
chapter twenty-two | the one where she ends it
• C H A P T E R T W E N T Y - T W O •
the one where
she ends it
Allen and Veronica were stuck outside the Lodge tower with bags filled with snacks and a bottle of wine. The electronic doors were shut because of the power cut and they had no other way of getting in. Veronica was pacing inside the alley they ran in to hide, her injury starting to cramp because of the cold but she was adamant to ignore it.
"I've got it." She halted and Allen gave her a side-eye. It wasn't the first time she uttered those words in the last five minutes.
She so hasn't got it.
"What?" He asked flatly.
"We go to a hospital!"
"No."
She huffed. "Why not?"
"It's the same situation in hospitals, Veronica. The power is out in the entire city."
"Fine. We call it plan B. What's your idea?"
"I'm thinking we call one of the guys, have them climb down the fire escape to push the ladder so we can climb up."
Veronica faltered and crossed her arms against her chest, avoiding his gaze. Her shoulder slugged. "Ugh. Ok. that's a way better idea," she said as she took out her phone. "I'll call Chlo."
"Already texted her."
She threw her arms in exasperation. "Then why waste my time coming up with a plan?"
"The service is slow, I was waiting for her reply. Besides you were too excited." He offered innocently.
She rolled her eyes at his attempt to make her flustered. "Bullshit. You don't trust my planning skills, admit it."
"Honestly, I stopped listening to you after you suggested breaking windows."
"Windows are easily breakable in the cold!"
"And what do you plan to do when snow piles inside?"
"Already thought of that but I figured it wouldn't be our problem!"
"Alright. Common ground, call it plan F." He started walking again.
"Then what are plans C, D, and E?" She tested, her voice loud so he could hear her through the whistling wind.
"Plan A, plan A, plan A."
Ethan twisted the doorknob without warning as usual and stepped aside for Natasha to get in.
"Hey, guys." He walked right behind her, a frown morphing his features when he noticed only Bilal and Danielle were lounging on couches. "Where's the rest?"
"Ron and Allen are stuck outside and Hitler's in her bedroom," Danielle answered, "Obviously not cooking in there!" She yelled out the last part, her stomach grumbling.
Both had their heads down, staring at their phones and hadn't noticed Natasha was there too, until she greeted them shyly, "Hi, guys..."
They shot their heads up. Bilal blinked. Danielle gaped with no regard to social cues. It took her three seconds to snap out of the daze of seeing Natasha and Ethan stand next to one another and the first thing she thought about was how much she was dying to tell Chloe and Veronica.
"Uh, I, uh-" She stammered, blinking an unhealthy amount of time. Bilal shot her a look and he rolled his eyes.
"Hey, Nat." He greeted before Danielle made the situation even more awkward, pinching her in the elbow so she could focus. She jumped off the couch and adjusted her clothing, her brain was going: Must. Scream. Now. And it took Bilal every fiber in his body to not smack her in the back of her head.
"Hey, Nat!" She repeated, her voice a high pitch that made Ethan want to strangle her to death. "Felis Navidad!"
Ethan was horrified. Oh, God. She was blabbering now. Bilal wanted to laugh. Natasha lightly frowned.
"Uhm... Merry Christmas to you too."
"Love your dress! So festive. You brought dessert - you didn't have to! Are you spending Christmas with us? Of course, you are - no offense, but why else ever come with Ethan-"
"Where's Chlo?" Ethan cut in before she could make it even worse.
Bilal shrugged. "She went to her room, I guess."
"She better get out soon," started Danielle and faced the hallway so she could yell again, "Cause the food's not gonna cook itself!"
Chloe rolled her eyes at the sound of her sister's annoying impatience, rubbing her ear soothingly after she accidentally scratched it and placing her phone against it, the cool screen easing out the swelling.
"I see you finally came back to your senses." It was the first thing Aiden said when he picked up the phone and Chloe shook her head. If she had doubts before, she certainly was sure now.
Do it. Do it. Do it. Her brain kept screaming.
