I know I promised a Christmas AND a New Year's Eve chapter, but I think I'm just going to do this Christmas one and then move on with the story. This chapter is already over a week overdue and I apologize for that. As you guys know, the holiday season is very busy, so I didn't have a whole lot of time to focus on writing this. Anyway, thank you so much for the reviews and enjoy the chapter!

Jake grit his teeth and bit his lip to stifle a groan building deep inside his throat.

"We gotta stop this soon," he huffed out, "Or I'm gonna want to fuck you even more than I already do and that's not exactly the best idea right now."

Drew laid on top of Jake, pushing his crotch especially hard against him while he kissed slowly up Jake's neck and along his jaw to his temple.

"I can't help it," Drew whispered before kissing up the smooth skin of Jake's neck, "You're just so damn cute when you're being sexually tortured."

Jake chuckled and grinned, "You're such a dick."

"So I've been told," Drew smirked, "Speaking of which, yours is poking into me right now."

"You don't say." Jake bucked his hips up into Drew to give him a better idea of just how hard he was.

Drew grunted at the spontaneous contact and halted his kissing to center himself over Jake.

"I'm so fucking horny. I haven't even had a chance to beat off all week."

"I know," Jake said in a breathy whisper, "But we can't do it while everyone is home."

Jake grabbed Drew's ass and pulled him down closer. The contact forced them into moving their bodies against each other in a lazy rhythm out of reflex and pure desire.

They locked eyes while they slowly grinded against each other, communicating more in studying each other's features and heavy breathing than in words.

"Wish we could get some alone time. It's been a while, you know?" Drew whispered between shaky breaths.

"Yeah, I know. Trust me, I've been literally aching and well, what we're doing right now isn't going to help much in the long run-" Jake scrunched his eyes shut and let out a groan. "Fuck.."

Jake could feel his crotch starting to get wet from the excitement. "Gonna have to rub one out later."

Drew reached down and prepared to undo Jake's pants, "You sure we couldn't get away with a quick one? We can try really hard to be quiet."

As if on cue, approaching footsteps could be heard.

"Shit!"

Drew leaped off the bed and hopped in the nearest chair. Jake did his best to conceal his extremely apparent and throbbing boner.

Predictably, a knock on the door came a few seconds later.

"Yeah?" Jake answered and the door swung open to reveal Glen on the other side.

"Jake? You think you can-" Glen started, but was distracted upon noticing he wasn't alone. "Oh, hey Drew. Didn't know you were here."

"Uh, hey, Mr. Martin." Drew greeted, trying to sound as natural as possible.

"What are you guys up to?" Glen asked, as if it were odd to see the pair together in Jake's room. Indeed it was kind of odd to some people as it seemed as though their close friendship happened overnight and randomly.

The few people who saw them together were never around them when they really talked or hung out, so they were in the dark as to what exactly they had in common.

"Oh, nothing much. Just umm.. studying!" Jake grinned in the same manner he did when he was hiding something. Glen was privy to what it meant.

"Yeah!" Drew nodded in agreement.

Glen shot them an incredulous look, "Studying? It's Christmas break."

"Right! Well.." Jake looked around, like he was literally trying to find another excuse.

Glen arched an eyebrow, "Are you guys stoned?"

Jake laughed, "No, dad, we're not stoned!"

"Come on, Jake, it's no big deal."

Jake raised his eyebrows, "Okay. Then yeah!"

Glen rolled his eyes, "Well, don't let Helen know that or she'll freak out. You think you can pull yourself together and come help me down at work for a bit?"

"Sure, dad. Just give me a minute to get ready."

Glen nodded, "I'll be in the truck."

Jake waited a second before considering the coast clear.

"See what I mean?"

"That could've been bad."

Jake nodded, "No kidding. Well, I guess I better get going." He stated unenthusiastically, searching his room for appropriate work attire.

"Hey, we gonna have some time in the next few days to, you know, have some alone time?" Drew had a hopeful look about him.

Jake grimaced, "Actually, my dad and Helen want to spend Christmas up at the cabin. We're leaving first thing tomorrow morning. I would've told you sooner, but I kinda just heard about it myself."

