Inked, Degrassi Fandom

[Kristen Bell]

Title: Inked
Rating: M
Reasons for rating: cursing
Fandom: (if applicable) Degrassi: The Next Generation
Ships: (not mandatory) Craig/Ellie, some Craig/Manny
Summary: He always figured Ellie Nash to be the type to get a tattoo, though he was still surprised when she went out and actually did it.

00

Part I

00

Ellie sat at the bar in her dress—her uncomfortable dress, thank you very much—scowling. She had somehow managed to convince the bartender that she was over twenty one, thanks to the fake ID that Marco had slipped her earlier that week.

“My cousin knows someone who knows someone,” he’d said with a wink. “Consider it an early Christmas present.”

“It’s October,” she’d countered wryly.

He’d shrugged. “Halloween present, then.”

It was quite amazing, actually, that she hadn’t gotten carded, but luckily the bartender was barely twenty one himself, and if Ellie wasn’t mistaken, horny. A sultry smile and a hand on his forearm and the poor guy was gone.

Ellie shrugged and took a deep gulp of her glass. She wasn’t sure what was in it, other than some type of alcohol, and it’d made her choke at first, but she was at the point now that she couldn’t really taste it much anymore. Just some bitter aftertaste, which was fitting for her mindset, anyway.

She heard a loud, melodious laugh from behind her, and rolled her eyes, finishing off the drink. She didn’t have to turn around to see what was happening, her stupid mind was filling in the details for her. Manny Fucking Santos, with her perfect hair and her sexy dress and her bright smile and her dark eyes and her ‘I’m so cute’ personality. Craig doesn’t have a chance. Ellie imagined him looking at her, his face in that stupid dopey expression that he used to have with Ashley, and Ellie thought that he might have had with her.

Manny would be talking softly now, her face adoring, her hand in Craig’s. Craig would be smiling down at her, eyes warm. He would lean down, and Manny would lean up, and then their lips would meet in the middle…

Ellie slammed the glass down and grabbed her coat. She didn’t have to stay here and listen to this. Cringing at another burst of laughter, she tossed a few bills on the bar and walked determinedly out of the hotel ballroom, steadily ignoring the Gruesome Twosome, still flirting, by the stage. She could feel Marco and Jimmy’s concerned looks on her back as she slammed out of the doors.

When she got outside, she felt her bravado slip away and her insecurity return. This wasn’t fair. None of it was fair. She had been the one there for him all summer. She had been the one to pick him up off the ground when he’d call her, half-drunk and depressed about Ash. She’d been the one who cared about him, who’d worried about him, who’d taken care of him, for God’s sake. She’d been the one who’d fallen…

Ellie cut that line of thought off right there. Love? She scoffed. No way. Not even possible. It was way too soon for that, they’d only recently gotten close, she barely knew him…

But she did know him, Ellie realized. You can’t go through therapy with someone for five straight months and not get to know them.

Still, Ellie thought. There’s no way I’m in love with him. Less than half a year ago, we were barely friends. Something like love takes time to develop, to grow, and it’s completely ridiculous between two people like Craig and me.

Ellie felt her stomach drop and her throat tighten. She had the distinct feeling that she was trying to convince herself of something that wasn’t true, trying to ignore some epiphany that she didn’t like. It was the same feeling she got when she finally realized that she couldn’t stay living with her mother, when she realized that Sean was staying in Wasaga, when she realized that it wasn’t that her dad couldn’t come home, that it was more likely that he didn’t want to.

She leaned back against the cement wall and sniffled, trying to hold back the tears that were threatening to escape. Why did this always happen? It was the same fucking thing, over and over again. She wasn’t enough for Marco to be straight, she wasn’t enough for Sean to stay, and now she wasn’t enough for Craig to notice. What was she doing wrong?

Ellie realized somewhere in the back of her mind that really none of these things were her fault, but right then she was depressed and drunk, and the circumstances of each of those situations didn’t matter much to her. It still fucking hurt.

All of a sudden, the door opened, making Ellie jump, and swipe at her face. A brunette woman came storming out the door, visibly upset. She barely spared Ellie a glance, before stomping her heel-clad foot on the ground and letting out a frustrated scream. Ellie raised her eyebrows.

The brunette stood there, breathing deeply for a few more moments, before turning around and smiling embarrassedly at Ellie. “Sorry,” she said. “It’s…it’s been a rough night.”

Ellie nodded. “Are you okay?” she asked.

The brunette laughed bitterly. “’Okay?’” she repeated. “What a concept.” She walked over to where Ellie was standing, digging in her purse and taking out a pack of cigarettes. She pulled one out and stuck it in-between her glossy lips. “Want one?” she asked, offering the pack to Ellie.

Ellie shook her head. “Nah,” she said. “Cigarettes and booze don’t mix well with me.”

The brunette lit her cigarette and took a long drag before replying. “Yeah, I saw you at the bar. Did you get a good fake driver’s license, or what?”

Ellie raised an eyebrow. “How do you know I need one?”

The brunette grinned. “Because I need one, and we can recognize our own.” Ellie shook her head, smiling in spite of herself. “I’m Audrey,” the brunette continued, holding out her hand. “Age nineteen. And you?”

Ellie shook her hand and said, “Ellie, age seventeen. And it’s nice to meet you, Audrey, age nineteen.”

Audrey shook her hand and winked, taking another drag on her cigarette. A long pause ensued, with both girls staring into space aimlessly, the silence broken only by the sound of Audrey’s breaths as she blew puffs of smoke violently into the night air. “So,” Audrey said suddenly. “This wedding kinda sucked.”

Ellie let out a short bust of wry laughter. “Yeah.”

“So what’s your problem? I know what mine is.”

Ellie sighed. “My problem,” she mused. “I have quite a few problems, though there’s one in particular that I’m brooding over at the moment.”

“Ah, drunken brooding, I know it well,” Audrey said. “Lemme guess. It involves a guy.”

“How did you know?” Ellie asked sarcastically. “I feel like such a cliché, getting trashed over a guy. Pathetic to the extreme.”

“Well, of course it’s pathetic,” Audrey replied. “Doesn’t mean you’re the only one who’s ever done it. Every woman has done it, actually. And if they say they haven’t, then they’re lying.”

