Where It All Began.

ohjulia-14:

Julia was still looking at Eli, even though he had turned away. It wasn’t long before she had burst into tears and began screaming, “But why do I always have to be strong? Do I ever get to be upset? Do I ever get to be mad? I’m tired of playing the role of perfection when I’m not!” Eli couldn’t help but look at her when she reacted that way, he wanted to wrap his arms around her and hug her until she stopped crying but he knew that wouldn’t be a good idea. He needed to find another way to comfort her. Julia closed her eyes again and layed down on the towel she was sitting on, rolling over so her back was facing Eli. She sobbed and sobbed, and eventually began humming a song. All you heard was her humming and sniffling before she spoke muffled words, “I just want someone to love me.”

Hearing those words made Eli want to cry because he felt the same way. He moved closer to her and grabbed her hand, rubbing it gently so she could feel the compassion. Julia opened her eyes once she felt his hand touch hers and she quickly turned around, facing him. They were laying right next to each other on a small towel, holding hands and enjoying each other’s company when the silhouette of a man towered over them. “Julia?” The man called out, shocked to see her with Eli. 

Julia released Eli’s hand and stood up quickly, brushing off the dirt from her pants and wiping the tears from her eyes. She walked over to the man, grabbing his hand and turned towards Eli, “Eli, this is Mike, my boyfriend.”

Instantly aware of his surroundings and just who stood above them, blocking his sunlight, Eli sprang to his feet. “Mike?” he asked, voice surprisingly sturdy with the way he felt like screaming on the inside. “Your boyfriend? Mike?” At the repetition of that name and the gleam in those all-too-familiar eyes, his voice gave way to a tremor he couldn’t hide. He took a step back, closer to his new house. There was no way, no possibility, that the same Mike that sent him home with a bruised stomach and a crooked jaw lived here now, and was dating the girl he was consoling not two minutes before.

A large, calloused hand was thrust in Eli’s direction and he fought the urge to run. The hand stilled between them and he took it for what it was: nice to see you again, emo boy, care to step away from my girlfriend? “Eli,” Mike settled for instead, a smile that was more than unnerving sending chills down Eli’s spine. “Nice to meet you.”

Julia watched the silent exchange without a word; watched the way Mike’s hand didn’t let up, just waiting midair for Eli to take it and accept his greeting. What she didn’t see, though she watched so avidly, so intently, was the way Eli’s eyes wouldn’t lock on Mike’s, and the way Mike’s smile was more than sadistic as he scrutinized the smaller, darkly dressed boy who fidgeted where he stood. It could be territorial, she thought, a silent conversation between two boys trying to understand just what made each other tick.

Green orbs trailed down to the hand still outstretched and unforgiving in its callousness, awaiting the approval they both knew would never come. I just want someone to love me hung in the air like dirt in a windstorm. This is Mike, my boyfriend. Clearly the bully didn’t give Julia what she needed, but she stayed with him. Abuse? Eli wouldn’t put it past him. But the question was, was he willing to sacrifice himself to save her? Take another beating for a girl who’d opened up to him after no more than a twenty minute conversation? Mike was dangerous, and Eli was scared.

“Mike,” he said, cool-as-you-please, air conditioning on an icy day. The fingers in his right hand twitched in warning before he lifted his hand and grasped Mike’s, the tan boy’s grip rough and unforgiving as it squeezed Eli’s smaller one in a bone-crushing handshake. “Nice to meet you.” He arched his eyebrows and twitched his lips into a half-smirk, hiding the tremble that threatened to give away his fear. The clasp of their hands was crisp like a Winter day, longer than intended but shorter than it should have been. The paralysis was over the moment their hands pulled apart and Eli took a well-needed step back. He locked eyes with Julia for a moment, her curiosity evident as she scrutinized his face for answers, never once looking at Mike. He had to decide whether or not she was worth the effort. It needed time, but he had to get to know her first.

(Source: backtobasicseli, via watchmebreak-deactivated2012041)

ohjulia-14:

A cold breeze swept over them and Julia lifted her head up to the sky and closed her eyes, taking it all in while Eli’s hair blew gracefully in the wind. As she opened her eyes once again, she kept staring up, looking at the clouds. “My father is unemployed, my little sister doesn’t speak and my mother is dead.” Eli was at a loss for words, he just kept his eyes on her and said nothing.

“I know what you’re thinking.” She blurted. “I don’t want pity. I’m fine with what my life is. I’ve accepted that things won’t change.”

Eli, still staring at her, spoke softly, “Do you want things to change?”

Julia turned towards Eli, taking in his dark hazel eyes, “I just want to be happy.”

She held back tears, fighting the feeling she had in her stomach. Julia wasn’t one to show emotion quite easily and she would never let anyone see her cry. But things with Eli were different, she didn’t have to hide anymore.

Seeing girls cry wasn’t something he did often. Cece was strong and Bullfrog was always so perfect that Eli never had to see his mother’s tears. He’d only ever seen her cry a few times, each when he came home from school with bruises and black eyes from bullies who taunted him for his height or lack thereof. A mother’s worst fear was losing her child, and seeing Eli so small and fragile, limping on his walk home had sent her to tears. It was something he didn’t want to see anymore.

“Your time will come,” he said, turning away from her crystallizing eyes, nearly provoked to wipe them away. “We all have hardships, but we all overcome them, right? You look strong. You can do it.”