"Are you doing okay? With the blackout and all." Coward, she hissed to herself. Aiden laughed and she felt her throat clog.
Was she making a mistake? Was it really worth it? She couldn't just end it so suddenly - there was no valid reason for it.
"I'm at my parents'. Had to spend Christmas somewhere since you were being so hostile these past few days." Her heart was tight. Was he going to apologize, ever? "I bet you threw all the flowers I got you in the trash." He joked but the bitterness in his tone was evident.
"You brought every species of flower I hate," she answered distractedly, her eyes skipping to the orchid on the window shelf. How many guesses would it have taken him to figure out these were her favorites? He'd been in her room too many times to count. Was he even paying attention?
"Flowers are flowers. What's the difference? They're supposed to be a symbol of how sorry I am. You know I'd never bail on you on purpose unless I had a reason. You know. Calvin's been on my back for days and he'd been threatening to fire me. Fire. I could've lost my job, Chlo."
"You could've told me. I could've rescheduled."
"I didn't want to upset you! I thought I'd be able to make it on time, if you waited for me just a few more minutes - I would've. I got there and you were nowhere to be seen, you didn't answer your phone, not even my texts!"
This is wrong. This is wrong.
"Chlo, this whole thing could've been solved in under a minute if you were just open to talk." You know it's wrong. No. No. Veronica and Danielle's voices echoed inside her brain. He's guilt-tripping you, Chloe. You have to SEE it - HEAR it.
Wake. the fuck. up.
"That's what you always do. You think you're always right. That we're all supposed to be perfect." He's shifting the goddamn blame.
"I bet it was more about you feeling humiliated in front of people than about me. You don't seem to even care to know why I was late!" Victimizing himself.
"Chloe, can you not see just how this black and white thinking of yours affects me? Do you ever consider my feelings?" It's not true. IT'S NOT TRUE.
"I'm sorry you're constantly focused on what people think about you but it's about us. It's us. Not-"
"I want to break up."
It finally, finally slipped out of her tongue, the steely determination in her tone bringing Aiden's rant to a sudden halt.
Five seconds later and she heard a snort on the other line. "Don't be ridiculous."
A parade of trumpets holding a 'BIG OL RED FLAG' sign resounded inside her brain (1).
"Aiden," she started slowly again. "I'm done."
He sneered. "That's what we always say but it never works."
"I know." Her voice was soft, defeated. She was tired of fighting. Not just him - everything. "But I mean it. I'm not saying this out of spite," she added when she felt him about to snarl. "I'm not saying this because I'm mad at you. I'm just done. We're hurting each other more than we're making each other happy. It shouldn't be that way, no? We tried and it didn't work. It's not anyone's fault, we're just not made for each other."
There was a long silence and Chloe waited patiently. They shouldn't be throwing the blame, because pointing fingers wasn't going to get them anywhere. They simply weren't a fit. She understood that now.
The rhythm of their relationship was like a piece played on the violin; the notes would start soft and suddenly grow angrier, and back again - the constant fluctuation would render the strings brittle and eventually would cause them to break.
She had replaced so many strings and it was about time to realize that putting a band-aid on a bullet wound was futile.
"Fine. Whatever." He wasn't taking her seriously. Not one bit. And she wondered just how many more red flags had been alarmingly flapping around her and she had looked right past them.
She looked down at his sweater. She felt her throat clog - was it relief? grief? She didn't know yet.
"There are a few things you left at my place. I'll give them to you when the weather clears."
"Alright."
"Okay, then."
There was a pause. She couldn't believe that almost five years ago she'd been head over heels for him. But it wasn't him anymore. She was clinging to a memory of him, the one she had back when things were simple when she didn't know much about him and she could fill the gaps with whatever suited her. They fell apart when they were done masquerading around and they finally got to see what truly lied beneath.
Chloe had always ridiculed Veronica's fear of opening up to someone and be disappointed, but she now understood just how deeply terrifying it was. Veronica feared being vulnerable with a person only for them to pry at her insecurities every chance they got, for them to lure her to trust them and drop all her weapons only to realize they buried one to hurt her in her weakest moment. Chloe feared the realization that the entire relationship was tainted.