Ellie leaned her head against the cold, stone wall, wrapping her arms tightly around herself. “What is it about guys that make them so goddamn dumb?”

Audrey chuckled. “The question to end all questions,” she said. “Maybe there some kind of stupidity gene that comes with having a dick.”

Ellie exploded in surprised laugher. The mental image of Craig’s eyes bugging out as he eyed the Manny’s long legs popped into her head. “God, you have no idea how right you are.”

Audrey laughed along with her. “So, let’s see. You’re brooding over a guy,” she said, tapping her chin. “He’s stupid, so it probably has something to do with his dick…” Ellie burst out laughing again. “Ah! I know what happened!” She snapped her fingers. “He rejected you for some bimbo.”

Ellie shook her head, still laughing. “Exactly what happened. You’re good at this.”

Audrey shrugged. “Well, it helps that it’s happened to me too,” she said. “For the record, whoever he is, he’s an idiot. I mean, you’re totally hot!”

“Thank you!” Ellie exclaimed. “I wore this dress especially for him. This dress, which makes me look hot, if I don’t say so myself. I dressed up for him, with makeup and hairspray and everything. I never dress up!”

Audrey nodded. “And it worked. Because you’re hot! I mean, if I were a guy, I’d totally do you.”

“Thank you again!”

Audrey dropped her cigarette on the ground, stubbing it out with her shoe. “And if this guy wants to screw some slut instead of you, who needs him?”

“Right,” Ellie said. “I mean, so what if I might be in love with him?” she gestured wildly. “I’m sure there are a million guys out there that are just as sweet and goofy as he is, and who cares if he’s completely hot, too? And I’m sure that he’s not the only guy in the world that does that funny thing with his hands when he’s driving, or that makes that cute face when he plays his guitar, and…and it’s not that big of a deal that he can always make me laugh. Who needs to laugh? I can make myself laugh!” Ellie breathed heavily. “I’m ranting, I know, but you know what? Craig Manning is a moron. And I don’t care who fucking knows it.” She pointed at Audrey, who was watching her calmly. “You know it, and I know it, and Ashley probably knew it, that’s probably why she stayed in England, not because of some guy with that fruity name that I can’t remember right now!”

A small smile played around the corner of Audrey’s lips. “That was impressive,” she said. “Very…detailed.”

Ellie’s fight had left her, and she sagged back against the wall. “Like I said…pathetic.”

Audrey shook her head, smiling. “Not pathetic,” she said. “Just in love.”

Ellie groaned, and buried her face in her hands. “With a moron.”

“With a moron,” Audrey agreed. She nudged Ellie’s arm with hers. “Hey, you wanna blow this joint?”

Ellie raised her head to eye Audrey. “You’re not gonna kill me and bury me in the woods, are you?”

Audrey grinned. “Only if you piss me off.”

00

Craig frowned as he scanned the crowd. “Hey, Manny, have you seen Ellie recently?”

Manny shook her head. “Not since the set ended.”

“Where could she be? I mean, she wouldn’t have just left, right?”

Manny shrugged, seemingly disinterested. “Maybe she met someone, or she’s enjoying that fake ID Marco got her,” she said.

“I hope she’s okay,” Craig said worriedly.

“I’m sure she’s fine,” Manny said assuredly.

Craig looked over at Manny and smiled, though he remained unconvinced.

00

[Kristen Bell]

00

Part II

00

Ellie and Audrey were walking down the sidewalk away from the hotel, talking quietly. “…and so then he completely ignores me the entire time, choosing instead to drool over Manny the Porn Star,” Ellie finished.

Audrey shook her head. “Forget the bastard,” she declared. “Seriously. If he can’t see what’s right under his nose, then you deserve better. I mean, come on, I’ve known you for twenty minutes, and already I know that you’re a much better choice than some skank who strips for a camera.”

Ellie took a swig of the bottle of some kind of liquor that Audrey had in the back of her car before answering. “Exactly. And I saw that damn video, and her boobs are not as good as mine,” Ellie slurred. “I mean, come on.”

“You do have great boobs!” Audrey exclaimed. “And I’m not only saying that cuz I’m drunk.”

“Good to know,” Ellie said. “So, you know, you still haven’t told me why you were angry, before.”

Audrey sighed. “Ugh, do we have to talk about me?” she whined. Ellie grinned and nudged her, shoving the bottle into her hands. Audrey took a long drink before speaking again. “Okay, okay. My sister was the bride, right?” Ellie nodded. “Well, earlier she said something that just made me realize a lot. Like…” Audrey frowned in drunken contemplation. “My whole life, I’ve always been this perfect kid. Good grades, jock boyfriend, popular, cheerleader, you know…” Audrey made a disgusted face.

“I wouldn’t have figured you for a cheerleader,” Ellie said thoughtfully. She made a disgusted sound in the back of her throat. “Manny’s a cheerleader.”

“Ugh, I hated doing it,” Audrey said. “I just did it anyway because I thought that I should.” She shook her head. “I just felt like I was two different people, the one that I showed to everyone at school and stuff, and then the real me.”

“I feel like that sometimes too,” Ellie said. “Like there’s something about yourself that you need to keep hidden away.”

“Exactly!” Audrey said. “There was Popular Audrey, with her pigtails and 4.0 GPA and college applications, and then there’s the Real Audrey, who hates school and has a thing for bad boys and swears too much and really, really fucking hates being Popular Audrey.” She sighed in frustration. “And the worst part is that I can’t stop being Popular Audrey. It’s all I know. I can’t be Real Audrey, because I’m too scared to be.” She sighed. “It’s not as heartbreaking as your problem.”

“It’s heartbreaking to you,” Ellie said, and linked her arm through Audrey’s. “You’re not the only one who’s ever felt like that, you know.”

Audrey smiled thankfully in response, and laid her head on Ellie’s shoulder, sighing. “You know, I really like you. I can see myself being good friends with you. I wish I’d known you when I was in high school.” She then grinned, catching sight of something in the distance. “Oh my God, there’s my solution.”

“What?” Ellie frowned.

Audrey ignored her and ran ahead, grinning. Ellie rolled her eyes and ran after her. When she finally caught up to her, Audrey was leaning against a lamp post, rubbing her ankle. “Fucking shoes,” she muttered. She unstrapped her heels and stepped out of them. “So what if I run my stockings?”

