Sorry it's taken a bit longer than last chapter! For those of you asking, there will be more chapters but it will probably only be a fairly short story. I'll inform you of when the last one will be when it's coming. As always thank you for reading and reviewing, it's always good to hear what you all think :D
"So do you want to watch a movie?" She asks as we enter her room, and I gaze around with a small smile.
The walls are painted pale lime green and are covered with photos, 3 dimensional butterflies and dragonflies, random ticket stubs and half-sphere models of planets. A solar-system mobile hangs above the bed, alongside model biplanes and tri-planes, rotating slowly in the air above our heads like miniature skies.
She drops down onto the bed, tucking her slippered feet under herself once again, and reaches across for her book. It's laid open beside her on the bed, pages pressed against the mattress, and I read the embossed words down the spine once again, smiling proudly as she slips a bookmark between the pages and snaps it shut, placing it gently on the crowded end-table.
"Um, yeah we could do? I mean, whatever you want, really." I reply genuinely, "After all, you're doing me a huge favour here. So seriously, feel free to just go about your evening as you would, and pretend I'm not here." I smile graciously but she scoffs.
"If I intended to go about my evening as I would, I wouldn't have invited you in here, I promise." She says genuinely, and I can't help but see her reasoning, irrational as I am.
"Okay. Well still, whatever you want to do. Anything." That sounded weird. She frowns a little before raising an eyebrow in curiosity. "I mean you're really doing me a favour." I add suggestively with an exaggerated wink, and she giggles. "No, it's just that I don't want to be any...bother, so it's completely up to you."
"Um, okay then. How about Muppets Christmas Carol?" She smiles hopefully and I gape comically.
"Yes! Who doesn't want a healthy dose of Rizzo the Rat on the day of our Lord?" I grin and she laughs, pushing herself off the bed with a little jump and half-walking, half-skipping across to the TV. Cute.
"I love this film so much." I clap my hands together excitedly as she presses buttons and the menu options appear on the screen. I perch on the edge of the bed and reach across to the remote to press play as she runs back to the bed. She settles, laying on one side and facing the TV, and leans over the side of the bed to throw another pillow beside her own, then smiles at me expectantly.
I slide up the bed and ease off my shoes before lifting my legs up onto the bed and laying back on the pillow on my side of the bed. The opening credits start to roll and she leans across to flick off the lamp beside her. With the soft lighting ceasing, the room plunges into darkness, only illuminated by the flickering lights from the screen. I resist the urge to hum along with the theme tune, shifting slightly to settle into the pillow with a contented smile.
Somewhere during the film Quinn starts singing along under her breath, eyes trained on the screen with awe, and I chuckle inwardly before joining in quietly. We shout various lines back at the characters and giggle like children during random scenes. After we watch the muppets, Quinn slides Miracle on 34th Street into the player, later followed by The Santa Clause. Throughout each film, Quinn and I slowly slip further down the bed, until both of our heads are laid at awkward angles on the pillows as we sprawl across the cover.
-o-
"Ow."
I scowl and kick my leg again, attempting to free it from the cover it was trapped in.
"Ow!"
I twist round onto my back and wriggle my leg, flexing my ankle and trying to kick free.
"Owch, whaddaryou doing?" The blonde besides me rolls over with a frown, rubbing the heels of her palms into her eyes.
"Quinn?" I curl my lip and open my eyes, blinking furiously as I take in my surroundings. As I gaze around the room I pull myself into a sitting position before tugging at my clothes, now uncomfortably tight as they've shifted in my sleep.
"Oh, what time is it?" She sighs heavily, glaring at the DVD menu page as it repeats the theme tune for the fourth time since we woke. I reach across and take the remote, flicking the TV off as Quinn reaches for the alarm clock. "That can't be right." She frowns in puzzlement and I yawn.
"What's up?" I sit back on the pillow and she turns the alarm display to face me, "Four in the morning? Holy shit!"
"No, it can't be right." She reasons, "The party ends at like, one; like all of my parents' parties do." She shrugs and I raise an eyebrow, digging into my pocket for my phone.
"No, my phone seems to agree!" I show her the screen and her mouth drops open in horror.
"Oh, Jesus!" I leap off the bed and grab my sneakers, tugging them on as I hop out of the room into the hallway, "My parents will be so worried; are they downstairs, do you think?"
Quinn shrugs as she pads after me in her socks, "I don't know, probably." She bites her lip anxiously as we begin to descend the stairs. The upstairs landing is illuminated by soft wall-lamps, but the hallway below sits in darkness, the tree stood looking eerily blank. We reach and cross the tiled floor, and Quinn begins opening doors and poking her head around into the rooms beyond. She retracts her head from the last dark room as I stand behind her with a confused frown, my lip curled slightly.
"They're not here." She states plainly, turning to face me with a matching frown.
"Then where are they?" I shrug and look around once again, as if they could have conveniently appeared in the empty hallway behind me.
"I have no idea." She laughs nervously and my expression becomes comical disbelief as she holds up one finger.
