A/N: Here is yet another story in my Carly series! As Carly gets older she becomes more difficult to write! But still she's fun! Enjoy!

At Christmas

By angellwings

"It's a comfort deep inside
Though you can't stop the race of time
To know that Christmas will always be

Family nestled by the fire
Christmas hopes will be inspired
Loved ones by your side
You know you'll kiss your baby good night"

–Hanson, "At Christmas"

The Boltons, the Baylors, and the Evans families were all heading to Albuquerque on the same flight. They had already made stops in Charlotte and Phoenix and were now almost at the Albuquerque airport. Marietta had been seated with Emmett and Ella while Carly sat next to Mitchell. The older kids had gotten seats separate from their parents. Jacob and Jonah were seating in the middle aisle of seats with Ryan and Kelsi while Troy, Gabriella, Sharpay, and Zeke shared the row behind them. In front of them sat Emmett, Marietta, and Ella. Mitchell and Carly had been seated on the right side of the plane. Mitchell had let her have the window seat.

All three families were headed to New Mexico for the Holidays. Carly was now a junior in high school and the twins had just started kindergarten. Carly glanced at Mitchell out of the corner of her eye, but looked away when he noticed. His brow furrowed and he leaned toward her.

"Are you okay?" He asked.

She looked up with a startled expression, "Me? Yeah, definitely. I'm fine."

He gave her a skeptical look, "Are you sure?"

"Have you realized that you graduate in five months?" Carly asked him as she took a deep breath.

He smirked at her, "Oh yes, I'm well aware of that fact. I've got colleges pounding on my door for a decision."

"Right, of course you're aware of that," Carly said nervously. She glanced over at Marietta who was quietly chatting with Emmett while Ella shot Carly a jealous glare. That didn't help her confidence any. Carly had known for a long time that she had a crush on Mitchell. She'd spent that last three years pining after him. She also had noticed that Ella seemed to have called dibs on him. Carly really didn't think she stood a real chance. Mitchell was not only athletic but very intelligent. Not to mention he was older and could have girls like Ella if he wanted.

He chuckled, "Why?"

Her eyes widened, "Oh, um, just curious."

She'd settled for being one of Mitchell's best friends so far. She supposed she could do it for the rest of her life, "So, has Ella convinced you to ask her out yet?"

He groaned, "Why do you always ask me that? I really would rather not talk about Ella's stalker-like obsession with me."

Carly bit her bottom lip, "I just ask because…well Ella usually gets what she wants."

"Usually, Car," Mitchell told her. "Not always."

They were silent for a minute before Mitchell spoke up again, "So, how's—um—your boyfriend…Robby?"

She tossed him a confused glance, "You mean Rocky?"

"Yeah, the muscle head."

Carly blinked at him, "Wow, that was harsh."

He shrugged, "I'm being honest, Car. There's not much going on in that guys brain."

She chuckled, "Okay, Rocky is a bit of a flake but he's smarter than he looks."

Mitchell shook his head, "In fifth grade he was pulled out of the spelling bee for misspelling the word 'cat'."

She sighed, "Okay, so he's not big on academics. He's nice and he likes me."

"That's why you're dating him? Because he's nice and he likes you? Geez, Carly, there are plenty of other nice guys out there that like you," He told her.

She rolled her eyes, "Well, those guys aren't showing themselves. Rocky is."

"I still say you deserve better," Mitchell told her.

"Then show me better and I'll take it," She told him.

Mitchell swallowed thickly and looked away. He didn't say what he wanted to say. He wanted to suggest himself. But he was afraid that when it came to Carly he was stuck in the friend zone, and even if he wasn't he would be leaving New York soon. He'd been given a full ride to University of Albuquerque for basketball and he intended to take it. Long distance relationships, especially relationships where one half was still in high school, rarely lasted for too long. He would never want to hurt Carly like that.

The pilot asked the passengers to buckle up for landing. Mitchell and Carly stayed silent but Michell kept an eye on her. She tucked a strand of hair behind her ear and glanced out the window nervously. He reached over and patted her hand.

"Relax, the landing is the easy part," Mitchell smiled. She gulped and nodded. He felt her squeeze his hand and his smile brightened. As the plane touched down Carly released his hand and avoided his eyes.

"Sorry," She mumbled.

