Fresh Start at Life

Disclaimer: Don't own Victorious

A/N:


Chapter 53 (Christmas Surprises)

Christmas morning was bright and oddly warm for winter. Trina and Jason cuddled together on left end of the sectional couch. The prior night he'd spent an ungodly amount of time talking to her uncles in the back, then this morning he and George had been gone for a while, so this was the first time she'd seen him since dinner and the goodnight kiss before bed.

Jake and Justin took part in handing the presents out, which had been a tradition carried on by the cousins. When Trina and Sarah were kids they were the ones to hand out the presents, when they hit eighteen it was Jonah and Danielle, now the torch had once again passed down.

"What were you and Uncle George talking about last night?" Trina whispered as her youngest cousins handed presents to the uncles. Jason laid an arm around her shoulder and winked at her.

"I'll tell you in a bit, don't worry. It's nothing bad, sweetheart." He kissed her temple and she set her head on his shoulder. She squinted her eyes at him and thought about whether or not to push him into telling her the big surprise now-but it could be a really special Christmas gift.

George looked over to the couple from the recliner beside the tree and he flashed a grin. His body leaned towards Jake and he motioned at the presents. "Let's get all Trina's out of the way while we're at it." Jake grabbed a present from the tree and looked up with a shrug.

"Okay." Trina's eyebrows rose and she watched Justin grab a large box from the tree and set it off to the side. The two boys then began combing through the gifts and bringing her several objects. With a nervous chuckle she scooted an inch from Jason so she could have elbow room to open the gifts.

As she tore her first present open, she couldn't help but notice Jason was receiving gifts as well. Her heart jumped up when she saw him stare down with a cute, confused smile. "You didn't think you'd get anything, Jason?" He laughed sheepishly and reached for a thin box gift.

"I certainly didn't expect anything from your relatives on short notice." There were about five gifts at his feet, which was close to the same number that Trina had. Already she had more than she thought about.

"We were going to keep it within the family this year," Sonya responded, "But we thought you and Jason probably deserved some gifts. A little welcome to the family." His face turned red and he gently tore the paper from the gift.

"Apparently this one is from everybody."

Sarah leaned over and pointed to a box in Trina's lap. "You have one too from everyone." Trina glanced down at the nametag on the gift and smiled with joy as she pulled the paper open.

When the couple opened the boxes they found matching sweaters that had been carefully sewn and patched with letters. On Jason's it wrote 'Trina's Man', and on hers was 'Jason's Woman'. Jason lifted his shirt up and laughed.

"This isn't sexist at all." He glanced at the others appreciatively and Trina studied her shirt with blood rushing up to her cheeks. The others laughed with him. "Thank you for the shirt."

"Yeah, thanks." She wanted to hug her relatives, but instead she threw her sweater on and snuggled up against Jason. "Now I just need some hot chocolate." She reached for another present and started opening it.

As time passed, all her presents were open as well as Jason's. His last present was nearly a thousand dollars spread out among the family. "It's so you can get a start," John said with a smile. "George and I thought to throw some money into the pot and help you out." Jason smiled at them and took a deep breath.

Trina raised an eyebrow at the money. "Now I know you guys are being too nice to him. What's going on?" Jason grinned and John reached for the gift that had been set aside. He passed it over to her and she eyed it carefully. "One last gift?" It was from Jason, but felt weightless.

"What do you think it is?" Jason leaned over and gazed at it with a semi clueless expression. "From me? I swear I forgot to buy you something." She rolled her eyes and smiled at him.

"Oh shut up." He laughed as she swiftly tore the paper. Her family's silence was suspicious to her, but what was worse was how they were watching her so closely that they were ignoring the presents they still had left to open.

Her heartbeat rose as she opened the small box. A lump formed in her throat when she saw a hollow surface with a slip of paper. "A note?" Jason reached in and picked up the paper, reading it closely. Trina was disheartened but curious. "It says your real gift is hidden with Snowflake."

"Snowflake?" Her stuffed dog was on her bed, but she didn't see Jason go in there at all. Rather, the only person who went back into the hallway was Jake. Without missing a beat, she got up and hurried to the room, eagerly anticipating the gift.

To her surprise, Snowflake had been moved to the desk. Between the dog's paws was a small box wrapped in red paper with pink roses. With tentative fingers Trina picked up the box and shook it gently, feeling a small movement.

She carried it back outside and turned her eyes to her boyfriend, he was casually sitting with his leg resting on his knee and his arms spread across the top of the couch. His chest expanded and his lips curved up, forcing her heartbeat to rise with greater anticipation. "Go ahead Trina, open it."

