all great and precious things are lonely

LJ: if it makes you happy 😤

LJ: omg no?? don't fuckin judge me i usually live within walking distance of everything i need

LJ: i'm gonna wear a coat and those fuckin cool looking fingerless gloves

LJ: maybe a hat

LJ: booo that's so boring. heard u were in la tho?

LJ: oh?? sick!

LJ: no smh, i've made a significant dent in my emergency stash

LJ: but yea let's catch up fs

ELI: so angsty lmao i love it

ELI: omg u rly need to learn how to drive dude winter here is fucking brutal

ELI: i'll teach u smh. i'm an amazing driver

ELI: yeah briefly !! it was last minute !! wanted to hang with ivy on her bday and shit

ELI: well u can hmu if u need anything 😗💨

ELI WAS CLEARLY JUST PISSED. finn didn’t mind rocking the boat a little and going head to head when necessary, but with family and family friends like the st.james’ she put it off as a last resort. it wasn’t her place within the dynamic of this particular set of family friends. the angsty, brooding, aggressive ones were reserved for trace and eli, and sometimes even wren. finn’s place was peacemaker, and sometimes, like right now, that extended beyond her own siblings. “it wasn’t like that.” the elder repeated, tone even, though her grip on her counter top tightened. “and that didn’t happen? you’re smarter than believing that sad attempt at journalism.” there was a bit more force in her tone, but nothing outrageous. dropping her head, she cleared both her throat and tried to clear her thoughts. getting angry would only add fuel to the flame that was eli st.james. still the leo comment stung. yes it was true, no eli didn’t know that, but losing her practical, respectable job, over a stupid, drunken misstep and being ridiculed for it by eli who sold drugs for a living? it was humiliating. finn could move past it though. she could rid the frustration from her mind and start again calmly. “i’m not being condescending, i’m just trying to get you to think logically about this.” she explained, looking up from the counter. as eli stalked closer and let julien’s name fly out of her mouth, finn was noticeably more on edge. with one hand leaned on the counter and her other on her hip, she tilted her head before shaking it at the brunette, “no… no we’re not going to play this game.” she said firmly, only a hint of anger slipping past her carefully built barrier, “you don’t bring my family into this because you’re angry with me.” finn told eli, almost as a warning. though she wasn’t yelling or outwardly angry, she was tense, and this was about as tense finn usually got. “eli, did you ever think that me doing things for myself once in a blue moon has nothing to do with you or ivy?” she posed. finn could take a lot, she could internalize a lot, but she wasn’t going to get shoved around like this. averting her figurative glance from the moral high road, she flew low for a second in hopes of getting eli to back off and added, “and i don’t say this to be disrespectful, but i just really want you to think if you’re in any place to lecture me about morality, specifically when it comes to the topic of relationships.”

