[Ethan] Good morning sunshine

[Rose Elliot Madison]

Rosie kept her eyes shut, pulling the blankets tighter around herself. She was just so comfortable and she hated waking up unless she had a reason to. Like school or work. But she didn't have either this morning, hence she reason she'd gone out the night before with Ethan. Speaking of Ethan, with out opening her eyes she could tell he wasn't there, he'd probably woken up hours ago. He never woke her up early, that's why she liked him. He always let her sleep in, to a point. Once it got into the afternoon he knew she'd get upset with herself for sleeping the day away, that's when he always came in a stirred her. They had a good system. Usually she slept in the spare room at Ethan's apartment and she'd gotten used to it. When he was dating Natalia, sure she had tried her luck but he'd always put her to bed in the spare room. However, now that they were broken up, Rosie didn't let off on the flirting, there was no reason to. Meredith had called her yesterday, telling Rosie that she'd been cast for the role as Katniss in the Hunger Games. Rosie had read all the books and was already super excited that it was being made in a motion picture. But finding out one of her very close friends was playing the lead was probably the most exciting thing that had happened all week. After Rosie screamed for about five minutes, Meredith then went on to talk to her about the real reason she had called. Rosie had smiled when Meredith had asked, don't you know Ethan Fox. aren't you friends with him? Rosie had said she was and then froze for a second, hearing Meredith explain that she thought he was a really good actor and would make an awesome Gale. Rosie had to agree, the role fit Ethan so well. Hell, Rosie kind of pictured something like Ethan when she pictured Gale. So now Rosie had a bit of a mission, convince Ethan to take the role. Meredith had already raved about him to the writers, they were willing to cast him with out an audition. And Meredith had spoken to him but apparently he hadn't been convinced. That's where Rosie came in.

It hadn't been hard to convince him. Rosie showed up at his apartment in a trench coat and some carefully picked lingerie. She knew he's agree to basically whatever she suggested. By the time she was done telling him he would be perfect for the role and he wouldn't be in that many scenes and it would be different then his last movie role because he could come home way more often, all while teasing him a bit... he had agreed to do it. Rosie was sure he'd be asking himself what the hell he'd just agreed to. But this role was huge and such a cool honor. These books were loved by so many. It really was an opportunity. Anyways, after he'd agreed, Rosie had changed her clothes and they'd gone out like they did every week, got drunk, danced, came home, crashed. Rosie fell asleep in Ethan's bed and he didn't protest. She fell asleep so fast it didn't even matter anyways.

But now she opened her eyes, stretching out and looked around. Ethan was already up, though she wasn't surprised. She climbed out of bed, wearing nothing but her victoria's secret cheeky undies and one of Ethan's t-shirts. She moved her hair off her face, walking out of the bedroom, smelling something delicious coming from the kitchen, "Yum, is that breakfast I smell cooking?" She said walking quietly across the apartment in be bare feet. Just as she was walking past the front door, she heard a knock, stopping and then decided she would answer it, "I got it.." she called out, turning the handle and pulled it open, seeing a nicely dressed young woman with a briefcase standing there. "Hi, can I help you?" The woman looked into the apartment skeptically before saying, "Yes... I'm here for an interview with Ethan Fox, do I have the wrong apartment?" Rosie shook her head, "Oh no, this is Ethan's apartment, he's just in the kitchen." She paused, feeling like she was forgetting something, "Is Ethan expecting you?" The woman shifted her briefcase to her other hand, "Yes I spoke with someone yesterday evening about an interview, she said to come right over this morning." Rosie thought for a moment while the woman looked her over, probably judging by her clothes what she thought was going on her. But Rosie remembered vaguely, drunkenly answering Ethan's phone last night. Word had spread fast about this movie role, he'd only just been faxed the contract she saw on the kitchen table. "Oh right, right," Rosie said, stepping aside so she could come in, "What did you say your name was?" "Heather McDonnell." "Nice to meet you Heather, I'm Rosie, I'll go get Ethan," Rosie smiled before hearing Heather mumble to herself, "I know who you are Rosie Madison..." So she knew her, whatever. Rosie could only imagine what the tabloids would say about this encounter. And her attire wasn't exactly helping.

