Rough Times

Cutting was Ellie's release. Her addiction. How can she possibly stop by herself? And who will be there to stop her and help her back to being happy? Right after she moves in with Sean, she's definitely slowed down, but she can't quite stop.

Sean's POV

I knock on the door to the small bathroom in mine and Ellie's apartment. She had been in there for almost an hour. "El," I call to her through the door, knocking lightly again. I go to push open the door, but it seems as though she's sitting in front of it. "El, come on, you gotta answer me," I say. I hear her crying through the door. "Ellie, please, just open the damn door," I say lightly. I can hear her shuffle around behind the closed door before opening it.

The bathroom seems clear to my eyes, but Ellie's make up is running and she is covering up a certain spot on her left arm. "Ellie, what happened?" I ask, moving towards her gently.

Tears spring from her eyes again. "Ellie, talk to me… please…" I say kindly, putting a hand on her upper arm. She shies a way slightly. "Ellie, baby, come on, tell me what's wrong?"

She lifts her sleeve to her elbow. There is a fresh cut, still bleeding right below her shirt. "Oh, Ellie," I say, grabbing her other arm and pulling her into my arms. "El, it's ok," I whisper in her ear. "Just talk to me, I can help," I say gently.

Ellie just cries, burying her head into my shoulder. It doesn't seem like she can say anything, that or she doesn't want to. I keep her in my arms. I can't let her go, and I wouldn't even if I could. "It's ok, Ellie. I'm here," I say sweetly.

She pulls away from me slightly. "I-I-I-I'm sorry… I didn't mean to, I just got really upset… I didn't know how to let go. I-I'm so sorry…" she cries into my shoulder.

"El, it's ok, El. I'm here," I whisper into her ear over and over. She finally pulls all the way away. "I'm sorry, Ellie. I should have been there," I say.

Ellie shakes her head. "You were here for me. I just didn't know how to tell you what was wrong," she tells me lightly. I put a hand on her cheek.

I kiss her gently. "Baby, no matter what it is, you can always come to me. I'll be here for you no matter what. I'll always be here," I say as I pull away slightly. She smiles half heartedly. I couldn't help but see the hurt in her eyes. "Hey, El. You know I'm here for you, day and night."

Ellie hugs me tight. "I love you, Sean," she says. I place my arms around her waist.

"I love you, too, Ellie," I say lightly, kissing her cheek gently. "Come on, let's get you a band-aid," I say, pulling away slightly. I lead her out to the living room, setting her down on the couch. "I'll be right back, ok?" Ellie nods. I walk over to the kitchen, searching through the junk drawer next to the sink and pulling out a pack of band aids. I walk back to her on the couch, sitting close next to her. I pick up her arm with the cut on it. I pick a band aid from the box, placing it carefully on her cut before trailing my fingers down her arm. She looks at me at my fingers continue down her forearm, across her old scars. I want her to know that I understand that it's part of who she is. That I accept that fact and that I love her despite of it. I finally reach the end of her arm, interlacing my fingers with hers. "Anytime you need me, I'm here for you. Anything you need, I'm here," I tell her.

Ellie's eyes are swimming with tears again. She kisses my cheek lightly, almost like it didn't happen. "Sean, I'm so sorry," she says again. "I should have come to you," she says.

I looked down at her. "Anything you need, that's what I'm here for," I tell her.

Ellie smiles, then puts her head on my shoulder and falling asleep quickly afterwards. I just sit there, stroking her hand gently with my thumb. Soon enough, I'm drifting off to sleep alongside her.

"Sean," I hear Ellie whisper as she shakes me slightly. I turn my head slightly, opening my eyes half way, looking up at her calm features.

"El, what is it?" I ask drearily. She just smiles and kisses me in that special way. That way that only Ellie had ever kissed me.

Emma had never even thought about it, I don't think. She had always been paying attention to something or someone else. It pissed me off constantly, I couldn't stand it. But it was different with Ellie. Whenever I was with Ellie, Ellie was paying attention to me, and only me. There was never anyone else when we were alone. That was where her kisses differed from Emma's. Emma's kisses were always reserved, held back because her friends didn't "approve" of me, so I was never really accepted by her. When it came to Ellie, her kisses where never held back, never reserved. She was mine and she had no problem letting me know. And she knew I was hers, forever and always. She pulls back about a centimeter after over a minute of serious kissing. "I love you," she whispers as she puts a delicate hand on my cheek. That was almost always her signature after a kiss, those dainty fingertips trailing down my cheek, leaving soft, tingling trails on my cheek, which usually made me draw her into a second kiss. And that's exactly what I do. I pulled her down by the back of her neck.

"Is this what you woke me up for?" I ask when she pulls away a slight bit again, her fingertips now resting lightly on my chin. She blushes, but nods. "Cool," I say with a smirk.

"What?" she asks.

"Well, if I woke up like this everyday, I'd be a much happier guy," I say with a smile, "but then again, I already wake up to see you every morning, so I can't be much happier," I finish.

"You are such a flatterer," she accuses with a smile in her eyes. I smile, kissing her again just because I can.

I pull away a bit again. "Guilty as charged," I admit with pride. "We should probably get ready for school," I suggest as I look at the alarm clock.

"Probably," Ellie agrees before kissing my cheek and standing up to head to the bedroom. I stay seated on the couch while I wait for her to vacate the bedroom so I can get changed for the day, even though it won't be much different than any other day. Just a muscle shirt, sweatshirt, jeans, my beanie, and sneakers, as always. Ellie walks back out of the room a little later. She's looking amazing today, as always, only just a little bit more. She's looking hot. A tank top with a shoulder-less fishnet top underneath to cover her arms, a little, black mini skirt, fishnet stockings to match her shirt, and her favorite boots.

"God damn…" I mutter. Ellie smiles, knowing exactly what I'm commenting on. I stand up, walking right towards her. I let my fingertips set lightly on her waist. I kiss her cheek gently before walking past her to go into the bedroom to get changed myself. I reemerge a few minutes later, fully dressed. "Ready to go, El?" I ask. She nods and we head out.

Ellie smiles at me. "Hey, thank you," she says out of the blue. I give her a questioning look. "For everything. Letting me move in, helping me with my… problem, and for everything else you do for me."

I couldn't help but smile. "Hey, it's what I'm here for. I'm always here for you. I love you Ellie," I say, putting an arm around her shoulders.

"I love you, too, Sean. You are the best thing that's ever happened to me."

"Hey, you're great. And I'll always love you. You are my life," I say, kissing her cheek again and we continued walking towards the school, walking into the rest of our lives.

So, there we are. My newest oneshot. So, R&R, if you could. Tell me what you think about my latest story. I love feedback. Thank you to everyone who has followed my Sellie fictions. I love getting your support. Until my next story is out, thank you again.