settling the pendant on her chest. Having her body pressed against mine is making me think things I shouldn’t be. I want to grip her hair and tug her head back so my lips can explore every inch of her neck. Fuck. I take a deep breath. Calm down. My fingers won’t cooperate when I try to open the clasp, and I growl.
“You okay back there?” she giggles.
“They really need to make these things bigger.”
After two more tries I finally get the clasp open and fastened securely around her neck. She pivots around, her fingers pressed against it. “Zack, I love it so much. It’s beautiful.”
“Do you know what it is?” I question.
She raises an eyebrow. “It’s a necklace.”
I smile. “Yes, it’s a necklace, but that’s not all it is.” My fingers brush against her chest as I pick up the pendant. “This pulls out.” I tug on the bottom of the rectangle, revealing a surprise. “It’s a secret flash drive.”
Her eyes flare with excitement. “Oh, my God. It’s amazing. This is the coolest gift ever.” She throws her arms around me. I wrap her up in my embrace and enjoy the way she feels pressed against me.
She pulls away all too soon. “I have something for you.”
She hands me a medium sized box covered in snowmen gift wrap. The paper reminds me of how we played in the snow the day we went to pick out her tree.
“Open it,” she jumps up and down, excitedly.
I carefully peel back the tape one piece at a time, needing to remove the paper in one full piece.
“Zack,” she giggles. “Are you messing with me?”
I shake my head. “No, I always remove it like this.”
“Hurry up. I can’t wait any longer.” She bounces up and down on her feet.
My eyes flick to her and take in her eager expression. I slide my finger under the seam and rip the paper off.
“Yes,” she squeals, clapping her hands. I smile and tear off the rest of it, dropping it to the floor. Seeing her so excited is worth the anxiety haphazardly tearing the paper causes me. I remove the cover from the box and buried under some white paper I find a plain black mug. Picking it up, I study it, turning it around in my hand. There’s nothing written on it. I glance at Lana and notice she’s biting her lip trying not to laugh.
“Why do I feel like you’re playing a joke on me right now?” I question.
She shrugs her shoulders, hands clasped in front of her. “I don’t know. Don’t you like your mug?” She asks all too innocently.
“I love it because you chose it.”
“You’re sweet. Let me show you what’s special about this mug.” She holds her hand out. I hand it over and she spins toward the kitchen. Turning on the hot water, she waits until it’s warmed up, then fills the mug. The heat morphs the black to white and reveals images of zombies. Their bloody hands are pressed against the side of the mug like they’re trapped inside.
I smile. “This mug is epic. I’ll drink my coffee from this every single day.” Leaning down I kiss her on the top of her head and breathe in the scent of her soft hair. My chest is tight with all the emotion this is stirring up.
This is why people enjoy giving and receiving gifts so much. Now I know what I’ve been missing out on all these years.
Lana and I are watching a marathon of The Walking Dead, on her couch. I’ve never spent a Christmas Day doing something I’ve enjoyed so much. The holidays at my house were always filled with tension and violence.
She pulls my arm around her shoulders and snuggles into my side. When she smiles up at me my chest gets tight, and gazing down at her has my heart beating erratically.
“I hope you don’t mind cuddling. I’m cold and too lazy to go get a blanket,” she says, then giggles. Her sweet little laugh chimes like all the angel’s in Heaven must. She’s my own personal angel on earth. She’s the only heaven I’ll ever know.
I shake my head, every coherent thought flying out of my mind as I peer into her magical eyes. In the bright afternoon light shining through her living room windows, I can make out the silvery blue flecks in her green irises. I’ve never noticed them before and seeing them in this moment makes me eager for what other secrets