Beauty and the Nerd: Christmas special

The morning was cool and crisp as Colby finished her last set of crunches. She stood up to grab the towel off her chair, wiping the sweat off her neck, chugging the water from a bottle. Her focus was on the calendar as she caught her breath, setting the bottle down to rub the towel under her hair. Christmas was coming up soon. Every year she dreaded it; it was her least favorite time of the year. Sitting in her chair, she picked at the corner of the desk. It was customary that Lance and herself got one gift, and occasionally they gifted something to each other. They would have a small dinner as a family then sing carols after while her dad played the old string guitar. It was always off-tune, and they were not a talented family by any means. The time spent with family wasn’t terrible; it was the kids at school leading up to the holidays and even after. Bragging and showing off their new gifts and toys, where they travelled, and how much they got. Friends would bring presents and share baked goods with each other as Colby would sit alone.

With a heavy heart, Colby got dressed and headed off to school. Since it was too cold outside, Colby stopped going to the park to meet up with Yuru. Her track record of being on time was terrible, and since there were more than a handful of times where she didn’t show up at all, Colby thought it best to just sit in the class. It was hard to believe some days why Colby was dating her. Her long wavy hair tied up in different styles, her ice-blue eyes as they pierced her soul, even her sense of fashion as she wore the latest trends. Yuru was beautiful compared to Colby, wearing her usual baggy shirts and loose-fitting pants. It never really mattered to her before about what she wore since studying was all that mattered before. Her face burned red as Colby thought about her, pulling out her comic to bury her face in.

Brushing her dark raven hair behind her ear, Colby paused as it slowly dawned on her. This is my first Christmas with a girlfriend. Colby puffed her cheeks with a hard exhale. Well, first year dating someone. I never had one previously.

The idea of spending time during the holidays made her heart race. Being able to see Christmas lights together, drink hot chocolate while listening to Christmas toons, and perhaps a kiss under the mistletoe? Colby dropped her comic, grabbing her face. What about a Christmas gift? She bopped her forehead for being so dense. Why did it take her so long to figure this out? With only two weeks till Christmas, she needed to think of something to give her. What did she like? Would she be able to find something on short notice? Caught up in her thoughts, Colby didn’t hear Yuru as she stood beside her. With a giggle, she leaned over and kissed her on the cheek.

“You look so deep in thought, it’s rare to see that kind of expression on you. What were you thinking about?” Sitting at the desk next to Colby, Yuru smiled brightly, waiting for her answer. Colby burned as she stammered; there was no way she could just come out and tell her.

Digging her hands into her lap, she looked away. “Nothing really, just daydreaming.”

Yuru was intrigued further. “Daydreaming? About what? You don’t seem like the kind of person to daydream!”

Mina pshed loudly, standing beside Yuru as she leaned against the desk. “Probably about something dirty with a certain someone.” Heavily stressing on the last word, Yuru choked. Could it be possible she really was?

Colby shot a look of dismay at Mina, confirming that she had not been. Yuru pouted a little, slightly disappointed. Was it just Yuru who was being such a perv, thinking of Colby in such a way? Mina chuckled as she leaned back, adjusting her glasses. “Figures, Colby’s too pure to be thinking about that kind of stuff. Bet you it was about the upcoming exams.”

Yuru thwaped her hand against Mina. “Stop picking on her.”

The redhead tsked Yuru, turning to greet Shawna and Claire as they approached them. Shawna greeted them cheerfully as she wore a tiny Santa hat between her messy brunet space buns. Quickly behind her, Claire pulled out envelopes to pass around to them all, little bells jiggling as she moved about.

“Alright, first things first. I am giving your cards and gifts now to get that out of the way. I can’t be bothered to carry this around on Christmas, so enjoy them when you feel like it.”

First, she shoved a card at Shawna, then dug in her bag to give a small, neatly wrapped box. Second, she leaned in to kiss Yuru on the cheek as she handed the card. “From mom, and here you go.”