Drew glanced down in disappointment, "Oh, well, that's cool. I mean, spending Christmas with your family."

"I'm sorry. I'd invite you if I could." Jake walked over to Drew and hugged him tight. "Better yet, I wish we could find a way to have some time to ourselves. I don't want you to spend Christmas by yourself."

"Ah, don't worry about it. I can hold out a little longer. And I'll find something to keep me occupied over the holidays."

"The second I get back, I'll let you know and we can go do something. Okay?" Jake pulled away from the hug and gave Drew a warm smile.

"I can't wait! I better head out. Your dad's waiting for you." Drew leaned in and gave Jake a quick kiss. "I'll see you soon."

"See ya." Jake watched as Drew exited his room.

He was left feeling empty. It was the first Christmas he and Drew would have as a couple and they wouldn't even be able to spend a second of it together. All he really wanted was for it to be less complicated to have a real relationship.

Earlier that week, Drew received a voicemail from his mother, Audra. Something about wanting him to come over and have dinner with her and Adam the night before Christmas Eve. He found the proposition rather strange and wondered what ulterior motive she had for this.

Knowing Audra and her lack of apprehension to go to extremes, she probably had a talk show host and a camera crew waiting to ambush him so they can hash out their family issues. He wasn't even going to entertain the thought of calling her back, but he figured he owed her at least an appearance since it was Christmas and he hasn't even seen her since he moved to Fiona's apartment.

He felt like a stranger in the place he called home for the last few years. Audra's attempt at a warm welcome was awkward and weak, unlike Adam, who didn't even have to make an effort to make Drew feel at home.

Dallas was nowhere to be seen, which he was fine with. Drew wasn't in the mood for his usual barrage of unwanted smartass remarks. His dad was also absent; working late as usual.

"So, how's your job going?" Audra asked stiffly. Anyone could tell the question left her with a bitter taste.

"It's fine." Drew answered before looking at her directly and adding, "Great, actually."

Audra feigned a smile, taking Drew's comment as a personal attack more than anything else. "Good!"

Adam's glance shifted nervously between his brother and his mom, like he was in the middle of a warzone. He anticipated the table flipping wasn't too far off now.

Audra already had enough of the small talk, "Look, Drew, I'm gonna cut to the chase. There's a reason I wanted you to have dinner with us tonight."

Drew exhaled in annoyance, "Isn't there always? Let's hear it."

Audra tried not to let his attitude get to her, "It's Christmastime and you shouldn't be spending it away from us. We should all be together as a family."

Drew's expression softened, "What are you saying?"

"I'm saying, we want you to spend Christmas here with us."

Drew's face lit up. He didn't show up expecting to hear this, but a part of him felt like that was his goal the whole time.

"Of course! I'd love to come back for Christmas!"

Audra flashed a genuine smile for the first time since the night began, "I am so happy to hear you say that! I just want to put all this nonsense behind us and have us all together again."

Drew raised his hands, "No arguments here!"

"Finally!" Adam was grinning from ear to ear. "Now we can please go back to being a normal family instead of one straight from a soap opera?"

"I'm so glad we could finally get this sorted out, Drew!" Audra was beaming. "And since it's Christmas break, you can re-enroll at Degrassi just in time for second semester."

Drew nearly dropped his glass. His mood flipped a complete 180 in a split second. "Excuse me?"

"Well, if you're going to be moving back in here, you're going to have to go back to school."

Drew was floored by the woman's audacity.

"Who said anything about going back to school? And who said I was moving back in? All I agreed to was spending Christmas here. I'm still staying at the apartment, keeping my job and I'm not going back to school."

"Is that right?" Audra raised her brows and gave Drew a sarcastic grin as if this were all a joke.

"Mom, I'm happy with my life right now. I'm good at my job and I'm making great money. I finally found something that works for me. Why can't you see that and be thankful?"

"Andrew Torres, you are a teenager. You think you've already got your life figured out? You don't know even know what happiness is."

"I'm an adult now. Remember when I was a kid and you always told me that I can't make my own decisions until I'm 18? Guess what, mom? I'm 18 now!"