Seeing this girl he’d barely known for five minutes cry was almost as heart-wrenching as seeing his mother cry and that terrified him more than words could explain. He didn’t want to be close to someone. That was weak and he was already too weak. If he grows attached… and someone else bullies him like before… he’d have someone else to protect. She could be leverage and he didn’t want that. He didn’t want another beating. Mike had already done enough at his last school. Never again.

Eli fidgeted where he sat, fingers fiddling with the long strands of grass cushioning them comfortably against the ground. He picked a strand from the patch and wrapped it around his finger as tight as he could before snapping the thin strip. The feeling of circulation being cut off from his finger was real; real as the emotions that reverberated from the girl next to him; real as the fear that sank low in his belly and made him want to run. Trust was important. But could be trust her?

(Source: backtobasicseli, via watchmebreak-deactivated2012041)

ohjulia-14:

Julia was simply laying out on her front lawn, attempting to tan her pale skin, when she was soon interrupted by the shadow of a stranger. As he approached her, she removed her sunglasses slowly and sat up, looking up at the young boy who began to speak. He was quite handsome and looked to be about fourteen; he definitely caught her attention. When he reached his hand out to her, she hesitated to take it but as she placed her hand in his to greet him, it felt as if the world had stopped. She heard him introduce himself and she gave him a look of confusion, “Eli, eh? Short for Elijah, I assume. Mind if I call you that instead?” To have a girl other than his mother call him by his full name puzzled Eli but he simply nodded, trying to please the girl. “Well, Elijah, I’m Julia, it’s nice to meet you.” She told him, finally making eye contact. “You can sit down if you’d like.”

Eli smirked and took her offer, sitting down next to her but trying not to get too close. “So how long have you lived here?” He asked, trying to start a conversation.

Julia rolled her eyes, “You don’t really care, do you?” Eli’s eyes widened and he became speechless. “Let’s talk about something more interesting.. like your family.” Julia looked at Eli, smiling and waiting patiently for him to speak. 

He’d never met a girl before who was so forward, so commanding that he didn’t know what to say. She saw right through his ploy to get her attention, and somehow knew that he didn’t care for anything but getting to know her. How long she lived there didn’t matter. He wanted to know everything about her, everything that made her tick and everything that made her smile the most wickedest of smiles he knew she was capable of.

Sighing, he resigned himself to telling her what she wanted to know. But that still didn’t mean he had to be serious. “Well my father, Gomez, is a lawyer and purposely loses cases just for the amusement of it all. And my mother, Morticia, hates the sun and only comes out at night. So to meet her, you’d have to come over for dinner sometime,” he finished with a shrug. In reality, his parents had normal lives, normal jobs, unless you count Bullfrog’s late night radio show as ‘abnormal’. And Cece liked baking and was very motherly when she needed to be. But most of the time, they were more like best friends than parents. “Pretty boring. Care to share your story?”

Eli stretched his legs out and finally turned to look at her, expectant, awaiting something interesting. It wasn’t necessary to tell her his whole life story or the way his size made him an easy target for bullies. He didn’t like showing weakness, especially in the face of a gorgeous girl he’d like to know more about before spilling his guts. She seemed thoughtful. He could see in her eyes that she was smart and wouldn’t dare fall for his Addams Family life, but she didn’t seem to want to pry either. Eli was all play and no work, and Julia would learn that in due time, if she hadn’t figured it out already.

(Source: backtobasicseli, via watchmebreak-deactivated2012041)

Eli stood in the doorway to his new home, nodding so vigorously his head could have bobbed off and he wouldn’t have felt a thing. He vaguely wondered what it would be like if he were to stand there, hands behind his back innocently, completely headless while his parents schooled him on proper conduct when meeting the neighbors. Would it be strange to be perched, disembodied on the floor, looking up at your usually occupied neck as your headless body stood tall before you? If he’d survive that, he’d conduct a Dr. Frankenstein-esque experiment on himself, and walk around with metal conductors in his neck, stitches holding his head to his neck.

He learned throughout the years that “yes’ing them to death” would soon be a phrase that would most come in handy.

“You know your manners, right son?” Bullfrog asked in his rough voice. He nodded his ascent and the man walked away without a second glance, convinced. Cece was harder to convince. She wanted the best impression because she loved baking. She wanted neighbors to be able to bring cakes and pies and delicious desserts to. And if Eli couldn’t be polite, that would all be for naught.

He sighed. “Mom, I’m thirteen, I think I can handle it.” And she let him go play, completely under the impression that he’d knock on their neighbors doors and greet them, introducing his family and inviting them to dinner. But he had been immediately distracted by a girl laying on a front lawn — a lawn he assumed was her own — gazing at the white, fluffy clouds above her, dead to the world.

“Be polite,” Cece in his head told him.

And he took a deep breath, walking up to her. Her eyes found his when his body shadowed the sunlight from reaching her and he couldn’t fight his half-smile. He held a hand down towards her, either as a greeting or an offer to help her up was her decision. “Hi, I’m Eli,” he said in his best voice, willing puberty to not make him squeak and embarrass himself. “I’m new here and I may as well be the son of Morticia and Gomez Addams, my family is so weird. What’s your name?” He realized a bit too late that that may have been a little weird of him to say in greeting.