She handed a thin wide box with a small bow in the corner. Colby was a little upset at the kiss. However, the feeling in her gut dropped as they all received gifts. Turning away, she tried to ignore them as she picked her comic back up. Claire handed a card to Mina with a plaid wrapped gift, and finally, she stopped in front of Colby. With a sweet smile, she held the card out. “Here, this is from my family and me. It’s an invitation to come to our new year’s party that we host every year. Make sure to pass this along to your parents and let me know ASAP.”

Colby’s eyes widened as she took the card, her smile lighting up her face. Claire giggled with delight, passing the next item to her. “And here, this is from me. I know it’s not much, so please enjoy it. I expect one in return, Miss. Larson, and you will be held accountable!”

Claire clapped her hands together, ringing two small bells on her wrist bands, turning towards her desk near the front as she flung her short curly blonde hair with her turn. Colby had taken the long white box with a red ribbon that tied it neatly as she looked at it intently. Her first gift from a friend. Excitedly, she didn’t wait to open it as she pulled the ribbon apart. The ribbon fell aside as she lifted the lid to look inside. With a chortle, Colby pulled out the two gifts within. A small mechanical pencil with her favorite superhero, Batman, and a bookmark of her favorite comic book series, ‘The Battle at Falksworn’. With wonder, she picked the bookmark up, looking at the detail and quality. For being a bookmark, it was incredibly sturdy and flexible. Tracing her hand down the front of it, the decal stuck out to give it depth.

Colby gasped as she recognized it as being the collector’s edition, the one she had missed when they released its 10th volume. She flipped it over and saw the print to confirm it. Looking up at Claire near the front, she couldn’t believe how thoughtful it was for her. Claire smiled, turning back to her magazine with a satisfied nod.

Yuru sat at her desk as she watched Colby fidget around with her new bookmark, unsure if she should place it back in the box or place it in her comic book. The excitement was that of a child on their first Christmas. Mina leaned in to whisper at Yuru. “Boy, if she’s that thrilled about a bookmark, she’s gonna be super easy to please.”

Shawna snickered from behind them. “You know Claire has always been one to give the best gifts. It might be a tough act to follow.”

Yuru gulped. Shawna was right; if Colby was stoked by a bookmark, then it must have been a big deal. Nervously, she wondered if her gift was good enough.

Lunch soon came as they all headed off to the cafeteria. Lance stood waiting in the hall, fist-bumping Colby as he joined them along the way. Yuru noticed that from the start, her relationship with her brother had improved. He was taller and sporty, unlike Colby, who was the classic definition of a bookworm. Although they were related, Lance had blonde hair like his mom, where Colby looked like her dad. Standing side by side, you could see the family resemblance. They found a table and gathered around, relaxing as they joked around and began to eat. Some time had passed when finally Mina asked the crew the usual question. “So has everyone finished their Christmas shopping yet? Aside from Claire, which we already know she’s done.”

Mina held up her engraved zippo lighter as she shamelessly flipped it around to open and light before closing it again to place in her pocket.

Shawna sighed exasperatedly. “You are just looking for any excuse to show that off now.”

“For the record, I am very happy about my gift and want everyone to acknowledge how great of a friend Claire is.” Mina winked while shooting a finger gun at Claire with a click. Claire flipped the page of her magazine, pretending not to notice as she hid a smirk. Yuru stepped in before they started bickering. “Well. I, for one, am done. I just need to wrap the gifts and then good to go.”

Shawna nudged Yuru, raising her eyebrows several times. “Hey, wanna wrap mine for me? I have yours done already since mama wanted everything ready under the tree for Christmas photos.”

Claire glanced up from her mag with excitement. “Are the decorations already done? Your tree is always so beautiful! I can’t wait to party with you guys on Christmas day!”

Shawna crossed her arms smugly. “Yes, it is! I helped put them up myself this year just so I didn’t have to during the break. Mama has tons of food again this year, too!”

