No one expected Ellie to yell as loud as she did when Quinn and Clay walked into the apartment the next day, both looking extremely tired, Quinn's neck covered in hickeys.

"What the fuuuuck!" Ellie looked at Clay with wide eyes, "You fucking vacuum cleaner."

"Is that... safe?" Nick joked under his breath, and Quinn wondered if he was right, as nice as it felt to receive the hickeys, they made it incredibly impossible for Quinn to be on camera for the next two weeks.

"I uh... oops," Clay shrugged, looking rather bashful.

"So like..." Ellie looked between the two expectantly. When they tried to sneak in, Ellie caught the pair right before they made it to Quinn's room, and after seeing their state of being, she dragged them to the kitchen table, Nick following her. Now, Clay and Quinn were trying to figure out any way that they could get some actual rest together, "Are you together? Are you just fucking?"

"Ellie," Quinn and Nick seemed to scold in sync, before sharing a smile at their likeness.

"These are important things I need to know," Ellie's go to bit was the one where she played Quinn's parent, considering that Quinn didn't really have that influence, "I need to know your intentions with my daughter."

"I have not slept enough for this," Quinn stood from the table grumpily, she would like to sleep.

"Come 'ere," Clay pulled on her hand to keep her from walking away. Quinn paused for a moment and then sat on Clay's lap, hugging him around his neck, and resting her head in his embrace. He gave a knowing look to Ellie, who seemed to have gotten her answer from this moment.

Ellie smiled at the pair. Despite the fact that Quinn's neck looked like she was in the middle of a giraffe cosplay, she looked so comfortable in Clay's arms. That's what it was supposed to be like. Ellie was happy for her.

"We'll talk later," Ellie whispered to Clay, who definitely should have been expecting this. Nick nodded, also signifying that they were gonna have to talk about this.

"Get her to bed," Nick pointed at Quinn who was blinking slowly against Clay's neck, her eyelashes tickled his neck. Clay sat there for a moment with Quinn, watching Nick and Ellie stand from the table, saying that they were going to the store for groceries.

"How domestic," Clay teased, and Nick rolled his eyes.

"Just wait bro," he pointed to Quinn, who was breathing slowly, "It'll come for you too... but it's not a bad thing," Nick kissed the top of Ellie's head who smiled at her boyfriend.

"Take care of her," Ellie pressed, "please."

"Of course," Clay nodded as the couple walked out, locking the door behind them.

In the silence, Clay rested his chin on top of Quinn's head. She had really fallen asleep right in his arms, it showed how much she trusted him.

"Quinn," Clay shook her awake quietly, feeling a yawn of his own coming on.

"Mm?" Quinn hummed.

"Let's get to bed, yeah?" Clay suggested, and slowly, Quinn stood, stretched and walked to her bedroom, pulling Clay by the hand. She looked like a child, the way she rubbed her eyes and pulled on his hand, urging him to follow. Clay was busy admiring the girl, seeing how lovely she was even in moments of sleepiness.

"You'll stay with me, right?" Quinn mumbled, closing her curtains, making the room darker.

"Do you want me to?" Clay was a little worried that they would burn out quickly if they left no space in the relationship, but of course he wanted to stay with her.

"Please," She begged.

The pair settled into bed, practically attached at the hip. Clay laid with his arm around Quinn, pulling her into his chest, as she snuggled against him, already asleep. It had appeared that something had worn her out. Feeling her breath softly against him, Clay felt a wave of sleepiness wash over himself, and his thoughts struggled to keep him awake.

Clay was trying not to be terrified. This is all he ever wanted. And he couldn't afford to lose it, and the pressure was starting to settle in.What would happen when they officially came out as a couple? Would people judge their relationship? Would other guys start reaching out to Quinn? How would that affect their content? Clay knew that Quinn deserved someone who put her first over everything, and he was willing to do that, but what happens if it clashes with his career? He offered once to quit, which she wasn't going to let him, but what if it's what he had to do?

