It was the third week of the elementary schools in Arlington, Texas. Kirstie and Avi were practically two peas in a pod, even though they had recently met that year. Kirstie was eight years old and Avi was ten. Despite their age difference, nothing could stop their close friendship.
Kirstie was always teased for being really short for her age. Avi would be bullied for having such a low voice at a young age. But no matter what the circumstance, they would always stand up for each other and scare away their enemies.
Months passed slowly but they went by faster than necessary. Or at least that's how it was for Avi and Kirstie. In fact, nearly a year had passed by in a flash. That meant it was summer break at the time. "I can't wait to see you next year!" exclaimed Kirstie as she gave Avi one last hug. He grinned but there was sorrow in his eyes. He would be moving and he wasn't actually going to see Kirstie the following school year. He would be in a whole other country, miles and miles away from his best friend. Avi wished he had told Kirstie that he was moving earlier, but he was too upset and sad to tell her.
"A-actually, I'm going somewhere this summer," he started. He held back the tears as best as he could. "Where?" asked Kirstie as she tilted her head with curiosity. If only she knew, thought Avi. "Well...I'm going to the most amazing place ever!" he lied. Avi knew that if he told the truth now then their friendship would never be the same again. "Where?" repeated Kirstie. She twirled her curly brown hair around her finger and waited patiently for an answer. She, however, would've accepted Avi going wherever he was traveling too. If only they had known what the other was thinking. "I actually don't know yet," continued Avi. He had to quickly think of something to say to Kirstie that wouldn't make her sad. "But I'll never forget about you. Can we make a promise that we'll never forget each other?" he asked as he held out his pinkie finger. Kirstie giggled and wrapped her little finger around Avi's. "Promise!" she said with a proud smile. With that, they parted their separate ways to their homes. Little did they know that they would reunite in the future.
Many years passed. Kirstie was now twenty two and Avi twenty four years old. Kirstie's hair was dyed blonde and Avi had a beard. They both definitely looked different, but their personalities hadn't changed one bit.
Kirstie and Avi just happened to be auditioning to join an a capella group called Pentatonix. Kirstie would be trying out for the soprano part and Avi would try out to be the bass. Either of them knew that they would see each other.
Backstage, they both got in line with about twenty other people. Kirstie had somehow ended up standing in front of Avi. She took out her lipstick tube from her bag to put on a fresh layer on her lips but had accidentally dropped it, causing it to roll towards Avi's feet. He chuckled slightly and picked it up to hand it to the young woman. "Oh, I'm sorry," Kirstie said as she turned around to take the lipstick back. It wasn't until their eyes met that it felt as if time had suddenly stopped.
Kirstie locked eyes with Avi's emerald-colored orbs. They had a staring moment until Avi was the first one to blink. "S-sorry," she softly stuttered. Kirstie coughed awkwardly and took the lipstick tube back and then turned back around in line. Why does this man seem so oddly familiar? she asked herself in her head. Avi was thinking the same thing too. Luckily, he was much more social than Kirstie and he didn't mind talking to strangers as much. So, he was the first one to speak up.
"Hey, have we met before?" he asked as he tapped on Kirstie's shoulder. She quickly turned around and shrugged. "I'm not sure but you seem familiar." she answered with a frown. It only took a second for Avi to remember that frown from the times that Kirstie had been bullied as a child. "Oh my god, is that you, Kirstie?" he asked with a surprised tone. Kirstie's eyes lit up when she suddenly realized who this man was: It was Avi Kaplan, the guy who took her on adventures and saved her from bullies. "I missed you so much, Avi!" she exclaimed as she threw herself into his arms. She was quickly engulfed by the scent of Avi's cologne once he wrapped his arms around his childhood best friend. Kirstie didn't realize how much she had missed him until she could feel a little bit of her makeup dripping down her cheeks. They were happy tears though. It felt so good to be reunited with someone that you haven't seen in years.
Avi smiled and wiped away Kirstie's dripping mascara with his fingers. "Hey, don't cry. You should be happy, and look, we still remember each other." Memories flooded back into Kirstie's mind. But the most significant one was the last day of school, nearly fourteen years ago. She remembered Avi's exact words that he had promised to her. Can we make a promise that we'll never forget each other? The words repeated in her mind as if she had a song stuck in her head. Avi hadn't broken the promise either. They both never forgot about each other.
Kirstie wasn't quite as nervous for the audition as before. She felt much better knowing that Avi was here. There was a sudden change to the auditions though. One of the judges walked behind the curtains to make an announcement. "We know this is very sudden, but we need y'all to pair up with a partner. We need to see how well you guys can harmonize with other people. Sorry in advance!" said the man. That was all he said and then he went back out to the judges. Kirstie and Avi gave each other a look at the same time, making both of them laugh. They had a short discussion and the pair settled on the song All of Me, by John Legend, to sing to the judges. It's going to be perfect now that Kirstie is here, thought Avi as he smiled to himself.
Later that day, Kirstie decided to go to Avi's hotel room to hang out for a bit. If he got accepted to the a capella group then he wouldn't have to go back to Europe and he would stay in Los Angeles. Kirstie was praying that they both had been accepted to Pentatonix.
It was like old times again; the two of them would be happy and would be smiling at each other no matter what they were doing or what they were talking about. They both felt like children again. "Let's play truth or dare," said Avi jokingly. "I pick truth!" said Kirstie as she thought he was being serious. "Alright, then. Well, what are your honest feelings about me?" asked Avi. The room fell silent for a couple of seconds. Kirstie had no idea what Avi meant by asking this. Did he mean this in a loving way? Or perhaps he just meant it in a friendly way? She decided to tell him that she liked their friendship until she realized something else: She loved him in a way that she had never felt before. Kirstie loved Avi more than a normal friend.
Kirstie didn't realize that she had spaced out until Avi waved his hands in front of her. "Earth to Kirstie!" he said. Kirstie shook her head. "Sorry, I got lost in my thoughts," she said with a soft smile. "Oh really? What did you think about?" asked Avi with a mischievous look on his face. Kirstie grinned back and took his hands into hers. "Well, I was thinking about you. I thought about the years that we've been apart and I realized that I missed you more than I expected that I would. In fact, I thought we were only best friends and nothing else. But in that single year that I've known you, I've never met anyone like you. What makes you so different is how you cared about me no matter what those other kids teased you about. You would always listen to me when I was sad and you were always such a genuine person. Avi Kaplan, I think I've fallen in love with you." Avi was speechless for a moment and he stared blankly at Kirstie. "D-do you feel the same way about me?" she asked nervously. Instead of saying a single word, Avi took Kirstie's cheek in his hand and he leaned in and gave her a passionate kiss. It startled Kirstie for a second but she quickly melted into the kiss. Avi was the first one to pull away. They both smiled at each other, with Kirstie blushing lightly. "Does that answer your question?"
