I just learned how to italicize- I think. So I hope it works.
Bad thing after bad thing after bad thing keep happening to Ellie. I don't want to make her seem to fidgety or weak, because we all know Marco's the real shy, low-self-esteemed one. But it's important to the plot.
Thanks to- TeenageStarlet (thanks, I'm trying to stay really true to the characters), Kenshins'sluver51593 (I try to update daily or every other), Val-Creative (Wow, I know you! I mean, I read your stuff before you reviewed my story. Thanks!), PsYcHoJo (Love your name. Thanks), and HittingtheHighC (I beg to differ. Marco is MINE! Actually, I think him and Dylan are adorable together. Thanks for reading-your bio is crazy!).
Also thanks to people who reviewed earlier chapters who I haven't thanked yet.
Chapter four; Stay with me
Noon found Ashley, Ellie, and Marco piled onto a couch in the living room, watching some random movie that Ashley had brought over. Marco had opted to get dressed, a choice that cause Ellie to mutter 'smart move.' His parents had both left for work soon after Ellie had arrived, smiling widely at her.
"You two back together, no?" Mr. Del Rosi had pried.
"Paaa," Marco had whined.
"No, Mr. Del Rosi, we're not. Marco's just my friend."
"Uh huh," he father had mumbled and winked, before leaving.
"I'm hungry," Ashley announced suddenly.
"So am I," Ellie admitted. Marco nodded.
"Well, I can't have my two girls going hungry can I?" he joked and jumped from the couch, walking into the kitchen. "Pasta okay?" he called over his shoulder.
"Sounds great," Ellie called back.
'His two girls?' Ashley mouthed to her. They erupted into giggles.
"Us two, and Jimmy, are the closest friends he have. At least he's watching out for us- and our stomachs," Ellie said mildly.
"Yeah, but you two are closest, aren't you?" Ashley said, nudging her.
"Ash! I got over that a long time ago, you know that," Ellie snapped.
"Maybe you got over him, but I don't think you got over it," Ashley said. Ellie frowned, but didn't answer.
"What are we talking about?" Marco asked, coming up behind them. Ellie jumped and Ashley grinned.
"Oh nothing," she smiled mysteriously. Marco stared at her curiously, before glancing at Ellie, who rolled her eyes, as if to say 'don't ask.' He didn't.
"Pasta should be ready in about fifteen," Marco told them, sliding in between them on the couch.
"I didn't know you could cook Marco," Ashley said, nudging him. He blushed.
"I've been helping my ma since I was little," he protested mildly.
"Uh huh. Or maybe you just have a secret passion for cooking widely exotic Italian food-"
"Oh shut up!" Ellie and Ashley cracked up, glancing at his bright red face.
"I think we've hit a nerve," Ellie deadpanned. Ashley giggled and hit his knee, causing him to double over in mock pain.
"Definitely hit a nerve," he deadpanned.
Later that afternoon, Ashley left, mumbling something about having to be home for a family dinner. Marco nodded understandably, but Ellie snorted and rolled her eyes.
"Consider your self lucky," she growled, before stomping back into his house. He shared a surprised look with Ashley over her sudden mood swing, but all he got was a shrug and a wave goodbye.
"El?" He asked, wondering back into his house. She was sitting awkwardly on his couch, eyes glued to the floor. The was a silence before-
"It's not that I'm upset at Ash for not getting it," she said, still staring at the ground. He waited, but she didn't continue.
"It's that you wish you could have the same thing she does," Marco finished for her.
"Well- yeah," she said, looking up at him. "She doesn't get that though. You do." He nodded. He did know. Sometimes he became upset with Dylan because he would complain about his family asking him about their dates, but Marco felt he was lucky his parents even accepted his homosexuality. Marco couldn't imagine how his parents would react if they ever found out.
"You want me to walk you home?" he asked compassionately.
"You trying to get rid of me?" she joked, and then ran laughing from the house, him chasing her and managing to catch her around the waist and hug her tightly before she was off again like a rocket. He laughed and chased her home.
