Author Note: Working up quite a little buffer now, and despite how things went down in the world yesterday I had a very enjoyable birthday (9th). So without much more delaying, here is a chapter just about Ellie.

Three weeks had now past since the plane crash, Gordon was completely wheelchair free and had begun rehab to regain the strength he had lost over the course of it. Ellie found herself by the pool watching him do laps as she dangled her legs in the water. He really was a beautiful swimmer to watch and she could see how he had managed to win gold for butterfly in the Olympics a little over a year ago. His stroke and technique was admirable, as was the power he got when he pushed himself a little. She found herself wondering how much of a place she still had with them once he was back to strength. With how quickly he was recovering she wondered just how much use she could really be to them. It was only temporary and certainly it had been a great experience so far. More than anything she was worried about the attachment she was forming to everyone, especially with Gordon. He was funny and witty and as bad as his jokes were, they always managed to make her laugh. He wasn't upset that she had taken his place and if anything he had been incredibly helpful to her. Even when he was confined to a wheelchair he didn't lose his spark. Leaning back Ellie let herself stare up at the sky, it didn't take long for her to realise this had been the longest time she had been away from her parents. It had been cheaper for her to live at home with them and her little brother, she had never gone on a holiday longer than two and a bit weeks. She couldn't remember the last time she spoke to them over the phone. Probably around the same time they arrived on the island, after it had been decided they were staying and helping. She had not been able to tell them much, just that she had been requested to assist a rescue agency with water rescues and she didn't know how often she would be able to get in contact. But that despite the plane crash she was just fine. Though she assumed it wouldn't take long for them to clue into where she was. Her parents were rather avid news readers and could likely put two and two together after reading the news story. She really missed them, especially her little brother. Wouldn't be long and he would be starting his first year on the beach as a nipper. She had hoped not to miss that, but now she wasn't so sure. After all it was already late into August, which meant winter was almost done and then they would be into Spring. At least for them in the Southern hemisphere. Man that sent her back though, she could still remember her first time at nippers on the beach. She just couldn't wait and from there she just kind of stuck with it and went from nippers up to a clubbie and then eventually a part time employed life guard for the Sutherland Shire. For her it had been her dream job and she always knew what she wanted. It hadn't been easy but she had worked for it and her parents had been right there with her, every step of the way cheering them on.

Staring up at the sky and the clouds she made a mental note to ask Mr Tracy if she was able to give her parents a call and let them know how she was going and wish her little brother early good luck at his first day at nippers. Just in case she couldn't make it or give them a call beforehand. Ellie's eyes wandered when she caught a glimpse of Lucia staring out the window by the piano. Lucia never had told Ellie about her family, loved hearing about Ellie's family and her younger brother. Ellie could recall a brother that was mentioned in passing once but aside from that, nothing. She hadn't even called anyone when they were given the chance to let their families know how they were going. It was almost with horror that it dawned on Ellie that there was a very real possibility that Lucia had no loving family, or she had been disowned. Either one was heartbreaking and she covered her mouth with a hand in shock. She didn't have much of a chance to dwell on it as she was splashed by the water the body lifting itself out of the pool beside her created. "Whatcha thinking about squid girl?" the voice quizzed as the body lay down beside her. Ellie gave Gordon her best smile, she wasn't one to spread rumours and if Lucia felt she needed to share than Ellie had faith she would do so when the time was right. "Just realised I may miss my brother's first day at nippers" if she were being honest that is what was bothering her the most.