Mina tossed her head back, closing her eyes dreamily. “Yesssss! I can’t wait to eat your mom’s baked goods. Each year I always look forward to it! I swear she should just make them in July just so I don’t have to wait a full year to eat them.”

The girls all laughed while Colby sat silently beside Lance. She fidgeted with her hands on her lap, anxious as the girls all talked about gifts and parties. Finally, she spoke out. “Don’t you guys spend Christmas with your families?”

Mina leaned into the table, adjusting her glasses. “Yeah, they all do theirs Christmas day. My mom and I actually open our gifts on Christmas eve; that way, we don’t have to wait. We used to make dinners, but it just wasn’t worth the hassle since it’s just the two of us.”

Claire nodded. “Yeah, my family always throws the big party for new years; we don’t really bother to do anything big other than stockings. It gets to be too much doing both, and since we’ve always hosted New years, it just made sense not to.”

Yuru rubbed the back of her neck as she averted Colby’s gaze, knowing she was curious about her family. Shawna took a sip of her pop before speaking on her behalf.

“My family does gift openings Christmas morning, Yuru included. Since her parents don’t celebrate at all, I started inviting her over to my place when we were in grade school.” Placing an arm around Yuru, she jostled her a little with a smile. “Since then, she comes over every year. As we made friends with these two, we started inviting them over for dinner to celebrate. It’s kind of become our tradition.”

Colby’s heart sank as she learned about Yuru’s family, not celebrating. She thought about inviting her to come over for hers, but that was quickly trashed. Faking a smile, she nodded. “That’s really neat. It’s cool how close your families are.”

Finishing her words, Lance nudged her ribs under the table. The girls laughed together as Colby glared at him, mouthing her words at him. “What?”

Using his eyes, he looked at them, then back to her. He did this a few times, adding his head as he nodded towards them as they spoke about the plans for the party. Colby assumed he was trying to ask her to see if they could join. With a frown, she shook her head. It seemed silly for her to intrude on tradition as she focused back on the conversation. Mina had finished sharing a story of last Christmas when Yuru looked over at Colby.

“What about you, guys? What does your family do for Christmas?”

Lance looked between them both, trying to answer for them. “Well, actually, we..” Colby cut him off, landing a kick to his shin. As he grunted, Colby interjected. “It’s about the same. We open gifts, eat Chinese food, and play games together. Before the end of the night, my dad likes to bring out his old guitar and play some toons. It’s not really good since our family can’t really sing well.”

Claire closed her book as she leaned in closer. “Awe, that’s actually really sweet!” Glancing over at Lance, she smiled sweetly. “I’m sure you guys are fine at singing.”

Lance blushed as Colby snorted. “Yeah, right. Lance is tone-deaf, and I can’t keep a beat.”

In retaliation, Lance slammed his foot into Colby’s. She bit her tongue, trying not to cry out, burying the pain. It was known that Lance and Claire had a thing, pretending they didn’t know each other at school. Outside of school, however, they had been dating in secret. Yuru and Colby had helped in setting them up, agreeing that they would be a cute couple. Although she knew his intentions to go to Shawna’s party was so Colby could see Yuru, she also knew that he just wanted to spend time with Claire as well. If Colby couldn’t go, neither could he.

As if Shawna was reading her mind, she piped in. “Hey, I have an idea. Why don’t you guys come over and celebrate with us? The parents can come too since we usually just hang out downstairs while the parent's party upstairs.”

Colby chuckled nervously, waving her hands in front. “Ah, thanks, but it’s ok. We just usually have a small Christmas, and my parents like the time to bond.” Lance angrily punched Colby in the leg, causing a charlie horse. Grunting, Colby sacked him hard. “Thank you anyway.”

The girls all protested in response.

“Awe, come on.”

“It’s Christmas!”

“Please come!”

Between Lance practically screaming at her with his eyes and the disappointment in her friend's eyes, Colby felt terrible. Why couldn’t she just say yes and join in with her friends? The thought of breaking tradition made it difficult for Colby to decide. But this was what Christmas was. Spending time with the parents and Lance was all she knew.

