Timing is everything in life. Of course, Ellie’s high started to hit right after Lil left the girl to her own devices.

It came on suddenly- one moment the brunette felt only tipsy from the two drinks she had downed, and the next her vision grew hazy and her shoulders released the tension she didn’t realize they had been previously holding. It almost felt dreamlike the way the party continued on around her in full merriment, but her own actions felt slower and more relaxed. She had nightmares before that being under the influence felt like drowning, but no- this was floating.

A familiar voice met her ears and she laughed, a carefree smile appearing on her lips as she swayed to the music. With an exhale that expelled her anxieties, Ellie began to enjoy herself, paying no mind to why the voice singing sounded like the one that used to serenade her. All she knew was that she was happy to hear it once again.

It wasn’t until the music changed and someone appeared in front of her that she realized that it was Rico who had been the one singing moments earlier. It was his voice that had caused her to start to dance and smile- a feeling she hadn’t felt in a while. Her reaction time was clearly too slow as before she could say anything, he vanished out into the backyard, guitar in tow.

After minutes that felt like hours of standing there trying to piece together what had just occurred, Ellie let her feet carry her to the backdoor and outside, following the familiar voice that sang out to her once again. Her footsteps light but also imprecise, she quietly made her way over to where the next song was coming from- one that was sadder and more yearning, clear that something heavy was weighing on his heart.

So she sat and listened.

Lost in rhythm, Rico didn’t even realise as he shifted to a very particular song that a certain girl joined the growing crowd around him. As he plucked the strings to a soft Latin vibe, he opened his mouth again.

“Recuerdo ese día
Te entregué mi corazón.
Corriste hacia el edificio para salir de la lluvia con tu viejo trapo azul.
Cuando me sonreíste, mi corazón vacío brilla con júbilo y le puse nombre a esa tormenta”

When he was playing music, there was nothing that could break Enrique’s stride. Even this song which he wrote for the girl that broke his heart, it pained him but he would never stop playing it. Even the negative emotions one feels can be taken and turned into something beautiful. He opened his eyes only to be met by the breathtaking image of the girl he named a storm after. He wouldn’t stop, this was her song after all.

Even in her high delirium, Ellie knew exactly what song Rico was playing before he started to sing, she knew from the first string he plucked. She knew every note that would follow, every word that was sung, every rise and fall, as it was the song that he had written for her. There was always magic in the music that Rico created, even before they dated it was something that she had admired, but after being with him so closely and understanding how naturally and deeply the poetry emanated from his lips, she knew how much he meant those words in which he sang. The girl under the influence of both the drugs and the music sat frozen, heart ringing in her ears.

After finishing the song to a round of applause (and some tears) Rico downed what was left of the drink he had brought outside with him and got to his feet. She had approached him! Maybe he was wrong to run away? All he wanted was to go back to the way they were, to fix what he had broken and to sing songs to her for the rest of his life. The drink was courage, the drugs were adrenaline and they both were pushing him closer to the one he loved. He wandered over to the brunette and smiled.

”You wanna talk?”

Ellie blinked once, twice, three times, eyes glazed over at Rico but not really seeing him. She was clearly in a daze, growing more high by the minute, and after realizing and snapping out of it, she dissolved into a little laugh. “I’m sorry, can you repeat that?” She bashfully stated, letting out another small giggle as her gaze refocused on his features. He was standing quite close to her, the closest they’d been since the breakup, she was positive he could hear how fast her heart was beating.

What was this? The dilated pupils, the minor beads of sweat sitting just beneath her silky hair, the laboured breathing...was Ellie high? Of all the things he thought in the world, Rico never thought he’d see the day where Eleanor Roberts would embark on a journey of altered consciousness. He had seen her drink before at parties but never imbibed in mind altering chemicals but he knew the signs all too well, in fact he was well under the influence himself. There was a thought that crossed Rico’s mind; he wondered if he had done this? Had she gone off the rails in response to their breakup? No she wasn’t that weak. Maybe she was just exploring herself in a new way...it wasn’t something he hated, he didn’t know her this way.

