This was written originally as a sequel/follow up to The Sweet Lies We Tell Ourselves but it ended up being basically completely standalone so oh whale
"Okay, I filled your prescription, I still don't understand how you went through them so qui-, oh."
There was a girl on the couch, her head pillowed on Craig's lap. He was fiddling with the straight blonde hair that fanned out across his legs as she slept fitfully, and he looked up as Ellie entered.
"El.." Craig looked up at her with wide eyes, "I know what you think this is, but it's not."
She rolled her eyes and chucked the orange pill bottle at him, watching as he reached up to catch it, "How long's she been out?" she inquired simply, crouching down to inspect the blonde.
"I don't know, she hasn't taken anything though," he clarified quickly, seeming to realise what she was thinking, "I came out of the shower to find her with my meds, I knocked them out of her hand and she broke down, passed out after a while. She's got a history."
Ellie nodded her head slowly, "This is Maya, right? The girl who's opening for you guys?" she didn't really need an answer, but she appreciated his soft affirmation, "Can you carry her to the bed?"
Craig slid slowly out from underneath her and stood, stretching his arms over his head before leaning down to pick Maya up. Ellie watched her head loll against Craig's neck as he moved towards the bed, and she took the opportunity to move to the couch while she waited for him to return.
"I didn't get a chance to thank you," Craig said softly as he sat down beside her, absently hooking his arm around her waist and tugging her against him, "For filling my prescription, I'm not sure when I would have had a chance to do it myself."
"Hey, you know me. You call and I come running," it was meant to sound teasing, but he tensed underneath her, "That was a joke, Craig," she muttered, turning her face into his neck.
"I've caused you a lot of hurt over the years," he mumbled in turn into her hair. She snorted but didn't feel the need to dignify that with a response.
Something occurred to her and she pulled away to look up at him, "What was she doing in your room in the first place, Craig?" there was no jealousy or judgement in her tone, just curiosity.
He was quiet for a moment, "I make bad decisions sometimes, okay?" he sighed, tilting his head away from her.
She huffed and drove her elbow into his side, which caused a wince to flutter across his face, "She's still a kid! She's like a decade younger than you, Angie's age!"
"It was a spur of the moment thing, after it happened I kind of.. freaked, told her to leave and went to have a shower."
Ellie winced and rubbed her face, "This wasn't your fault, you know? You're the one who stopped her from actually hurting herself."
"I'm the one who made her want to hurt herself in the first place!" he snapped before pausing to take a few shaky breaths, though they didn't seem to calm him down any, "It's my fault. Just like it was my fault when you tried to fucking drown yourself."
Ellie recoiled and slipped out of his arms, thankful that he didn't try to stop her, "I had a lot of stuff going on, not just you. I'm sure she does too. Besides, that was a long time ago."
"Marco told me you haven't been dealing well," he said softly as he watched her stand with big, sad eyes, and she inwardly cursed the urge to lean forward and kiss away the pain in his expression. Instead she focused on his words.
She cursed under her breath and hesitated before sitting down on the floor, back against the couch, "How much did he tell you?"
"He told me you took your dad's gun out at Christmas," he sighed, "And he told me that you've done a few other things like that. Apparently you once stole my meds while I was asleep?"
She winced and turned to look at the girl sleeping in Craig's bed, "Maybe you have a type, and it was more than once."
He sighed and shifted so he could twist his fingers through her hair calmingly, delicate braids forming beneath his hands, "You're getting help now, right?"
"Yeah, I'm seeing a therapist. That's why I moved back to Toronto, that and Marco wanted to keep an eye on me."
They didn't speak for a while after that, Ellie simply relaxing against the couch as Craig continued to work his way through her knotted red curls.
"I miss you so much when you're gone," she whispered softly, turning her head so his fingers came loose from her hair and she could rest her cheek against his knee, "I know I shouldn't, we're so damn bad for each other." There was a morbid sort of humour in her voice, and her lip quirked up at the corner.
"I miss you too, you know that right?" he responded, not quite able to hide his own smile as he leaned over to pick her up. The action elicited a bubbling laugh from her as he placed her in his lap with his hands on her hips, brushing her hair aside to press a kiss to her neck.
It was comfortable, something they'd done a million times, and she gave a small smile and tilted her head back.
"Craig," she whispered, stilling suddenly. He pulled away quickly, clearly thinking he'd done something wrong, but she just shook her head and jerked it towards Maya, who was sitting awkwardly on the edge of the bed.
"You have a girlfriend. Is that why you freaked out?" She was watching them both with a frown, and Ellie couldn't help but feel sorry for the young girl. Then she comprehended her words and paled.
"Oh, sweetie, no!" Ellie said quickly, pushing herself out of Craig's lap and taking a step towards the bed, "Craig's allowed to sleep with whoever he likes and he knows it." As soon as the words left her mouth she regretted them, realising how odd that must sound. Though, to be fair, their relationship was pretty damn odd no matter how you put it.
"So.. you're not his girlfriend?" Maya asked in a soft voice.
"That's a surprisingly difficult question to answer," Ellie smiled weakly, "I'm Ellie, Ellie Nash. Mind if I sit?"
She waited until the girl nodded before sitting down on the comfortable mattress, "Maya Matlin. Though I guess you know that?" The uncertainty in the girl's body language made Ellie want to reach out and hold her tight, but Maya's gaze was focused behind her, "Craig? Where are you going?"
Ellie's gaze shifted up and she spotted Craig standing with his hand on the doorknob, "You asshole!" she snapped, though she lowered her voice when she noticed Maya had flinched, "Get back here, don't be a shit-head."
He hesitated before moving back over to the bed, and Ellie resisted the urge to reach out and take his hand. Instead she turned her attention to Maya, "I know this is going to be tough, but you're gonna need to talk about the problems you're having."
"I'm not-I'm better," Maya objected, and Ellie just smiled calmly.
"I've been in your position too many times to count," she whispered, "saying you're fine doesn't make it true."
Maya's shoulders slumped and she nodded, leaning into Craig's touch as he placed a hand on her shoulder, "Fine, okay, let's talk."