Avi was more than a bit baffled when he looked through the peephole in his door. He caught the anger in Rayne's movements long before he even opened the door to let her in. He knew when she left the lobby she was unhappy. He wasn't sure what that was about. She must have forgotten how expressive her face is and how unguarded she usually is with him. She forgot to put up her walls as she walked away from that exchange and her anger had shone through, at least he saw it. If you knew her, you would know just by the way she held her shoulders and the gait of her walk pretty much exactly how she was feeling. She could hide nothing from him, but he couldn't hide anything from her either. He sucked at surprising her. He'd always end up telling her. She was angry and he was hurt once he realized it. By then, it was too late for him to go to her. He could not have in that situation anyhow. He was stuck there, with Amanda, when all he wanted was to run away with Rayne for a few hours and listen to her heartbeat while they laughed. But she couldn't know that.
It was fun flirting with her like that. He loved the light in her eyes as she looked so deeply into his and loved the little exchange between them and the calm cool way she handled herself. He found the way she dismissed Amanda's claim as unimportant, saying that many people likely went to high school with him. He wished he could have come up with an excuse to hold on to her hand, to wander away with her, but he was stuck. He could not abandon his post.
She was angry, clearly angry standing outside his door with anger and pain in her sweet green eyes. He didn't like to see either emotion there. He never liked it when she was angry. Liked it even less when she was hurt. As a rule, he never knew what to do. They didn't have much time before dinner and though she was slow to anger, it always took forever for her to calm down. Well, it seemed that way to him anyhow.
"Hey." He smiled as she stepped in the door. She returned his hey with the same worried enthusiasm and moved to the bed. She set her guitar and bags down on the table across from the bed and sat down. Was he in trouble again? It was him. He hated that so much. Amanda seemed to be flirting with him a bit excessively and was way too touchy feely for him, almost to the point of entirely inappropriate and unacceptable, but he couldn't be rude she'd been his friend for a very long time. By the look on Rayne's face. Amanda's actions were unacceptable if that was the problem. He really had no idea. He had just returned from a tour of Europe and they hadn't made it home yet. He was ready to go home. He needed to be home where he was safe and he needed Rayne there with him.
"I didn't want to be rude." He ran his hand nervously through his hair and stood awkwardly in front of her with one foot slightly forward the other directly under him. His hips were slightly askew making him lean to one side. He looked down at her with a host of emotions filling his eyes. His face was generally full of sadness. He understood, he felt bad and he didn't know what to do. Behind those lovely eyes, which appeared more brown than green at that moment, there was hope and a burning mischief. She looked up at him, then over at the clock. A slow smile spread through her eyes. But she allowed herself to be distracted by her anger.
"How long?" She asked him quietly her eyes down and hands in her lap. She felt it, felt it deep in her soul. There was a connection between him and Amanda, an old one, but one that seemed to be important to him, as all his connections to others were to him. He would not be the man she loved if he were any other way. Still, it drove her crazy, just a little crazy to think that the chick honestly tried to move her and Mel along that way. Yet, it felt like Amanda was trying to cross the line between Friend and something more. She felt that too and she was angry, not that she should have been. Avi, despite not forcing the woman to stop touching him, was not seeking anything other than friendship. That much was clear in his eyes and his ability to become completely distracted by her. He looked at her sideways one side of his mouth reaching up and his nose scrunching down. She damn near started laughing. He was always just too adorkable, a smooth combination of dorky and cute as fuck.
"We should probably get things out of the way." The serious expression on her face gave him pause. This was not going as well as he had hoped, or it didn't seem like it.
"I love you." He blathered, all but melting into a blathering, bumbling pool of idiot right where he stood.
"I know that. You know that I love you and trust you, beyond all rhyme and reason, right?"
"Yes."
"Good. Don't you go forgetting that now you. My beautiful silly man child." Her smile lifted his spirits. He wanted to lean down and hug her, wrap his arms around her and refuse to let go, but the somber tone of her eyes held him in place. He knew that look, and he could only guess at what was coming his way.