Maybe Eli was a little brazen, but she was also keen and observant. The way Finn tightened her grip on the counter at the mention of her alleged sexual encounter with Leo was definitely not lost on the brunette. Something for her to mull over later. “Sure it wasn’t,” Eli said, adjusting her crossed arms and straightening out her shoulders as she stared at Finn, “and you know, that sad attempt at journalism tells the truth half the time.” She was aware that JBI Jr. was a bullshitter through and through, but sometimes his sources were accurate. There were certain things the muck raker got right and the whole situation with Finn getting fired? It was fishy. Why would she be fired over a lie? It didn’t add up. But whatever, that wasn’t really the point of their argument. Finn’s even temper was unsurprisingly just making Eli more annoyed. “You are being condescending. You’re talking to me like I’m a child even though what I’m saying is fucking valid,” she insisted, shrugging her shoulders as she furrowed her eye brows and squinted her eyes. As far as Eli was concerned, she was being logical...and her logic was that friends should be loyal and that blood was thicker than water. At the mention of Julien, there was a hint of a spark. A little bit of anger. Finally some emotion. “It’s not a game, Finny,” Eli promised, voice full of contempt, “and it’s not like I said anything fucked up or untrue. All I’m saying is that maybe you should check on him.” She wasn’t going to say more because quite frankly? Not the issue at hand. Eli was a big girl and she’d take her problems with Julien up with him at a later date. Right now—her focus was getting Finn to admit that this situation was shady and fucked up. “You only doing things for yourself ‘once in a blue moon’ is literally no one’s fault but your own so don’t try to bring that up like it has anything to do with me. No one made you a martyr. But for the record—this? Is not that,” Eli huffed, cheeks reddening at her frustration. “So answer the question. Did you really not think that was going to be hurtful towards Ivy? Or did you just not care? Or,” Eli thought, adding another option once it dawned on her as an actual possibility, “did you straight up not think of her at all?” When Finn decided to throw a match into a canister of gasoline by bringing up Naomi and Brooks, Eli rolled her eyes and borderline laughed in her face. “Wow,” Eli drawled, shaking her head as she really took in the sight of Finn, “that situation was completely different and you know it. But you know what? I don’t remember you complaining when my keeping Naomi distracted meant that you got to have some uninterrupted quality time with Brooks. But please, continue to act so innocent.” They were veering off course. This conversation wasn’t about Eli’s fucked up high school relationship. It was about Finn’s lack of compassion or care for her little sister. “I don’t even care about all this shit. Whatever, maybe I don’t have morals or whatever. But don’t act like you do because you fucking don’t. Not if you really don’t think there’s anything wrong with what you did.” 

LJ: she can love both of us smh

LJ: i'm the better child tho

LJ: bro i didn't?? i fuckin sang sheryl crow and played guitar that's not exactly like mamma mia type shit

LJ: goodwin music lmao. it's in elida so i ride my bike like a half hour there every day

LJ: ur a fuckin drug dealer and it's same old?? bs what the fuck is up w u!

LJ: nah it's all good. i figured u were kinda still pissed @ me anyhow. forgive and forget.

ELI: hahaha doubtful

ELI: ok but what song tho ??

ELI: omg ur ass STILL doesn't have a license ?? lj.....pls. wtf r u gonna do when it gets mf cold ?!

ELI: hahahaha yeah but a dr*g deal*r in LIMA that sells mostly to high school kids smh the stakes are low dude. still living with my grandpas but like trying to get the fuck out, still wanting to kms at the lima bean on the daily. same shit.

ELI: yeah i was. but i've simmered i think

“I guess, but like, you didn’t have to,” she reiterated, kicking herself off the door frame as she made her way into the living room. Holding Eli’s hand in her own, albeit to direct her more than a romantic gesture, she felt the hairs on her arms stick up and that soft flutter in her stomach. Eli just knew how to do that to her. Every touch, every smile, every time Naomi would look into Eli’s big brown eyes, she would just feel like she was sinking into a room made only of silk. As she situated into the couch, pressing her back against one of the decor pillows as she skimmed the Netflix app. After pulling up the title, she turned her attention more towards Eli, placing her elbow on the back of the couch and she rested her head in her hand, really taking in Eli. She was gorgeous. Like, really gorgeous. “Really?” She asked with a smile. “I just really hoped you were enjoying yourself,” she started. “I know that having a wine and dine night in probably isn’t a usual Eli St. James date but I was just wanting to make sure you were having a good time because if you weren’t enjoying yourself I’d be okay if you wanted to leave,” Naomi was rambling as any nervous girl would be and she let out a sigh. Eli was enjoying herself and that’s all that mattered. When Eli tugged the remote out of her hand, she softly smiled and focused her gaze on the TV rather than the beautiful brunette who was sat next to her. The same brunette who she’d much rather focus on than watching Sleepless in Seattle. She enjoyed the movie, but it wasn’t like she’d get to see Eli while she watched the movie. “What? No,” she shook her head and looked back at Eli. Of course, Naomi wasn’t born yesterday and she knew a cue when she saw one; she noticed Eli’s eyes drifting to look at her lips and then back up to her eyes because Naomi was practically doing the same. “It is a really good movie but,” she scooted a bit closer to Eli, her eyes glancing to Eli’s lips. “If you have a better idea, I’m down,” she said, her eyes moving back to look into Eli’s eyes.