Ellie chuckled. “What is it that’s so urgent, Audrey? God.”

Audrey rolled her eyes and pointed at the building in front of them. “Duh!”

Ellie looked up and saw a rickety sign reading ‘Magnet Tattoo’. “Oh no,” Ellie said. “You’re kidding.”

“I am not kidding!” Audrey exclaimed. “I’m tired of being Popular Audrey. I am going to real, from this moment on, and my first step is going to be a tattoo!”

“Oh, God.” Ellie rolled her eyes. “Audrey, you are drunk. You can’t get a tattoo when you’re drunk, you’ll regret it the rest of your life.”

Audrey shook her head stubbornly. “No, no, I’ve wanted to get a tattoo for so long, I even know what I want and where I want it,” she said. “A fleur-de-lis, on my back, in memory of my grandfather, and to commemorate my future career.”

“Your grandfather was a…map maker?” Ellie guessed. “And now you’re going to carry on the family business?”

“No, silly,” Audrey said, shoving her playfully. “He was a traveling salesman, and I’m going to college to be a journalist. I’m going to travel all over the world,” she said. “Visit all the places he used to tell me stories about when I was little.”

“Sounds amazing,” Ellie said. “You’re sure you won’t regret this?”

“Yes, very sure,” Audrey said. “But you still have to come in with me and make sure I don’t scream in pain. Or, better yet!” Audrey gasped. “You should get one too!”

“No way,” Ellie said automatically. “Piercings are fine, but permanent body art?”

“Come on, live a little!” Audrey said happily, and then paused. “Wow, that sentence, coming from me. Who’d have thought?” She gave a little giggle.

Ellie shook her head, bemused. “Look, I’ll come in with you, but you’re on your own with the tattoo.”

“Ellie,” Audrey wheedled. “Come on, it’ll be like, a landmark. Our first act as friends.” Ellie still looked unconvinced. “It doesn’t have to be very big. And at least when you look back on it, it’ll be a happy memory to laugh at.”

“Not very big?” Ellie asked, and Audrey nodded. “Well, I have thought about it before…”

“Yes! Oh, do you have any idea how much I love you right now?” Audrey exclaimed. “Seriously, if I were into girls, I would drive you to…Turkey and marry you. Or whatever country that’s legal in.”

Ellie laughed as Audrey pulled her into the small shop. “God, I hope I don’t regret this in the morning,” she muttered.

00

“Craig, she probably got tired and left early,” Manny reasoned, following Craig as he paced around, looking for the absent redhead.

“We’re her ride, she wouldn’t have left without us,” Craig replied. “You’re sure you haven’t seen her?”

“Yes,” Manny said, exasperated.

“Marco!” Craig waved at the brunette guitar player, spotting him with Jimmy over by the stage. “Hey, have you guys seen Ellie?” he asked, walking over to them. “She disappeared after we finished the set.”

Marco raised his eyebrows. “I’m surprised you noticed,” he said with a significant look at Manny at his side.

Craig frowned. “What’s that supposed to mean?”

Marco sighed. “Nothing, man,” he said.

“She left about forty-five minutes ago,” Jimmy supplied when Marco kept silent. “She was at the bar for awhile before that.”

“So you let her leave, without a ride, and drunk, too?” Craig’s brow furrowed. “Great. Why would she leave?”

Marco pinned him with a look. “Guess.”

Craig’s stomach dropped. He remembered the way she’d smiled at him earlier in the evening, the way she’d blushed when he’d complimented her on her dress. Then she remembered the looks she’d kept throwing him while he was talking to Manny. He looked over at Manny, standing next to him, tapping her foot.

He was an idiot.

“I gotta go look for her,” he said.

Jimmy shook his head as he watched Craig go, while Manny rolled her eyes and chased after him. Marco just watched the scene, sighing. “This is what I get for hanging out with straight people,” he said.

00

[Kristen Bell]

00

Part III

00

Audrey lay on her stomach in the padded chair, her newly inked tattoo branding the middle of her upper back. A fat layer of gauze had been taped over it, with instructions to remove it after twenty-hours. “If it helps, it only hurts for the first few minutes. After that you kinda go numb,” she said.

“Thanks,” Ellie said wryly. “No, I’m good. Believe me, physical pain is not an issue with me,” she said, thinking of the other permanent marks she bore on her forearms.

Audrey grinned. “I didn’t think it would be.”

‘Magnet’, as the man had instructed them to address him by, was preparing the ink and needle for Ellie’s tattoo. He consulted a printed out picture that he’d downloaded from the net earlier as he prepared. “Interesting choice,” he commented. “I’ll tell ya, you two girls are a breath of fresh air, compared to the rest of my clientele. Most of ‘em are either tourists or over the hill business men that think they’re having a midlife crisis.” he said as he laid the needle to Ellie’s skin, right above her hip.

Ellie had decided to get a tattoo there, for no other reason than it would be covered by her clothes. She and Audrey had actually had to switch outfits in the bathroom so that Ellie wouldn’t give the guy a free show. She was uncomfortable in Audrey’s short as shit skirt, but other than that, the combination of the musky incense that burned in the small shop combined with the alcohol in her bloodstream was very relaxing.

To her credit, Ellie tightened her grip on the armrest of her chair only slightly as the needle pierced her skin. “So you don’t get many young people in here?”

Magnet shrugged. “Not really. I’ll tell ya though, if I got to tattoo more beautiful women like you two though, I’d love my job a hell of a lot more.” He grinned, and Ellie smiled, feeling light and airy as he continued his task. Audrey was right; she did go numb after a while.

Half an hour later, Magnet consulted the printout for the last time, and nodded in satisfaction. “I may be tired of it, but I am good at my job,” he said. He grabbed a jar and rubbed some disinfectant gel on Ellie’s skin, which brought out the brilliant colors of the DNA strand that now adorned Ellie’s hip. Ellie smiled happily, and Audrey oohed in delight. “If ya don’t mind me askin, why this?”

Ellie shrugged. “DNA is the building block of all life. I guess I figured that I needed a reminder that no matter how different we all are, we’re all made out of the same material, deep down.” She smiled wryly. “Kind of a reality check, I guess.”

Audrey grinned. “You are one cool chick, Ellie Nash.”

“Thank you,” Ellie said, smiling.

