Avi Kaplan: A Collection of Short Stories

Cactus King

It had been a month since you'd last seen your boyfriend and the anticipation of finally seeing him again was getting to you. Bouncing back and forth on your feet as you stood, your eyes dart across the arrivals board, the green "on time" sign almost taunting you. You stop moving once you see him, beanie poking above the small crowd of people and your smile grows on your face.

Looking up from his phone, he spots you instantly, his smile matching your own and shrugging his bag higher on his shoulder, walks a little more quickly to where you're standing. Reaching you, you barely have time to react as his arms envelop you, his beard scratching your neck and face where he's buried his face in your shoulder.

His "I miss you" is murmured into the fabric of your shirt and pulling back from your shoulder, he peers down at you before kissing your forehead. Hands framing his face, you scratch lightly at his beard, a frown tugging at your lips. "What the hell is growing on your face?" you ask, tugging at the extra hair on his chin.

"Well, aren't you a buzzkill?" he jokes, looping his arm around your waist and walking with you towards baggage claim.

"I'm serious. You're prickly. Like a cactus." You pause to take in his reaction, smirking as he rolls his eyes and pulls you closer. "You're a prickly cactus."

"You've never complained about my beard before," he whines. "I thought you liked my beard."

"I do like your beard; you wear facial hair very well, babe," you reassure him, squeezing his side. "This beard deserves its own zip code."

Next to you, Avi snorts, "Own country. It's so powerful, it could rule."

You just roll your eyes as he continues to make jokes and once he has his suitcase, you walk hand in hand towards your car, laughing as he compares his beard to a gremlin. Once you're home, he throws his luggage in the corner of your bedroom and falls face first into the bed. You watch as he sighs happily, mumbling something about sleeping well tonight into the comforter.

"Let me shave it."

Avi looks up at you in abject horror, his hands covering the sides of his face. "Are you crazy?"

"Oh, c'mon, Cactus King, not the whole thing. Just let me trim it," you say, climbing to join him on the bed, poking the hair under his nose.

Avi wrinkles his nose at your touch and pushes himself from the bed, walking into the joining bathroom. You follow him, watching as he pulls his beard trimmer from its case and hefts it in his hands as if testing its weight. Leaning against the door frame, he gazes over at you and runs a hand down his face. Turning, he sits on the counter and motions for you to join him.

"You know I love you just the way you are, right?" you ask, standing next to him, wondering if your teasing bothered him more than he was letting on.

He smiles warmly at you and kisses you briefly, once, twice before handing you the trimmer. "I do, but you're right. This beard could revolt and start a revolution," he responds with a smirk.

You move to stand between his thighs, smiling to yourself as his hands instantly cup the sides of your hips, his fingers creeping under the hem of your shirt. Avi's thumbs swirl over your hipbones and you grip his chin, tilting his mouth down to yours and kissing him briefly. "You keep doing that while I'm working and you'll have to explain to everyone why only half of your face is shaved," you warn against his lips.

He chuckles low in his throat, the sensation tickling your skin. "Yes, ma'am."

Kissing him again, you release his chin and look down at the trimmer in your hand, flicking on the power switch. A soft buzzing comes from your hand and Avi visibly swallows. Flicking your eyes back up towards his face, you see his nervousness painted there and softly ask, "Do you trust me?"

"Always," he answers without hesitation.

You tilt his chin up, trying to ignore his steady gaze from underneath his eyelashes as you start trimming the hair along his jaw. Avi relaxes as you go, his eyes eventually fluttering close as you work, his hands unwavering on your hips. His thighs are warm on either side of yours and you hum quietly as you start cleaning up his sides, your touches to his face brief and only to turn his head for better access.

As you finish, you brush the tiny hairs from his shoulders and neck, smiling at your handiwork. "Not half bad," you say mostly to yourself. "Hope you don't mind my initials in there though."

Avi tickles your side at your comment and you yelp, squirming away from his touch. He hops down from the counter, turning to face himself in the mirror, running a hand over his chin. You wrap your arms around his waist and rest your chin on his shoulder, peering up at him. "What do you think?"

Catching your eye in the mirror, he smiles, turning to press a kiss to your temple. "You did good. Looks tame. Less likely to revolt."

You laugh into his shoulder, nuzzling your nose into the fabric of his shirt. "You're ridiculous."

"You love me."

"I do. I really do."