A Christmas story! Just in time for the holiday, huh? :)
Warning: Femslash
Enjoy, and have a Merry Christmas!
I woke up slowly, stretching and cuddling back under my covers when I felt the cold air outside my bed. I smiled sleepily, burying my face in my pillow. My eyes popped open a split second later. Today was Christmas Eve! I couldn't stop the smile that appeared on my face.
Gritting my teeth and preparing myself did nothing to stop me from groaning when I slipped out of my bed; the air was really cold. I hurried over to my closet and pulled out my fuzzy purple bathrobe, throwing it on and fastening it around me.
I happened to glance out my window as I crossed my room to get my fuzzy socks and stopped short. Covering the ground outside was a blanket of fresh snow. I stood in awe of the beauty for a moment before my cold feet became more important.
Once I was warm again, I opened my nightstand drawer and pulled out my cell phone. I punched the power button and waited as the thing booted up. The moment it was loaded, I started dialing my best friend's phone number. I paused before hitting the 'send' button, a mischievous grin spreading across my face.
I snapped my phone shut and threw it on my bed, quickly changing into actual clothes and putting on another pair of socks. I ran downstairs as quietly as I could, not wanting to wake anyone up.
Mom was already in the kitchen, brewing a pot of coffee. She looked up when I entered, a surprised smile appearing on her face. "Hey there, early bird. What's got you up so soon?"
"It snowed!" I exclaimed, hopping around like a six-year-old.
Mom laughed at me, shaking her head. "You realize you act nothing like an almost seventeen-year-old when it comes to snow, don't you?"
I nodded emphatically, going over and giving Mom a quick good morning kiss. "I'm gonna go over to Alex's house," I said, opening one of the cabinets and pulling out a cereal bar.
"Bundle up, then," Mom reminded me, looking out the window as she waited for her coffee to perk. "It's cold."
"'Cause it snowed!" I said again, opening and eating my cereal bar in record time, grinning as Mom laughed again.
After I'd eaten and put on a coat, gloves, a hat, and boots, I left the house and trudged out through the snow. It made a pleasant crunching noise under my boots, and I watched my breath fog in the air in front of me as I softly sang a Christmas carol. Over all, I felt like one of the luckiest people girls on the planet. Christmas was my favorite holiday, hands down. Maybe it had something to do with the fact that my birthday was three days after the holiday, but that was besides the point.
It had been years since we'd had a White Christmas, and this year, it looked like we'd be having one. That in itself was thrilling to me. Maybe it'll even stick around for my birthday, I mused, dismissing the thought when I neared Alex's house.
I went over to the front porch and scooped up some of the wettest snow from the concrete, forming it into what was one of my better snowballs. Grinning to myself, I snuck around to the back of the house where I knew Alex's room was.
I heard a noise as I approached the back porch, freezing in my tracks. When Alex's big, brown, shaggy dog came rushing to meet me, I relaxed.
"Hey, Archie," I whispered, petting him with my free hand.
He whimpered excitedly, wagging his tail and bouncing around in front of me in the snow.
I grinned at him, showing him an empty palm so he'd know I didn't have anything for him. "Now, Archie, be quiet. I'm sneaking up on Alex."
I could've sworn the dog understood, because he turned and ran off, snuffling around in the snow for something or other.
After remaining still for a moment, I decided that no one was going to follow the dog and continued my sneaky trek across the back yard. I slowed as I walked past the dining room window, seeing movement inside.
Alex's older brother Matt looked up and saw me, staring at me for a moment before recognizing me. He waved, and I motioned for him to be quiet. He nodded, then walked over to the window and opened it up a little.
"Hey," he said softly, raising an eyebrow at me. "What are you doing?"
"I," I responded somewhat triumphantly, "am going to give Alex a wake-up call. With a snowball."
Matt nodded with understanding, a smile creeping across his face.
I only had time to say "what?" before a snowball exploded against the back of my head. I stumbled forward and careened face-first into the snow.
I scrambled to sit up and threw what little of my snowball had survived my fall at my attacker, unsurprised to hear Alex's laughter.
"It snowed," Alex cried, flinging herself down beside me and hugging me excitedly. "Sorry," she added as I spit out snow. "I couldn't resist."
"Merry Christmas Eve," I told her before tackling her into the snow.
We wrestled around and laughed for a few minutes, finally sitting up and giggling at each other.
"You two are so weird," Matt said through the window. He laughed, shook his head at us and shut the window, walking off into the house.
