Rough Hands and Kind Eyes

Ellie was furious that Sidney would let this girl into his house. She hated that he would betray her and let Tess in to try and talk to her. Tess looked scared, and rightfully so. Ellie was a woman possessed. Her eyes were wild, her mind was fuzzy and all her muscles were tense. It took everything she had in her not to hit Tess.

"Sidney, get her away from me." Ellie ordered, backing away from both of them. She was glaring at Tess, then she would switch to glaring at Sidney. He was supposed to be her friend and he fucked her over. Just like Jordan was supposed to be her boyfriend and her fucked her over to fuck Tess.

"Ellie, please." Tess begged, staying where she was. She knew that Ellie was seconds away from throwing a punch or a table at her. She knew better than to get close to someone who was that angry.

"I don't want to hear it, Tess!" Ellie shouted. "I find it hilarious that you felt the need to come down here and even attempt to apologize to me. What part of your twisted, fucked up mind told you to do that?"

"You can't even try to listen to her?" Sidney asked, he knew he was playing with fire. He could see it all over Ellie's face that she was livid with him.

"I can't believe that you're saying that to me, Sid!" Ellie yelled, glaring at him. "She ruined my relationship! She has been hovering on the sidelines for the entire time Jordan and I have been together. You wanted this, Tess! This is what you wanted!"

"Not like this!" Tess replied, ready to cry.

"But you wanted him!" Ellie shouted. "Don't you dare fucking cry! You have no right to cry!"

"Of course I wanted him!" Tess yelled back. "How could I not want him? I had him and he ended up with you! The girl completely opposite of me! I wanted to hate you with everything I had, but I couldn't. Because you made him happy! You made him happier than I ever could and I hated that so I wanted to ruin it for you. If I couldn't have him, no one could."

"I despise you," Ellie sobbed, still angry. "I never gave you any reason to hate me or do the things you did to me."

"I know," Tess sobbed.

"Don't cry!" Ellie screamed. "You don't get to cry. You made your bed, now you fucking lay in it!"

"You think you're so innocent? You ran at the chance to hang out with Sid the second Jordan and I started hanging out together. You couldn't stand it so you started hanging out with him to get Jordan jealous," Tess glared, toughening up. She never backed down to an angry, screaming girl before and she wasn't about to let it happen now.

"That's too far, Tess." Sidney warned.

"You're pathetic," Ellie glared. "Just because you're incapable of having male friends you don't immediately hop into bed with, doesn't mean I am too. Sidney is my friend. We're able to be friends without having sex. I know that's some foreign concept to you having friends and not having sex with them, but it's actually pretty easy."

"Don't you dare say that to me," Tess shouted, pointing a warning finger at her. "You're not better than me because you have less sex than I do. I like sex, that doesn't make me a slut or a shitty person. So don't even try it. This isn't about me and what I choose to do with my body and my life. This is about what I did to yours and Jordan's relationship."

"I think you've said enough," Ellie muttered, glaring at her.

Ellie hadn't realized Sidney had his arms around her waist, keeping from getting any closer to Tess. She hadn't even noticed she was stepping closer to her.

"Actually, wait." Ellie stated. "Did Jordan put you up to this? Did he tell you to come down here and try to make me forgive you two?"

"No," Tess replied firmly. "He doesn't know I'm here. I just asked him where you had gone and he told me, so I figured maybe I'd come down here and clean up my own mess."

Just as Ellie was about to snap back at her with a mean comment, another ring of the doorbell rang through the house. Sidney let go of Ellie and ordered her to stay put. He liked his house, he didn't want it trashed from a fight.

"This is really a bad time," Sidney said to whomever was at the door.

"Looks like Jordan followed you," Ellie mumbled to Tess. It had to be Jordan. Who else would be showing up at Sidney's house. Nobody knew that he was home. Everyone thought he was still in Cole Harbour.

"I haven't spoken to Jordan since I asked him where you were," Tess spat. "We don't speak."

"No, you just fuck." Ellie smiled deviously, sending another glare at her enemy.

"Ellie," Came a man's voice.

"Max?" Tess questioned, looking at the man who just ran into the living room. "What are you doing here?"

"What are you doing here?" Max asked, confused as to why Tess would be in Sidney's house at all.

"Trying to talk to Ellie," Tess replied.

"Because that's a good idea," Max mumbled more to himself than anyone.

"Why are you here, Max?" Ellie asked, crossing her arms. She'd met Max a few times and quite liked him. He was fun and seemed like a genuine person, but she could this time he was 'working' for Jordan.

"I need you to come with me," Max smiled. "There's something that I think you should see."

"Do you mean that there's someone that I should see?" Ellie asked, walking closer to him. "Jordan put you up to this, didn't he?"

"No, we came up with this together. He asked for my help," Max replied, getting his back up. He knew nothing good would come of him being there at that moment.

"You mean he couldn't figure out a way to get me back on his own? He needed someone else's help?" Ellie asked softly, beginning to breakdown. Her eyes filled up with tears and her face pained, it killed Max.

"Ellie," Max muttered kindly.

"He need you? The guy who is just like Tess? The guy who has probably done the same to countless other couples?" Ellie asked, getting angry. She steppe closer to him and took a swing at Max. Just before her fist made contact with his face he grabbed her wrist, stopping her. He held her wrist with his right hand, while his left one grabbed her and pulled her into him.

Max knew that Ellie was just upset. Whether she meant what she said, he didn't much care. He knew that she was upset and would say anything to keep people from getting closer to her. Max held her as she cried, letting her breakdown in his arms.

"If you come with me I promise this will end," He whispered to her, rocking them back and forth gently. "If you come with me I promise that you'll know how Jordan feels about you and what it is that he wants. This pain will end. You just have to come with me."

"Max, I'm so mad at him." Ellie sobbed into his chest, gripping at his hand and jacket.

"I know you are," Max nodded, kissing her forehead. "I know, but you need to tell him. You can't keep telling Sidney and you can't tell me. You have to tell Jordan how angry you are."

Ellie didn't know if she wanted that. How could she trust him again? He betrayed her in one of the worst ways possible and now he expected her to go with Max on some expedition to forgive him? Was she capable of forgiving him? All of these thoughts raced through her mind so quickly she got dizzy.

"I'll go with you," Ellie nodded.