Chapter 13:

Chapter 13: Open Your Eyes (Property of Snow Patrol)

A/N: Well there you have it, if you read the pervious chapter than you know what happened to the mother of Craig's child. I hope you guys liked her character; I really hope you guys like the way I wrote her exit from the story. She might make another appearance in the story, I'm quite not sure yet haven't thought that far ahead, of course she will be mentioned again. This chapter marks the return to reality; there is no flashback in this chapter. This chapter revolves around everyone's reaction to Craig and Ashley getting back together, at this point in time only Craig, Ashley and her Mom know that they are back together. I'm going to try to write this chapter in the lightest tone I can possibly write. Please feel free to read and review this chapter. Ok the song companion I've selected for this chapter wont make an appearance till the next chapter, there is a reason I'm doing this, I'm trying to make the songs be a part of the plotline and not just a song that I think fits the mood of the chapter. Special shout out to dtng4ever for the reviews and the support.

"I think it's best if you come in, there's a lot we have to talk about," said Ellie as she led the way into the kitchen.

As Ashley and Craig followed her into the kitchen it was evident that both were nervous as if they were going kid who got sent to the principal's office. As they sat down at the kitchen table they noticed that Ellie was already seated and there were two empty seats that faced her. As they sat down Craig could notice Sean working on something in the backyard. He noticed that Ashley wouldn't make eye contact with Ellie and that Ellie wasn't saying anything, she was just staring a cup of water that she was nursing. He knew that he had to initiate the conversion.

Craig gave Ashley a hopeful smile and said "Umm Ellie I'm guessing you have so many questions, so now is really the time to ask them."

Ellie gives them a puzzled look and says "Ok, when did this happen? Why didn't you tell me Craig?"

Underneath the table Ashley grabs Craig's hand and holds on to it tight. Craig notices this and a sly smile enters his face, he looks back at Ellie and says, "It happened yesterday Ellie, Ashley came to my dressing room and we talked"

Ellie releases a sarcastic sigh and says, "Yea, I'm sure that's all you did."

"Ellie, you know it's not like that. At first I didn't want to talk to her but Ellie my heart has always been hers. And when I look into her eyes my heart skips a beat, how am I suppose to ignore that, so afterwards she came over and we had dinner, and we spent the night together," responses Craig

"Your not Craig, I know that she is your "soul mate" and all that jazz, but you're my best friend so I feel that it's my duty to look after you," responses Ellie

"I know and I appreciate that but you have to understand I'm tried of feeling empty inside. I feel like I'm just going through the motions, and I'm done with that, I wanna be happy Ellie and for so long I wasn't happy and lets face it Ash is it for me," answers Craig

Ellie doesn't say anything; she just looks outside the window.

Ashley decides to join the conversion and says "Ellie, were not her to get your permission to be together. We're here to be honest with you."

Ellie just shakes her head as she meets eyes with Ashley and says, "Wow, she can actually talk. You know what Ash; you weren't here for the after affects of what you did, you didn't see how heartbroken Craig was after you left, you know how long it took Craig to recover and move on with his life. You know what it seems to be a pattern for you, you did it in high school, you did it in college. Excuse me if I don't have the utmost trust in you"

"Ellie, I can never repay for what you did for me. But you are not my mother; I'm making the decision to be with the woman I love. You're right it took me a long time to get over what happened but you know what I got passed it, me and Ashley are both in a place now that we can actually make a go of this," responses Craig

"I'm not going to pick you back up again, when she breaks your heart, Craig," says Ellie

"I'm not going to do that Ellie, I will never hurt Craig ever again. Being without him for 12 years was like a death sentence, my heart broke a little more everyday that I wasn't with him, and the fact that he is willing to even look at me again, I'm not screwing that up again. No matter what anyone says I will hurt this man again, everyday I will try to prove how much I love him. Ellie you may hate for what I did because I know I do, but if Craig is willing to be with me again, I hope you find it in your heart to one day forgive me as well," responses Ashley. She then gives Craig a sweet smile, which he returns, he thinks to himself that was the exact answer he was hoping she would give Ellie.

