Page 5 of A DIY Christmas Miracle
Of course I was. After all, I’d come up with this crazy plan to have Will all to myself. To finally get the chance to try getting closer to him…
“Out with it already! Why your sudden interest in skiing or vacationing in the snow? Just for the record: I’m not saying it’s a bad idea at all. I’m just saying it doesn’t sound like you. So… what’s up with the lonely cabin thing?”
The slice of pizza in my hand was really… interesting. And it was definitely easier to let Cassy in on my plan if I didn’t have to look her in the face.
“It’s easy to get snowed-in in a mountain cabin,” I explained.
“Uhm… what?”
“Snowed in. You know, so much snow you can’t even get out of the house? Happens frequently around here?”
For some reason, my explanation didn’t sound half as good out loud as it’d sounded in my head.
“Why the fuck do you want us all to get snowed in?” The couch dipped next to me, but I stoically stared down at my pizza.
“I don’t… God forbid. I don’t want usallto get snowed in together. Just me and Will.”
“I see,” Cassy said slowly. The next second, she pressed her ice-cold hand against my forehead — again. “Are you in your right mind? Have you taken any weird pills in the last few days? Or eaten any suspicious mushrooms or something like that?”
“No.” I shook her hand off. “I admit, my plan sounds a little… weird. A—”
“It doesn’t sound weird; it sounds downright crazy.”
“But it’s actually quite simple and logical. It’s—”
“I can’t wait to hearthisexplanation,” Cassy interrupted me again.
“So stop interrupting me already,” I grumbled and ran my fingers through my hair. Ugh. And now I had pizza grease in my hair. Great. “Do you remember my favorite book? The one where the protagonists get snowed in together?”
“Yeah?”
“Well… I thought about it and… that’d be really romantic. But in the real-world, things like that don’t just happen, so I wanted to take matters into my own hands and create my very own Christmas miracle.”
Maybe my plan didn’t sound that logical or simple after all.
“You do realize you didn’t just invite Will to this cabin butallof us? And that Christmas with three other couples and Marc locked in a confined space might not be as romantic as you imagine?”
I sighed softly.
“Yeah, trust me, I know. My plan is for me and Will to get there a little early and then we’ll get snowed in before you can arrive. Just for a day or so.” I smiled wryly, shaking my head. “I realize it sounds crazy, okay? And yeah, it was — or is — a stupid idea, but… I had to dosomething. I was on the verge of adopting two cats. And that’s how it starts. You know how it goes. First, it’s two, then three, and in a few years, I’ll be the male equivalent of the crazy cat lady.”
Cassy giggled, shaking her head at me. But hey, at least she wasn’t calling anyone to have me admitted. “You’re impossible, Eli.”
“I know.” I let out a small sigh and shrugged. “But… fuck, I’ve had a crush on Will for more than two years. It’s getting ridiculous. I need to do something about it.”
I rested my head against Cassy’s shoulder, burrowing my nose into her fluffy green scarf. She was the perfect pillow, the perfect shoulder to cry on — though I didn’t want to cry.
“Don’t you think you could have just… asked him out?” Cassy asked, her voice much softer now that she’d gotten over the initial shock.
“You know I can’t do that. I don’t know how. I’ve never asked someone out before.” I really hadn’t. With my two ex-boyfriends, it’d always just become obvious that we were interested in each other. I mean, we’d met in a club or a bar, and we’d never really beenfriends.Somehow, it was much harder to get together once you were friends.
“You could’ve just asked him. Will’s really not that scary.”
“Yes, he is.” He wasn’t physically intimidating, but he’d held my heart captive for two and a half years now. The thought of knowing for sure that he didn’t want me would tear my heart into pieces.
“Oh, Eli.” Cassy sighed. “You’re crazy. Asking Will out definitely would’ve been the easier solution. How are you even going to arrange for you and Will to leave earlier than everyone else?”
I shrugged. “I have no idea. I hadn’t thought that far ahead, you know? I didn’t expect you to agree so quickly.”
