“Did you make me pay for something that I won’t-” Mitch sighed and opted to change the subject. “OK. Anyway, as I was saying, all I can think about recently is ‘Rearviewmirror’, and I don’t wanna be requesting moody shit like that while I internally freak out about my ex. Does that make any sense?”
“Would you prefer to freak out externally? I won’t judge.” Avi’s hands lifted, as if to demonstrate that he came unarmed.
“Fuck no!” Mitch sputtered loudly, then shrunk again. “No, it’s fine, honest. Just play whatever? Uh, 80s pop? You ever see ‘Pretty Woman’? ‘Cause I watched it with Jodie last night, and I never noticed how hard the soundtrack goes.”
“I haven’t, but I’m totally down with 80s music.” Collecting their order, Avi handed Mitch his coffee then held the door open for him yet again. When they returned to the car, Avi requested Calvin’s address, which Mitch recited; a strange sensation overcame him, since this may be the very last time that he ever does this. Several seconds passed as Avi typed, then he inserted the auxiliary cable into its port and Natalie Cole’s voice came through the speakers. He took a bite of his breakfast burrito, and asked, “Hey, so can I be real for a moment?”
“If you want?” As Mitch replied, the engine came to life and they were mobile before he could even process what he agreed to. A fleeting moment of panic struck him like a bolt of lightening when the idea of Avi getting a little too real manifested, and he wouldn’t be able to escape the moving vehicle now that it was merging onto the highway.
“I totally thought that you and Jodie were together when we first met,” Avi apologetically followed up after what felt like the world’s longest stretch of time.
“You’re not the first person to say that.” Mitch flatly stated. “It’s fine. We’re super close, but we’re both pretty goddamn gay.”
“Yeah, I picked up on that. The former thing, that is. Oh wow, I’m gonna shut up now.” He took a sip of his drink while Mitch cackled.
“Like I said, it’s fine!” He wiped a few stray tears away and clutched his aching ribs. “Fuck, you’re not gonna hate crime me, are you?”
“No! Oh my god! Why would you even say that?” A little bit of Avi’s drink sprayed on the steering wheel when he quickly released the straw, and he tried to wipe away them away with his hand. For a moment, a pang of guilt needled Mitch, until Avi followed up with, “I’m a brown person, dude! I’m not hatecriming anyone! The police would take your word over mine like, so SO fast!”
“Holy shit!” Mitch struggled to catch his breath, suddenly unconcerned with his injury and Calvin because he feared that he may asphyxiate before they even reached Connecticut. It only got worse when Avi joined in with the laughter.
“I can’t do this right now, I’m driving!” Avi shouted between gulps of air.
“I was so worried for a moment! Not about the hate crime thing, but…” Sliding further down in his seat, Mitch continued to nurse his side. He left sentence hanging, since it would be impossible to finish without getting into some kindred spirit garbage; best to keep his mouth shut, he decided.
“How do you think I’ve survived being friends with Victor for all of these years?” Avi wiped one of his eyes, then readjusted his glasses.
“That’s totally fair. I just…” Mitch sighed, unable to further articulate without being rude. Thought you were too overbearing and too cheerful and a huge dork, he didn’t say. A fucking Live, Laugh, Love decal. “Dunno what I thought, honest.”
“It’s cool,” Avi glanced over at him from the corner of his eye. “Whatever you thought.” The consolation didn’t make Mitch feel any better, only more guilty. A minute or two passed in silence, neither companionable nor awkward, the void filled in by the tail end of ‘Fame’ fading out and ‘King of Wishful Thinking’ starting up.
