Chapter 27: What is she? French?

Something's not right.

I look around wildly, the white sheets tangling me. Woah, what's happening? My alarm clock reads 7:30, but the sky outside is dark. I walk over to the curtains and draw them back.

Wow.

The outside of my glass doors shows nothing. Nothing but white. White. White. White. Flecks of white sprinkle the ground outside as I admire the view. Then I realise something:

IT'S CHRISTMAS! Yay!

I look out at the view for a couple more seconds and contemplate going out onto the balcony when my phone rings. I walk over and answer the call when I see its from Mum.

"Hey. Merry Christmas!" I say happily.

"Merry Christmas, honey!" she mimics my tone.

"What's the plan for today?" I ask.

"Well, I'd like you downstairs in fifteen minutes. Where what I'd like you to, please Nat, its in your closet. You don't have to wear make-up today, but make sure that your hair looks nice, please. We're going over to the Collins' to unwrap presents, from there we're going to somewhere for lunch and then we're going to mass. Afterwards we're going to dinner at a very fancy restaurant."

"Woah," I say, raising my eyebrows. "That's a load of stuff."

"Be in the living room in fifteen minutes, bye!" Mum says and hangs up.

I walk over to my closet, scared bu kind of eager to find out what Mum has laid out for me. I see the white dress Meghan bought for me paired with a red jacket. That's alright. She's laid out some silver hoop earrings and strappy red high heels. I groan  when I see the shoes.

I put the outfit on and walk over into the bathroom. Attaching the earrings to my ears, I look at the hair curler in the top cupboard which is opening a bit. I sigh and take it out. I might as well do it now otherwise Mum'll be mad and send me back into my room to do my hair. I start curling it and finish within ten minutes. I quickly brush my teeth, brush out the curls into beach waves, add a clip to put it half up-half down, pull out some strands to frame my face, grab a silver purse Mum gave me, strap on the dreaded heels, and make my way downstairs clumsily.

a/n: that's not the jacket! And i made that because I was bored and procrastinating. Actually, writing this chapter is me procrastinating! Wish me luck for History, maths, religion and english thanks maties! I'm out.

I walk down the stairs, proud of myself for not tripping over.

"Oh, and there's Nat now," I hear Mum say. I walk down the stairs, chucking my phone into my clutch and trying to look like my feet aren't killing me. Did you know that high heels were first meant for men? Well, I wish it stayed that way...

Mum, Michelle and Jackson wave at me. Dad is talking to Felecia, Lucas and Paul about something and they're all giggling.

My stop when I see Alex. Well.... DAMN.

He's wearing a navy-blue suit. He's tried to tame his curls, but they're only curlier. He's wearing a tie that looks like it could not have been tied better.

My sudden halt doesn't go unnoticed and Alex turns around. He's holding Liam by his side, who is dressed in a similar suit. Liam's curls are bouncing around his head and he looks just like his older brother, his little blue eyes sparkling like the stars.

When Alex makes eye contact with me I look down quickly when I see his sad expression that crosses his face after looking at me. I can feel him staring at me but don't say anything and walk over to the couch and plop down.

"Nat!" Liam whines. I ignore him and I hear Alex try and shush him. I look behind me when I hear this. "Nat!"

I pretend I can't feel my heart sink when Alex shuts him up again. When Liam calls my name again I take my earphones out of my purse and put them in. I turn the volume up when Liam calls my name a fourth time. I play candy crush on my phone, but even that reminds me of Alex and I end up playing flappy bird instead.

I hear a loud cough. I look up and take my head phones. Trying to act casual I say, "Hey Alex."

"He wants you," he says gruffly and shoves his little brother into my arms.

"Oh. Um, ok, thanks," I say. He gives a curt nod and quickly walks over to the couch to play on his phone. I turn off my music and place my phone into my clutch. I pull Liam onto my lap and clasp my hands around his stomach and pull him into me. Liam giggles and plays with a strand of my hair that is long enough to reach his arms.

I lay my head on the back of the couch.

It was really awkward yesterday when I saw Alex in his room. We stared at each other for a few moments before I quickly closed my blinds. Its now Wednesday and I haven't spoken to him since Sunday. Well... Amanda will be pleased.

