(Mal)

Too many eyes watched her as she walked carefully through the crowded streets; too many conversations, too many whispers, as she passed by with her gaze cast downward. It was the first time Mal had been out in public with more than just Carlos, Evie, and Jay within a few feet of her, and she found herself quickly wishing she could disappear. What are the stories? She wondered what words had been passed through Auradon about her, though she held little doubt that they were entirely insulting. She could tell by the similar look present in everyone's eyes as they met the green of her own, and the look was enough to drag her gaze to the black of her boots. She wanted to ask Carlos what they were doing here, she wanted to ask him if she could leave, and just as she was beginning to debate slipping away a hand on her forearm caught her attention.

"You find anything, yet?" Carlos questioned, his light-brown eyes delicately demanding contact with green.

Mal glanced around a few more seconds, her shoulders slumped forward more than usual with the added weight that came from every judging, cautious stare. She simply shook her head in response, but it didn't take her long to realize that Carlos wouldn't let up until she spoke.

"I still don't even understand what we're doing," Mal explained, trying her best not to look at those bustling around them – trying her best not to listen to the words spoken through eyes.

"We're Christmas shopping!" Carlos exclaimed as he held up the full shopping bag in his right hand, seemingly ecstatic about the idea. "Christmas is coming up, and you need to get presents for your friends."

Friends. That was a word Mal still failed to understand in plural. "I don't…"

"Shut up," Carlos interrupted her, seeming to know what was going through her mind. He reached up to slide his arm around Mal's shoulders. "Evie's already bought you several things, so it's probably best you buy her something as well. I'll give you the money if that's the issue, but Christmas is a day of celebrating those around you by giving them gifts to show how much you care."

"Why would Evie buy me something?" Mal questioned, eyebrows knitting together.

"Because she cares, you doof," Carlos' smile never faded as his fingers curled for a better hold on her, his grip pulling her closer. "Here, this is the store that's always a safe bet when shopping for Evie. She's the next person I need to shop for anyway, so maybe we can match our presents."

Mal arched her eyebrow in question.

"You know, I get her something and you get her the thing that goes with it," Carlos explained, and Mal figured she must have looked utterly bewildered because he ended up stepping forward to grab something. "See, if I buy this book of clothing designs, you can buy her the fabric necessary to make one of the patterns."

"Oh," was all Mal said in response.

Carlos released a heavy breath. "You've never heard of Christmas, have you?"

"Nope," Mal answered honestly, eyes scanning the items displayed in the store; anything to avoid the look she knew would be present in Carlos' eyes.

"That's okay," Carlos said nonchalantly, surprising her. "You'll figure it out soon enough. Maybe I'll let Evie explain it to you."

Mal wondered if that was a good idea, or a terrible one. She had spent the last few days obsessing over Evie's schedule, attempting to figure out the exact times she would be in school so that she knew when she would be back to spend time with her; and it had only occurred to her this morning that she was practically turning into a desperate stalker. Having figured this out, she had eagerly asked to join Carlos in order to get away from Evie, now completely terrified of the girl. She was terrified of everything Evie did, of everything she thought, of everything she said. When it really came down to it, Mal knew that she would despise someone's desperation to be with her, and so she decided it couldn't be much different with Evie. The only difference is that Evie is more kind than her, therefore she wouldn't willingly tell someone to leave her alone. One part of her – the piece that had readily told Evie she needed her – wanted to believe the lies that spilled from the blue-haired girl's mouth, but the larger part always swooped down on her to reveal the truth. Again and again she spun in circles, wishing for one thing, but only seeing the opposite.

This didn't happen when she was with Carlos.

There was no dizzying movement, there was no confusion, no desperation. She didn't need to wish for anything because she already had what she wanted with him, and the only thing she ever found herself wishing for involving the boy was that everything was as simple as it was with Carlos. She didn't know what it was, but not even the dark smoke coating her mind could question it. Carlos was her friend, she understood that.

"What were relationships like where you grew up?"

Mal startled at the sound of his voice, turning to face him as he approached her, another bag hanging from his wrist; probably Evie's present. She reached up to fix the long collar of her leather jacket. "Relationships?"

