Darkness

Lake

When Scott woke up the next day he felt disoriented at first. The color of the wall was different, the bed felt different, he didn't have a load of curls in his face but for the first time he was well rested and ready to tackle the day.

The table was set and Mitch was sitting there, fully dressed and freshly shaved, carefully sipped his coffee. "Hey Scotty" he said and smiled.

"Hi!" The baritone sat down and smiled. "Looks delicious."

"Well, dig in. We have to leave in twenty, I'll drop you off at your place so you can pick up your car. Are you meeting the real estate agent today?"

"Probably, yes. I am thinking about taking Avi with me, after all I don't want to make this decision by myself. He should feel good there too."

Mitch sighed. "Scott..."

"I know. I know that I'm supposed to stay away from him for a few days, I know that Esther is there in case something happens but he's still my boyfriend, we've been together for months now and he should be there. It's not like we have time to talk about our mental health or something."

"No, but in my opinion you should give each other some space. Do you want me to come with you instead? I mean, please don't get me wrong, but Avi is blind. He can't see and you'll have to take a closer look at the condition of the place, after all you haven't seen anything except pictures. When you get back today and you like it and feel confident about purchasing it you should take him with you."

"I hate it when you're right" Scott mumbled and reached for a bagel. "Are these gluten free? I hate gluten free bagels, they always have such a sand like texture."

The Italian man chuckled. "No, they're regular bagels. Go ahead and eat. Esther is asking if you'd be okay with Avi calling you today, before bed. Apparently he wanted to wish you a good night yesterday.."

"Yes, of course!" He bit into his bagel and chewed. "Of course, I don't mind that. I miss his voice."

Avi carefully patted the table with his hand to find his medication right next to a glass of water near his plate. He slipped both his vitamins and anxiety medication between his lips, washed it down and turned his head to Esther who was cutting an apple into thin slices, just how he liked it.

She put down two of the apple slices on the palm of his hand. "There you go."

"More?"

"Eat first. We're going to the lake today, okay? With Darien."

"Is Sebastian coming too?"

The woman chuckled. "Of course he is. You know how much he loves a good swim."

"He's a really good boy" Avriel mumbled and started eating the apple slices. He felt numb to everything that was happening around him and even though he knew that the feeling came from the strong medication he was taking right now, that it was supposed to help, he didn't like it. "You don't have to stay with me the whole time. I'm okay. You probably miss Darien.."

"I do, yeah, but you're my little brother and you need me more than my husband right now." When Avi put his hand back on the table Esther cut two more slices off the piece of apple and gave it to him. "Do you have plans for Thanksgiving yet?"

Avi shook his head. "No, not really. We talked about flying out to Texas but...that's it. Are you driving to Visalia? Maybe I'll come with you."

"Avi, no. Wait a little before you make any plans. You're drugged to the brim."

"Why? Scott is gone and it's my fault. I told him to leave and...and he left. It's jus' me Avi again. Just like when Caleb left.."

"Avriel. It's not just you. Scott needs some time to get better, he didn't take proper care of himself in the last few weeks. You're both exhausted and need some time to get back up on your feet again and until then he is with Mitch and you are with me."

The man shrugged. He put down the apple again and sighed softy. "I'm not hungry.."

"Eat your damn apple or I'll tell Mama."

"Stop swearing or I'll tell Mama" Avi shot back and crossed his arms in front of his chest.

"She'll be too busy making food for you to care about me saying damn. C'mon, Avi. Two more slices and then we'll pack your stuff for the lake."

"Can you put peanut butter on it?"

"I checked for peanut butter when I was in the kitchen but I think you're out of it. The jar is gone."

Avriel huffed. "Scott ate my peanut butter..."

"I'm pretty sure he'll get you a new jar, buddy."

Ten minutes later Esther started packing Avi's backpack for the trip to the lake. She handed him his swimming trunks and a shirt to put on, packed extra clothing, reached for towels and made sure he had a hair tie on hand in case he needed it. He would get a few funny looks from other visitors due to his patchy chest hair, Esther was sure about that, but then again Avi wouldn't know about them looking. She folded one of his shirts, zipped up the backpack and walked to the living room.

It was dark already, after ten pm, when Scott's head came in contact with the pillow. He had looked at the potentially new house and so far everything seemed to be just the way they wanted it to be. It was not too spacious, the stairs down weren't located in the middle of the room and all in all it seemed to be their perfect new home in the middle of a lovely and calm neighborhood. The man yawned, stretched and then reached for his phone. "I'm home now, is he still up? I can call" he texted Esther and didn't wait long for a reply. Then he called Avi.

"Avi, hey" Scott said softly and held his phone to his ear. "How was your day?"

Avi hesitated for a moment before he replied. "Hi...it- good, we went to the lake...I don't want to bother you, just wanted to wish you a good night. I miss you" he suddenly rambled and then stopped. "Sorry."

"No, no it's fine. I miss you too. And I hope you can sleep well. I'll come back soon, I promise."

"O-okay. I- Yes, I would- that's-" he took a shaky breath. "Yes please. Bring peanut butter, 's empty."