Ellie then rubs her pregnant belly and then releases a defeated sigh, she then looks at the happy couple and says, "we'll see Ashley, but words are just that, they don't mean anything unless you prove them. I never questioned the love you two have for each other, I saw what happened to you After Craig cheated on you with Manny, but you two were kids. I knew it hurt but what you did to Craig was far worse, you left him in his time of need, you left him because you couldn't handle his illness and you for lack of a better word pawned him off on me and Marco. And when he forgave you and you two got back together I finally thought you two had turned a corner and would finally make it work but when he asked you to spend the rest of your life with him you said no and you went to have sex with another man. For a long time you were the closes friend I had but that changed when I saw what you were capable of, but remember Ashley it isn't just Craig anymore, there is this little boy who I love like my own son, and if you do anything to hurt him I'll never forgive you Ashley"

"I would never hurt Joey, all I want to do is be a part of their lives, I would never try to replace the memory of his mother, I just want to be there in any capacity,' responses Ashley

"So Craig told you about her?" asks Ellie

"I told her everything Ellie, I had to be honest with her," responses Craig

"So you know how special she was, and how when you look into Joey's eyes you see pieces of her," says Ellie

"That's exactly what Craig said," answers Ashley

"I trust her Ellie, if I didn't, do you really think we would be having this conversion. I'm just asking you to do the same. Do you think I'm a good father, Ellie?" asks Craig

Ellie looks at him dumbfounded and says, "I think you're a great father Craig, why do you even ask?"

Craig gives Ellie a soft smile and says, "I ask that because do you honestly think, I would ever intentionally put Joey in danger.

"No, I don't, I think you would make the best choice possible, I'm just worried that's all," answers Ellie

Craig smiles and says, "it's ok to be worried, but this something that just feels right. As much as I loved Casey, we all know that Ashley has always been the one."

Ellie lets out another big sigh and says "Yea you're probably right Craig, but lets face it you have always been one to follow your heart instead of your head."

Just as Ellie finishes her statement the door opens and Sean enters the house, he can automatically tell that he should've just stayed in the backyard. The first pair of eyes he meets is those of Ashley who has a nervous smile on her face, which he returns.

"Oh my God Ashley, hi," responses Sean

Ashley gets up and gives him a big hug; at least someone other than Craig is happy is to see him. She gives him a big smile and says "hi Sean, how have you been good?"

Sean looks over at Craig who just nods at him, then looks back at Ashley and says "well, I'm good what are guys doing here?"

Ashley looked back at Craig, who then gets up to give Sean a bro hug. Craig looks down at Ellie then looks back at Sean and says, "Umm well we came here to do two things, one to tell you guys that we're back together and I wanted Joey meet Ashley."

Sean smiles at the couple and says "about damn time don't you think"

"Sean what the hell is that suppose to mean" responses Ellie

Sean goes to the refrigerator to get a soda and then goes to kiss Ellie on the head and says "come on Ellie, you didn't honestly think they were never going to get back together. It's Craig and Ashley, one does not work without the other, and I'm just surprised that it took this long for them to get back together. I'm just being honest, look at Craig's demeanor, doesn't he seem happier than he has been in a long time. And they're both radiating happiness, Ellie please be happy for our friends, for all the crap they've been through and they've still got pass it. I know you will have your reservations about the whole thing but let them be happy."

Ashley grins at Craig as he rubs her back; they both knew Sean understood what they were trying to tell Ellie. As they wait for Ellie's responses Ashley places her head at the point where Craig's head and neck meet, he gets lost in the scent of Ashley's hair. Ellie notices this, that all the emotional baggage that Craig had been carrying for more than a decade was gone. But no matter how happy Craig seemed Ellie was always going to be cautious about Ashley return into his life. Just as she was about to say something Ellie hears little footstep come down the stairs. Scotty heads into the nearby bathroom while Joey enters the Kitchen and sees his dad with someone whose face can't be seen.

"Dad, what are you doing here?" asks Joey

Craig disconnected himself from Ashley and goes to hug his son. As soon as he releases himself from Joey he says, "I came to see my son and I wanted you to meet someone very special me. Remember a couple of days ago when me, your uncle Marco and your grandfather were talking about someone. And you told me that if someone meant that much to me that I should be with her. Well I followed your advice, I want to introduce to Ashley"

Ashley turns her head to meet his eye and says, "hi Joey, do you remember me"

Joey smiles and says "Of course I remember you Ashley, so you're the "Ashley", the one that my dad always writes songs about."