Rosie headed to the kitchen and over to Ethan, rubbing his bareback, "Good morning." She smiled brightly, "So... please don't hate me but there's a very nice young woman here to interview you, and I think I told her last night that it was okay." She smiled at him apologetically,hoping he wasn't upset at her for her drunken things that she agreed to. "She seems really nice though, she probably just wants to ask you a few questions about the new movie." she shrugged, "word travels fast I guess. I'll... go get you a shirt." she said, clearly not happy with it but she figured she should probably go put pants on too.


outfit

[Ethan John Fox]

Ethan ran his hand over the back of his neck, feeling the hair that was still wet as he looked down at his fax machine, waiting patiently as the last of the papers came through. He gave an audible sigh. Was he really going to sell the next few months of his life to the Hunger Games franchise? He hadn’t wanted to. But after meeting with Meredith for lunch yesterday and then … well, the presentation Rosie offered he hadn’t really seen a reason as to why to say no. They still hadn’t slept together, despite what a lot of people might have felt, but he’d be an idiot if he said she wasn’t attractive. Especially when she had shown up in a trench coat and little else, he heard himself agreeing to it before he even realized what had really happened. It would be a smaller role, he could travel home more often, he wasn’t a lead,..though it was sort of a bigger movie, a blockbuster. People wouldn’t be asking about his love life, well.. they might want to. But he was adding a clause to any of his interviews, those questions were completely out of the window, and he had been adamant about how important his schooling was to the directors. Meaning, if he had a final on a Tuesday, and they were filming… his ass would be in New York taking his final. But the thing that had really made it permanent for him, was Claire. He supported her, told her that she could absolutely get back in shape for ballet within the six week time period after her labor. And he knew Shane would always take care of her. But there was something in Ethan that honestly felt like she wouldn’t be able to accomplish it, not that he would ever voice that opinion. He didn’t want to watch her wear herself thin, go back to old methods to lose weight, struggle day in and out with being a new mom while trying to destroy her body. Not to mention how stressful it would be for Shane to have to watch her go through it. No, she needed to go to college. She needed a back up plan, and .. she needed to not worry about paying for it. Shane could pay for it, yeah. And he’d probably offer it like it was the most obvious thing in the world, but Ethan didn’t want either of them to have to worry about that stuff, not when they were already going to have to worry about starting a family. He wanted to help, he wanted to give anything he could. And this was the best way. Any money he got from this he was already planning on paying for Claire’s education, and putting into a savings account should his little niece or nephew ever need it.

Ethan brought the papers into the kitchen and set them down before he pulled out the Belgian waffle maker and set it on the counter. He’d never owned one until he and Rosie became friends. She ate those things like she was a starving orphan, so he’d reluctantly gone to the nearest cooking store and bought one. But he had to admit, they were a hell of a lot better than the frozen eggo’s he had eaten on his own before. He scratched the side of his jaw before he opened the fridge, taking out whipping cream before he smelled it and then took down some sugar. He poured them into a bowl before he grabbed a whisk and started to spin it quickly, making her some home made whipped cream from her waffles. She usually ate more of that and the strawberries than the actual waffle itself anyways. Ethan licked some of the whipped cream off of his thumb when he was finished and set the bowl aside, moving to slice a few strawberries so that he could put them in a pot and set them on the stove so he could start making some strawberry syrup to go with her strawberry waffles. He stood quiet for a second, turning his ear to listen if she had gotten up to take a shower or not... She’d probably scold him for cooking without her, but whatever. At least she would have something to eat, and he needed something to do as he still battled in his mind about this movie. Not so much whether or not he should do it, just how he was going to keep himself happy this time. Cause he really was doing it alone. Not that Meredith wasn’t great, she’d been nice at lunch and when she met up with them at the bar later that night she seemed thrilled that Rosie had pulled through. But on the Last Song at least he had one of his friends, someone he could relate to. Maybe Meredith would become a friend. He looked over at the stove, smelling as the strawberries were becoming caramelized and added a bit of maple syrup to it before he mashed the strawberries down so he could stir them into the same consistency as the syrup. After he turned the stove off he went over to the fridge, taking out some orange juice and pouring it into two glasses before he set them on the table. He hummed along to the music blaring from his iPod, expecting Rosie to come to the kitchen any second now. He grinned as he looked up, hearing her voice. “ Yeah I made you some waffles,” he said before he heard a knock at the door, nodding to himself as Rosie said she got it. After a minute or so Rosie came into the kitchen, explaining to him he had an interview. Already? He gave a slightly annoyed look in Rosie’s direction but then shrugged his shoulder. He couldn’t be mad. He was the one buying the drinks, slightly his fault. “ Alright, send her in” he said, turning back to finish the bacon he had started to top off their breakfast. “ Put some pants on!” he yelled after she walked away. “ I’m not Hugh Hefner” he mumbled to himself, not really caring any other time when she walked around in her underwear, it was whatever. People could see it in magazines, billboards, online if they wanted to. But apparently he had company. The last thing he needed was for them to both be half naked.

