WATER [AVI KAPLAN]

three; rich kids

Fire when the strobe hits you,
Bet you're lookin' for something new,
Staring off across the room,
Bet I'm a trendsetter too
Trndsttr (Feat. M Maggie) | Black Coast

After I had cleaned myself up as best I could and Avi gave me a giant dress shirt to wear as a dress, I slipped on the only shoes I had at the moment; which were a pair of very very very worn out black Chuck Taylors.

Mitch wasted no time in hustling me out to his car, which to my astonishment was a sleek white Rolls Royce, the gold hood ornament sparkling. I must've looked like a fish out of water, my eyes wide. "Close your mouth, honey, you'll catch flies." Mitch chimed, and I snapped my jaw shut, embarrassed.

Scott climbed into the shotgun seat next to Mitch, and Kirstie slid in gracefully next to me. The engine purred to life, and the last thing I saw in the rearview mirror was Avi, standing on the driveway, a look of worry on his face.

We drove for a solid twenty minutes, and I was soon immersed in a storm of luxury clothes and designer brands. I tried on outfit after outfit, Mitch offering his commentary on each, sometimes sending Scott or Kirstie out to get different accessories or to swap out a pair of shoes.

They swept me out of the dressing rooms when Mitch decided we were finished, bringing arm load after armload of clothes and boxes upon boxes of shoes to the register.
I nearly threw up when I saw how much they'd all spent on me, the numbers on the register well into the thousands. Mitch proudly handed the cashier his exclusive AmEx Black card, not even batting an eyelash when she told him the total.

"Okay, we're going to Sephora now." Kirstie said excitedly, gripping my wrist and dragging me out of the store we were in (which, by the way, was Chanel). Scott stayed behind to tell the valets where to take the multitude of bags and boxes, while Mitch and Kirstie practically flew to the infamous cosmetics store.

We were in there for hours, or at least it felt like it, and emerged from a haze of makeup carrying bags on each arm.

"Mitch, Kirstie, I can't even begin to thank you enough--" I started, but Mitch cut me off. I supposed I'd better get used to being interrupted.

"Oh, girl, it's no problem! This Queen was more than happy to help you out." Mitch chirped, flicking his hair out of his eyes. Kirstie agreed, and they hustled me out to the Rolls, which was waiting with Scott in the front seat.

"Aw, Scotty, you look tired." Kirstie whined, and Mitch fell back dramatically into his seat. "Uuuuuh, drag her sis, how will she recovaaaaaa?" He groaned, and all three broke into peals of laughter.

I ended up falling asleep in the back seat, and was shaken awake gently by Kirstie. "Wake up, sweet pea, we're here."

"I think we tired her out, Mitchy." Scott said cautiously, and Mitch rolled his eyes. "Well, duh, Scotty." They helped me carry in the ridiculous load of clothes and makeup and shoes, where we were met by an ecstatic Denali and a grinning Avi.

"How much do I owe you, Mitch?" He asked, and Mitch waved him off dismissively. "This one's on Mama, honey." Avi huffed, and then his green eyes landed on me, softening noticeably.

"Hey, sweetheart. You feelin' okay?" He asked, a hand on my arm. I grinned, butterflies dancing around in my stomach. "Yep. Just tired." In reality, all of my joints hurt, I was fabulously hungry again, and I felt like I might pass out. Avi saw straight through my lie and raised his eyebrows, a laser stare hitting me square on. "O-okay, maybe I'm hurting a l-little bit..."

Avi immediately walked me to the kitchen, sitting me on one of the bar stools at the breakfast bar. "I didn't know when you'd be back, so I ate already, but I made BLT's for lunch." He said, and I smiled gratefully as he set a plate in front of me.

I ate quietly as Avi went back into the living room where Scott, Mitch, and Kirstie were sitting. Without meaning to, I listened to them speak, and soon, the conversation turned to me.

"I just feel so bad for her," Kirstie was saying. "No family? At all?"

"Well, I'm her family now..." Avi said, sounding slightly put out. "I found her."
"We know, Avi, we know. Where did you say you found her again?" Mitch asked, and Avi sighed. "Well...I...saved her life, actually. On...on Whitmore bridge."

There was an audible gasp.

"You...you don't mean she was trying to..." Scott said, and Avi sighed. "I do."

"Oh my god...poor baby..." Mitch said, sounding genuinely sad.

I put down my sandwich, not really feeling hungry anymore. I didn't want sympathy.

With difficulty, I stood, and gripped onto Denali's collar, albeit weakly. The great dog stood dutifully by my side, walking as slow as I needed to get up the grand staircase. I was hoping that the four people in the living room would be too immersed in conversation to notice my ascent, but, as usual, that didn't go my way.

"Stella? Are you okay?" I heard Scott call, and I stopped, one of my hands clenched around the beautifully varnished railing, the other holding onto Denali. "Fine, fine...I'm fine..." I said weakly, suddenly feeling very feverish.
Drumming footsteps sounded behind me, and I felt a large warm hand on my lower back. I looked up to see Avi, a look of deep concern on his face. "Sweetheart, please, be honest. Are you okay?"

Dammit, he broke down my wall again.

"No." I let out a small sob, and Avi sighed. "What's wrong?" I sniffled, and replied, "I think I have a fever." He reciprocated by picking me up into his arms gently and carrying me the rest of the way up the stairs to my room, opening the door and helping me into the adjoining bathroom.

I showered slowly, and saw that I had a set of new pajamas that Mitch had bought for me, sitting on the bathroom counter, tied with a lavender ribbon.

My shaking fingers unwrapped the bow, and sighed as the purple silk slipped through my fingers, cool and soft. Wrapping my hair up in a towel, I put on the (most likely very) expensive underwear and pajamas, sliding my feet into the slippers by the door.

I found Avi sitting in the desk chair by the window, and when he saw me, he rose, rushing to help me into bed. "You're burning up, Stella. Why didn't you say anything?" He asked, and I sighed. "I didn't want you to worry about me."

"Well, I was going to do that anyway." He said, and I huffed.

Denali hopped up on my bed, his head on my hip as I lay on my side. Immediately my eyes started to close, and I could've sworn I felt Avi brush a soft kiss across my forehead as I let fevered sleep take me.