Eli stared at Naomi as she spoke and with each passing second, the moment felt more and more like a fantasy. This was so surreal. Had they ever been this close to each other without any obstacles? No boyfriends, no fear of coming out, no blaming it on the alcohol? No. They hadn’t. As their conversation continued and Naomi started to ramble, Eli found herself smiling dreamily. It was kind of crazy that after all this time, they still seemed to have such an effect on each other. “Not true,” she teased, gently nudging Naomi’s thigh with her hand, “wining and dining totally works on me.” She chuckled softly as their eyes locked, “and I promise I don’t want to leave.” Eli took control of the moment by starting the movie, but once she felt Naomi’s stare on her rather than on the TV, she stopped it just as quickly. Even though she was picking up on a vibe from Naomi, she needed confirmation. After everything that had happened with LJ and how she had kind of misread things, she wanted to be sure that what she was feeling and thinking was actually on par with what Naomi was feeling and thinking. This was their third encounter in the last month and all signs pointed to something brewing between them, but part of Eli feared that the old spark was fleeting and that things wouldn’t actually be the same if they dove in. There was really only one way to find out though, wasn’t there? When Naomi scooted closer and started allowing her gaze to flicker down to Eli’s lips, her cheeks got hot as that warm, familiar feeling started spreading through her body. “This movie is amazing but...” she echoed, scooting a bit closer to Naomi until their legs knocked into each other. If you have a better idea, I’m down. Eli nodded vaguely, her eyes finding Naomi’s. Eli felt her stomach starting to flutter and before she allowed herself to overthink too much, she tentatively brought a hand up to the side of Naomi’s face and felt her skin start to buzz from the contact. When Naomi didn’t flinch away from her touch, she smiled softly before closing the distance between their lips. Kissing Naomi didn’t feel like it did before, it felt better. There were no secrets, no lies, no guilt. Just them. Eli broke the kiss after a moment and opened her eyes to get a read on Naomi. There was so much she wanted to say and she was sure they would have plenty to talk about if they were really going to do this, but that could be dealt with later. All Eli wanted to do now was kiss her. So she did. Again and then again.

LJ: smh if he loves it don't fuckin tell him

LJ: omg what a fucking clown!!!

LJ: yea lmao she has like some weird love for mckinley idgi

LJ: bitch!! im not even a theater nerd i didn't even think i'd get cast

LJ: i have a real job now tho nothing exciting unfortunately lmao

LJ: u?

ELI: ur right he doesn't need a bigger head

ELI: i think maybe she just loves u and it's not about loving mckinley lmao

ELI: didn't think she'd get cast...essentially gets a lead...smh

ELI: no way ?! where tho ?!

ELI: i'm vibing ✨same old

STAGE MANAGING MAMMA MIA WAS KIND OF TAKING A LOT OUT OF HER. long had finn forgotten how demanding the mckinley theatre scene was and despite being far past her time there, she was happy to help with a summer show. naomi had enlightened her that trace of all people had some choice words about her participating in the production, which, whatever, at least she wasn’t working as a mechanic. mamma mia was a one time situation, had she not been fired from the station in the nature that she had, this probably wouldn’t have come about in the first place. point being, with show so close she was excited for it to all be over and done with. finn sat on her kitchen counter, carefully concentrating on artfully switching between flipping through her notes for the crew on their less than satisfactory scene changes and touching up a wedding shoot she had done a couple of weeks back. the knocks almost went unanswered until finn realized there had been knocks in the first place. setting her things aside, she hopped off the counter and hurried over to throw open the door. she was probably more surprised than she should’ve been, “eli…” she breathed out, brows furrowing at the brunette’s aggressive nature. eli couldn’t still be mad, could she? “right, yeah, of course, come in.” she held the door open wider for the eldest st.james to enter, then closed and locked it behind her. “naomi’s not here. i think she’s visiting with her mom, but i’m not sure.” finn explained, tensing at the… energy eli’s presence brought. “you’re welcome to stay though.” she followed after her and tried to get back to the work she left out in the kitchen. her eyes were glued to her laptop’s screen, but she could practically feel eli’s eyes on her. this was finn’s own fault for promising they could have it out back at home, but the last thing she wanted to do was argue. “eli…” the older girl sighed, looking from the screen and facing the other. “it wasn’t like that… i know you’re trying to protect ivy, but it was just a picture.” finn insisted, crossing her arms, “think with your head and not your heart.”