Ethan ran his hands over the side of his sweatpants, wiping off the grease from the bacon before he brought his hand up to shake the womans as she came into the apartment. “ Hey nice to meet you, Ethan Fox.. uh..” he said slightly uncomfortable as he looked at her. “ Well.. are you hungry? I just made some breakfast, you’re more than welcome to have some,” he said, gesturing to everything he had made. “ Oh.. no that’s okay, thank you though. I’m so sorry if I am interrupting, I had been under the impression that it was okay to get the first interview from you concerning your involvement in the Hunger Games franchise”. Ethan nodded, chewing on a piece of bacon before he gave a slight shrug of his shoulder. “ It’s not inconvenient.. it’s alright. Stuff happens. People set interviews up for their friends drunkenly and don’t tell them.. what’s the worst that could happen?” he said half heartedly, now making himself and Rosie plates. “ But uh. I don’t answer questions involving relationships. Ever” he said with a pleasant tone while he focused on finishing off the plates and set them on the table. “ Go ahead and have a seat, I’ll grab you some coffee atleast,” he said, taking a shirt from Rosie as she came back into the kitchen. “ Thank you,” he said, smiling down at her as he pulled it on over his head and then smoothed it over his stomach before he went to the coffee pot and poured three cups of coffee before bringing them over to the table and setting them down. “ So what have you got for me?” he said, smiling at the girl again before he pulled Rosie’s chair out for her and nudged the plate towards her. “ Well Mr.Fox.. in o-“ Ethan chuckled under his breath slightly before he interrupted her. “ Ethan” he said before cutting into his waffles. She blushed against her cheeks slightly, looking down at her notes of what she wanted to ask him. ‘..Ethan, you were so adamant before about never doing another movie. And here you are signing onto a huge blockbuster. What persuaded you to stay in the business?”. Ethan chewed his waffles slowly, trying to think of how to best answer that. He had been adamant. He almost came off like a jackass because of it. “ I guess I just had the right persuasion,” he said, lifting his mug of coffee to his lips before he gave a coy smile to Rosie. He wondered if the interviewer felt uncomfortable, but he wasn’t going to kick Rosie out. Breakfast was tradition, she needed to stay and eat. Besides, they were friends. It wasn’t like he was hiding anything.

Song playing in the kitchen
Outfit

[Rose Elliot Madison]

Rosie left the kitchen, pointing her thumb behind her at the kitchen telling Heather, "right in there" before she heard him yell to put pants on. "Planning on it!" she yelled back, shaking her head. She went back to Ethan's room, digging through one of his drawers for a clean blue tshirt for Ethan. She threw it on the bed and then found a pair of Ethan's sweats on the floor, pulling them up over her slender legs and tying the drawstrings as tight as she could so they didn't fall off. They still hung dangerously low but they'd have to do. She hoped that Ethan wasn't too upset about doing an interview this morning but he didn't seem too upset. And if he was she was totally cool with taking her clothes off to make him forgive her. Rosie grabbed the tshirt off the bed and headed back to the kitchen and handed Ethan the tshirt, who thanked her and she replied brightly, "You're welcome." Ethan pulled her chair out so she sat down, pulling the plate he'd made for her toward herself, eying all the yummy stuff on there. She started loading up her waffles with all the good stuff, cutting them into bite sized pieces and listened as the woman began asking questions. Of course first one she asked was the fact that he said he'd never do another movie and here he was doing one. Rosie smiled when Ethan looked at her pointedly and she added, "Oh, by persuasion he means me." Heather looked over at Rosie questioningly, probably glad that Rosie was now wearing pants. "However do you mean by that? You... persuaded him?" She looked scared to ask. And with good reason. Her fears were probably exactly what had happened. But Rosie wasn't going to share that with her.

Rosie pulled her legs up onto her chair sitting cross legged, "Well yeah. I read all the books and I just thought Ethan would make a really great Gale. And Ethan doesn't think he's a good actor, but he really is." She smiled at him, "I just think it's a really cool opportunity. So many people love this book series, I think it's something really cool to get the chance to be apart of." Rosie could tell that Heather was looking at the pair of them, wanting to badly to know what exactly the pair of them was but she refrained herself, "So now that the Last Song has finished filming and the movie is starting to get some hype, how are you prepared to deal with the hype that will surely come along with being apart of this new project? Surely this is going to have a much larger fan base going in to it?" Rosie took a bite of her waffles, looking at Ethan to see what his response was.

