CHAPTER 4:

Two days later, on the night of Christmas Eve, Leah was placing her gift for Tori under the tree. She wanted more than anything for Tori to come home for Christmas. But just as she was about to give up hope…

"I'm home!" Tori announced, coming in, carrying a lot of shopping bags in her hands.

"Tori! You're home!" Leah said, giving Tori a big hug.

"Just like I promised," Tori clarified. She put the bags down and booped Leah's nose with her finger.

"Well, I'm glad you made it; we're going to have the best next few weeks ever," Leah told Tori.

"So where is everyone?" Tori asked, looking around.

"Hmm, let's see. Trina is upstairs taking a shower, your dad is working out in the garage, and your mom went to the store for a few last-minute things for dinner tomorrow," Leah said.

"On Christmas Eve?" Tori asked.

"Yeah, she said she's willing to brave the craziness if it means the family gets to have their traditional Christmas dinner. She regrets not leaving earlier though, because the store closes in half an hour," Leah explained.

"Yeah, that's my mom." Tori laughed. "Always one last item to pick up. So what are you up to?"

"Watching some Christmas movies. Care to join me?" Leah asked.

"Sure," Tori said. "You're not watching 'It's a Wonderful Life' are you?"

"I'm staying away from that movie. It's so depressing," Leah explained.

"Probably a good move," Tori said. She and Leah got comfortable on the couch, and Leah popped in a DVD.

Leah updated her status on TheSlap which read: "Tori's back for Christmas! I never thought I'd miss her that much - MOOD = Overjoyed".

On Christmas morning, after the Vegas opened their gifts, Tori & Leah went out to go ice skating at a local indoor rink. Leah carried her own ice skates which were a gift from Tori.

It was crowded inside. They were quite surprised how much of a turnout there was, given the fact that it was Christmas Day. But it didn't matter, because they wanted to spend time together for the holidays.

"Have you ever done this before?" Tori asked.

"Once, but not since I was little," Leah said, making her way out onto the ice.

Leah was a little wobbly, but Tori caught her arm helping Leah steady herself. "Don't worry, I'm out of practice too," Tori told her. "If one of us falls, at least we can be bad at it together."

"Good to know." Leah laughed.

The girls made their way around the rink, not doing too badly so far. They managed to find their footing and ended up having a great time.

Leah updated her status on TheSlap which read: "Honing my ice skating skills! Hope I won't fall down - MOOD = Hopeful".

Later that day, Tori knocked on the door of the house where her fiance lived.
His grandmother answered. "I DON'T KNOW YOU!" Grandma Harris yelled.

As she attempted to close the door, Tori kept it open with her foot. "It's okay, Mrs. Harris; your grandson wanted you to have this," Tori explained.

"Andre bought me a gift?!" Grandma Harris asked.

"Yep. Merry Christmas!" Tori said.

"I ought to thank him later. Whatever this is," Grandma Harris said.

"Okay. Well, have a good day," Tori said as she left the house.

Later that evening, at the Vega house, the Vegas carved a big honeybaked ham for dinner. Once it was carved, they placed it at the center of the table, and everyone began to dig in. The family passed around vegetables, dinner rolls, and potatoes. Leah smiled, enjoying this day with her new family.

"Mom, you really outdid yourself this year," Tori said.

"It wasn't easy, but I made sure everything was here. I was scared they weren't going to have the rolls for a minute, but I was lucky enough to grab one of the last bags," Holly said.

"Well, everything is really good," Leah said.

"Why thank you, honey," Holly told her.

Meanwhile, Jade was waiting for her family to arrive back at her house. Maybe they could spend Christmas together properly. Perhaps not over a dinner - Jade wasn't a good cook at all - but maybe they would go out later if all went well. She was really hoping that Drew and her father, Frank, would both make it. She would have invited Beck over too, but he was spending time with his own family. And things would be complicated enough already, without adding another guest.

There was a knock on the door and Jade answered it. It was Valerie and their mom, Irene Romero.

"Right on time," Jade said as she moved aside to let them in. "Where's Drew?"

"He wasn't keen on coming," Valerie started. "So he didn't ride over with us. But I think he'll be here in a bit."

"As long as he shows up," Jade muttered.

Not long afterwards, there was another knock on the door. Jade answered it; it was her dad, Frank West. "Glad you could make it," she said, letting her father in.

"I have to admit, I was hesitant to come," Frank said.

"Well, I'm glad you did. I mean, I understand if you don't really want to see Mom after the divorce," Jade explained. "Or meet her new husband."

"Yeah, well, it's Christmas after all. So, as long as she keeps her cool, we can put our differences aside for today," Frank promised. "And I've met Drew before briefly; I think we can be civil."

"Good. Let's try to keep it that way," Jade said as she closed the door behind Frank.

Conversation had slowly begun to spark, but before long everyone ran out of things to talk about, and it died out.. Jade watched the clock, wondering if Drew was going to show up.
Thankfully, before long, there was another knock on the door. Jade answered it. The man on the doorstep was a stranger, but his features seemed very familiar..

"Sorry, I got caught in traffic," Drew explained.

"Drew," Irene said from the back of the room, standing up to greet him.

"You'd better come in," Jade said, stepping aside as he entered the house. "It's finally nice to meet you," she said, closing the door behind him.

"Drew," Frank nodded briefly.

Jade and Valerie exchanged glances.

"Hi Frank. It's been awhile," Drew said, nodding back.

"It has," Frank said. "Hopefully this won't be too awkward –?"

"Shouldn't be, Drew said politely. "We're all adults; I'm sure we can get along for the sake of the kids. Especially since it's Christmas."

It was a little bit awkward, Jade and Valerie's dads together in a social setting, especially with the girls' mother there. But as they went out for a nice Christmas dinner, they agreed to keep all conversations civil. The girls sat next to each other at the table, just in case, because they wanted to be assured that they had each other regardless.

Jade updated her status on TheSlap, which read: "Night went alright, I guess - MOOD = Alright".