Standing By - Avi Kaplan

e i g h t e e n

 I woke up and yawned, stretching my legs. It was a wonderful day. I was so ecstatic that Avi and I were finally (somewhat) together, and it seemed like nothing would ruin this moment for me. Until my agent, Marge, appeared in front of me.

"Olivia, we need to talk."

I looked at her with concern. "What's wrong?"

She scoffed. "What's wrong? What's wrong? Why don't you take a look at this magazine and tell me what's wrong!"

I looked at the front of the magazine, and noticed nothing wrong. It was a normal tabloid, there was a photo of two random celebrities sneaking a kiss...oh, wait. "Is this...?" I looked back up to Marge, who had a scowl on her face.

"Yes, it is." She snatched the magazine from my grasp, and her frown deepened. "You are in hot water, young lady."

I sighed. "I'm sorry, Marge, I didn't realise that—"

Her expression softened. "I know you didn't realise, Olivia, but now this is all over the news, the internet, you name it. People are talking about you, Olivia. And to be honest, I'm not really sure if this is the best thing for you." Her mouth then closed, forming a tight line as she fought back more words. "I don't want you so much as touching that boy, Olivia. The moment something else comes out in the news like that, oh, I don't think you want to know what I'll do."

I gulped, running my hand through my hair. "Look, Marge, I'm so sorry. You know I didn't mean to do anything like that. I didn't realise we were even visible over there to any paparazzi. It doesn't add up."

"Of course it doesn't add up. The paparazzi have some convoluted way of capturing every single waking moment of a person's life, if they aren't careful. Listen to me. You and Avi are not dating, you are not an 'item,' and you will lay low and stay off the news for a few days, at least. Understand?"

I nodded. She turned around and left in a huff, leaving me dumbfounded and scared. I thought about the hate I was probably getting from Avi's fans regarding the kiss, and my heart sank. When did everything get so hard? Just as I was beginning to self-loathe, a pair of bright green eyes appeared in front of mine.

"Morning!" Avi's voice was bright and cheery, the exact opposite of my mood. The moment he saw my face, he frowned. "What's wrong?" I groaned, laying back on the bunk, which Avi soon joined, laying next to me. "Olivia?"

I sighed. "Do you remember when I kissed you?"

Avi chuckled. "Of course I remember. It was a nice moment."

I sighed. "Yeah, it was." I turned my head, and my eyes met Avi's. He smiled softly at me and then placed his hand on my cheek, leaning in for a kiss. "A-anyways," I said, pushing him lightly away from me, "uh, it's on the news. Someone found us and now we're all over the news, that one picture of us kissing in the snow." Just remembering the kiss made my face turn bright red, and I smiled to myself.

Avi's expression changed to one that I couldn't read. "What do you mean?"

I sighed. "I-I don't know...Avi, will you kiss me again? Just quickly?"

"Olivia, are you alright? What's going on exactly?"

"Avi, please. Just...one?"

He sighed, his lips pulling into a smile. "Can't get enough of me, huh?"

I groaned in jest. "No, I loathe you with all my heart, Avriel."

"Don't you say my full name."

"Don't you deny me some 'strong, Russian lovin'!'" I said, mimicking Mitch.

Avi laughed, his cheeks turning red slightly. "Remind me again why I choose to spend time with you?"

I giggled. "Cuz you loooooove me."

Avi looked at me with a blank expression, as thought he were a deer caught in the headlights. "What did you say?"

I cleared my throat. "Uh, nothing. I didn't say anything."

He nodded. "Okay. Yeah. Uh, so what's going on with the photo?"

"It's on some random crappy magazine cover. Marge just showed me. She doesn't want me to...be like this with you."

He frowned, his mood changing. "Like what?"

I looked up at the ceiling. "Like...whatever it is we are right now." I turned my head back to Avi. "Avi, what are we exactly?"

"Secret lovers," he whispered, eliciting a giggle from me.

"Secret lovers?" I asked. I received a small kiss on the cheek.

"Secret lovers," came Avi's reply, along with another, longer kiss.