He shook his head, "Don't worry about it."

They stood and filed out of the plane. The three families waited for each other out side the terminal, and walked to baggage claim together. Carly watched carefully as Mitchell brushed Ella off on the way. She grinned at him secretively, and he winked at her in return.

Kelsi observed the interaction and nudged her daughter, "Is there something you need to tell me?"

Carly blushed, "No, mom. Nothing."

"Okay," Kelsi said in an unconvinced tone.

Kelsi shared a knowing smirk with Gabriella, and they both shook their heads. Gabriella and Kelsi slowed down their pace so that they could walk side by side at the back of the group.

"Is your kid crazy about my kid?" Kelsi asked Gabriella.

Gabriella chuckled, "I believe so. He talks about her quite a bit."

Kelsi barely hid a gleeful grin, "You think we'll be inlaws?"

Gabriella laughed, "Kels, they're in high school."

"So?" Kelsi asked. "We married our high school sweethearts, didn't we?"

"Don't get ahead of yourself, my friend," Gabriella said with an amused smile.

"I can't help it," Kelsi gushed. "They're so cute, and in that awkward pre-relationship phase."

The families decided to share cabs to their old neighborhoods and just as they reached the Bolton's Mitchell handed Carly a small box. Carly gave him a curious glance, and he smiled in return.

"I don't know if I'll see you before Christmas so that's your Christmas present," He said brightly. "Don't open it until Christmas morning."

"But…I didn't get you anything. I didn't think—"

"Carly, relax, just take it and wish me a merry Christmas," Mitchell told her with a chuckle.

"Oh, um, Merry Christmas," She said in confusion.

"Merry Christmas to you too," He said with a smile as he closed the cab door.

"What's that?" Ella asked in with a suspicious glance.

"I don't know," Carly said happily. "It's from Mitchell."

"Open it," Ella demanded.

"He told me not to until Christmas morning."

"So, he won't know. Open it."

Carly sighed and gently placed the small present inside of her purse, "I think I'll wait. There had to be a reason he asked me to wait."

"He didn't get me anything," Ella pouted. The cab door opened and Emmett joined the two girls.

"I'm switching cabs to escape Jacob and Jonah," He told them. "Car, your brothers are monsters."

She nodded, "I know, but they're adorable monsters."

Emmett glanced at Ella and then at Carly, "What's up with Ella?"

Ella huffed, "Mitchell got Carly a present but didn't buy me anything."

Emmett rolled his eyes, "Is that all? Well, you shouldn't be surprised by that. He's made it clear he's not interested in you, sis."

Ella gasped, "That was mean!"

"No, that was true," Emmett said plainly.

Carly hid a grin behind her hand as Emmett smirked knowingly at his cousin. Mitchell had told Emmett all about his feelings for Carly, and he'd even asked Emmett for advice. He wasn't listening to Emmett, but he'd still asked. Emmett told him to just go for it and not think about anything past the summer. He told him to worry about going away when it happened and not before it happened. That was Emmett's strategy when it came to Marietta. He liked the girl and he wasn't going to put off pursuing her until after college…to him that was ridiculous.

Ella turned toward the front of the cab and ignored both her cousin and her brother for the rest of the ride.

"Well," Emmett said to Carly with a grin. "This is going to be an interesting Christmas."

Carly bit her lip and stared eagerly at the present Mitchell gave her. It was her last one left under the tree. She'd opened all of her others.

"Carly, sweetie, what's that last one?" Derby Evans asked from her spot sitting beside the tree.

Ella glowered at her, "It's from Mitchell."

Kelsi brightened, "Ooh, open it!"

Ryan gave his wife and amused look and shook his head. He leaned toward her and whispered, "You really want those two to get together don't you?"

She chuckled, "If Carly's going to date someone wouldn't you rather it be him?"

Ryan nodded, "Of course, he's a good kid."

Carly pretended she hadn't heard her parents conversation and gently peeled back the paper on Mitchell's present. She quickly opened the small velvet jewelry box that had been under the paper. She gasped at what she saw.

"What is it, Car?" Sharpay asked curiously.

"It's those funky earings I saw in that vintage boutique!" She exclaimed with a smile. "He remembered! I only pointed them out once, and not even to him. I showed them to Marietta while he was looking at the sunglasses."

Sharpay smirked, "Well, he must have been listening."

