BAD GUY

character name: Elios Alava age & birthday: 25, January 15th 1997 gender & pronouns: Cis man, He/Him place of birth & time in Fallbrook: Born & raised in Fallbrook occupation: Emergency Room Resident faceclaim: Jacob Elordi secret: Abused by his step-father CHARACTER’S BIOGRAPHY TWs: abuse, injury, stitches, trauma

On cue, Milo picked up the shuffling of feet upstairs. Emmi’s room was overhead, right on top of where they were standing. They weren’t being very subtle up there and it surprised Milo that he missed all the noise at first. “Hmm.” He was hearing impaired, but it challenged him to pay better attention to his surroundings and he usually didn’t miss things. He shook this one off; his mind was cluttered lately and he hadn’t expected Elio to be at his childhood home so it threw him off. His eyes moved back to Elio. Milo had no reason to stay there too long, but now he knew that Jude was upstairs and he wanted to talk to her about a book she suggested. He could text her later, but he liked seeing how excited she got when she talked about reading. His thoughts moved back and forth through a plethora of possibilities in just seconds. He was putting the pieces together, like how Elio was always by himself like him. He heard the man had a hard time recently and Milo could understand what it felt like going through hard things alone. That’s what pushed him to ask. “If you’re done, there’s an old Nintendo 64 in the living room. I haven’t played Mario Kart in a while.”

...

Elio had only been at the house to do a few things Mr. Valentine wanted him to do which in the back of his head always questioned why he didn’t ask one of the millions of sons he had but he also welcomed the distractions on his days off. If he didn’t have this he probably would have just stayed at home and did absolutely nothing which wasn’t something he’d ever admit out loud. He turned his head towards the noise coming from the top of the stairs and wondered if Emmi acted the same way around food and such around her friends like she had him. He turned his head back towards Milo when he mentioned how if he was done the both of them could play Mario Kart. “You guys still have a Nintendo 64?” He asked with a bit of a breathless chuckle, nodding his head. “Yeah, uh... I could play a few rounds if you want to get your ass kicked.” He mused.

The smiled that spread across the blonde’s face was genuine this time. “Promise?” She didn’t mean to sound this insanely hopeful about making a day out of it, and her eyes went a little wide. “Sorry.” She reached her fingertips to her mouth as she giggled in embarrassment. “I just—work,” And life. “Has been a lot lately so it’d be super nice to take a day to relax and have some fun.” She was already making plans, “We can shop around for Damien as soon as we get there and maybe we can make it to a movie! Oh! Or maybe go to the aquarium! Or go-karting! Hm. Maybe not that one, it’s getting really hot out so indoors would be nice. Unless you want to go for a hike to the hot springs! Oh, I don’t know. How about you pick?” That was when Emmi realized she was rambling and stopped. What was she even doing? Everything felt weird around Elio. Not in that new-crush way or fluttery feeling that came when seeing someone she found attractive. No, she actually hadn’t felt anything remotely close to that in so long. She shouldn’t be so dumb and trusting. What she felt when she looked at him went past curiosity because she couldn’t really be curious about someone she’d practically grown up with, could she? She hated having to classify things, preferring for them to already come labeled. 

What she felt towards Elio was something between unsure and hesitant. She didn’t know him, not really. She didn’t know what his game was or if he had one, she didn’t know why Leyla and him split, she didn’t know if he was a good guy or not. She didn’t know if he was kind or if he tipped well because he wanted to make a server’s day or because he liked other’s seeing that he could spare some cash. What were his motivators in life? Emmi had been hurt by too any people to allow anyone into her life this easily. Why was he always around? Did he want a friend? Did he like her? She felt insane thinking about all of this, but anyone who’d been through her same trauma would do the same. She was sure of it… hm, okay, so that’ was what her therapist said. “On second thought, I guess it’s not really a secret.” But she didn’t elaborate and she hoped he would drop it because she was thinking with her head instead of her heart again. Emmi reached for the drink she ordered and waited as he grabbed some food. “There’s a bench over there! Or if you’re busy I can just go now. Want my number? For tomorrow.” She explained. 