Yuru sat watching as they all begged Colby before sticking up for her. “Hey, stop, guys. I think it’s really sweet that they are spending Christmas together. I always wished that mine would, I’m really envious of them.”

A tinge of guilt hit them as everyone left it at that. Shawna brought back her smile as she cheered up. “Yuru’s right. It’s about spending time with those we love. Besides, we can always meet up the day after to give our gifts! Plus, there’s New Years!”

Colby blanched. “Gifts?”

Once again, with all her genius, it had taken her this long to realize not only did she have a girlfriend to get a gift for, but now three other friends. Mina chuckled.

“Claire isn’t the only one who got you something. I was kind of hoping to exchange them at Shawna’s, however, we can’t wait to do it together.”

Nervously laughing once more, Colby faked it. “Oh yes. Right. Yeah, that sounds like a plan! Totally down to exchange gifts. With my friends.”

Yuru raised a brow, hiding a smirk as she stared at Colby. “You forgot, didn’t you.”

Phishing Yuru, Colby waved her off. “What, noooo. I just... Had a brief moment of amnesia. Will you excuse me a moment? I forgot to tell Lance something important.”

With a forceful shove, Colby broke Lance from the staring contest he had with Claire as they ogled at each other. Not only did she need help to figure out what to buy for gifts, but she was also doing everyone a favor from their sicking love display.

Once they were well out of sight from the cafeteria, Lance shoved Colby into a locker. Punching him in the shoulder, she yelled at him. “What was that for?!”

“The party! Why didn’t you just say yes! You know we both want to be there! Our parents might even have fun for once in their life! We can get away from singing!”

Colby ignored him. “That’s not even important. Did you get a gift for Claire yet?”

Lance stopped as he stared at Colby like a deer in a headlight.

“Yeah, that’s what I thought. This weekend, we need to figure out a gift for Claire and Yuru. You don’t need to really worry about them, but you can’t see Claire without one! Do you have any idea what she likes?”

Lance was dumbfounded as he continued to keep that expression on his face. Colby facepalmed; they were equally in the same boat.

“Ok. We need to put our heads together. You think about Claire, and I will find something similar but less important not to overshadow your gift.”

“Why not just ask them?” Lance furrowed his brow as he tried to figure out a solution. As smart as that would have been, Colby sighed heavily.

“Didn’t you hear what I said to them? I told them I didn’t forget! If I ask for help, they’re gonna know I haven’t bought them anything!” Colby ran her hand through her hair. “God, why is having friends so hard. Do you buy gifts for yours?”

Lance shook his head. “Naw, I have never bought them a gift. They just know that I don’t do gifts, and I never get them in return.”

With a flat face, Colby turned to walk away, not surprised.

The week dragged on as they finally hit the holiday season, the countdown for Christmas upon them. Colby and Lance stood outside the mall with determination. After scouring shops and stores, they searched hours to find a perfect gift for their dates. Along the way, Colby managed to pick out a gaming controller with decals of the game they played for Mina and a few keychains of a bear wearing fruit outfits for Shawna. Colby remembered seeing something like that on her backpack and decided she might like them. Mina was a given as they both loved playing zombie games and often had competitions to see who was better. All that was left was finding something for Claire and Yuru.

Even though Yuru spent hours with her, Colby still had no idea what to get her. A few times, they stopped at the fashion stores they had been to before, but nothing screamed Yuru. Right now would have helped if she had a sense of style. Stopping to look at some bangles, Colby had a thought. She wore things like this all the time, but they were plain. What would be something Yuru would wear? Looking down at her own wrist, Colby came up with an idea. Matching bracelets. Before she could search more, Lance called her over.

Heading over, Lance stood in front of a wall of perfume. The smell was overwhelming as they both awkwardly looked at the different boxes, shapes, and styles.

“This? You want to find something like this for her?”

Shuffling, Lance looked about the store. “Whenever I am close to her, she smells really good. I thought maybe if I got her something similar to what she is wearing, she would like it.”