Craig just chuckles at Joey's bluntness, Ashley smiles at Craig who just shrugs, even a 10 year old could tell how could tell the lyrical content of Craig's songs. She looks back at Joey and says, "yea, I guess."

"So are you my dad's girlfriend?" asks Joey

Everyone is startled by Joey's question, they all look around at each other, and Craig looks down at Joey and says, "Yea, Ashley is my girlfriend Is that ok?" Craig and Ashley meet eyes and exchange giant grins.

Joey notices how happy his dad and Ashley are which makes him smile, he knew from even a young age that there was always something missing and that his father always had a slight hint of unhappiness and now it was gone. He moves his eye from Ashley who gives him a smile to his father who waiting for a response, he says, "dad, you don't need to ask me for permission. As she makes you happy that's all that matter."

Craig smiles and says, "When did you become so smart?"

"I had a great teacher, he taught me so much," responses Joey

"Oh, really what did he teach you?" asks Craig

"He taught me that love is all that matters in life, and you should surround yourself with those you love and love you back," answers Joey

Craig looks back at Ashley who says, "Well he must really be a great teacher."

Scotty enters the kitchen and says "Mom, Dad, uncle Craig. Who's the babe?"

Everyone shoots a look at Scotty; Joey is the first one to speak, he says, "Dude! That's my Dad's girlfriend. She's practically like my step mom," he then proceeds to punch him in the arm.

Ashley smiles and thinks to herself "I barely know Joey, and yet he thinks I could be his step mom."

Scotty looks down and says, "Sorry Joey, sorry uncle Craig. But come on you have to admit your girlfriend is really hot."

Craig just chuckle and shakes his head. He looks at Ashley, who in turns shrugs and looks back at Scotty and responses, "When your right your right kiddo. Ashley is definitely hot, but remember Scotty as you get older you'll understand that physical attraction only drives a relationship for so long, if there is no emotional connection then the relationship will never work." As Craig looks back at Ashley he notices that she is blushing uncontrollably, which makes him smile.

"Dude, when did you become such a chick?" asks Scotty

Craig chuckles a bit at how naïve he is and looks at Ellie who sighs and shakes her head. He looks back at Scotty and says, "You say that now, but trust me because I know this from experience, but I'll bet you that 10 years from now your opinion on this will be completely different."

Scotty shrugs moves over to Joey and says, "Whatever, do you wanna go outside and play soccer?

Joey nods his head and asks, "Dad, can I go?"

Craig sighs and pats Joey on his back as he nods his head. As they exit the house he looks back at Ellie and says, "I tried."

Ellie responses "Thanks but don't worry about it, he stubborn like his father"

Sean is startled by this statement and says, "What the hell?"

Ellie and Ashley quietly chuckle at Sean's responses. They meet eyes and exchange smiles, the first ones in over 12 years. In the last 10 minutes the tensions have subsided, they went from kids bickering about the past to adults whose children have taught them that love is something that you should hold on to. Craig moves over to where Ashley is and wraps his arms around her waist and says, "I love you kiddo"

She embraces him and responses, "Aww, I love you too honeybunny"

Ellie chuckles a bit, enough to garner the attention of Craig and Ashley, she shrugs and says, "sorry, had a high school flashback. Who wants lunch?"

Ashley places her head in the middle of Craig's chest with an embarrassed look on her face, she war right Craig always made her feel young again. Craig smiles and places a kiss on the top of her forehead; he knew what she was thinking. She looks back at Ellie and says, "I'll help you make it."

Sean smiles at both Ellie and Craig, then looks at Ashley whose hair is covering her face and says, "Well alright, that means me and Ash can catch up. We'll let you guys get to it, come on Ash," he practically drags Ashley to the living room. Ellie and Craig look at each other and shrug.

As they hear Craig and Ellie moving around in the Kitchen Sean and Ashley settle themselves on the couch. At first both seem to be nervous and not talking, but finally Sean gets up the nerve and asks, "So you and Craig, is that why Craig asked me to take care of Joey yesterday?"

