Chapter 23: A Late Christmas
I yanked on my pants, buttoning them. Examining myself in the mirror, I tilted my head. Does this sweater go with these shoes? This is my first official date with Phoenix and I have a feeling he's going to ask me to be his girlfriend today. We were supposed to have lunch and then see a movie, and then go to his house and have dinner with his family. Because he just got home yesterday, I fully intended on giving him the week to rest and unpack but he insisted on taking me on a date, especially after what happened with Leo. Obviously, I didn't argue too much.
Another thing that needed to happen as soon as possible was the opening of Phoenix's Christmas gifts. It's been sitting in the corner of my room in its gift bag, just waiting to be opened. I wanted to do it yesterday but after Phoenix got punched in the face by my brother, it was a little hard to invite him over to open my Christmas gift for him.
I finished getting ready twenty minutes after 12 and I was surprised that Phoenix hadn't texted me, asking what was taking me so long. I hopped down the steps with my purse in one hand and Phoenix's Christmas gift in the other, ready to listen to the brown haired boy's complaints from the couch. I glanced at the sofa to see Avery sitting there. "Did Phoenix happen to stop by?" I asked.
"Yeah..." she muttered. "I think so."
"Well, where is he?" I asked her.
"I don't know. I mean, I saw him walk by the house through the window but he didn't come in..." she mumbled as she stared at the television.
I looked out the window and saw him standing in front of the porch. Craning my neck more, I saw Leo sitting on the steps. They're talking? It's been a week and Leo hasn't said a single word to Phoenix. He'd walk in the house and completely look through the both of us as we sat cuddled up on the couch. At one point, I was in my room with Phoenix (with the door open- per my mother's request) and he walked in before walking right back out. I'm not sure if he just didn't want to be around Phoenix or he thought we were up to no good, when in reality we were just doing our homework.
I sat on the couch with Avery, staring at the door. I waited for someone to come inside but no one did for a good ten minutes. The door finally opened and my brother walked in, glancing at me before dropping on the couch to my right. "Your date's here," he informed me. I was too busy trying to interpret the tone of his words. I mean, he didn't sound mad, but he didn't sound happy either. But then again, Leo is never noticeably happy. Did they fight? I got up and walked towards the door. Phoenix was about to walk inside when he smiled at me. I examined his face, more specifically his eye. Surprisingly, it didn't bruise too badly. His cheekbone and brow bone were bruised but his eye was fine. I stepped onto the porch, closing the door behind me.
We walked to his car in silence but as soon as we were in the vehicle, I turned to him. "What happened?" I asked.
"We talked," Phoenix explained.
"What about?" I inquired, furrowing my eyebrows.
"You...me...him...us," Phoenix furthered.
"And?" I asked.
"I guess he's come to terms with everything," Phoenix explained.
"Are you friends again?" I asked.
"I'm not sure," Phoenix answered. "It was awkward. I mean, he didn't even look me in the eye."
"Do you think he'll start talking to you at school and stop ignoring you at home?" I asked as we drove towards the theater.
"Maybe, I think so. I don't know. I think he just feels betrayed," Phoenix answered.
"Well, was he mad?" I asked.
"No but he said that I should've just told him," Phoenix told me. "And thinking about it, I should've just been a man about it and told him what was happening between us."
I nodded as I stared at my lap. "Are you mad at me?" I asked him.
"No," he answered as if I was stupid. "Why would I be?"
"Because I feel like I caused this," I told him. He probably hates me.
"No," he answered. "And I don't hate you because I know you're thinking that." I turned and stared out of the window and he sighed. "Grace, come on, we're going to see the movie you've wanted to see for a while and we're going to your favorite restaurant for lunch."
"Okay," I mumbled.
"Don't let your brother's attitude get you down," Phoenix told me.
+++
"I'm nervous," I told Phoenix as we drove in the direction of his house. We'd seen the movie, which wasn't too bad. We had lunch, which was delicious. And we walked around town for the rest of the time, stopping in stores and exploring the neighborhood. His mother called us and told us to be there by six for dinner and that's where we're heading now. Though I know Mrs. Carson, the idea of sitting down and answering questions as Phoenix's love interest is a bit scary.
"Why?" he asked with a laugh. When he saw my expression, he laughed again. "Are you scared to have dinner with my mom?"
"I'm not scared," I retorted defensively, ducking my head. "I just...I'm just nervous."
"Don't be," he laughed. "It's my mom. You know her."
As we arrived at his house, I felt my stomach knot up a bit as I gripped my purse and the gift bag, wishing I had a free hand to clutch Phoenix's. Rather than walking across the lawn to my own house, I walked up the steps to his, entering the familiar home. Grateful for the fact that Mrs. Carson is a good cook, I entered the kitchen behind Phoenix. "Hi mom," he greeted his mother, who smiled at us.
"Hi, Mrs. Carson," I greeted her.
"Hey you two," she smiled as she placed a bowl of broccoli on the table. My eyes scanned the meal set out- broccoli, grilled chicken, and white rice. It smells amazing. "Would you mind helping me set the table?"
Phoenix and I began putting plates and glasses onto the table. There were five spots at the table and I suddenly remembered that the two girls were eating with us, too. "Phoenix, can you get your sisters?" Phoenix opened his mouth to yell for them but his mother quickly cut him off. "Don't yell."
Sighing, he made a move to walk out of the kitchen before turning to me. Grabbing the gift bag in my hand, he grinned. "I'll just bring this upstairs for you," he insisted.
"No peeking!" I told him as he ducked out of the room, heading upstairs.
