Troubled Youth

“Because Jared, we’re skinny dipping into dangerous waters.”
“So what? What if I want to?”
“I don’t Jared. You can’t seem to get that. I don’t want to go there with you. I don’t want to go there with anyone. It’s not going to work if one of us wants it and the other doesn’t.”
“But Ella.”
“Don’t you ‘but Ella’ me. It’s not happening.”
“How couldn’t it work?” He asked crossing his arms over his chest. “How? We’re great how we are now, why can’t it be better?”
“Because I don’t want it.” She stressed each word making her point. “I do not want to date you. I do not want a relationship with you in any way other than what we have.”
“Why?”
“Because I don’t, okay?” Ella shrugged off his question without giving him an answer.
She hadn’t even thought about why she didn’t want a relationship with Jared in the way he wanted one, why she didn’t want to be his girl. There was no way she was going to think about that either because she could come to a conclusion she didn’t like. Either she would realize there was no reason not to be with him or she’d have to end their friendship to keep him from getting hurt.
“Yet you’re going to run off with my brother for the summer?”
“I’m still coming back to move with you to New York Jared. Don’t forget that. Shannon and I are friends. We’re great friends but nothing near the kind of friends you and I are. Don’t go confusing yourself into thinking that all my relationships with men are the same but also don’t start thinking that you’re special.”
“Oh but Ella, you and I both know part of that isn’t true.”
“Yeah?” She crossed her arms over her chest mimicking his stance. “Which part?”
“The part about how I’m not special.”
“And how is that wrong?” She spat trying to put on a brave face but knowing exactly where he was going.
He stared at her seeing right through the tough act. This wasn’t something either of them had ever mentioned and he wasn’t sure he should now. The longer he waited the more uncomfortable she looked. It was as if it had already been said anyways. They were both thinking of the same two events, her bean bag and the couch in the painting classroom.
Jared shook his head and left the room storming out the front of the apartment to go smoke. Ella sat down on the bed feeling her face get hot. She balled his hands into fists hating the pricking feeling in her eyes knowing she was about to cry. Shannon peeked his head in the room and looked at her with concern.
“You okay?”
“Fine.” She mumbled. “Leave me alone.”
“What did he say?” Shannon sat down on the bed and tossed his arm around her shoulders.
“You could hear the whole thing.” She sighed leaning into his shoulder.
“Have you guys ever fought before?”
“Yeah, but not like that. Doesn’t matter. Stop asking questions as if we were a couple.”
“Friends fight too, you know.”
“No.” She shook her head. “They don’t fight about that. He’s trying to turn what we don’t have into something we do.”
“What happened that made him think there’s something there?” Shannon put his other arm around Ella when he felt tears on his shoulder.
“We had sex.”
“You’ve done that quite a bit.”
“Probably too much now.”
“Guess it’s a good thing you two will be apart for the summer then, huh?” Shannon kissed the top of her head.
“He doesn’t like it.”
“Fuck him. He has no right.” Shannon said quietly. “If you don’t want anything with him then there’s nothing there and he has no right to like or dislike what you do and where you choose to go.”
“I know, but he’s your brother. Wouldn’t it bother you a little if the situation was reversed on you?”
“It would.” Shannon nodded. “But then I’d remember he was my brother. That he wouldn’t do anything if he knew I felt something for a girl no matter how she felt about him. I’d get over it and know she was safe with him, safer than she’d be on her own.”
Ella smiled. “It’ll take him awhile to realize that.”
“Maybe a little less time than you think.” Shannon gave her a squeeze. “I know not to mess with you. I might flirt a little but that’s me. I flirt with everyone. I also understand when to stop and I’m sure you’ll have to problem telling me to shove it if I get a little drunk one night and make a move.”
“Damn right.” She smiled sitting up to wipe her eyes.
“Now go out there and sit by Jared. Share a cigarette with him or something and explain to him calmly what your plans are. Reassure him. He needs lots of reassurance when he cares as much about someone as he does you.”