"But, this is not really about how much I love you and you love me. There is no measuring or questioning that." Her eyes held that edge of anger that he'd come to fear just a wee bit. Her anger was a perfect match to his and altogether not something you messed with. He'd learn to just ride the wave. When she was done being angry, things usually got really fun and warm safe snuggles typically commenced, but the wave was never fun.
"I'm just really uncomfortable with this Amanda. I know. Don't give me that look. I can change my mind. I don't like the way she spoke to us, the way she tried to wear you or the way she was touching you like she thought you two were some kind of an Item." She stopped for a second before continuing.
"I know. I want to say that I am not jealous, I shouldn't be. This doesn't feel like jealousy. Cause I know. I know." Avi listened patiently and offered no argument. He sat down on the edge of the bed beside her and pulled a leg up so he could turn to her. He didn't try to touch her. She wasn't done and there would be time for that.
"I know she doesn't know about me. Not many people do. I'm still okay with that, but Avi, she was all over you and in front of so many people. Shit! She even tried to cock block me. She was trying to claim you and you just stood there with no obvious objection." She looked at him and watched as his face paled. Rayne fought herself to pull her anger in and soften her voice, but it was much harder to do the tenth time she had to do it for the same reason than it was the first three. She wasn't angry at Avi, not entirely. This happened and happened often. She was upset over the situation, though if she was being honest with herself, she had grown mostly used to it. It was the crux of dating a celebrity.
She honestly didn't know what Avi could have done differently, except give their secret away. She still wanted to keep that. The woman honestly struck her as one who was vindictive and spiteful. She supposed that he'd rather take heat from a woman that he deemed worthy of giving it to him, then someone who had no right. But still. She looked at him with open aggression in her eyes. He winced. She was hurting him and she hated it.
"I'm a lot more upset about this than I originally thought I was. I am going to need a moment please, Love?" her voice softened when her eyes met his. She reached out and took his hands in hers. She loved him dearly, she was just angry. Avi met her eyes with tears on the edge of falling from his. She let go of his hands and excused herself.
Avi was left alone to think. He almost started crying right then fearing the worst. She rarely walked away from him when she was angry, she usually stayed near him and sat quietly for a while before opening the conversation up so they could work through it. Of course, over the years that had only happened once. Up until his recent departure for Europe that was, they had only had one fight. The last time they fought, if you could have called it that, he was the one who was leaving. They made up over the phone after just one day of radio silence and then she surprised the hell out of him when she showed up at one of his shows. He started smiling again. Yeah, they were in love. He turned his attention to the matter at hand as he looked longingly at the bathroom door. There was nothing that he wouldn't do for his love. Nothing. He needed to do something and he felt like he needed to do it fast. She was clearly very upset, more than he had seen her over what should be a little thing. He wasn't even sure that angry was the right word. The hurt in her eyes. It was too much for him to bear. He just wanted to wipe it all away for her. Take her close to him and make it stop.
He didn't know what to do about Amanda. He would think of something. She was one of his oldest friends, he used to like it when she touched him. Lately, the only hands he wanted on his skin where Rayne's. He realized he needed to find a way to make sure that was always the case. He could just tell people he was seeing someone and walk away before they started asking stupid questions that he would never answer. That felt like a plan. He would tell Amanda that he was seeing someone. He would tell her that Rayne was his girlfriend. She wouldn't tell anyone and if she did, oh well. It was time. He smiled. His mind was made up. It was time to go fetch his love and remind her whose hands he wanted and needed on his body.
He got up off the bed and headed towards the bathroom where Rayne had retreated to. Softly he knocked on the door.
"Hey, can I come in please?" His voice was soft and quiet. He felt a little awkward but he needed to be where she was, he hoped she was just in there and not actually using the bathroom. When she didn't answer he opened the door.