Hunted - A Pentatonix / Avi Kaplan Fanfiction

Chapter 5 - You Saved Me

Kirstie's POV

I pace agitatedly around the waiting room, nervously chewing on my lip.

"Kirstie, will you please sit down? You aren't making any of us less worried by running around." Scott says, but he speaks half-heartedly, and I can tell that he isn't actually annoyed at me, he's just worried like everyone else is.

I sigh and throw myself down into one of the hard plastic chairs in the hospital waiting room. It's been about five hours since Avi was taken to surgery to get the bullet out and fix his lung.

I still can't quite believe that Avi saved my life. Everything just happened so quickly, one second he was running towards me, and the next he was bleeding on the floor. All of this makes me unable to stop wondering if maybe he...

No, I can't think like this. He's just a friend. I have to stop this. I can't have feelings for him...

But I do, and I can't help it. I've fallen hopelessly in love with Avi, and it's getting harder and harder for me to keep it bottled up inside every single day. I love him. But he would never love me back... Would he?

I mean, he did just take a bullet for me. He could have died; he risked his life for me. But I guess he just did it cause we're friends... There's no way I have a chance with him.

All of a sudden, the door to the waiting room creaks open, and a doctor pokes his head around the door. I immediately jump to my feet, "Is Avi okay?"

"The surgery was somewhat successful. We've managed to fix up his lung and remove the bullet, but he's gonna have to take it easy for a few months. Make sure that he doesn't do any strenuous activities." The doctor says.

"Is he awake?" I ask.

"He's just coming to; he's still drowsy."

"Can I see him?" I ask desperately.

He seems to ponder for a moment, before finally saying, "Fine. But only one of you at a time."

I look around at the others, and Scott says, "You should go first, Kirstie."

I nod gratefully, and quickly follow after the doctor. After walking through a maze of corridors and spotless rooms, we finally stop outside a door.

"Take as long as you like." The doctor says before walking away.

I put my hand on the handle of the door, but for some reason I'm terrified to open the door. I have no idea what kind of state Avi's going to be in when I enter.

I take a deep breath and steel myself; Avi just saved my life. I have to go and thank him.

I gently push open the door, and step into the small room. There's not much in here, apart from a hospital bed in the far corner, and some kind of monitor showing heartrate and oxygen levels.

I slowly approach the bed, and give a small smile when I see a mess of black hair on the pillow.

"Avi?" I ask gently.

His head turns slightly to look at me, and a smile immediately appears on his lips. He seems to be struggling to keep his eyes open; I see what the doctor meant when he said that Avi would still be drowsy.

"Kirstie!" He says happily, but his voice is weak and hoarse, and it sounds like the effort of saying just one word causes him a great deal of pain.

I feel tears spring to my eyes, I feel so bad for him. That bullet was aimed at me, and he took it instead.

"Are you okay?" He asks, concerned.

"I-I... I just... Thank you so much." I blurt out, the tears finally escaping my eyes and rolling down my cheeks.

"Come here." Avi smiles, pulling me into a hug.

"I'm sorry, I shouldn't be the one crying..." I sniff, "I-I just feel so bad... That bullet was aimed at me; you shouldn't be the one who's hurt..."

"Kirstie, don't feel bad about anything. I could never let you get hurt. Especially not by him." His eyes darken as he speaks.

"Him? Who's him?" I ask, confused.

"Wait- you don't know who fired the bullet?" Avi asks urgently.

"Uh... No..." I say, puzzled.

"So you didn't stop him from leaving?" Avi asks, panic in his eyes.

Oh shit. We just let the audience leave, that means that whoever shot the bullet also got out. I mentally facepalm, and say nervously, "I'm sorry... We just let everyone out..."

"What?!" He tries to sit up, but he seems to have forgotten that he's just had a major surgery. He cries out in pain and falls back onto his pillow, his hand going to his chest, his face creased in agony.

"Oh my God, are you okay?"

He takes a deep breath and gives a small nod.

"So... Who's 'him'?" I ask anxiously.

He closes his eyes before replying quietly, "My... My dad."

Although his voice is barely audible, I can hear the pain and fear in his voice.

"Oh, Avi..." I murmur, and I lean over to give him a comforting hug.

"Kirstie... I'm scared. He killed my mother. And... And now he's coming after me." Avi whispers, tears getting caught in his eyelashes.

"It's okay, Avi... You're gonna be fine..." I say soothingly.

"It's not okay. He tried to hurt you, Kirstie. I can't let that happen again... I can't..." He sobs.

It kills me to see Avi so distraught and terrified, and all of a sudden I feel myself moving close to him. I have no control over what I'm doing; my lips instinctively move towards his.

I feel his warm lips on mine, and I close my eyes as silence falls over us. My heart pounds; am I really doing this?

For a second, I'm terrified that Avi isn't okay with this. But then I feel him returning my motion as he presses his lips up against mine.

Oh my God. This is really happening. And it feels amazing.

For a moment that feels like an hour, we stay like that, our lips interlocked in a passionate kiss.

When we finally pull away from each other, I suddenly feel like we're being watched. I turn to look at the doorway, and freeze like a deer in the headlights when I see Kevin standing there, staring at us in shock.

"Shit..." I mumble, "Uh... How much did you see?"

Kevin just stares at me before shaking his head and turning away. I hear his footsteps growing further and further away.

"Shit... This is bad..." I say.

"Go after him, Kirstie. Explain everything to him." Avi says, a worried look on his face.

I nod, and run out of the room after Kevin.