Magnet smiled as he taped the gauze over Ellie’s hip. “Okay, same deal as your friend here. No showers for twenty-four hours, then take off the bandage and let it air out. If it starts to bleed or swell, then get it to a doctor, and you signed the waiver, so I’m not held responsible for personal injury, blah blah blah, et cetera.” He held out his hand, and Ellie shook it. “You know the rest. Nice doin business with you,” he said. “And I only hope to have more customers like you.”

Ellie grinned.

00

Craig was pacing in front of the van. He and Marco had long since loaded all the equipment into the back, and most of the guests were leaving. “Where the hell is she?”

Marco hadn’t been too concerned at first, after all it was Ellie’s style to run when things got too intense, but even he was getting concerned. “I don’t know, Craig. Did you try her cell?”

“Three times.” Craig’s stomach was twisted in knots, he couldn’t stop picturing the hurt on Ellie’s face that he’d been able to determinedly ignore before. Now he couldn’t get it out of his head. Hundreds of images ran through his mind, everything from Ellie getting piss drunk and going home with another guy to Ellie getting attacked by a psycho in the parking lot.

“Guys, stop worrying. She probably took a cab home,” Manny said, trying to calm Craig down. He barely spared her a glance.

“She would be answering her cell, though,” Jimmy said reasonably.

Manny shrugged. “Maybe she ran out of battery?” she suggested weakly.

Craig sighed. “Maybe I should go look for her.”

“Craig, no, you need to stay with the van,” Manny said. “I’ll go.”

Marco snorted. “Yeah, that’ll be pretty,” he said sarcastically. “You both stay, I’ll go.”

Craig opened his mouth to argue, but snapped it shut at the sound of loud, female laughter. Loud, female, Ellie laughter.

Craig whirled around and was greeted by the sight of Ellie with her arm around a tall, brunette woman, who was currently giggling hysterically, an empty bottle clutched in one hand. “Ellie?” Craig asked incredulously.

Ellie stopped laughing, and looked over at Craig. “Oh! Craig!” She smiled brilliantly and dragged her companion over to where the group was standing. “You’re here!”

“Yeah, I’m here, I’ve been here for the past two hours,” Craig said sourly. “Where the hell were you?” He did a double take and looked the small redhead up and down. “And what the hell are you wearing?”

Ellie looked down at herself. “Oh, I’m wearing Audrey’s clothes,” she said. She turned to her friend. “Yeah, I need to give you your clothes back.”

The brunette snorted and waved a hand. “Please, honey, keep em. That skirt is atrocious, it’s not even mine.”

“I can’t keep it if it’s not yours!”


“Yes you can, it’s my sister’s,” Audrey said, giggling. “She’s married now, what does she need a skanky skirt for?” Ellie laughed. “Besides I want to wear this dress home. It’s so kick ass.” Craig looked at her friend, and noticed for the first time that she was wearing Ellie’s black dress. “So…gotheriffic.”

“That’s not a word,” Ellie said, shaking her head and giggling.

Craig blinked, trying to ignore the sniggers from Marco and Jimmy behind him. “Ellie, who is this?”

Ellie looked up at him and smiled goofily. “Oh, you haven’t met Audrey! This is Audrey.” She pushed the brunette in front of her. “Audrey, this is Craig,” she said meaningfully.

Audrey looked behind her and raised her eyebrows. “Craig?” she asked, and Ellie nodded. “Oh, Craig!” she looked at him and grabbed his hand, shaking it vigorously. “I’ve heard so much about you.”

Craig shook her hand, confused. “O…kay,” he said. “Ellie, where have you been?”

Ellie frowned drunkenly. “Oh, what? Now you’re worried about me?”

“Yeah!” Craig’s brow creased. “You just disappeared, Elle, of course I was worried about you. You weren’t answering your cell phone, I didn’t know if you were—“

“Oh, it was your cell phone that kept ringing!” Audrey interrupted. “I thought it was Magnet’s!”

Ellie shrugged. “I didn’t hear it ring.”

“Who the hell is Magnet?”

“The tattoo guy,” Audrey said airily. “Oh, he was so cool. He said that we were beautiful, which was like, duh, but still, it’s always nice to be flattered.”

“Tattoo?” Dread creeped into Craig’s chest. “Oh no.” He looked at Ellie and noticed for the first time a white bandage sticking out of the top of the waistband of her skirt. “Ellie, you didn’t.”

“Didn’t what?”

“You got a tattoo?” Craig asked. Jimmy burst out laughing, while Marco was trying to keep a straight face. Craig turned to glare at them.

“Yeah,” Ellie said. “I got a tattoo. So what?”

“Ellie, you’re drunk,” Craig said. “You’re going to wake up and regret this.”


“No I won’t,” Ellie snapped. “First off, I was only tipsy when I got the damn thing, and second, who the hell are you to come off all righteous?”

“I’m not trying to be righteous—

“Whatever.” Ellie sighed. “Look, I just want to go home, okay?”

“Ellie…”

“Audrey,” Ellie ignored Craig and turned to her friend. “I had a really great time tonight.”

Audrey smiled sympathetically. “Me too,” she replied. “You have my number, right?” Ellie nodded and held up her arm, Audrey’s phone number printed in permanent marker on it. “Awesome. Call me, we’ll do something.” She hugged Ellie and whispered in her ear, “Manny’s the one in the glitter?”

“Yeah,” Ellie whispered back.

“Please, you are worth a million of her.” She pulled back and winked. “Even with the scars,” she said, with a significant look to Ellie’s arm.

Ellie blushed and smiled hesitatingly. She hadn’t even thought about them when she’d pulled off her long sleeves earlier. She felt a rush of warmth from the easy acceptance and understanding that Audrey had given her.

Audrey smiled brightly and waved goodbye to Ellie, walking away to her car and giving Manny a once-over on her way. Marco saw this and grinned, looking at Ellie. “Well,” he said, breaking the awkward silence. “I like her. Not only did she get you drunk, but she got you out of your shell.”

Ellie smiled at Marco gratefully. “She’s great.”

Craig sighed. “Ellie…”

“What?” Ellie huffed in irritation. “What, Craig, what can I possibly do for you?”

“Ellie, I was just worried about you, okay?”

