2008
"We can't wait to head up to visit in February, Troy sends us photos by e-mail all the time and is telling us stories and it feels like we know everyone!" Lucille chattered to her sisters.
"You've done well for yourself, kid, big fancy college and all. Must be nice to be home for the holidays," Troy's Aunt Kathy said.
Troy was slumped in his chair at the table, cell phone in hand. He glanced up. "Yeah, it is. It's been really busy, nice to have a break."
"Kids today, their version of a break is to sit on their phone all day," Troy's Uncle Phil chuckled.
"Troy, put the phone away, it's like it's attached to your hand," Lucille admonished.
"Sorry I'm trying to figure out when I'm going to catch up with Chad." Troy was lying straight through his teeth. It came back to him quite easily, telling fibs to his parents.
"It'll be tomorrow when the Danforth's are here for our party," Jack pointed out, raising his eyebrows. He knew his son far too well, the grin on his face had nothing to do with texting a buddy, and he suspected it had a lot more to do with texting his girlfriend.
Troy looked up, hearing the tone in his father's voice, and seeing the look on Jack's face, knew he'd been caught out. Attempting to play it cool, he slipped his phone away into his pocket, joining in with the Christmas Eve chatter with the adults. His younger cousins were all playing in the den, leaving the adults around the dining table, which included two of his mothers sisters, their husbands, as well as his Uncle Phil. Troy felt somewhat torn between the two groups – a part of his freshman college student self felt like he belonged at the adults table – but then there was the part of him that would much rather be playing with the Nerf Guns that his younger twin cousins had opened as their 'one present on Christmas Eve'. There was a much larger part of him that would much prefer to be taking advantage of the fact that he and his girlfriend were not 32.7 miles apart, but less than two miles apart.
The conversation moved away from his college experience and turned to New Years Eve plans, and Troy took the opportunity to excuse himself from the table. He slipped quietly into his bedroom, quickly withdrawing the phone, smiling at the text which had buzzed in his pocket a minute earlier, and dialled her number. It rang six times, and he was about to hang up, when she answered breathlessly.
"Sorry, I had to get away. I thought you were going to call earlier?"
"I'm so sorry, it's the earliest I could call," he apologised. "You know, asking about my classes, ball, my dorm, new friends, blah blah."
"Yes, I know. I've had the same conversation," Gabriella replied. He could hear the roll in her eyes.
"I miss you so much," Troy murmured. "It's not fair, we've seen each other like, five times since coming to California. The minute we get to spend time together again, we don't get to spend time together."
"I know. It doesn't feel like Christmas without you."
"Are you sure your mom won't let you come to our holiday party tomorrow night?" he pressed. "Even for just an hour or so. I'll come pick you up myself."
"I don't know, Troy. My family is only here for a few days."
"This is the argument your mom will take. Tell me, Miss Pre-Law, what would your argument be?"
Gabriella giggled, but then paused, he suspected seriously considering the argument. "I could point out that Chad is going away with his family for New Years so I won't get to spend much time seeing him unless I catch up with him at your party."
Troy considered this excuse and its plausibility. "What else?"
"That I want to give your mom and dad the Ghiradelli chocolate I bought them myself, in person, on Christmas day?"
"That's your winner."
On Christmas morning, Gabriella was surrounded by a pile of both practical and gorgeous gifts, received from her mother, her aunt and uncle, her grandmother. and sent from interstate by family from her dad's side of the family. The last few years she hadn't really been at the major receiving end of presents at Christmas – her younger cousins became the focus – but as a college freshman, it seemed that the family decided to share some Christmas joy and some small luxuries which she couldn't afford as a college student. The few shifts she did at the campus Subway were really enough to give her a bit of spending money which mostly went toward Troy – there was trips to come see him, his birthday present, then his Christmas present. Her cousins were playing with their new things, the adults were in the kitchen organising a brunch feast.
With almost perfect timing, her phone chimed with a text message from Troy – 'Come upstairs' was all that he'd written.
She glanced around, attempting to be suave, and darted up the stairs and turned into her room. Troy was standing at her balcony, pouting at he stared through the glass. He was wearing a pair of dark grey jeans and a Cal hoodie, with the hood up over his head.
"Merry Christmas," she murmured softly, pulling him inside from the cold.
"Merry Christmas to you," he replied.
They shared a soft, tender kiss, a little more longing than the innocent kisses they had sneaked in her room during senior year. Everything had changed not long before graduation, shifting the dynamic in their relationship.
"I wanted to bring you this," he said, holding up a gift bag that she'd hardly noticed.
She grinned, and practically skipped over to her suitcase where she had his present tucked away, not having wanted it to be spotted under the tree to leave her open to teasing from relatives.
"I'm so excited. I'm normally nervous but I think you'll love this." She took a seat on her bed, patting the comforter beside him.
"This practical thing was tough, though," he admitted as he sat down.
They'd implemented a rule about practical gifts that year, both being in equally cash strapped situations, so deciding that presents could be fun and interesting but had to serve a purpose – nothing completely superfluous. This was okay for Gabriella but Troy found it tough – it meant he had to avoid anything jewellery related.
"I didn't mind it." She held out the small neatly wrapped present in red paper covered in reindeer with a silver bow, and held it out to him. It was smaller than a DVD and fairly light weight. "Do mine first."
He accepted the present, first reading the miniature gift card that was attached, reading simply, "To Troy, Merry Christmas, With all my love, Gabriella." He smiled and then tore into the gift. He was immediately pleased, but at the same time a little perplexed with her choice.
"It's an external hard drive," she pointed out, a little redundantly, as he could read the box and identify the picture.
"This is great," he said, genuinely pleased. It wouldn't have been cheap, he was aware.
She grinned, observing his reaction. "Open the box now."