[Ethan John Fox]

Ethan took a drink from his orange juice, watching the conversation that was happening between Rosie and the interviewer, deciding he should just butt out for a little bit. That was polite, right? He smiled as Rosie complimented his acting abilities, though he really felt he had none it was nice to know that someone thought he was good at it. Whether he would admit it or not, Rosie was right about the fact that it was a rare opportunity so he should be thankful to be a part of it. Alright. He’d read the first book, but in his defense, he had borrowed Claire’s nook on one of the flights to Georgia and it was the only book that he thought might have a redeeming quality. It’d been decent. He looked up, realizing the interviewer was talking directly back at him again. He listened carefully, making a mental note to not take another bite of waffle again so he could answer, even though he really wanted to. Oh, man. I think the hype is just different. I mean theres going to be people that are excited about both projects.” he said, trying to think of how to word what he wanted to say. “ With The Last Song I’m portraying this character who was forced to go through a lot of growth when he was young, but the root of everything, of all the questions, in all the interviews came down to love, and whether or not I felt it, and how it compared to Will Blakelee’s love. I mean Hunger Games does have the theme of love in it, there’s the evident love triangle, but Gale has a bit of a characteristic of ‘protector’ in him, so it’ll be a bit more fun to dissect his feelings towards Katniss. Does he really love her, or does he love her because he feels he should since they protect one another and have shared a common loss due to the same incident? There’s a lot more psychological factors involved in the relationship between him and the main female, and it’ll be interesting to get a chance to dissect those. So I’m looking forward to the hype a bit more because I think it’s a bit more.. psychologically invasive, makes you think, question yourself.. what would you do if you were thrown into this scenario? As humans we’re capable of far more than we believe ourselves to be; in both good and bad.”
“ So your character is involved with a love triangle? Do you believe it’s possible to be in love with two people at once?” Ethan smirked, “ See, questions like that..” he said, before taking in a deep breath and sighing. “ Yeah, he said, before shrugging his shoulder. “ People have so many different dimensions, that it’d be naïve enough to think that there is only one person in the entire world to completely change your life. Can someone change your life? Yeah. Is there only one person? No.. That’s ridiculous.” he said before taking another bite from his waffles. “ What about you guys?” he said, looking up at Heather and Rosie. He didn’t like interviews, so if he could make them like conversations then all the better. Ethan leaned over to take a piece of bacon from Rosie’s plate before he grinned at her. How was everyone else so much more natural at interviews than he was?

[Rose Elliot Madison]

Rosie made a face at Ethan as he took a piece of bacon off of her plate but ignored it, there was more bacon to go around. She answered his question instead, "Oh yeah, I think it's almost expected. I mean how many relationships do some people have before they get married? And some people are so young, saying they're in love, who are we to judge them. Just because you don't marry someone, I mean, are you going to turn around later and say you had a temporary moment of insanity? No way, people are capable of loving so many different people, and its different kinds of love, at different stages in life. Loving more than one person... I think doesn't show weakness. Just means you have a bigger heart, twice as much love to give," she laughed, "What about you Heather? Do you love more than one person?" "What? Oh, no, no. You both have... very well thought out views. Umm..." she paused, looking through her notes for another question, "Ethan, since you have read the book, you're familiar with Gale's character. What trait of Gale's do you think you most relate with, what's one trait that you share?" Rosie picked up her glass of orange juice and took a sip while Ethan thought about it. Smiling at him, she offered, "They're both hot." Rosie laughed and set her glass down, "Well I don't know about you guys but I imagined Gale being a good looking guy. He just sounds sexy. Ethan... well. Look at him." She waved her hand dismissively as if it were obvious.

Rosie continued eating her waffles, deciding to shut her trap and let Ethan answer his own questions, smiling at him anyways. She was just being honest. But in her head, all silliness aside and looks out of the question, she knew what she thought Ethan had in common with Gale. They were both protectors. Drunk or not at the time, Rosie hadn't forgotten the way Ethan had came to her aid at the club on his birthday. Completely willing to beat some guy to pulp for even looking at her wrong. Looking out for her the way he always did, with out question. She never had to feel unsafe, or unsure of her surroundings when he was around. Ethan made her feel safe, which was more than other guys did. Rosie knew there were a lot of girls who would be bothered by violence like that, and she understood. Some had good reasons to be bothered by it. But Rosie knew one thing, and that when a guy was defending your honor, and he just so happened to look like Ethan, it was sexy as hell.