Taking her hand, his heart began to race. Just the touch of Ellie’s skin was enough to light his heart on fire. ”Let’s go somewhere a little quieter” He led her away from the crowd of fellow inebriated teens and to a silent area elsewhere. Now that they were alone, Rico wasn’t sure what his plan actually was so he just said the first thing that came to his head. ”El, you look absolutely asombrosa”

It was almost as if an electric shock went through Ellie’s system the moment Rico’s hand touched hers, pulling her aside as her uncoordinated limbs followed. She’d be lying if she said she hadn’t thought about him since the Spring, and she’d also be lying if she made the claim that she didn’t miss him. But something about the party atmosphere and the weed in her system kept her level headed enough in that moment to pull her hand away the second they stopped moving. Even though she still felt like everything was dancing around her.

“I know.” The girl replied solemnly, knowing damn well that she looked good. Lil had said earlier to say that, and thank god she remembered and didn’t melt into a puddle. “You came up to me before and then you walked away… why.”

He almost hoped that whatever was in her system had made Ellie forget about that. Rico was a coward and now he had to admit to it. ”I...well… The songsmith was at a loss for words for once in his life. ”...I saw you in the crowd and I just wanted to be near you. I didn’t know what to say and I didn’t know if you would want to even speak to me. I’m sorry”

The simple truth of the matter, the truth that Enrique so desperately wanted to free was that he was still madly in love with her. It was that every breath that he put out was one less breath that he could give to her. Ellie had become everything in his world and it killed him that he had pushed her away. His entire body ached to be near her constantly but alas he knew that he couldn’t be and that tore him apart.

“I mean,” Ellie started, brushing a strand of loose hair behind her ear, “I was going to say something, but everything is moving at normal speed and I’m in slow motion so I couldn’t get my words out fast enough before you literally disappeared.” The girl admitted bluntly. She looked up at Rico, losing herself in his eyes and the small little freckles on his nose, zoning out for the second time. She blinked three times before realizing she had been staring again, and let out a small laugh at her daze. “I’m high, if you haven’t figured that out already.”

”I noticed; you’re smoking now El?” It was a strange thing seeing her like this. He didn’t hate it, in fact Rico had tried for the entirety of their relationship and even before that when they were just friends to get Ellie to let loose a bit with a little weed and a little booze. She was always so uptight, the weight of the world hanging off of her neck like a noose on a dead girl.

He wanted to reach out again; to touch her arm, to brush the hair from her cheek and feel her on his fingertips once again. Seeing Ellie in such a way both excited him and sobered him up even more. ”Are you ok, mi amor? How’re you feeling?”

Mi amor the words hit the brunette straight in the chest and sucked the air out of her lungs for a moment. It had been months since she had last heard such sweet words being spoken to her, another language of love in which she had grown so accustomed to. Ellie sighed, the loose strand of hair falling into her eyes once again. “I feel… good.” She replied, “You know, I feel more relaxed than I have in months, and I’m starting to get a little hungry, and also why is everything funny now? I don’t get it.” She rambled, dissolving into another high mindless laugh.

”That's the joy of the césped, it takes the edge off and makes things just a little lighter” Rico wasn’t sure what to do at this point. He had never been around high Ellie before. He had been around drunk Ellie but even that was a rarity. It was almost ironic that the pair's relationship, in part, had ended because of this very vice. Not the weed itself but Enrique’s use of it as well as other recreational drugs, he was a heavy partier and here the artist was, staring up at him with those beautiful eyes, high as a fucking kite. ”You wanna grab some food? You’ll feel great”

Now if Ellie were sober, she wouldn’t have started talking to Rico in the first place. She would have avoided him, avoided all eye contact and connection and just would have gone about the evening on her own. But the brunette conveniently was not sober, which made her much more agreeable and less aware of her woes. Her green eyes searched around for Lil, almost for permission, who was nowhere to be seen. Where the hell had she gone with that guy? She’d have to go and look for her… after food.

“Food sounds really good right now.”

This was a moral test of oneself; this was the first time that he and Ellie had been this close to each other in months, let alone the first time they had spoken since their break up. Absence truly did make the heart grow fonder and in her current state, if there was any ounce of deviancy in the fool for love, Enrique could probably convince her to take him back or at least spend the evening with him. The thought of that however, it truly sickened him. He could never take advantage of her, Ellie was his love and if his parents had taught him anything it was that love conquered all and sooner or later, if they were meant to be, she would find her way back to him.

