Wrong-An Ethan Morales FanFiction

𝐂𝐡𝐚𝐩𝐭𝐞𝐫 𝟑𝟕

𝓘𝓼𝓪𝓫𝓮𝓵

     Tʜᴇ ᴇɴᴅ ᴏғ ᴀɴ ᴇʀᴀ. Iᴛ ʜᴀs ʙᴇᴇɴ ᴏɴᴇ ᴍᴏɴᴛʜ. Wᴇ'ʀᴇ ɪɴ Jᴜɴᴇ, ᴀʟʀᴇᴀᴅʏ. Tᴏᴅᴀʏ ɪs ɢʀᴀᴅᴜᴀᴛɪᴏɴ and I'm so stressed out.
     Trial has been going on great, and even the judge has high hopes for me. I am getting closer to winning what I want, and I know I will get it, anyways. I always do.
     I'm waiting. Sat down while my heart pounded against my throat, my knee bobbing up and down no matter how hard Ethan tried to stop it, since he too, was stressing out. And his hand was shaking on top of my skin.
     As much as I wanted for this to happen, I just want to go back to September. To when I met all the people that would change my life for the better. Because after this, things would never be the same again.
      I already had applied to college, and I had been accepted. In a few months, I was moving out to study psychology. Ethan was going to go after his dreams and try to become a worldwide musician, part-time mechanic. So he would have to study for a bit more, but never more than the years I will spend away from him.
     Hope the walls of the dorms will be soundproof for all those lonely and dark nights when all I will have will be my fingers.
     "Next up... Ethan Morales! Please come up here!" Principal Grubbs said into the microphone as everyone started clapping their hands, including me as Ethan let go of my knee and walked up to the stage.
     He mouthed a "thank you" and nodded to the principal before he took his diploma and tucked it beneath his arm, walking right to the microphone.
     "God, this is crazy," Everyone laughed as he chuckled into the microphone and smiled before continuing to talk, "If anyone told me—what, like, nine months?—yeah, nine months ago that I would be standing up here with a graduation diploma tucked under my arm, I wouldn't have believed it. And I only have two people to thank for that. Plus, my friends, duh. But I think I changed for the better. And yeah, you know. I'm just really thankful."
     "Lame!" Devi yelled from beside me before I pinched her arm.
     Everyone laughed again before Ethan left and everyone waited for who was going to be next, and my anxiety levels were going up and down.
     Up. Down. Up. Down.
     Principal Grubbs approached the microphone, "Next up is...Isabella Belmonte!" Fuck my life.
     "It's just Isabel!" I chuckled nervously as I got up and headed over there, feeling my knees weaken slightly and my lower lip trembling. I dragged it between my teeth and made sure for it to stop.
     I slowly climbed up into the stage and watched as the principal handed me over the diploma and shook my hand, then me making my way over to the microphone stand. Like everyone did. And like how I wish I didn't.
     But the words slowly rolled out of my mouth.
     "Thank you for everything that a lot of you have done for me. Thanks to the people that I met, I learnt how to live without being under the control of someone. To act on what had been happening. And most of you don't know it, but the only real family I have is my little sister. My boyfriend. My friends. And that's all. Thanks to them, I'm getting away from the nightmare I had been fearing my whole life. So again, it's an honor that I can be here. Standing in front of everyone. Receiving a diploma that I thought I would never deserve. Like most things in life that were a basic need and I still thought I didn't deserve any of it." I spoke with a wide smile on my face, feeling proud of myself once everyone started clapping and whistling.
     I walked back to my seat, feeling like I deserved to have the diploma. Feeling like I deserved everything that I did deserve, anyways.
     The graduation ceremony kept going until all of us got our diplomas and were ready to go party it all out.
     All making our way to the cafeteria, we took pictures with Devi's camera, for once her and Ethan were being friendly to each other. Just taking pictures while we ate and drank, commemorating our new achievement. Because this?
     This was the end.

𝟑 𝐦𝐨𝐧𝐭𝐡𝐬 𝐥𝐚𝐭𝐞𝐫...

