Eleven O'Clock Number

MUSICAL #16: THE BOOK OF MORMON

16: YOU CAN'T BE RIGHT WHEN I'M WRONG, THAT'S NOT HOW IT WORKS

« wow, so the bible is actually a trilogy? and the book of mormon is like the return of the jedi? i'm interested! »

"IT'S ALMOST Christmas!" Toby sings. "It's almost Christmas! It's almost –"

"Christmas, yes, we know," Lydia rolls her eyes. "God, are you always this insufferable during the festive season?"

"I'm not insufferable," Toby objects. "I'm just happy!"

"They're the same thing for Lydia," Allison informs him, earning a hard slap on the arm from Lydia herself.

"Says you," Lydia sniffs. "Anyway. I was actually going to be nice and tell you something that I think might make the two of you excited. Well, Toby will be excited, anyway."

"It's not hard to get Toby excited," Allison points out dryly.

"What I was going to say was," Lydia begins to dig through her locker, which the three of them are standing by, Allison because her locker is next to Lydia's, and Toby because he's waiting for Daniel to finish whatever sporty thing he's up to now and decided to come and say hello (read: repeat "It's almost Christmas!" in a consistently and sickeningly enthusiastic tone).

"I may have an extra Christmas present for the two of you." Lydia brings out an envelope and hands it to Toby, who only stares at it solemnly.

When he notices the two girls looking at him expectantly, he says: "What?"

"Aren't you going to open it?" Allison asks impatiently.

"Lydia said it was a Christmas present!" Toby points out in protest. "It's not Christmas yet!"

Lydia rolls her eyes. "Consider it an early one, then," she appeases.

Toby looks dubious. "Are you sure?"

"Yes. This isn't your proper one. Open the damn envelope."

Toby does so, and gasps in a way that Allison knows means only one thing. She groans and gives Lydia a supremely unimpressed look.

"Really?"

"You don't even know what it is yet!"

"Oh, I really do," Allison says grimly. "There can only be one thing in that envelope. And that is –"

"Tickets!" Toby finishes, eyes bright. "To The Book of Mormon! Lydia!"

Before Lydia even knows what's happening, she's being enveloped into a stifling hug, Toby's tall frame practically swallowing hers up. Allison can just make out the expression on her face, shock melting away into quiet, pleasant surprise, her lips curving up into a tiny smile as she brings her hands to rest on Toby's hands. Allison rolls her eyes, slightly amused at how caught off-guard her best friend can be by physical contact that isn't necessary or asked for, but just is. Lydia's only really ever been that affectionate with Allison, and even then, barely ever in public, nothing further than a squeezing of hands or a smile, a real smile, a real Lydia Huntington smile – probably the only one that can make Allison feel warmer than if she'd sat by an open fire on a day in the middle of the darkest days of January.

Lydia's smiling it now, as Toby draws back; just slightly, but Allison's heart lifts slightly. Toby's probably the first person other than Allison herself to have hugged her probably in at least a week. She can tell it means more to Lydia than the girl will ever admit.