Sorry this took me forever to update, but as usual I was having the hardest time with the presents. I was originally going to have the dinner party included in this chapter, but it would have doubled the chapter's length and will probably take me another week to finish.
Also, sorry if I'm messing up the Nikola/Kiri relationship. They're supposed to be acting like brother and sister, but my real-life examples of an older-bro/younger-sis relationship is the exact opposite of what I want these two to be like, so sorry if I'm messing that up at all.
I think that's all I meant to tell you for this chapter. Anyway, enjoy, let me know what you think, even if you hate it.
As usual, only Kiri belongs to me. Everything else belongs to someone else.
They next saw Kiri a week before Christmas break started, but when they asked where she'd been, she'd only say that her employer had a job for her in Europe. As soon as break began, Nikola and Kiri arrived at Helen's house with barely one suitcase each. Helen set them up in neighboring guest rooms just across the hall from her room. They spent the first few days in the library, reading and playing games. Two days before Christmas, Kiri went back to her small apartment and when she returned she was carrying three large bags, which she dragged to the living room, where Helen was arranging a pile of presents. She glanced up as the younger girl dragged the bags over to the tree.
"What's in there?" Helen asked curiously.
"Presents for you and Nikola," answered Kiri as she knelt down to begin removing presents from the bag.
"That's quite a few," Helen remarked as she walked over to stand next to Kiri.
"They're not all from me. I have a special surprise for Nikola," Kiri explained, shrugging. Once they were done setting up, they walked to the kitchen, where Gregory and Nikola were sitting in silence as they ate lunch. Kiri giggled as she sat down next to Nikola and Helen sat down next to her father.
"Did you get everything you needed, Kiri?" Gregory inquired politely as Kiri took a bite of a slice of cheese.
"Yep," answered Kiri, grinning.
The rest of the day passed with them finishing up preparations for Christmas, and the next day was spent in more reading and playing games, although this time Gregory joined them. That night, after dinner, Gregory took them all down to the local pond to go ice skating. Afterwards, they had big mugs of hot chocolate before going to bed.
The next morning, Helen, Nikola, and Kiri all went downstairs, where Gregory was already eating a small breakfast of toast and eggs. The three friends joined him, eating a small breakfast. Once they were all finished eating, Gregory led them into the living room. Nikola and Kiri sat side by side on one couch while Helen sat on an arm chair next to them. Gregory walked over to the tree and picked up a present, which he handed to his daughter. She unwrapped it and laughed in delight at the blue velvet dress that lay folded in the box. She lifted it up and held it out for Nikola and Kiri to see.
"Thank you, Father," Helen exclaimed, standing up and pecking Gregory on the cheek. He smiled at her before turning back to the tree and handing Nikola a present from Helen. He glanced at her as he opened it, finding a pair of diamond cuff-links. His eyes widened and he stared at her, mouth agape.
"W-why?" he whispered, voice full of awe.
"Because you're my best friend, silly," Helen responded, grinning at him. He grinned back, his gratitude shining in his eyes. Next, Gregory handed a present to Kiri from Helen. She opened it and pulled out three books. They were Kiri's favorite three from Helen's Library. She grinned and hugged Helen happily, shouting out a thank-you. Next, Helen received a present from Nikola. She opened it and found a silver necklace with a blue sphere pendant. It was a necklace she had admired several times in the market. Her eyes widened and she turned to Nikola in amazement.
"Nikola…this must have cost you every penny you have," she remarked. "Thank you." She pecked him on the cheek and he blushed, turning away in embarrassment. He was acutely aware of the fact that her father was standing five feet away with an eyebrow raised. Nikola's next present was from Kiri, and it was a box full of wires and other electrical supplies, and the box itself was small enough to hide in his dorm room.
"Thanks sestrice," he said, wrapping an arm around her shoulders and kissing the top of her head. She giggled, leaning into his embrace. Kiri's next present was from Nikola, and Kiri squealed with delight at the green dress she pulled out. She leaned up and pecked Nikola's cheek herself, grinning at him happily. Helen's next present was from Kiri, and it was a pair of sapphire earrings. Gregory turned to Nikola and Kiri holding up another present with a confused look on his face.
"The writing on this is in Serbian, but I think it's for you," he remarked, handing the package to Nikola. He looked at the top, which read "Na Nikola, od vaša porodica."
"It's from my family. But how-" suddenly he looked at Kiri, who had barely contained glee on her face. "Did you bring this from Serbia?" Kiri nodded, grinning, and he kissed the top of her head before opening the package to reveal a brand new suit.
"Kiri, how did you manage to get a package from Nikola's family?" Helen inquired curiously.
"While I was in Europe, my employer gave me a few days off to visit Smiljan. Nikola's family asked me to bring this to him," Kiri explained, shrugging. With that, the presents had all been opened, and Gregory left the three friends to their own devices for a few hours. At around three, he told them that they had to prepare for a dinner that he was hosting that night. Helen and Kiri helped each other put on their dresses while Nikola changed into his new suit in his room. Once he was dressed, he waited in the living room with Gregory until Kiri and Helen walked downstairs, both in their new dresses. Nikola took an involuntary step forward, his eyes wide.
"Helen, you look absolutely beautiful," he whispered, his voice full of awe. Helen giggled, smiling as she walked over to him with a grin on her face.
"You don't look too bad yourself," she responded, taking in the black suit and burgundy shirt. Nikola smiled back, blushing faintly before turning his attention towards Kiri, who was standing a few feet behind Helen looking self-conscious.
"You look beautiful as well, sestrice," he told her, grinning. Kiri looked down, blushing darkly and scuffing one shoe shyly. Nikola walked over to her and pulled her into a headlock, dragging her to a couch.
"Nikola, let go!" she exclaimed.
"Now sestrice, we've talked about this. When someone complements you, there's no reason to turn all red," he scolded gently in reply, laughing as he sat down with her on the couch. Helen joined them, and they waited for the dinner guests to arrive.