Ashley laughs at the face that Craig had everything planned out. She looks over to Sean and says, "Umm, yea. Liberty and me went to the show yesterday and I heard what Craig said so I decided it was really now or never. So I went to his dressing room, at first he didn't want to talk to me, but I think that had to do more with the shock of seeing for the first time in a very long time, so it made old wounds seem fresh to him. But after the initial shock we kissed."

"Wow, so it's like that, I mean I'm happy for you guys and all but I mean its all of a sudden," responses Sean

Craig peaks his head into the couch and says, "Hey babe, what do you kind of sandwich do you want, Ellie has Ham, Turkey, or I could make you a grill cheese sandwich? Sean, Ellie has made a sandwich the way you like it."

Ashley turns to face Craig and says, "Umm Turkey I guess, but remember no mayo, you know how I hate it"

Craig nods, turns around and reenters the kitchen

Sean and Ashley continue the conversion they were having before they were interrupted

"I know it seems all of a sudden, and a couple of years ago I would have agreed with you. But we are both the point in our lives that you say, "screw it" and just go after you want. And I want Craig, I'm not a kid anymore, and I've been without him for so long that it's not worth it anymore; it's not worth beating around the bush. I love him, what am I suppose to do wait another 12 years?" answers Ashley

"Yea, I mean even when he was with Casey I saw how much he missed you. How anytime someone brought you up I know he would get lost in a memory of you. We all knew it was an eventuality, it's just honestly Ashley I didn't want to say this in front of Ellie and Craig, but I am worried about the two of you. We love you guys but become you guys haven't always had it easy. He broke your heart as kids and you broke his heart as young people, what happens now that you guys are adults?" asks Sean

Ashley looks down and at first doesn't say anything then she looks into the Kitchen where she see Craig cooking and Ellie helping him. She lets out a big sigh and says, "I know I'm worried about that too, I have faith in us, I have to believe that we've learned from our mistakes, we'll learn to be better. And yea we have gone through so much, but we're still here together that's got to count for something, right?"

Sean moves over to where Ashley is and rubs her shoulder, he tries to reassure her by saying "Yea Ash, its counts. Most couple would have buckled under all that pressure and pain but you guys aren't like most couple. It's kinda of like the two of you have a gravitational pull that sucks everyone around in, so I don't know that I can give you an unbiased opinion on everything but if you guys have been able to get through everything and still have that unconditional love than I think that God is trying to tell you something. The only advice I'm going to give you is to follow your heart, you are too much of a realist Ash, maybe that's why Craig is so drawn to you that you guys even each other out; you are the realist and he is the idealist slash romantic. So if you get anything from this conversion it's this, stop trying to over analyze every single situation and have trust in what you guys have, that's the only way you'll know that it's real."

Everyone had seen Sean as this rough and tough person who had no emotional depth, but in that moment Ashley had seen what Ellie and Emma had seen. That Sean is a kind and soulful man, who has a knack for everything come in picture. Just then she truly understood what Sean had meant when she saw Craig leaning against the kitchen counter with his hands in his pockets, Craig was always willing to give himself over to her at a moments notice, but she wasn't, she was always worried about things, she never let herself be truly happy; Craig loves her unconditionally, but the real question does she. Just as she begins to ponder some more on the matter she see Craig enter the living room and say, "food's ready." As both Ashley and Sean get up they exchange smiles and follow Craig who had grabbed the sandwiches and had gone to the backyard, as they both exited the house they saw that Ellie had set up the table while Craig placed the sandwiches and chips on top of the table, Ellie had began to pour soda into plastic cups. As everyone sat down, Ashley started to notice the way everyone was sitting with Ellie, Sean and Scotty sitting on one side and Craig, Herself and Joey sitting on the other. She started to fell like she was beginning to become a part of this family. After everyone had finished their food, they just stayed outside and talked for a while.

"What's next Craig? I mean you basically announced your retirement, where do you go from here?" asked Ellie

"I'm not retired yet Ellie, there's all the promotion I have to do for the album, then we have to do the tour but yeah next year I'm basically retiring from active performing," responded Craig

Ellie has a crossed look on her face and says, "Well I know that smart ass. I'm talking about afterwards, after you do all the stuff you're going to do for the album."