”Let me take you to one of the food tables, make sure you get something to eat and then I’ll get out of your hair” He put a soft hand on her shoulder, caressing it subconsciously with his thumb. ”Don’t want to ruin your night when you’re clearly having a blast” With Ellie in one arm and a guitar in the other, Rico began to guide her towards the food table. ”What are you feeling? Burger? Hot Dog?”

The brunette placed one uncoordinated foot in front of the other as Rico assisted her towards the promised sustenance. “Doesn’t matter to me, anything sounds good right now.” The party seemed to spin around her but Ellie became hyper focused on the boy’s grasp of her shoulder, the way his fingers clasped both delicately and sturdily around her. His touch became reminiscent of months past and before she could stop herself she blurted, “I don’t know if this is the weed or the booze talking, but I miss you.”

Oh my God! She said she misses me!

Rico wasn’t entirely sure what to do with that information. What he was sure of was that he just wanted to grab her right there and kiss her as hard and as long as possible. He wanted to sweep her off of her feet, carry away from the chaos and just be together like they used to be. Which was why when he said what he said next; he immediately thought it was a stupid thing to say. ”I miss you too, mi amor- so much- but that might just be the party talking.”

Arriving at the snacks, he scanned what was there and began to plate up all the things he knew Ellie would love as well as some things he knew would soak up the alcohol and drugs to stop her feeling like the walking dead the following morning. ”Here,” He handed her the plate of food with a smile, ”If you still miss me when you're sober, then there’s always tomorrow. If not, at least I know there’s a little part of us that made you happy.” He kissed her on the forehead, trying not to linger too long. ”If you’re looking for Lilith, she’s in the pool making out with some dude.”

Ellie couldn’t help but notice a shift in Rico’s demeanor. For a moment, she could have sworn she had seen his eyes light up, a glimmer of hope in them, but his following words eliminated that notion. It was just the intoxication talking, she guessed. Every sense of her’s was heightened as she took the plate of food from him, especially as she felt Rico’s lips upon her forehead. It was tender and she wanted it to last longer, but he pulled away and the moment was gone. Her eyes glanced over, catching only a glimpse of Lil and the boy disappearing into the house. “Guess I’ll catch up with her later...”

Showing some form of maturity was a new thing for Rico. He had spent so much time being “Freako” that the actual boy behind the partying wasn’t probably known to many, if any. ”I’m sure you’ll find some way to occupy the evening, if not well, I’ll be in the corner, singing sad songs that don’t mean anything to anyone but me. You’re more than welcome to join me.” He offered up a soft but somewhat sad smile, like his heart was not truly in it. As he turned to finally leave her, the boy was struck by lightning as he often was in Ellie’s presence and turned to face her once again.

”Whatever happens, mi amor I want you to know, you’re my uno y solo and I’ll love you forever.” He couldn’t look any longer, the regret of blurting out the contents of his heart weighed heavy and she likely wouldn’t remember it anyway.

Eleanor Roberts was never at a loss for words. The bubbly and extroverted artist always had something to say or contribute, but as she heard those words tumble out of Rico’s mouth, she didn’t know how to respond. She wanted to chalk it up to the weed in her system, which made her reaction time much slower than usual, but it was just her not knowing how to proceed. She sighed, finding two words to describe how she felt.

“I know.”

It was strange. To most those two words could be taken as a negative in this situation but not here, not now, not for Ellie and Rico. He knew instantly the meaning behind them. It was a sobering fact that despite not being together, they were still together. He loved her and she, him but they were not ready, not yet. What they were when they were with each other, those people were not strong, they were not who they were supposed to be. Perhaps they were now? Morning may possibly shed light but perhaps not. Rico was willing to wait for her, as long as it took. He sighed through his nose and took a step forward into the night, guitar still in hand.

El Mariachi sings a sad song indeed.

Ellie watched as Rico walked away, disappearing into the revelry. She honestly didn’t know what to feel after that, so she settled for taking a few bites of food and then pulling the blunt out of her pocket that Lil had given her, twirling it between her fingers. She searched around for a moment before making her way over to a group of stoners sitting in the corner of the party. “Could I borrow a lighter?” The brunette asked.

Now she got why people smoked- it was to numb the pain.