Settle Down

“Shit,”

Dylan ran a nervous hand through his short hair, contemplating on whether to go back inside to find her or continue to stand on the terrace feeling like a complete asshole for bringing up something that wasn’t even his business to begin with.

What has gotten into him? Ever since he met Avery a couple of days ago, she’s been all that’s absorbed his mind. Especially since they had been in the improbable situation of what could’ve led to a kiss the other day in his car.

Dylan drew in a deep breath, exhaling slowly to try and calm himself down. He needed to stay rational, but the numerous bottles of beer and shots he consumed before stepping outside was taking a toll on him. Blinking a few times, he turned around, entered the building, and was met with bodies upon bodies of people ramming into him. This was definitely the biggest crowd he’s ever seen in Holland’s loft, for sure.

“Whoa there,” Dylan side swiped a drunken couple carrying two bottles of vodka, avoiding the clear liquid spilling over him, and onto the ground it went. Shame. The only advantage he had at the moment was his height. He tried desperately to find her tiny frame, but surprisingly found Max grinding on the dance floor with someone who wasn’t Avery, getting pretty touchy with the blonde. “What the fuck…” he mumbled, unable to pry his eyes from the horrific scene before him.

It infuriated him to see Max pressing his body as close to some random instead of looking for his date, but then it made him all the more excited to know that she wasn’t with some scumbag like him, which sucks because he always thought Max was a gentleman just like his twin. Guess not.

“Dylan!”

He swiveled around on his feet to see Crystal’s tall form making her way through the crowd behind him. “Have you seen Avery?”

“Uh, no,” Dylan started shouting over the music. “I’m actually trying to find her too!”

“Can you believe that Max is dancing with someone else like that? I really thought he’d be different with Avery!”

Crystal was shouting on about Max for a good long while, but Dylan’s eyes were scanning over the heads of people, hoping to find her. When he thought he spotted her leaving the kitchen, she turned around and it appeared to be someone else. Someone he recognized from the set, but didn’t quite know her name.

“She won’t reply to my text messages!” Crystal shouted through his bubble of concentration. He snapped his head back to her and then saw Tyler and Seana making their way over to them.

“Are you talking about Avery?” Seana asked, taking a sip of the drink in her hand. “I saw her leave a couple of minutes ago!”

That was all Dylan needed before he sprinted between the crowd, making it to the front door, and running out. He didn’t know where he was going, but his feet took him in the direction he’d go to get to her apartment.

He didn’t know how long he was running for, growing desperate as his eyes flew to every person he passed, hoping one of them would be her. Slowing down to a halt, he caught sight of her white shirt turning a corner. Taking in a deep breath, he took off at full speed, finally reaching her.

“Avery,” he called her name, panting heavily when he stopped just a few feet behind her. She stopped walking, turning around to face him, looking beautiful as ever underneath the street lamp. It took a moment for him to regain his composure, too mesmerized to form any sort of sentence.

“I’m sorry,” she whispered, her eyes shifting to the side to avoid eye contact, but Dylan closed the few feet of distance between them, tilting her chin so she would look at him again. They stood that way for what felt like ages, but he couldn’t bring himself to look away or say anything. She was so beautiful. It was so hard for him to focus on anything but those eyes. “Dylan…”

Before he could do anything or say anything irrational, his phone began to go off, breaking the intimate moment.

“I’m sorry,” he mumbled, struggling to pull his phone out of his pocket. He felt his heart sink at the name flashing across his screen. Just standing there feeling dumbfounded on what to do, he glanced at Avery, but she was staring down at her feet. The ringtone stopped and he felt a sigh escape his lips.

“Look,” Avery lifted her head back up, gazing intently into his eyes. “I’m not good at this stuff. When people start to care about me, I pull away. Ever since I found out that my best friend since childhood was screwing around with my boyfriend of four years, it was hard to cope with. My guard went up and I couldn’t bring myself to let anyone back in.” Avery ran a shaky hand through her hair, sighing as she did so.

“Maybe it’s time you stop dwelling on the past and learn from it,” he spoke softly.

She looked at him nervously, “What if I told you I did? What if…” she cleared her throat, shifting her eyes away from his, “What if I did move on?”

“That’s great,” he grinned, shoving his hands into his pockets, feeling his heart tingle a bit at the thought of her falling in love with someone else. But that’s good. Maybe then he’d be able to stop thinking about her and get over these unexplainable feelings.

“It’s not,” she mumbled, giving him a sad smile.

“How come?”

He watched her stand there quietly, debating on whether to speak her mind or not. When a couple of minutes passed by, she sighed once again. “I’m getting tired, my apartment’s just down the street. I’ll see you, okay?”

Dylan furrowed his brows in confusion. What? Did he zone out that long to not hear her answer? She was slowly moving away, unsure of whether he was going to bid her goodbye or anything.

“Avery, wait,” he stopped her, taking a couple steps forward to close the distance once more. “For what it’s worth, I’m sure whoever you’ve moved onto, will feel exactly the same. Just don’t let him slip through your fingers. You deserve to be happy. Especially with a guy who will treat you right.”

She gave a weak chuckle, tucking a strand of hair behind her ear. “Thanks, Dylan,” she said before turning around.

He stood there watching her body retreat, getting smaller until she entered her apartment complex. It was unbelievable what kind of affect she had on him and all they did was talk. His phone went off again, causing him to jump slightly at how loud his ringtone was.

Pulling out the device, he stared at it for a few seconds, uncertain on whether to answer. He’s been waiting for her call all day. Before he could decide, his mind acted on its own accord, sliding the green button on the screen, and putting it to his ear.

“Hey, Britt,” he greeted. “We need to talk.”