~
Jonathon walked in to the main room of the lodge where all the kids staying at Horizon over the break were watching a movie, "Kristy, you have a phone call." The phones had been ringing a lot. Either family members or students calling to talk to counselor's because their parents were driving them crazy.
Kristy got up and walked towards the office. She picked up the receiver and waited for a second, her mother had already called that morning. "Hello?"
"Hey it's me."
"Scott?" she asked excitedly.
He laughed, "I've only been gone a few days and you've already forgotten the sound of my voice? Of course it's me."
"Sorry. It's not like you've ever called me on the phone before. What's up?"
"I just wanted to tell you Merry Christmas. I'm at my mom's and I won't have a chance to call you tomorrow on the actual day. What's happening there?"
She relaxed a little bit, "Not much. I'm the most normal one here. And my mom's still going crazy with the whole Twelve Days of Christmas thing."
"Still getting gifts?"
"Today it was bras and underwear. I don't even want to know how she knew what size to get. She's not really that kind of mom. Yesterday it was CD's. She called me this morning. They were in Bermuda."
"I'm just going to ignore the whole underwear deal."
She pictured his face, "I figured. How was it at your dads?"
"Not as bad as I expected. We got along pretty well. I stayed home most of the time. I didn't really feel like running in to old friends."
"I know what you mean."
Scott sighed, "I've got to get off the phone. I'll be back the day after tomorrow."
Kristy bit her lip, "I'll be here, twiddling my thumbs."
"You'll live. I'll see you soon okay?"
"Okay. Merry Christmas," she replied quietly. "I'll see you later." She put the phone back in its cradle. Scott was sitting on the other end, feeling a little put out. Kristy didn't sound all that broken up about being apart from him.
~
Kristy was sitting on a window seat in the lodge, it overlooked the grassy area where students went to hang out and beyond that, the parking lot.
"A watched pot never boils," Sophie called to Kristy as she added a log to the fire going in the fireplace. "Did you finish in the kitchen?" Kristy nodded. "You should keeping busy," Sophie told her.
"I'm reading," Kristy tried to argue. But the book was open face down on the cushion in front of her. She'd read a whole book every day since the other Cliffhangers had left. The students staying behind weren't really talkative and there wasn't much else to do.
"David's plane was late arriving," Sophie walked to the window and looked out. "And even Peter will have to drive slowly with it snowing like this."
Kristy picked up the book and turned the page, "I'm just reading Sophie."
"Okay, suit yourself." Kristy sat stubbornly for the next hour and a half, skimming the pages and glancing out the window for Peter's jeep.
~
Kristy had abandoned her book again and was staring out the window when Sophie came back in to the lodge, "It's late Kristy. I don't think they're going to get back before curfew." Kristy paid little attention. "Lights out is in fifteen minutes. I think you should go to your dorm."
Kristy frowned but gave in. She picked her book up and walked towards the door, "See you in the morning." She walked slowly to her temporary dorm and went to bed.
~
Peter Scott and David piled out of the Jeep and carried their bags towards the buildings. "You'll have to stay in the Trailblazer dorm tonight. We're waiting for more of the students to get back before everyone goes back to their normal rooms," Peter said as he turned down a gravel path gesturing for the two boys to follow him.
"Where are the girls sleeping?" Scott asked anxiously.
Peter shook his head, "Do you have any idea how late it is Scott? I'm sure you want to see her but it's been a long day. Just get some sleep, you can see her first thing in the morning." Scott's shoulders slumped but he went inside the cabin anyway.
~
"Long time no see," Scott whispered in Kristy's ear before setting his tray on the table nexhers.
Kristy smiled brightly, "Hey! What time did you guys get here?"
"Not until midnight, it was hell getting back." He took a sip of apple juice, "I wanted to wake you up when we got here but Peter was breathing down my neck to go to bed. I figured I'd catch you this morning but I slept in."
"That's okay," she said quietly.
He wasn't getting the reaction that he wanted from her, "Do you have any plans today?"
"No classes, no sessions. I'm all yours."
"Good." He added, "I have to talk to Petey about how my trip was right after breakfast but after that we can hang out." The three lone Cliffhangers talked about their separate vacations until it was time to split up. Scott grabbed Kristy's hand for a second, "I'll meet you at shed in half an hour." She agreed and he went off in the direction of Peter's office.
~
"So how was it?" Peter asked the minute that Scott sat down.
"Hi, Peter. Merry Christmas. It's good to be back."
Peter laughed, "Same to you Scott. I'm glad you're back in one piece. Now tell me how the visit was."
