Ellie let her body move to the music of the DJ. She had finally allowed herself to take some time alone to do something she loved. Clubbing. Her friends would argue that there was more to life than going out to party. Normally she would agree with them and stay at home to watch a movie with snacks. Each of them trying to make a piece of popcorn into the other's mouth, laughing when they missed so badly that the dog had a chance to eat it. However tonight she just wanted to drink her worries away and melt on the dance floor. Drinks came at her from all different directions. Most were from men who thought they had the slightest bit of chance with her, others were from large groups that she ended up meshing with for a song or two before they all parted ways. As soon as the DJ slowed down his mix a bit, she made her way to the bar and ordered herself a dirty martini. “Mind if I buy you a drink? Eloise.” Hearing her name off the man’s tongue caused her to freeze. She knew that voice and it wasn’t one she wanted to hear. Benjamin. She immediately sat up straight. “You know. I think I am good.” She tried to keep her voice firm but it faltered. She blamed it on the alcohol. “Oh come on. A gorgeous little thing like you. Left all alone in a place like this….” His voice trailed off as he reached out to touch Eloise’s face. She immediately flinched the moment his skin made contact with her. He was repulsive. “I think I should be going.” she twirled the small black stir stick through her martini a couple times before picking it up and throwing it at him, running toward the club’s exit doors. “Get the fuck off me!” Eloise screamed as she ripped her arm from Benjamin’s grasp. At this moment she wished she hadn’t gone against both Sebastian’s and Cassian’s wishes. Both of them had their reservations about her going alone yet neither of them wanted to go with her.  What was she supposed to do? Stay home alone to her mind's own vices? She would rather drink herself to death than do that. “Don’t you fucking talk to me like that. Learn your place bitch!” He grabbed her arm again, this time tighter than before. She tried to wiggle herself free but this time she couldn’t. Her agoraphobia was now kicking in. “You have something that belongs to me and I will get it one way or a fucking other. You aren’t making it away from me alive this time.” His words caused a shiver through her spine. Wanting to inflict harm to herself was one thing, but having her life threatened to be ripped away by his hands scared the living hell out of her.

“Think Ellie. How would you escape Benjamin in these situations?” she thought to herself. Her mind ran through every past possible scenario. She let her eyes flicker from her attacker to her sparkling seven inch heels. Eloise was thanking herself for even wearing them tonight. Before she could get her heel off and into her hand, his grip tightened on her fragile arm as he began to drag her though the poorly lit parking lot. She tried to scream but no sound came out, the pain now getting too much to bear. “Let go of me you son of a bitch.” She spat out. She dug her heels into a spot of loose gravel and immediately caused the two of them to stop. He tried to pull her but she wasn’t moving. Eloise quickly stomped her heel into his foot, the counter breaking through his shoe fabric as it drove into his skin. He immediately let go. She inhaled deeply. Eloise only had seconds to think and she wasn’t going to waste her time.  She kicked off her heels, her feet touching the cold asphalt beneath her. “You stupid little hoe. You will pay for that!” Without a thought she gave him a swift kick in the shin and took off running into the night.

“This is calm and it’s doctor!” The t.v. rang out and Eloise popped a piece of popcorn into her mouth with a squeal. Doctor Reid had a cute yet nerdy appeal to him that she absolutely adored. The house was almost pitch black. Cassian had always leaned toward the warmer hughes when it came to decorating. Elegant? Yes but it made it so much darker than it needed to be. Either way, she still loved Wednesday movie nights at his place even though he had to work.

Her eyes glanced over to the small wrought iron clock that accented the wall to the right. The time read 12:30 am. She had enough time to watch a couple more episodes of Criminal Minds. At Least if she watched through the time it took him to stop for food and make it home. “Sir Reginald. Come boy!” She let out a whistle and the sound of little paws hitting the hardwood floor quickly filled the air. She patted the seat next to her, Sir Reginald jumping up and curing into a ball to fit the curve of her legs. Eloise pulled the blanket over her and settled deep into the groves of the couch falling asleep almost instantly.

