Disclaimer – Still don't own them.

a/n – I'm glad to know I'm not the only one who's intrigued by the possibility of the whole Craig/Ellie thing. I thought people would hate it actually. I'm happy to be wrong. Enjoy.

- x-

"What do you think about this?"

Ashley held up a black v-neck sweater, and tilted her head.

"Too preppy?" she asked.

Ellie sighed. She hated helping other people pick out clothes. When she went shopping for herself, she could find stuff that she liked right away, no fuss. Most girls seemed to have to deliberate for hours over a simple t- shirt. Like it was a life or death decision or something.

"I like it," she told Ashley. "It'd look good with your denim skirt. You know that one that's kind of faded, kind of short."

Ellie started to move to another section of the store, hoping that Ashley would just pick up the damn sweater and move on. When she turned back, though, Ash still stood in front of the stack of sweaters, holding one against her chest and trying to examine it from every possible angle.

This was going to be a long afternoon, Ellie thought bitterly.

They were supposed to be having fun at the mall but she felt like she was being punished. It really wasn't Ashley's fault either. Ellie had been in a funk for the past couple of weeks, so her fuse was pretty short. There were two words that best described the strange mood she'd been in: Sean. Craig.

She couldn't quite place her finger on it, but there was something different about Sean in the last couple of weeks. He dressed the same, talked the same, acted the same, but something about him just didn't seem right. And it wasn't even that there was distance between them or something – Sean had made himself available whenever she wanted to hang out. But there was something in Ellie's gut that told her all was not well. She wished that she could figure it out.

Then, of course, there was Craig. The situation with him was even more confusing. Nothing significant had happened, but it was almost as if they had reached some sort of understanding and there was a connection between them now. Something unspoken, but real. They'd look at each other sometimes, and it was almost as if they knew what the other was thinking. They hadn't had any deep meaningful conversations or anything, but something strange was going on between them. Ellie hoped that it wasn't obvious to the outside world, particularly Ash and Sean.

It was no big deal, Ellie knew, but she didn't think that they would understand.

Just the other day, Craig had walked with Ellie to Caitlin's office. He had something that he was supposed to bring her from Joey, and Ellie was supposed to be working, so it only made sense that they walked together. They talked about silly, stupid things, like some new band that was playing in the area, the killer History exam they'd just taken, how Angie was still asking when Ellie was going to come over and play with her. Harmless, meaningless stuff.

Still, Ellie had felt guilty afterwards. Like she couldn't let Sean know about it, like Ashley would kill her if she found out. Craig was the enemy. He was supposed to be anyway. And Sean was her boyfriend. He wouldn't like her hanging around with other guys, particularly a guy like Craig who had a reputation for playing girls.

Now, she was in the mall, having to deal with Ash's commitment issues regarding the black sweater, and there were still all these Sean/Craig issues floating around her head. Talking about things was supposed to make things better, right? Ash was her friend; they were supposed to do the whole girl-talk thing. She definitely couldn't open up to her about Craig and that weirdness, but she could still ask her about Sean. Get some advice.

"Hey, Ash, let me ask you something."

Ashley looked up from her sweater, startled. It was almost as if she'd forgotten about the rest of the world because she was so focused on the stupid sweater.

"Shoot."

"I know you don't really talk to Sean, or hang out with him for that matter, if I'm not around anyway, but... has he seemed a little off to you lately? Like, not exactly himself or something?"

Ellie winced as she listened to her own words. She sounded like a paranoid, hysterical girlfriend. She just hoped that Ash would understand.

"Let me think," Ashley said. She cocked her head like she was deep in thought. "Lately, Sean's seemed angry, moody, anti-social. In other words, his usual self."

She smiled warmly to show that she was only teasing.

"It's not like there are any overt, obvious signs," Ellie clarified, feeling defensive. "It's just this feeling I get. Like when he's with me, he's not really with me."

