"Do you want to drink something?" Avi asked when they were back in their house.
Scott nodded. "Would be a good idea," he said. "But only water. Or maybe a Red Bull if we have some?"
"Sure" Avi replied. He rummaged through the minibar, careful to not wake up Mitch. "Here."
Scott smiled. "Thank you."
"I'll make a cup of tea if you want one, too?" The bearded man then asked. "To calm your nerves?"
Scott grimaced. "No. I don't like tea in summer" he said. "But thanks."
"Alright" Avi replied as he started the electric kettle.
The blonde waited for him and once Avi had his mug and own bottle of water, they went upstairs and, through Scott's room, out to the balcony where they sat down on the chairs.
Scott opened his can and took a sip. "So..." he said.
Avi smiled at him. "Yeah?"
"I don't know where to start," Scott said, feeling a bit lost.
"Wherever you feel comfortable starting" Avi said. He waited a moment, but Scott didn't say anything. "Why don't you start with how it ended and we'll see what we can make out of it."
Scott sighed and nodded. "Okay..." he said and then proceeded to tell Avi about how he found out that Nick had been lying to him about the death of his grandma. He explained to him how he confronted him, how he got the bruise on his wrist and, finally, how he had ended the relationship and told him to move out while he was on vacation. "Yeah and then Mitch found my phone when he was helping me pack up my things..."
"Your phone?" Avi wanted to know. "Do you mean the one you lost a while ago?"
Scott nodded. "Yes. I think he hid it for some reason I don't get. I feel like there is a puzzle piece missing. I just want to understand what went wrong. I just don't know."
"Do you want my input on the situation, Scott? I have an opinion and a theory" Avi offered. He didn't want to overwhelm the blonde, wanted to go at his speed.
Scott shrugged his shoulders. "Maybe it will help me? Mitch said he had a theory as well, but we never got to talk about it. I just wasn't ready."
"Well," Avi began. "First of all, I want you to know that I don't hate Nick. But I think that your relationship with him was of a toxic nature."
Scott furrowed his brows. "Toxic? What do you mean?"
"I mean I don't know him that well. I tried to get to know him, but to us all it felt like he never wanted to get closer to us as necessary. And a few things just make sense, Scott, at least to me. Maybe I'm wrong, but think about it: On the last night of our tour you told me about the birthday party of his mother. He said you couldn't come here. Then he confirms that there's a change of plans only to come up with a different story to make you stay at home. When he joined us on tour he was always trying to mess with the schedule. Remember the night you arrived? He just went to the hotel room claiming he was sick when he wasn't?" Avi stopped there to give Scott some time to think about what he had just said.
"I..." Scott shook his head. "Do you think he wanted to keep me away from my friends? Like... he hid my phone so I wasn't able to reach anyone and then he kinda kept me busy so I wouldn't think of getting a new one" Scott said. "But... why would he do this, I mean he loved me and I would've never cheated on him..."
"I don't think it was about cheating for him. And maybe he didn't even mean to do anything to harm you, but he did harm you and I'm glad that you got out of this relationship" Avi explained.
"Me too..." Scott said. "At least I hope so."
"Do you want to take him back? Do you want to be in a relationship with him?" Avi asked carefully.
"No" Scott replied immediately. "But that doesn't mean that I don't miss the relationship. It just feels horrible right now, Avi. Like... I was happy, at least for most of the time and we had so many wonderful moments. And now I am sitting here with you and I'm questioning everything. Like... when did he lie to me and when was he honest with me. There are so many instances I can think of. Like in Germany when we wanted to watch the fireworks but he got sick."
"I... I'm sorry, Scott, I never wanted you to question all this. I just want to help you" Avi replied. He looked at Scott. The blonde was slumped in his seat and looking down onto his hands. He seemed to be uncomfortable and Avi hated himself for making him feel this way.
"It's not your fault, Avi. I asked for your opinion and I mean we both know that you're right. And I am probably right when I assume that Mitch would have told me the same?" Scott wanted to know.
Avi hesitated. "I.... think so" he finally said.
Scott chuckled. "He never kept his dislike for Nick a secret."
"That's true. He talked to me, too. But it wasn't because he didn't like Nick but because he was worried about you" Avi explained. "He even thought about doing an intervention."
"Like in How I Met Your Mother?" Scott wanted to know. "That would've been fun. No. I would've been furious. Definitely furious."
"Because you were in love, Scott. Love makes us do the most stupid things" Avi explained and internally laughed bitterly at his own words. Love made him sit here and help Scott, the man he was in love with, come to terms with his own relationship.
"Mmhm..." Scott just hummed and fell silent again. He took a sip from his red bull and just listened to the sound of the sea.
Avi didn't say anything either, he drank his tea and looked over to his friend every now and then, but he wanted to give him space while still being there for him.
It was a comfortable silence, which eventually was broken by a small sob.
"Scott?" Avi asked carefully.
"I... he used me, Avi," Scott said before he sobbed again. "He used me and I didn't notice. I was so blind."
The bearded man didn't know what to do. He wanted to pull Scott into a tight hug, but with the chairs and everything, it just wasn't possible. So he just reached over and took his hand, squeezed it softly. It was only when the sobs became more violent that he got up and pulled Scott with him.
The blonde didn't care what Avi was doing, but once he felt himself in a warm embrace, he felt better and worse at the same time. He cried and didn't even know why. It was all just too much. And yet, there was Avi, grounding him with his presence. The faint smell of coconut coming from his hair was, surprisingly, very soothing and, after a while, the sobs ebbed off.
"Feeling better?" Avi whispered softly.
Scott shrugged his shoulders. "I don't know. A little bit. Sorry..."
"There's no need to be sorry, Scott. I told you I would listen" Avi said.
"Yeah. Thank you, Avi. Really." Scott sighed. "I'm just drained."
Avi smiled slightly. "Do you want to go to bed?"
"I probably should," Scott said and stifled a yawn. "Sleep on it and hope for a brighter tomorrow."
Avi nodded. "That's a good idea," he said. "Don't forget to brush your teeth and to drink some water, okay? This will help you feel better."
Scott smiled. "I will. Thank you, Avi. He leaned in and hugged the bearded man once more before he took his bottle of water and went inside, followed by Avi, who closed the door behind them.
"Good night, Scott. Sleep tight."
"Mmhm you too," Scott said. "Good night."
~~~~
