CHAPTER ELEVEN.

Jess was the MC for the Christmas pageant. She was responsible for herding the kids on stage, and off stage, and reading the introductions to each of the scenes.

Randy, for some reason, found himself staring at her. She looked really pretty, wearing all black, and her long curly hair in a ponytail. And she looked so different, he could hardly believe she was the same person he'd left at the airport three months ago.

After the pageant, Randy found Jess standing in the hallway, with a pretty blonde girl, with curly hair and golden hazel eyes. She had played the Ghost of Christmas Past, and she was still wearing the over-dramatic make-up that went with that.

"Randy!" Jess smiled at him, "Did you have a good time?"

Randy nodded, "Oh, yeah. And you were great."

Jess rolled her eyes, but she was still smiling. "You know Jenny, right?"

Randy shook his head, "I don't think I do."

"Well, Jenny Higgins, this is my best friend in the whole world, Randy Taylor," Jess introduced, "Randy, this is the fabulous Jenny Higgins,"

"Hey," Jenny smiled at him, her dark red lipstick making her teeth seem almost phony, they were so white. "It's nice to finally meet you, Jess never shuts up about you."

Jess looked slightly embarrassed, and Randy said, "It's nice to meet you too."

Jenny looked as though she was going to say more, when Brad came over, grinning, "Hey, you were great, Jess!"

"Thanks, Brad," Jess smiled.

"No problem," Brad shrugged, and then looked at Jenny, "Hey, Jen."

"Hey, Brad." Jenny smiled at him.

"You have any plans for the evening?" He asked casually.

"That all depends," Jenny said, bobbing her head thoughtfully. "What do you have in mind?"

Brad and Jenny said a quick goodbye, before they walked off together, and Jess mimed gagging.

"Do they do that a lot?" Randy asked, chuckling.

"All the time," Jess groaned, "It's nauseating, really."

Randy laughed, "Well, I guess it could be worse."

"Oh, really?" Jess raised an eyebrow at him, "How so?"

"I can't really think of anything right now," Randy said after a thoughtful silence, grinning.

Jess laughed, a sound that made Randy's heart flip again, causing him to be even more confused. She looked at him, "Do you wanna get out of here?"

Randy nodded, "Yeah, let's go."

15 minutes later, the two were walking, side-by-side, to the Taylor home for the annual Christmas Eve celebration that happened between the Taylor's and James'.

"So, I bet Costa Rica is really wild, huh?" Jess pulled on a pair of white mittens, and grinned at him.

Randy shrugged, "I don't know if I'd say wild, Jess. It's more like… really educational."

"Then I wouldn't like it at all," Jess said, grinning.

Randy laughed, "I didn't say that."

"You didn't have to," Jess was laughing too. "You really like it there, though, right?"

Randy nodded, "Yeah. It's a once in a lifetime opportunity, and I'm so lucky to have it."

"You deserve it, Randy," Jess nodded, "I mean, saving the environment is something you've cared about since middle school, and out of anyone, you should get the chance to help save it yourself."

Randy smiled, "You really think so?"

"I wouldn't say it if I didn't," Jess replied. "I bet it's really hot there."

"Oh, yeah," Randy nodded, "No snow there."

"You must be freezing right now, then," Jess said, looking at him.

Randy was going to say no, and then he realized that Jess was right. He was freezing.

"Come here, you big baby," Jess stopped and faced him. She untied her white scarf and leaned towards him to loop it around his neck. "There," She said, "Better?"

Jess was standing very close to him, he realized, and he also realized that he never noticed how pretty she was until now. She'd pulled her hair out of her ponytail so it was hanging over her shoulders, and her brown eyes were shining in the dim moonlight.

"Yeah," Randy finally replied, feeling kind of breathless, "Thanks, Jess."

Jess smiled, revealing her dimples, "No problem,"

"So, what's new around here?" Randy asked, as they started to walk again.

"Nothing," Jess shook her head, still smiling, "Nothing ever changes here. I mean, other than your uncle and your cousins moving into your house, and Nick thinking he might want to go to UCLA."

"Yeah, that's where Brad's thinking of going too." Randy nodded.

"Big surprise, they're sticking together," Jess shook her head, grinning.

"Yeah, they're almost as inseparable as us," Randy agreed.

Jess shot him a smile, and then said, "Let's see, what else… Jenny and you brother," She mocked puking again, and then looked thoughtful, "Oh, yeah, and I kicked Jason Morgan right where it hurts."

"Seriously?! And I missed it?" Randy asked, "When did this happen?"

"A couple of weeks ago," Jess shook her head, "Jenny and I were at my locker, and he came over and started giving me a hard time about the Christmas semi-formal. I told him I didn't want to go with him, and he wouldn't take no for an answer."

"So you kicked him?" Randy looked extremely amused.

"Well, technically, I kneed him. But it hurt him either way, and he got the idea." Jess nodded.

Randy laughed, "Man, I wish I had been there."

"I wish you had been there too," Jess agreed softly. The two were silent for a few moments, and Jess said, "So, your mom said that you came back with Lauren?"

Randy had been waiting for this to come up, and hoping it wouldn't. He nodded, "Yeah, she had some extra points, and I didn't want to pass up a chance to come home for the holidays."

"Oh," Jess nodded slowly, looking down at her feet.

"Listen, Jess, Lauren and I—"

"Jess!" Jenny and Brad pulled up beside them, and Brad said, "Are you coming home?"

Randy and Jess both nodded, and Jenny said, "Hop in, we're headed that way anyway."

Randy was hoping for some reason not to get in the car, so that he could continue his conversation with Jess, but nothing came to mind. So, he and Jess climbed into the back seat of Jenny's car, and the four drove off, towards the Taylor house, leaving Randy to feel even more confused than he had been in the first place.

Okay, I'm back! I'll be updating regularly now (like, once every two days or so, to give people a chance to review (: !). Thank you guys so much for the last reviews, they make me smile! Please keep it up (: