Disclaimer: I only own Mila.
A/N: MERRY CHRISTMAS EVERYONE! A quick little J-Gabe one shot I put together. Enjoy & review!
Camilla sadly pulled his sweater on. A soft smile graced her lips and she smelled his it. The sweater still smelled like him. She always missed him while he was on the road, but when Christmas came around she missed Justin even more. Sighing to herself, Mila walked over to the couch and stared at the Christmas tree before her.
"Justin, can you please be home?" She muttered to no one in particular.
He had called a couple of hours earlier saying that he was stuck in Philadelphia. His flight was delayed because of the snow and her heart was completely smashed. It was their first Christmas away from each other and she wasn't sure if she could handle being away from him.
The phone ringing startled Mila out of her thoughts. She leaned over and picked up her phone. A big smile lit up her face when she saw who was calling. Cheerfully, she hit the answer key and brought the phone up to her ear. It had been a few hours since she had last heard from him.
"Hi baby." She smiled into the phone.
Justin laughed into the phone and manually unlocked the car door. He was hoping to remain as quiet as possible. This was their third Christmas together and he wanted to make it as memorable as possible. Mila's family had disowned her and his family was in South Africa, so they were really all the other had. So, it was important for him to make the day as special for them as he possibly could.
"Hey, sweetie." Justin gently placed everything in the front seat and closed the door after he got in. He locked the doors and and sat in the driver's seat. "What are you doing?"
"Nothing really." Mila shrugged, balancing the phone between her ear and shoulder. "I was actually just looking at the Christmas tree, wondering why you would get stranded in the middle of nowhere."
Justin laughed into the phone, leaning his head against the seat. "Baby, you know I'm not in the middle of nowhere. Technically, I won't be missing Christmas. I'll be home early in the morning and then you and I will have the next week alone together. Do you know what we could do in that week?"
As if he could see her, she folded her arms across her chest and pouted. She didn't want him home tomorrow, she wanted him home now. They were supposed to be cuddling on the couch watching A Christmas Story. He was supposed to be next to her, eating the cookies she baked. All the while, complaining how it wasn't good for his work out regimen. Christmas just didn't feel the same without him.
"I want you home now."
"I want to be home now too, sweetheart, but I can't be due to weather conditions." Justin sighed. "Its beyond our control. Look at it this way, its a white Christmas."
"I don't care what color it is." Mila pouted. "All I want is for you to be home."
He held back the laugh that threatened to spill out his mouth. "I promise I'll be home very early tomorrow morning. In the mean time, I want you to get off the couch and walk over to the tree."
Mila wasn't in the mood to play any games, but decided to humor him. Rolling her eyes, she got up and crossed over to the it. "Okay, I'm standing in front of the tree. What do you want me to do?"
"Grab the present that's wrapped in the red paper and then open it." He smiled, loving how everything was turning out. "I've got to go and see about my flight, I'll call you back. I love you."
"I lov-" Mila never got to finish her sentence because he had hung up so fast. Shrugging if off as her boyfriend just being weird, she tossed the phone onto the couch. "Where's that box?"
Mila fell down to her knees and searched under the tree for a red box. She was just about to give up, when she saw the gift pushed up agains the wall underneath the window. "There you are." She spoke out loud. Picking up the box, she got off her knees and headed back to the couch. When she was sitting and comfortable, she ripped the paper off, dropping what was left to the floor.
"What's in here?" Mila asked herself when she opened the box. All that was in there was a green card. Curious, she picked it up and read out loud. "This was my back up in case I got stranded anywhere. If you're reading this, then I definitely did get stuck somewhere. Knowing you baby, you were wondering why I had this back against the wall. Well, now you know. Enough babbling, its time to get down to business. As soon as you complete the sentence, you'll have your first clue. Here we go. Together we sit and together we cuddle on the...Think very hard and you'll get your clue."
She tried to think very hard. There were only two places that they sit and cuddle together. That's the bed and the couch. Smirking, Mila dropped the card to the table and walked to the bedroom. Justin was surely talking about the bed. He knew her well enough to know that the couch was the first place she would look.