He hadn't been to her house often. Even including the weekend before, he'd only been three or four times. Odd, for best friends, he thought. But he had seen her mother passed out on the couch, the way she looked longingly at the pictured of her father, the surprised looks she sent other families, who seemed so much more stable than hers. Somehow, he couldn't blame her.
"I can take it from here," she whispered when they reached a side door leading into her kitchen.
"Yeah," he said graciously. She stared at him for a second.
"Is your family- anything like mine? Is anyone's? There has to be something broken about every family, doesn't there?" She seemed almost desperate to hear him reassure her that her family was normal.
"I-I- Ellie, I'm not going to lie to you. My family is much better off than yours. I wish it wasn't that way, but...it is. It's one of the reason's I'm so reluctant to tell them about Dylan and I. I don't want to break my family."
"Dammit Marco!" she shouted suddenly, whirling around and rushing inside, slamming the door in his face. He stood there in shock. But he understood.
Inside the shadowy kitchen, Ellie leaned heavily against the door, breathing deeply, tears coursing down her cheeks. Her mother stumbled into the kitchen, clearly drunk.
"You woke me up," she slurred, lurching unsteadily towards her. She stiffened. "You woke me up you brat. Woke-ed me up when I was having a nice dream-"
"Mom, let's get you back to bed," Ellie said calmly, though tears coursed down her cheeks still.
"You've cause me nothing but pain little girl," she slurred, pitching forward and putting her hands on either side of Ellie, so that she was trapped against the door. "Your daddy always wanted little kids, but the bastard was never going to be around to raise them. Nu-uh, I knew that work of his would come first, I didn't want no baby to raise myself, I didn't even want kids. Just wanted the big military man and I, all together alone. But no!" Ellie was shaking. She had never heard her mother speak like this before. But the worst thing was that everything she said felt true.
"You weren't planned, no you weren't. Uh huh! He wasn't even here when I realized, nope, had to go to the doctor myself and he yelled at me for not realizing sooner. 'She's too small for six months in' he told me, yelled at me and then made me have lots of check-ups, like I could afford that. He wasn't even here when you were born did you know that? Wasn't even hear, left poor Elaine to have the baby all by herself, no man to hold my hand, uh uh." She gazed blearily at her through half lowered lids.
"Little pain you were- still are. Have to talk to your school all the time, you go and do stupid things. Suicide attempts, self harm, skipping class- what kinda daughter are you anyway? I could have at least had a good child that I would have learned to enjoy but no- I got you. Fickle as a baby, fickle as a kid, messed up as a teenager- nope, not no daughter of mine! You've caused me nothing but misery, little girl!" Tears were coursing harder than ever down Ellie's cheeks as her mother grabbed her shoulders and began to shake her furiously, fingers digging into her shoulders, ripping the fishnet fabric and tearing at her skin.
"Don't even think you're your daddy's child, nu-uh. Think it was some other guy, daddy'd been away so long. Yep, you don't look like us, no sir-ie. Doesn't know that, he doesn't, of course. Nope, not your daddy's kid. Not mine, I don't want ya!"
"Maybe I'll just leave, get on with my life, find myself a good husband and raise some good kids. You just leave now- don't need you! Go on get out'a my house! Get!" Ellie reached back behind her frantically, scrambling for the door handle. She turned it swiftly and nearly fell back, her mother's fingernails, previously buried in her shoulders, ripping at her skin. Tears coursed down her cheeks and she turned and ran blindly.
She didn't know where she was going. She didn't even know where she was. All she knew was that she was running, running from everything she'd ever known and it hurt more than anything she'd ever done before.
Marco had left dejectedly after Ellie had screamed at him, not even hearing the muffled cries inside the house. Instead he had concentrated on his stupidity and heard only the voice of his berating conscious. He hadn't even heard the pounding shoes behind him, the heavy breathing, the sniffled cries, until the person making them had ran directly into him, knocking both of them over.
"Ellie?"
"Marco?"
"Ellie! What happened? Did I do that?" Marco shifted into Indian position and realized she was crying. He pulled her towards him and held her close examining the marks on her shoulder which definitely not from colliding with him.
They looked like fingernail marks.