“Did you have to do the same when you first left?”
“Oh yes.” Shannon nodded. “He was so scared he’d never see me again.”
“I think it might be best if I just sat next to him for a while without a word.”
“Maybe. But he’s waiting for you. I know him. He wants you to come out and sit by him.”
“Okay.”
Shannon stood up and helped Ella from the bed. He opened the front door to the apartment and let her out closing the door behind her. At the end of the walkway Jared sat leaning against the rail to the stairs. He had a cigarette between his lips and his eyes were closed. She pulled one from the pack as she sat down. He opened his eyes to look though he knew it was her from the sound of her feet. She pretended not to notice and he closed his eyes again.
They sat outside smoking until the sun went down behind the horizon. The temperature started to drop and Jared stood. He held out his hand and Ella took it letting him help her up. They walked back to his door and went inside. Shannon was watching TV with Robert. Ella sat down next to Robert and punched his shoulder. He laughed pushing her head away until she came back and hugged him. Jared sat on the floor by Ella’s feet and leaned his back against the couch. Her hand hung off the armrest and played with his hair until she decided she’d better get home.

Jared ended up leaving for home before Shannon and Ella were going to leave. Shannon had expected something to happen between them but it was rather tame as they said goodbye to each other. She told him to find a girl over the summer, keep him busy. He laughed it off not sure he wanted to. They hugged and that was it.
In a second of time that Jared had with Shannon he asked for a favor. Shannon had been expecting something like this and was surprised Jared had waited so long to get around to it. He asked in a very roundabout way for Shannon to keep other guys away from Ella to the best of his ability. The younger Leto still had hope that after she spent a summer away from him she’d rethink what she’d said. He didn’t want anyone else to have her but he knew there was only so much he or his brother could do to prevent that. Shannon promised he’d do what he could.
In the few days before Shannon and Ella left she rented a storage unit to put her things in until she could get them to New York. Shannon slept on the couch in her apartment deciding sleeping in a bed was too much like living somewhere. Ella’s three roommates had no comment about Shannon but gave her hell when they found out she was leaving with Jared for New York. No matter how much she insisted there was nothing between them but the need for cheaper rent they still poked fun at her saying she’d finally found a guy worth sticking around.
Getting on the road couldn’t have come soon enough for Ella. She said goodbye to Lydia, Clarissa, and Sandy without a tear and then she and Shannon headed for the nearest highway. There was no way Ella would admit it but once they were actually standing on the side of the road waiting for someone to be kind enough and stop to pick them up she was scared.
Never had she dreamed of doing something like this because of the stories she’d heard. Shannon promised her they’d be safe but she was still scared. When the first car slowed and pulled up to them she let Shannon do all the talking. Before she knew it she was in the back seat and Shannon was in the front passenger chatting up the girl next to him. It didn’t matter that she was much older than him, he flirted like no one’s business getting as far as he could away from the town they had just left.
It took quite a few days before Ella was comfortable enough to sleep in a stranger’s car. She never knew where they were heading and what they were going to do. She wasn’t sure when their next meal would come or if she’d have a chance to get money from her bank account. She carried quite a bit more money than Shannon would have liked her too, but a few times it came in handy.
There may have been an incident with a man who wanted more from Ella than she was willing to give and a resulting fight Shannon got himself into. She backed off watching the two have it out in the parking lot unsure as to what to do. Someone else watching must have called the police because Shannon ended up being taken to jail and Ella had just enough to bail him out.
After that they were closer than before. Ella felt more safe with Shannon than she had initially. She knew now that Shannon was there to protect her no matter what happened to him. She also had her suspicions that he was doing a lot of things for Jared too but she kept that quiet. She knew quite a few times when Shannon had come up to her and stopped a conversation between another guy and herself that Shannon was doing it for Jared.
He couldn’t always stop Ella though. A few times she got into bed with someone other than Jared and Shannon shook his head. He knew there really wasn’t anything he could do about it and he suspected she was trying to forget about his younger brother for a while. He sensed that something had happened between them that scared her off.