She quickly pulled the covers down and looked under the pillows; Mila found nothing. Snapping her fingers, she fell to her knees and checked under the bed. Nothing, it was clear as day under there. Sitting up, she tried to think of where else he could have put the clue and then she realized he could have hidden it under the pillows. There she checked and found nothing.
"It's not there, which means.." Her voice trailed off as she eagerly went back to the living room. She checked all over the couch and finally found a red card underneath the cushion. Feeling like a champ, she read the card out loud again. "You looked in the bedroom, didn't you? Haha. I knew that would be the first place you would look. Anyway, congratulations baby, you found your next clue. You try not to crash this. Sometimes its filled with trash and you usually forget to fill it up with gas."
Damn Justin for knowing her so well. She placed the card on the table and grabbed her keys. There was only one thing that Mila filled up with gas. Thankfully, that second clue wasn't as tricky as the first. Fighting the smile away from her face, she headed to the garage and unlocked the car doors.
"Here's the stupid thing." She giggled, taking it off the steering wheel. "This is rather large and keeps things cold."
Mila placed the card on the front seat and hopped out. She walked up the steps and shut the garage door behind her. It felt like this little hunt was getting easier with each passing second, but even she had to admit it was cute. At least, he had a back up to keep her happy. It was almost like he was there with her.
"It took you long enough, its cold in the fridge." Mila read, a smile on her lips. "You wear me when it is cold outside."
Seconds later, Mila was standing in her closet digging through her coat pocket. A giggle of excitement escaped from between her full lips when she found the next card. "He likes The Beatles and speaks with an accent. Call and he'll give you the next clue."
Now, she was on the hunt for her phone and when she found it, she quickly dialed Heath's number. He was surely the guy who had her next clue.
"You're calling the wrong person, Miles." Heath's southern drawl echoed in her ears.
"The clue was he liked The Beatles and had an accent."
Heath chuckled to himself. He should have listened to Justin when he said he would be the first person Mila would call. Thankfully, he didn't make a bet with his friend. That was a good three hundred bucks well spared.
"Not me." He continued flipping through his magazine. "This is an easy one, Mila. Think about it for a second and you'll figure it out. Bye darlin', I'll see you at the New Year's party?"
"Yes, you will, Heath. Bye."
She quickly hung up the phone and tried to think for a second. Who the hell was Justin talking about? Then like a ton of bricks it hit her. Her palm connected with her face as she scolded herself for being a total moron. She normally wasn't a slow person. The day was all out of balance without having Justin home.
"I told Otunga you wouldn't guess it was me right away." Wade laughed.
"Shut it, Wade. Just give me the clue."
"Is that the way to talk to your favorite person?
Mila loved Wade to bits, but now wasn't the time to joke around. Justin had her going around in circles and she really wanted to know what the reason was. At least she hoped there was some point to this whole scavenger hunt.
"Let's do this, please?" Mila pleaded, hoping that he would cave.
"Let's see if you can guess this one." He teased. "You hate carrying this thing around with you. In it, you carry all the important things that are needed when you're out and about. Its usually at the bottom of your purse, but mostly in your nightstand. Sometimes you even lose it."
"I lose lots of things."
"Mila, you're smarter than this." Wade coached her. "I know you know what this is."
"I still don't know what it is."
"You're thinking too hard."
"One more hint." Mila begged.
"Only because I love you like a sister." Wade admitted. "Because you lost this thing, you and Justin met."
She stayed silent for a second trying to think about what she could have possibly lost. It was no secret that Mila had a terrible memory, but for it to be that bad for her was unheard of. Her mind continued to run in circles until it had finally hit her.
"My wallet!" She cried and hung up the phone.
As Wade had mentioned, she couldn't find her wallet. It took her a few minutes, but she had finally found it. The stupid thing was under her nightstand. Quietly, she opened it and the next clue fell out.