Liam tugs at my hair and I shake the thoughts out of my hair. I see the others are walking out of the house to the one next door. I pick Liam up and he wraps his small hands around my neck and leans his head on my shoulder. I quickly follow the others. I walk past the Christmas tree and see all the presents are gone. My parents probably transferred them to the Collins' house. I walk behind the rest of the group because Alex is at the back and I know it'd just be way too awkward for me to walk anywhere near him. I fix Liam on my chest so that I can hold my purse in the other hand.

We walk into the Collins'  house and I sit down next to Felecia, holding Liam. Alex walks in a second later. He looks around for a place to sit and when he realizes the only spot left is next to me, he plops down near the fire place. Michelle sends him a curious look.

"I'm cold," he murmurs stiffly. Michelle looks towards me and I quickly look down, but I can feel her smile on the side of my head.

I look at the snow pouring outside while the adults unwrap their presents. There were a couple of snow days a year in Paris. I love it. My legs are really cold, but I still want to go out and build a snowman.

"Nat?" I'm drawn out of my daydream of the days when Adele and I had snow ball fights outside the apartment buildings.

"Oh, sorry. Yeah?" I say, snapping out of the daze.

"Thanks for your present," Michelle says. I smile back.

"You're welcome."

Everyone unwraps their presents quickly. From Felecia I got a pencil case, from the twins, a new phone case and from my parents, a pair of air pods and a ue-boom. Liam, Michelle and Jackson bought me a bunch of chocolates and some sunglasses. After about an hour or two there's only one present left under the tree.

Jackson goes to read the name on the card and gives my present to Alex. He takes it and reads the card while I play on my phone. Alex chuckles at something I wrote but I don't look up. I can feel he's looking at me, but I don't look up. What happened to the no eye contact ignoring thing we were doing? I liked that!

He unwraps the present and I don't look up until I can't fight it anymore are raise my head to see his reaction. He's smiling foolishly at the guitar box before looking up at me and grinning like a little boy.

"Thank you!" he says, the ignoring thing gone.

I just nod and turn back to my purple flappy bird as the adults start talking and the twins and Felecia start chatting. Alex goes upstairs to put his gifts away. I switch my phone off and slip it into my pocket before turning Liam around and playing with him.

Jackson, Mum, Dad and Michelle stand up and Michelle claps her hands. "C'mon kids! Time to go."

The twins and Felecia bounce off the couch and run outside into the snow after taking some mittens from the key table at the front entrance. The start making a snowman as I pick Liam up from my lap and wrap my arms around his small back before bending my knees and looking over his head and grabbing my purse with my fingers. I hold it in my hand, still with my arms around Liam. He giggles randomly and I smile.

I walk over to the door and turn around. Alex is standing on the steps, watching me. He quickly looks away and I think I see a pink tinge spreading over his cheeks. I smirk at him. "You coming?"

He smiles back. "Yeah," he bounds down the stairs and slings an arm around my shoulders, Liam in between us.

Thank God its back to normal.

I think.

***

"Yeah, let's just go in here, everywhere else is packed. Most people who're going out are spending Christmas probably, because this place is usually more crowded than this," Michelle says as we stand in the cold outside Cafe Extra.

Everyone nods and we walk inside.

After driving through the streets with blutooth on, communicating with the Collins' in the other car, we've seen all the other restaurants, most of them really fancy and expensive - the reason for our fancy clothes. Did I tell you how handsome Alex looks in his tux?

What am I thinking?

Get that out of your mind!

I visibly shake my head to get rid of the thoughts. Alex does look really good though...

I sigh internally at myself as we walk into the cafe and try not to look at Alex, who's arm is conveniently around my waist.

"Admiring the handsome beast beside you?" Alex whispers in my ear. How'd he know?

"Go away," I shove his chest and scowl. He grins and chuckles.

The cafe is really packed. Christmas decorations line the walls and tinsel has been stuck up into the right-angles of the walls where they meet the roof.

"Looks lovely doesn't it?" Mum says, looking around. The others all politely nod and Mum puts her napkin on her lap. What is she? French? Ha. Funny joke Nat.