Carlos lifted his hand to gesture to something behind her, and when she turned around she found several pairs relaxing into each other's bodies with bright smiles, their mouths locking together more often than Mal felt necessary. Turning back to the boy, she realized her face was scrunched in disgust by the sound of his laugh erupting through the large store, and she couldn't help but allow the corners of her mouth to quirk with her own amusement.
"What's so funny?" Mal questioned despite knowing exactly why he was laughing.

"Nothing," Carlos replied, eyes still bright as he shrugged his shoulders. "Your obvious disgust for couples is just amusing to me," he shook his head in amusement before silently suggesting they move further down the street by cocking his head in that direction. "Anyway, back to the point now that you understand what I mean. What were they like?"

Mal thought about it for a moment as they walked, rolling the inside of her bottom lip between her teeth. "Um… I don't think it was really relationships as much as it was gang activity."

Carlos snorted in laughter. "Dang, girl, where did you grow up?"

"I don't know," Mal answered honestly, the words slipping from her lips before she could even think about stopping them. She cleared her throat, avoiding his gaze. "I mean… I…" But she couldn't remember why she kept lying, couldn't remember why she kept hiding. "I didn't really grow up in a high-class area, and I don't know what happened around the areas where there was stability. I know only what was taught on the streets. And relationships weren't one of those things."

"So was this gang activity mostly between boys and girls? Or was there some between girls and girls, as well?"

Though she didn't know why they did, Carlos' words faltered Mal's steps and had her choking on her own spit from the sudden intake of breath she had pulled in. When she could finally lift her gaze to meet his she couldn't tell if he was worried, or amused.

"Excuse me? I'm not sure I understand what you're implying," Mal said once she had remembered the proper way to breathe.

"Well, you see, those couples I showed you back there were made of one boy and one girl," Carlos began, pointing his thumb over his shoulder. "However, there are other options. Just think of Evie."

"I'm not sure how that helps," Mal shook her head, though she found herself unable to keep the girl's beautiful face from appearing behind her eyelids whenever she blinked.

There was a playful – almost evil – glint in Carlos' eyes when he looked at her now, and Mal felt the sudden urge to back away slowly, however, she was too curious to leave the conversation where it currently rested. She raised her eyebrows in a silent question, telling the boy to continue.

"I figured you would have figured it out by now," Carlos announced as his smile widened, the glint in his eyes only seeming to intensify.

"You're stringing me along here," Mal stated, not entirely sure why she was growing frustrated.

Carlos' smile only brightened as he shifted his eyes back in front of him. "Well, Evie is a girl."

"Thanks for that bit of information," Mal rolled her eyes, throwing her shoulder into his in annoyance. "I would have never figured that out on my own."

"Evie is a girl who prefers the company of women."

It took a moment for his meaning to sink in, but Mal felt her chest constricting tightly immediately after she realized what he meant. However, her surprise vanished quickly the second Carlos started laughing hysterically again, having only began after glancing at her briefly.

"What are you laughing about now?" Mal's eyes narrowed as she got the sudden feeling she should cover her face.

Carlos merely shrugged, and she hated him for it.

They didn't say anything more as they continued down the crowded street, and Mal found it difficult to return to being unsettled by the stares she received with her mind becoming overwhelmed by the information Carlos had revealed to her. She couldn't help but wonder if he had purposefully meant to focus her thoughts on Evie by bringing up the topic in the first place, like he had intended to bring the conversation's path this way from the beginning by asking about relationships. It made her question whether there was more for her to find between the lines.

But despite this feeling she couldn't defiantly think of something else; Evie was here to stay in her mind. Evie is a girl who prefers the company of women. With the chosen words she wasn't entirely sure what he meant, but she had a pretty good idea, she just didn't understand why it made Evie different. Do girls usually prefer boys? She didn't have the slightest clue about anything when it came to relationships, but she wasn't convinced Evie preferring girls over boys made her strange; in fact, she herself found girls more pleasing in appearance, having never been slapped speechless by a boy's looks. She didn't know if that meant she was like Evie, and quite frankly she didn't care; she would never get involved with someone in that way.