He obliged, a little confused, but suddenly it all became clear. It had seemed like a remarkably impersonal gift for what he was used to from Gabriella, but what it seemed simply was not.
"Oh!" Inside she'd enclosed a handwritten index – an index to a whole pile of things she'd preloaded onto the drive. Recently released albums, television shows, movies, from his favourite bands, shows and genres. "Oh, this is off the hook!"
"You doubted me for a moment there," she observed with a gleeful smile.
"I... I did not! It just wasn't what I expected!" He glanced down at the gift bag that was in front of him, suddenly doubting himself. "Oh... now I'm not sure on this."
She shook her head, and snatched up the gift before he could continue with his train of thought. He'd clumsily wrapped the present and then, unhappy with his wrapping skills, put it into a gift bag as well. The little tag on the bag had his scrawl, "Gabriella – ILYSFM! Merry Xmas, Troy xo."
As she began to carefully unstick the sticky tape - which he'd put way too much of it on, making it somewhat difficult to get inside - he began to explain his gift.
"I know that you come visit me more than I come visit you, and I feel bad for that."
"It's okay Wildcat, you know I want to come see your home games anyway. Besides... you came all the way to California for me, it's the least I can do."
"Anyway... so... I got you this."
Gabriella pulled open the wrapping paper and gasped, immediately grinning. He'd bought her a Vera Bradley shower caddy, filled with all of her favourite toiletries – the real versions, not the cheap versions she'd been buying that semester. She glanced through somewhat in awe of his attention to detail. He even had the razor which was her preferred brand.
"I thought that maybe you could keep it in the back of one of my drawers," Troy suggested, scratching the back of his neck. "You know, so when you haul your stuff down you don't have to bring your clothes, plus all this stuff, plus some of your books..." he trailed off, suddenly questioning the thought.
"I love you so much, this is so, so sweet, so thoughtful, and absolutely very practical. And this! You got me Vera Bradley! I didn't even know that you knew what Vera Bradley was!"
He grinned, feeling more confident in his choice. "I'm a man of many secrets, Miss Montez."
She returned the smile, and set aside the gift and shuffled over on the bed closer to him.
"You know... I was thinking... your room mate isn't back until the day class goes back, right?" she asked.
"Yeah, I think so. Why?"
"Maybe... when we fly back to California... I'll come spend the weekend with you?" she suggested with a glint in her eye.
"Don't you have a work shift?"
"Well, yeah, but... I could very easily come down with a cold over the break?" she suggested.
Troy gasped in faux shock. "Who are you and what have you done with my girlfriend?" his voice was low, and definitely approving of the plan.
His lips descended upon hers in a soft kiss. As their kisses so often would, it become deeper, Troy intensifying, his body weight beginning to hover over hers as she laid back onto the soft mattress, being careful not to knock either of the gifts off the bed.
"Gabriella, your mom wants to know if..." Aunt Gloria's voice came through the door, but before either Troy or Gabriella could react and move from their embrace, the bedroom door flew open. They awkwardly looked up, frozen still. "... you drowned in the toilet." Gloria's tone turned knowing as she finished the sentence.
"Uh... Hi Gloria?" Troy said, somewhat questioningly.
"Hi Troy, Merry Christmas," Gloria said, somewhat calmly. She paused, considering the scene in front of her. "You've got exactly two minutes to be downstairs. Change from that cardigan into a thicker sweater. You were cold."
"Thank you," Gabriella squeaked.
Gloria closed the door behind them, and they scrambled to their feet.
"Far out, you'd think that being back home and having our own bedrooms would be more private, but no, it's easier to find privacy with roommates!" Troy complained.
"This is going to be like summer break. Your dad roaming around, my mom is taking time of work to spend with me," Gabriella complained, with a pout, as she rushed over to her suitcase. She peeled off her blue cardigan, exchanging it for a Stanford sweatshirt that she had lying on the back of the desk chair. "Sue me for being young and in love and wanting to... you know!"
"Talk to your mom about the party. Please?" Troy begged, moving toward the door.
"I will, I promise," Gabriella said, and gave him a quick kiss on the lips. "Merry Christmas."
After brunch, Gabriella carefully chose the right time to pose the question to her mother, while assisting with the dishes.
"Um, so... I was wondering something," Gabriella began.
"Mmm?"
"The Bolton's are hosting a small party tonight. You know, like, some neighbors, some of their friends, Chad's family..."
"Yes, you can go," Maria answered, before Gabriella could even ask the question.
"Really?" Gabriella asked incredulously.
"Yes, really. Why would you have thought I'd say no?"
"I um... I don't know. I guess I thought that you'd think that I should be spending time with my family for the holiday?"
"We don't have any specific plans tonight, just spending time together here. I know you... care... a lot for Troy. And you're an adult. Just be home at a reasonable hour – remember we do have plans to take everyone to the Hispanic Center tomorrow, and the Zoo. You're welcome to invite Troy to come along, if he wants."
"Is there a catch?" Gabriella asked warily.
"Like I said Gabriella, you're an adult now. I know it's probably a little tough, coming back home, me wanting to know where you're going and you not just doing your own thing."
"Oh, no, not really..." Gabriella lied. Maria raised her eyebrows. "Well not really. A tiny bit. Just a little."
"Just ask me, Gabriella. I'm actually very reasonable. Like earlier, for instance – if you'd said Troy wanted to come over briefly so you could exchange gifts, he could've just used the front door like a regular person instead of climbing the tree."
Gabriella's jaw dropped open. "Uh... what?"
"Troy might think he's super stealthy, but he's really not." Maria gave Gabriella a look. "Remember, I'm the cool mom, but only when you let me be cool. No tree climbing! Don't make me make other rules. Got it?"
"Yes."
Maria's face softened. "So. What did he get you for Christmas?"