Eli watched from the doorway as Finn made her way back to the kitchen table where her laptop and notes were all strewn about. Once Finn explained that Naomi wasn’t home but that she was welcome to stay, she pulled her phone out and shot Naomi a “????” text before sighing and hopping on the kitchen counter. Eli put the food down next to her and watched as the now-blonde went about her business as if she wasn’t sitting there shooting daggers at her, so eventually the younger girl spoke up. Had she come in a little hot with the accusations about Finn and Leo? Maybe so. But they had been in each other’s lives long enough that Eli didn’t feel the need to hold back. “It wasn’t like that?” Eli deadpanned with a scoff, rolling her eyes slightly before she did a quick scan of Finn with her intuitive bullshit detector, “kinda like you getting fired from your literal job for fucking Leo at your place of work wasn’t like that, right?” Eli hadn’t forgotten about that little stint in the muck raker that had made her all the more suspicious of Finn’s relationship with Leo and she clearly wasn’t above bringing it up (even if it wasn’t true). She wasn’t trying to hurt Finn, but she was trying to get her to just admit that what she was doing was fucked up. The sage advice the older girl had doled out, unwarranted, only fed Eli’s rage. “Don’t be condescending,” she spat, shaking her head as she hopped off the counter and stalked towards Finn with her arms crossed. “But if you really want to give out cliche bad advice that I could probably locate on the shitty home decor at target, maybe start with Julien. Maybe you can tell him to think with his head and not his dick.” Once Eli got started, it was hard to get her to stop. Like both her parents, like her sister, there was a volcano that lived inside her always waiting to erupt. “I just—” Eli frustratedly pressed her palms into her temples as she tried to make sense of the situation and all of her anger towards Finn, “I don’t get where your loyalty is? Like...did you really not think that was going to be hurtful towards Ivy? Or did you just not care?”

LJ: nasty

LJ: did he like it?? big nyc actor boy??

LJ: ik ltrly so rude but i think i gave leo and miss c enough trouble as it fuckin was so i didn't push it

LJ: she was queer in my mind smh

LJ: aw haha that's sick tho, she invented being donna sheridan tho like tbh it rlly just fuckin felt like i way i playing my mom

ELI: ha !! he'll love that that's what he's known as

ELI: but he fell asleep smh. it was gr8 tho !!

ELI: as she should be

ELI: lmao that's sweet i'm sure she rly loved it

LJ: oh shit???

LJ: u were there ahaha

LJ: thanks man, im glad u thought it was fuckin cool

LJ: i got my ass busted too much for it to suck

ELI: lmao yeah trace dragged me smh

ELI: my only complaint is that they put u in those mf overalls and then didn't make ur donna queer? i rly had to suspend my disbelief there