"I- I can't go home tonight," she said softly, calming down remarkably fast. "I uh- I guess I'll go to a hotel or something. But- uh- Marco? Could I borrow some money?" He stared at her.
"Stay with me," he said softly.
"You?"
"Yeah," he said, slightly hurt at her incredulous tone. "What, you wanna stay with Ash? 'Cause if you do I'm fine-"
"Oh, Marco- I couldn't impose- I-"
"Please," he said softly. "Impose." She smiled wetly.
"Marco, I couldn't do that. I just couldn't. Please don't try to tempt me into it..."
"Ellie- what happened?" Marco asked, ignoring her protests.
"It's- nothing. My mother was just- you know. As usual."
"Your mother-"Marco gasped incredulously. Ellie slapped a hand over his mouth.
"A little louder Marco, I don't think Sean heard you," she snapped. Sean lived on the opposite side of town. He frowned at her.
"El- this is serious. Your mother's- problems shouldn't cause you to be- Ellie, please- just don't-" He was starting to get choked up again.
"Marco- you have your own problems without me adding mine on," she said in her typical calm way. "Don't take it upon yourself to be my protector."
"Ellie!" He snapped suddenly. "I love you, okay? You're my best friend and I'm not going to let your own pride hurt you. I will always try to protect you, because I'm your friend! Now, please, let me- let me- let me help you..." he said brokenly.
"Oh Marco," she leaned into him and buried her face in his chest. "Please help me." He held her close for a moment before standing slowly and helping her to her feet. They started on their way home.
As they arrived at his house, he came in the side door, the one leading into his kitchen. His mother was standing at the oven, slowly stirring a large pot of pasta.
"There you are Marco," she said in her thick accent without turning around. "I was wondering where you were. What took so lon- L'OH mio!" She caught sight of Ellie. "Che cosa è accaduto mai qui, Marco che cosa è accaduto a questa ragazza? Raffaello!" (1)
Ellie stared in bewilderment as Marco's father came blundering into the room, attracted by his mother's Italian. She drew back swiftly when he made a loud noise and reached quickly for her to examine the damage.
"Pa!" Marco scolded, stepping in front of her. "Don't touch! She uh- can't go home tonight."
"Someone at home did that?" his father said pointedly.
"Raffaello! You and your big mouth!"
"I do not have a big mouth, look at you big mouth, I must know what's going on, you can't just expect me to take her in no question-"
"My big mouth, your mouth got big through my good food, eh? You take her in, you ask later, she need help, not screaming, she WILL stay!" The kitchen fell silent.
"Approvazione, approvazione!" (2) Ellie shot Marco a glance.
"Is that a good thing?"
"Yeah," he whispered. "Ma always wins. She rules this household."
"Oh, Marco, you flatter your mama, no?" Marco smiled forcefully.
"Of course ma. I'm just going to go help El clean out her scratches, k?"
"Yes, yes, I help!" Marco smiled comfortingly at Ellie, who looked slightly bewildered.
"Sure, Ma," he told her knowing she would anyway.
"You stay down here, cook dinner. Can't afford to have it burn with company, no? You good at cooking." Marco blushed.
"Maaa!"
"What, it something to be proud of, come on Ellie dear," she said, herding Ellie up the stairs. Marco nodded and sighed through his nose.
"No one tells me anything around here. What is Raffaello supposed to do, huh? Sit around with strange girl in house...humph," his father mumbled, walking from the kitchen. He stuck his head back inside.
"Your girlfriend, she going to be here for long?"
"She's not my girlfriend! She's my best friend, Pa! She's dating Sean Cameron anyway," he said, with an eye roll.
"Uh huh. Maybe I call her parents- see what they doing to their child. No respect for family at all these days, none-" It didn't occur to Marco to stop his father. Instead, he went gloomily back to stirring the sauce until it thickened. What a lousy end to what would have been a perfect day.
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(1) This translates roughly from Italian into- "Oh my! What ever has happened here, Marco what has happened to this girl? Raffaello!" I have no idea what his father's name is, so now it's Raffaello. And let's just say his parents speak Italian when they get upset.
(2) Means "Okay, Okay!"