Home for Christmas

An hour later, they lay in Shannon's bed together, tangled in sheets and each other basking in the afterglow.

"Did you really come to some of my college theater performances?" she asked him suddenly, breaking the peaceful silence that they'd created. He laughed lightly before answering.

"Yeah, a few. Like I said before, Jared made me stop coming. He threatened to tell you about it if I didn't stop because he thought it was so creepy," he told her, twirling a strand of her long red hair around two of his fingers.

"They were all awful," she said, making both of them laugh.

"They weren't that bad," he said, and she shook her head.

"Don't lie. They were so bad," she said, laughing as she let her head fall back onto his chest.

"They were pretty bad," he agreed hesitantly, making them both laugh again.

They'd been lying there for a while longer when they heard the front door of the house open. The sudden noise echoed through the otherwise silent house.

"Shan?" Jared's voice called up the stairs.

"Fuck," Zane whispered, causing Shannon to laugh.

"Just a sec!" Shannon called, and they could hear Jared start up the stairs and then stop.

"Do you have a fucking girl up there?" Jared asked, obviously annoyed.

"...Maybe!" Shannon called, tossing Zane his t-shirt as she pulled on her jeans. She slipped it over her head and smiled at him.

"Goddamn it Shannon!" Jared called, and Zane giggled. "I'm glad you think it's funny!" Jared called, causing her to giggle again. Finally fully dressed, she walked through the doorway of the room and around the corner so that she was in full view of the stairs. Jared's eyes met hers and then his mouth fell open in surprise.

"Hi, Jay," she said quietly, hearing Shannon come up behind her. He put a hand on the small of her back and she saw him wave wildly at his brother.

"Zane? Are you..? Did you..?" Jared questioned, seemingly not able to get all the words out.

"I love him. He loves me. Catch up," Zane joked, rolling her eyes dramatically.

"Really?" Jared asked, and she had to laugh at her best friend's confused face.

"Yup," Shannon said, pulling Zane closer and kissing her temple.

"I'm so telling your mom," Jared said to Zane, coming all the way up the stairs and pulling her into a hug. He hugged Shannon too and then smacked them both on the backs of their heads lightly. "Took you idiots long enough," he said, smiling at them.

"But really though, can you tell my parents for me? My dad's going to throw a fit," Zane joked as they made their way down the stairs.

"No fuckin' way. I would like a front-row seat, though," Jared told her, and she play-punched him in the shoulder.

"I'm not telling them either," Shannon said when she looked at him, laughing. "Your dad's always scared me a little."

"What makes you think he doesn't scare me?" she asked, and they both laughed at her. "Fuckin' Letos," she said, repeating a phrase that she was pretty sure was going to become a pretty big part of her daily vocabulary. She rolled her eyes and kissed Shannon once more.



A few hours later, she'd finally convinced Shannon to come to her parents' house with her. After all, Christmas was only a few days away and they needed to know before then. She figured they'd think it was pretty odd if she just showed up with Shannon on her arm with no prior explanation.

Jared left them and they got into Shannon's car. He started driving to her parents' house and she could tell that he was nervous.

"They're going to love you," she told him, taking his hand and squeezing it.

"They didn't used to."

"That's because you used to be a dick," she joked, and he shot her a glance that told her he didn't exactly think it was funny. "It's going to be fine, Shannon," she said, and he looked at her again like he wasn't sure if he should believe her.

They pulled into the driveway a while later and got out of the car. Zane walked around to his side and hugged him tightly. He hugged her back, but she could tell that he was looking towards the house to see if anyone was watching them.

"I love you," she whispered, taking his face in her hands. "I don't know how you managed it, but I do. I love you so much, Shan."

"I love you too," he told her, leaning down a little bit so that he could kiss her.

"Ready?" she asked, and he shook his head dramatically.

"Nope," he told her, kissing her again.

"Too bad," she said, taking his hand and leading him up to the porch.