Save Me

Four - Thea

I headed out my bedroom door, only to be hit with the heated conversation of Flint and my mother. 

"Are you telling me that you are seriously ok with her having casual f***s at her age?" Flint was furious, I could almost hear him shaking with anger. I was infuriated at the nerve of this guy, but for some reason, I couldn't pull my self away. 

"FLINT, please just stop." My mother pleaded.

"Flint they aren't 'f**k-Buddies' and I'm telling you now, stop talking about your sister like that. It's not right." To my surprise my dad was defending me, not that I didn't think he would, it's just he tends to be more reserved during these types of conflicts, and lets my mother diffuse the situation. 

"So now I'm not allowed to call it like it is, but you're ok for her to walk around flaunting herself and sugarcoat the fact that she has turned into a slut?" I could hear the anger boiling inside him, but it was nothing like the fury building inside of me as the whole room gasped.

"Flint she is not the same little girl you left behind 5 years ago. A lot has changed since then." I could hear the desperation in my dad's voice and I had my hand on the banister ready to intrude on their conversation when my mum cut in.

"John, stop." she pleaded

"What? What is it that I am missing here?" Flints anger was still present, but the curiosity was building. 

"Thea went from being the most protected little girl in her entire universe, from the age of 6 she had the world's most protective big brother and his best friend watching her every move, ensuring no one even looked at her in the wrong way, let alone hurt her. And then you two grew up and moved to the other side of the country and suddenly she was left behind, on her own. I don't think she ever really adjusted to that." Mum's sorrow-filled voice was barely above a whisper but I could hear her clear as day as I sat on the stairs. 

"So this is my fault because I graduated High School and went to college to follow my dreams, rather than stay here and babysit my 13-year-old sister."  Flint bitterly spat out, "It's all my fault that my sister has turned into a slut is it?" 

My anger boiled well past the tipping point and I rose to my feet.

"Flint that is not what we are saying at all." Again my mum was pleading with him

I stormed into the kitchen, rage steaming out of me that I wasn't sure how I suppressed the urge to yell at Flint as I squared up to, "I may or may not be having casual s*x with one guy and that makes me a slut, but you can sleep with nearly every other girl you met but that doesn't make you a man-w***e at all does it? f**k you Flint" I turned away from him and grabbed the water bottle off the side of the counter and stormed out into the back garden and headed for the trees. I jumped the garden fence and headed to the edge of the clifftop, where a rope ladder sat in a heap on the grass. I flung it over the cliff and climbed down to the beach. Once on the sand I pulled my headphones out of my pocket and turned my playlist up full blast and I ran. 

I wasn't sure how long I ran for. But by the time I returned to the bottom of my clifftop, the sun was hanging low in a pink sky. I climbed back up the rope ladder to the top of my clifftop and hauled it up after me, dropping it into the grass before I unplugged my earphones and just gazed out sea. 

"I forgot how nice the view was here" Ethan's smooth silky voice startled me. I whipped my head round to find him sitting in the grass a little further back, his gaze lingering over me. 

"What are you doing out here?" I couldn't help the sourness in my voice, although the run had calmed me down, I was still hurt. 

"Sour much?" there was hurt in that silky voice of his, but he covered it quickly, "I thought you may be hungry, so I ordered an extra portion of chicken wings, you always used to nick mine."

"I'm sorry, it's not you that I'm mad at." I sank into the spot next to him and opened the box of chicken wings, extremely aware of the fact that I was sweaty and sticky, but also extremely hungry. "Thanks for the chicken."

"Your welcome Sunshine." 

I chewed on the chicken wing, and Ethan sat staring out at the horizon with an expression that I couldn't read. I swallowed my mouthful and decide that I ought to just get it over with. "What no lecture like Mr. Judgmental in there?" I said nodding my head back to the house. Ethan pulled his gaze from the horizon and his green eyes met mine. His jaw clenched and I knew he was choosing his words wisely. 

"Do I like the idea of you dating that Brody? No. Do I like the idea of you f*****g him? Hell No." his tone was harsh but matter of fact. "But I am also very aware that none of this is my business, I have no right to care about any of it, nor do I want to know about any of it." His silky smooth voice returned to all its charming glory, but I couldn't help but feel a little deflated at the fact that he didn't want to know about my love life like he wasn't interested. "What I do want to know, is where has my Little Sunshine gone?" 

"What do you mean I am right here," I stated as I picked up a second chicken wing.

"Oh trust me I can see this Goddess of a woman who sits in front of me," he winked at me, "But where has the sensitive soul gone, that worried about pleasing everyone else at the cost of her own happiness. I'm not sure I've seen that Thea since coming home" 

"Well, I'm sorry I haven't lived up to your expectations, but maybe, just maybe I thought that I deserve to have some happiness and fun of my own for a change, instead of being the doormat that everyone walks over." I threw the remainder of my chicken wing back into the box and got to my feet before storming back to the house.