Remembering December

Chapter Two

Fast forward >>Christmas 2006

Age 12

"Hey Sam! Merry Christmas."

Samantha, or Sam as she preferred being called, turned around at the sound of her name. A familiar black haired boy was running towards her.

"Hey Adrian! Merry Christmas!" She yelled excitedly. "Hey Helene, hey Ethan! Merry Christmas to you as well!" She also called to Adrian's parents.

It had been exactly six years since that Christmas where she had first met Adrian and now, the two were the best of friends. Though they did not end up going to the same school, they always made plans to meet up at least every other day and every day, they would message each other through Facebook for hours on end.

"Sam," He panted as he skidded to a stop beside her. He took a moment to catch his breath before continuing, "Follow me."

He grabbed her hand and began dragging her into the kitchen. Warmth immediately spread throughout her body at their connected hands. She was at that stage where cooties no longer were no longer a threat and crushes were beginning to take their hold. Sam stared at their intertwined hands with curiosity, feeling heat pool into her cheeks and in her distraction, walked straight into a wall with a loud oomph.

Adrian laughed at her lack of coordination and her already reddened cheeks flushed even further.

Stupid blush.

She let go of his hand, ignoring the disappointed feeling that overtook her, and strode ahead into the kitchen. Once there, Adrian scampered to a paper bag on the table and beckoned to Sam. As always, he shoved the paper bag into her hands without meeting her eyes. 

"I was making cookies with my grandmother and I thought you might want to try some. It is a family recipe." He muttered and slipped out of the kitchen.

If there was one thing Sam knew, it was that Adrian was very shy when it came to gift giving. When she asked him why one time, he just shrugged and mumbled an incoherent response.

Sure enough, as Sam glanced up, she caught the flush that had begun to form on Adrian's neck. She turned back to face the bag and she giggled softly to herself.

He was thinking of her while making cookies! For some reason, that thought warmed her heart.

Sam unfurled the top of the bag and peered inside. There lay about fifteen cookies in the shape of cat heads, bunny heads, bear heads and ducks.

That fuzzy, foreign feeling spread through her as yet another blush tainted her cheeks. Sam hated how easily she blushed. Her friends would often tease her just to get that reaction because apparently, it was amusing. She pulled out an iPhone that her parents had given her for her birthday and snapped a picture of the cookies.

She sent a quick message to her friend, Isabella, with the picture attached. Maybe she would understand this unknown feeling. Sam really loved the warmth that she got from Adrian's thoughtfulness but she didn't understand it. For some reason, that bothered her.

Putting her phone away, she grabbed a cookie and tried it. Despite it being a bit burnt, the sugar cookie tasted heavenly. It was crumbly and practically melted in her mouth. She quickly polished off two of the cookies before deciding to save the rest for later.

Now, where was Adrian?

<<∞>>

It was dinner time at last. Everyone had gathered around the dining table for a time of laughter and conversation. Sam surveyed the table while stuffing her mouth with food and she chuckled softly to herself as she remembered when she had finally found Adrian.

He had been talking with her parents. She had approached him and thanked him for the cookies. His reaction surprised her though. He had hidden behind his mother, who was nearby, before poking his head out a muttering a 'you're welcome'.

After that, there was a short period of awkwardness. Thankfully, an intense game of League of Legends had broken whatever spell lay over them. They had played two hours of League followed by a messy session of cookie baking.

Sam smiled as she remembered when Adrian whispered the secret recipe to her and then taught her how to make the cookies.

"What are you smiling about Sammie?" Her mother asked.

"Nothing mom." She replied, scrunching up her nose at the pet name. No one called her Sammie, it sounded so childish. Adrian laughed at her expression, knowing how much she despised that nickname. She maturely stuck her tongue out at Adrian. He stuck his tongue out at her in return.

"Is everyone ready for dessert?" Her father's jovial voice interrupted them.

"Yes! Yes! Yes!" She and Adrian cried childishly. Christmas dessert was always something extravagant and both preteens lived for today's dessert.

The adults laughed at their enthusiasm and Sam's mother turned to her father expectantly as he did the same. Both parents realized that neither of them had bought any desserts.

An unusual strain unfolded over the table as Sam's parents had a silent faceoff. Adrian's parents shifted uncomfortably and Adrian and Sam fell silent. For a long moment, tension spread like fog.

Helene, Adrian's mother, broke the silence, "Didn't you two make cookies earlier? How about you bring them out for us?"

Adrian and Sam eagerly jumped out of their seats and escaped to the kitchen. When they returned with their plate of cookies. During their brief time in the kitchen, everything seemed to have returned to normal. They proudly presented their plate to the adults and the previous tension was forgotten.

<<∞>>

Sam lay in her bed, wide awake. It was eleven at night and she was still buzzing with energy from her day with Adrian.

Downstairs, she could hear her parents arguing about something. She frowned and tried to remember the day that these constant petty disagreements had begun. Sometime during the past year, things between her normally loving parents had tensed up.

Her phone dinged on her bedside table.

Oops, forgot to turn off the volume.

She opened the new message and her expression twisted into one of disbelief.

Isabella: Maybe you like him ;)

Sam scoffed. As if. Adrian was her childhood friend and practically her brother. She didn't like him in the romantic sense. That was absolutely ridiculous. She voiced her thoughts to Isabella but her friend's words stayed with her for the rest of that week.

Liking Adrian...as more than friends.

The scary part was that Sam did not mind the idea at all.

A/N: Hello!!! Hope you all enjoyed the next chapter of the book! Thanks for reading!