ELI: so

ELI: wow

ELI: i have to admit i'm a little bit shocked

AT ELI’S COMMENTS, IVY FOUND HERSELF POUTING, BUT SHE ALREADY HAD A FEELING HER USUAL TRICKS WEREN’T GOING TO GET HER OUT OF THIS ONE. “eli, stop being mean.” she said, shrillness being replaced with straight up whining. “i’m not dumb i just…” she sighed, then slumped a little, “i think i really like him.” she admitted. with her sister being as brash as she was, ivy quickly caught on to the fact that eli saw right through the ‘it was an accident’ and ‘it’s not what it looked like’ type of comments. unfortunately, it seemed honesty would be the best way to go. “it wasn’t like i invited him over because i like thought things were going to end up there! i was just like feeling kind of down and he wasn’t busy and he came over then… yea.” ivy shrugged. just because she was being honest didn’t mean she’d stop playing partially innocent. the part where ivy had initiated by ‘offering to clean julien’s glasses’ could be omitted. still it seemed no matter what justifications or explanations ivy could provide eli still was kind of pissed off. that scared her most about this whole thing. eli’s angry posture and her fed up gaze had her feeling actually kind of ashamed of herself. wrestling with what probably would’ve happened had eli not arrived suddenly felt like a very heavy task. the elder raised good questions;had she forgotten how awful things were after emory? “well maybe it’s like worth it this time… since it’s like happened twice now?” she suggested weakly. the longer her and eli spoke the more apparent it became that once again all this behavior was yet another product of ivy being thoughtless. pouting slightly still, ivy brought her hand to gingerly touch her nose and she looked at eli, “you don’t think rory will break my nose, do you?” she asked before shaking off such a superficial concern, then addressing one of her real ones “look i know for like whatever reason you’re mad at me, but please promise me you won’t tell anyone. please.”

Eli’s eyes rolled back so far at Ivy’s comment that she briefly thought she permanently damaged her vision. “I’m not being mean,” she insisted, even though she kind of was, “I’m being real with you.” As her sister continued trying to explain herself, she shook her head in absolute disappointment and mindlessly moved her noodles around with the chopsticks, fidgeting until it was her turn to talk again. “You think you like him? Jesus,” she scoffed, staring at her in disbelief. The follow-up comment was somehow worse than all the bullshit Ivy had already spewed. “Oh come on,” E interjected, holding up a hand to cut her off, “what is this, like, the third time you guys have hooked up because you were left unsupervised? There’s no way you didn’t know this was going to happen." Eli finally ate some of the food she had been aggressively moving around and then, after clocking how dejected Ivy looked, held out the take-out container so her sister could help herself. It was an olive branch of sorts because the last thing she wanted was to create another rift in their relationship. But even with her heart in the right place, Eli was still Eli and she wouldn’t be her if she wasn’t brutally honest. “As if I would ever tell anyone. And I’m not mad at you,” she explained with a sigh, staring at Ivy until she met her gaze, “but I am like...concerned?” She swiftly hopped off the vanity and plopped on to Ivy’s bed, getting comfortable for what would likely be a long conversation. “You just got out of a relationship that came to like a really fucked-up and kind of traumatic end, dude. Also Julien is fully dating someone who, yeah, I think given the chance? Would definitely break your nose. Do you really think anything good is going to come from this?” At this point, some of Eli’s frustration at her sister’s carelessness had subsided and what was left was genuine worry for her wellbeing. She was old enough to know now that she could lead a horse to water but she couldn’t make it drink—but even equipped with that knowledge, she was still determined to do everything in her power to get Ivy to take her advice. To get her to protect her heart. 

WHO: @finnschuesters​ & @eli-stjames​ WHERE: finn’s apartment WHEN: wed, august 5, evening