"Fine, you're right." Audra pushed herself away from the table, "You're a grown man, Drew. You're old enough to make your own choices. And since you're such an adult now, you have to face consequences for your choices head on. If you're not going to leave your job and finish high school, then I'm sorry, you can't be here for Christmas."

Adam's eyes widened, "Mom! Don't you think you're being a little extreme?"

"No, Adam, it's fine. I get it. Mom doesn't want her failure of a son around to embarrass her."

"Drew, come on.." Adam pleaded, but it was no use. Drew tossed his napkin on the table and stood up.

"I gotta get going." He swiftly made his exit with no sign of resistance from Audra, much to Adam's disbelief.

"Mom, what the hell? You're really going to exclude Drew from Christmas?"

"Adam, my decision is final." Audra stated sternly.

Adam shook his head in disgust, "You make it so impossible to be on your side sometimes!" He, too, stormed off, leaving Audra to herself.

Drew's phone started ringing on his way back to the apartment. He groaned and reached for it in his coat pocket, expecting it to be his mom.

"I swear to god, it better not be-"

Drew's rage quelled by the sight of Jake's name on the screen instead of his mom's.

"Hey there, miss me already?"

Jake chuckled, "Always. Just checking up on you. I figure if I can't be with you during Christmas, I can at least call you."

"Aren't you sweet? I'm fine, just left my mom's house."

"Oh yeah? What for? Hanging with Adam?"

"No, my mom actually invited me over for dinner, but-"

Drew was ready to go into a full-blown tirade about what just happened, but he knew that would only make Jake worry more about him.

"Well, she invited me over for Christmas."

"Wow, that's pretty cool!" Jake sounded like this news made his day, "So I guess the family drama's over, huh?"

"Yeah, totally!"

"I'm so happy to hear that, Drew. I really didn't want you to be alone during Christmas. I was feeling so bad about that."

Drew winced. It hurt to have to lie to Jake, especially when he was being so sweet right now. He'd give anything to just be with him right now.

"Like I said, don't worry about me! And now I'm gonna be spending it with the family, so it's all good!"

"I can't tell you how good that makes me feel."

Drew took that as a sign that he's doing the right thing by preventing Jake from worrying about him during his trip.

"I better let you go. You probably wanna spend time with the family. I got an early morning tomorrow."

"Yeah... Yeah, I should go."

"I'll talk to you tomorrow, though, okay? Have a great night!"

"You too! Good night."

Drew was glad to be done with the conversation. He wouldn't have lasted another minute under the facade. He felt bad enough about lying to Jake that he could cry. The issue he had with his mom ceased to matter much at that point. This had all the makings of the worst Christmas ever.

"Why isn't he answering my calls?" Jake set his phone down after making the fifth unanswered call in two days and rubbed his head.

His stomach was beginning to hurt out of worry. He was becoming a nervous wreck by the hour. It wasn't like Drew to just ignore his calls and he figured he'd be especially eager to pick up the phone for his boyfriend on Christmas day.

He tried calling once the day before and got nothing. Now it was already past dark on Christmas and still nothing.

Drew couldn't bear to answer Jake's calls. It was too much to bring himself to lie to him on top of everything else that was going wrong.

Fiona was out of town for Christmas, so he had the place to himself. He spent the day lounging in front of the TV watching Christmas specials. Some of which embittered him, since such things centered on happy families and romance.

He received a call from Adam too, but he just wasn't in the mood to talk to anyone today. Plus, he knew if he talked to Adam, he'd think of his mom and get angry all over again.

Jake smacked himself in the head, "Of course! Why didn't I think of this sooner?"

He flipped through the contacts on his phone and clicked on Adam's name.

"Hello?"

Jake was relieved to finally get an answer.

"Hey, Adam, can I talk to Drew? I tried calling him, but I guess he can't hear his phone or something."

"Uhh, Drew isn't here."

Jake scrunched his brows and the brief sense of relief he had shattered in an instant, "What? Where is he? He told me he was going to be home for Christmas."

"Well he was gonna come until mom told him he isn't welcome here."

"You're kidding."

"Trust me, I wish I was."