Thinking back on Yuru, Colby always was drawn to how she smelled like cinnamon. It was intoxicating. Impressed, Lance had a point. “Yeah, that would work. Now how do we pick one?”

Randomly they grabbed bottles and sniffed them. After several scents, Colby could hardly tell one from the other. They all reeked of different flowers, and it gave her a headache. Thankfully, she already liked the scent Yuru had and decided her idea was the best. Finally, as Colby placed down a bottle, Lance stiffened, smacking her as he handed the bottle. Not really wanting to smell another bottle, she obliged. It was a soft smell, not sickly sweet but had a subtle hint of mint. Not being a professional in smells, Colby nodded her head. “This is nice.”

Lance nodded excitedly as he took it back and sniffed it once more. “Yeah, it reminds me of Claire.”

That seemed like a good enough reason to buy it. Colby smiled. “Good. Now I just need something that isn’t going to overshadow your gift for her, and we can go home.”

They turned to look around more, Lance helping her scout as he spoke. “Did you find anything for Yuru?”

Stopping at the phone cases, Colby shook her head. “No, I decided to make her one.” Spotting a case with a bow on the back, she picked it up and showed Lance, who disagreed.

“What are you making?” He pulled her away as they looked back at the bangles Colby was at previously.

“Well, I was looking at these and thought of matching bracelets. Too lame?” Lance huffed.

“No, that’s actually a good idea. It seems like something you would do. Too bad Claire is a little more girly than Yuru.” Colby giggled. “She did teach Yuru, so it would make sense. I wonder what Yuru was like before Claire got a hold of her?”

Leaving the store, they walked around a little more when Colby saw a magazine stand. Walking up, she looked for the same one she saw her reading constantly. Lance looked over her shoulder. “For ideas?”

Colby sighed.

“Naw, I’m just gonna pay for a subscription for a few months. I see her read it all the time anyway. At least it will be somewhat practical. Plus, it won’t overshine your gift. Either that or I buy her a chocolate bar.” Lance chortled as Colby smiled. “Hey, I can do what I want. I’m not the one dating her.”

*****

Yuru sat on her bed, looking over her phone. Colby had sent her a message wishing her a happy Christmas eve, sending her heart into a flutter. It had been a few days since the last time she saw her, and even though she was going to see her soon, she couldn’t help feeling lonely. It was the first year she had been dating someone, and it wasn’t panning out the way she hoped. The idea of her family having a small celebration together sounded amazing since she loved Joyce and Darven. Colby’s parents had been so kind and supportive to them since they found out they were dating. It cost Colby being grounded and Yuru also being dragged into doing chores as punishment. However, she would take that over her parents finding out any day. Despite being in a religious household, her dad was a firm believer and a strict politician. He didn’t believe in celebrating holidays as he believed it was a distraction to the faith.

Not being close to her parents, she couldn’t help feel an affinity with Colby’s. They were loving and open, and it made Yuru feel welcomed. Looking at the time on her phone, Yuru got up and grabbed her bag. Every year, Shawna’s parents bought matching onesies for the family. That way, when they woke up, they could wear it while opening presents. It was a silly tradition, yet it was Yuru’s favorite part. As she showed up, Shawna’s mom cheered, showering her with kisses as she pulled her to join them around the tree. This year, they were matching candy canes and snowmen, taking pictures together to share at the party the next day. Mina and Claire laughed each year at how ridiculous they looked, and as Shawna raced off to prepare the photo, a great sense of loss consumed Yuru. It was like any other year where she was with the ones she loved, except Colby.

Later in bed, Yuru laid staring at the roof while Shawna hogged the blankets, snoring loudly. She sat up and grabbed her phone. Opening her message to Colby.

“I really wish you were able to come tomorrow. I miss you.” She sat, looking at the message, and fought back the tears. Why was she so sad over this? Wasn’t she the one that told everyone that Colby should spend time with her family? Yet here she was, hoping Colby would leave to join her. Was she selfish?