Her thoughts only reared away from Evie when something on display in the shop to her right caught her undivided attention, and before she even knew what she was doing her legs were carrying her to the shop and away from Carlos. Coming to a stop in front of the window, she tilted her head to the side in wonder as she slid her gaze over the decorated tourney stick presented in the largest window display case. This must be a sports shop, she thought as she took in the items that surrounded the one that had snatched her attention.

Something lightly bumping the back of her arm caused her gaze to tear from the tourney stick in order to find Carlos, the boy having made his way next to her without her noticing until their contact. The first thing she noticed was the wide, slightly goofy grin gracing his features, the sight prompting an invisible force to tug lightly at the corners of her mouth.

"Get it for him," Carlos spoke first, light-brown eyes flickering to the decorated stick.

"We're not even friends, Carlos," Mal replied, though she couldn't help but wonder since her last run-in with the boy.

"That's not true," Carlos retorted without hesitation, hand sliding down her arm until her frozen fingers were wrapped in the warmth of his. "He misjudged you at first, he knows that, and he's trying. As long as you're willing to try as well."

"Try what?" Mal questioned, her eyebrow itching to lift in curiosity and confusion, but she held it in place to mask the emotions rolling through her.

"You know, the friendship thing," Carlos' voice held a hint of amusement, but Mal could still tell he felt uncomfortable in this kind of situation.

Instead of responding, Mal curled her fingers around the handle attached to the shop's door and pulled it open, tugging Carlos into the building with her since he seemed to refuse to let go of her hand in that moment. She remained unsure of the truth behind what was between her and Jay, but she had decided that progress couldn't be made with only one side trying to push forward, and so every ounce of hesitation dissipated as she made her way to the nearest worker.

(Evie)

"Babe, could you pass me that box over there?"

With one hand finishing the Christmas lights, Evie used her free one to gesture to the small box sitting at the leg of the table, not quite able to retrieve it herself due to her current mission. Lonnie nodded as she reached down to grab the box, moving closer to her and popping open the lid for easier access.

"Here you go," Lonnie smiled brightly at the tall tree. "It already looks beautiful."

"Only because the best are decorating it," Evie replied with a contained smirk, her gaze shifting between the girl beside her and the smaller girl on the other side of the tree helping with the lights.

"I'm still surprised we're even allowed to have our own trees in our rooms," Jane chirped delightedly, blue eyes shining with admiration and joy. "Especially one this big."

"Ben's a sweetie," Evie stated, plucking a blue ornament from the box to find a place to hang it. "He knows some people need maximum spirit to be happy."

"I can't believe it's already Christmas again," Lonnie sighed almost dreamily, choosing another decoration and beginning to help with the ornaments. "It feels like we were just celebrating the end of last year, and now a new year isn't even a month away."

"I hope it brings good for me," Jane said worriedly, always wary of the things that might happen to her.

"It will," Lonnie reassured the younger girl, reaching over to comfortingly rub her shoulder, a genuine smile present on her face. "The new year will be great for all of us."

Evie rolled her eyes playfully. "Can we just focus of Christmas first, you two? Because in case you haven't noticed, winter break hasn't even started."

The two other girls gave her different looks in return; Lonnie's letting her know she wasn't amused and Jane's full of worry – as it always was. Evie couldn't hold in her laughter as she pushed to her toes to place the top piece on the tip of the tree, her laughter fading into a radiant smile as she took a few steps back to thoroughly admire the finished tree.

Not even a second into admiring the decorations an unexpected – and extremely welcome – warmth washed over her body and she shut her eyes, inhaling deeply in content as the sound of the door opening suddenly reached her ears. She already knew who she would find as she turned to face the new arrivals, the smile on her face only managing to brighten at what she found herself witnessing. Mal and Carlos were both holding shopping bags that were completely stuffed with various items, however, that wasn't what made her heart skip several beats. She couldn't help but stare at the genuine smile gracing Mal's features, lighting up those breathtaking green eyes that had been dull too often this week, not even the usual anger managing to make its appearance.

This single smile represented so much.

It washed away every ounce of worry and pain Evie had felt ever since the girl's blackout. Mal was genuinely happy, and though Evie knew that would change at some point she had never felt happier for the girl, the glint in her light-green eyes presenting the progress that had already been made, the progress toward love and acceptance.

They were only small steps, but that was everything Mal needed, even if she didn't recognize it.