Scott settled in to the couch, "My dad's place was okay, kind of quiet. But he tried you know. Put in a good effort. He mentioned school, like school besides Horizon. I said I wasn't ready yet and he dropped it."
Peter wrote something in Scott's file, "That's encouraging."
"Yea," Scott answered. "My mom's was a little harder. She's still kind of depressed but she was excited to see me and we had a big dinner and stuff. It wasn't that bad. No temptations, no screw-ups. Nothing big and bad to ruin the whole trip."
"Good to hear."
"It was better than any visit I've had before. But it was good to come back, I really wanted to see Kristy." Scott added, "I'm not sure if she missed me as much."
Peter raised an eyebrow, "What makes you say that?"
"I couldn't wait to see her. Last night I was this close to checking all the girls' cabins for her, just to tell her I was back. When I finally got to see her this morning she was happy, but not…"
"Not as happy as you were?"
"Right." Scott scratched his knee nervously, "Who knows. I only saw her for a bit at breakfast. I just don't feel like she missed me."
"You wanted her to miss you," Peter said.
Scott looked up, "Well yea, of course I did."
"She did Scott. In her own way. Just talk to her and get it sorted out."
~
Scott came jogging up to Kristy, she was leaning against the door to the equipment shed at the lake, waiting for him. "You're late," she smiled at him.
"Why didn't you go inside?" he asked as he started working on the lock.
"I couldn't get the lock open."
He opened the door and they both went inside, "Sorry I didn't mean to take so long. Are you cold?"
"Very. But you can warm me up."
He covered both her hands with his and rubbed them together, "I will one way or another." They started kissing. "Did you miss me?" Scott asked all of a sudden.
"What?" Kristy asked.
"Did you miss me?"
She looked at him funny, "Of course I did Scott. What's the matter?"
He backed off a bit, "I just needed to hear it. I kind of felt like you didn't."
"Scott? I missed you like crazy," she admitted. "Did you know I did nothing but read books and write in my journal the whole time you were gone? Or that I sat at the window for four hours yesterday waiting for you to come home? Sophie practically had to drag me back to the dorms. I missed you every second."
"I guess I just needed to hear you say it," he told her.
"I thought I was showing it."
He laughed and pulled her towards him, "Well you know me, always willing to interrupt a little inappropriate touching for some good old fashioned conversation."
"That sounds nothing like you," she kissed him on the lips and ran one of her fingers just under the elastic of his boxers.
Scott groaned and kissed her neck, "I missed you too by the way. I would have called you again but I don't think my parents would have liked it, you know since I went back there to see them and—."
"Scott!" Kristy cried. "Shut up."
~
Scott was looking a little flushed as he and Kristy started walking back to the lodge. "Wipe that smile off your face before someone figures out why we've been missing for two hours," Kristy whispered to Scott.
He tried to keep a straight face, "I got you a Christmas present, I was going to give it to you at the shed but it kind of slipped my mind."
"You got me something? You didn't have to," Kristy was happy anyway.
"It's nothing big," he pulled a silver ring out of his jacket pocket and handed it to her. It was about a quarter of an inch wide all the way around with cut outs representing the different seasons. A leaf for fall, a snowflake for winter, a rain drop for spring and a sun for summer. "It kind of reminded me of how we always meet in the mornings, no matter what the weather is like." He blushed even more, "I know it's kind of cheesy."
"No it's sweet." Kristy slipped it on to one of her fingers and stood on her tiptoes to kiss his cheek, "Thank you."
"No problem," he replied quickly. They started walking again.
Kristy laughed, "I kind of got you something. Well my mom sent it to me, but I thought you'd like it more than I would," She handed him a small white shell necklace. "Sorry I'm recycling, but I didn't have anything else."
Scott put it around his neck, "No it's really cool. Thanks."
"You're welcome," she said shyly. "We should get back."
~
Kristy – Dec 28 01 -- … I never would have expected anything like the ring from Scott, or his explanation for it. It was really sweet. Shelby was right, he has that strong and confident exterior that he puts up for everyone but he's very sweet. I wasn't expecting a present at all but it was a really nice surprise. I'm glad he's back. And I'll be even happier when the rest of the Cliffhangers get back so that things will be halfway normal …
Scott -- 29 dec, 2001 -- . . . I was pretty happy that visiting my parents went as well as it did. But I was much happier when I got home and I finally got to see Kristy. And worrying that she didn't miss me!! I can be such an idiot sometimes. Besides the necklace, she gave me a pretty good Christmas gift . . .
Stay tuned for the sequel everybody!!!
It's coming soon.
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