Jared had unexpectedly found himself a girl to hang out with while he was at home. She was happy to go on dates with him and he forgot about his troubles with Ella for a while. He kept telling himself there was no reason to pine for her when she didn’t want him. He knew she’d slept with someone else because Shannon wouldn’t answer his questions about it when he called. He didn’t dare ask Ella himself.
A month passed by into two. Shannon was slowly making his way towards home wanting to see his brother and his mother again. It had been a while and no matter how much he pretended to want to be on his own he needed to see those two people. Ella didn’t know where they were going since she had no idea where Jared and Shannon called home.
She only started to guess when they got into a car and Shannon asked if the driver would take them to a specific address. She pretty much knew they were going to see Jared and the Leto boys’ mother. The driver only took them as near as possible on the main street. From there Ella and Shannon walked.
Jared was outside when he saw Shannon and Ella round a corner. He smiled jogging down the hill to them pulling first Shannon into a hug and then Ella. She looked different to him somehow, maybe it was because she had much more of a tan. He took her backpack and led them back to the home where his mother was inside.
Shannon’s return was announced and then Ella was noticed. Shannon’s mother asked rather unabashedly if Ella was Shannon’s girlfriend but the two of them denied it.
“She’s closer to Jared.” Shannon shrugged. “But we’re good friends.”
“I’d say! If you two are traveling around the country together. Jared told me she bailed you out of jail.”
“You weren’t supposed to tell her that.” Shannon said looking at Jared.
Jared shrugged. Shannon wasn’t really mad about it. He knew Jared told their mother everything. She probably knew all about Ella and what Jared felt but their mother played well pretending she had no idea. She asked Ella to call her Constance and then offered her food. Jared and she had just had dinner. Shannon dug in happy to have home cooked food for a change. Constance made him get a plate and when he didn’t make a move she pushed him out of the kitchen and made him a plate to force him into being civilized.
Ella took the plate Constance made her and sat down at the table with Shannon and Jared. The brothers were chatting away about stories from the road so Ella talked quietly with Constance.
“And how old are you?” Constance asked.
“What’s the date?” Ella asked sheepishly.
“The twenty first of July.”
“Nineteen.”
“You had a birthday and didn’t tell me?” Shannon asked looking at Ella. He’d been pulled from his conversation with Jared.
“It’s not important. I’ve made it around the sun again. So what?”
“Ella, birthday’s are very important in this family.” Shannon said putting a finger against the table to add stress to this statement.
“Why?”
“They just are. When was your birthday?” Constance asked.
“A week ago.”
“Still time to have a party.”
“Oh no, guys. Don’t.”
“Why not?” Jared asked.
“Because I don’t have parties. I just... I don’t.”
Sensing that a party wasn’t really something Ella wanted to have to endure Constance cut in before her sons could make plans. “Can I at least make you a cake?”
Ella looked at Constance, at the look in her eyes. “Sure.” She was tentative. “But please, nothing else.”
“I’ll try to keep my boys reined in. They tend to compete when birthdays come up.”
Ella nodded.
Later on Jared pulled Ella aside and took her for a walk with him. Shannon leaned against the back of the house watching them disappear. Constance came to stand next to her son.
“That’s the one he’s all caught up with?” She asked.
“Yep.”
Constance shook her head. “He’s in trouble you know.”
“What do you mean.”
“I can feel it. He’s picked her and no one else will ever make him as happy as he could be with her.”
“I know. She just doesn’t know what she got herself into the first time she crawled into his bed.” Shannon had no problem sharing Jared and Ella’s relationship with his mother, he knew she’d already heard about it anyways.
“I just hope they don’t do something stupid before she figures it out.” Constance sighed.
“Like what Mom?”
“I don’t want to be a grandmother yet.”
“Oh.”
“But I think Jared’s smart enough. At least he’s got a girlfriend right now so he won’t do anything stupid for a while.”
“They broke up.” Shannon said looking at Constance. “Last time I talked to him he said they broke up.”