[Ethan John Fox]

Ethan started eating his hash browns as he listened to Rosie explaining her views on love and whether or not you could love more than one person in your lifetime. But just as quickly the interviewer was asking him another question. He chuckled as Rosie ranted off what she thought he and Gale had in common before he took a drink of coffee. “ Gale in the story might be attractive but I’m a bit worried to see fan feedback about me playing his character,” he said with a slight shrug of his shoulder. “ A similar character trait between myself and Gale..” he said beneath his breath quietly. “ I think I’m fair in the sense that I’m honest. I tell people things even if it isn’t what they want to hear,” he said, giving a small nod to himself. He’d been honest with Natalia after all, about Rosie. He was honest with Claire about how he thought she had ruined any chance of her ballet career, he was honest with Stefan about hypocrisy—because let’s face it, everyone is a hypocrite at times, even Ethan was when it came to his friendship with Rosie versus Natalia’s relationship with her ex. Though he didn’t want to get into that debate again, fiends with someone you dated, versus friends with someone you had never dated. Moot, they weren’t dating anymore. He didn’t need to worry about those types of things anymore. Besides, she had guys publically asking her out for dates. Apparently she was going to do just fine in the world of suitors. And then there was Anthony.. people could assume what they wanted about that friendship, whether it was over, whether it wasn’t. It sure as hell was rocky. But like Ethan knew about himself, he was honest to people to the point where he knew it might be seen as slightly socially unacceptable. But he’d rather have that then dishonesty. And the way Anthony was obsessed with Natalia just sort of pissed him off in the first place.

“ Some people might think there is such a thing as too much honesty, but I think if I respect a person then they deserve nothing but the absolute truth. I also think he and I are both pretty guarded about other aspects of our life. You know how Gale feels about the authority over them, how he feels about the loss of his father, and how protective he is. Aside from that much he doesn’t offer much into who he is. I’m very similar to that. My friends know what my favorite sport is, my favorite band.. but quite honestly there isn’t much that goes past that in terms of what I offer to let others know about me. Unless I’m directly asked, like in interviews,” he said, gesturing to the interviewer before he stood up from the table and made his way over to the coffee pot to get himself another cup. He looked at the interviewer as she was writing stuff down and Ethan leaned back against the kitchen counter, listening as the interviewer turned her attention to Rosie. ‘ On the theme of love… are you dating anyone?’. Ethan chuckled as he ran his hand over his hair and shook his hair out. Clever. If Ethan wasn’t going to confirm whether or not he was in a relationship then she might as well ask Ro-… wait. Why was she asking Rosie? Was she trying to figure out if they were in a relationship together. Ethan narrowed his eyebrows as he looked at the two of them. It hadn’t entirely occurred to him that it might appear that way. And if anything, Ethan just found it amusing. Hell, if people were going to talk about him anyways. Ethan leaned away from the counter quickly and walked behind Rosie where he placed his hands on her shoulders and massaged them gently. “ Yeah, are you?” he questioned before he smoothed back some of her hair behind her ear and sat back down in his chair, drinking from his coffee before he smiled back at the interviewer.

[Rose Elliot Madison]

Since the subject had changed to honesty Rosie had a few things going on in her head. Firstly, that she agreed with Ethan. Even if it was brutal, she'd rather some was honest with her then lie to her and not know the truth. Secondly, she was feeling dishonest in the way she was behaving herself for this interview. But lets face it, Ethan is a sexy muhfukker and Rosie was completely set on bagging him at least once. Just once, right? Or twice, or so. Had to know. Yum. She knew she flirted with him ruthlessly when he had a girlfriend and it really only got worse now that he was single. Granted she was being nice and gave a little bit of a grace period right after the break up. She wasn't an animal, she wasn't going to move in during a weak spot. But the more time that passed she worse she got. She couldn't help being a flirt, it was like half of her vocabulary. And he made it so easy when he looked so good. All the damn time. But where was the crime in that? He was single, she was single, they were both hot. What on earth was this dude waiting for? Rosie looked up when the interviewer asked is she was dating anyone? "Me?" Rosie asked, looking at her, "Oh. Nope I'm single and ready to mingle..." she glanced at Ethan and looked away, back toward the interviewer. "No, I'm not in a relationship right now. I'm not opposed to one, just not on a quest for one either. I think it'd really be a, if it just so happened to come along type of thing. So if your intentions were to ask if Ethan and I are together the answer is no." Not right now, she added in her head. She smiled brightly and the interviewer smiled politely. She asked Ethan a few more questions, mostly just business things and Rosie finished eating, letting them finish up. Finally the interviewer gathered up her things, thanking Ethan, and Rosie for her input, for the interview and she said she would let herself out so they could finish breakfast. Rosie said good bye, sitting patiently until she heard the door close and it was only her and Ethan again in the apartment.