“Worried about me? I’m surprised, Craig, I thought that you were too occupied to be worried about me,” Ellie said. Even drunk her sarcasm didn’t leave her.

Craig winced. “That’s not completely fair.”

“You want to talk to me about fair?” Ellie fumed. “What’s fair about you blowing me off like I’m nothing at the sight of some girl in a short dress?”

“Ellie, I’m sorry I ignored you tonight,” Craig argued. “But you have to know how much you mean to me. You were with me all that time in group this summer, you know me, you know everything.” He reached for her but she pulled away.

“Well, glad I could be there for you,” Ellie snapped back. “Don’t bother with the ride, I’ll take a cab.”

“Ellie, wait—

“Save it.” Ellie turned and strode away from Craig.

He grunted in frustration and turned to Marco. “A little help, here?”

Marco held up his hands. “Hey, I’m just enjoying being glad that I’m not you right now,” he said. Craig glared at him, and he sighed. “Look, just give her some space to cool down and sober up.”

Craig threw up his hands. “Fine. Just go with her, make sure she gets home safe, okay?”

Marco nodded and grabbed his jacket from the van’s front seat, jogging after Ellie’s departing form.

Jimmy shook his head, watching them go, and then seeing the look on Craig’s face. “Hey,” he said. “Let’s go, man.”

Manny smiled awkwardly. “She’s just drunk, Craig. I’m sure she’ll forgive you.”

Craig sighed. “Right,” he said. “And hell is gonna freeze over, too.”

00

Did I overdo it?

Whatever, I just realized I don’t care. Shipper fun!

[Lilly Kane]

Meagan.. Oh my God you are the shit here at NC! This is AMAZING, I loved it! Ellie and Audrey are so CRAZY! I can really see this in Weddings, Parties, Anything! You should've put that in your first post, I was like woah! This is a remake of that episode! Lmfao, but damn this fanfic is so good, I really hope you continue on! AH This is great! It's like a book that I wanna keep reading, Craig is soo clueless it's soo funny when he's like wtf happened to you?! I'm liking this Audrey character you made up, she's so cool

So are you gonna continue with this or what? Cuz in the summary, that was all that happened, she got a tattoo and then that was it. I really think you should keep posting stories!! I LOVE THEM. <333
~Emmy

Remember: You are the SHIZNIT.

[Kristen Bell]

I think that was the best review I've ever gotten! Seriously, truly, really. Yes, I'm gonna put them together, as soon as I get you know...an idea of how to get them together. I'll finish it. Hopefully soon...

But really, thank you!

[Kristen Bell]

This took me a looooong time. Mostly cuz I had zero idea of how to get these two crazy kids together. Hope I did them justice.

00

Part IV

00

“Ellie—“

“No.”

“C’mon—“

“No.”

“Elle, please—“

“No!”

Marco huffed in frustration. “For God’s sake, Elle, it’s not like the guy cheated on you!” Ellie snorted. “Okay, he did flirt with someone else all night, but c’mon, he’s dense, not the Antichrist.”

Ellie shook her head. “That’s not the only thing I’m angry about, Marco,” she said. “Ever since this summer, he’s been using me as some kind of crutch. He doesn’t care about me, he just wants me to hold his hand and comfort him.”

“That’s not true,” Marco said. “I know he cares about you, Elle.”

Ellie’s expression was hard. “No, he doesn’t. Trust me.”

Marco sighed. “Okay, look. Just promise me that you’ll at least hear him out when he talks to you. And I know that he’ll talk to you.”

Ellie sighed. “Fine. I’ll hear him out,” she said placatingly as the cab pulled up to her house. “I’ll see you on Monday.”

“Okay,” Marco replied. “Just think about what I said.”

The loud ‘slam’ of the car door was his only response.

00

The first thing that hit Ellie was the light. Too much of it. Way, way too much of it.

She groaned and rolled over in her bed, burying her face in her pillow.

“You know, you look like crap.”

“Craig?!” Ellie’s head snapped up and she jerked upright, the quick motion throwing her off her balance, and she tipped over onto the floor. Cursing wildly, she struggled with the blankets tangled around her legs. Hearing an amused chuckle, she glared at the owner of the voice. “What the hell are you doing here, Manning?”

Craig sat at her desk, his feet propped up on the top, his hands tucked behind his head. His stance was the epitome of arrogance, and the grin on his face didn’t dissuade the fact. He watched her struggling for a minute, then laughed and got up and helped her off the floor, untangling her from the comforter. “Your mom let me in. She went to the grocery store, by the way.”

Ellie rolled her eyes and jerked away from his grip stubbornly. “Great. Now leave.”

“I want to talk to you.”

“Oh, I thought that you'd be tired of talking, by now, what with all the talking you did with Manny Santos last night.”

He winced. “Okay, I deserved that,” he said. “But Elle, talking is all that we did, okay? To be honest, after you left, I spent most of the night worrying about you.”

Ellie scoffed. “Yeah right.” She slipped around Craig, heading towards her bathroom.

“Elle, c'mon,” Craig said, following her across the room. “I want to--” he was cut off when Ellie slammed the door in his face. He sighed and leaned his forehead against the door jamb. Like she would make this easy, he thought. “Ellie, I'm sorry,” he shouted. “I was an idiot last night, and I want to make it up to you.”

Ellie sat on the edge of the bathtub, trying her hardest to ignore him. She grimaced at the reflection in the mirror. Her mascara was streaked across her cheeks, her hair was ratty and tangled. Worst of all, she was still wearing Audrey's clothes from last night, and the skirt had ridden up her thighs to the point of indecency. She blushed slightly, knowing that she must've given Craig quite the show.

Craig. She scowled. What the hell did he expect from her? What did he want? Questions ran through her mind in quick succession, each one flitting in and out of her mind so fast that she couldn't process, let alone try and think of a logical answer. So instead, she went to the sink, turning on the faucet and scrubbing her face clean, smoothing her hair down and pulling it back into a haphazard ponytail. She brushed her teeth quickly, and rubbed the last of her makeup off.