I see Rosemary running around frantically on the stage. She looks really stressed. She's running around. Despite how lovely she's looking with her long hair in curls around her face and a nice red dress, different from her usual 'I own this place, but I'm also a cook' kind of look.

Alex stands up and grabs my hand before I can object. He pulls me and I crash into the chair beside me, the one Alex was sitting in previously. "Sorry," he mutters, not sounding all that apologetic.

I scowl at him before following him over to Rosemary. Sara walks past us, a tray of tea in her hand. "Tread with caution," she whispers, nodding her head in the direction of Rosemary. Alex continues pulling me towards the boss.

"Hey, Rosemary," he says casually. Her stressed expression drops from her face and is replaced with a relieved one.

"Thank God you too showed up!" she says happily and takes both our arms - Alex letting go of my hand that I didn't know he was still holding - and leads us backstage.

"What's wrong Rosemary?" I ask.

"My band cancelled on me," she says. "I needed them to do some Christmas songs, but that expensive street across the street offered them more money," she scowls.

"Well, at least you've got almost all the tables filled," Alex says positively.

This cheers Rosemary up again. "Yes. Its not like they get anyone on weekends. We're doing quite well."

She peers out from behind the curtain and nods when she sees the number of people chatting at their seats.

"Anyway, you two are gonna do it for me," she says and starts pulling strands of my hair to the front.

"Sorry, what?" I ask. That was pretty rude of you, Natalie. An apologetic look must cross my face because Rosemary smiles lovingly at me.

"You'll only have to do a couple," she says. "I've heard you two sing together. Aren't you together, anyway?"

"No!" Alex and I say at the same time, looking at each other and shaking out heads quickly. Rosemary laughs before a big grin spreads across her face.

"Anyway, here's the list, I'll come and get you from your table when we're ready," she says and hands a piece of paper to us and walks away into the kitchens again.

It reads:

Mistletoe

Santa Tell me

All I wants for Christmas is you

We look up at each other. "I'll sing the first one, then you can sing the second and then we can do the third one like the Justin Bieber version," he says. I nod and fold the paper and put it into my pocket.

Alex slings an arm around my shoulder and we go back to our table. Everyone else has their drinks and two glasses of water are placed in front of us.

"You want a lemonade?" Alex asks.

"Yes, please," I say and he walks off towards the bar.

"So, Nat, where're you going to uni? I think you told me where but I've forgotten," Jackson says, taking a sip of his Coke.

"I'm hoping for a scholarship to Oxford," I say. "I'm going to put in my application next quarter."

"Really? Alex was thinking of getting a scholarship there too," Michelle says.

"Oh, is he?" I say and turn to look over at where Alex is talking to the bar tender and offering a ten dollar note. I quickly stand up and take ten bucks out of my pocket. The others keep talking and I walk over to Alex. Before he can give the ten dollar note to the bar tender, I shove my ten dollar note onto the bar's table. Alex looks at me and pushes my note away before sliding his forward.

The bartender looks really confused when I slip mine into his hand. Alex pushes it away and shoves his own note forward. We go on like this for a few minutes before the bar tender sighs. "You know, girly, the boyfriend usually pays for all the food on a date," he says.

"Oh, we're not together," I say quickly. Alex takes this as an opportunity to give the bar tender his money. I scowl but the man looks relieved.

"I'm paying you back," I tell him as we walk away with our lemonades.

"No you're not, dude," he says when we're seated.

Rosemary hurries over to us after we've only taken a couple of sips of our drinks.

"C'mon guys! We need you now," she says quickly and pulls us both up. Alex grabs my hand and leads me through the crowd. Really, he doesn't need to hold my hand, I'm coming anyway, but I don't mind. Rosemary leaves us backstage and runs over to one of the two microphones on stage.

"Hi everyone," she says when everyone is quiet. "So we have a couple of songs for your entertainment today! Unfortunately, our band pulled out so we've got a few replacements. Enjoy, and Merry Christmas!"

She walks off and shoos Alex onto the stage. He lets go of my hand that I didn't realize he was still holding. I sit down on an empty stool.