That it wasn't real, and one was only in love with an idea.
It was disappointing,
It was liberating,
And she hung up.
Veronica and Allen have kept each other busy with random conversation as more thoughts popped up in Veronica's head. When they finally arrived, they found a spot to sit where the snow hadn't reached yet, behind the dumpster, under a shelter.
"We've got snacks to pass the time." She shrugged.
"And a frozen bottle of wine."
"This is how soldiers drank it," she said as she rounded the large bin, taking a seat on the pile of snow.
"Did soldiers drink it hiding behind a dumpster?" He tested as he sat by her side, placing the bags between them and taking out the bottle of wine.
"Hey." She shot him a look, patting the heavy metal and almost flinching at how cold it was. "It's protecting us." She watched Allen try to pull the cork and they both blinked down at the failed attempts. "Damn..."
"Let's see what else freezes," Allen said with genuine interest as he rummaged through the bag.
Veronica took the bottle from him and examined it. After a second, she slipped it inside her coat and hugged it, a violent shiver running through her body at the contact. Allen arched an eyebrow and she met his straight face with a shrug.
"I once read skin conducts heat better than clothes," she explained, pulling her knees to her chest to keep herself warm. The sudden rush of ice made her arm ache. The bone felt like it was freezing through her skin. Ignore. Ignore. Ignore. She cleared her throat, wiping the wince off her face before Allen could see it, thinking of anything else to say to distract herself from the pain. "That's why getting naked together keeps people warm."
OK, she internally slapped herself, way to fucking go.
Allen snorted, and he looked back down to fish out a bag of chips. "I'm not getting naked with you."
Veronica's eyes rolled. "One: I was just stating interesting trivia," she rasped. She felt her heart pulse across her wound. She started regretting this entire fiasco. "Two: ouch?"
Allen opened the bag and peeked at her through his lashes. His eyes were vibrant, and his smile lopsided, making her heart melt. "Okay. One: interesting, and two: it's no insult. Trust me." He flicked her nose, and her heart fluttered. She blushed, turning to look away.
He took out a solid chip, flipping it around, and tried to take a bite. "It's like eating ice chips. Why do they even give it to pregnant women?"
Veronica's teeth were knocking together, and she was rocking back and forth to get the least bit amount of friction. "They can't have any fluids or food. Probably because of the anesthesia, but I'm not sure if that's the case if they're conceiving naturally."
Allen stared at her with mild amusement, and she stammered. "I asked dad once... couldn't get the logic."
He almost forgot both her parents were doctors, but it made him smile nonetheless. "Interesting." He offered the bag to her. "Try it. Tastes like vinegar ice cream."
She moved her arm a little too fast, a sudden explosive numbness sprawling across her wound and chilling her bone. She hissed, a tight yelp escaping her lips as she pulled her arm closer to her frame, dropping her head on her knees.
"Hey, hey." Allen carefully placed a hand on her shoulder. "What's wrong? What happened?"
"Uh..." She was breathless, scrambling to compose herself. "I'm good. Just a small twinge, that's all." She was holding her breath as she waited for the pain to subside, counting in her head with the reassuring thought that it could've been worse, but it's not.
It could've been worse - but it's not.
Allen was quick to react the moment he understood just how the weather was affecting her injury. He took his coat off and wrapped it around her, pulling her to his chest as he leaned back against the brick wall. Veronica felt him in every fiber in her body, and her eyes involuntarily fluttered closed as she exhaled in relief.
"Thank you," she mumbled, her nose nuzzled in his neck, both their skin heating at the contact.
"Are you okay?" He asked, his arms draped around her under the thickness of his jacket, rubbing soothing circles on her back while her arm, sitting between them, throbbed gentler now. She nodded, the movement tickling his neck, and he shivered.
"Yeah."
"Y'know, if you get easily cold, you can throw your plan to live in Alaska down the gutter."
Veronica laughed, her breath warm against him. He dipped his head down and buried his nose in her hair. "Call me nuts, but I like it here," she said. "I'm having fun."