Clay was biting the inside of his cheek thinking about this.

"You deserve the world Quinn," Clay whispered, "I hope that I can give it to you."

He fell asleep not long after.

When Ellie and Nick returned home, they noticed how quiet it was. Which was strange considering that Clay's car was still in the parking lot.

"They must be asleep," Nick pointed out, "Should I go check on them?"

Ellie smiled at his concern, Nick had cared about Quinn as if she was his own sister, and he was very protective of her.

"You can if you want to, love," Ellie was unpacking the groceries that they had gotten from the store. Mainly food stuff, Ellie figured since there were four people tonight they could actually make something for dinner instead of ordering take out or just having whatever was in the fridge.

"Also, I wanted to talk to you about something," Nick remembered, "Remind me to bring it up when I get back."

His words had turned Ellie into an anxious mess. Wanting to talk about something was never a good thing. The blonde had felt frozen in place, like everything in her body just stopped working. For the time being, all she could do was focus on breathing.

Nick opened Quinn's door slowly.

"How cute," He nearly laughed at the sight before him. Quinn was tucked against Clay's side, her head and hand resting against his chest, most of her hickeys hidden by her hair. He had one arm wrapped around her, and the other on Rose's stomach, who was laying on top of the comforter, on Clay's other side. Nick took a picture, and sent it to the two sleeping, knowing that it was something special, for the both of them.

As he went back into the kitchen, he showed Ellie the picture, who smiled, but looked nervous.

"What did you want to talk about?" She asked, her voice was full of anxiety that she tried to mask with confidence.

"Oh," Nick put his phone on the counter, "Well... I wanted to ask you something, but I kinda wanted to do this later. So we could consult other people first."

"Nick, you're making me nervous," Ellie said honestly, "Is everything okay?"

Nick's eyes widened as he realized what she was asking, "are we okay?" Ellie had probably assumed the worst. He crossed the kitchen quickly to comfort her. Nick took both of her hands in his own, making sure that she knew that this wasn't a bad kind of talk.

"I promise, everything is okay, we are okay, I love you," Nick kissed her, "Sorry, I didn't realize how bad it sounded at first."

"I don't know why it threw me for such a loop. I was a little anxious," Ellie admitted, "Although I should've known that if you were going to break up with me, you wouldn't have said it so casually."

Nick laughed at this, "You're right, you're right."

"So, what do we have to consult people about?" Ellie was now confused, what could he be asking? They had almost been together for six months, which means that it wasn't marriage, but it also wasn't breaking up. And Christmas was in 4 days, so it could be something about that, but Ellie wasn't sure.

"Well, I was thinking about what I could get for you for Christmas, and I had an idea, and I didn't know if it was a good idea, because y'know with Quinn, and they guys, and I don't know about the timing, maybe it's too fast, and maybe it's not even something that you'd be interested in, but I don't know. I'm still thinking about it," Nick rambled.

"Honey," Ellie nearly laughed at how quickly he spoke, "what are you talking about?"

"I want to ask you to move in together. Like us. Officially."

Ellie didn't feel her mouth fall open, but she knew that it had. Moving in together was a big deal. It meant that things would change, their relationship would have more permanence, and it would mean that Nick would be a big part of what Ellie thought of as home. She had never been in a relationship long enough to even consider the idea of moving in together so seriously.

"You think it's a bad idea," Nick took in her reaction. Ellie looked stunned.

"No!" She shot back quickly, a little louder than she meant to be, "I just, I wasn't expecting it."

"I was looking at apartments the other day, and I almost texted you about it, but I figured that this was a conversation we should probably have in person," Nick rubbed the back of his neck sheepishly, "I know it would be tough to move out with Quinn still being here, and I know you don't want to leave her, and I would have to talk to Clay about it, obviously, I just think it's something that I wanted to look into, with you."

