"Okay on the count of three. One...two...three!" I heard the click as the camera on Ashton's phone took a picture of Ender and I in front of the Christmas tree.

"Now one of you two." I switched spots with Ash and gave them a second to situate themselves.

Ashton stood behind Ender, his hands his shoulders and they both shared the biggest grin I had ever seen.

"Smile." I sang and then snapped the picture.

"I want one of us." Ashton requested and I happily obliged, handing off the phone to Ender.

I sided up next to him and felt him put a hand at my waist. We both smiled and let Ender take the photo.

"Wait one more." Ashton said eagerly and I looked up to question him when he captured my lips in a kiss.

A click sounded and he pulled away.

"Couple moment." He grinned and I blushed profusely.

"Look how cute we look." He awed over the photo. "I'm setting that as my new background."

"Send them to me." I poked his hand and he grinned before doing so.

I noticed his change in demeanour when he glanced up and his shoulders slumped.

"Oh wow it's already 5." Ashton gulped as he stared at the clock.

The day had gone by entirely too fast. After we had opened presents I had made lunch and then the three of us played with Enders new toys.

The boat that was set to take Ashton back to mainland departed at 5:30.

"You better go then." I frowned.

He nodded and stood up from his spot on the floor.

The other guys had gone home yesterday to spend Christmas with their families so Ash would be travelling back alone. When I asked him why he didn't spend Christmas with his mom he said that he would make up for it when he got home. Part of me felt guilty inside for keeping him from his family on such a major holiday but then I remembered that he made the decision himself, I didn't make it for him.

We stood by the front door as he went to leave.

"See you in a week, mate." Ashton gave Ender a high five and messed up his hair teasingly.

Ashton turned towards me and our eyes met. I noticed his bottom lip jutted out a little more in a pout.

"You just said so yourself, it's only one week." I reminded him.

"I know." He sighed but pulled me into a hug anyways.

I allowed myself to revel in his warmth and scent, the aroma of ocean and cologne filling my nose.

"I'll let you know when I get back to Sydney." He murmured into my ear and I shivered.

"Alright."

He pressed two fingers under my chin and lifted my face up so that he could attach his lips to mine.

His lips were soft and tasted like my honey Chapstick that he had borrowed from the kitchen counter where I had left it.

They melted against mine perfectly and sweetly. But all too soon oxygen slipped away and we were forced to breathe again.

"See you in a week." I smiled softly.

"One week, 7 days." He smiled slightly as he promised and pecked my lips once more.

I waved as he reluctantly backed up and began to make his way to the dock, adjusting the grey hoodie he was wearing.

Closing the door I sighed and then retreated to the kitchen to pour myself a drink. My phone dinged on the counter behind me, indicating I had a text.

The screen said it was from Ashton and I began to look around seeing if he had forgotten something but then broke out into a tremendous grin when I read the message.

'I miss you already :('

My laughter rang around the room and I replied notifying him that he was a dork.

"Car what's for dinner?" Ender asked from his position on the stairs.

"I'm not sure bro, what do you want?"

"Food." He deadpanned and I rolled my eyes.

"Well no duh." I went over and sat on the step beneath him.

In his hand was his new Leonardo ninja turtle action figure.

"So did you have a good Christmas?"

"Yeah." He smiled cheekily. "I thought it was cool having Ashton here."

"Oh yeah? Me too."

Ender and I sat in a comfortable silence on the stairs, just watching him fiddle with his toy.

"How about baked chicken for dinner?" I said after a while.

"Sure." He shrugged.

Groaning, I dragged myself off the stairs and into the kitchen to start cooking.

"Can I set up my new game?" Ender called from the steps.

"Only if I can play after dinner." I teased and he grinned before going to hook up his xbox.

--

"Seriously?! No!" I yelled at the television, chucking my controller to the floor.

"HA!" Ender barked.

"I hate this game." I groaned and threw my head back.

"And I'm doing this one handed!" He boasted and I reached next to me flicking his ear.

"Okay bro it's late, toys up and shower by 10." I checked the time on my phone.

"Fine." He grumbled and began turning off the gaming system.

As I unlocked my phone I noticed I had two messages, one from Ari wishing me merry Christmas and the other from Ash ; a picture of a dog along with a caption saying "Indie missed me".

I had received a text from Ash around 7:30 saying that he had reached Sydney and was getting off the boat.

If I was being completely honest with myself this week long break might actually be good for us. It wasn't even a break, we were still a couple but we just wouldn't see each other face to face, though still keeping in contact.

In the almost month we had known each other our stranger-ship to relationship status had moved very quickly. Maybe the time apart would help slow it down a little.

After talking to Ari and Ash I had no doubt of my feelings for him and his feelings for me, but I still agreed with Ari on the fact that this was moving too fast.

If we didn't slow down and just jumped right into the relationship we could end up crashing and destroying everything we had.

I was still so new at the whole relationship thing but I knew that he had to miss me more than I missed him, in order to protect myself and what chemistry we had created.