"Hold on." She crosses swiftly to the stairs and begins skipping up the steps, two at a time. She disappears down the hallway and I stand, alone and confused, for a few minutes until I see a figure approaching from upstairs. I watch Quinn as she runs silently down the steps. A bit like a deer. But in a nice way, not in a Bambi's-mother-running-scared kind of way.
"Well, my parents are upstairs asleep, and so are my sister and her family." She informs me in a low voice, twisting her mouth apologetically.
"And my parents aren't up there? None of my family?" I demand and she shrugs again, shaking her head.
"All of the other bedrooms are empty; I checked." She shrugs and jerks a thumb over her shoulder and my jaw drops in angry disbelief.
"No way! My family left without me?" I whisper furiously, and she nods slowly, glancing around the empty hallway thoughtfully.
"Um, it looks like it?" I roll my eyes, tutting, and nod my head at the porch.
"I guess I'd better get my coat then. Good job it's only a short walk home." I laugh humourlessly and she giggles quietly, shaking her head.
"This is ridiculous. I can't believe they left you here." I think of it from an outsiders perspective, and can't resist giggling at the bizarre situation as the blonde continues, "But, you don't have to go tonight. I mean, like I said, we have a ton of spare rooms?"
"Yeah I know, but it's fine really." I shake my head with a genuine smile, pulling my coat off the hook and shrugging it onto my shoulders, "Although it's a lovely offer."
She blushes a little, and gives a small shrug, "Well, just if you don't want to walk home in the freezing cold wind and..." she tugs at a blind, glancing outside before finding my gaze again, "snow." She finishes matter-of-factly, and I sigh as I reach for my scarf.
"It's tempting but...I'd better go. My family might worry if I'm not there tomorrow. Although maybe not, considering their recent display of a lack of affection." I reply sarcastically, and she giggles again as I finally tug on my gloves.
"Okay, well then I hope you get home safe." She crosses to the door and unlocks it, pulling it open as I step forwards. Once on the step, I turn to face her with a smile as the cold air hits my face and I resist a shiver.
"Thank you for tonight. Even if it went slightly awry at the end." I say guiltily, and she grimaces with a chuckle.
"Yeah, sorry about that. But it was fun." She replies brightly, and I nod in agreement.
"Definitely better than the alternative. Thanks for rescuing me, knight in shining armour." I grin up at her and she smiles graciously.
"Any time, damsel in distress." She gives a little bow and I raise my eyebrows, bobbing down in a curtsey with a giggle. I straighten and glance upwards nervously before turning on my heel. Quinn frowns slightly as I take the next step down onto the drive. "Santana!" She calls behind me, and I turn to see her averting her eyes from the mistletoe above the doorway. As I open my mouth to answer, she skips across the threshold onto the top step, the fabric of her socks dampening as she stands in the melted snow of the doorstep.
"What's-" I frown slightly, but before I can continue she places her hands on my upper arms, on the soft padding of my coat. She leans towards me, taking a small breath and bending slightly from the shallow step. She closes her eyes and presses her warm lips against my already-cold ones and I gasp inwardly. Quickly closing my eyes, I regulate my breathing and kiss back slightly, until a moment later when she breaks away.
"Merry Christmas." She says with a cheeky grin, and I stare at her with my mouth slightly open for a second before smiling shyly and giving her a small nod.
"Merry Christmas." I reply with a similar grin, before turning once again and heading down the driveway uninterrupted, attempting to control my racing heart as I do so.
I bury my hands in the pockets of my coat as I trudge down Quinn's road. I follow the roads and pathways until I reach my house, letting myself in through the front door and unravelling my many layers before levering off my shoes. I wander through the downstairs, sticking my head into all the rooms as I pass, before padding up the stairs.
Reaching my parents' bedroom, I inch the door open silently and peek into the room to see them both sleeping soundly and obliviously. I sigh impatiently and roll my eyes before exiting the room and shutting the door with a soft bump. Crossing the hall into my bedroom, I enter quietly, shutting the door and pressing my back to it. Letting out a deep sigh, I slide down to sit on the floor, gazing around my dark room.
She kissed me.
I mean, I'm sure she did. I know it was cold and people get pneumonia on the street and hallucinate all the time, but I really wasn't that cold and I distinctly remember her kissing me.
She kissed me.
I swallow and take a deep breath before dragging myself to my feet and crossing to my bed. Flicking on the bedside lamp, I pull back the cover and quickly change into my pyjamas before wriggling down into the depths of the bed.
-o-
"Well how nice to see you." My mother remarks with a raised eyebrow as I enter the kitchen.
"Funny you've noticed I'm here." I shoot back as I sit down and join her at the large kitchen table, and she frowns.
"What are you talking about? And I don't appreciate your lisp, chica." She always calls me chica when she's being sarcastic. It's like I need a signal or something. "I know you didn't want to go last night but skipping out was very rude." She gives me a beady glare and I scowl, my mouth hanging open in offended disbelief.
"Excuse me? I did not 'skip-out', you just neglected your motherly duties to be responsible for every goose of your gaggle." I narrow my eyes dramatically and she glares dangerously at me. I feel like she may not be impressed by the mother goose comment. "Yes, although you may have been busy discussing knitting patterns with the neighbourhood middle-aged," I jump down and cross to the kettle, flicking the switch down before turning back to face her, "I, apparently unnoticed, escaped from your suburban hell upstairs..." I trail off slowly as she raises an eyebrow, smirking knowingly.