"Woo, finally. Now you're free to take your shirt back off." She grinned at him and hopped up, taking her plate to the sink and turned the water on, starting to wash her dishes real quick so Ethan didn't have to worry about it. "I can't even imagine what she must have thought when she walked in here. Oh well," she shrugged. Ethan's ipod switched songs, and Rosie smiled, dancing a little next to the sink while she washed. "Ooh my jam. We should go dancing Ethan! I love dancing..." Rosie wiggled across the kitchen and pulled him up out of his chair and took his hands, "I know you won't make me dance by myself," she raised her eyebrows, "When are you gonna show me your moves like jagger, huh?" she asked, grinning at him.

[Ethan John Fox]

Ethan looked over his shoulder as Rosie told him he could take his shirt off and continued to chew his bacon before he reached back and easily slid it off of his back and tossed it to the floor. It did feel weird wearing it around the house. “ Do you really think I’m going to have to dye my hair?” he asked, slightly bothered by the idea that the interviewer had mentioned that he’d need to dye his locks. He looked back at his plate, deciding he had ate enough to feed a small army and chuckled quietly to himself as the song switched over to Maroon 5, resulting in Rosie saying it was her jam. Everything was her jam, every time the song changed at the clubs. He took her hand as she grabbed his and pulled him out of his chair. “ Alright, alright.” he said standing up, “ Of course I won’t make you dance alone,” he said, adjusting the way his sweatpants hung against his hips quickly. He stopped his entire body and dramatically jerked his head side to side as though it was an elaborate dance move.

Just as the chorus took off, Ethan took a hold of Rosies hand and spun her around quickly before he threw his arms to his body in the same manner that Mick Jagger did when he was doing the ‘ chicken dance’. ” Right?” he asked , shaking his hand in front of his face and basically attempting to seize the same way Mick Jagger often did on stage. “ I don’t know why people would want to dance like him. “ he said before he narrowed his eyes and turned around. “ Didn’t you angels do a lipsynch thing to this? Didn’t you girls have to have the moves like jagger?” he asked before he crossed his arms and then turned to look at her expectantly. He wiggled his hips mockingly before he looked at her again. “ Chop, chop angel” he said before he slowly gave a small smirk.

[Rose Elliot Madison]

Rosie looked at Ethan quizzically, running her finger through his hair and trying to picture him with darker hair. "Mmmm..." she said, furrowing her eyebrows together, "Well. It's just hair after all, isn't it." She shrugged, but kept dancing. She watched Ethan as he tried to imitate Mick Jagger, which she had too admit he wasn't doing too badly. But then again, Mick Jagger danced a bit like a spaz anyways, didn't he? Not hard to imitate. Still it was funny watching him. He was embarrassed to act like a goofball. Which was cool, because Rosie was a goofball. And she didn't feel weird being herself around him, because Ethan was a chill guy. And he didn't look at her like she was just a piece of ass, which was nice and all, but kind of out of the ordinary for her. It was different. But she still liked him. She was not used to being turned down, not when she was putting her self on a friggin' diamond encrusted platinum platter. Oh well. Guess she couldn't have it all. And it just went to prove that she wasn't everyone's type. Either way, he was still super awesome to hang out with, even if he refused to get naked with her under the sheets. Rosie laughed freely, shaking her head at Ethan's dancing, "Okay okay, enough of Jagger's moves, I think I prefer Ethan's," she sighed, catching her breath.

Rosie grinned, shaking her head, "Nuh uh, I got my own moves," she said, and continued dancing to whatever the hell her own drum was. Wasn't she always dancing to the beat of her own drum, was that the phrase. Yeah that was her. In a nutshell. Rosie spun around, lifting the hair off the back of her neck, plopping it on the top of her head and turned her back to him before she let it fall back down her back. She turned back around to face him, stopping from dancing, and looked at him mischievously, "You know, you still have a free Rosie coupon that you haven't used yet. Should I remind you of the coupon guidelines?" She asked. Rosie walked around him, probably too close to be an innocent gesture and said, "You know its for anything you want, whenever you want. And you can't return it for cash back, its really more of an in store credit type of thing," she explained, trailing a hand across his bare chest and stopped behind him, her chin resting on his shoulder so she was speaking quietly in his ear, "All you have to do is say the word..." she said in a quiet singsong voice, smiling at him and looking less angel like by the minute.