...

"Yeah," he nodded, extending his arm put towards her and sticking his pinkie out. "Pinkie swear." As soon as the words left his mouth, he wondered how cheesy she would think that was or if she would even like it. Truthfully, he didn't think someone could make him this nervous and he couldn't fully understand the why behind  it. It wasn't as if they hadn't been spending time together when he came over to do the jobs that her father asked of him, more than likely taking pity on him because he actually looked forward to each task provided since it gave him an insight to what a normal functioning and happy family looked like. He pulled his hand back afterwards and slipped into his pocket as he stood in line, keeping his eyes solely focused on her as she listed ideas of what she wanted to do while they were shopping for Damien's birthday gift. "Indoors would be nice, I'm not a big fan of the heat." He breathed out a little chuckle as he turned his head to see the line move up, taking a step forward. He decided not to push her taking back the secret comment because he knew what it felt like, to be internally dealing with something and not needing someone to be in your business yet he couldn't help but wonder what her big secret was even though he had ideas... he grabbed the food and took a step to her, glancing over towards the bench. "I can sit with you if you're okay with me eating." He said as he tilted his head to look down at her. "Yeah, that seems like a good idea." Only because of tomorrow, right?

Elio spent a lot of time observing. It was his go-to thing when he was a child because he wanted to know how many people  suffered in silence as he had. He picked up on tales that told him whether someone was lie or not, there was a slight crease in between her eyebrows that had him questioning her being genuinely considering his offer. Her signature smile came across her features and he wondered if that was her move, the move that told everyone she was fine. Her way of masking the world from the pain she carried. He never compared situations, everyone dealt with their lives differently and he considered the pressures of being the only girl in her family, the overprotective brothers and the fact her family was deemed as perfect to the world. He knew it was practically perfect behind closed doors too but it also made him think about how much each of them were suffering in silence. He blinked a few times, not realizing her suggestion at a sugary drink was said out loud because he had been so focused on observing her, every detail of her face. He also realized he had spent that entire time staring  hell practically gawking. He cleared his throat, nodding his head. “Yeah, that works.” He stood in line, glancing over as she tugged on his sleeve. He took the hint and bent down slightly to be more on her level. If it had been before the sailing competition he never would have known who she was talking about but Damien’s case was something he had followed closely. It was cute, her rambling and the needing to explain herself about why on earth she was asking him when he was sure any person in town would drop everything they were doing to help her. “It’s okay, I can do it. I’m off tomorrow so we can leave early, maybe make a day of it.” Why did that leave his mouth? Spending a whole day with someone was deemed little miss perfect. Why did it make his chest flutter at the thought of being with her for a whole day? “And I’m a good secret keeper.” It wasn’t a lie. Despite the fact the rumor mill went on about his step-father he still kept his drunken rage a secret even to this day which was why Elio was good at knowing when someone was lying. He spent his whole life doing it.

Elio took a few steps off the ladder, wiping his hands together as he let his eyes focus on Milo. Truthfully, the last thing he wanted to do was drag Emmi into something so soon after Leyla. He had been ready to spend the rest of his life with the Osman woman and he knew the one thing he shouldn’t do was jump into a new relationship even if the blonde was someone who lightened up his day. But he also knew that Emmi had her own demons to deal with and the last thing he wanted to do was put her in something she wasn’t ready for. It was a big mess. And messes weren’t something Elio was good at containing. He brushed his tongue along his lower lip as he tilted his head up towards the ceiling. He wasn’t really sure why Mr. Valentine always asked him to do the stuff around the house especially with all the sons he had. “Only by a few minutes.” He said as he turned his head to look back at Milo. “No, Emmi’s upstairs with those two girls she hangs out with… Uh, Fawn and Jude. I think.”