Fuck you Ethan!

Fuck you Ethan 

~Zarah~

Everywhere was silent. No one said a word, we just stared at each other. For a minute, or two?

But that did nothing to ease the hard expression on Ethan's face. His eyes just darted between us.

How is he here? How did he even fly all the way here? Alex had insisted he is busy and won't be here he hadn't even said anything since.

"Alex..." His voice was low, cold, just as it had always been. He wasn't one to talk much, but once he did, it carried a certain confidence. "Care to explain what you're doing in 'my' house with her, without telling me you're bringing her?"

Alex was silent. If I didn't know him so well, I might've believed the man across from us wasn't his best friend. Seven years wasn’t much of a gap between Alex and Ethan. Seven years wasn't much of a gap, but Ethan made it seem like a big deal.

He made everything seem like a big deal.

His gaze moved to me, and I mentally braced myself for what I knew was coming next.

"Ethan..." he muttered, his tone growing a little

His gaze moved to me, and I mentally braced myself for what I knew was coming next.

"And you," he muttered, his tone grew a little bit colder. I could practically sense his annoyance. "Still following your brother around, I see."

"Okay. Before you get this all wrong, I had no idea this was your house," I said quietly, elbowing Alex.

This was not the time for him to stay fucking silent.

"No idea?" He interrupted, standing up. And oh God, the man was on the taller side.

His height could be imposing at times too.

"You want me to believe this wasn't your idea?" He asked and I pressed my lips together.

There we go.

I drew in a deep breath, ignoring the annoyance already building inside of me.

"Like I said, I had no idea this house belonged to you until we were here," I muttered.

And Alex still remained silent.

"And whose idea was it?" He asked, his eyes not leaving me.

"Maybe if you weren't such a controlling bastard, your friend would have told you he was going to take me along to your house ," I bit out.

Alex wasn't going to speak,what kind of friend is this? I wasn't going to keep silent and take the blame on something I knew nothing about.

Alex's eyes darted from me to his friend. he dreaded him.

Ethan took a step toward me, his eyes grew darker. Alex raised her hand, stepping in front of me.

"Ethan, stop please," he said quietly. "She's right. This was my idea. Don't take it out on her."

He took a step closer to him, while I took one step backwards.

"You've always been trouble, Zarah. From the very first moment I saw you, I knew you'd be trouble, and when your parents died trying to protect you doing what you were not told, I confirmed it, I hated you since that day," his voice had a chill to it.

I clenched my fists, resisting the urge to go all out on him,tears spilling out of my eyes remembering my parents, remembering what happened that day.

 I was in his house after all.

"You know what?" I said after a while, taking a step forward and meeting his glare head-on.

"Fuck You." I raised my middle finger, thrusting it in his face before storming off toward the room where we'd kept our bags.

There was no way I was letting Ethan ruin the one vacation I'd had in a year without my parents. I was going to enjoy my trip without his godforsaken, insufferably handsome face hovering around.

I yanked my clothes out of the closet, shoving them into my bag in quick movements.

I didn't care that it was late, I would find a hotel, spend the night somewhere else, anywhere but here.

From the hallway, I heard Alex’s muffled yells he'd finally shaken off the shock, but I didn't care anymore.

"Ethan, don't you dare! You can't keep being a jackass to her every time she's around!You know we just lost our parents and they didn't die because of her!"

His voice grew closer, footsteps approached as I zipped my bag shut, ready to leave.

The door swung open, and there they were Ethan just standing there and Alex behind him, looking exasperated.

Their gazes flicked to my packed bag,

Alex's eyes turned glassy as he took a step

Their gazes flicked to my packed bag,  

Alex’s eyes turned glassy as he took a step forward.

"Zar..." he whispered, his voice breaking.

I looked at him, ignoring Ethan completely.

"Just so you know," I said calmly, "your friend is an asshole. And yeah, I'll text you my address in the morning."

I stepped forward, waiting for them to move out of my way.

Ethan’s voice stopped me.

"You’re not leaving at this time of night," he said, not a statement, but an order.

I stared at him, hoping the daggers in my eyes could pierce him to death.

It would hurt Alex... But it was worth the try.

"No," I said annoyed. "You don’t get to dictate what I do."

His jaw tightened, a flicker of something dark crossed his face.

"Try me, Zarah. See if I won’t drag you back here myself. And trust me, it isn't something you'd enjoy," he muttered, and somehow the threat in his voice sent a shiver down my spine.

Damn him.

"You're going to leave in the morning," he continued. "I'm not letting you storm off in anger and end up getting murdered somewhere, not like it would affect me. And besides..." He glanced at Alex. "We still need to talk."

With that, he turned and left the room. I blinked at Alex, stunned.

"Did he just threaten me?" I asked.

Alex stepped forward, throwing his arms around me.

"I'm sorry, Zarah," he whispered, his voice breaking slightly. "I never meant for this to happen. I shouldn't have dragged you into this."

I sighed, wrapping my arms around him.

"It's not entirely your fault," I murmured.

As much as I hated his friend, I couldn't deny that he was disgustingly handsome.

"Just stay for the night," Alex pleaded. "Please."

I sighed again.

"Fine. I'll stay," I muttered. I wasn't staying because of Ethan's thinly veiled warning or the strange warmth his threat had sparked in me.

I was staying because Alex asked me to.

Not because of Ethan. Definitely not because of him.