His features relaxed, lips grazing the top of her head. "You're in pain."
"You're keeping me warm." He laughed, and the sound tattooed itself on her heart. She was quiet for a second before she spoke again, "I never got to know your happy place."
He sighed deeply. "You'll make fun of it." She clucked her tongue, offended, and lightly slapped his chest.
"I would never."
He chuckled, pulling her tight. "Your front porch."
He was right. She could have easily laughed at it because quoting him, of all the places in the world and he chose her front porch? But she couldn't laugh. She grew wired, the sudden spasm of her lungs sending her pulse to the roof.
"Why?" She rasped, trying to remove any hint of defensiveness out of her tone. Allen tightened his grip, mistaking her tension with chilliness.
He shrugged. "It's really peaceful there. Especially at night. I loved spending nights there." She knew. She remembered because back when she was unable to control her hormones (2), she'd watch him from her window, sometimes even sit by the ledge and read a comic while he almost fell asleep on the couch at the soothing sound of the waves. It sounded creepy, and she hated remembering those moments because of how recklessly infatuated she used to be.
She desperately needed to change the subject.
"You'd fall asleep sometimes." She couldn't help but note.
"I used to have a lot of sleep paralysis episodes. But never there."
"You have sleep paralysis?" Veronica frowned, looking up at him with concern.
"Sometimes. Definitely less than before. I think it's genetic because mom has them too. It doesn't always happen."
"This is scary..." she commented. "Do you hallucinate?"
Allen was answering her with nonchalance. He'd gotten used to it since he'd been having those episodes since he was a kid. It had terrified him for years, and still does to a certain extent - but it had been a while since the last time he experienced it. "Every time."
"Are all of them scary?"
He contemplated it for a second, his fingers absently twirled her curly strand from the tip, rolling it around his index. "Most of them are. It all feels too real. Spiders, flood, house burning down. Someone attacking me. Sometimes it's not so bad, like people hiding around the corner or sitting by the foot of the bed."
Veronica blinked. "Not so bad?" She arched an eyebrow and he shrugged, offering a small smile. "How do you wake yourself up from this?"
"I'm learning to control it. Sometimes it works, sometimes it doesn't. It's hard to explain..." He mumbled, his fingers absently reached for her cheek as he peeled a strand of her hair away from her face. Veronica's breath caught in her throat, her body buzzing with energy at the realization of how close they were. Her body froze, feeling she was held captive by his intense stare. Tension grew between them and brought the air still around them. He cleared his throat.
"So anyway. Excited for New Year's this year because of that."
Oh, great. She had to be reminded of that.
"I'm pretty sure you're the only one out of all five of us who's excited for New Year's."
"I noticed..." He tilted his head. "How about you spend it with my family next year?" He grinned, and Veronica mocked a gasp.
"And have my mother disown me?" Allen laughed, and Veronica smiled. She looked up and frowned. "We should've known it would take Dan an eternity to get here."
"The text is delivered, right?"
"Yes, a few minutes ago, though. So, we might be a while."
Allen hummed. "Any ideas to pass the time?"
"Hm... Twenty questions?"
He shrugged. "Sure. Only if you have good ones."
She slid her hand inside the layers of clothes to take out the bottle of wine, swaying it around and smiling as it started to liquify. "This is gonna be fun."
"I had no idea you knew how to cook..." Natasha teased, standing beside Ethan as he adjusted the oven. He shook his head, a smile pulling the corner of his lips.
"Only this bread because I love it."
Chloe had been in there a while, and Bilal took Ethan's keys so he could pass out on the couch. Danielle had been in her room, putting on layers and layers like she was a soldier going to battle while Allen and Veronica were minutes away from turning into another version of Jack Torrance's frozen body (3).
"But it looks like it's all we're going to eat... sorry about that." His lips pressed into a tight line and Natasha shook her head.
"Don't apologize." She almost scowled. "I'm not fond of Christmas dinners, anyways."