"Nippers?" Gordon queried, the word was a foreign one to him. "Ah," it dawned on Ellie that it was probably an Australian thing. "It's run by our royal surf lifesaving club on the beach, it teaches the kids beach skills, like how to use a board and other activities. Kind of an introduction to beach lifesaving. I did it myself when I was a kid and from there I became a lifeguard." She went on to explain as Gordon listened intently, his face lighting up with interest. "Don't think we ever had anything like that, then again us kids mostly grew up on the ranch. Sound like a great program. How young do they start?" he asked, to Gordon everyone should have great water skills or at least know how to competently swim. "Usually they start around 5, thankfully my brother turned 5 before I went away so I didn't miss his birthday or his first day of school." Ellie breathed a sigh of relief, she was super glad she had not missed that. She was only a few months off 15 when he was born and despite their age gap had doted upon him. As such they were pretty close. "It starts in October if that was your next question." Ellie added sticking her tongue out at Gordon before he could ask his next question. Judging by the amused look on his face she was right about his question. "Well then squid girl, you going to join me and show me what you learned." He shot right back as he slid back into the pool. Sitting up Ellie laughed and reached down to splash him. She hadn't expected that his arms would reach out and grab hers before she could splash him and pull her in. When she surfaced she tried to splash him again only to be drawn up into his chest.

Suddenly Ellie was all too aware of the bare skin of his chest, pressed against the skin that wasn't covered by the bikini she was wearing. She could feel the heat rising in her cheeks as he looked down at her with his chocolate brown eyes. "What else is bothering you?" he asked in an oddly serious voice, leaning in to press his forehead against hers as they tread water by the edge of the pool. Ellie averted her eyes, so he had noticed and it was then she wondered how long he had been watching her for while she was lost in her thoughts. "I'm really going to miss you all when I leave." There was an implication in her voice that she assumed it would be soon, probably as soon as he was cleared for active duty again. "Hey, Ellie. Dad won't ask you to leave until we know we can handle things without the help of both of you. I don't think he will make you leave before Lucia does, even if I'm all better." Gordon assured her as he stopped treading water for a moment to stroke her cheek with his free hand and as they sank under the water he leaned in closer.

For the rest of the day after that there was a perk in Ellie's step, as if seemingly all her worries had been taken away. It had even been a quiet day for all of them, which meant some maintenance work as well now that their little bit of leisure time was over. For the rest of the day the boys and Lucia spent it puzzled at the unusually good mood of not only Ellie but Gordon too. Though it wasn't until that night that after a little bit of prodding Lucia found out why Ellie had been in such a good mood. When just before the sun rose on the horizon and before Lucia awoke for her morning run. Ellie slipped out of bed and made her way down the hall and down to the pool. A broad grin spread across her face when she saw Gordon sitting by the edge waiting for her with flippers, a mask and snorkel for the both of them. He couldn't quite take her diving yet as the tank was beyond his allowed limit to lift, but he had every intention to do so once he was given the all clear. Handing her gear to her, he tentatively took her free hand in his and guided her down towards the beach. They were just in time to see the sun begin to rise over the horizon and pulling on the flippers and the snorkel with the mask, she readily took Gordon's hand again and followed him into the water. He was right about their little reef, it was beautiful to swim through. They didn't stay out too long, partly as Gordon was beginning to tire and ocean swimming was a different kettle of fish than pool swimming when it came to tiring someone out. He knew better than to temp mother nature or push limits he shouldn't push yet. Besides he still had the last scolding he received from Lucia ringing in his head. Pulling his flippers off and pushing the mask up off his face and onto his head he made his way to the blanket they had laid out. They had known each other a little more than 3 weeks and despite it not being the first time Ellie had seen it, it was the first time she had seen the scar on his back in full sunlight. Reaching out unconsciously she ran her fingers over it as he came to a stop by the blanket, she watched the muscles under it reflexively contract and move under her touch. "I was 18. It was a crash that almost ended not only my career and my ability to walk but my life too." His voice was low, it was something he didn't particularly liked talking about but he knew while Ellie wouldn't ask, she would want to know. Then again just about everyone knew his story as the comeback kid for the Olympic games who won gold despite a near career ending accident. No one knew of his work in international rescue though. "I know, I kind of followed your story." Ellie sheepishly admitted which was enough to break the tension as Gordon started laughing. "Oh I see. Bit of a fan were we." He teased and Ellie flushed even dark her red before she found herself laughing too. "Of the great comeback kid..never!" she shot back sarcastically with a mock gasp at the end. Their wrist communicators interrupted them and beeped however before either could react to their cheekiness. There was a situation and they were needed. There was just enough time for a quick kiss to the cheek before Ellie ran ahead with her gear to be briefed on the problem.