Ellie had noticed how much time he had spent thinking about this. She had wondered about it herself, just not with as much detail. It would be hard to leave Quinn, but now she had Clay, and Ellie figured that she was probably going to move back into the house soon anyways.

"I love you so much," Ellie said simply, "Of course I want to move in with you."

Nick picked Ellie up into a hug that was so tender, and full of so much hope.

"We still need to talk to everyone and see how that would work," Nick pointed out, "But at least now I know that you would say yes."

"Show me some of the apartments you were looking at," Ellie smiled excitedly, this was a big step for her, and it was the only one she wanted to take with Nick.

The couple was on the couch, looking at listings for apartments on a website when Clay emerged from the bedroom. Quinn must've still been asleep. That girl would sleep forever if she could.

"Hey guys," Clay greeted, sitting at the kitchen table, "Oh Nick, thank you for the picture."

Clay turned his phone around so that Nick and Ellie could both see that the photo Nick took was Clay's current lockscreen. Ellie smiled at this.

"I want to talk to you," She said, releasing herself from Nick's grasp and sitting at the table across from Clay.

"I expected this." Clay nodded at Ellie, urging her to start talking.

"Quinn is my best friend. She is like family to me, and you have put her through Hell this last year," Ellie was like Nick in the sense that she was fiercely protective over her best friend, "I want to make sure that she's not just some rebound for you."

That stung Clay a little bit. Ellie had always been so sweet to him, he wasn't expecting that kind of response from her.

"Honest to God, I care about her too much to hurt her," Clay was very forward, "I have let her go too many times when I should've fought for her instead."

"I don't want Quinn to get hurt anymore, Clay. You're Nick's best friend and I love him, and your Quinn's boyfriend and I love her. I'm trusting you, don't disappoint me," Ellie really did like Clay, but she wanted to get the message across that she wasn't gonna let him hurt Quinn again.

"Ellie, there is not a day in the past year that I haven't thought about Quinn," Clay explained, "Even when she was so far away, all I could do was think about her. And I'll be honest, I don't think I deserve this chance. I wouldn't be surprised if she walked out of her room and told me to go to Hell, because I've messed up so many times. But I know even if she did, I couldn't help but love her. I want the best for Quinn, honestly."

"I think you're the best there is for her," Ellie agreed, "because even when she was supposed to hate you, she could never blame you. I think it was because she loves you too much. I'm just so scared of her getting hurt again. You should've seen the state she was in when she first came back here, I thought she would never recover. I can't watch her go through that again."

"I never want to put her through that. I'm terrified of hurting her, of losing her again. Quinn is one of my best friends and she is the most wonderful person I know, I would apologize to her every day of my life if it meant that I could make up for what I did," Clay was being completely honest. He was really so afraid of hurting Quinn, he wanted to be perfect for her.

"Clay," Nick cut in, he had stood behind Ellie in her chair, "You're my brother, and I love you like family. I watched you guys fall for each other before you both knew what was happening. You don't have to be perfect, Quinn fell for you before Vanessa ever existed, don't let that shake you up."

"I know," Clay sighed, "I'm just so worried."

"If you hurt her though, I will probably have to kill you," Nick was joking, mostly.

"I promise, I'm not gonna hurt her anymore," Clay swore.

"Good," Ellie crossed her arms, "then I guess you can keep dating her."

She laughed a little at herself.

"Oh my God, are you guys threatening him, right now?" Quinn was standing in the entrance to the kitchen, she must've been looking for them all. As she walked over, she took in the sight, "And you're double teaming him? Not fair." Quinn took a seat next to Clay, who offered his hand to her under the table.

"Actually, I'm glad you're here," Nick shot a nervous glance to Ellie who gave him a slight nod, "We wanted to talk to you guys about something."

Clay's brow furrowed in confusion.

"About what?" Quinn said skeptically, trying to communicate with Ellie using only her eyes.