Deleting the message, she closed the phone and wiped her tears. Hardly noticing the sounds of the snoring gone, the bed shuffled as Shawna sat up, crawling over beside Yuru.

“Hey. What’s wrong? Was it your dad again?”

Wiping her face, Yuru shook her head. “No, no. I stopped caring about that years ago.”

Shawna wrapped her arm around Yuru groggily. “Ah, then trouble in paradise?”

“No… and yes. We aren’t fighting or anything. Just I am regretting not pushing her to join us. I really wish she could come.”

Shawna rested her head on Yuru’s shoulder. “Then why didn’t you just tell her? We all knew you wanted her to come. Hell, we all wanted her to come. She’s a part of your life, and that, in turn, is a part of ours.”

With a sniffle, Yuru forced a laugh. “I can’t expect her to stop celebrating with her family just so she could come join mine. I just didn’t think it was going to be so hard. I want to see her for Christmas.”

Unable to hold back, Yuru cried. Shawna pulled her in to comfort her. “Hey, don’t be upset. This is just the first year anyway! Besides, it’s Christmas tomorrow! Anything can happen!” It was hard not to get caught up in Shawna’s belief that there is always a chance for a Christmas miracle. She had always said so since they were kids. Yuru half smiled as she rested her head on her best friend’s shoulder. “Yeah, your right. Maybe there will be a miracle.” Shawna hugged her tightly. “You took the words right out of my mouth.”

They returned back to sleep, Yuru feeling a little more cheerful. Morning came fast as they quickly bound down the stairs to the tree, cocoa and cinnamon buns waiting. They opened gifts with laughs and cheers. After cleaning up the mess of wrappers, they waited until their friends showed up, Mina and Claire walking in, all dressed up for dinner. It was still early as they played games, shared what their haul was, then started helping set up for the night. Yuru frequently checked her phone all morning, waiting to see if Colby would message her. She bit her lip, unsure if she should message first. She didn’t know what to say. Closing her phone, she put it away and smiled at her friends. Pretending she was fine, she did her best to enjoy what she had.

As dinner was close to being ready, Yuru sat looking out the window as Shawna came hopping into the living room wearing her Santa hat and jacket. “Ok, time to get our coats.” Yuru spun her head around as she looked at her friend. “Wait, what? Isn’t dinner about to be served?”

Claire got up and grabbed both hers and Yuru’s coat as she walked over to her. “Yes Ma’am. It sure is about to get served! Now get your shit on, and let’s gooooooo.” Yuru got up, putting her coat on as everyone grabbed dishes and carried them to the car. Confused, Yuru tried several times to ask what was going on, each time met with a smile and “You’ll have to see!”

Car’s all packed as Mina’s mom showed up to help, they all piled into the cars and drove off.

*****

Colby sat on the couch, tossing a ball up in the air and catching it as she waited. They had long opened their gifts and were waiting for the food to arrive. It was strange as her parents usually ordered the meal to come for a certain time, and it seemed to be running late. Lance sat in the armchair beside her, although constantly checking his phone and looking towards the door. Colby had noticed he had been acting weird all day as he continued to fidget.

“Dude, what is wrong with you.” Tossing the ball at him, it bounced off his shoulder, spooking him.

“Shove off, Colby.” He nervously shifted, making her even more suspicious.

Down a ball, Colby flopped her head back against the couch, rolling the thin bracelet between her fingers. Looking over, Lance smiled at his screen. “Talking to Claire?”

His head tilt answered her question as he tried to hide his excitement. Groaning, she let out a sigh. “Did you give her your gift yet?”

In the middle of his texts, he grinned. “Not yet, pretty soon her though.”

Colby glared, about to tell him off if he planned to leave when Joyce came down the stairs.

“Alright, get up—foods about to arrive. Lance, go grab the table. Colby, grab the box with the paper plates and cups in your dad’s office.” Lance shot up, practically skipping to the laundry room as Colby hesitantly stood up.