"Like I said before the goal is to buy out my record company for the complete rights to my label, right now we share a 50-50 deal. I mean I've been smart enough to keep control over the masters to all my songs, so that's a problem I don't have to worry about. After that I start signing artist and bands that I want not the ones that the record company pushes on me, I mean some of them are ok, but others are just shitty bands without an artistic bone their bodies. Jack offs trying just in the business to make tons of money and get as many girls as possible, I want my label to be a safe haven for singer/songwriter, and rock bands that want to entertain. Hell I'll even sign rap artist, but they have to have a message not just rhyme about "bitches" and "bling", the point I'm trying to make I want this label to be not only a successful one, one that when you go up and down the roster you see that there is not a single weak link," responses Craig

Ashley looks over to Craig, she smiles to herself, she was proud of Craig she understood exactly what he meant, although she became a lawyer her first love was music. It was the connection that she and Craig had shared; she knew what everyone thought about them, that they were polar opposites that were only connected by the fact that they played instruments. She agreed with their assessment to a degree, they differed on so many things, but their souls connected on a plain that no one could understand, it just happened to be that music was the background for that connection. That Craig was the hopeless romantic that always made her feel that true love was an obtainable goal, and she was the realist that always grounded Craig and made him live his life in reality. She had gotten her lost in thoughts of their lives together but then she started to ponder on what Craig had been saying, he was right the industry had been polluted by wannabes and money-grubbing execs. She thinks that to herself that she had hoped that there had been more people like Craig when they were both starting out in the industry maybe she would have stuck with it instead of having every demo sent out being rejected and sent back with an apology letter. It was a question she would never get an answer to, so she stop dwelling on it and began rubbing Craig's back.

"Ever the musician Craig, but you know what I hope you can do it," answers Sean

Craig just smiles at Sean, he though Ellie and Ashley would understand exactly what he was saying about the value of artistic integrity but it was Sean who backed him up completely. He was taken aback for a second but shrugged it off and took a drink of his cup.

Ellie smiles at Sean and takes a drink from her cup and without looking up she asks, "What about you Ash, what are your plans?"

Ashley was shocked, she didn't think Ellie would have any concern for her plans for the future, all the day progressed the both of them had hardly any interaction. She smiles back at her and says, "umm. Well I have a trial starting on Monday. Our practice is starting to get of the ground, for a few years we struggled, but as we started to get more and more cases our profile increased"

Ellie nods and answers back "what kind of law firm is it?"

"Well it's a little bit of everything we handle civil rights law, family law, and environmental law," responses Ashley

"Wow, you must be a really great lawyer to be able to be practice different forms of law," answers Sean

Ashley blushes and says, "well thanks but it isn't all me I have a lot of help from my partners and our assistants."

"Why did you decide on family law and environmental law?" asks Craig

"Well I mean I have Liberty and Emma as my partners; Liberty handles most of our family court cases and Emma works as an environmentalist and when she finds violations of the law she hands those cases over to us. We have over a 95 victory rate so I guess pretty good," responses Ashley

Sean looks down for a second, it had been a really long time since he's had a single thought about Emma, he smiles at the thought that Emma is doing really good. That she pursued her love of the environment. Ellie looks over to him, she knows exactly what he is thinking, but for some strange reason she is not worried, she knows what kind of man Sean is and although Emma was his first love he would never love Emma more than he loves her and their children.

"So whenever I get in trouble you'll be the first call I make, the girlfriend and my lawyer all wrapped up in a tight little package," answers Craig

Everyone laughs, and then Ashley lightly punches him in the arm and says "shut up Manning, there's nothing of value that you have that will ever make me want to represent you."

"Oh, really? Ok I see how it is. Joey were leaving little Ms. Kerwin thinks that your dad has nothing to offer her," responses Craig as he gets up and motions for Joey to get his things so they can leave.

But Craig doesn't get that far, Ashley grabs him by the shirt and pulls him to her and whispers "don't leave baby, I was just teasing you, I'm sorry."

Craig sits back down and smiles at her, he grazes his nose against her shoulder. He then wraps his arms around her side and whispers in her ear "don't ever worry about it, I will never leave you."