“Find that damn boy.” Her eyes shot open the moment she heard the raspy voice. Her eyes darted toward the T.V that was now in rest mode. Her heart skipped a beat. Someone was in the house with her and it wasn’t someone she knew. Eloise fell to the ground as quietly as she could and began army crawling toward the kitchen. At this moment she was so thankful that his decorating choices were working in her favor. Heavy footsteps filled the quiet space. “Damn place is so dark. Where’s the light?!” She listened to the man rumble about the living room. She made sure to stay in the darker corners of the kitchen, searching his cabinet quietly for his cast iron.

She stood up with the cast iron now in her hand. If there was one thing she had learned from one of her favorite Disney movies it was that they made for great weapons in times of need. Even Flynn Ryder himself would agree. Eloise came around the corner and met the mysterious man face to face. Her heart was now racing. She wasn’t expecting to run right into him. He attempted to reach out to grab her and in a rush of adrenaline she swung the cast iron as quickly as she could, hitting the side of his head.

The first hit didn’t do it and Eloise screamed. Her high pitched voice was enough to make him flinch to cover his ears. She took off running toward the front door. ‘I can not die here.’ She thought to herself as she came face to face with the wall, footsteps growing louder behind him. “You are not getting away little girl.” She flinched. She hated the term little girl and everything it stood for. At Least in her mind, Benjamin had made sure of that. She turned around and hit him with the cast iron as hard as she could, sending him to the ground.

“Holy hell….” We’re the only words she could muster out as she hit him once more to make sure he stayed knocked out cold. She turned her head over to her dog who was just sitting on the couch staring at her. “It was either him or me and it wasn’t going to be me.” She turned her head to look at the clock. ‘2:45’ sh*t. Cassian was due to be home in no more than a minute and there was a potentially dead body in his living room. She looked down at the rather large man now lying lifelessly on the gorgeous rug. “I liked this rug. Too bad.”

The lock on the door began to turn and Eloise ran to answer. He was not to enter his own home at any cost. She opened the door and pushed her way out, now standing between him and the closed apartment door. “Cas. You’re home early.” She paused, his facial expression immediately reading confusion. He was on time. “Actually I was hoping you would be okay if we went to get food. I for-“ Her words fell short the moment she saw the neatly packaged bag he had by his side. Damn him for always thinking ahead. His attention to details was always undeniable.

Eloise flinched as the sound of shattered glass filled the silent air. Pictures off the mantle now surrounded her and she immediately fell to her knees to try and salvage what was inside the now broken frames. “You really think that you are ever going to fucking make it anywhere in this life like this Ellie?! You’re kidding yourself!” His voice filled with anger and laced with hatred. He walked closer to her the sound of glass crushing under each step. She picked up the final picture she had taken her sixth grade year before being forced to the states, giving it a look before Sebastian ripped it from her hands. Her heart skipped a few beats and her eyes got wide in fear. She tried to snatch it back but she lost. She pushed herself up off the floor, a piece of glass cutting into her palm.

 She now stood toe to toe with him “Give it back. Take any other one but that one!” Her voice got louder with each word. He could have taken any of the others. Her with her dog, or the one that she had forced the two of them to take when she hired him just to have the memory, but he chose that one. He dangled the picture in front of her and she tried to grab it once more. Sebastian pulled it away from her and ripped it in half, letting it fall back to the ground.

 She screamed out in pain as tears began to roll down her cheek. She gritted her teeth and let the fire of her anger consume her body. “Man fuck you! You know nothing about me and what I have been through!” She yelled as she balled up both of her fists as tight as she could and hit him square in the chest over and over until she backed him into the wall. “You think you know what it’s like? Sitting here with your precious ass life? Parents that actually love you. Support you. Got a good job, a family that cares! Don’t sit there and try to say you know anything about my life. You know nothing!“ Sebastian quickly grabbed both of her wrists and shoved her back as hard as he could, forcing her to the floor. She winced a bit in pain but it wasn’t noticeable. The blood from her palm staining her freshly waxed hardwood floors. “You are so used to being broken that the angels themselves can’t fix you. You are a lost cause.” he took a few steps toward her and crouched down to her level. She looked up at him. She crossed a line and she finally realized it.