The tension in the air worried her, but only because it was such a still silence as though everyone was holding their breath. "Does this have to do with what you and Uncle George were talking about last night?"

"Maybe." He rolled his head to the side, his face was soft and his eyes were gazing into hers with a strong compassion. She exhaled and opened the gift, listening to the quiet ripping sound of the paper. Trina dropped it to the side and swallowed hard when it revealed yet another box with a note hanging out of it.

She started to open it, moving her free hand to her chest. Trina's heart pulsed as a bright diamond ring glistened in her eyes. With a gasp she read the note with a hushed voice and tears brimming in her eyes. "Will you…marry me?" She turned her gaze to Jason and nearly dropped the box.

The ring fell and Jason sprang forward to catch it before it hit the ground. He put one knee on the floor and held it up.

The air shot out from her lungs and her body began to tremble as she admired the gem. "It didn't take long for me to know you're the woman I want to spend the rest of my life with." Her hands moved up to her mouth as tears drenched her cheeks. She could feel her heart shooting out of her chest and her body heating up.

"J-Jason…" She was only ever able to dream about this moment, but never could she picture a proposal done in this way. Of course she wanted to marry him, but the words stuck in her throat. Nearly nine months together, there was nothing that would get in their way. "W-What about your uncle? Your father?"

"It doesn't matter." He slowly stood up and carefully took her left hand in his. His deep brown gaze locked with hers and she felt herself melting into his world. "They can complain if they like, but there is no question in my mind that I want you by my side. We made it this far together, and I believe we can make it through anything together. I believe in us, in our future. When I think of the future, I see you and no one else."

Her right hand moved over her chest and she watched him slip the engagement ring onto her finger. It was light on her finger, this symbol of a promised unity.

"So will you be my wife?"

Her words came out in a stammer and she threw her hands around his neck. "Yes!" She leaned forward, kissing him passionately without caring who was there. When she pulled away, she gazed into his eyes and reached up to caress his cheek. The ring glistened in the sunlight, taking her breath away just as Jason did. "I love you, Jason."

"I love you, sweetheart." Her heart skipped and fresh tears poured from her eyes. She buried her face into his shoulder, wiping her eyes on his shirt. Her body trembled as he rubbed her back and kissed her head. "Trina?"

"I'm happy. Let me cry."

"Okay." He laughed softly and walked with her to the couch. She cuddled close to him, keeping her arms wrapped around his neck. She couldn't wait to call Jade and Lindsay and let them know what was going on, they would be so surprised.

All these years people said she'd never find someone to make her happy, someone that she'd make happy enough to want to be with her. Everything that Tori and her friends would tell her made it seem like she was worthless in the eyes of any man and she'd be a lonely old cat woman-it was to the point that she didn't even see any potential for herself. Always dreaming of marriage, Trina feared it would stay at that.

Now she had a man who loved her enough, and she wasn't going to let go. No matter what, they were in this through thick and thin. She lifted her head from his shoulder and looked into his eyes, her eyebrows curled up in the middle and her lips pursed. "I want you to know right now…I know we'll argue and fight like every couple does, but we work through it. Okay?" He nodded and smiled at her, slowly running his hand through her hair and holding onto her.

"I wouldn't have it any other way."

"Good." She returned her head to his shoulder and closed her eyes as he hugged her close. "I never thought I was worth it, no man would be crazy enough to marry someone like me. Anyone would be stupid to be with me-I started to believe that. Tori and Andre joked about that with the last guy that dumped me, same guy Robbie and Cat sang about…"

"You're more than worth it, Trina." She whimpered and closed her fingers around his shirt. "Any man would be crazy to turn you down, and any man would be lucky to be with you. I may just be the luckiest man in the world." She chuckled softly and lifted herself up, kissing him tenderly.

After a few seconds she wiped her eyes and turned to the others, gasping as she felt a sudden sense of guilt. "I'm sorry, you guys still have presents!" Her family members were all watching them with happy glances and misty eyes. "I…I won't keep you."

"You're not keeping anyone," Dee replied. She moved her hand down to Jason's and snuggled up to him.

"Okay…well, continue to open presents." She took a deep breath and closed her eyes. This was the happiest moment of her life, and she was thrilled to be with her family too.


They'll probably get married in May, who knows. Spain's independence day is October so that's too far of a time XD. May gives them a good time to get established and so on. Probably June-regardless I hope you liked the chapter. Do let me know what your thoughts are.