"It's the most beautiful time of the year, Lights fill the streets, spreadin' so much cheer" Alex starts singing. I slouch in my seat, resting a hand underneath my chin and listening to Alex. "I should be playin' in the winter snow, but I'ma be under the mistletoe, I don't wanna miss out on the holiday, but I can't stop starin' at your face, I should be playin' in the winter snow, but I'ma be under the mistletoe."

I just sit there and watch him while he sings. I see all the other girls in the crowd doing the same. Quickly, I shake my head and sit up and look down.

Was I just checking him out?

"You good?" I feel someone sit down beside me.

I look up and nod. Alex pulls me up and we walk over to the edge of the curtains. Rosemary comes off the stage and pushes me on. I tug at my dress and try and look like a normal person, walking clumsily in my heels.

I walk over to the microphone. The music starts. "Santa tell me if you're really there, Don't make me fall in love again, If he won't be here next year."

I look over at Alex, he's standing against the wall behind the curtain with his head leant againt it, watching me. His head quickly snaps back up when he sees me looking and he smirks. I roll my eyes.

"Feeling Christmas all around, And I'm trying to play it cool, But it's hard to focus when I see you walking around the room, Let it snow, it's blasting now," I continue.

There's a lot of lights around and light up the crowd's faces. I see the last person I want to see sitting at her table, glaring at me. Amanda.

I keep singing. "Santa, tell me if you're really there, Don't make me fall in love again if he won't be here, Next year, Santa, tell me if he really cares, 'Cause I can't give it all away if he won't be here, Next year."

Arianna wouldn't be scared of an annoying bug called Amanda, would she? Amanda keeps glaring at me and I ignore her.

"But it's hard to tell if this is just a fling, Or if it's true love that he thinks of, So next Christmas, I'm not all alone, babe," I sing. Eventually the song ends and I walk of the stage to loud cheers and hoots. I couple of boys have stood up on their seats. I give them funny looks. Idiots.

"Hey, what're you doing?" Alex says when I come back. "We need to get back on there."

He walks out on stage, so that he can be seen but I can't, even though we're conversing.

"Why don't you just sing it?" I say nervously.

"What d'you mean?" he says, furrowing his brow. "We can sing it together! C'mon Nat."

He tugs on my hand but I pull away. "Amanda's out there, you two sound great together!" I lie. "I'm not feeling too well."

"Anyone could see through that lie, Nat," he rolls his eyes.

"Come on!" he says and grins while he tugs my hand. I roll my eyes, smiling nonetheless. The crowd cheers when I step out. God, the sound of click-clacking heels is annoying!

Alex keeps giving me worried looks and I make sure not to look at Amanda. He hands me a microphone and I take it.

"Thanks," I say. "I don't want a lot for Christmas, There is just one thing I need, And I don't care about the presents, Underneath the Christmas tree."

I look over at Alex and he smiles. I don't know when Justin Bieber joins in, so I'll just keep going, I guess. "I don't need to hang my stocking, There upon the fireplace, Santa Claus won't make me happy, With a toy on Christmas day."

I make eye contact with Amanda and quickly look away. Luckily Alex is watching the crowd, not me.

"I just want you for my own, More than you could ever know, Make my wish come true, All I want for Christmas is you, Yooo-oou, baby," I sing.

I keep going with the song and I see Michelle start bouncing Liam on her knee, moving his hand around so he's dancing. He giggling, the little teeth he's growing are showing. I've never noticed how much he looks like Alex, they've both got dark, curly hair and blue eyes.

"I won't make a list and send it, To the North Pole for Saint Nick, I won't even stay awake to, Hear those magic reindeer click," Alex continues. I look over at him and he smiles. Thank God I was day dreaming, otherwise I would've kept going. He continues singing and sends chills down my sound. How can someone sound that good? He takes a step closer to me, still singing and nudges me. I look back at him. Oh.

"'Cause I just want you here tonight, Holding on to me so tight, What more can I do, 'Cause baby all I want for Christmas is you, You, baby," Apparently I'm supposed to sing, so at this point we're both harmonizing. Damn, I can almost feel Amanda's wrath, but I'm determined not to look at her.

Alex stops singing when I do a line. "Oh I just want him for my own."

Now I shut up and he sings alone. "More than you could ever know."