[Ethan John Fox]

Ethan ran his own hand onto the top of his hair after Rosie ran her hand through it. It would be weird having it darker, but honestly it wouldn’t be for very long. And it was just hair, who actually gave a shit? Ethan narrowed his eyebrows as he watched Rosie spin around, lifting the hair off the back of her neck before she let it fall back down over her skin. He gave an internal sigh as she turned around and then smiled back at her as she smiled, though hers seemed to be a bit more loaded than his. Ethan looked down at his chest as Rosie placed her hand across it, moving behind him so she could whisper in his ear about the coupon she had given him. He shook his head faintly, giving a quiet laugh to her behavior. Persistent little thing, she was. Ethan leaned down, placing his hands on the back of her legs before he picked her up and set her against the counter where he let his hands rest on the inside of her legs for a moment, before he leaned in to whisper to Rosie in the same manner she had. “ Then I’m going to guess it also doesn’t come with an expiration date,” he said before taking a step away from her. Ethan laughed at her again, shaking his head as he picked up the rest of the dishes and brought them to the sink.

Ethan turned the water on in the sink before he offered Rosie a hand towel and then started to wash the dishes before handing them off to her so she could dry them. He honestly didn’t understand what the appeal was in trying to sleep with him. Granted, he slept with girls he didn’t know when he met them at bars. But what was the point in sleeping with someone you were friends with? He just didn’t want to jeopardize the relationship he and Rosie had. He’d be a lying fool if he said he didn’t find her attractive. Anyone with a beating heart would say she was. But he also knew her as one of the girls that he felt the most comfortable with himself around. Did he really want to waste that sense of comfort by making things awkward and sleeping with someone who apparently meant that much to him? Even Ethan wasn’t that big of a slut and could control himself. “ Is what we have not good enough?” he asked, looking over to the side to see her. “ Or is it just not worth more than one night?”

[Rose Elliot Madison]

Rosie knew she was pushing it, wondering if she was pushing his buttons as well. He'd been single for a little while now, how long was he going let her try to lure him in before he either gave in or just told her flat out he wasn't interested. Maybe that was just it. It couldn't be because she wasn't pretty enough. She didn't model lingerie for nothing. Maybe too much time had passed, they'd become too good of friends...? She smiled when he picked her up and put her on the counter, "Well that's a good guess," she added about the coupon never expiring. She felt a little flutter in her stomach when he got closer to her, just the way he touched her was enough to get her going. Before she could get too excited he'd headed to the sink, handing her a towel to dry the dishes. He could tease as well as she could. She quietly took the plate from him, drying it off, thinking. He was a good friend. And though he was hot as hell, she did care about him more than she did when she met him. He actually mattered to her as a friend, not just a good looking guy that was probably as fun under the sheets as the chase itself. But, on that note, he was one of the greatest guys that she'd meet. They had a connection that was really kind of a stretch, something that other people didn't find. He just got her. They were both kind of what the other needed in life at the moment, even just as friends.

As if he was reading her mind, Ethan turned and asked her if it wasn't enough. She set the plate down she was holding, looking down at her hands. She had to have guessed it would come to this. That he'd get that impression. But couldn't she ask the same thing? Am I not good enough? That was ridiculous though, he didn't mean that at all, she was sure. She looked up to meet his gaze, shaking her head, "No of course not." She sat quietly for a moment, trying to find something to say. She was sorry he got that impression. But he was right. What they had was enough. It didn't mean she'd stop wanting more, but having him in her life as anything was more than she could ask for to begin with. And she didn;t even know what she meant by wanting more. Wanting a relationship? That wasn't exactly what she'd been pushing for, she just knew what she liked and wanted what she wanted. She hadn't really put any thought into why she wanted him in the first place, or what exactly she wanted from him. And that wasn't fair to him, sending him mixed signals. She sighed, "Ethan, no, you're right. it is more than that." she said sincerely, giving a small laugh, "I've been stupid." She shrugged, throwing out the most cliched question but understanding that it really was all they would probably ever be. "Friends?" she offered, not even sure what she had even wanted up until this point. If there was such a thing as reckless thinking, she was guilty of it.

