Unexpected (Avi Kaplan)

I'll Stand By You

Ivy's POV

"Explain to me why I have to do this again?" I asked Avi as we approached the park near my apartment. It had been a week since he started staying with me, and most of that time was spent trying to convince me to tell the others what exactly was going on.

"Because they're your friends and deserve to know. If it was one of your friends, you'd want them to tell you, right?"

I kept silent, staring straight ahead of me. I was in no mood to admit he was right. They at least deserved the truth. As we approached the others, I was greeted with stares instead of words. I forced my eyes down and took a seat on the bench, Avi sticking to my side as if he was glued there.

"Care to explain why you woke Momma up early as hell this morning?" Mitch asked, obviously grumpy from the lack of sleep, though he shouldn't have been.

"Calm down Queen. It was nearly eleven. You would have been up within the hour anyway. You're just upset because you were hoping to-" Scott cut himself off, and I couldn't help but notice the slight reddish tint that covered his cheeks. From the looks of everyone else, I wasn't the only one that noticed either.

My hazel eyes darted back and forth between the two, an arched eyebrow raising in suspicion. I waited for him to finish what he was saying, but the conclusion never came. "I'll buy you a coffee when we leave," Scott said instead, placing a hand on Mitch's shoulder.

"I still ship it," Kevin said with a contagious laugh that reached everyone other than me. I managed a small smile, though it didn't last as long as I would have liked. "Seriously though, what did you want to tell us?"

I opened my mouth to speak, but nothing came out. At this point I was a fish out of water. A hand rested against my back, and I felt my hair beginning to move slightly even though there wasn't even a breeze. Looking over, Avi gave me a reassuring nod as he continued playing with the ends of my hair.

"I wanted to tell you guys the truth," I finally said, pausing to register everyone's confused and worried looks.

Avi's POV

"What do you mean the truth?" Kirstie asked from the swing she  currently occupied. I looked back to Ivy and saw her fingers messing with the ends of her sleeves. From what I could tell over the past week, getting rid of the sharp objects in her apartment helped tremendously. Most of the cuts I found the night she called me had healed, but there were some that hadn't.

"He's out. Tomorrow makes three weeks. I don't know where he is or if he's planning something but I don't feel safe. I just didn't want to say anything because you guys don't deserve to get caught up in my hellhole of a life. But it's bad enough that I..." she trailed off, staring down at her arms, a certain nervousness etched into her features. After contemplating for a few moments, Ivy slowly rolled her sleeves up, showing off the faded cuts that were left.

Even though she didn't look at the others, I did. Part of it being because I couldn't stand to see the wounds. The shift from confusion of realization and shock was overwhelming, almost even for me. Time seemed to slow down as everyone took their time taking in the cuts. Scott looked as if he could kill, a look I rarely saw. Kirstie had tears in her eyes and seemed to be struggling to hold them in. Kevin was almost unreadable, aside from the small tinge of sadness behind his eyes. And Mitch? Mitch naturally went into mother bear mode.

"I'll kill him. He better hope he doesn't run into me or I'll  show him just what I think." The brunette stood up from the bench opposite of us and walked over, kneeling down in front of her, inspecting her arms thoroughly. Then, his eyes fell on me. "You knew about this?"

I slowly nodded without a word.

"And you didn't think to tell us?" He was angry and about to take it out on the wrong person.

"It wasn't my place. I spent the last week convincing her just to do it, but I knew she'd tell you when she got ready," I said, managing to stay calm for Ivy's sake.

Scott joined Mitch, once again placing a calming hand on his shoulder. Kirstie and Kevin soon joined the rest of us, Kirstie wiping her eyes in the process. "Well, we know now so one of us could check on you everyday to make sure you're alright," Kevin spoke up, a reassuring smile on his face.

"I'm not going to say no to that, but I am staying with her, at least until this blows over," I said simply, ignoring the second set of curious looks we got. The moment I saw the questioning look in Kevin's eyes, I shook my head simply, unaware of the saddened look my own features took on.

He patted me on the back and returned to his seat at the end of the slide. "We need to figure out something to do to get your mind off everything," he said thoughtfully, he features beginning to contort into his full-on thinking face.

"What about we go to Big Bear Lake tomorrow? It's a bit of a drive but we could take a boat, some snacks and drinks and just make an entire day of it," I spoke up, looking around at everyone else. My eyes landed on Ivy, only to find her looking right back at me.

She finally nodded a bit as a smile appeared on her face. "I like that idea," she said. Her voice was soft but audible enough for me to pick up on the uneven tone. It was probably because she had been upset only moments before. "The only thing is I don't have a swimsuit," she added shyly.

The moment the words left her mouth, Kirstie and Mitch shared a knowing look and hauled her up and away from me. I stood up, about to interject, but Mitch put a hand up, effectively stopping me.

"No sir Mr. Kaplan. What we do with her is our business. She's in good hands," Mitch said with a smirk.

"No offense, but you're a sassy small person and Kirstie's a girl. I don't feel very comfortable leaving her alone," I said, not bothering to hide the nervousness in my voice.

"I'll go with them. Don't worry, Avi. There's three of us and one of him. If he tries anything, she's in good hands," Scott said, making an effort to make me feel better. I wasn't sure if it worked or not, but I had to admit, the odds were in their favor.

I nodded reluctantly and watched them leave, tugging Ivy along. I wasn't entirely sure what they were up to, but if it had to do with what she was wearing tomorrow, I knew I couldn't hardly wait.

A/N: Finally!!! I am so sorry for keeping you guys waiting! I've just been trying to get used to my change of schedule and all for college but I fully intend to start posting multiple times a week once again! Love you guys!

~*~*~Ash~*~*~