Black And White

Hundred Forty One

Avi was asleep on his couch when Scott walked into his own home. 

Scott threw his bag down loudly, closing the front door behind himself with a slam, just to see if Avi would wake up. 

Avi remained perfectly still, however, with an empty beer bottle on the coffee table and a soft sound coming from the television. 

Scott picked his bag back up, walking it to his room only to set it on his bed. He grinned at the picture of Mitch up on his wall, and then walked back into the living room. 

He slowly walked to the couch, only to lean over the back of it to press a kiss to Avi's cheek. "Hey, bearded dragon. Get up."

Avi groaned. "...The Hell you just call me?"

"Nothin'. How long have you been here?"

"I don't know... Like... Three hours? I watched some superhero thing, and passed out." Avi turned a little to look up at Scott. "Sorry, did you want me to clear out?"

"No, no, stay as long as you want. Rick's not comin' back until Thursday."

"Dope... Uh... Want me to make something to eat? You've been on the road a while."

"I'll just order a pizza if that's okay..? Unless you're hungry for something else?"

"Nah. Pizza sounds good."

Scott nodded, grabbing his phone out of his back pocket to search the number on the internet before calling it.

Avi listened to him place the order, sitting on the couch quietly. He reached out to turn the television off, just as Scott finished the call. 

Scott put his phone back in his pocket. "They said 45 minutes. I'm gonna go take a shower really quick, and then--"

"Uh, Scott? Would you.. Maybe before you shower. Can I talk to you about something?"

Scott tilted his head a little, not used to hearing that tone of voice from him. "Of course, dude. What's wrong?"

"I think you should sit down..."

Okay, no. No, no, no. The last time Avi talked like that, his dad had passed away. "Oh God... Is your mom okay? Your sister?"

Avi just waved him over. "Sit down, big guy."

Scott hopped over the back of the couch, sitting on the top with his feet on one of the couch cushions. "Talk to me."

"I..." Avi looked down at his hands, squeezing his eyes shut. "I fucked Alex."

"What? You did what?" He shook his head once. "Alex, as in Alex Kirk? As in soccer team Alex? As in--?"

"Yeah. Alex Kirk... My Alex." Avi shook his head slowly, head still hanging in shame. "He regrets it... Which only makes me feel worse."

"What? How do you know he feels that way?"

"He got out of the house as quick as he could. Lied to me about where he was going... Begged me not to tell anyone what happened." 

"That doesn't mean he regrets it, Avi... Maybe he's embarrassed, or... Or maybe it's just because he likes you so much, he doesn't know how to process it."

"Embarrassment usually means regret."

"Still... I'm sure it's for some other reason, babe..." Scott reached over to set a hand on Avi's shoulder. "It's not your fault if he's upset."

"No... Scott, listen to me. I need you to hear this part." Avi looked up finally, meeting Scott's sapphire eyes with teary eyes of his own. "I think... I think I forced him..."