(Repeat Come Out and Play by Billie Eilish)
Zhavia's Point Of View
Thursday
December 25, 2016
Ethan walks through Cam's room door holding two bath and body works bags by their cute little rope handles. In his other hand I notice a box wrapped in gold and white striped wrapping paper with a pretty bow to top it off.
If one of those are mine I'm hoping it's the box, only because it's kind of big and I like not knowing what's inside yet. "You okay?" His look, the softness of his tone, he's full of concern. It's Christmas, the last thing today needs to be about is the drama between me, Grayson, and Julissa. We've wasted so much time on it already, there's no reason to keep dragging this out.
I'll be damned if I let it ruin Christmas.
I take in a deep breath and exhale letting it go... "I'm fine, I just needed to separate myself from- you know what? It doesn't even matter. How about we get into what you're holding." I pull myself away from Cam, sitting up now. His concern turns quickly into a smile knowing that I'm okay. "Yeah, one of those better be mine." Cam eagerly reaches for the bags like the child she is at heart. He playfully backs up taunting Cam.
"Chill, only one of these is yours-"
"Please be the box please be the box please be the-"
"And it's not the box." Ethan finishes cutting her off leaving her disappointed. She sighs, quickly she goes from being happy with Ethan's presence to dismissive. "So... it's mine right? I get the box, and a bag?" What? Is it my birthday or something? Usually every year Ethan and Grayson just get me something really basic like perfumes or charms for a bracelet or something.
It's basic but sometimes cute, Christmas is the one day we pretend we don't hate each other...
"Yes, but the bags aren't from me. They're from 'she who shall not be named' and her dad." He thinks he's so funny, I roll my eyes playfully dismissing his joke. He hands us each a bag... I look at the bag, and then at Cam giving her some good news. "Merry Christmas Cam, you can have mine." I drop my sarcastic smile at the last part.
"Really Z?" She asks as though she thinks I'm joking. I hold it out in front of her waiting for her to take it.
She sighs, but ultimately she takes it from me. "You didn't even look at it." She reaches into the bag and pulls out some shower gel, a gift card, and a candle warmer, showing me the things that I've just given away to her. She acts like it's supposed to make me want to take the bag back. I don't care what's inside, she can still keep it.
"I will not be bought. I just need time." I shrug, she nods understanding where I'm coming from. She doesn't even know about Julissa and Grayson having sex... she'd probably be able to understand more if I told her. I just have no intention of making her mad at Julissa, just because my relationship with Julissa isn't good, doesn't mean I have to ruin her and Cam's as well.
Even with everything going on I still have hope we'll get through it and come out together. All as friends again.
"Well, I don't want you thinking I'm trying to buy you but..." Ethan speaks up, Cam and I both turn our attention to him. He holds the box out to me waiting for me to take it from him. "Ethan.. what did you do..?" I ask, reluctantly taking the box, sitting it in my lap. Slipped under the ribbon bow is a paper, I look at him and then at the paper. I pull it out and open it, reading it outloud.
"Dear Zhavia, Z... I'm not the best when it comes to writing, but-"
"Okay how about we read that later... just open it." He cuts me off making me laugh. I wonder when he wrote it, the letter. "Okay okay, I'm opening it." I tear through the wrapping paper and get to the box. I take the top off the box and place the top on the ground finally seeing what's inside. My eyes widen when I see an adidas shoe box, beside it is a folded long sleeved cropped white knitted top. I open the shoe box and the first thing I feel is pure happiness.
I look up at him with a big goofy smile on my face.
"These shoes- these are the ultraboost's how'd you know I wanted these?" I swear I only ever talked about these with my dad, who obviously said no because they are almost two hundred dollars. "I think it was a morning we were about to go running, I heard you. You were talking to your dad about them, I ordered them almost immediately." He shrugs smiling, my happiness is clearly radiating on to him.
"Thank you, like really. I love them." I take the shoe box out of the box that that they were wrapped in, I am seriously in love with these shoes. "So you bought her a two hundred dollar pair of shoes and there is still more?" Cam asks in disbelief, looking between both Ethan and I. Ethan shakes his head dismissing her. "I buy you gifts all the time, you just don't appreciate them." He says full of seriousness, he crosses his arms giving her sass.
"Yeah... gag gifts! You get me things like fucking mouth wash, facial cleanser, and dish soap. You even gave me a card with a free consultation... with a fucking orthodontist." I laugh to myself a little, hopefully she doesn't notice. Some times he can be funny.
I look at the knitted top, once I pick it up there is a pair of leggings that match right under it. The leggings aren't knitted, but they have a knit pattern to it and it looks amazing.