[Ethan John Fox]

Ethan shook his head as he stated quickly, “ No,” before he realized she just asked if they could stay friends. “ Wait, yes.” he said making a confused expression. “ I meant no, you’re not stupid,” he said correcting himself as he abandoned washing the dishes in the sink altogether. “ Look…” he said, walking back to stand in front of her. “ You’re Rosie Madison,” he said, giving a slow smile before he mockingly made a fan girl scream expression. He lifted his hand to his face before he traced the back of his finger against his jaw. “ That means something different to me,” he said, smiling down at her. “ You let me by myself. Which is a pain in the ass sometimes. And.. you came into my life when I really needed a friend that would understand that without necessarily making me feel guilty about uh.. Natalia,” he said. Natalia wasn’t really something he talked about, with anyone. Ever. And just as quickly as he brought it up, he was likely to drop it. Couldn’t really be a man of mystery if you laid out all your cards on the table. Ethan licked his lips before he took in a deep breath and sighed, placing his hands on the counter at the sides of Rosie. Mysterious, yeah. But he was also honest, probably too honest sometimes. It’d bit him in the ass more than once at least.

“ Rosie I’m not saying you aren’t attractive. Or that I haven’t thought about it before. More than once. More than a few times, even.” he said, lifting his eyebrow slightly towards her. “ But that’s just it. You mean something different to me. I don’t want to… compromise that.” he said, gesturing down to what little clothes she was wearing. “ People sort of know you for your body.” he said, knowing that it was true. It wasn’t demeaning, it was just a fact. “ I get to know you for so much more than that. How many people can say that? … How many guys have wanted to stick around to actually want to know you instead of just getting a chance to sleep with you? I don’t know what your past is like, or how many men you’ve been with but it doesn’t matter. Whatever idiot walking down the street saying ‘ I got to nail Rosie Madison last night’ is a complete moron… cause I get to make waffles with her. And go out every Friday night. Watch movies, go ice skating, play soccer, know your favorite movies and books, what your biggest dreams are and your biggest fears.” he said looking down at her legs and the way they bent over his counter. He coughed, refocusing himself before he leaned away from her again. “ That’s a lot more intimate,” he said before he hopped up onto the counter next to her. “ Unless intimacy wasn’t what you were looking for and you were just looking for a sweaty night in the sheets, to which I may say Miss Madison… I don’t know what kind of boy you think I am, but I sort of need to be wined and dined first,” he added sarcastically before he wrapped his arm around her shoulder and leaned down to kiss the side of her hair with a smile against his lips.

[Rose Elliot Madison]

Rosie shook her head, but smiled anyways when he leaned over to kiss her hair, "You're a dork," she teased him. But he had a lot of valid points. A lot of valid points that she agreed with, but just needed someone else to confirm. She didn't want to jeopardize their relationship for a one night fling. She cared about Ethan more than that. Just different then what he was thinking. Sure, she cared about him enough that sleeping with him once wasn't worth losing what they had, but slowly she was getting a grasp on her feelings that she hadn't sorted through yet, and she was starting to see that maybe a one night fling wasn't worth risking it, but a bunch of nights with him was. And now she was in a pickle because Rosie was that girl that knew exactly what she wanted and set her sights on whatever or whoever it was. And if she didn't know, she decided right then in there. She was not indecisive at all. And she'd just decided she wanted Ethan. Like wanted, wanted him. And why wouldn't she want him, he was the best thing to walk in her life and not make fun of her clumsiness, put up with her chipper personality, didn't think she was a drunk slut. So she had a crush on him. If she'd have decided that earlier she wouldn't have thrown the friend card out there in such defeat. But she had, and he'd agreed. And he'd just put her in the friend zone when she supposed she wanted to be in the girlfriend zone. Not good. But, at least she wasn't confused, she'd sorted out her feelings. She needed to talk to Madeline.

Rosie hopped off the counter, smiling, "Okay, I'm gonna go change. I don't mean to run out on you, I just have some things I need to take care of. You know how it is," she turned around to glance at him, flashing him a flirty smile. As she walked away from him out of the kitchen, she pulled his shirt off over her head, exposing her bare back and giving him one last tease before she padded barefoot across the living room to Ethan's spare room. She always had some spare clothes at his place. "But do you wanna go ice skating later? And we can get coffee!" She called out behind her, slipping off his sweats half way across the living room and then dug around in the spare room for a pair of her own jeans and a bra. And a shirt. Clothes, she needed to wear them, as much as she wished she didn't have to. After dressing she grabbed her purse from wherever it had ended up last night, pulling out her phone and sent Madeline a text, "Hey meet up for coffee? I have to talk to you " She went back in the kitchen and dropped her purse on the chair so she could help clear off the the rest of the dishes on the table. "Breakfast was perfect, can I call you later?" she asked reaching up to kiss his cheek, "See you in a while, stay out of trouble," she grinned, wiggling her fingers in a wave at him and let herself out. She had to talk to Madeline about this. Even if Madeline was in lala land, Rosie had to tell someone.