"How do you spend Christmas, then?" He was curious and couldn't stop himself from prying. Natasha traced the fingers of one of her hands using the other and shrugged.
"I perform at dinners."
"The piano?" He took a guess, and she nodded, tucking a strand of hair behind her ear. She was a little uncomfortable talking about herself; her nerves were taut, and it made her feel spent, but she was working to get past it.
"Yeah." She offered a half-shrug, feeling herself calm a little when she met his eyes, bright with interest. "I've been playing a while."
It was an underrated statement.
Natasha wasn't only a good pianist - she was brilliant. She'd been playing since she was barely seven and was fluent by now. Her father used to support her every time she performed on stage, but she never pursued it for a living until she came to the States.
She knew her competence, despite questioning the highs she reached because of the mean she used to achieve it. She tried not to stay calm at the triggering memory.
"I'd love to hear you play." The softness in his voice made a warm liquid pool in the pit of her stomach. She paused for a second before she recovered.
"Oh, well-" she was about to tell him about a recital she had at the beginning of January, but the sudden sound of rushed footsteps brought her to a screeching halt.
"Where is everybody?" Chloe demanded just as Danielle burst her door open, wearing a large puffer jacket with layers of clothes beneath, two thick gloves on top of each other, mountaineering boots, and a toque with ear flaps.
"I'm fucking ready." She was breathless, fast walking to the window like a penguin. "Wish me luck."
Chloe blinked. "I don't wanna know." She put her hand up and shook her head, shooting Ethan a look. "Where's Bilal? I told him to take care of the food."
"My place. Most likely asleep."
She groaned loudly. "I'm gonna kill him!" She rushed outside, and Ethan shook his head, Natasha's lips rolling inside her mouth as she knew it was none of her business but couldn't help recalling the time she caught them outside the building. She blinked it out of her mind.
Chloe twisted the doorknob and was about to yell the moment she stepped inside, adamant on witnessing him jump out of his sleep.
She momentarily stilled when she stepped in. Bilal was spread on the couch, eyes peeling open. He angled his head to look at her, and a smirk pulled at the corner of his lips. Chloe's eyes narrowed, and she crossed her arms against her chest.
"You look like you're going to kill me," he flatly stated, turning his head back ahead and closing his eyes again. "Which isn't out of the ordinary, but you usually hide it better."
She rolled her eyes. "That's not true." His eyebrows slid up and down sarcastically, and she refrained from snapping something else. It was almost six and she had nothing to show. "C'mon. Up." She clapped. "I need help in the kitchen. The food's not gonna cook itself, and we have nothing to eat-"
"Relax." He heaved a sigh and sat straight. "I ordered food."
Chloe blinked, frowning skeptically. "What?"
"I was trying to follow your recipes, but I didn't know what I'm doing. So, I ordered from the Italian restaurant downstairs."
She was feeling the relief swarm her nerves until he uttered the last two words. "What?" She blinked, eyes wide. "No. Cancel. That restaurant is ridiculously expensive!"
Bilal chuckled. "Then, you better eat every last bite. They'll be up in an hour." He stood and made his way to her. "Just a heads up, it's supposed to be someone else's order, but they had to cancel because they couldn't make it. I didn't pick the food but it seemed okay."
"Uh..." To her, it was a Christmas miracle, and she was rendered speechless. Just as he passed by her, she held him back with her hands firmly planted on his shoulder. She met his eyes squarely. "I'm not letting you pay for the entire thing."
His eyes skipped back and forth between hers for a second longer before he spoke again. "Okay. Your half will be one dollar."
"I'm dead serious."
"So am I."
She clucked her tongue. Chloe couldn't believe he was serious; he didn't even celebrate Christmas and yet he was paying for the whole feast. "This isn't even your holiday."
"Really?" He was enjoying this as she followed him outside to her apartment.
"Don't be an asshole," she huffed just as they got inside.
Ethan mock gasped. "Language."
She turned to shoot him a glare, her eyes faltering on Natasha. She frowned. "Nat? Hey." She blinked and Natasha laughed.
"You really just saw her?" Ethan shook his head.