I glanced at Mrs. Carson and smiled. A few moments of small talk later and everyone was in the kitchen, sitting down, digging into the food provided. "How was your date?" Mrs. Carson asked and I looked at Phoenix. He told her we were going on a date?
"Fun," Phoenix answered, glancing at me with a sheepish smile.
"Yeah, it was fun," I smiled. I wish he would've asked me to be his girlfriend, though. I feel like I've been waiting forever. We're practically in a relationship already. But if someone asks what we are, I have no idea what to say. 'Well, we're dating but we're not official yet, well we kind of are, but...' I just want to be able to proudly say, 'he's my boyfriend.'
"How was the movie?" she asked and Phoenix began telling her in depth about the plot, not even bothering to leave out any potential spoilers.
The conversation kept rolling and I tried my best to contribute where I could and when I was directly addressed; I managed to get an answer out without looking too stupid. I calmed down at the realization that this is Mrs. Carson, my longtime neighbor and family friend, not to mention my mother's best friend. "You know, I'm happy my son likes such a nice girl," she blurted at a quieter point in the dinner.
"Mom," Phoenix blurted.
"Thank you, Mrs. Carson," I responded with a red face.
"You know, he's always liked you," she explained. "And I hoped you'd like him back one day."
Phoenix was just as red as me, but for a completely different reason. I was blushing from being put on the spot but I wasn't embarrassed about Phoenix's feelings for me. Phoenix, on the other hand, was embarrassed that his mother was talking about his love life. "Mom, please."
"What?" she asked. "You used to run around here talking about how you were going to marry Gracelyn."
"Mom," Phoenix practically begged.
"It was so cute. But whenever I tried to tell you to be nice to her, you'd say that she'd find out that you liked her. I'd ask how you two were going to get married if she didn't know you liked her and you said that it'd just happen," Mrs. Carson asked, grinning at her son. Brooke and Piper were in stitches as they listened to their mother tell stories about their older brother.
"Someone save me," Phoenix whispered as he held his head in his hands.
"You were such a sweet boy but you didn't know how to show your feelings. I'm happy that you wised up," she smiled happily at her son. Somehow, someway, we managed to steer the conversation in a different direction, one in which Phoenix's childhood stories didn't reside.
Phoenix basically scarfed down the rest of his meal in fear of going back to those old memories. I finished my food rather quickly too and Phoenix immediately asked for us to be excused. "Mom, can we go upstairs?"
"For what?" she asked curiously. She glanced at me and I looked to Phoenix, who had his hands shoved deep in his pockets.
"We have to exchange Christmas gifts," Phoenix responded and she slowly nodded.
"Okay, leave the door open. I'm sending the girls up there to check on you every so often," she explained.
"Alright, mom," Phoenix responded as he led the way towards the stairs. I followed behind him, confident in the gift I'd purchased for him. He likes bracelets, I know that. Will it fit him? I glanced at his wrist, struggling to remember how big the bracelet was. I hope it fits him. It'll be bad if it doesn't.
He shoved open the door to his room. He moved to close it, grinning when it didn't fully shut. "She said to keep it open. It's open," he noted. There was barely a centimeter of space between the door and the frame. I just rolled my eyes at him, watching as he fetched the present from his closet. I grabbed the bag that my present for him was settled in, which he placed on his dresser.
"Who goes first?" I asked him.
"You open mine," he told me, placing the gift wrapped box onto my lap. The box was the size of a textbook and weighed a bit more than an actual book.
"What is it?" I asked before realizing that I could just open it myself. As I went to do so, I noticed that the wrapping paper was very, very neat. Did he do this? Phoenix actually sat here and hand wrapped this box? I find that hard to believe. "You wrapped this?"
"Piper did for five dollars," he answered.
I laughed. That's what I thought. I slowly peeled off the wrapping paper, lifting the top off of the box. I stared at the gift settled inside. Such a cliché gift, one you wouldn't expect from Phoenix. But it still managed to shock me. Inside the box was a block of wood, but not just any wood. There was a picture transferred onto the wood. That picture was of me and Phoenix.
"Did you make this?" I asked him.
"Yes," he answered in a stressed voice. "I had to try it a few times before I actually got it."
"It's amazing," I told him as I lifted it from the box, examining it further. "I love it."
"Do you?" he asked me and I nodded, placing it back into the box. I already know where I'm going to hang this up. "Can I open your gift now?"
"Yeah, go ahead," I told him, mentally praying that the bracelet would fit him.
He grabbed the bag and dug around inside. His hand landed on the small box, removing it hastily. He placed the bag to the side and ripped off the top of the box. Lifting the bracelet, he stared at it, twisting it and turning it. "GJ+PC? Gracelyn Jacobs and Phoenix Carson?"
"Yeah," I answered, feeling like a child. I probably should've had something different engraved rather than our initials. "I should've had something else, right?"
"No, I like it," he told me as he smiled at it. "I like it a lot." He suddenly shoved his wrist out towards me and I stared at it.
"What?" I asked after a few seconds.
"Put it on for me," he insisted. I grabbed the bracelet from his hand and placed it on his wrist, tying it on and sighing when I saw that it fit him nicely. "I'm never taking it off."
"Not even when you shower?" I asked, raising my eyebrows.
"Why are you thinking about me in the shower?" he questioned with a smirk on his face. My cheeks began to go red and he leaned over and kissed my forehead. "Even in the shower."
"You shouldn't put leather in the shower," I told him as his lips pressed against my forehead.
"Shh," he whispered. "You're ruining the moment."
MybIC