The windows of Grace Church shined so bright, they cast large pockets of light into the main square of Holly Oaks. Tallie's boots clicked against the old stone ground as she crossed the square, pulling her coat tighter. The large wooden doors to the church were closed, but they couldn't stop the music and jolly voices from seeping out into the cold night air. The view the windows offered showed a large crowd had already gathered with children dashing around.

Tallie was almost to the wooden doors when a delicate white flake floated down in front of her. She looked up hopeful, but there were only a few flurries. The first snow of the year hadn't arrived yet and the anticipation was growing throughout the town.

It had been a white Christmas for the last eighty years, and everyone expected it to be the same this year. But with no hint of snow in the forecast only six days before Christmas, the town was preparing for the worst. She stood for a moment, watching the few, teasing flakes fall to the ground and instantly disappear. She took in a deep breath and smiled, snow or no snow, she loved Christmas time.

As she pushed opened the large wooden door to the church, the outdoor chill was replaced with the inviting warmth and sweet smell of the room. Christmas music danced through the air, barely audible above the warm ring of voices.

Tallie shrugged out of her coat as she looked around at the transformed room. When she had left it less than an hour ago, the large tables running along the wall had been empty and despite the cheery red table-clothes and poinsettias and holly, the room had felt staged. But now it was alive with people filling every space and the tables were covered with every type of cookie imaginable.

Tallie moved towards the coat rack but she was stopped when someone stepped into her path. "I'll take care of that," an older gentleman said, gently taking her coat from her hands. His smile was kind and his eyes sparkled like the lights on the main square. "You've done enough today. Enjoy yourself"

"Thanks, Ben," Tallie said, giving his arm an affectionate squeeze. As Ben moved away a middle-aged woman took his place.

"There you are Natalie," she said, her light brown hair a cloud around her round face. "We were wondering where you had disappeared to. You did a wonderful job." The woman was a part of a larger group and they pulled Tallie in to join them.

"Thank you, Mrs. Hollis," Tallie said.

"The room is beautiful darling," another member of the group said.

"We have always been so spoiled having your mama direct the church's annual Christmas Cookie Exchange, but I think you have even outdone her," Mrs. Hollis continued.

Tallie smiled graciously. "Don't let my mama hear you say that." She jokingly looked around to make sure her mother wasn't within earshot.

"Are they here tonight?" Mrs. Hollis asked.

Tallie's smiled dropped the slightest as she shook her head. "They couldn't make it tonight. But I promised to bring them home cookies."

The whole group collectively nodded in sympathy. "Well, you tell your parents they were missed tonight," Mrs. Hollis said.

"I will," Tallie assured her. "And speaking of bringing them cookies, I should get to the tables before all the good ones disappear." She turned to a woman across the way with long dark hair. "Where did you put your cookies, Mrs. Joseph? If I don't bring them home, I might as well not go home at all."

Everyone in the group laughed as Mrs. Joseph pointed towards the far table.

"Better be quick," Mrs. Hollis said. "Ann Joseph outdid herself this year and they are going quick."

Tallie smiled gratefully and moved through the group towards the table, but Mrs. Joseph grabbed her arm gently to stop her. "If the plate is empty, ask in the kitchen," Mrs. Joseph whispered to Tallie. "They saved half of my batch to bring out later."

"Thanks for the tip," Tallie said. The move wasn't a surprise. Mrs. Joseph's cookies had been the most sought after ones for the last ten years. Last year, the popularity had reached an all-time high with all the cookies disappearing from the plate within half an hour.

Tallie moved through the crowd slowly, stopping every few feet to greet familiar faces. A group of children ran past her, calling out "Merry Christmas Miss Tallie," without ever slowing.

"Merry Christmas" she called back, but they had already disappeared into the crowd.

A few steps away from the table she noticed a tall figure in black. The dark-colored clothes stood out like a sore thumb among the bright, cheery red and green Christmas sweaters. The guy shifted as he looked at the cookies, giving Tallie a view of his profile and she smiled in surprise.

"Case!?!" she said in disbelief. The guy turned at the sound of his name. Years had changed his features from a teenage boy into a grown man, but they were still familiar to her.

"Wow. I haven't heard that name in a long time," he said. A friendly smile spread across his face and he looked even more like the Case she knew. "Tallie Nolan."

"You haven't heard your name?" she questioned laughingly, taking the last few steps towards him.

"I go by my middle name now. For work," he clarified.

"William?" She remembered. He nodded. "William," she said again, trying it out. "That's also a nice name, although I don't think Tallie and William have the same ring as Tallie and Case."

He grinned at the mention of their high school band name. "At least with William, there is some logic to putting your name first. It really should have been Case and Tallie."

"It's all about the sound," she insisted, easily picking up their age-old fight. "Tallie and Case could be the greatest band in the world. Case and Tallie sounds like the name of a law firm."