Carly smiled softly as she carefully touched the earings, "They weren't cheap either. I can't believe he did that!"

"I can," Kelsi said in a happy sing-song tone.

"I've got to go call him," Carly said urgently.

"Why don't you just wait?" Ryan suggested. "They'll be over in about an hour."

"They will?" Carly asked happily.

He nodded, "We invited them over for a Christmas lunch."

Carly rushed her father and hugged him, "You are an AWESOME dad. I'm going to go get dressed."

The women in the room chuckled as they watched Carly hurry up the stairs.

"Aw," Derby gushed. "I think our little Carly is in love."

The Boltons were actually over in less than 40 minutes. Carly was just putting the finishing touches on her make up when the doorbell rang. She quickly put in the earrings Mitchell had given her, and headed down the stairs. Mitchell grinned warmly at her and motioned to the earrings.

"You opened them. Do you like them?"

Carly took a deep breath and looked around the room. She quickly pulled Mitchell into Vance Evans' currently empty study. Before he could ask her what she was thinking Carly's lips collided with his. He froze for a split second before he sunk into the kiss. Carly was kissing him. Carly the shy girl he'd been in love with for years was kissing him. He'd always thought he'd be the one to make the first move, but apparently he was wrong. She had wrapped her arms around his neck and held him against her tightly. His arms wrapped around her tiny frame and held her close as he deepened the kiss. Her hands slipped into his hair and Mitchell had to pull away. He was just about to get lost.

He gave her a goofy smile, "You kissed me."

She giggled, "Yeah, that actually wasn't a part of the plan. I was just going to pull you in here and talk, but…I—well—you're incredibly sweet and I couldn't help it."

He grinned, "I'm glad that you did."

"Really?" She asked worriedly.

"I've been dying to kiss you for years, and now that it's happened I can say that the actual thing is much better than any kiss I could have imagined," He said with a light blush.

"Years?" She asked in shock.

He nodded, "Years."

"So, what do we do now?" She asked him. His smile faltered.

"I don't know."

Her brow furrowed, "What do you mean?"

"Carly, I'm leaving New York in five months."

"Seven months you wouldn't be leaving until the middle of July at the earliest," She corrected. "And so what?"

"Leaving…do you know what that means?" Mitchell asked her. "I'll be here while you're in New York."

"So, there'll be a little distance," She said weakly.

"A little distance?" He asked her with a teasing grin.

She sighed, "Okay, a LOT of distance, but it could still work."

"My dad and my mom went through this," He told her. "Dad went to a school close to mom because he knew long distance relationships usually don't work."

She grinned and remembered something he said to her earlier, "Usually. Not never."

His expression softened and he took a step closer to her.

"Car," He whispered. "I-I want this to work, but I don't want to end up hurting you."

She glared at him, "And who says it's up to you? It's my heart isn't it? Can't I choose who does or does not hurt it?"

He chuckled and shook his head, "You're crazy, you know that?"

She reached forward and took his hand, "It's my heart and I want you to have it, and for the record…I don't think you'll break it."

"You're sure?" He asked her in a concerned tone.

"I wouldn't have kissed you if I wasn't, Mitch," She smiled. "I don't just go around kissing guys, you know."

He laughed, "I hope not."

He moved to dip his lips don't to hers but paused, "Hey, what about Rocky?"

She blushed, "We actually broke up a while ago…"

"Thought you'd try and make me jealous, huh?" He asked with a smirk.

She shrugged and smiled, "I had to try didn't I?"

"It worked, so you succeeded," Mitchell smiled as he closed the rest of the small gap that separated their lips. Her hands moved up his arms and wrapped around his neck as he deepened the kiss. The door opened and Mitchell and Carly jumped apart to find Emmett staring at them in shock.

Without looking away from them Emmett yelled over his shoulder, "Nope, they're not in here. I have no idea where they are!"

He gave the couple a smile and whispered, "You owe me."

The door closed and Mitchell suddenly thought of something, "Your dad's not going to kill me is he?"

She chuckled, "No, I heard him tell mom that if I dated anyone he would rather it be you. So I think you're safe. That's not to say he won't kill you for being alone in this study with me once we get out of here, but he definitely won't kill you for dating me."

He nodded and chuckled, "Well that's a small relief at least."