"Take the wallet, your coat and your keys. Drive to the restaurant where we had our first date. Sit down and relax for a bit."
He has really lost his mind, Mila thought. Justin really wanted her to go down there and sit alone. People for sure would have thought she was crazy. Sighing, she grabbed everything that she would need and went down to the place of their first date.
"Here you are miss." The waitress smiled at Mila. "Everything has been taken care of. You can leave when you'r ready."
Before the petite brunette could say anything, the waitress set something down and walked away. When Mila saw what it was, her eyes lit up in excitement, only for her smile to fade away.
"I know that this is really disappointing, but this is the end. The whole point of this was to make your day go by faster. If everything went according to plan, its a decent time for you to get some sleep. Please, baby, go home and get some rest. Before you know it, I'll be with you."
Dejected, hurt, and upset, Mila left the restaurant and drove back home. It wasn't until she set foot in the house that the tears silently fell down her face. She had really missed Justin and really wanted nothing more than to have him home.
Wiping away her tears, she slid her shoes off and headed down the hall to their room. She pulled her socks off and then her jeans. All she had on was Justin's sweater. Mila pulled the covers down and fell into bed, allowing her eyes to close. Suddenly, her eyes snapped open when she realized that she had forgotten to wash her make up off.
"Damn it." She cursed to herself, throwing the covers off herself.
Ten minutes later, she was finished washing her make up off and about ready to get back to bed. Before, she could get back in, Mila noticed something different. Slowly, her eyes grabbed the card and skimmed over it.
"Did you really think the dinner was your surprise? Go to the Christmas tree."
Mila did as she was asked and went to the living room only to see that there was nothing there. Like a fool she gaped at the tree wondering what she was doing there.
"Hey there."
She nearly screamed, but the feeling of scruff scratching against the side of her face told her who it was. A contented sigh escaped from her lips and she melted into his embrace. Justin was home. Wait! Justin was home! Turning around in his arms, she excitedly kissed him.
"You're home!"
"Surprised?"
"Yes." She squealed with excitement, but her mood quickly darkened. "Why did you lie to me? I really thought you weren't going to be home tonight."
"I wanted to be different." Justin smiled, looking down into his girlfriend's green eyes. "Besides, there's more to this than you think baby."
"What do you mean?"
"I wanted to make this a memorable Christmas for the both of us." He broke away from her, pulling something out of his pocket and dropping down to his knees. "For three years you have made me happy. No matter what, you have stuck by my side. You believed in me when no one else did and you continue to be my number one everything. I love you so much. Will you marry me?"
Tears of joy escaped from Mila's eyes as she looked down at her boyfriend. He was all she ever wanted out of life and she got it. Despite everything that she has been through, Justin stuck by her. He understood her when no one else did and was always there for her. While, they did fight sometimes, they also laughed a lot. They were exactly alike and different in so many ways it was scary. He was her better half and there wasn't a chance that she could make it without him.
"Yes!"
Justin nervously slid the ring on her finger and stood up. His hands tangled in her hair and he brought his lips to hers. They were so caught up and in the moment that neither realized how starved they were for each other.
"I love you so much." She whispered, breaking the kiss.
"I love you too." He whispered back, nuzzling his face in her neck.
She loved the feel of his scruff against her skin. It was something that had drove her up the wall. "I'm so glad you're home."
"I am too." He admitted, grazing his lips against her neck. "You've made this an amazing Christmas."
"No, you did."
Justin picked her up and carried her to their room. He gently laid her down and hovered over her. His lips were just about to connect with hers when she turned away from him.
"Just one thing." She said. "How did you get all of this done if you were stuck in Philadelphia?"
"I did all of this while you were out shopping earlier and I snuck back into the house while you were at dinner." Justin admitted, the mischief shining in his eyes. "It was hard keeping myself hidden from you, but I had to do it."
"You were here the entire time?" Mila asked, incredulously.
He nodded his head, leaning closer to her face. "I would never miss Christmas with you, baby. I'll always be home for Christmas."
A/N: What did you think?