"So, how are you?" Alex asked, brushing snow off herself.
"I'm excited," I responded immediately, grinning at my best friend.
Alex chuckled. "I bet. You wanna come in? Mom and Dad are off on their Christmas Eve donut run." She helped me up and we headed inside, shedding our snow-covered clothes.
A few minutes later, the two of us were in her bedroom, mugs to of hot cocoa in our hands.
"I can't believe another year's almost gone," I said slowly, a wave of memories from this year washing over me. Most of them were with Alex, of course, and those were the ones that I really treasured. After all, Alex was my best friend, and I was closer to her than to anyone else.
Her parents arrived home a few minutes later, donuts in hand. They weren't the richest family in town, but they still found ways to have their own special holiday traditions. I really admired them for it, and secretly wished that some of their traditions were practiced in my family, too. For example, the donuts. Who doesn't like donuts, especially on Christmas Eve morning??
After the traditional Andrews family breakfast, Alex and I found some sleds in their basement and headed off to the park. We joined some of the younger kids and slipped down the hills over and over again, sometimes crashing into each other, and sometimes flying off the sled. By the time lunch time rolled around, Alex and I were cold and worn out.
We went back to my house for lunch, and Mom made us a pot of her prize-winning chili. Alex and I wolfed it down, then retreated to my room to talk.
"We're leaving tomorrow," Alex said, making a face as she talked about the Andrews's holiday travel plans. "and traveling all the way to Mount Holly, spending a few nights there with my Aunt Crystal, and maybe coming back in time for New Years, I'm not sure."
"You're driving all the way there on Christmas?!" I repeated incredulously.
She nodded, still looking less than pleased with her parents' decision. "It's not the actual trip I don't like, it's the traveling on Christmas thing. That sucks."
"I know, really." I was a little disappointed; Alex wouldn't be here for Christmas, but we still had today to spend together. "While I'm thinking about it…" I trailed off as I stood and went to my closet, pulling a box down from a shelf inside. I opened the box and pulled out a smaller box that was wrapped in bright paper and had a shiny bow on top.
I handed the present to Alex, grinning at the twinkle in her eyes. She swore up and down that I didn't have to get her anything, but I knew she loved that I did anyway. "Merry Christmas, Alex," I murmured, sitting down beside her as she started tearing off the wrapping paper.
"Aww! Kasey, you're the best!" she exclaimed as she laid her eyes on my gift: a leather bracelet with her name etched into it. She put it on, set the wrappings aside, and threw her arms around me.
"Only the best for my best friend," I told her, hugging her back fondly. I noticed her eyes had lost a little bit of their twinkle after I'd said that, but I paid it no mind, deciding that it was probably because she felt guilty for not being able to get me a gift. She always complained about that, and I always told her I didn't mind.
Alex and I spent the rest of the day talking, hanging out, and singing off key Christmas carols. We goofed off, pretending to get drunk on our non-alcoholic eggnog, and quoting scenes from the Snoopy Christmas movie that they always showed on TV.
When it started to get dark, Alex's father called and said that he was going to come pick her up. We went back up to my room to get her things together, and Alex seemed disappointed, but something seemed to be weighing on her mind.
I paused and looked over at her, noticing the strange expression on her face as she picked up her gloves. "Alex?"
She looked up at me with a start, raising her eyebrows. "What?"
"You're spacing out on me, bud," I told her, grinning to try and lighten the mood.
She returned the smile half-heartedly, her eyes going back to the floor.
I watched her for a moment, and she didn't seem to be cheering up at all. "You okay, Alex?" I asked, growing concerned.
"Hmm? Oh, yeah, I guess." She looked over and went to grab one of her sweaters that she'd taken off earlier when she got too warm. She pulled it over her head, finally looking at me.
Alex opened her mouth, hesitated, then closed it again. She seemed to think about something for a moment, then looked up at me again. "I… well…" She cringed at herself, leaving me even more curious as to what was going on.
I didn't say anything, and tried to put an expression on my face that didn't appear demanding.
"I have something for you," she finally managed, avoiding my gaze and playing with her hands nervously. "But I'm not sure that you'll like it. I mean, um… Well, I've wanted to give it to you for a long time, and… I just… I'm scared," she finished, her voice a whisper.
"Aw, Alex, it's okay. Anything that comes from you is special to me. You could give me a can of spinach and I'd go 'aww, thanks!'" I congratulated myself when she let out a strangled laugh. I grinned at myself, crossing the room and putting my arms around her in a friendly hug.