“Lord help her.” Constance said meaning Ella. “I have a cake to make.”
Jared stopped once they were far enough away from the house. They sat down in the dirt against a tree to continue talking just as they had before. She told him what she and Shannon had been up to giving him different details and perspective on the events he’d already heard about from Shannon.
Ella didn’t tell him about one particular night though. Shannon had a few too many drinks and started making moves on Ella. She’d had a few drinks too but not as many as he had. At first it was like they were just playing, their moral compasses screwed up from the alcohol Shannon had bought them both. She’d let him pull her in close and kiss her neck. He moved to her lips not long after that.
When his hand started going under her shirt she stopped him. She remembered who she was kissing and who his brother was. As Ella had backed off it must have clicked in Shannon’s mind too and he apologized. She laughed it off saying they’d both just find somewhere to sleep off the alcohol and left it at that.
Jared knew about this. Shannon had told him. At first Jared had been mad about it. Then as he thought about it he realized why Shannon had told him. He wanted Jared to know that Ella held back because of Jared, because she didn’t want him upset. This comforted Jared a little, he knew she’d never sleep with Shannon but the thought of him hadn’t stopped her sleeping with someone totally unrelated to him.

Settling in New York had been a little rocky at first. Jared and Ella didn’t really have a place to stay until two weeks into the semester. The original place that he had found ended up not being available and they had to survive crashing on the couches of contacts Shannon had from traveling. Ella was a lot more comfortable than Jared would have expected on sharing the couch with him. He’d offered to sleep on the floor but she insisted he sleep behind her on the couch.
When they finally got their own apartment it was tiny. It was a studio apartment with a tiny bathroom and one wall that made up the kitchen. Jared managed to get a mattress but nothing else. He pushed it into the corner of the apartment and tossed some blankets on it content to sleep there. Ella had her bean bag that she continued to sleep in, Jared hadn’t been allowed near it since the one time in her apartment. They hung their final painting from last semester on the wall. The class had been somewhat shocked when they finally revealed how the painting had been created, no one had even thought to treat a collaboration like that.
Jared took his classes quite seriously and Ella was glad to see him working so hard. They started having movie nights on the weekend with their tiny TV curled up together on the couch. Sometimes Ella would have to work on their movie nights but they pushed the movies to another night to make up for it.
Their relationship changed a little in that they didn’t sleep together so much anymore. Jared had only once tried to approach the subject of them being together again and it ended in a fight. He left the apartment to take a walk and she curled up on the bean bag crying. She knew he was hurt that she didn’t want to be with him but she couldn’t help it.
As a project Jared started writing his own short film. Ella would read it over his shoulder and make comments. Most of the time he ignored her because she was just giving him a hard time. Just to get her back he wrote a part for her into the film and wouldn’t let her out of it. When it came down to filming it she gave in learning the lines he wrote for her.
This was a final for the end of the semester and he titled it ‘Crying Joy’. He never told her the grade he’d made on it but she knew he was happy with it at least. When classes were all over they stayed a few days just to hang out. Constance invited Ella back to her home for the holiday break and she gladly went but warned them she’d have to leave for a few days to meet with her dad.
When they arrived back at Jared’s home Ella ended up explaining her whole family situation to Constance. She had been wondering why Ella couldn’t go home for Christmas and was heartbroken over the young girl’s story. She made Ella agree to take Jared with her when she went to see her dad just so Constance knew Ella would be safe.
Ella didn’t really want Jared coming along with her but she saw no way out of it once Constance had put her mind to it. When Ella explained to her father that she was bringing a friend along he asked her probably a million questions and then a million more when he found out it was a guy. Ella had to continually reassure her dad that there was nothing between her and Jared but he seemed to think otherwise since she was bringing him with her.
The day came when Ella and Jared were dropped at the airport together. She smiled happily until Constance left and then sat almost defeated at the gate staring out the window where their plane was docked. Jared bumped Ella with his shoulder and when she turned to look at him he gave a slight smile.
“What’s wrong?” He asked her.