“Wait, what table?” Joyce shot her a glare. “Colby, just grab the box, please.”

Groaning, she walked to the room, opening the door to look for the box. It was sitting on top of the desk as she looked inside. It was a large pack of everything as Colby squinted within. Why on earth did they need all these? It seemed a lot for just a small Chinese dinner. Even though she didn’t understand, she picked the box up and brought it to the kitchen as Lance unfolded a table to place against the wall, turning the small diner table to sit alongside it. Dropping the box on the table, Colby stared at her mom, puzzled.

“What is going on?” Darven came through the back door, carrying several fold-up chairs as the doorbell rang.

“Ah good, excellent. Colby, go answer the door.” Darven placed the chairs down as Lance started to unfold them. Each of them holding a smile as they waited for her to go. Slowly, she turned, walking to the door as she heard several voices on the other side. Opening it up, Colby was met with a blast of people yelling.

“Merry Christmas!”

Shocked, all of her friends were standing there before her, a whole meal packed up and being carried in as they all piled in. Colby stood back, overwhelmed as she wasn’t sure if she should offer taking or to carry things for people. Finally, Yuru stood before her, smiling brightly as everyone made their way into the now fully packed kitchen. Greetings and hugs were exchanged in the background as Yuru pulled Colby into the living room. The shock was still settling in as Colby tried to speak.

“Wait... How? What… Why?” Yuru pressed her finger to her lips to silence her, then followed up with a kiss.

“Merry Christmas, Colby.”

Colby melted from her kiss, wanting more as they both were called to join them in the kitchen.

With the parents busy setting the food up, The girls rushed around to the front entrance to give Colby and Yuru a hug. Lance stood in the kitchen, keeping distance as to avoid contact.

As they finished, Colby stepped back to face them, Yuru at her side. “What is this! What are you doing here?”

Mina placed a hand on Shawna’s shoulder, answering first through a fit of giggles.

“Man, this was so hard to keep a secret from you both. We planned this after the last day of school. It was a bummer that our first year as friends, you couldn’t come to join us. So Shawna here, the sneaky bitch, convinced her mom to make the meal and bring it here.”

Shawna huffed, shoving Mina off. “Please, I may have convinced my mom, but Claire really is the MVP here. Without her and Lance, we couldn’t have really pulled it off. They helped hook our parents up to help plan this. We told them we wanted this to be a surprise to you guys.” Shawna leaned in a little towards Yuru as she lowered her voice. “We didn’t invite your parents because, you know, just in case they found out about you two. Plus, we didn’t want to risk you being told or worse, not allowed to come.” Leaning back, she smiled again.

Astounded by her friends, Colby looked over at Yuru. “Did you know?”

With a giggle, she shook her head. “No, I had no idea. I was just as surprised as you. I only found out as we drove closer to your house.”

Claire burst out laughing. “She didn’t believe us as we pulled up too. But enough, chatter! I want my presents!” With that being said, they all pulled out their gifts, passing them around. Unprepared, Colby rushed up to her room. As she opened her closet to pull out the bag of gifts she had wrapped, she heard her door close. Standing up, she stepped back to see Yuru as she pulled her jacket off. The look on her face as she licked her lips told her all she needed to know why she followed her. Dropping the bag, Colby smirked as she stepped in closer to her. The kiss was explosive as Yuru wrapped her arms around her, Colby groping at her hips to pull her in closer. Slowly, they walked towards the bed as Yuru grabbed Colby’s hands away from her, Pushing her to sit as she stood in front of her.

“Hang on, we don’t have much time, so I wanted to give you my gift.”

Colby sat anxiously. She had been waiting patiently to see what Yuru had got for her. With a playful smile, Yuru raised her top to show her belly button, boosting Colby’s heart rate as she stared at her smooth, creamy skin. Wait, was her gift physical? Running her hands down her stomach, she dragged her thumbs to the top of her jeans, hooking her thumb under the cloth.