Jake's hands began to shake a little, "You have any idea why he isn't answering his phone? I've been trying to get a hold of him all day."

"I suppose his phone could be dead. You should try giving Fiona a call."

"Okay, I'll do that. Thanks, Adam!" He was about to hang up right away, but he didn't want to be rude. "Oh, and Merry Christmas!"

Adam laughed, "Merry Christmas, Jake!"

As soon as the call ended, Jake punched in Fiona's name on his phone and clicked on her number as soon as it popped up.

"Hey, Fiona, Can I talk to Drew for a minute? He's not picking up his phone."

"Oh, hey Jake! Sorry, I'm not home right now. I'm in New York. But you can try giving Adam a call, he said he's gonna be at his parents' house for Christmas."

Jake felt like he was going to be sick. "I tried, but apparently he lied about that. Adam said their mom wouldn't let him be there."

"What? Are you serious?"

"Yeah. I dunno why he didn't tell us the truth."

"He was probably embarrassed. I can't imagine how much it sucks to be rejected by your family like that."

"I need to find him and make sure he's okay."

"Please let me know once you find out."

"I will. Merry Christmas, Fiona." It was kind of a flat greeting, but he was a bit too concerned at the moment.

"Merry Christmas, Jake. Good luck!"

Jake explained to his dad and Helen that he had to be there for a friend and this was an emergency. They were reluctant, but they let him go without much trouble. Jake was just thankful that they decided to take two vehicles to the cabin.

He hopped in the truck and was immediately on his way back to Toronto and spent the entire drive praying that Drew was okay.

The last thing Drew was expecting tonight was a knock at the door. Probably one of Fiona's friends. He was going to ignore it and let them think no one was home, until he heard a familiar voice.

"Drew, are you there?"

"Jake?"

Drew ran to the door and yanked it open.

"What are you doing here?"

"So you ARE alive!" Jake looked like he was about to pass out on the spot until he ensnared Drew in an enormous bear hug.

After a minute, Jake let him go and gave him a good smack on the shoulder.

"Ow! Hey!" Drew rubbed his shoulder.

"What did I tell you about scaring me like that? I've been worried sick about you! I've been calling you all day. I called Adam and Fiona and when they told me that you weren't with them, I nearly had a heart attack!"

Jake was furious, but Drew knew it was out of genuine concern.

"I didn't want you to worry about me, but I guess I ended up making you worry even more. I didn't want to get in the way of you spending a nice Christmas with your family. I know it's the first one you're having since your dad got married again and-"

Jake stopped him as soon as he noticed Drew getting worked up, "You could never ruin anything for me. Never. Don't ever feel like you could, especially if you're dealing with something like this. I know about what happened with you and your mom."

Drew looked up at Jake in shame. "Adam told you?"

Jake nodded, "Don't be embarrassed or anything. None of it is your fault. Please let me know when things like this happen. There's no reason you should deal with it alone."

Jake cupped Drew's face in his hands and looked him deep in the eyes, "We're in this together now."

Drew reached up to grasp Jake's hand. "You're the best."

Jake smiled, "And there's also no way I'd let you be alone during Christmas. I love you too much to let that happen."

"Wait, what did you say?"

"There's no way I'd let you-"

"No, after that."

"...I love you."

It was the best thing Drew has ever heard. "I love you, too."

They shared a deep kiss before heading to the couch where they cradled in each other's arms.

"So, what are we watching?" Jake kicked up his feet and got comfortable.

"No idea. I've been watching nameless Christmas specials all day!"

"Sounds like a good time!" Jake snickered, "By the way, I'm sorry I didn't really have a chance to get your anything for Christmas."

Drew turned to him, "What are you talking about? You're here, aren't you? And if that weren't already the best Christmas present ever, I found out the man I love, loves me back."

Jake's face lit up brighter than any Christmas tree ever could hope to. "That is a pretty damn good Christmas present to both of us, huh?"

"Merry Christmas, Drew." Jake planted another soft kiss on his lips.

Drew snuggled closer to his boyfriend, "Merry Christmas, Jake."

Just wanna say I hope you guys had a very Merry Christmas and wish you all a Happy New Year! :)