2 | Exposed ( ETHAN DOLAN )

SEVENTEEN

[ reminder before you all attack me for this: ethan is 18 years old. he is legal. ]

E X P O S E D
C H A P T E R  S E V E N T E E N

"SO, tell me what happened between you and Andrea Russett."

Andrea plopped down on the couch beside Ethan. She crossed her legs and propped her chin in the palms of her hands, like a child waiting for her mother to tell a story. It had been on her mind since she'd met Andrea, bothering her to the point where she could hardly focus on anything else.

Ethan sighed, locking his phone and running a hand through his hair.

"We hooked up a while ago."

Andrea was silent. She was waiting for more to come out of his mouth, but nothing did.

"Is that it? Ethan, I've hooked up with plenty of people that I still hang out with."

"Yeah, but she told me she had feelings for me and I didn't, so she got all petty about it and stuff," Ethan finally elaborated, and only then did Andrea understand why he acted so bitter around her.

"All along I thought her shady tweets were at Kian, but they were really at you, damn. Was this going on while we were talking? You know, because you tried sending her nudes," Andrea chuckled.

"Yeah, it was. I guess you kinda made me realise that I didn't want to be with her."

"How come? I was such a bitch to you."

Ethan shrugged. "Yeah, but when you were nice to me, you were nicer than Andrea was in general."

"Was I even nice to you at all?"

"Nope," Ethan said, then they both burst into a fit of laughter.

"How do you put up with me?" Andrea questioned, a grin at her lips. "I mean, obviously you had no choice."

"It was hard, I'll say that," Ethan chuckled, gazing at the girl. How did he put up with her? How did he become so attached to the girl who could have ended his entire career? "Did Andrea say anything about me, by the way?"

"She just made a weird face when I said your name."

"What kind of face?"

"Same as you. A kind of frown. Like she was disgusted."

"Wow, thanks," Ethan shook his head, almost convincing Andrea he was truly offended, but then she remembered how big of a drama queen he was.

"You were the one who wanted to know."

After a few moments of silence, Ethan let out a huff and stood up from the couch. "I need to go edit," he announced. "Do you need anything at all?"

"No, I'll go bother Grayson," Andrea smirked, and Ethan did too. Before he could disappear into his room, Andrea stood up and grabbed his hand.

"Don't be too hard on yourself. I know what you're like when you edit. You stress yourself out. Just take it easy," she insisted. Her calm and soothing voice was enough to take any already existing stress that Ethan had.

Ethan nodded his head and met Andrea's eyes. "I will."

When Ethan was gone, Andrea made her way to Grayson's bedroom and knocked on his door, but not before hesitation. When she heard a quiet 'come in' from the other side, she opened the door and entered the room, a tight feeling spreading through her chest. Her anxiety was rising.

"Hey, Ethan went to edit," she explained in a quiet voice. There was something on her mind, and this was the perfect opportunity for her to talk to Grayson about it.

"What's up?" Grayson asked. Unlike Andrea, he seemed calm and casual. He was laying on his bed, most likely tweeting or posting something on Snapchat.

"I wanted to talk to you. . . about last night."

Grayson sat up straight, beckoning for her to sit on his bed. She shuffled over and sat down slowly on the edge, him watching her as she avoided his eyes.

"I didn't wanna leave on bad terms and I just hated how awkward it was between us today. I'm sorry about what happened. I was just really confused and overwhelmed and I didn't know what to do." Andrea's features were soft as she spoke, and she looked apologetic.

"No, it's my fault. I shouldn't have come onto you like that," Grayson replied, observing how she chewed on her bottom lip. "I was just too in the moment, I guess."

"Yeah," Andrea said, admittedly surprised that Grayson was taking the blame. She expected him to be angry with her for rejecting him.

"What would you do if I asked you to be my girlfriend right now?" Grayson asked, catching the girl off guard. Her heart dropped and her mind went blank. She felt nausea begin to creep up on her.

"Uh, I-I'd probably say no."

"Oh."

"Stop that, Gray. You know I like you and your brother, which is why I'd say no to both of you. Besides, when I go back home, I don't know when I'll be back. So please stop doing this. I want us to be on good terms," Andrea rambled.

"I'm sorry, okay? I just. . ." Grayson sighed. He took a moment to collect himself and think through what he wanted to say. He pretended to ignore the fact that she'd just admitted her feelings for him. "Let's just drop all of this."

"Sounds good to me."

"Great. Well, how about we watch a movie?"

"Only if it's Dirty Dancing," Andrea insisted, grinning smugly.

"I'm not gonna change your mind, am I?"

"Nope."