The Sight (bxb)

Chapter 60 - The Gift

Evan didn't dare put his gift from Ryan under the Christmas tree in the living room, but that didn't stop him from glancing at it every now and then. He kept wondering what could be in it, but try as he might, he had no idea what Ryan could give him. It was too small to be a diary, and he had no idea what else he could give him based on their previous conversations.

One way or another, he was in a good mood, which he tried to chalk up to the festive atmosphere in front of his parents, and he had no idea if it worked, but he more or less didn't care. His parents were happy, he was happy, and even though they were locked in the house together, they managed not to fight so far.

Their Christmas was looking really promising so far. He and his father decorated the Christmas tree together while his mother prepared the holiday dinner. It was their tradition since Evan's mom said she didn't like being bothered when she was cooking, so she kept little Evan and his dad busy decorating the tree. Besides that, Christmas music was playing on the radio, which Evan was sure would get on his nerves again by the end of the holidays, but he didn't mind at the moment.

Dinner time was approaching, and it was followed by a meeting of the whole pack at the Christmas tree in front of the pack house. It was the only gathering of the pack that Evan didn't mind, as it was more like a neighbourhood gathering than a sect.

After that, they mostly moved either to Angie's house or back to their house in the company of the Liu-Yarrow family, which consisted of Angie, her seven-year-old brother Mason, and their parents. They tried to change it every year, but the principle was still the same. They all gathered in the living room, talking, drinking hot cocoa with marshmallows, and some fairy tale was playing on the TV in the background. That was Evan's favourite part, and he was looking forward to it even more since they were all going to be at their house this year so he could show Angie the first gift from his mate.

Before that, however, he had one more gift, which he planned to give today to someone who has become special to him. And before he knew it, the opportunity to do just that came along.

He and his parents were among the first to arrive at the large lighted tree, but despite the fact that there weren't even fifty wolves there yet, loud chatter could be heard everywhere. The whole atmosphere was complemented by soft snowflakes that were flying, and Evan noticed that some people were walking among the others and giving out various goodies that they had baked at home. Even the Bludds did not lag behind in this tradition and brought home-baked cookies. Fortunately, his mother took over the handing out of them, and he was not given the task.

"I have to find my friend." He turned to his father who was standing near him talking to his own friends. He nodded his understanding, and so Evan made his way into the crowd to find the obnoxious boy he had grown to like seeing for some reason. He assumed that he would be among the first here, as it used to be at other meetings, and he was not wrong. He found him very quickly, standing next to his parents with a neutral expression. Evan didn't expect him to look particularly excited, but he still didn't look like he was in a festive mood either. Maybe it had something to do with the fact that even though there were many young people around their age, Michael still chose to stand near his parents.

"Michael," he addressed him before he came to him so that he could notice him. Plus, it was a subtle ploy to lure him away from his parents since he wasn't ready for any official introductions to Ryan's family yet. Fortunately, the black-haired boy decided to cooperate and went to meet him.

"Hey," he greeted, and Evan nodded in return. In his hand, which was in the pocket of his windbreaker, he was clutching the gift he had for him and was thinking about how to start this topic so that it wouldn't be weird. Just a few months ago, Evan would have preferred to avoid him at all costs, and now he had a Christmas present for him. What an irony.