The Holiday Hoax (10 page)

“I want some snacks as soon as the food car opens. I’m starving,” JD said.

“It will be overpriced water and granola bars.”

“I don’t care. I need some food.”

“Don’t worry. Mom has cooked enough for an army. Why didn’t you eat some burgers?”

“Are you kidding? After working in fast food, I’ll never want a burger again.”

I laughed and snuggled closer to him. The train started forward, knocking us back and forth a little as it got moving, the train car vibrating, and soon the scenery was whipping by: earth and birds, sunlight and snow. The college was long out of sight, and the sound of the wheels chugging down the track lulled me into contentment.

“This is nice,” I yawned.

“Going to fall asleep on me?”

“You mind if I do?”

“No, I can study some. I’m usually behind with working and all. I hope to catch up over break. Besides—” A gleam came into JD’s eyes. “—I did keep you up last night.”

I closed my eyes.

Tyler had done me a huge favor a year prior, playing hot-and-cold games with me, passing out more than making out. Because with JD, I could feel the warmth of his love in each touch.

As for Tyler, after his brief affair with Hamilton turned ugly, he went from one guy to the next. I still had classes with him on occasion, but we barely spoke. I no longer wished a vile, horrid death on him, where his nuts fell off first, followed by weeks of torment. In fact, I didn’t wish anything bad for Tyler; I just didn’t think of him much at all. Generosity was easier when I was happy.

The train jostled me a bit, and I opened my eyes. JD still had one arm around me; the other held a book on the geology of Jupiter’s Galilean moons.

“That’s some light reading.”

“Told you I needed to study.” But he closed the book and smiled. “Do you think we’ll play dreidel again this year? And your mom will make her eggnog?”

“Even though the Hanukkah comes earlier this year, Mom will wait for us to officially celebrate. So yes, to both of those things”

“Good. Those were my favorites last year.”

“I thought meeting me was your favorite?”

JD raised his eyebrows. “Fishing?”

“Absolutely.”

“You are at the top of my list, Ev. This year, and every Christmas.”

“That’s how I feel about you.”

“Good.”

JD squeezed my hand. His brother, for now, was out of his life. Shawn hadn’t come around, despite JD calling him a few times over the past year: at Shawn’s birthday, on the Fourth of July. As far as I knew, Shawn wasn’t welcoming, and JD’s voice took on a hard edge for days afterward before he would finally recover and be himself again. It pained me. My family and I did everything to make JD feel at home, but the loss of his brother ate at him. How could it not?

Whenever JD turned sad, I was sure to give him some extra attention. We took long walks around campus together, often just talking it all out. Once in a while, I found JD wide-awake in his bed, staring at his ceiling, and I’d rub his back in slow circles until he smiled again. Then we’d kiss. I felt on those nights as if we were the only two people in the world.

JD looked out the window, a smile on his lips—one that made my chest ache. Soon, we’d get off the train, and my family would all be there waiting to take me and JD to my house. Life wasn’t perfect—it went up and down—but we were together. That’s what mattered.

“I can’t believe that this time last year I was faking my way through life,” I said as JD turned and met my eyes. “I was unsure of everything, and miserable.”

“Me too. I wasn’t sure how I’d get through it.”

“And now, this year, we’re together, and I think we can do anything. Don’t you?”

“Anything,” JD agreed, pulling me into his arms.

As the train reached our station, I could see my parents standing there on the platform, smiling as they noticed us in the window. My little sister was there also. Mom held what appeared to be a giant basket of food, while Courtney made goofy faces at us.

“They make me feel I’m home too,” JD said, waving back.

“That’s because you are.”

“Hey, it’s snowing!”

JD was right. Snowflakes—the first of the winter—had begun to fall. They filled me with hope, like a hundred little promises. I couldn’t wait to get off the train, greet my family, and taste the fresh snow on my tongue.

It was a long way up from nowhere, but I’d finally arrived.

S
KYLAR
M. C
ATES
loves a good romance. She is quite happy to drink some coffee, curl up with a good book, and not move all day. Most days, however, Skylar is chasing after her husband, her kids, and her giant dog, Wasabi. Skylar dreams about spending her days writing her novels, walking along the beach, and making more time for her good friends. On a shoestring budget, Skylar has traveled all over in her early years. Although, lately, the laundry room is the farthest place she has visited, Skylar still loves to chat with people from all around the globe.

Skylar can be found on Facebook, Goodreads, or her website: http://skylarmcates.wordpress.com.