Thank You

7

A/N: Damn the internet, stopping me from updating this sooner :P

1 Month Later

Avi has neatened up his beard and even got his hair a god trim, and now he sits waiting for Kirstie to come and pick him up. The air is crisp and he is cold, but he doesn't care, he's just excited to see Kirstie so that she can see all his progress. He feels better than ever, and it helps knowing that someone is coming to get him that genuinely cares: Kirstin.
     Avi likes the cold, it bothers a lot of people, but not him. He could be out there in the snow for hours, but he did prefer no snow so that he could still go on walks, like California provided. But he likes this cold too, anything but rain.
     He takes a deep breath and lets it out, feeling like the dragon that he rightfully is. Smiling, he looks down at his hands in fingerless gloves, he hadn't thought about dragon's in too long, the same with nature, really feeling it like he used to. He wants Kirstie to take her time, he is enjoying this. He is feeling more like himself than he has in months, you could almost say years. He doesn't feel the need for a joint, or a woman, he's good by himself, he's happy and content, he's simply Avi. That makes him smile more.
     Avi closes his eyes and relaxes back in the bench seat he is on on the porch listening to the soundtrack of nature. He couldn't believe he'd let himself forget this, let himself push this aside. And he has to make the most of it now. Kirstie lives in the city, and worst still, the city is full of temptation, but everything will be okay. He doesn't need those other things like he thought he did, he just knows better now.
     Avi unlike other house members has made big strides in his recovery, you could really tell who wanted to be there and who had been made to come. It is a mental game, you have to be ready and willing to get better, Avi is, and that's why he's well on his way.
     His face lights up when he hears tyre's turn onto a gravel track, the driveway is long enough that he can't see her car yet, but it has to be her. Avi doesn't recognise the little orange swift, and wonders if that's the car she's chosen to rent, or has she borrowed this from someone else? It is definitely her though.
     The car stops in front of the porch as Avi stands up, Kirstie bursts out of the car, not shutting the door behind her, arms wide and meets him on the steps for a tight embrace.
     "I missed you," Kirstie says into their hug.
     "Really?" Avi asks, it's not like they'd been hanging out much before he came here.
     "Yeah," she pulls back from the hug, her hands resting on his arms that were still holding her. "I can just tell that this is the you from when we first met, but with a little more confidence, and a better fashion sense," she smiles.
    He chuckles, "I hope I'm that me too."
    "And look at you all trimmed up and smelling good," she giggles, grabbing his chin and jokingly leaning in to smell him.
     "I had to make myself presentable for you," he laughs, swatting her hand away when she starts pulling at his curls. "Stop it," he says, only half serious.
     "Fine," she mock sighs, completely pulling back. "So are there any rehab rules I need to know before I bust you out?"
     Avi looks around the openness that surrounds them, "I'd hardly call this busting me out."
     She rolls her eyes, "Whatever, what are the rules?"
     "What do you mean?"
     "Like do you have to come back to visit? Or are there meetings? Restrictions? Like being around women because then you're already failing," she tries not to laugh.
     "I'll have weekly SA meetings and I'm supposed to go six months without. The weed thing is easy, you don't get addicted to the substance you just enjoy the feeling, and then someone in there pointed out that if I smoke too much it'll fuck up my voice," he tells her panicked. Kirstie has to cover her mouth to stop herself from laughing, Avi and his voice, so very typical.
     "So, no sex for six months, I reckon you can do it," she says with a straight face then snickers towards the end.
     "You don't think I can?" He asks with hurt through his voice.
     She shakes her head, "I am so sure you can, I'm just laughing thinking about all the puns I could have made and I went with 'you can do it'," she scoffs at herself. "Don't worry though, I have six months to use them all," she grins. "Let's get going," she hops down the steps, waving him over to her car. "We're currently blasting Shania Twain so get ready to feel like a woman, man," she laughs so hard it makes Avi chuckle. "Also if you hold the safety handle again I'll kill you," she says with any trace of laughter gone from her voice.
     "That was like three years ago and it was 90 per cent joke, I'm sure you're a much better driver now," he nods.
     Kirstie points at the car again until he gets in, then smiles, she can take a joke.

A/N: Thoughts?

Can Avi stick to the rehab rules?

Hannah.