Eleven O'Clock Number

MUSICAL #17: MAMMA MIA!

"Come on," Laura snatches up Toby's hand once more and squeezes, and it doesn't escape Allison's notice. "Before lunch ends or we'll miss the whole thing."

"Okay, okay!" Toby's got everything ready by now, and he turns to Allison, being simultaneously dragged away by Laura. "I'll text you!"

"Yeah, yeah."

"Bye, Allison!" Laura calls, flashing her another smile. "Sorry I stole him away from you."

"Have fun," Allison says lightly. She watches as Laura drags a flailing Toby out of the library, and smiles slightly to herself. She doesn't think she's seen two better matched people in their entire school. Apart from maybe Daniel and Emmett.

(But considering how Emmett has now started up a habit of turning slightly pink whenever Lydia is present or even mentioned, Allison has a few ideas of some things that are probably going to happen before the year is out.)

✦

The fact that they're now on break until January should probably make it harder for Toby to find her and push her into watching Mamma Mia, but Toby has always been the exception and not the rule, so he naturally finds about a million different ways to bug her about it. Allison has received dozens of texts, three emails, and she's pretty sure his car has been parked outside her house once or twice, but he's clearly thought better of physically knocking at her door. She's also had about five pleas from Lydia to watch the fucking musical, already, because Toby has apparently gone to her in order to try to convince Allison.

All this and it's only the third day of break.

Allison calls Toby.

"Fine, I'll watch the fucking musical," she says straight away, not bothering with a greeting.

There's a pause during which she imagines Toby is doing something incredibly nerdy and stupid like fist-pumping or performing a celebratory dance. He returns to the phone a few seconds later.

"Great," he says, clearly attempting to keep his tone level. Allison rolls her eyes even though he can't see her. "Do you wanna come round tomorrow? I mean, I know it's Christmas Eve and all, but we can do it earlier in the morning if you need to be home by a certain time..."

"Yeah, that's fine," Allison says in a slightly dampened voice, partly because she's literally agreeing to watch Mamma Mia, i.e. the fucking bane of her existence, and partly because the words Christmas Eve are just bringing to mind the shitty picture of what hers will be, just her and her mom at the dinner table and a glaringly obvious space where her dad would probably be if he wasn't a complete jerk, both of them silently wishing Christmas wasn't all about family all the time.

"You okay?" the question comes out muffled from the other side of the line, but Allison can tell that it's gently put, and she can literally just imagine the concern that will be painted across Toby's face as they speak.

"Fine," she says shortly, then, when she notices the sharp tone in her voice, she repeats it, attempting to sound a little more normal; "I'm fine."

"Okay," he says in the way he has when he doesn't really believe her but knows better than to push it. "Mine at eleven?"

"Toby, I refuse to wake up at any time before midday."

"Fine. Mine at two?"

"Better. I'll see you then. You better have a lot of food," Allison says, before pausing and adding, "Although that's still not gonna make up for it," as an afterthought.

Toby laughs. "Sure. See ya."

✦

Toby's house is completely covered in Christmas decorations.