They grinned at how quickly it felt like they were back in high school, having the same argument for the thousandth time. "It's so good to see you! It's been..." she thought about it but after a moment realized she wasn't sure how long it had been. "It's been a minute."

"I think it's been more than just a minute," he teased. "It's good to see you too!"

She stared at him in disbelief. She hadn't seen Case since they were Sophomores in college, home for the holidays. In the two years since he had changed so much. The tall, skinny teenager who had spent so much of their high school years at her house, was still tall but he had filled out. He was wearing a suit, but Tallie had never seen him in anything other than jeans, t-shirts, and hoodies. But it was reassuring to see his smile hadn't changed.

"Home for the holidays," she said. It wasn't a question. People who left Holly Oaks usually only ever returned to celebrate the holidays. She was the exception.

"I got here half an hour ago, hence the suit," he motioned to his formal attire. "I didn't have enough time to stop by home to change before the Cookie Exchange began, and I didn't want to risk missing Mrs. Joseph's cookies. Speaking of..." He turned back to the table and grabbed two cookies off an almost empty plate. He handed her one and took a bite of the other. "Now, it's Christmas," he sighed, a happy grin spreading over his face.

Tallie laughed as she took a bite of her cookie. It was a warm, rich combination of sweet flavors and she agreed, it did taste like Christmas.

"Mrs. Joseph will be pleased to hear your dedication to her baked goods is still strong." She grabbed another cookie for her parents and wrapped it in a napkin.

"I think it's grown stronger," he said through a mouthful of cookie. "I missed the cookies last year, and it's true about distance making the heart grow fonder."

"You missed good cookies last year."

"Don't tell me that. It's not my fault my sister decided to have a baby and we had to celebrate Christmas in Arizona."

Tallie laughed and remembered how Case's whole family had gone to Arizona to celebrate Christmas with the first grandchild. His mother had been showing the whole town baby pictures ever since. "Is this your first time home in three years?" she asked.

"Two, and I forgot what a pain it is to get here."

She laughed, the complaint was so common it had become a local joke. The closest airport was three hours away and even flights to the airport were limited. "Well," she shrugged, "that's Holly Oaks for you."

"It is," he agreed with the same humor. His smile warmed as he gazed around the room and Tallie did the same.

This was also Holly Oaks. A room filled with friendly faces who had known them their whole lives. People who didn't think twice about helping out when hard times hit. People who were almost as quick at sharing a meal as they were with a smile.

Tallie turned back to Case, a part of her Holly Oaks life that had been missing the last two years. The birth of his niece had kept him away last year, and the year before that, the birth of Tallie's nephew Wesley had her whole family celebrating Christmas in Georgia with her sister and brother-in-law.

"It is good to see you," she said.

He smiled in agreement and wrapped an arm around her shoulders, giving her a friendly squeeze. "Same. But I also missed the cookies. Shall we?"

She laughed as he motioned to the tables. Together, they moved along the table, stacking cookies on plates. They only grabbed one of each cookie for them to share, which allowed them to try every type without wanting to throw-up by the end of the night, a technique they had figured out in high school.

But they only made it through the first table before they were split up. Someone stopped Case to say hello while someone else complimented Tallie for her work on the Cookie Exchange. Then someone needed to know where the extra paper cups were and as Tallie led the way to the kitchen, Case's mom pulled him over into a group of her friends for him to say hi to.

It wasn't until most of the cookie plates were empty that Tallie had a moment to look around for Case. The room was still crowded, but everyone had settled into groups and the children had disappeared outside to play kickball in the parking lot. Tallie found Case at a back table by himself with a plate of cookies. She snatched the last snicker-doodle from a plate and headed towards him.

"Mind if I join you?" she asked.

"Please do," he said, sliding the plate of cookies towards her. "I have to pace myself with the home-baked goods or I won't be able to fit into my suit come New Years."

She laughed and gladly took a cookie off his plate. She took half and offered him the other half. "So, is the whole town caught up on the last two years of your life?"

All college students returning to Holly Oaks for the holidays always joked they endured police-like interrogations. But the joking was always lighthearted. No one could really get annoyed, it was just part of growing up in Holly Oaks. Everyone had known everyone their whole lives, and everyone was invested in each other. A win for one was a win for all.

"They are and I did most of the telling!" Case said. "Usually, my mom has kept everyone updated, but it seems that since my niece came along, all my accomplishments aren't important enough to share."

"Tragic!" Tallie joked, putting her hand over her heart in mock sympathy. "You had to give your own updates." He nodded in solemn agreement.

"Do you have enough patience to share those updates one more time?" she asked. "Because I only know that your niece Janie took her first steps last week."