     Sᴜᴍᴍᴇʀ ʜᴀᴅ ᴘᴀssᴇᴅ ʙʏ ɪɴ ᴀ ғʟᴀsʜ ᴏғ ᴛɪᴍᴇ, ᴀɴᴅ I ʜᴀᴅ ғᴏʀɢᴏᴛᴛᴇɴ ᴛʜᴀᴛ ʜᴏᴜʀs ᴀɴᴅ ᴍɪɴᴜᴛᴇs existed while I was at it. All of it, it was fun. Until it ended and anxiety was the only thing that remained.
     Successfully, I was emancipated and had full custody of my little sister, but Nalini was keeping her while I was away for college.
     I would start working so I could send her a bit of money for Maria, but the big amount would certainly go for my college fees and other stuff I would need to buy. But I was scared.
     Once I would be there, the professionals would make me go through therapy before I became one, because of course, I couldn't heal others if I didn't heal myself first. But I had never ever been in the hands of a therapist before, and I was scared that I would say something wrong and never get the career that I chose for myself.
     Ethan didn't know about that part, and I wasn't sure I wanted to tell him anyways. Our relationship was tighter than ever, and I wasn't sure if I was going to survive over four years without him. Away from him. I had to admit it, I was scared. Terrified.
     He walked inside the room with three, sky blue suitcases, his lips pursed as he sighed and closed the door behind him, seeing me sat down on the bed, legs crossed as I bit the inside of my cheek continuously until the coppery taste of blood filled my mouth.
     "Isa..." He sighed, walking closer and sitting down on the edge of the bed, facing me before dragging his lip between his teeth.
     "I'm scared, Ethan. Really scared. Alright, I won the game I had with my parents. But what if I don't win this one. I can't stay away from you. From Maria. From everyone." I buried my face in my hands, not even being able to look at him as I squeezed my knees into my chest, trying to hard not to cry from the overflowing amount of anxiety drowning me in.
     I just wanted this summer break to be longer.
     "Cariño, you have to. I promise. I'll call you every day when I can. There will never be a day that I won't miss you or won't think about you, but we need to do this. I'll pay you a visit whenever I can." His hand rubbed over my knee, and I looked up at him in response, seeing the sincerity in his words.
     "You promise?" I asked, wiping my eyes with the back of my hands and straightening myself.
     "I promise." Slowly, I crawled over to him until he wrapped his arms tight around me and let me sit down on his lap, my arms wrapping around his neck.
     Eventually, I got up from the bed and we both started to fold my clothes and take my stuff from his bathroom, along with some school furnitures, my iPad, and a few other things I know I would need once I would be there.
     We both got dressed and headed downstairs, my purse in one hand and a small backpack hanging on my other shoulder, my free hand dragging one of the suitcases with me while Ethan had the other two.
     "Oh, Isabel. How I'm going to miss you!" Ethan's mom hugged me tight and dropped a kiss on my neck before pulling back, a soft smile on her face, "Ethan, drive safe. Or I am killing you."
     "I know. Don't worry." He chuckled, and started to walk towards the entrance of his garage, probably going to put the bags in the back of the truck.
     "I'm going to miss you a lot, too. I don't feel ready at all, trust me." I chuckled sadly, and she gave me a soft smile in response.
     "Do not worry about that, sweetheart. You have the beauty and the brains. You're going to achieve it all. If you ever want me to keep Maria then just send me a text. You know it would be alright." She assured me, taking my hands in hers and squeezing them.
     "Thank you so much."
     "You are so welcome."
     She hugged me tight, until Ethan came to get me and we both said goodbye, going to the car.
     We both entered it, him sticking the key into the ignition before he drove off of his garage and we waved off his mother one last time.
     As soon as he got in the highway, my knee started bobbing up and down, and the urge to bite my nails started rising again. Until he dropped his hand on my thigh and rubbed circles over it with his thumb.
     "I'm not ready to go, Ethan." I whispered, placing my hand over his and swallowing the lump in my throat.
     "I know, neither am I ready for you to go, either. But if it has to be this way, then we can't stop it. And I'm going to keep my promise. I really am going to." He whispered back, twisting his hand upwards so he could hold mine, our fingers crossed together as he drove with his other hand.
     The flight was in two hours, so he drove slowly while all the memories from this summer blasted in my memories like a movie I knew so well like it was the palm of my hand.
     Going to the beach to bronze. Spending nights at parties with the girls. Playing board games with Maria. Running around and hanging out with Ethan and his friends. Getting high and drunk. Sex, lots of it. Trials. The judge saying out loud that I was officially emancipated and had the full custody of my little sister.
     And tears sprung to my eyes at the thought of leaving her alone again.
     I quickly wiped them away with my thumb, making sure I didn't dirty up my mascara.
     The whole drive, Ethan continued to hold my hand tight against his, the music on a low volume as we both made really small talk, and I could tell it in both his eyes and voice that he was upset about letting me go. And for a long time, this turn.
     When we finally got to the airport, I wanted him to guide me all the way with him. Not because I didn't know how airports worked, but because I wanted our small minutes to last longer.
     "You know I'm going to miss you, right?" I asked, on the verge of tears as we both walked towards the airport security. Where we would be separated.
     "I know." He whispered, not even looking back at me as we both walked. I had left my three suitcases at the check-in, so it would immediately be transported to the plane instead of me carrying it around.
     We finally reached the airport security, and I broke down in tears, all the small drops trickling down my face as I looked up at him, feeling my bottom lip wobble.
     Sighing, he wrapped his arms around me and dropped a few kisses to my neck as I wrapped my arms around his neck in return.
     "I'll call you every day. I'll send you a gift on every single one of your birthdays, and when you graduate, I'll be outside waiting for you. I promise." He whispered in my ear, but I still couldn't let go.
     If there was a plus one I could bring in my bag, it would be him. And if I could bring a second person, it would be Maria. Just so I could keep both of them close to me for as long as I wanted.
     "I love you."
     "I love you more, Isabel."
     That was our last words, before I kissed his cheek and walked away.