"Make my wish come true, Baby all I want for Christmas, Is you, baby," I suddenly realize how close he is to me and I turn around. Oh, what a coincidence, he's right beside me.

Now it looks like we're doing that weird thing in movies where they're looking into each other's eyes - deeply  - and then sing together.

And BAM! That's what's happening right now. "Make my wish come true, Baby all I want for Christmas, Is you, baby."

I look away from him, staying in the same position. Alex moves his head down, looking worried, following the  direction with his head. I look up and smile at him before pulling the microphone up to my mouth. The worry fades off his face and he grins. "It's all I want for Christmas, It's all I want for Christmas, It's all I want for babe, All I want, all I really want is you baby, All I want, all I really want is, want is, want is, want is, Ooh baby."

The crowd cheers and applauded. Rosemary comes on and thanks us. We walk down the stairs. I try forget Amanda's looks she sent me. I spin around. ALex is no longer standing there, instead, he's been replaced with the she-devil herself.

"Whassup?" I say

"Don't 'wassup' me, Natalie," she hisses.

"Ok then. What's up. Having a merry Christmas?" I ask, acting casual again.

"No. Because you're standing in front of me," she growls.

"Kay, than why'd you approach me?" I question.

"I wanted to tell you, loser, how fat and ugly-" she starts but I cut her off.

"If I was really such an eyesore, Amanda, why're you looking at me?" I ask her and tilt my head and her, smiling slightly.

"You-you," she can't think of anything else to say, I think, so instead she slaps me across the face. One day I'll slap her back, that's the day I'll really feel accomplished. But not today.

My face stings but I don't let her see my pain. Instead, I smile at her. "Not too ugly to slap, am I?" I say and walk away.

I hear her huff and click-clack away. Rolling my eyes, I walk back into the kitchens to find Rosemary. I don't get halfway there before I'm stopped by a hand that wraps around my wrist and pulls me back into the owner's chest. I slam into them when they spin me around.

"Ow," I rub my head.

"Sorry," Alex mutters. I look up and smile. He looks at my face an his un-apologetic expression morphs into a worried one. "Are you ok, Nat?"

"What? Yeah, I'm fine, why?" I say.

"Did someone hit you? Was it a guy? Tell me who it is and I'll go and kill them," he says and looks around wildly. I laugh.

"Nah, it was just me face palming my self hard. Real hard," I lie. He nods.

We walk back the way I just came. Obviously he had disappeared into the lobby or something. He stops walking when we reach the door way (with no door) leading down the hallway to the kitchens and lobby. I stand in front of him and he scratches the back of his neck.

"I-uh, I have something for you," he say and pulls a black velvet box out of hi pocket. Its quite small and fits in the palm of his hand. Its more rectangular than square, and looks like a watch box or something.

"Oh, you didn't have to," I look at the ground.

He laughs. "Of course I did!"

I shake my head as he takes my hand and places the box into it. I open it.

The necklace is beautiful. Its shaped like a heart. One side of it is gold with a flowery pattern. The other side is plain silver with no pattern, just smooth silver. The chains are thin and it is sat on a velvety red pouch in the box. I look at it, smiling for a few minutes before Alex rubs the back of his neck.

"So, um... D'you like it?" he asks.

"YES!" I yell and throw my arms around him. He wraps his around my waist and puts his chin on my shoulder, turning his head into my hair.

"I didn't think you liked jewelry," he mumbles into my hair.

"I like this one," I say into his neck. We pull away and he takes the box off me. "Its too good to be true, isn't it?"

He laughs and takes it out of its box. "Nah, I'm just putting it on for you. Unless you don't want to wear it?"

"Of course I want to wear it!" I say and turn around. I swipe my long, curled hair over my shoulder. He walks forwards and unclasps it. I feel it on my chest, just above my heart. He clasps it around my neck and I push my hair back off my shoulder.

"Thank you," I breath. He smiles, the kind that lights up his face, showing his dimples and pearly white teeth. I look at him for a couple of seconds, staring at his face. And he stares right back before he looks up. I follow his eyes and look up to see mistletoe above us. Really?

He looks back down at me. I follow, my head turning back to him. We stand there for a couple of seconds. His hands go around my waist. Oh no.

