The Assistant | Scavi

Nightly Walks

Scott didn't fall into a deep slumber, as he normally did, he noticed that he kinds woke up more often, and when he felt Avi lying next to him, he drifted back off. The blonde found it weird that he was waking up frequently, but he assumed that his subconscious wanted to make sure that Avi was alright.

Then, Scott woke up but Avi wasn't at his side. He furrowed his brows and when he saw a slumped figure sitting on the side of the bed and heard the rapid breathing, he was awake in an instant. "Avi? Avi..." He crawled over to him and sat next to him, took his hands, but Avi shook his head.

"All good, almost there..." he pressed out.

Scott still stayed by his side and smiled slightly when he felt Avi squeezing his hands.

"Thank you..." he whispered and then reached out for the bottle of water which was standing on his nightstand.

"Are you feeling better?" The blonde asked after a while.

Avi nodded. "Yeah..."

"Good..." Scott suppressed a yawn. "Wanna try to go back to sleep?"

"Haven't slept... I'm not tired..." Avi replied.

Scott furrowed his brows. "But you said you were exhausted and I thought... why didn't you wake me up?"

"My mind is exhausted, yes, but my body is still all riled up. I guess it stays awake in case there's another panic attack... it's complex, Scott and..."

"And you're too exhausted to explain, it's fine, Avi" Scott replied. "Is there anything that I can do to help you find sleep?"

"You should sleep, Scott, I... I might just go out for a walk, I need to do something that my body gets tired, too" Avi explained. "I'll try not to wake you when I come back, or I could go sleep in the guest room..."

"I could tag along if you want me to..." Scott said.

"But you're tired" Avi tried to argue.

"I'll be fine, Avi, after all, I slept a few hours" Scott explained. "And you look as if you're sleepwalking so unless you really want to be alone I can definitely come along."

"Come along then" Avi finally said with a smile on his face. "Just... don't expect me to be able to hold a conversation or anything..."

Scott chuckled. "Me neither." He got up and put on his pants and hoodie while he waited for Avi to get dressed in simple, but surprisingly good fitting tighter sweatpants and a shirt and went downstairs, where he put on his boots and took his leather jacket, while Scott put on his shoes as well.

The bearded man grabbed his keys and stepped outside, and locked the door after leaving.

Outside it was chilly. The sun wouldn't rise for another hour, but it already was starting to dawn.

Scott stayed next to Avi, who just walked on and on, through the streets and finally into a park Scott knew, because he always went there when he felt too locked up in the tiny apartment he and Mitch shared.

"I like coming here before daybreak" Avi spoke up, startling Scott.

"Yeah?"

"Mmhm..." the musician hummed. "When I cannot sleep, I just take my guitar and some music to listen to and find a secluded spot where I can be on my own. I don't want to disturb the neighbours with playing music in my garden in the middle of the night, but the park is so big, no one cares. I wrote I'll Get By right here..." he pointed at a bench under a tree.

Scott was surprised that Avi was so talkative all of a sudden, but he appreciated it a lot. "I can imagine you sitting here and just playing your guitar," he said. "It's just so you. Making music surrounded by nature."

Avi chuckled. "You should see me in the forest, that's where I truly feel comfortable..."

"I can only imagine... maybe we could go on a little trip, soon?" Scott offered.

Avi nodded. "We should. When I'm on tour, I like to go on hikes on days where I am not performing. Helps me clear my mind. You're definitely invited to join me. Could be a... date? If we're alone?"

Scott smiled brightly at him. "I would love to. But we don't need to label it, I love spending time with you no matter what."

"Mmhm..." Avi hummed. "Me too." He fell silent again and walked through the park with Scott by his side, hoping that it would be enough to finally be able to sleep.

Scott was very tired and if the situation was different he would have complained because Avi was walking very fast and didn't take a break. But he was doing this for Avi, so he would be alright.

When they left the park, the sun was rising and it's first rays warmed the two men. Scott took off his hoodie after a while, but Avi didn't seem to mind, he just walked and walked.

Scott noticed, however, that Avi was getting slower after a while. "Avi?" he asked.

"Mmhm..." the bearded man hummed.

"Should we go back home?"

"Yeah... we're almost there... just around the corner." Avi didn't even try to hide the yawn. "God I'm tired..."

Scott smiled. "That's good, isn't it?"

"Mmhm..." Avi just hummed.

Scott was relieved, not only because Avi finally felt tired, but also because he couldn't wait to be back in bed either.

Ten minutes later they stopped in front of Avi's house and after some fumbling, the bearded man opened the door and stepped inside. He kicked off his boots and walked, much to Scott's surprise, right into the kitchen.

"Avi?" the blonde asked.

"Hmm? Just stopping for water. Want some?" Avi asked already opening the fridge.

Scott smiled. "Definitely." He took one of the bottles and drank, sighing once he had finished

"That was needed" Avi agreed with him. "Now bed. Or sofa. So tempting to just lie down..."

Scott took his hand. "I guess that it is, but the bed is more comfortable, come on, just up the stairs and then we're there..."

Avi sighed but he walked with him, focusing on the stairs so he wouldn't slip because he felt like he was actually sleepwalking. In his bedroom, he wanted to just lie down, but there was Scott again, telling him that he needed to at least take off his leather jacket.

In the end, Scott had to help Avi with the jacket, because the bearded man was falling asleep already. He helped him lie down and put the blanket over his body, put the jacket neatly over a chair and then undressed. Before he lay down as well, he looked at the clock and was surprised when he saw that it was already 6.45. Apparently, they had been walking for almost two hours.

Since it was already that late, Scott decided to text Esther and let her know about their night:

"Hey, Esther. We just got back from a walk and Avi is finally sleeping. I am dead tired as well, but I'll set an alarm for 10, so I can come in after noon. Let me know as soon as you know anything, please?"

He got comfortable on his side of the bed and was about to fall asleep when he saw that Esther had replied already:

"Oh, it was one of those nights... in this case, turn off the alarm and make sure you both get enough sleep. I am only meeting with management over lunch, so we can postpone our meeting until Tuesday. but I'll text you as soon as I have news. Take care of yourself and thank you for being there for Avi!"

Scott smiled and turned off the alarm, before replying once more:

"Alarm is off, thank you. And there's no need to thank me, I am just trying my best to be there for him as best as I can... Good night..."

He only realised that the last words didn't make sense once he has sent the message, but he was beyond caring, so he snuggled up in his blanket and fell asleep, listening to the soft snores coming from Avi.

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