"Well," Ellie said and then paused for a while, "Actually... You can tell them babe," She backtracked looking back at Nick who bit back a laugh.

"Somebody tell us something," Clay said nicely, "before I start thinking the worst." Quinn nodded her head at his words.

"We want to... get your permission? Is that the right word?" Nick looked to Ellie who shrugged, "Well get your permission slash, let you both know that Ellie and I are looking at moving in together."

"Oh," was Quinn's immediate response. She froze, just trying to wrap her head around the idea. That meant that she would be living in the apartment by herself. And it hit her in the form of shock.

"Congrats you guys, that's awesome," Clay on the other hand was happy for the two of them. He was also happy to get Nick out of the Master bedroom, so that he could finally have it.

"Wait, are you living here, or are you moving out?" Quinn asked, it hadn't hit her that maybe she would have to find a place to live.

"We're not throwing you out," Ellie confirmed, "You already dealt with that once. Nick and I are looking for places together, like a new start."

"That's great, I'm happy for you guys," Quinn smiled, but she felt herself go a little numb. Of course she was happy for her best friend, but there was something bittersweet about knowing that she would be living alone for the first time, ever.

Ellie and Quinn spent most of the day doing random little things, one of them being an endless google search on how to get rid of hickeys quickly. Quinn also edited a video that she was gonna post for Christmas. As she thought about the holiday she panicked, realizing how quickly it had come up. She still had to find a present for Ellie, and she wondered if she should buy something for Clay.

"I wanted to ask you something about Christmas anyways, so I'm glad you brought it up," Clay remembered, and Quinn wondered how many times someone would try to ask big things of her today, "We always do Christmas dinner at my parents, and I know you normally go with Ellie, which is totally fine, if you want to go there, but if you were interested, I would love to have you come with me this year."

Clay took her hand, and Quinn blinked hard, "Oh shit." She swore by accident, "Sorry, I just... am surprised? I shouldn't be, but I wasn't expecting it. Are you sure your parents are okay with it?" Quinn wasn't quite sure what she was asking.

"Of course, they love having you over for dinner, you know that," Clay smiled at her, he wanted to put her nerves to rest, and he hoped that she would agree to come.

"Yeah, but that was before, when we were just friends, it's different now, because we're... because I'm your girlfriend," Quinn couldn't explain why she was nervous. Clay was reading her fears like an open book, he leaned over and kissed her cheek.

"Quinn, I promise, they'd love for you to be there. I'd love for you to be there. I want to spend Christmas with you," Clay could tell he won her over because Quinn started to smile.

"Yeah okay," She did really like the idea of going to Christmas with him as his girlfriend, "Plus it sounds like Ellie is bringing Nick home for the holiday, and her parents have never met one of Ellie's boyfriends."

"Really?" Clay asked, surprised.

"She was never really the relationship type, and when she was in a relationship it didn't last long enough for her to even want to bring them home to meet her parents," Quinn knew that this was a big deal for Ellie.

"And what about you? Were you the relationship type?" Clay asked curiously, Quinn never really talked about her ex-boyfriends, he didn't realise why until he found out about Marcus.

"I had two boyfriends in highschool, they both lasted two-ish years," Quinn explained, "The first guy was Robbie Denmen, we broke up because... Well, he stopped liking me, and started liking his neighbor."

"Ouch," Clay chuckled, Quinn didn't seem too upset.

"I guess I just stopped being Robbie's type. I met his neighbor, what a sweet guy," Quinn nodded, and Clay saw her break into a smile.

"I see," He felt himself smiling.

"And the only other guy is Marcus, and well, you know how that one goes," Quinn took a deep breath, trying not to let the memory dampen her mood.

"Well," Clay said, easily changing the conversation, "Third times the charm."

Quinn gave a soft laugh at him, as she stood on her tiptoes to give him a kiss.

"So... Christmas...." Quinn took a breath, "You have to help me find something for your sister."