The fact that I would be busy working and he would be working would help that, we would both be too busy to talk during the day so night time talks would be our communication.

This would be good for us, I was sure of it.

Once the kitchen was clean and the brat was showered, I took a quick rinse and curled up into my sheets to sleep.

My phone buzzed next to me and I nearly jumped to snatch it up in my hands.

'Night, Car' along with a sleepy face and heart emoji shone in the darkness.

There was one thing I could not deny, Ashton Irwin was a total sweetheart.

'Night.' I texted back and then set my alarm so that I could get up tomorrow.

The day after Christmas was always hectic because most people were still in town visiting their families and wanted to do something fun.

I hadn't been on the sea in a few days and I already missed the ocean terribly, tomorrow was going to be just what I needed.

--

The morning light was soft and the air blissful as I carried supplies down the docks. The boat needed to be stocked and I made a mental note to give it a quick wash after the tours were done for today.

Ender was cleaning up breakfast one handedly inside and was still in charge of the reception desk until he was cleared by Dr. Carson.

I had prepared a list of things to for him today which mostly included phone calls and ordering supplies. Along with the list came the incentive of if he got it all done he received an hour of extra play time after dinner.

When we were younger that's what our mom would do to keep us occupied throughout the summer days and also subconsciously teach us work ethic. Our prizes at the end of the day if we got our stuff done would range from anything to dessert or play time or maybe even a new toy if we were extra good.

Even though she had passed I had kept up the tradition by giving Ender lists still. I liked to believe that contributed to the work ethic and self-sufficiency he had now.

By the time I had returned to the shop Ender was sat at the back computer checking the radar for me.

"How's it looking today bro?"

"Good. Looks clear for the next few days."He spun around in the rolling chair.

"Okay I'm putting you on charge of lunch today. I left cash on the counter so let me know what you decide by 11:30 and then you can ride into town to get it." I said as I walked to the back to make sure the changing rooms were orderly.

"Alright. Oh and your phone has rang three times in the past twenty minutes." He called back to me.

"Who was it?" I yelled.

"Ashton."

My heart fluttered at the mention of his name and then I mentally slapped myself in the back of the head for getting this excited that he was calling me. Besides, he should be working not calling me and giving me more temptation to miss him more than I did.

"Call him back and put him on speaker." I tried to make myself calm down.

Moments later the sounds of muffled ringing filled the space and then the click of the phone when he answered.

"I was seriously about to call you again." He chuckled but sounded relieved.

"It's Ender and you're on speaker phone. Car was outside when you called." My little brother chirped.

"Hey mate. Morning, Carter." I could literally hear Ashton's smile as he talked.

"Morning." I sang back and filled my arms with a stack of towels. "Sorry I was stocking when you called."

"It's fine. Are you good this morning?"

"Yeah we are. Aren't you supposed to be at work?" I teased.

"I am." He laughed. "I'm just waiting for the guys to get here."

"Oh okay. Hold on a second." I took my phone from the counter and placed it on top of the stack of towels and swept out of the shop, walking down the dock.

"Sorry I had to do something really quick, so how was it sleeping in your own bed last night?" I played.

"Different." He said more like a question.

"How so?" I hummed whilst stacking towels.

"I don't know. I haven't been in it in so long and I got used to sleeping with you either on me or nearby." He answered slowly yet honestly.

"How sweet." I awed.

Phone in hand I walked up from the cabin below to the deck, the sound of voices getting louder as I noticed the group of people walking towards us.

"Hey my tour is here, I'll talk to you later, okay?"

"Sure. Talk to you later. Miss you ,Car." He sounded a bit disappointed but I could tell he was trying not to show it.

"Miss you too. I'll call tonight." I responded then hung up, putting on my best friendly face.

The group of five middle aged women with Ender leading the way approached the boat and I helped them aboard before taking my position at the helm and sailing us off to the reefs.

--

I was using the water hose to spray off the soap bubbles that were covering the pearly white shell of the ship.

The tours today had gone by excellently and I enjoyed the feeling of being back in the water again.

The fish, coral, and sand were my second home and something about being beneath the waves with all of the creatures that lived down there felt right.

After a lunch of steak sandwiches from the burger joint in town and two more tours I had finally gotten around to washing the boat.

I rinsed it off once more before cleaning up and then going back to the shop.

"Alright, thank you Mr. Sanders. I'll have Carter call you tomorrow." Ender was hanging up the phone when I walked in. "Alright I just ordered the new window for your room and the glass for the front door."

"Awesome." I dropped the bucket of sponges and squeegees in the back closet.

"I also got the supplies you wanted ordered and checked prices with Mr.Sanders on paint for the shop, he said he has some going on sale." He clicked on the computer mouse.

"Sweet. I'll make sure to give him a call." I pushed my hair back and leaned against the counter.

"So how about pizza for dinner and then I can kick your butt at MarioKart." I wiggled my eye brows.