Joey rolls his eyes and says, "Are we leaving? Or are you going to sit there and make kissy faces with your girlfriend?"

"Hey, show some respect kiddo," responses Craig

Joey hangs his head and says, "Sorry dad, sorry Ashley."

Ashley looks over to Joey who has a sad smile on her face, she looks back at Craig and without telling him anything tells him to talk to his son.

Craig sighs in a defeated tone and says, "It's ok mijo, don't worry about it so much, remember that I love you and I will do anything to hurt you."

Both Ashley and Joey smile at him, he feels the eyes of everyone are upon him, but he is used to the pressure so he doesn't make anything of it.

After an hour or so Joey and Scotty began to play soccer, they were soon joined by their families, Ashley does not have a single athletic bone in her body so obviously she would go up against Ellie even though she is pregnant. They played around for a while Craig and Sean were the goalies, while Ashley and Ellie played defenders. The game went back and forth for a while, the scored ended up being a 5 to 5 tie, they stopped the moment it started to become dark.

As everyone went inside Craig and Sean stayed behind to gather all the stuff they used during lunch while Ellie and Ashley began to make dinner. As they gather the cups and plates Sean says, "I haven't seen you this happy in a really long time Craig."

"I know dude, and a part of me is telling me that I have to slow down and smell the rose or what-not but she does that to me. I've learned from the mistakes of the past, I've learn when to be impulsive but at the same time to be cautious. As much as I sound like a kid right now, I just really happy to be in love, and truth be told I honestly never thought that we would get back together," responses Craig

Sean looks at him and asks, "Why do you say that?"

Craig looks down for a second then lifts his head to look into the kitchen where he sees Ashley moving around starting to get the ingredients ready for him to cook. He looks back at Sean and says, "Cause look man 12 years changes you, I love her with every fiber I got but for so long I lived with the notion that there was the possibility that I was never going to see her again, that I was never going to touch her again. When I got with Casey I had felt that I'd started to move on but her presence never left me, when Casey died I knew that my happiness had to take a backseat to Joey's, that my job was raise him and love him, and give him everything that I didn't have growing up until I was a teenager. And I don't want to dwell on it too much but I'm just going to say this I will not anything fuck this up this time, this time I will not let anything get in between like it did before. Cause I don't think my heart will take it if we don't make it."

Craig just sighs as he put finishes cleaning up the dishes, Sean walks over and pats him on the back on says, "I know bro, just have faith in yourself and everything will be fine. Look I didn't want to say anything but Ashley is just as worried as you are, we talked earlier and she said basically the same thing. So I'll tell you what I told her stop trying to over analyzing everything and just that you love each other and know that everything will be fine."

Ellie opens the screen door, peaks her head through the door and says, "Are you guys going to come in or are you going to stand out there and gossip like little girls all night." She smiles at them as they start to laugh; Craig shakes his head as he and Sean enter the house. Craig gets straight to work on the pasta he was planning to make. He also makes some corn and sweet peas to go along with the garlic bread he had in the oven.

As he prepares dinner everyone is in the living room watching T.V, as he finishes up the vegetables he feels the presence of someone else in the living room. He doesn't say anything he just goes about his business while the person says, "I think I'm going to have to keep you around for a very long time. I mean you can cook, you can clean, you're great with children, you're rich, and you're really great in bed."

Craig just smiles and shakes his head and without looking back at the person who is saying this, he says, "I see. But there is a bit of problem with that."

"Oh, really and what is that?" ask the "mysterious" person

"I don't really think my girlfriend would like me going off with some random stranger. I kinda of have a thing for her, but thank you for the offer," replies Craig as drains the pasta and starts to add the sauce.

The person starts to laugh, goes up behind him and wraps her arms around his waist. The scent of her perfume intoxicates him, as she lays her face on his back; he could feel her melting into him, as he turns off the stove she says, "I honestly don't think she will mind. Anyways if she decides to put up a fight I'll cut the bitch, no one is taking my man away."

Craig starts to laugh and says, "What am I going to do with you Kerwin?"

