Disclaimer: I do not own Shake It Up.
A/N: Hello, new GeCe story here! My first one in months. And, unfortunately, it's also my last Shake It Up fanfiction. I just don't have any more motivation for writing Shake It Up stories, and I have been moving on to writing for the Austin & Ally fandom (and I'm happy with it). It has been a great pleasure to share my writing with this fandom, and thank you to those who took the time to review my other stories.
This one is a special one, written just for the holidays. Enjoy! (I hope it even makes any sense…)
CeCe's Surprise
December 23rd – Two Days Before Christmas
The pale winter sun shone as Gunther sat in his desk chair, admiring the object in his hands. It had been mailed right to Gunther by his dear Uncle Jacob, who worked as a wood maker back in the Hessenheffers' native country, and was kind enough help out his nephew. The package had arrived not too long ago, and just in time for the winter holidays. Now all Gunther needed to do was wrap it.
A roll of Christmas wrapping paper, scissors, tape, and few other supplies lay strewn across his desk, ready for use.
However, before he could get to work, his twin sister Tinka waltzed into the room, announcing that lunch was ready.
"Oh, is that CeCe's Christmas present?" she questioned, seeing the object on her brother's desk. "Just a box?"
"Nope, it's more than that," he replied. He opened it. "Take a look."
Tinka let out small gasp and smiled. "I am impressed, brother twin. CeCe is certainly going to love it!"
I hope she does, Gunther added silently.
~*~O~*~
The smile on CeCe's face grew a little bigger as the fresh, satisfying smell of vanilla and cinnamon tickled her nose. It was a chilly afternoon in late December, and since there wasn't enough heat in the apartment, CeCe decided to fix a cup of hot vanilla (following her Aunt Natalie's homemade recipe) in order to feel warm and cozy on the inside again. With two teaspoons of vanilla extract, one teaspoon of cinnamon, one teaspoon of white sugar, and one cup of hot milk (*), the drink was prepared in just five minutes.
It tasted just as good as it smelled.
She grabbed the cup by the handle and with necessary caution, carried it over to the window seat in the living room, where she'd abandoned her magazine. For the next fifteen minutes or so, while tiny snowflakes glittered like jewels on the windows, CeCe took large sips of hot vanilla and skimmed through articles in her magazine at the same time. She felt entirely, one hundred percent relaxed.
Unfortunately, her peaceful state of mind was interrupted when she heard a knock on the front door.
"Coming!" CeCe called out, placing her empty cup down on the floor. The redhead was forced to put her magazine down as well before getting up to answer whoever had come to the apartment at this hour. No one else was home except for her.
As soon as she opened the door, CeCe was met with a pair of familiar blue eyes. "Gunther?" The blond boy was clad in a thick winter jacket and earmuffs. His face was slightly flushed from exposure to the frosty weather. "What brings you here?" she questioned, beckoning him to come inside.
"I came to bring you your present," Gunther informed her with a small grin. Indeed, he was holding a square box wrapped in silver snowflake paper that CeCe had failed to notice earlier. "Merry Christmas."
"Aw, thanks Gunther. Merry Christmas to you too." She didn't mention the sudden, giddy feeling that erupted in the pit of her stomach.
He held the gift out and CeCe gently took it from him, ignoring the fleeting moment when her fingers brushed against his skin. She gave the box a small shake and heard what sounded like a muffled thud. "What's in here?" the mischievous side of her couldn't help asking.
"It's a surprise."
"Well, could you at least give me a hint?"
Gunther smiled and rolled his eyes. "Nope," he persisted. "Go on, open it."
Accepting defeat, CeCe proceeded to remove the red-and-gold ribbon and tear the wrapping paper apart. Beneath all that paper was a plain white box, with a little bit of green and red tissue paper sticking out of an edge. She glanced up. "Are you sure you don't want to tell me what's inside before I open it?"
He arched his eyebrows and gave her a look that said: Just open it.
"Alright, fine," she relented, lifting the lid. She peered inside to see…another box?
But wait, this one looked different. She carefully took it out, setting the other box down on the coffee table. This box, the one she was holding, was ivory-white with orange and yellow daises painted on top.
Gunther was observing her apprehensively as she opened up her gift. She found a small wind up on the back and turned it. The soft melody of Swan Lake began to ring in their ears. He watched as the corners of her mouth curved upwards, and then she was genuinely smiling. "Wow," CeCe whispered, watching the dark-haired ballerina figurine spin around in front of a mirror. The rest of the box seemed to be designed to hold all sorts of jewelry.
"Gunther, this…it's amazing, I love it…where did you get it?" was all she could say.
Seeing her satisfaction at receiving his Christmas gift to her, Gunther smiled back. "You remember what I told you about my Uncle Jacob, right?"
"The wood maker? Yes, I remember…" When Gunther returned to the United States after a year spent in "the old country", he and CeCe decided to let go of their past frenemy relationship and start anew by becoming friends. They talked more, and learned a lot more about each other and their families than either of them would have known two years previous.
"Well, I contacted him about a month ago and asked him to help make this for you."
"That was really kind…thank you," CeCe said, her eyes moist with what one might suspect were tears.
Gunther was unprepared for what would happen next. She moved closer to him, and he partly expected that she'd throw her arms around his neck and then give him a bone-crushing hug, but he got a kiss on the cheek instead. She placed her left hand on his right shoulder and went on her tippy-toes so she could gently graze her lips against his cheek. It lasted only about second long, but it was enough for him to feel what felt like a small jolt of electricity.
CeCe hastily stepped away from him, nearly falling backward as she collided with the coffee table behind her. A brilliant shade of pink crept onto her face.
"I-I have a-a gift for you too," she stammered a little. "Let me go grab it. I'll be back." With that said, the sixteen-year-old made a beeline for her bedroom, leaving behind one puzzled yet pleasantly surprised Gunther.
The blond boy reached up to touch the spot where she'd kissed him…Wow.
(*) This is an actual recipe from " /recipe/hot-vanilla/ ".
A/N: It's amazing how much writing can be done by pulling an all-nighter with nothing to distract you… Anyway, I hope everyone has a wonderful holiday!