After Eli’s date with Naomi at her and Finn’s apartment, it was safe to say that the brunette was posted up on cloud nine. After months of what felt like loss after loss, she finally felt like things were starting to fall into place again. Maybe this thing she had going on with Naomi could really be something good. Unsurprisingly after their date, they had made plans to see each other again almost immediately. This was how Eli found herself walking up the front steps of Naomi’s building on a Wednesday night with a bag of take-out in one hand and a little stuffed animal for Noa in the other (which Eli admittedly felt kind of dumb buying, but her soft side won out in that moment). She’d been texting Naomi to say she was close but still hadn’t heard back. She figured she was just inside with her daughter and not paying attention to her phone, so she let herself into the building and made her way up to the apartment without thinking anything of the silence. Once she reached the front door, she knocked a couple of times and looked around mindlessly, waiting to be let in. Eli’s face always gave away her emotions, so when it was FInn who opened the door, she didn’t even try to hide her disappointment or bubbling anger. “Hey,” she said curtly, taking a deep breath as she narrowed her eyes in on Finn, “is Naomi here? I have,” she lifted up the bag, “dinner or whatever.” Where was Naomi? Shit...maybe running late on her way back from work? Eli really hadn’t considered that option. “Are you gonna let me in or are we just gonna stand here staring at each other?” the brunette asked, raising a brow as she rolled her eyes slightly and pushed past Finn to set the food and stuffed animal on the kitchen counter. She tried to take a calming breath, but her inability to bite her tongue was getting the best of her. “So,” she started, crossing her arms as she leaned against the doorway and stared at her family friend who had turned out to be quite the traitor, “really cool pictures of Leo from Chicago, Finny. Definitely not questionable at all. Totally normal of you to post a picture of Ivy’s ex-boyfriend in bed like that.”

better late than never, contd, ( eli + ivy )

𝚆𝙷𝙾: @eli-stjames​ && @ivystjamess​ 𝚆𝙷𝙴𝙽:  friday, july 31, morning monday night, august the third 𝚆𝙷𝙴𝚁𝙴: ivy’s hotel room st.james residence, ivy’s room

IT WASN’T EXACTLY IDEAL FOR ELI TO WALK IN ON A SHIRTLESS IVY WHO WAS BOTH  STRADDLING AND MAKING OUT WITH JULIEN. she figured it had to be some kind of karma from years ago when ivy was the one walking in on eli in a similarly compromised position, but it would’ve been great if karma decided to do it’s thing at any time other than now. her big sister practically commanded julien to leave and once he did her room filled with silence. sure, there was small sounds that came with eli plopping down at ivy’s vanity and rustling with whatever food she had gotten all playing out against the background of chirping crickets outside, but other than that, there was silence between the two. ivy hugged her sides, legs hanging off her bed as she faced eli, “listen…” she started, thinking maybe she could absolve herself if she broke the ice. “i know that like … kind of looked bad but━”  with furrowed brows, ivy shook her head at eli, “why are you like looking at me like that?” she asked, shrillness in her tone increasing. “it wasn’t like it happened like … on purpose!”

There were few things Eli wanted to see less than her half-naked little sister mounting none other than Julien Schuester, but why would the universe ever take into account what she did or didn’t want? As she stood on the other side of Ivy’s bedroom door, hand tight around the knob as she whisper yelled at Julien to ‘get the fuck out,’ her brain was struggling to process what she’d just seen. How could Ivy be so stupid? Again? When Julien hastily exited Ivy’s room, Eli glared at him until he disappeared down the stairs and she heard the sound of their front door. She then huffed, gave Ivy a second to put her clothes back on, and then let herself in quietly. She headed straight for the vanity and sat atop its surface, silently pulling a box of noodles out of a plastic bag, grabbing chopsticks, and patiently starting to eat. She certainly wasn’t going to be the one to break the ice. That was on Ivy. The second her sister started explaining herself, Eli shot her a look that wordlessly communicated that she was not buying it. “Why am I looking at you like that?” she asked mockingly after she’d sucked up a noodle, “oh, I don’t know, maybe because you’re being like ridiculously dumb? Is that even a question?” Eli scoffed and shook her head at Ivy’s follow up. “Sure it wasn’t,” she said quickly, poking her food with the wooden sticks as her appetite left her. “Can I just ask you one thing?” she started, putting the take out container down next to her as she clasped her hands in her lap and leaned forward, “have you forgotten how bad you felt after everything went down with Emory? I don’t understand why you’re so quick to like...do this shit a second time around? Are you hoping to get another free nose job? What is it?” 