He shook his head in frustration. "No one tells you these are the burdens you must bear when a grandchild kicks you out of your role as baby of the family. But for you..." he grinned at her, "I am willing to repeat the updates."

"I appreciate that," she smiled. "How's Michigan State?"

He shook his head. "I transferred last year. I'm at NYU now."

"That's right." As soon as he said it, she remembered hearing about the transfer. The whole town had heard about the surprising news. Case came from a very long line of Michigan State graduates and it hadn't been a question about what college he would attend.

When Tallie and everyone in their class had been stressing over which colleges to apply to their senior year, Case had already been 'conditionally accepted' to Michigan. They wouldn't make it official until they sent out the early acceptance letters, but there wasn't anything for him to worry about when his great-grandfather's name was on the side of the school's building.

It was an odd reminder of how much her path had diverged from her classmates. If the transfer had happened a year earlier, Case would have been the one who had told her, not his mom. She would still be at school in Boston and they would have trained back and forth to visit each other and explore their respective cities. Instead, his transfer had been filed away into the non-essential information in her brain.

She shook off the odd feeling she had hit countless times in the last two years and focused on Case. "New York! That's exciting. Is it as spectacular as we always dreamed it to be?"

A fond smile slipped onto his face. "It is spectacular! And I love NYU, which helps make breaking my parent's hearts over leaving Michigan State a little easier." They both looked over at his parents. His mom was showing off something on her phone and they looked back at each other and smiled.

"Curse that Janie," Tallie said under her breath.

Case shook his head. "It's because she is so darn cute."

"And she will graduate from Michigan," Tallie added.

"Probably." They both laughed and it felt as if the last few years disappeared, and they had slipped back into being Tallie and Case.

"So NYU?" Tallie said.

"Right?" He shook his head like he still couldn't believe he was going there. "It took me by surprise but once I started looking into law schools, it has a top program and incredible connections to top law firms."

"Wait. Law school?"

"Even weirder!" Case said and Tallie laughed as he embraced how odd it was that he was going to law school.

The version of Case she knew best only cared about playing guitar. He had picked one up at ten and hadn't ever put it down. He wore it on his back at school and played during lunch. She couldn't remember a conversation when he didn't have a guitar in his hands and most of the time they talked, he was absently plucking at the strings.

It had been the reason Tallie had even approached him their Freshman year. Over the summer she had started to learn guitar but her playing was limited and she could hear melodies for songs she was writing that were too advanced for her guitar playing. She had passed him the first week of school playing outside on a bench and she had sat down. They had formed their band Tallie and Case by Christmas of their freshman year.

She was the driving force behind the collaboration. Case had been happy to work with her on music but had been reluctant to do any sort of performing. But she had slowly worn him down until he agreed to perform one song during their church's Christmas Eve Service. From then on they were Tallie and Case, performing at any opportunity Tallie could fine for them.

"Law school," she said again, the idea bouncing around in her head, trying to find a spot to land among all that she knew about him.

He grinned. "My parents gave me the same look. But..." he shrugged, "I got to Michigan State and would you believe it but there is a whole world out there of people who have different interests.
And it turns out I'm good a debate. Probably because I spent my high school career arguing with you about our band name."

She grinned.

"After that, I realized that there were so many different opportunities out there that I had never even considered. You know how it was growing up here," he motioned to the room around them.

Tallie did know. Everyone ended up liking the same things, listening to the same music, and watching the same shows because that was what everyone in your world was doing. It wasn't until you left Holly Oaks, that you understood how small of a world it was.

"So debate led to law?"

"Who likes to argue more than lawyers?" They both laughed.

"Wow! You're a hot-shot New York lawyer," she said.

"Well, not yet. I have to graduate this spring and then take the bar exam."

"Wow," she repeated, her mind beginning to turn at the thought of him graduating. Did that mean she should be graduating too? Or did law school take longer? Should she have already graduated?

"What about you?" Case asked, cutting off her mental calculation. "How's Boston and Berklee? When is the first Tallie album dropping?"

She laughed and had to work to keep it from sounding panicked. "Boston..." she stalled. Her eyes quickly roved over the room and her mind raced for something to say.

"It is..." she started, and finished with a sigh of relief as she caught sight of Ben exiting the church kitchen. She waved to keep his attention and turned back to Case.

"Sorry, I need to ask Ben something," she said. Before she rushed away, she met Case's warm brown eyes and paused. Now that he was there, she realized for the first time in almost two years how much she had missed him.

"I'm so glad you're back," she said, giving his arm a friendly squeeze.

"Me too," he agreed. "It wouldn't feel like the holidays without Holly Oaks."

————————————————————
Let the holiday cheer begin!
So we begin the journey with Tallie and Case.

What's going to happen?

My guess is an asteroid will hit before Christmas
Just kidding 😉
I promise not to do that

See you in the next chapter!