A/N - lots of thanks to xx-vikz-xx for reading this! I know this bit's really short but it needed to be put in, as they become closer friends in this part.

Love, Helz.

Chapter Two – Christmas with a Detective

Come Christmas morning, Frankie was feeling a little chirpier and had discovered that her spots had disappeared! She had a raging temperature, but it was Christmas, so her idea of getting rid of a temperature was going out in the freezing snow to cool down. Mel threatened to tie her to a chair if she tried to leave the house, so that put paid to that idea. However, the idea of Mel tying her to a chair was somewhat appealing to Frankie!

'Did you get me a present?' asked Frankie, sitting cross-legged by her Christmas tree. 'I got you one!'

'Yes, I got you a present,' giggled Mel, the Christmas spirit infecting Mel now that she was spending the holiday with Frankie. 'But I wanna open mine first!'

Frankie tossed a parcel across the room, and snorted in mock disgust when Mel failed spectacularly to catch it. Mel ripped it open, exclaiming in joy as she pulled the toy sniffer dog out of its wrapping!

'It's for you to put on your desk so you can smell Boyd, just in case he tries to smuggle some of the hard stuff into the office!'

Mel laughed, and said: 'And what do you know about the hard stuff, Frankie?'

Frankie ignored the question, laughing it off, but Mel detected a hint of something that Frankie was hiding from her. For the time being, Mel let it slip, passing Frankie her present. Frankie snorted out loud when she revealed the contents of the wrapping paper. It was a nodding dog! Mel had been threatening to get Frankie one so she could tap it on the head instead of tapping the desk – a habit that never ceased to annoy poor Amelia.

Frankie placed the nodding dog on her mantelpiece, reaching across the room to hug her friend in thanks. Mel smiled just a little bit too much; touched Frankie just a little bit too intimately; and held her 'friend' just a little too long…

Soon enough the two of them were in Frankie's tiny kitchen, cooking up a feast for lunch. Mel was entirely sure that Frankie should be cooking while she had chicken pox, but since Mel had had chicken pox when she was very small, she was unlikely to remember what she had and hadn't been allowed to do. Frankie kept up the laughter and inane chatter all the while, although Mel was a little quieter than normal.

However, by the time lunch was over, Mel was back to her usual bouncy self, her mood improving for every minute she spent in Frankie's company (although she wasn't about to boost Frankie's ego anymore!). Both women spent the afternoon in the road having snowball fights like little children, laughing madly together, ignoring the stares of all the 'mature' adults in the street! It was only when Frankie's teeth started chattering and her breath became ragged and was catching in her throat that Mel insisted she go back inside and warm up.

The rest of the day was spent with the two of them curled up in Frankie's duvet on Frankie's sofa watching all the silly Christmas day films and laughing at all the cheesy lines. Mel sneaked a peek at Frankie every now and then, just to make sure she was still smiling her amazing smile. Frankie sneaked a peek at Mel every now and then, just to make sure she was still smiling her beautiful smile. That smile had been so lacking of late, and Frankie was happy just to see her best friend in the whole world (for that was what Mel had become over time) smiling again. As the films continued, so the two edged closer and closer to each other on the sofa until Frankie was entwined in Mel's open arms, held there so securely she felt she could never fall, ever again. Frankie told herself that it was just because Mel felt sorry for her; because it was Christmas and she had chicken pox. Mel told herself she was just comforting Frankie; because it was Christmas and she had chicken pox. Both women knew this wasn't true. Even if Frankie had been fit as a fiddle, she would still have been in Mel's arms, safe and secure.

'Do you think maybe we should go to bed soon?' asked Mel, glancing at the clock.

Frankie stifled a giggle at this sentence and replied, 'Nah, let's start on the alcohol!'

'Are you sure you should be drinking, what with your chicken pox and all?' asked Mel, trying to pretend she was concerned, when in reality all she wanted to do was open a bottle of something high in alcohol and get so drunk she couldn't remember her name, let alone her feelings for the woman enveloped in her arms.

Frankie ignored this comment, and instead passed Mel a glass of whiskey and told her to start drinking. Both were still going strong when the clock struck one…and two… However, both were extremely tipsy by the time the clock struck three…