath our apartment building.
After the check was paid, we headed out of the restaurant to meet the late afternoon sky. It was a couple of hours until sunset, and I was surprised that it wasn't dark yet. If anyone else ordered as much as we did, they'd be in there for days. Levy held my hand as we walked down the sidewalk and continued past the Mustang. As if he read my mind, he said, "The theater is just a block away in the plaza. We can walk from here." I nodded. "A good walk would do us some good after what we put our stomachs through today." Levy hesitated. "Did you want popcorn? I think I'm going to get us some popcorn."
I turned to look up at him in disbelief. "You can't be serious." Levy laughed. "What can I say? I need a lot of fuel." I raised an eyebrow. "Do you eat like this every day?" He shrugged. "Not really. Sometimes I fast for my cult and most of the time I eat at home." He didn't answer my question satisfactorily but I stopped pushing. If I asked something different he might've given me the same flighty response. I still couldn't help but wonder what and how much he ate at home.