Title: What's Wrong?
Author: SneetchesToo
Rating: Teen
Pairing: Ethan/Rox
Summary: Roxane knew something was wrong when Ethan hadn't crawled into bed with her last night. She just had no idea how bad.
Author's Note: Ugh, another angsty, downward spiral for these two.
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After Ariel's attack things had been heading in a downward spiral.
The teen had become quiet and distant, withdrawing from the few friends she had and ever so slowly shutting out her entire family.
She fought with Leanne constantly and Rox hated watching the two of them go back and forth.
And while she didn't fight nearly as much with her and Ethan, she definitely wasn't the normal chatty and lovable girl they had been dealing with.
Instead she was broken and angry and Rox had tried her hardest to get through to her.
But nothing had seemed to work.
Not talking to her. Not spending late nights with the girl tucked against her side. Not dinner dates or pedicures or donut runs.
Nothing was working and it was slowly starting to drive a wedge between her relationship with the teen.
And her relationship with her father.
Ethan had been a wreck since the whole thing took place and it was slowly tearing them apart.
He had shut her out and every day was worse than the last.
"Ethan..." She called his name softly as she made her way downstairs and into the kitchen.
He had worked a 72 hour shift and hadn't said a word to her since he had left Monday morning.
It was breaking her heart watching her family fall apart at the seams.
"What?" He growled out.
"What's wrong?" She just wanted him to let her back in.
They had been doing good before everything with Ariel had happened.
They had actually started to let each other in.
Now it seemed like all they did was fight and it was draining.
"Nothings wrong." He snapped.
She could see the way his shoulders tensed up and he gripped his hand against the kitchen counter.
"Obviously something's wrong, you've been in a shitty mood for two weeks straight." She knew that he was under a lot of pressure. That work and Ariel and her weren't easy things to deal with. "Did I do something?"
"No." He didn't bother to turn around and face her as he spoke and it made her even more angry.
She hated it when he did that.
"Ethan..." She didn't understand why he was taking his frustration out on her though.
He always tried really hard not to do that.
"Why can't you just leave it alone Rox? Jesus Christ." He whipped around and glared at her, his eyes dark and angry and his face was turning red. "Sometimes people have bad days, let it go."
"I'm just trying to help." She whispered as tears filled her eyes.
She had been doing nothing but try to be supportive these past few weeks and it was back firing on her.
"Well stop." He whispered back.
She could see the pain in his eyes.
Something was going on with him and it was more than just being concerned about his daughter.
"What's wrong with you? What's gotten into you?" She cried out. "You've been a jerk for the past two weeks and you seem to be taking it out on me and I don't know why."
"Maybe because you won't leave me the fuck alone!" He shouted, his hand swinging out in front of him as he stepped forward.
She felt a sense of panic take over in that moment.
One of absolute fear and terror.
She didn't think he would ever hit her, but in that moment, she wasn't so sure.
"You wanna be left alone?" She felt the tears roll down her cheeks and she took a deep breath as she shouted back at him. "Fine! Be alone! I'm done dealing with your bullshit!"
And with that she stormed upstairs, grabbed her duffle bag, and threw in some clothes.
And before she could even wrap her head around what was happening she was in her car and on her way to Emo's.
When she arrived at Emo's the woman was sitting on the front porch, a cup of coffee in one hand and a book in the other.
She exited the vehicle slowly, grabbing her bag from the passenger seat as she went.
She stopped at the bottom of the stairs and offered the woman a soft look.
"Emo…" She knew that she must look like a mess with her tear stained face, still clad in her pajamas from the night before.
"What are you doing here Roxane?" She asked softly.
"I need a place to stay." She whispered.
She hated saying those words out loud.
She had a place to stay, her home.
Her home with Ethan.
"I thought you were living with Ethan." She let out a sigh.
So did she.
"Yeah, well, now I'm not." She shrugged her shoulders as she tried to wrap her head around what was happening.
"Did you two break up or something?" Emo set her book down as she gestured for Rox to come closer.
"He wants to be a jerk and mope around and treat me like dirt for no reason." She knew that he was worried about Ariel and that he had a lot on his mind, but this was a little ridiculous. They were supposed to be able to talk to each other about these things. "Then he said it's because I wouldn't leave him alone. So guess what, I'm leaving him the hell alone from now on."
"Roxane..." Emo dragged out her name, just like she used to do to her when she was a kid, and she knew that she wasn't having any of it.
"No. Don't Roxane me." She hated it when Emo did that. "He's being an ass and I'm done with it."
"Obviously something's wrong." But she would never know what it was if he didn't let her in. "This doesn't sound like Ethan."
"Maybe this is who he really is." She said softly, her eyes filling with another round of tears. "I knew his true colors would show eventually."
"Roxane, stop." Emo meant business and it was killing her knowing how fucked up the whole thing was.
"What Emo? What do you want from me?" She practically shouted her questions at the woman and she instantly felt bad. "I'm not gonna let him treat me like this."
"Did you try talking to him?" Of course she had tried talking to him!
"Yes." But he wouldn't let her in.
She knew that they had struggled with letting each other in before, but now, now they shouldn't have any problems.
"And...?" She rolled her eyes at Emo's question.
"He blew me off." He wouldn't give her any indication as to why he was acting like this. "He's being an asshole and I don't understand why."
"Have you tried talking to his dad?" She had thought of that. "Maybe Martin knows what's going on."
"I haven't seen his dad in a few days." But the older man had been M.I.A. the past few days. "Something's going on with them both."
"What about his friends at work?" She let out a sigh.
Leanne could barely stand the sight of her.
She doubted that she would open up to her about what was plaguing Ethan.
If she knew herself.
It's not like they were on the best of terms right now either.
"What about them?" She whispered.
"Do you think they would know?" She doubted it.
He didn't talk to any of them really.
Other than Noa and Leanne he didn't seem to have a bond with any of them.
"What? You think he'd confide in them over his girlfriend?" She was pretty certain that he wouldn't, but she guessed there was a first time for everything.
"Maybe. I wouldn't take it personally." She did take it personally though because she had started trusting him and letting him in.
She didn't understand why all of a sudden he wanted out.
"Too late." She snapped, her hands going to her hips as she blinked her eyes.
"Don't say that." Emo said softly. "You love Ethan and he loves you. You know that."
"Do I?" She didn't know why, but now more than ever she questioned what their feelings were for each other.
Ethan certainly wasn't acting like he wanted any part of her.
"Yes Roxane, you do." Emo sounded defeated and Rox felt her heart flutter in her chest.
This is why she didn't want other people getting involved in her relationship.
She didn't want others to get let down by her inability to keep herself together.
"I…" She took a deep breath before stepping back a few steps, letting her back hit the post behind her. "I hate this."
She whispered out the three words just as Emo stepped forward and pulled her into her arms.
"I know honey." She whispered back, wrapping her up tight. "I know."
She choked out a sob as she wrapped her arms around the woman, her eyes closing as she reveled in the feeling of being tucked up safe.
She just wanted things to go back to normal.
She wanted Ethan back and she didn't want to wait.
She didn't know what was going on with him, but she needed to get answers sooner rather than later.
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