Why was Naomi so nervous? She knew Eli, pretty well, she’d like the think but it’s like everything was really settling in. They could be a real couple now, they didn’t have to sneak around anymore. Naomi was just scared that Noa could be a deciding factor in that. Eli seemed eager to meet Naomi’s daughter, but just because she wanted to didn’t mean it would go well. Maybe Eli would realize that it was too much commitment, that she’d not only be getting a girlfriend but that she’d get her girlfriend’s toddler included in the mix. It was a lot of responsibility to ask a nineteen year old to take on and Naomi wouldn’t do that, she understood it if Eli ever needed to take a step back. “No problem, I’m really happy you met her,” Naomi said with a genuine smile. “Food, yeah,” she nodded as she finished the cooking and grabbed a couple of bowls to put their food in. Dinner went by in a flash, it didn’t even seem like they had been at the table longer than a few minutes but those few minutes had actually been about an hour or so of eating, drinking, talking, and having a few good laughs. Once everyone was done, it was close to Noa’s bedtime so she got her out of her high chair and put her to bed. Naomi was lucky to have a toddler that enjoyed sleeping so it didn’t take long for her to lay Noa down in her bed. She head back out and into the kitchen, spotting Eli as she did the dishes. She rested her body against the door frame, her arms folded, feeling like this was how life was supposed to be years from now. Naomi putting the kids to bed, Eli cleaning up, and then they’d meet back together to drink wine and catch up with each other. Getting knocked out of her thoughts by Eli’s voice, she smiled. “Hey, you didn’t have to do that,” she said, mentioning the dishes. “No, that’s totally fine. Drink away,” she chuckled, picking up her glass that Eli had poured wine into. “I believe I do,” She responded, raising her eyebrows with a smile planted on her face. Using her free hand, she grabbed a hold of Eli’s and dragged her over to the couch. Once they were seated, she pulled up Netflix and searched ‘Sleepless in Seattle’ and before clicking play, she turned her head to Eli. “Are you having fun so far? I’m not boring you, am I?”

While Eli did the dishes, she could feel Naomi’s stare. From the corner of her eye, she noticed the blonde standing in the doorway, arms crossed, watching. It made her cheeks flush. Eventually Eli turned her head to get a better look at the girl, only to see her completely lost in thought. She welcomed the warm feeling spread through her and the smile that insisted on being displayed. “It was the least I could do. You cook, I clean,” she answered with a shrug, wiping her hands on a dish rag before she folded it back up and hung it on the oven handle. Once they both had freshly poured glasses, Eli let Naomi take her hand and lead her to the couch. Once they were seated, she took another sip of her wine before putting the glass down on the coffee table in front of her. Eli wasn’t drunk by any means, but she wasn’t sober either. They’d killed a bottle between the two of them and now they were on to the second. If it hadn’t been for the pasta, Eli would definitely be feeling a little more than just tipsy. She watched observantly at the way Naomi’s lips quirked up when she sat down and the way she squinted her eyes ever so slightly as she searched for Sleepless In Seattle on Netflix. She was so caught up in how pretty she was that she almost didn’t hear her question. “Boring me?” she retorted, meeting the girl’s eyes and smiling as she shook her head. “not at all. This has actually been like...really nice. I don’t remember the last time someone pulled out all the stops for me and like treated me this well so,” she scrunched up her nose slightly as she gently nudged Naomi’s leg with her fist, “thank you for this.” She then reached across her and playfully tugged the remote out of her hand, holding it up and pressing ‘play’ which triggered the opening credits of one of Eli’s favorite movies. She smiled at the sight of Meg Ryan and Tom Hanks, but abruptly paused the movie when something dawned on her. “Wait—” she said with a chuckle, turning her body slightly on the couch to face Naomi, “am I boring you?” As she turned to face her, Eli’s gaze drifted from her eyes to her cheeks to her lips and back up to her eyes and then back down again, “because we don’t have to watch this, I’ve seen it like a hundred times.” 