"I was standing right here the whole time."
"I didn't see you, I'm sorry..."
"You were too busy plotting Bilal's murder," Ethan remarked. Bilal arched an amused eyebrow, pleased his point was proven, and Chloe rolled her eyes.
"Ugh. Go to Hell."
"There is no Hell," Bilal countered without a beat of hesitation.
"Don't say that," she warned. "I'm serious, Bilal, I'm not letting you pay for all of this." She wanted to add that he'd done enough. He already paid for her poor excuse of a dinner, took care of her more times than she was willing to count and she had done nothing to him in return except give him her boyfriend's - ex - sweater.
"Pay for what?" Ethan frowned.
"He ordered dinner from the restaurant downstairs and paid for all of it!" She exasperated.
"Oh, you mean the..." Natasha trailed as soon as she understood what Chloe had been hung up over. "Oh." Chloe pulled a face that meant see!
"Are you trying to steal my bread's thunder?" Ethan's eyes narrowed, putting his hands on his waist, offended. "Is that it?"
Bilal rolled his eyes. "Let it go."
But she couldn't. She needed to prove that she was grateful for everything he was doing - even though Bilal never once expected anything in return.
"What's your worst fear?" Veronica asked, looking down at the last bag of chips. It would barely open now that it froze entirely.
Allen heaved a silent sigh, brows itched together. "That's a question one can't find an answer to in a matter of seconds..." Veronica smiled, biting her lower lip thoughtfully. She took the bottle of wine from his hand and took a sip after him.
"I can walk you through it."
She felt him look down at her and so she tipped her chin up to meet his gaze. He looked at her like he was absorbing every word she was saying. She felt the heat prickle every inch of her skin.
"Before we go deep, tell me something that physically scares you."
"You mean like breaking my dick?"
Veronica burst out a laugh. "Oh, God!"
It was music to his ears, and he wanted to hear it again. "Your turn."
"That doesn't count!"
"Hey, that is a genuine fear. Imagine that happening."
"You're right." She bit her bottom lip, staring directly into his eyes. "We wouldn't want that."
He blinked, lips stretching coyly, at a loss of words. Veronica cleared her throat.
"Anyway... fear of heights."
"Now that is cliché. You're saying this is worse than a broken penis?"
"Fuck off-" She playfully shoved his chest- "Imagine falling and have your head smashed on concrete with blood leaking and pieces of your brains sticking out of your skull."
"I'll be too dead to notice." He angled his head to give her a look of pleasant surprise. "Though, that's a vivid imagination."
"You'd be surprised how vivid it really is," she teased, and Allen blinked.
"Is this foreplay?" He asked and Veronica laughed, her head falling on his shoulder. He smiled, looking down at her. "Cause it's working."
She bit her lip, gently smacking his arm. "Your turn." She inhaled the faint scent of his cologne, enjoying his warmth.
"Hmm," His tongue peeked to wet his lips thoughtfully, eyes narrowed in concentration. Veronica took the time to sneak a look at him, snapping her head back down when she heard him faintly gasp as an idea crossed his head.
"Okay. I tend to wake up in the middle of the night, and when that happens, I have to check that everyone's breathing."
Veronica blinked. "What?"
He shrugged. "I fear losing them when they're asleep... or when I'm asleep, and not be aware of it."
"Never thought about that..."
He softly hummed, picking a strand away from her eyes. "Your turn."
Veronica softly breathed against his neck, hand absent-mindedly picking at the tiny dots of cotton dusting his shirt.
"Not being interesting enough. Being easily forgotten..." She shrugged. "That kinda thing." He understood, opening his mouth to reply but was brought to a halt when she straightened so she could face him. "I have a question... it's a little personal."
He sealed his lips and nodded.
"How come your parents divorced?" She swallowed, wanting to dig deeper, wanting to rush the questions. Allen smiled, easing her discomfort.
"They drove each other insane. Dad tends to... disappear. Mom would lose her mind." He shrugged, taking the matter a little too lightly. Veronica frowned, the lump thick in her throat.