“Nothing.”
“Ella.” Jared’s voice was stern.
“I don’t know. I just have a bad feeling about this okay?”
“What are you not telling me Ella?”
“It doesn’t concern you.”
“No, but you’re upset and that makes me worried.”
“Just something my dad said last time I talked to him.” She shook her head looking back out the window.
Jared took that for all he was going to get out of her and started picking at the hem of his sweatshirt. Boarding started not too much later and Ella still wouldn’t talk. Jared relaxed into his seat once the plane was in the air -as much as he could being in between Ella and a stranger- and tried to go to sleep. Ella rested her head against his shoulder and he let his cheek fall against the top of her head.
When they woke up the plane had landed in California. They stepped off into LAX and Jared looked to Ella. He had no idea what they were doing or where they were going. She grabbed his hand lacing their fingers and headed towards and exit. From there they hailed a cab. She handed the driver a paper with something written on it and they were off. Jared didn’t object when she curled up under his arm and closed her eyes.
He soon found out she had made herself comfortable because they were going to be in the car for a long time. There had been the rumor that LA traffic was bad but he had no idea they’d only move a few miles in twenty minutes. He said her name softly because he wanted to know where they were headed but she didn’t respond. Giving up and just letting himself trust her he pulled her tighter into his side and looked out the windows.
There was no way Jared was going to sleep now. There was so much he’d never seen before and Los Angeles was somewhere he’d always wanted to be. He found himself falling in love with everything he saw, wanting to live there and see it every day. After an hour they were at a hotel and Jared gently woke Ella.
Ella paid the driver once she’d looked out the window. They grabbed their bags from the trunk and headed for the doors. Jared looked up at the building wondering how she was going to afford this but didn’t ask questions. Ella walked up to the desk and smiled at the receptionist.
“Ella Weisman.”
“One moment.” The receptionist smiled in return typing in her name, she turned the screen for Ella to see.
“Looks right.”
Two keys were handed to Ella, she passed on to Jared. “Have a nice stay.”
“Thanks.” Ella grabbed Jared’s hand again and tugged him towards an elevator.
“Where are we?” Jared asked
“Los Angeles.”
“Yeah, but where in LA?”
“Beverly Hills.”
“Is this where you lived before?”
“No, it’s just where my dad and I meet.”
“Oh.”
“We lived in Santa Barbara.” She said catching the question he hadn’t asked. “They still do I guess.”
Jared nodded.
“And I wouldn’t have picked this place to stay had it been me. My father did and he’s paying for it.”
“Oh.”
They got out of the elevator and Jared followed half a step behind Ella who seemed to know exactly where she was going. She opened up a room and he followed her inside. Ella promptly dropped her bag and fell face first onto the bed. Jared smiled watching her curl up and get comfortable before putting his own bag down and curling up behind her.
“So...” Jared rubbed his fingertips in a circle on Ella’s forearm, “your dad’s rich then?”
“Yep.”
“That would explain the hotel.”
“Mmhm.”
“But because you had sex with someone and your mom freaked out, you’re struggling to make it through college. In fact, you’re not even in college anymore.”
“She’s a bitch. Dad’s doing all he can to get me money but she doesn’t want him to give me a penny. It’s only a matter of time before she finds out that he’s meeting me once a year under the guise of business.”
“Mmm.”
“He wishes he could do more. It’s just hard.” Ella rolled over in Jared’s arms and pushed her face into his neck. “I had to get a new bank account so she wouldn’t know he was sending me money. He has to be careful how much he sends because she watches all the finances. It’s really complicated.”
“All because of sex.” Jared sighed kissing the top of Ella’s head. “And to think, that very same thing gave her you.”
“I know.” She nuzzled his neck. “By the way, you smell good.”
“Thanks. I thought I smelled like plane.”
“Well you do, a little. But you still smell like you.”
Jared pulled Ella tighter to his chest and rolled onto his back bringing her with him. She balanced her weight on top of him and started kissing his neck. He closed his eyes running his hands up and down her back underneath the sweatshirt she had on. Slowly she moved up to his lips kissing open mouthed but neither of them pushed for tongue.