"I'm gonna go eat," I say and walk away quickly. I see Amanda standing a few feet away. Dammit. I look back at Alex and see him softly kicking the wall with his head against it.

I sit down and help myself to a few fries before sipping my drink.

"You were both wonderful!" Michelle says. I look at her, confused. Oh, right, the carols.

"Thanks!" I say.

"Nat, d'you want a burger or a pizza?" Dad says, opening his menu.

"Nothing, I'm not hungry Dad, I'll just eat some chips," I say and stuff a couple in my mouth.

My stomach is churning for a reason that is not related to food at all, but the boy in the hallway kicking the wall.

***

Lunch was awkward, to say the least. Alex and I ignored each other. There was a situation when we both reached for a chip and touched before pulling away immediately. We also accidentally touched knees and then faced the other way. So, yeah, it was pretty awkward...

Now we're in church.  Felecia, Lucas and Paul are playing hangman with a receipt and pen from Mum's handbag. Alex, Michelle, Mum, Dad, Jackson and I are all watching silently. Liam is sitting on my lap and I'm bouncing him up and down slightly but I can tell he's getting restless.

Sure enough, he starts crying during the homily. I stand up and walk out of the building when Michelle asks me for the favor. To be honest, I'm pretty grateful for this distraction. I mean, I love God, but Church makes me a bit... bored. Sorry, Jesus, my brother, I love you..

I can't blame Liam. I sit down on a snow-covered bench and hug Liam close to me, keeping him warm. I close my eyes and lean my head on top of Liam's. His breathing slowly deepening until I know he's asleep. I feel someone take a seat beside me and I open my eyes. I know who it is before I see them so I don't bother to look over at him.

"I'm sorry."

"For what?" I ask, confused, turning to look at him after a few moments.

"Everything," he says and runs a hand through his hair. "For being a jerk, for making you tutor me, for giving you all those flowers, for following you around even when you're with Noah, for punching people, for ignoring you sometimes, for dating Amanda."

I look at him, mouth open. "You don't have to be sorry," I whisper.

"I do! I wish I never met you!" he yells. Stunned, I look at him, wide eyed.

"W-what? You mean that?" I ask quietly.

"Yes, Natalie, I do! You're driving me insane and its killing me. I wish I never bumped into you. I wish we didn't live next to each other. I wish you weren't in my life!" he shouts. Why is he being so... bloody annoying?! He was hugging me not even two hours ago, and now he's telling me he wished he never met me.

"Well, I'm sorry, you bumping into me. I don't even know why i talk to you Alex. I don't care if you wish you never met me. Because I wish I'd never met you either!" I say, suddenly getting angry, tears threatening to spill out of my eyes.

"I hate you Natalie!" he yells. Woah, what's wrong with him? Not wanting to look vulnerable, I swallow my tears. He jumps to his feet and I stand after him, facing him, glaring.

"I hate you too, Alex!" I yell back at him. Seriously, what is his problem? The tears cloud my vision and when I blink they slip down my cheeks. I wipe them off quickly. He glares at me and storms back off into the direction he came from.

what the hell just happened?

I'm so confused.

I sit back down onto the bench and sit Liam down beside me, pulling my legs up to my chest and leaning my head on them. I cannot believe him? What just happened? One minute he's apologizing and the next he's yelling at me. What is he? Bipolar? Maybe.

At least Amanda will be happy.

_____________________________________________________________________________

Yo, I just wanted them to have a fight, so I made him do it randomly. Who's confused? I am. It'll all be cleared up later, tho.

Its rainging! I love rain.

I deleted the bit about Adele giving her a necklace, instead she gives her a watch. I also changed the bit where it says she has brown eyes, so that you can imagine what colour they'll be. I think I'll decide on one when - if - I do an Alex Pov.

So, what did y'all think of this chapter (oooo look at me saying y'all I'm so cool)?

Its 5100 words, the longest one yet.

Vote, and Comment!

Thanks for over 11K! What should I call all my readers. I was reading a couple of books and at the end of them they have fan club names for their readers.

What about...

the butters.

Becvause NAtalex sounds like Nuttelex or Nutella. Anyhoooooooooooooo! bye.