"Did he cheat?"
"No." He chuckled. "My dad doesn't cheat. He just has issues with commitment."
Veronica dismissed the last part, and her mind wandered. She felt her breath quicken and she looked down at her fingers as she played with his collar.
"Did you ever cheat?" Her voice was low, laced with a heavy veil of doubt.
"No. Never." He frowned and Veronica's heart climbed to her throat.
Her still silence made him tilt his head so he could get a closer look. "What?"
"Not even if you were drunk, and-" she shrugged- "unaware?"
"I always thought I do things when I'm drunk because I subconsciously want to do them. I wouldn't be with someone if I wanted someone else." His eyes met hers, face dropping at the sight of her distant ones. "What's with the specific question?" His eyebrows pulled together. The thought of Caleb cheating on her and using the excuse of being drunk crossed his mind.
It would explain a lot. Her distance, her trust and intimacy issues. But it wouldn't explain why she and Caleb were still on good terms.
She shrugged.
"Veronica-"
"Are you still alive? I'm coming!" Both their heads shot up to follow the loud shrill. "I'm coming so get ready cause it's fucking freezing!" Danielle was stumbling down the stairs. At some point she slipped and slid down the rest of the steps, screaming like she was at an amusement park. "Oh man, whew..." she puffed, arriving on the last floor and peeking at them as they hurried to stand.
"What took you so long!" Veronica yelled out and Danielle ushered at her clothes.
"Couldn't find my armor!" She pressed the ladder and pushed it down, the layers she had on making it a little hard to move and she was already sweating through her clothes. The scale dropped with a loud thud, the rust grinding against metal, and creating a loud squeaky sound.
"C'mon." Allen ushered at her to come closer to him, arms extended. Veronica frowned and he elaborated, "your arm. You can't pull yourself up." He was right, but she waved him off.
"Oh no, it's perfectly-" Allen rolled his eyes and didn't let her finish her sentence before he ducked, lifting her and pushing her tightly against him.
Veronica squealed in shock. "I'm too heavy! Put me down!"
"Push her to me," Danielle said, crouching down and extending her hands as Allen climbed the steps, too slow and too careful because of how slippery it was.
"Oh God, oh God..." Veronica breathed quietly in an attempt to not distract him as he focused on his steps, her heart racing against her chest as they rose from the ground. She looked up, struggling to not think about how high up they were, feeling nauseous even at the sight of barely two meters. She squeezed him. "Please be careful."
"I got you," he mumbled and tightening his grip on a step, pushing her up and Veronica reached for Danielle's arms.
"Okay, okay... hold a sec..." Danielle could only reach her upper hands. "Sorry, sorry-"
"It doesn't hurt, it's okay." Veronica was quick to reassure, wincing and holding back a yelp as Danielle pushed her up. Allen followed and all three breathed in relief, climbing the rest of the steps until they reached their floor, no longer cold and feeling like they were about to burst.
"You guys are just in time!" Chloe rushed to open the window and help them in. "The food just arrived."
The group helped her in pulling them inside, Veronica and Danielle already buzzing with energy at the sight of the candles surrounding the food, the smell so inviting their mouth watered and they didn't even wait for the rest as they sat down. Chloe watched with a wide smile as everyone settled, her heart growing ten times its size and she bit down her bottom lip, approaching to join. She took the empty seat next to Bilal, dipping her head so only he could hear.
"Thank you," she whispered, and he tilted his head to face her, offering a small smile.
"It's nothing," he assured, and she shook her head.
"It's something to me," she quietly insisted, and her smile broadened. He remained out of words at the sight of her hazel eyes, bright and vibrant, even when she turned back to look at her relatives fighting for the bread.
The table was buzzing with joyous energy, the laughter enough to brighten the entire city. The clacking of glass and sweet smiles echoed outside the troubling weather, filling their hearts and swarming the room with warmth.
It was a Merry Christmas, indeed.
____________________________________________
(1) About fucking time - but hey better late than never.
(2) Not that she's fully in control now.
(3) The Shining, 1980
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