"Love me for the rest of my life," replies Ashley

Craig turns around sees that Ashley has some hair covering her face so he brushes it to the side and says, "I think I'll be able to do that." He then proceeds to hug her lift her up and begins to tickle her all in the same motion. He then begins to place the pasta, vegetables and garlic bread on the table; he then grabs some juice and some soda out of the refrigerator. He screams into the kitchen "food's ready everyone."

Everyone trickles in; Craig and Ashley are already seated at the table. Craig begins to serve everyone. As they eat they reminisce about the past, Scotty and Joey were listening intently to the adults sharing stories about the past, some of the name they bring they don't know, like Liberty, Emma, Manny, Rick, Chris, Toby, J.T, Peter, Mr. Simpson, and Terri; everyone else they had called Aunt and Uncle. During their years in high school there was a lot of time were the group had been disconnected by relationships, drugs, distance but as time went on they all grew out of that and the connection they shared was stronger than any of them had imagined. They all left all that pettiness behind; conversions that before had brought up past pain had no longer gotten a response from anyone. After they finished dinner, Craig cleaned up while Sean helped Ellie get to the couch, Craig sure definitely knew how to cook a good meal Ashley thought to herself. It was around 10 o'clock by the time Joey had knocked out on the couch, Scotty fell asleep next Sean carried him to his bedroom. When Sean came back downstairs, Craig knew it was about time that they should be leaving as well. They quietly said their goodbyes, Craig hugged both Ellie and Sean then went to pick up Joey from the couch, Ashley then followed suit and hugged Sean as she was about to grab Joey's stuff but was stopped by Ellie who gave her a hug, as they hugged Ellie whispered in her ear, "I'm sorry if I was being a bitch today. I know you love him, I just don't want him to get hurt again." Ashley responses by saying, "you weren't being a bitch Ellie, you were only looking out for him. But I love him and I will never hurt him again." They smile at each other, as they disconnect they notice that the front door is open and the guys were missing, they both giggle at the same time. As they exit the house they see that Craig had already placed Joey in the car and Craig and Sean are talking while the lady approach them. After a few more goodbyes are said they leave, they drive home in quite, they didn't want to wake Joey up Ashley just places her hand on Craig who has his hand on the stick knob. As soon as they get home, Craig places Joey on his bed while Ashley puts his bag in the closet. As they close the door to his room both quietly laugh, he looks so peaceful while he sleep. Craig and Ashley walk hand in hand to the master bedroom, as Craig gets undressed down to his wife beater and his boxers he puts some shorts, he walks into the bathroom as Ashley is placing her things inside of the cabaret. The bathroom is big enough for Craig and Ashley to walk around without bothering each other yet they still fell into each other's arm. They start to kiss and the next thing Ashley knows Craig has already began to undress her, she doesn't mind at all, although they had basically been all over each other the entire day each new touch felt like a new sensation. They both began to moan, but they were quite about it in order not to wake up Joey. Craig had Ashley's back lean up against the bathroom counter, every single thrust was like ecstasy. By the time Ashley had finished she was dripping sweat she dig her face into his shoulder. Craig couldn't help but laugh; Ashley gives him a dumbfounded look and says "why are you laughing?"

"Cause I'm just so happy that I have you in my life again," replies Craig

Ashley doesn't say anything she just plants a huge kiss on him, she then begins to grabs her clothes and toss them in the hamper then looks into her bag and pulls out her nightgown. Craig puts on the clothes that he had been tossed on the bathroom counter as they had sex. As Craig finishes he smiles at her then goes over the bed and jumps in, Ashley follows suit and positions herself into his arms. Ashley turns over to him and says, "Can I ask you a question?" Craig nods to say yes, she responses "does Joey know about you being bi-polar and your father?"

Craig sighs and gives her a half smiles, he grabs he teeth with his tongue and says, "Yea he knows about me being bi-polar, I've never hid that fact from him. But he doesn't know about Albert, and I honestly don't think I'll ever tell him. It's not that I don't want to be honest with him; I just want him to know that his biological grandfather was someone who abused his grandmother and his dad. So I just tell him that Joey is my father and that his grandmother is with his mom and they would always be his guardian angels."

Ashley kisses him on the cheek and says, "let's just go to sleep, we have had a long day. I love you Craig"

She looks over to him waiting for a responses but sees that Craig was already fast asleep, she quietly chuckles and falls asleep herself.