I was aware of three things in the next five seconds: one, the sound of Mr. Andrews' car horn outside, calling for Alex to come out; two, the feeling of her soft lips brushing lightly against my own; and three, Alex's whispered "Merry Christmas" in my ear before she tore herself out of my embrace and my room, leaving me standing there, absolutely stunned.
* * *
The next morning while everyone was unwrapping their presents, my mind was on Alex. She and her family were probably about two hundred miles away now. All I'd thought about all night was that kiss she'd given me. My best friend in the world--a girl--had kissed me last night, and I wasn't angry or hurt. I was confused.
Alex obviously had feelings for me, but for how long? Why hadn't we ever talked about this before? And since when did Alex like girls?
I started reasoning it out as my little sister dove toward the tree, ready to open her next present. Alex had said something last night about being scared… She probably didn't know what I'd think about same-sex relationships; the area we lived in… Well, let's just say that most people still thought the rainbow flag was some kind of hippie symbol. That probably explained why she didn't ever say anything about it, actually.
The thing that confused me the most was the way I felt about the kiss. Cliché as it may be, I actually found myself wanting more. Her kiss didn't disgust me; I liked it. As a matter of fact, the more I thought about it, the more I wanted to do it again. I thought for a moment about my feelings for Alex, wondering just how deep they went. We'd been best friends for nearly ten years, and I was closer to her than to anyone else in the world. I'd always known we would stay close forever, but this might be taking it to a whole new level. If I really, really thought about it, I could almost see us together. Heck with the almost, I could see us together. I wanted to be the one to hold her hand when times got rough, be the one to kiss away her tears. I wanted to be the one person she really trusted to love her. Because, after all, I realized, I did love her. Maybe not as much more than my friend right now, but it could grow to oh-so-much more.
I smiled and glanced up at the clock, trying to figure how long it would be until I could get in touch with Alex. She probably wouldn't get there for another hour or so.
After a moment, I got off the couch and excused myself from the present opening, going into the office and getting on the computer. I found an online phonebook for Mount Holly and did a search for Alex's aunt Crystal. Finding, to my relief, that she was the only one in Mount Holly, I wrote down the number and stuck the piece of paper in my pocket. I returned to the living room after that, rejoining my family in the celebration of Christmas. A serene smile was on my face; I'd already gotten the best gift I could've imagined.
I waited for a few hours after I knew that Alex would arrive, not wanting to immediately interrupt. Then nervous butterflies filled my stomach and I stalled as much as I could. After Christmas dinner was had and dishes were done, I retreated to my room and pulled my phone out.
I slowly dialed the number, knowing that I shouldn't put it off any longer. My hands started to tremble, but I closed my eyes and thought of Alex and her smile and pressed the 'send' button.
The phone took a moment before it started ringing, and then after three rings, someone answered.
"Hello?"
"Hi, this is Kasey. Is Alex there?"
"Just a sec," the woman on the other end responded.
I heard a muffled call for Alex, and then there was a silence, then the woman came back on the line.
"I'm sorry, she's not available. Can I take a message for ya?"
I felt a wave of disappointment, but then I thought I heard the click of someone picking up another receiver on the other end. I crossed my fingers and prayed that it was Alex that had picked up an extension. "Um, sure. I guess… Well, tell her I said thanks for the present she gave me. I just wanted her to know that it was the greatest gift I've ever gotten. Oh, and, tell her I can't wait for her to get home."
"Is that all?" the woman asked.
"Yeah, that's it. Thanks." I listened carefully, trying to tell if there were two people on the line or not.
"Well, I'll tell her. Merry Christmas," the woman said.
"Merry Christmas," I answered, listening as one click sounded in my ear. I bit down on my lower lip disappointedly, realizing the noise I'd hear was probably just the shaky connection through my cell phone. Just as I was about to pull the phone away from my ear, I heard another unmistakable click and the line went dead.
Relief washed over me and I sighed happily, a grin growing on my face.
"Merry Christmas, Alex," I whispered to the empty room, lowering the phone and slipping it into my pocket. "I love you."
I couldn't wait until she got home.
Review if you smiled! :)
AN: There actually is a sequel to this story, if anyone's interested or didn't know. It's called A Kiss in Time Saved 2009. Yes, lame title, better story. :) You would make me very happy if you checked it out!