Colby held her breath, waiting as she watched Yuru slowly push to show the top of her thong straps, dragging her hand further back. Eye wide in anticipation, Yuru suddenly grabbed the gift sticking out from behind her as she passed it to Colby.

Dropping her breath, Colby almost whined at the misdirect, looking up at Colby with puppy eyes. She felt duped as Yuru burst out laughing and sat beside her on the bed, leaning against her side as she faced her.

“Open it!”

Colby looked at the snowflake patterned wrapping paper, pulling at an edge sticking out. It was neatly folded and flawlessly seamed as the paper lined up with the creases. Tearing into it, Colby revealed the box and opened the lid. Inside was a picture frame. Colby took a small breath in as she looked at the picture of them at the mall the first time. Vaguely she had remembered them taking pictures as Yuru had her arm around Colby’s shoulders. Mina stood behind her, sticking her tongue out, as Claire and Shawna held peace signs up. The frame was yellow with the words “The Girls” written on the bottom. And by each one of them, their name is a star around the frame. Colby furrowed her brows as she ran her finger down the side of the frame.

“Pull it out, there’s more,” Yuru whispered close to her ear as she waited impatiently.

Colby smirked as she pulled the frame out fully and placed it on Yuru’s lap. Behind the frame were two pictures: one of just the two of them posing for a selfie, and one of just Yuru. Picking them up, she dropped the box and held them to her chest, looking over at Yuru. She leaned in to give her a kiss, pulling the pictures away to look at them again.

“I noticed you didn’t have any pictures at all, and I wanted you to have some. I know it’s not a lot, and Claire’s gift was probably better. I was that or a schedule book.” Yuru bit her lip nervously.

“No, this is perfect. I love them. Thank you.” Colby turned to look into Yuru’s eyes, leaning to push her into the bed to continue what she had started. With a pause, she realized she needed to give hers as well. Pulling away suddenly, Colby stood up, reaching into her desk to pull out a small plain box. She turned to face Yuru as she tapped the box on her fingers.

“I didn’t wrap it yet, mostly because I thought I had some more time.”

She stepped forward to pass the box, nervously twisting her fingers together as Yuru accepted it and began to open it. With a smile, she placed the lid down, pulling out the slender black bracelet within. Crossing her arms, Colby nibbled at her thumb as Yuru looked at it closely. Neatly braided into it were beads “C and Y”

Yuru’s shot up with surprise. “Did you make this?”

Nodding, she sat back beside her, taking the bracelet and helping her tie it on. Finishing the knot, she kissed Yuru’s hand then clasped it with the same hand wearing hers.

“There, now, while we hold hands, we will be matching.” Colby interlocked her fingers with Yuru’s as she dropped their hands between them. With an unsure look, she held Yuru’s eyes. “It’s Lame, isn’t it.”

Yuru smiled, grabbing Colby to pull her over top of her as she laid down, kissing deeply. “It’s perfect.” With a small moan, Colby pressed her full weight on yuru, still holding her hand as they kissed hungrily. It didn’t take long for their heated exchange to come to an end as the door flung open, Mina waltzing in.

“Oh hell no! No hiding this sweet action from us!” With total disregard, she leaped on top of Colby to make a sandwich. Shawna was close on her heels as she leaped on top of Mina. Claire shook her head as she sat on the chair, finding the bag of goodies as she snooped through the presents to find hers. With the sudden chaos, the girls burst into laughter as they toppled over, Yuru screaming to watch out for the picture frame. Showing off the gifts Colby and Yuru exchanged, they finished passing out the rest of them, opening them in the room as they cheered at their presents, passing around hugs and thank you’s before heading downstairs to eat.

As they sat around the kitchen table, Lance handed his gift to Claire in the living room as Colby saw her give him a kiss in return. If Lance got a gift in return, Colby would have to find out later. With everyone seated, they began eating, as the parents got to know each other better, and the girls teased with jokes around. As Colby watched with a smile on her face, she occasionally would stop and share a moment with Yuru as they silently appreciated the family they had together.

Merry Christmas,

Turan Turnip.