 “I need help.” her words were soft as she weakly pushed herself up off the ground. Eloise couldn’t deny the fact that she was in a totally different mental state then she had been just a week before. The stress of the café, buying a new penthouse in Manhattan and still trying to process everything from the four years prior to that moment. She was bursting at the seams. Sebastian stood up and tried to reach out for her but she flinched away. The last thing she wanted was to be touched. “Eloise, let me help you.” Her hazel hues met his bright blue ones. She swallowed hard. “Why should I? Look around you Sebastian. If this is your type of help then I don’t want it.” She couldn’t help her voice from cracking. She looked at the broken memories all over the floor. Each one now symbolizing the broken pillars of her life. Eloise reached down and picked up a now faded newspaper article from the mess and silently walked into her room where she separated herself from the chaos.

 Sebastian stood in the middle of the empty living room feeling alone. The only person in New York who had actually given him a chance after his run in with the law. Most of it was speculation but no one wanted to bet on a possibility. Eloise did. He never understood why but he was always grateful she did. He walked down the long hallway and stopped at her bedroom door. "Eloise, can we talk about this please?” he called out to her, hoping she wouldn’t just go silent on him. “Can you just go away?” she called out as she sealed back up her hope chest, tucking it back under her bed. She walked over to her bedroom door and opened it slightly. “Look, I hired you to keep my life together. Not tear it apart, and I sure as hell didn’t write in the contract I wanted to be thrown around like a rag doll.” He fell silent and his eyes flashed to her now bruised wrists. His fingerprints clearly visible. She was still very fragile. He was surprised he didn’t break her.

Screaming. Shrieking almost. “Someone call 9-1-1!” An unfamiliar voice screamed loudly. Her head was pounding. What just happened? She tried to open her eyes but the pain was so intense she closed them immediately. Was she upside down? “Ma’am!! Can you hear me?! Help is on the way!!” Help? Why did she need help? Her eyes got heavy and darkness began to surround her. Something pleaded with her not to give into it but she couldn’t help it. She was gone.

————-

“Eloise, did you get your shopping list done for the week?” She raised an eyebrow in complete shock as she turned around to see a man sitting at the table reading the front page of a newspaper, toast sitting on a small white plate off to the side with a cup of coffee on the other. Her mind was freaking out. Where was she and why was this man reading a paper? No one did that anymore. Her eyes wandered about trying to take everything in. “Eloise? The grocery list.” She cleared her throat slightly. “Yes.” The word simple yet forced. The man put down the paper and folded it neatly. “Is that anyway for a woman to answer a question directed to her?” She pursed her lips ever so slightly as she looked down. “I am sorry. Did you want another cup of coffee?” She seemed like that was the appropriate question to help move the conversation away from the awkwardness. “No, I have to be getting to work. Stocks don’t sell themselves you know.” She chuckled softly “Well have a great day at work dear.” The man stood up and took a few steps to her, leaning in and giving her a kiss. She quickly returned it and shoved him out the door, locking it behind him.

Staring out the window she watched the elegant way the mysterious man moved. Each step he took was with purpose. At Least that’s what he portrayed. As he drove away in a 1955 Chevy Bel-Air, She took a step away from the window and exhaled deeply. She needed to find out where she was and what was going on and she needed to do it fast. Making her way back to the kitchen she finally took the view all in. “I would never…” she commented about the appearance. Bright teal cabinets lined the walls on both top and bottom. The floor a classic white and black checkered pattern and white yet very simple appliances. Her eyes then wandered over to the table which was red with a silver trim and the chairs all a deep red to match the table top. 