Sighing, she regarded her reflection once more. She wasn't going to win any beauty contests, but at least she didn't look like death on toast anymore. Good enough. Not good enough for Craig, that pesky voice in her head reminded her. You really think that he's here because he cares about you, not out of guilt? You left him there last night with Manny Santos. There's no way. That's the kind of girl he wants, the kind he deserves. The pretty one that wears glittery skirts and fruity lip gloss. Ellie shifted uncomfortably, her heart pounding painfully. You don't deserve him, you don't deserve anybody. She jumped as that thought came into her head, that sounded suspiciously like the thoughts that she used to have before she stopped cutting. So not gonna work this time. Not gonna go there, she thought. Be strong, Nash. She pulled down her skirt again and adjusted her top (well, Audrey's top), refusing to believe that it was because she was nervous.

She might as well go back out there, she knew that Craig hadn't left. He'd stopped trying to call through the door, but she knew that he wasn't one to give up that easily. She pictured him sitting at her desk, feet propped up on the surface, his hands behind his head, that grin firmly in place. She pictured him pacing outside the door, practicing his apology. She pictured him sitting on her bed, relaxed and happy.

The image of Craig on her bed made her flush and she promptly stopped picturing.

Let's get this over with, she thought, and reached out to open the door. She hesitated on the doorknob, and realized that her hands were shaking. Just the hangover. It's not because it's Craig, not at all.

She took a deep breath and pushed the door open, stepping into her bedroom with false bravado painted on her face. Sure enough, Craig was sitting on her bed, waiting for her to come out, a half-hopeful, half-guarded expression on his face. “Hey,” he greeted her.

“Hey,” Ellie replied flatly. She stood there for a moment, debating, and then crossed her arms petulantly and raised one eyebrow. “So ... what?” she asked expectantly.

“What ... what?” Craig asked, confused.

“What are you doing here?” Ellie said impatiently.

“I told you, I wanted to apologize.” Ellie just gave him a look. “What? I did. And I also wanted to see if you were okay,” he said.

“Well, I'm fine. Now leave.”

“Ellie, c'mon...”

Ellie rolled her eyes and started across the room to her dresser. “Look, I don't know what you want me to say, here. I'm hungover and still more than a little pissed off at you, so what did you expect? That I would see that you made the effort and then just instantly say, 'oh, I forgive you Craig. Obviously the fact that you took the time to drive the ten minutes over here shows that you're genuine.' Please.” She reached the dresser and practically tore open one of the drawers, throwing clothes around haphazardly.

“Ellie, look, I just –” Craig walked up behind her, dodging various shirts and tops, stopping right behind her. “Can you just – can I try to talk to you, please?”

Ellie didn't turn around, just shut the drawer and bent down to open a new one. “So talk,” she said.

Craig blew out a nervous breath. “Okay, well, I – I know I've been an asshole, and you have every right to be angry with me –”

“You think?” Ellie stood up abruptly, hitting the edge of the drawer with her hip and snapping it shut with a loud 'clang'. She turned to face him, keeping her arms crossed defensively.

Craig grunted in frustration. “Yes, you do, but what you don't have a right to do is completely cut me off like this.”

“I don't have a right to do that?” Ellie asked incredulously. “I think I have every right to do that.”

“No, you don't,” Craig retorted shortly. “You're treating me like I killed your cat or something, when all I did was what, blow you off last night? Yes, it was a crappy thing to do, and I apologize, but don't try to tell me that if it were Jimmy or Marco in my place that you would be giving them as much crap as you're giving me right now.”

Ellie scoffed, shifting slightly. “That's so untrue.”

“Oh, really?”

“Yes!” Ellie uncrossed her arms, moving her hands to her hips and stepping closer to Craig in her ire. “And it wasn't just that you blew me off, Craig, this isn't just about last night.”

“What, then? What did I do that was so horrible?”

Ellie shook her head, scowling up at him. “Craig, you just – ugh!” She pushed his chest so that he stumbled back a few steps. “You use me as some kind of therapy technique, okay? Ever since Ash left, you've been coming to me with your problems, like I'm some sort of fix-it service. I have my own issues, okay? I don't need yours, too.”

“What?!” Craig's eyes flashed. “That's ridiculous!”

“It is not ridiculous,” Ellie retorted. “Look what happened when Ash broke up with you. You got pissed off at me, because I was the one to tell you, because I couldn't fix it!”

“I got pissed at you because you lied to me about it,” Craig said heatedly. “I am not using you for anything, though thanks for the vote of confidence.”

“Really? So all last summer, it wasn't me who you'd come to whenever you felt like going off your meds, or when you were feeling bummed about Caitlin, or Ash, or ... whatever?”

“Yes, I came to you, because I knew that you'd understand, and I knew you wouldn't feed me the same line of bull that everyone else in my life seems to love to do right now!” Fuming, Craig backed Ellie up into the dresser, getting into her personal space. “Silly me, I thought that you would be there for me and that I could be there for you. I guess that the Nash generosity only goes so far, huh?”

“That is not –” Ellie broke off, her chest heaving in anger, tears stinging her eyelids. She narrowed her eyes and focused on a point over Craig's shoulder, avoiding his gaze.

Craig continued on, not giving her a chance to speak. “What is this really about, Ellie?”

Ellie snapped her eyes to his, then quickly looked away. “What the hell do you mean?”

“I mean, that you are oh-so-obviously reaching for some reason to be mad at me, since you don't seem to want to tell me what the real reason is.” Craig smirked humorlessly. “I know you better than you think I do, you know.”

Ellie frowned. “I just told you my reason.”

“No you didn't.” Craig stepped closer, causing her to step back and bump into the dresser. “Tell me.” His arms came up and rested on the dresser on either side of her, effectively trapping her between his body and the cold wood.

Ellie tried to go for a mocking laugh, but it came out high pitched and shaky. “What ...” she broke off and cleared her throat. “There's nothing to tell.” Suddenly she realized how close they were standing, how dark his eyes were, how good he smelled. Holy crap, holy crap, holy crap...

“Ellie...” Craig's voice had deepened, and he bent his head slightly, and Ellie suddenly forgot how to breathe. “I don't know how to –”

“What?” Ellie breathed out, her anger all but dissipated.

He just shook his head, bending his head down farther and resting his forehead against hers, closing his eyes tiredly. “You've got to stop fighting me sooner or later, Elle.”