“Lets get in the shower.” She said drawing back for air. “I smell like plane.”
“I don’t mind it.” Jared smiled up at her pushing his nose against hers.
“I do.” She kissed his lips gently. “Please come with me.”
“Alright.” He smiled looking up into her eyes.
Ella pushed up from the bed and tugged her sweatshirt over her head as she turned to head for the bathroom. Jared followed suit tugging off his clothes as he went just like she was. By the time Ella had the shower on and was checking it for temperature she was down to her panties and nothing else. Jared stood behind her kissing the top of her shoulder and looped his fingers into the thin waistband so he could push them down from her body. Gracefully she stepped out of them and into the shower with Jared close behind.
She did a good job holding him off while they both used the complimentary soaps in the shower. They weren’t going to smell how they normally did but clean was clean all the same. Jared knew well enough why she’d wanted him in the shower with her or she would have gone by herself. He would kiss or bite her when her skin came anywhere near his mouth. His hands weren’t idle either touching and pinching when there was an opportunity. He felt a bit like she was teasing him at first and he was being driven a little mad but eventually she turned to face him and backed up against the shower wall to place a foot up on the side of the tub.
Jared grinned knowing she was done playing and stepped up to her, hands on either side of her head and brought himself closer. He let their stomachs touch and felt her skin raise in goosebumps from the feeling. Now he was teasing her, pressing their bodies together and kissing her but not slipping in like she wanted. If she made a move to grab him he pinned her wrists above her head.
“Come on, I didn’t tease you like this.” She nipped at his nose when he’d pinned both her wrists against the wall.
“No, but I want to tease you.” He bit back.
“Why?”
“You always spend so much time doing it to me. I thought I’d give it a try.”
Ella smiled biting her lip. He was starting to come out of his shell a little and take control. She knew this was underneath that shy awkward college kid she’d met a little over a year ago.
Jared moved slow against her; he bit her neck and shoulders, kissed her collarbones, and teased her mouth with his tongue for a long time until she was begging him to take her. When he did finally do as she asked he was slow. He took his time making sure she got what she needed from him. He took care to listen to the things she whispered against his shoulder as her hand curled tighter in his hair. He was taking care of her.
When they got out of the shower Ella pulled on a robe and laid back on the bed. She picked up the phone and dialed a number from another piece of paper. Jared pulled briefs and some pajama bottoms on before curling up next to her. He slipped his hand under the robe and stroked her hip while she was on the phone with her father swearing up and down Jared was just a friend and she couldn’t have come without him because of his mother. At one point she even promised Jared would be sleeping in the second bed in the room but gave a wink to Jared. This made him feel like he might not be just a friend, his mind was hoping against hope still.
She hung up and rolled to lay against Jared side. He rubbed his slightly stubbly cheek against her forehead for a little before she started telling him the plan for the next two days. They had tonight to themselves, they could order room service if he wanted and have a night in or try to find somewhere for dinner. Jared opted for a night in. The next day they were to meet her dad in the lobby at ten in the morning and spend the day with him. The day after that they would spend most of with her father again and then that evening they would come back to the hotel, pack up, and leave early in the morning back home.
Jared wished they could stay longer but he was grateful to have the time he was given. Besides, he was sure one day he’d be back here. There was no way he could go to Los Angeles once and never be there again. It promised to be the kind of city where he’d still be discovering it after being there for years.
The night in proved to be an atypical night in for Jared and Ella. They ordered room service and Jared got a devious look in his eyes around dessert. Ella had no idea what was coming when he laid her back on the floor where they’d been eating and crawled over her to slowly untie her robe. He didn’t take it off her but left it open coming back to lay fruit on her chest and then proceed to eat it off of her. At first she laughed because this was unexpected and tickled but she got used to it and started to feel the full effect of what he wanted. She started to want him again and pulled his face to hers once she couldn’t take it anymore.