Ashley walked over to where Ellie stood in front of a display of leather jackets. She had apparently decided against the sweater because she'd dumped it back on the table as she came over.

"To be honest, Ellie, if anything, Sean has seemed even more into you lately than before," Ashley told her. "I mean, he came to the coffee house last night to hear Love Riot play, which you know is totally not his kind of music. And he held your hand the whole time. I mean, what more do you want?"

Ellie nodded half-heartedly. She wasn't convinced. On the surface, Ashley was right, but the fact that Sean was doing all these things now that he hadn't done before seemed like a sign to her. It wasn't like Sean to be so... wishy-washy.

"And last week..." Ash continued. "He came to Jimmy's party, and you know there's no love lost between them, just because you promised me you'd come. He hung out with Paige Michalchuk for like three hours last Saturday night, Ellie! If that's not love, I don't know what is."

Ellie shook her head, trying to shake all her paranoid thoughts free. Maybe Ash was right. Maybe she was looking for trouble where there wasn't any. It was probably the whole Craig thing just making her insane.

"You're right, Ash. I'm being an idiot. Thanks for clearing that up."

"No problem. That's what best friends are for. To remind you of your idiocy from time to time."

Ashley smiled, and Ellie couldn't help smiling along. She felt better already.

"Let's get out of here," Ashley said. "This store has nothing. I could use some coffee, like right away."

Ellie wanted to do a little victory to dance. No more hours, perusing sweaters and jeans. It felt like a holiday.

"So anything new on the Craig front?" Ashley asked, as they walked out of the store.

Guilt flooded Ellie. Maybe Ash knew something... but how could she? Nothing had happened.

"What do you mean?"

"Is that jerk still kissing up to you in some lame attempt to get me to not hate his guts?"

She could tell Ashley the truth because the truth wasn't anything remarkable. Nothing was going on between her and Craig. Nothing. They'd talked a little bit. Big deal.

"He's been talking to me, if that's what you mean."

Ashley stopped, dead in her tracks.

"About what?" she demanded.

Ellie felt her cheeks get hot. This was not going the way she wanted it to.

"Nothing. Just small talk. It's not a big deal."

"Yes, it is," Ashley asserted. "He does the lowest, most awful thing he can possibly do to me, and he thinks I'll just forgive and forget if he chats up my best friend. Oh, god, if I could get my hands on him ... "

Ellie didn't know how much longer she could deal with listening to Ash wish for bodily harm to come to Craig. It was like a bad record stuck on repeat.

"Ash, listen. I think you've got to start to let this go. I mean, don't let thoughts of him control your life anymore, you know? Just forget him."

Ashley stared at her, wild-eyed.

"Are you kidding me? You're the one who told me I shouldn't rest until he was burning in hell. Now all of a sudden, I should just forget what he did and move on?"

Ellie looked away. She felt like crap, like the worst friend in the entire world.

"I just don't like seeing you get all worked up like this," she said. "He's not worth it. That's all."

Ashley's face softened, and she nodded.

"You're probably right. As usual. Let's go drown my sorrows in a mocha latte."

Ellie nodded, but she didn't think she stomach anything topped with whipped cream. She couldn't possibly feel more guilty.

She wished they'd stuck with the sweater shopping. At least no one would get hurt that way.

- x –

On Saturday afternoons, the mall was always crowded, and walking through it was like being stuck in a bad traffic jam. That was the kind of thing that usually drove Craig insane, and made him want to pull his hair out. Today, though, it seemed easier to ignore all of it. He'd just bought the new boots that he'd been wanting for almost four months, and he was on his way to the record store to pick up a new CD.

Life seemed pretty damn good right now – The Beatles had gotten it all wrong, Craig thought. Money could buy happiness.

As he headed toward the record store, Craig passed by the coffee shop. He'd been craving an iced coffee all morning. Maybe even a shot of espresso, to give him an added boost of energy for the rest of his afternoon at the mall.