Ellie felt a strange sensation in her stomach, slowly seeping up her chest and settling in her throat. She reached out with shaky hands and grabbed his jacket in her fists, bringing him even closer, letting the warmth from his body seep into her cold fingers. She could feel his breath on her cheek, and the rapid pace of his heart beating underneath her hands, its fast rhythm almost matching hers. She swallowed thickly and leaned slightly into him. “Okay,” she said softly, and before she had time to change her mind, she tilted her head up, brushing his lips with hers.

He froze, his hands tightening on the dresser. Ellie's stomach dropped when he didn't immediately respond, and she started to pull away, but Craig followed her face and captured her mouth in another kiss. Ellie's legs went weak and wobbly, and she let out a soft whimper, causing Craig to step in closer still. She slid her arms underneath his jacket, encircling his waist, opening her mouth to deepen the kiss.

Acting on instinct, Craig released the dresser, brushing his hands down her bare arms, causing her to shiver. He took her face in his hands, tilting her head for better access. Their tongues met and sent shocks down his spine, and he gripped her tighter, sliding one hand around her neck and entangling in the hair that had escaped her ponytail.

After several heated minutes, Ellie broke for air, gasping slightly. Craig didn't give her a chance to get away, and he moved down to brush feather-light kisses down her cheekbones to her jawline, moving down to her throat and shoulder.

Ellie blew out a soft, long breath, clutching Craig's waist tightly. She leaned into her, tilting her neck to give him better access. “You wanna talk about this now ...” She murmured, “or later?”

Craig smiled against her skin. “Later works,” he replied softly. He moved his hands down to her shoulders, smoothing them down her back, bringing her to press up against him. Nuzzling her pulse point, he let his hands rest on her hips, fingering the gauze that was still in place from her tattoo. “You know,” he started, his voice low and husky. “You never did tell me what kind of tattoo you got.”

Ellie grinned giddily, half-believing that she was still in some kind of alcohol induced coma. “I've always been a believer in the 'see it to believe it' policy,” she said. Craig nipped her neck playfully. “You game?” she asked, only a little bit serious.

He grinned, lifting up his head to look her in the eye. “Hell yeah.”

00

Epilogue on the way.

[Kristen Bell]

Thanks for all the feedback, really.

00

Epilogue

00

Ellie Nash walked into the school like she was walking into a jail cell. Clutching her messenger bag tightly to her chest, her red hair tumbling down in waves and obscuring most of her face, she hurried into the building, avoiding meeting anyone's eye on her way to her locker.

She breathed a sigh of relief when she reached the small metal box that pretty much controlled her existence during her school hours. A sigh of relief that was quickly contradicted when none other than Marco del Rossi snuck up behind her, pinching her side. Hard.

“Ow! What the hell?!”

“Just wanted to make sure you were alive, that's all,” Marco said, throwing her a look and leaning up against the locker next to hers. “Seeing as how you seemed to disappear off the face of the planet over the weekend.”

“I'm fine,” Ellie said sourly, opening her locker and throwing her messenger bag inside roughly.

“Yeah, I can see that,” Marco said dryly, watching her dig through the books and papers with vigor. When one enthusiastic shove propelled the hair to fall over her shoulder, revealing her neck, Marco's eyebrows shot up, and a huge grin broke out on his face. “Whoa! Eleanor Nash, what have you been doing?”

Ellie turned around, her face contorted in confusion. “What?”

Marco started laughing, and brushed the rest of her hair away from her neck, revealing a large hickey at the base of her throat. “I take it that Craig caught up with you then?”

Ellie smacked his hand away angrily, her cheeks flushing in embarrassment. “Shut up.”

“I said hear him out, Elle, not make out,” Marco teased. Ellie glared at him. “I knew you'd cave,” Marco said triumphantly. “So what happened? Did he turn on the Manning charm?”

Ellie snorted. “Hardly. And it's none of your business,” she said firmly.

Marco balked. “What? Come on, you can't just leave me high and dry here.”

“Uh, yes I can,” Ellie replied, grabbing her books and slamming the metal door of her locker, causing Marco to jump back.

“Ellie!” Marco whined, throwing her a pleading look. Ellie ignored him and stalked off. Marco let out a low whistle as he watched her walk with purpose down the hall, nearly trampling some poor Grade Eight on her way to homeroom. Shaking his head, he muttered under his breath, “that girl and her issues.” He rolled his eyes.

00

Ellie breathed a sigh of relief when she spotted her homeroom classroom up ahead. Home free, she thought. She relaxed, slowing her stride slightly.

Big mistake.

A strong, leather clad arm grabbed her waist, pulling her into a secluded corner. Before Ellie could react, she found herself staring up at Craig, one arm pinning her to the wall, the other covering her mouth. “Don't even think about yelling,” he said lowly, pinning her with a look.

Ellie squirmed, jerking her chin away from his hand. “So wasn't going to.”

“So were,” Craig countered. Ellie smirked, and captured his mouth in a fiery kiss, her hands grabbing at the material of his shirt. He backed her up until she felt cold metal on her back, and then the metal swung inward and they tumbled into another room. Ellie pulled away, gasping for a much needed gasp of air, and realized that they were in the boiler room.

“Whoa. How'd you do that?” Craig just grinned, pulling her over to sit on an overturned box. “So, I'm assuming that this is when we have the 'talk',” Ellie said, complete with hand quotes.

Craig pulled her over on his lap, and she practically melted into him, laying her head on his shoulder and relaxing into his body. “What do we need to talk about?”

Ellie shrugged. “What this is, what it isn't.”

He was silent a moment, then smiled fondly into her hair. “Well, it is fun, it isn't...not fun.”

She elbowed him, snorting. “You know what I mean.”

He chuckled, pulling back. “Okay, okay.” He brushed back some of her hair, smiling. “What do you want this to be?”

Ellie shrugged, her eyes skittering away from his. “I dunno.”

“Look me in the eye and say that.”

She glared at him sourly. He raised an eyebrow. “Ugh. Fine,” she said sulkily. “I want...” she trailed off uncertainly, waving her hands back and forth between them vaguely, “...this to happen. Whatever it is.”

“Well, I want this to happen also,” he replied. “What's the problem?”

“Prob—well, I...” Ellie shifted. “Okay, no problem then, I guess.”

Craig grinned. “Okay, where were we?”

He leaned in, and Ellie accepted the beginning of his kiss before pulling back. “Are you sure this is right? Don't you think that was way too easy?”