They spent most of the night rolling around the hotel room with each other laughing and teasing one another until they couldn’t wait another second and took each other. Jared had missed this, he’d missed her and he had no idea what had brought her back to him but he wasn’t about to question it or suggest they go to bed when four am rolled around.
Another shower, this one much quicker than the last, was required before they were ready for the next day. Ella pulled on a dress, something Jared had never seen her in and knew he was going to have a hard time looking away from, and led him down the hall. They held hands all the way until the elevator stopped at on the ground floor, then she withdrew her hand from his and took a step away. He almost protested but knew better.
A tall well dressed and good looking but older man stood in the lobby with snow white hair and a smile that lit the place up when he saw his daughter exit the elevator. Ella jogged over to him in her three inch heels and hugged him tightly with a huge smile on her face. Jared hadn’t ever seen her smile like that and he thought it was the most beautiful thing in the world. He made it his goal for her smile like that when she saw him one day.
“Daddy this is Jared, my friend.” Ella said once Jared had made it to them.
“Hello.” Ella’s father said extending his hand.
“Nice to meet you Mr. Weisman.” Jared smiled taking his hand.
“Call me John.”
Jared smiled nodding.
Together the three of them left and got into a car waiting at the curb. Ella was glad she’d gotten Jared to at least dress a little nicer than normal when they drove to a rather expensive brunch place. Jared had wondered why he had to dress this way when surely Ella’s father knew how she normally dressed but it was all making sense to him. One day looking nice wasn’t going to kill him after all.
They made small talk during brunch. Mostly John was talking to Jared asking him questions about his interests and what he was studying in school. Jared found himself comfortable, more comfortable than he’d ever been meeting a girl's father. He pinned it to the fact that there wasn’t any pressure on him to be impressive or perfect, he was just her friend and nothing more. A fact that her father believed so easily believed because Ella had said so.
There was a point where Jared walked a bit slower than Ella and her father so they could talk on their own. He was lost in his own world anyway looking around at the city surrounding him. Ella would glance back at Jared to make sure he didn’t get lost but she was mostly focused on the conversation she was having with her dad.
Jared started to feel like the day was long and when dinner came around her couldn’t have been happier. He just wanted to crawl into bed and go to sleep. He’d seen so much and done so much talking he couldn’t wait to pass out. Ella could see he was tired at dinner and gave his knee a squeeze under the table to promise bed wasn’t too far away.
When they got back to the hotel Jared curled up in bed and fell asleep almost immediately. Ella sat up for a while thinking about the things she and her dad had talked about. She sat propped up against the headboard of the bed with pillows behind her back and rested her hand on Jared’s head playing with his hair while she thought. He was curled around a pillow and might have been drooling on it.
The second day was about the same as the first but Ella hadn’t dressed up the second day, she was her normal self. Jared was happy to be in jeans in a t-shirt and surprised when her dad showed up dressed the same. They had a nice day just doing whatever sounded good to them.
That night Jared fell asleep early again and Ella sat up for a while thinking. She tried to sleep but it didn’t work. Sitting next to Jared wasn’t helping her either. Ella moved to the other bed in the room and sat on the edge looking out the window.
“What are you doing?” Jared asked opening his eyes.
“Nothing, go back to sleep.” Ella said quietly.
“What’s wrong?” Jared sat up hearing something in her voice that told him she wasn’t okay.
“Go to sleep Jared.”
He got up from bed and walked sleepily over to her tripping a bit on a t-shirt lying on the floor. She smirked at him but went back to looking out the window. Jared sat next to her and pushed his face into her neck to kiss it.
“Are you okay?”
Ella looked at him with a weak smile and then fell into his chest crying. He didn’t expect that and didn’t know what to do at first. His arms lowered and he hugged her tight. There was nothing he could say because he knew her well enough that she wouldn’t say a word if she hadn’t yet. He leaned back slowly and cuddled Ella into his chest. They fell asleep on the second bed, him wrapped protectively around her never asking what was wrong, just being there for her.