ELI LOOKED… SOOTHED. it made ivy grin. despite popular belief, under the right circumstances, eli could command and charm a room just as much as ivy could. her presence in her hotel room turned ivy’s entire perspective on the rest of the trip around. her sister was here now, and there was nothing she couldn’t face if she had eli at her side. it was the part of their relationship most people overlooked. for the most part, public opinion was that eli was ivy’s attack dog when it came down to it, but they spent most of their time bickering. that’s just how it was ever since childhood, but anyone who overlooked the love they had for each other would eventually come to find they were sorely mistaken. as the older of the pair took a seat and flicked through her room service options, ivy only partially prepared herself for the questions that were about to be thrown at her. she was mostly still in awe of eli’s sudden appearance. she really could do anything, huh? in eli’s absence in the shower, ivy hadn’t done much other than pull her hair up and change out of her slept-in clothes and into an oversized shirt. getting ready could wait just a little longer. in order, she began responding to eli’s questions, “nothing like happened that made me miserable i just like… was. like i thought i was gonna be spending my birthday with leo and not alone so i was just like totally out of it.” a sigh as she got to the next part of her recounting, “and yea i saw finn’s post. it like totally made me cry. and i literally just like laid here in the dark until julien showed up all like ‘i’ve been looking for you’ or whatever.” ivy slumped into the headboard, not entirely excited to reveal this next part to her sister, but they were entering a new chapter of honesty after all. if there was anyone to tell, it would be eli. “i guess he like stole daniel’s id so he went and bought me like alcohol and stuff as a birthday gift and then…” her gaze found the ceiling and an even deeper sigh than the last found it’s way out of ivy’s mouth, “and then we ended up like kind of making out in the stairwell? i don’t know. after that he like tried to kiss me again and i like sort of blew him off and got totally drunk and texted leo and then i like passed out here.” ivy tore her gaze from the ceiling as her rambling concluded and looked to eli as if she hadn’t just dropped a fair bit to unpack. “so how was your flight?”

Once Ivy started answering her questions, Eli’s attention was completely pulled from the menu she was casually flipping through in her lap. She turned to her little sister and watched with a keen eye as she outlined the events of her birthday celebration the night prior. Every time Ivy peeled back another layer of her story and revealed a new piece of information, Eli’s jaw hung lower and lower. She really did feel like sometimes the shit she said to Ivy went in one year and out the other. “You know,” Eli started, chuckling exasperatedly as she pinched the bridge of her nose and shook her head, “when I give you advice, I’m not doing it for me. You should really consider listening to me sometimes.” Eli dropped her hands and turned to give her sister a knowing glance—on that said ‘I know you, I see that this is a big deal, so you can stop acting like it’s not.’ She let out a sigh and pulled the towel off her head, letting her now damp hair fall past her shoulders as she gently shook it out. “Who gives a shit about my flight?” she scoffed in disbelief, tossing the wet towel away from them and on to a nearby chair, “what happened to protecting your heart?” Eli was trying to be somewhat lighthearted about the whole thing, but truthfully? She was worried. Ivy was acting kind of reckless and making stupid decisions and not in the fun kind of way. “This thing,” she started, waving her hand in front of Ivy’s face to get her to look her in the eye, “with Julien. Why would you do that to yourself again, Ivy? He completely blew you off last time and like...he’s just not a loyal person. Clearly. This bitch literally has a girlfriend and you’re going through something kind of intense right now and like...the last thing you need is someone trying to hook up?" Eli wanted to make one thing super clear. “I’m not judging you,” she promised, taking a deep breath as she struggled to lay out her thoughts, “I just think this thing with Jules is a band-aid for everything that went down with Leo and like...I don’t want to see you come out of this more hurt.” She paused for a moment and played back everything Ivy had just told her. “What did Leo say when you texted him?” she asked curiously, doing her best to keep her anger in check at all parties involved.