“I think you think too much,” he replied.

Ellie opened her mouth to reply, but he swallowed her words with a kiss, and suddenly, she realized that he was right.

00

Two and a half hours later, Ellie had managed to keep herself from blushing every time Craig gave her a hooded look or had touched her—innocently, to the naked eye, a brush of his arm in Media, a hand on the small of her back when he opened the door for her—but with an underlying intensity that Ellie remembered all too well from the previous night. She didn't think anyone was onto them—and managed quite well to keep from thinking about why she didn't want to be caught onto, thank you very much—and was quite proud of herself, really.

So it was in that state of mind that she walked into the seating area of the caf, tray in hand, and headed for the usual table. Craig was already there, surrounded by the usual suspects—Jimmy, Marco, Paige and Alex—and he gave her another look and a quick grin before his face went neutral again.

She smiled softly and walked to join them, sitting down in the empty chair between Marco and Craig, half paranoid that she was being obvious. Giving a quick greeting to the occupants—half of which barely noticed—she returned Craig's look, hers a bit more deadly, of course. He just smirked and turned his remarkably focused attention to his fries.

“You're delusional, man.”

“Whatever, I am so not! Look at the facts, there so much heroin in his system that there was no way he could have taken it all by himself. It's a perfect setup—Courtney obviously killed him, then panicked and tried to make it look like an overdose!” Marco said passionately, prompting a roll of his eyes from Jimmy. Craig and Alex followed suit.

Ellie shot a quizzical look at Paige, who was picking at her spaghetti absently. The blonde gave a sigh and gave Jimmy and Marco a disdainful look. “They're arguing over whether Courtney Love murdered Kurdt Cobain...again,” she said. “You guys do know that this all happened like, eleven years ago, right?” They both ignored her.

“The man was a drug addict. A genius drug addict, but still, a drug addict,” Jimmy said.

“Well, Courtney was a gold digger,” Marco muttered.

“Have you ever listened to the tape of her reading the suicide note?” Jimmy shot back. “That's grief, Marco.”

“She's an actress!” he exclaimed dramatically, waving his hand out and nearly knocking over Alex's Pepsi.

She rolled her eyes, saving her soda from annihilation. “You two are dorks,” she said, giving them the patented Alex withering look. “Who cares? You losers are the only people still talking about it. Marco, you don't even like Nirvana anyway, you just pretend you do to make yourself seem more cultured.” Paige snorted, suppressing a giggle. Marco glared at both of them sourly.

Ellie grinned, sharing a look with Craig. Her friends were idiots, but god knows she loved them.

Her grin was quickly wiped off her face at what she caught sight of over Craig's shoulder.

“Hey, Craig.”

Manny's breathy voice made Craig jerk slightly, almost spilling his drink. He choked slightly, and shooting a look at Ellie, he turned around and looked up at Manny, standing there uncertainly. How anyone could pull off a power 'I'm too hot for you' outfit and still look uncertain, Craig had no idea. “Hey, Manny.”

If Ellie hadn't instantly felt like throwing something, she would've been amused at the affect the younger girl had on the lunch table. Jimmy shook his head in his 'white people are nuts' way, and Paige and Alex scoffed in unison. Marco just rolled his eyes and sank back in his chair, sulking slightly, probably still smarting from Alex's blunt comments.

“I was wondering if I could talk to you,” Manny was asking, blinking down at Craig with those big stupid, brown Hispanic eyes of hers. With her full lips and her open face and pretty, silky dark hair and nose stud and just—damn it! Ellie threw her fork at her tray sullenly.

Craig stumbled a bit. “Uh, actually Manny, I'm kinda in the middle of something.”

Ellie stopped short and looked up.

Manny looked taken aback, but recovered quickly. “Oh. Well...”

Craig nodded. “Yeah, I've got a make up test with Kwan,” he said. “Another time,” he said, giving a small smile. Manny nodded quickly, looking disgruntled. Craig shot a look at everyone at the table, then at Ellie, who was avoiding his eye. Making a quick decision, he shot the remainder of his lunch in the trash can. Leaning over to Ellie, he smiled quickly and captured her mouth with his, catching her off guard.

The table went completely silent. Paige dropped her fork into her spaghetti with a 'splat.'

Pulling back, he gave her a devilish grin. “See you later, babe.”

Dumbstruck, Ellie could only stare at him, her mouth open as he walked off. Vaguely, she registered Manny glaring at her and storming off, and Marco bursting into laughter. “Jimmy, you owe me twenty bucks,” he exclaimed, and Jimmy groaned.

He publicly declared his affection for her. In front of Manny. And everyone. Ellie could just kiss him. Wait, he already took care of that.

Suppressing a grin, she grabbed her tray and took off, ignoring the taunts and jokes from her friends, tossing it in the trash on her way out of the cafeteria.

00

She caught up with him outside, leaning up against his car casually. Running up to him, she threw her arms around his neck in abandon, hugging him tightly and stunning him. Recovering, he wrapped his arms around her, bringing her body in line with his. “If I knew I could get that kind of reaction, I'd have done that months ago,” he teased.

Seemingly ignoring him, she was muttering something into his shoulder over and over, burying her face into his shirt and clutching at him tightly. Craig could make out the word 'you,' but not much else. Snapping her head up, she pulled him down for another kiss, plunging her tongue into his mouth. He responded eagerly, and spun her around, leaning her against the car for support.

Pulling away for air, she smiled up at him. “Do you have any idea how great that was?”

Leaning his forehead against hers, he smiled tenderly. “I have an idea.”

She grinned and reached up for another kiss, sweeter this time. He pinned her against the metal of the car door and grabbed her wrists, playfully fighting for control. She giggled into the kiss.

“Wanna get outta here?” he mumbled into her mouth.

Ellie started to give him small pecks on his face, butterfly kisses on his cheeks. He grinned and moved his hands to her hips. She placed a longer, lingering kiss on his nose and considered. She had something that she hadn't had before, and maybe even a chance at keeping it this time around. She had a pretty awesome new friend, plus a bunch of good old ones. She had a new tattoo. She had pissed off Manny Santos, always a bonus. Most importantly, she had a boyfriend with an empty garage apartment.

“Definitely,” she answered. “Let's get outta here.”

00

Fin

00