"So what? Take the hint... overbite." Ethan finishes going back and forth with Cam. I try and look for a tag on the knitted top, to see where it's from but there isn't one. "E, where'd you get this? It's beautiful, I haven't seen anything like this before." It's even soft, this is going to be beyond comfortable and it's stylish.
"I had it hand made.. from a designer in Italy-"
He what? Italy?! My eyes widen and I blink blankly.
"You what?!" I cut him off, there is no telling how much he paid for this. "Calm down, you don't even know how much it was, I got a discount, and it's not like I can take it back so.. I hope you like it." Just when I think he's done I pick up the leggings and see a box sitting under them, it's small but long. It's on its back so I flip it over and my jaw drops.
What. The. Fuck.
"Ethan Grant Dolan! This is not an Apple Watch! Tell me it's not an Apple Watch!" I have wanted one of these since the first one was released. It tracks everything I need it to, and it's cute as hell. "Okay then I guess I won't tell you-"
"No no no no, you did not get her a fucking Apple Watch- where's my Apple Watch? Huh?" Cam asks seriously with her brows raised as I continue to slowly open my Apple Watch box. "Cam.. you said you hated the idea of your phone being on your wrist. You told me you thought it was dumb." He defends himself, Cam shakes her head to herself and I can tell this is about to become dramatic. Like both of them are two of the most dramatic people I know. It's about to be funny or either annoying to watch this go down.
"Yes, because I thought you were getting one for yourself. Not Z- no offense Z." She quickly adds.
"Oh none taken babe, I'm the one with a Apple Watch." I shrug all smug like trying to put it on which only makes Ethan laugh a little as he's trying to stay serious. "Whatever the case you called it dumb. So don't sit here and act like a brat, you wouldn't even do anything with it. Z having one is practical."
"Cause she's a runner? I'm a runner too. You're a bad brother." His jaw drops when she says that, they are really arguing... It's funny but I also feel a little bad.
"I'm a bad brother?" He asks sarcastically.
"Yeah, you are." She shrugs nonchalantly like she means it. "Cam I bought you a T.V. I bought you like four pairs of your choice shoes, I even bought you a rose gold watch for your birthday-"
"Yes but it wasn't an Apple Watch!"
"Because you said you didn't want one!"
"Yes well obviously I lied, welcome to women 101. Do better next time." She gets up, and storms off. I really do feel bad, all of his gifts were a little over the top.. His head turns watching her leave and his eyes roll when she slams the door. I get up from the edge of her bed and I walk over to him taking the watch off.
"You really shouldn't have, I can keep the shoes and the outfit, but you should give this to Cam." I try to give it to him but he doesn't take it. Instead I look down watching him as he takes my hand and puts the watch back on my wrist for me. My heart feels like it might beat out of my chest when lightly he taps under my chin, making me look up at him.
He guides me to his lips kissing me as I lean a little on the tips of my toes, reaching him.
Softly, he pulls away, caressing my cheeks and looking me in my eyes. I slowly fall back flat on my feet. "If she really wants one she can talk to her boyfriend about getting her one, if he says no she can ask our parents, and then if both of them say no. I'll consider talking to Grayson about using our money to get her one."
"Or you could just give her this one... I really don't mind, you already gave me enough." He scoffs smiling at me.
"Says the one who got me a truck." He shakes his head to himself. "I didn't get it, I helped get it."
"It doesn't matter, she's not getting yours. We both know what would happen if I tried to give yours to her. She'd make a big deal about how it was bought for you and decline it, she's not even gonna use it. I'll just get her one as a graduation gift or something." We both know he's right, Cam would probably just let it rot on her nightstand. He gently pulls my head into his chest and places a kiss on the top of my head before just holding me in a hug.
He's such a softy, but it's cute.
My ear rests on his chest, listening to his heart beat as we just stand here, embracing one another enjoying it while we can.
"We should probably get down-"
"Ugh, don't say it." I cut him off looking up at him, still holding him close he smiles before speaking again. "Stairs." He finishes making me sigh disappointedly, I roll my eyes annoyed, not with him but instead the idea of having to go back down there and not enjoy this. His smile only grows bigger while I grow more annoyed.
"What's the smile for?" I ask narrowing my eyes, raising a brow. "I just never took you as the..."
"The?" He better finish his sentence.
"I don't know, the clingy type." He shrugs, just like that I pull away from him all together widening my eyes. "What? It's cute." He laughs.
I take a step back from him. "I am not clingy." I say seriously, at least I don't think I am. I never thought of myself as clingy, he just makes it really easy to become comfortable with him. "You kind of are.. it's fine it's cute. I like it, come back.." He tries to pull me back into him but I resist, not because I'm trying to prove a point or anything...
More because he's right, everyone else is downstairs and we're here. I know that if I step right back into him I'm not going to want to go.
"No no, you were right. We really should get back downstairs."
__
10 votes and 10 comments for the next chapter?