"Deal." Ender grinned and we locked up the shop before getting on our bikes and riding into town.

Joey was wiping down a table outside when we arrived at the parlour, grinning when he saw us walk in.

"Hey Carter and Ender!" He waved, flicking back his dark brown hair.

"Hey Joey!" I smiled and Ender found us a table to sit at.

The evening air felt good on my tanned shoulders that were on display with my turquoise tank top and black shorts.

Brown eyed Joey strode up to our table, wearing a Tony's Pizza Parlour tee and khaki shorts.

"So what can I get you two?" He pulled a notepad from his waist apron and a pen from behind his ear.

"Two Dr. Peppers and a large Hawaiian." I ordered and Joey nodded before going back inside to place our order.

Ender and I chatted about the tricks he planned to learn on his new skateboard and what movie he wanted to see first with the movie pass Ashton gave us.

Joey brought us our food and asked us about our Christmas. Ender gave him the complete run down while I just ate my pizza and shook my head at Joey, giving him the "you did this to yourself" look.

I finally bribed Ender to stop talking by saying the food would get cold and Joey just shook it off and returned to waiting tables.

After paying the bill and giving Joey a hug goodbye, Ender and I rode back home, racing to the television to grab the controllers.

Reminding him we only had an hour we dove right into the game.

Naturally he ended up beating me at every video game we played.

By the time we had to go to bed I was bitter about it, saying I would give up but Ender reminded me that I said that every time I lost.

I took my shower first and changed into pyjamas while Ender got in.

Deciding to call Ashton now before it got too late, I laid down on my stomach, phone in hand I dialled him up. It only rang twice before he picked up.

"Hey babe." Ashton's energetic voice sang.

"Hey." I said back, smiling.

"How was your day?"

"Good. I gave five tours and then Ender and I went out for pizza, talked to Joey for a bit then came home and played MarioKart." I kicked my feet behind me. "What about you?"

"Good. Long day but it was good." He sighed happily.

"What did you do?"

"Oh uh- it was just a lot of talking to people and boring stuff. Nothing interesting." He laughed nervously.

Something was up with him.

"Ash what's wrong?" I asked and he got quiet.

"Okay." He said after a minute. "You know how we said that we would be honest about everything with each other?"

"Yes." Now I was the one getting nervous.

"Well, this morning when you didn't answer I kind of freaked out because I thought that maybe you had decided you didn't want to do long distance or something but then you were busy and I felt really stupid for feeling that way."

His words were rushed and bashful. I could tell he was embarrassed to admit that but also relieved to get it off his chest.

"Ash, I have no doubts about how I feel about you, okay?"

"I know. I just wanted reassurance. I don't like being away from you now."

"Well since we're being honest, I think that this week apart might be good for us.Like I said, I don't doubt my feeling for you or yours for me but we do need to slow this down a bit, we are moving really fast."

"I understand and if that's what you want then I agree, but I still don't like not seeing you. What if another storm comes in and something happens or you or Ender gets hurt?" He spouted off his worries and I frowned slightly knowing that he was serious.

"Those things would have happened whether you were here or not okay and I would've had to deal with them alone. It's going to be okay Ashton, it's only a week." I reminded him and I heard him sigh into the phone.

"I know baby, one week."

The line was quiet for a bit as I twirled some loose strands of wet hair around my finger and crossed my ankles in the air.

I heard the shower turn off and knew that Ender would be coming in soon.

"So Ender's already planning what movie he wants to see first with his pass." I laughed lightly.

"Oh really?" Ashton chuckled and I could hear him smiling again.

"You're smiling."I noted, my own happiness showing on my face and I heard him laugh harder.

"I am."

"See? We're going to be fine, don't worry about anything, okay?"

"Okay." He agreed.

We said our goodnights and then ended the call, moments after, Ender strolled in.

"I need shampoo." He noted as he stood in the doorway.

"Add it to the list, we have to go to the hardware shop anyways so we can pick some up tomorrow." I told him as I flipped my hair up into a messy bun.

He was silent and then sat down on the bright blue rug on my floor.

"Do you think mom would have minded Ashton spending Christmas with us?" He blurted out.

My eyes widened and head twitched at his random question. Where had he gotten that idea or impression from I had no clue.

"Why do you ask that?" I said after a moment trying to figure out where he had gotten that from.

"I don't know." He shrugged, "I was just thinking that mom and dad would have liked Ashton if they had been able to meet him. And I wonder if they approve of him."

Those were big thoughts and questions for a little kid but I understood. Ender and I had both had to grow up fast when our parents passed and I expected him to start asking more questions about them soon.

"I think they would have liked him. Ashton is funny like dad and they both are very sweet. And mom would have liked that he's caring and helpful." I answered.

That was true. Ashton would have my parents wrapped around his finger, just like he had me.

"I think that too. I'm glad he spent Christmas with us, it's fun having mate like him." Ender grinned and I couldn't help but smile at him.

"I like having him around too, bro."