“If everything in here is different, what do I look like?” She asked herself as she quickly pushed her way through the swinging door that separated the living room and kitchen. The living room was a whole other beast to dissect but that would come later. She ran up the stairs and to her bathroom where she was met with a full length mirror. Seeing her reflection caused her to gasp. She was the same but also very different. Her dress skirt mostly red with a pleat of black with white polka dots to match the top and a single black strap tied around her neck. Deep red heels to match and her hair in a perfect up-do. She ran her hands over the skirt half of her dress. The fabric flattening out and then puffing back up as her hands left the spot. Eloise smiled and rocked herself from side to side, her dress swaying perfectly with her motions. 

———-

Sirens wailed and the shouting continued. She tried to open her eyes again this time with a little success. Broken glass and blood surrounded her. She was definitely upside down. She tried to scream but nothing came out. “Get the stretchers ready!! All paramedics on deck!!” The commotion outside was taking its toll on her emotional state. She felt a single tear brimming on the corner of her eye, closing them once more, darkness overtaking her.

——-

“So tell me. Has Craig popped the question yet?!” Eloise looked at her new surroundings. She had three store bags in her hands and was now walking down a cobblestone path that appeared to head back to her house. She shook her head silently. Whoever this woman was that she was taking over, her life seemed simple. “You guys are an unusual couple. David and I didn’t even start living together until he asked my daddy for permission. Not to mention the other things.” Her voice had a slight southern belle accent to it. Definitely not from New York. “Yes I suppose you could say a little untraditional.” She replied, thankful that they were now at the house she apparently called home. “Well I hope you have a swell evening. Goodnight Marlene.” How did she know her name? Seeing the Chevy back in the driveway, she let it go and headed inside.

It didn’t take long for her to put the groceries that she had picked up away. She was honestly surprised by how little she actually brought home. “Eloise is that you?!” His voice carried through the swinging door and she stood up straight, clearing her throat. “Yes darling it’s me!” She called back, the door swinging open and there stood Craig. She looked him over. He was just about as tall as she was, his facial features soft yet prominent. His hair a summer brown with a slight wave in the front but his eyes were as golden as honey when the light hit them just right. “How was the market?” His voice smoothe like a good shot of whiskey. “I got everything I needed. I know dinner is late. I am st-“ she was cut off but a simple raise of his hand. “I want to take you out tonight. Dinner and dancing. What do you think?” Her eyes lit up with excitement. “That would be the bee’s knees!” She said with pure joy, a little jump to match. “Let me just freshen up and I’ll see you in no less than ten minutes.”

———

“I have a pulse! I need IV’s and an OR stat!!” Eloise’s eyes shot open and the lights immediately blinded her. She screamed in pain. “Sweetheart, I need you to stay still.” A person came into view, tears rolling down Eloise’s face. “I know. This is going to hurt and I’m sorry.” The nurse said to her as she placed the IV needle quickly, cleaning it with saline before attaching fluids. “Alright I have to put you back to sleep. Don’t give up on us okay.” Just as fast as she came back too, she was out like a light again.

——-

The swing bar was lively. People from all walks of life out on the town enjoying themselves. Eloise out in the middle of the dance floor with Craig who reached in and grabbed her by her waist, picking her up with a spin before setting her back down. As the song came to an end, he led her off the dance floor and to the bar. “A shot of whiskey for me and a glass of water for the lady.” Eloise smiled to the bartender and took the freshly poured glass off the bar. She finished it rather quickly and set it back on the smooth bar counter and smiled over at Craig “Thank you.” She noted simply as the dance floor died down. Without a word the man led her to the middle of the floor and looked at the band, queuing them to start.

She looked around and everybody else gathered around but none of them joining in. She was confused to say the least. Craig began to dance with her to the rhythm of a new song she hadn’t heard of before. It definitely wasn’t a song that should have been in the time era they were in. As the chorus began to come up, The man pulled himself away from her, only leaving a few inches between them. She raised an eyebrow and suddenly her jaw dropped as he dropped to one knee, a small ring box now open in his hand “ If I gave you my hand, would you take it, And make me the happiest man in the world? If I told you my heart couldn't beat one more minute without you, girl. Would you accompany me to the edge of the sea? Let me know if you're really a dream. I love you so, so would you go with me?” Eloise had tears in her eyes and the whole swing bar erupted with cheers and celebration. 

——