"Near to You"
By: singyourmelody
Disclaimer: Don't own it, never said I did!
Chapter 3: Still Running
Trust me, I'm not. Trust me, I'm not. What does that mean? Phoebe thought to herself as she washed out the mugs her and Will had been using. It had always been pretty obvious that Will was not her brother or even her step-brother really. She could never see him as that. He was more of a friend than anything, one of her only true confidants. So why were his words affecting her this way?
As she padded softly to her room, she contemplated stopping at his room, sitting down and demanding an answer. Phoebe usually considered herself brave, except for when it came to matters of the heart. For some reason, she was never willing to put all of herself out there. Even with Peter she had withheld some part of herself. And she was very glad she had, considering how that situation had turned out.
0-0-0
Phoebe was relieved that the next day was Christmas Eve because in the insanity of the holiday spirit, she was unable to replay every situation she had had with Will in the past few days. In fact, she had very little contact with Will until the day after Christmas.
Somehow the two of them were stuck on present return duty, for any present that was broken, didn't fit, or was so immensely disliked that it needed to be disposed of as soon as possible. And for a family of 20, that was quite a tall order.
Piling four bags of merchandise each into Will's car, they headed towards the nearest mall.
"Did we lose a bet to have to do this?" Phoebe asked as she shifted through a huge pile of receipts on her lap.
"Oh yeah we did. I forgot to tell you. You also have to sleep with the pig for the next week," Will replied.
"You know sometimes you are too hilarious for your own good. And mine as well!" Phoebe retorted as Will flicked on the radio. "Baby, It's Cold Outside" played over the speakers. Will went to change the station but Phoebe swatted away his hand.
"Will! This is a classic song! You can't just turn off 'Baby, It's Cold Outside.' Show a little respect!"
"Whoa, didn't know you have such strong feelings about a Christmas song," Will replied cautiously.
"It a wonderful song about winter and snowy Saturdays when you can stay inside all day with your loved one, no matter whether your mother approves or not," Phoebe preached.
"Wow. I didn't know that you could ever be so cheesy," Will remarked dryly.
Phoebe rolled her eyes. "Hey, I like what I like, okay? Oh, here's our first stop." Will pulled into a parking space and started digging through the myriad of bags.
Forty-five minutes later they finally made it out of the first store. Two hours later, they had finished the third store. Six hours and twenty minutes later, all the presents but one had been returned.
"I know you love Christmas and the Christmas joy and the Christmas spirit and whatever, but I hate lines. This has to be one of the worst chores we have ever had to do," Will remarked as they headed back to the car.
"Well—" Phoebe started.
"No, 'wells.' I don't know how much more I can handle of this!" Will interrupted.
"What I was going to say," Phoebe started pointedly, "is that I agree with you. We should get major props for suffering through the lines, the other customers and the cranky salesclerks!"
"Okay, so right here, right now, we make a pact. I, Will Beardsley, promise to never enter another shopping mall on the day after Christmas ever again. Your turn."
"I, Phoebe North, promise to never enter another shopping mall on the day after Christmas ever again. Shake on it" Phoebe suggested, sticking out her hand. Will stared at her outstretched hand, remembering the last time he had touched it, wondering if he could handle it again.
"Will!" Phoebe said and he reached out and shook her hand. It happened again. All of a sudden, his fingers that were freezing from the December temperature were now tingly and warm. And he wasn't the only one feeling it. Phoebe gave him a look of utter surprise and questioning. Their hands kept shaking as the distance between them got smaller and smaller. Phoebe slowly moved towards Will as he was moving towards her. Am I going to kiss him? Phoebe thought to herself. She could feel his breath on her upper lip when—
The car alarm behind them suddenly started blaring. The two jumped apart and stared at the noise. Phoebe turned back to look at Will, but he was already moving to open the door to the driver's side of the car. Phoebe sent a quick glance back at the blaring car and got inside their car. There was only one thought floating through the air as Will and Phoebe drove back in silence: What the heck was that?
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