He stood just outside the doorway, contemplating his choices, when he looked inside and saw Ellie, waiting beside the counter. She had her hair in braids, which always made her look so unbelievably cute.

Not that Craig noticed that kind of thing about Ellie. Nope. Never.

She noticed him too, and for a moment, he thought that he saw a smile bloom across her face. But almost immediately, Ellie tensed up, like she wished that Craig would disappear or that she would disappear herself.

Craig waved, smiling in a goofy way, in hopes of putting her at ease, but as he did, he looked over beside Ellie and realized what had her so uncomfortable.

There stood Ashley, glaring right at Craig. She picked up her coffee, and stormed toward him before he could duck and cover or even prepare himself. Ellie trailed after her, looking anxious, but a little bit amused at the same time.

"You are pathetic, Craig. Do you know that?" Ashley raged, right there in the middle of the mall.

"What have I done now, Ashley?" he sighed, feeling very tired all of a sudden. "Am I not allowed to go shopping without checking with you first?"

Ashley sneered, shaking her heard. She definitely looked angry, like she could breathe fire or something, but there was something about the wild look in her eyes that made Craig think that she was actually looking forward to this confrontation. It was almost as if she'd been waiting for the chance to rip him to shreds with her words for a long, long time.

Ellie stood behind her, just a few steps back. She was studying the marble tiles of the walkway like they held all of life's mysteries.

"You are as transparent as a piece of glass," Ashley told him. "Do you think you're fooling anyone? I mean, seriously..."

"I must be doing a pretty good job fooling myself because I have no clue what you're talking about."

She laughed then, loud and bitter. "That's good. You know, if I didn't know what a lying jerk you were, I might actually believe you."

Craig hung his head, and closed his eyes. There was no way he could go through this whole mess again. He was in no mood.

"I've heard this song before, Ash. I'm sick of it."

He turned to walk away, risking one more glance at Ellie. She looked at him with something close to pity. It made him feel sick to his stomach.

As he started to walk away, he heard Ashley call after him.

"Do you think I don't know what's going on with you and Ellie? Did you think she wouldn't tell me?"

Stunned, Craig spun around to face both Ashley and Ellie. He couldn't believe this was happening. It felt like a dream, a nightmare.

Ellie looked as panicked as he did, all the color drained from her face.

"I don't know what Ellie told you but I haven't –"

"Yeah, like I'd take your word over Ellie's. Someone who's never lied to me versus someone who couldn't tell the truth if his life depended on it. Tough choice..."

Ellie stepped forward, placing a hand on Ashley's arm. "Come on, Ash," she whispered. "Calm down."

Ashley looked at her for a long moment, but turned right back to Craig.

"If you think that you can make me forget the crap that you pulled by trying to kiss up to Ellie, you're in for a rude awakening, Craig. You could rescue an entire kindergartner class from a burning school bus and I still wouldn't forgive you."

Craig felt like he'd been kicked in the stomach. The pain was that real. He knew she hated him -- she'd told him enough times, sang enough songs about it, told enough people, but there was some part of him that always believed she'd get over what he'd done eventually. He was sorry, truly and sincerely sorry, but that didn't seem to count for anything with Ashley.

Ellie looked like she wished that she could be anywhere else. Even when she frowned, she looked cute. God, Craig thought, what the hell is wrong with me? He took a deep breath, and looked Ashley in the eye.

"I'm sorry you feel that way," he said flatly. "But thanks for letting me know. I'll stop wasting your time and mine. You hate my guts, and you know what? I don't really give a rat's ass anymore. Have a nice life, Ash."

Without thinking twice, without even looking back at Ellie, Craig walked off. As sick as he felt, there was also something liberating about what had happened. He could finally, officially declare himself over and done with Ashley Kerwin. So what if she never forgave him? So what if her friends refused to talked to him ever again? He'd get over it.

But that still left one very serious problem.

How was he going to explain this thing with Ellie if Ashley was no longer a part of the equation?