"Oh? To do what?" She asks innocently and I roll my eyes before turning and retrieving a cup from the cupboard behind me.
"Well, if you must know...it was the house of that girl I met in the coffee shop, and we just watched some Christmas movies." I shrug, trying to ignore my heart hammering at the mere thought of the previous night. Or rather, today's morning.
"Oh really?" She raises her eyebrows at me, her smirk growing into a cheshire-cat grin. "How did that happen?"
"Actually, I accidentally broke into her bedroom when I was looking for the bathroom." I reply honestly and she snorts, laughing loudly and shaking her head.
"Oh, Santana. You never change." I frown, my jaw dropping open at the unfairness.
"No, I didn't mean like that! I really mean it, it was an accident. I was looking for the bathroom and I turned left instead of right, or went right instead of left. Or something." I shake my head and wave my hand dismissively, and she nods interestedly.
"Huh. Well that's new." She shrugs and I scowl at her again.
"Yeah, talking of the newfound; I've never seen you display such a lack of supervision and personal concern. You left your only child-"
"You're not an only child." She frowns.
"-to die, in a rotten hellhole-"
"You wouldn't die."
"-without a single care!" I fold my arms and let out a short, impatient sigh.
"Oh, well we just thought you'd come home already! You always used to sneak out!" She shrugs defensively and I'm left silent for a moment. I used to sneak out, a lot. But that was when I was in school; just a kid. I briefly feel a little sad for her; both her kids grown and building their own lives with families and moving away, it must be hard sometimes.
"Yeah well, I didn't." I reply with a small smile, pouring my coffee and resuming my place beside her. "And thankfully, I'm still alive. Which is lucky for you, we both know I'm the light in your life, you'd have nothing if I'd died." I add seriously, nodding with a gentle smile.
"Yeah, okay." She snorts, "Well I'm glad you're alive, nonetheless. How embarrassing, what would people think?" She shrugs and I roll my eyes.
"You have a heart of gold." I deadpan, before sliding off my seat and wandering off through the house.
-o-
"S'up, Daddio?" I holler in my fake gangsta-voice, "How's it kickin'?" I wink exaggeratedly as I plonk myself down in the armchair beside him in the den.
"Hmm, I dunno about kicking but at least I'm still ticking." He pats his chest with a chuckle before turning his attention back to the TV.
"Well that's good news for us all, God knows mami needs someone to keep her in check." I reply darkly with a raised eyebrow.
"Ah but the same could be said for you, if I'm not mistaken?" He gazes at me over the rims of his glasses and I pout, mock-offended.
"To what are you referring?" I narrow my eyes comically, "The drug trafficking? Fraud maybe? Have you finally busted my crack habit? Oh God, Papi, don't turn me in! I'm too pretty for jail! Those lesbians would eat me alive!"
"Ah, quit it!" He interrupts, swatting at me with his folded newspaper, eyes never leaving the screen. "I'm talking about a certain lady's certain absence from a certain party." He winks exaggeratedly and I can't help rolling my eyes.
"I wasn't absence, you just didn't look for me very hard! I was only upstairs." I shrug defensively and he frowns, taking off his glasses and resting them on the paper on his knee, turning his full attention to me.
"Upstairs? Doing what?"
"That girl was there, that me and mami were talking about." I shrug carelessly but he leans his head back on the chair cushion, watching me with interest. "Just the girl I met at Starbucks; I saw her downstairs then ran into her upstairs and she asked if I Wanted to watch some movies. So we did." I shrug again, feeling increasingly scrutinised, but my father merely nods, his mouth twisted thoughtfully, before returning his glasses to his face and turning back to the TV.
I let my gaze drift around the room, smiling as I reminisce over all of the trophies in the various cabinets. The room is silent apart from the sounds of the TV for a few minutes, until I hear him take a breath, "That's it?" he asks, his eyes still trained on the TV, "'So we did'?"
"Yeah?" I frown at him questioningly, "We just watched movies."
"Must have watched a lot; I didn't hear you return last night." He raises an eyebrow knowingly, and I grimace cluelessy in return, uncomprehending.
"Well, it was like four am I suppose? We fell asleep during The Santa Clause." I shrug and he nods thoughtfully, giving nothing away. I continue to frown at him for a few moments, but he continues to ignore me, so instead I sigh dramatically and settle into the armchair properly, kicking out the reclining feature.
After ten minutes of staring blankly at the sports match, I sigh out of boredom and close the recliner, climbing back to my feet with a stretch.
"Well she seems like a nice girl." My papi remarks vaguely as I turn to leave the room, and stops me in my tracks.
"What do you mean?" I frown, "I didn't think you'd met her?"
He shrugs, glancing up at me with a quick smile before turning back to the screen, "I don't know. She must be pretty special to have you all doe-eyed, that's all." He sends me a quick wink, and I nod once as my cheeks flush with embarrassment. I leave the room hurriedly and take solace in my room, reaching across for A Christmas Carol with an excited flutter in my chest.