Look Closer | Mavi | Dreamingletters & LittleCarokind

39. Fast Forward

Mitch's POV

*10 months later*

I'm so honoured to get invited to the American Music Awards again this year, and this year we're nominated for a bunch of stuff! As I sit here in the crowd, feeling insignificant in a group of established celebrities, I look to my right and appreciate the amazing individuals that I got here with.

Scott and Alex are sitting close to one another, both with one leg crossed. I can see the admiration in Alex's eyes; he couldn't be more proud of Scott. And neither could I. My best friend has proved himself time and time again, showing that you can be a rockstar in any style of music, even one without instruments.

Our names get called for an award, and we all jump up excitedly to go accept it. I tug on Avi's arm like a child when he's the last one to get up. Being on stage is a complete blur. Scott does the talking, thanking everyone in our crew and Alex, for being an amazing boyfriend. Obviously this is greeted with a resounding "awe" from the audience. Maybe he shed a tear, who knows? I'm still in shock.

We return to our seats and I continue admiring my band mates. Looking past Scott, I see Kevin and Alyssa holding hands, being cute, and all that jazz. The sparkle in Alyssa's eyes confirms that she's thinking the same thing as me. What a talented, respectful, and amazing man. He's essentially the reason our band can qualify for these awards. Without him, we're simply a small choir, but with him we're modern, innovative, and thoroughly enjoyable. I can't thank Kevin enough for that, and I know Alyssa understands why he's so amazing.

The next nomination we had didn't result in a win, but we were completely okay with it because we already had one award for the night, and even winning that is surreal.

Continuing on my internal daydream, I let my eyes fall on Kirstie and Jeremy. The love they share is straight out of a Disney movie, and one day I swear they'll be in one. If I had to pick anyone as my relationship goals, they would be it. They have two adorable dogs, and they're happily engaged. What more could one want? And Kirstie is just amazing. She has such a positive outlook on life and I'll forever enjoy her radiant energy.

The only person left to admire is my perfect boyfriend, Avriel Benjamin Kaplan. Even my own thoughts understand that it would take too long to go over everything I love about him. He notices out of the corner of his eye that I'm slightly fixing my gaze on him, and turns to me with a smile.

"I'm sorry, I just love you so much" I explain the staring.

Avi seemed a little choked up as he replied "I love you too, babe". He must be feeling emotional tonight like I am.

Then suddenly, I hear our names being called a second time, and had no idea that it would set off a very important sequence of events. This time Avi is the first to stand, grabbing my hand and pulling me to my feet. The rest of Pentatonix shuffles past us to walk down the aisle towards the stage, and Avi takes a moment to lead me part of the way with his hand on the small of my back. Right as we're about to walk on stage, he whispers the words I've been waiting to hear for 10 months now.

"I'm ready to come out."

"I'm so proud babe" I whisper back discretely.

Scott graciously accepts the award and thanks everyone once again, but at the end of the short speech, Avi says he wants to say something too. Scott hands him the mic with a slightly confused look, but the happiness we're all feeling masks it.

"I'd like to say something really quick as well." Avi starts. "First, thank you to my family, especially my lovely sister who helps manage our tours, which is one of the hardest jobs ever. Secondly, I'd like to thank the rest of the band for encouraging each other throughout our entire journey. So thank you to our wonderful lead, Scott Hoying. Our beautiful Soprano, Kirstie Maldonado. My amazing best friend, Kevin Olusola. And finally, my beautiful boyfriend, Mitch Grassi. I love you all."

Avi hands the mic back to Scott, who places it on the stand as we all exit the stage. Wow, Avi just came out to the entire world without labelling himself, I'm so proud of him right now.

He takes my hand as we walk back to our seats, and I blush profusely. The audience extended their standard applause for Avi because they could tell that this was a big moment for him. We sit down and share a brief, yet intimate kiss.

"You feel relieved, don't you?" I ask with a knowing wink.

"Like a thousand tons were just lifted off my shoulders."

"I'm so happy for you." I hear Kirstie interject, placing a hand on Avi's knee. I could be seeing things, but I thought she sent a quick wink his way too. Could just be me mistaking her unique smirk for her eyes, so I'll let it go.

We have a plane to catch to Paris for the first date of our new tour tomorrow, so tonight we should just celebrate as much as we can.

Avi puts his arm around me and I can already feel his new found confidence. I lean my head into him and hum in complete comfort. I almost let myself drift off then and there, but will my eyes open to watch the rest of the award show.

~

It's so hard to sleep when you're this overjoyed. I'm laying in bed with my public boyfriend and loving my life right now. He's especially happy to be open about himself, and I'm happy for him. We end up kissing a few times and feeling each other up a bit, but ultimately decide that sex wasn't what we wanted to do tonight. Instead, to commemorate the beginning of our relationship, we did what we do best and fell asleep in each other's loving arms.

Sometimes when you're in love, cuddling is better than sex.

~~~~~~~~~~~~

A/N: Well, what do we all think about this one? Did you like the flash forward and the way Avi came out? Because I do! Dreamingletters has done a great job and I am looking forward to continue with a little bit of Avi's thoughts.