Page 33 of A DIY Christmas Miracle
Eli slowly shook his head.
Damn. Disappointment surged through me, flooding me like a bucket of ice water. He didn’t like my present, and he hadn’t even seen half of it yet. I shouldn’t have picked something I liked. He probably hated it and thought it was too stuffy.
I should’ve known better.
There were worlds between mine and Eli’s style. Nevertheless, I thought I’d known what he wanted since he’d described it in great detail one evening when we’d sat in the bar. Looking back, he’d probably been drunk. Damn, what if he didn’t even remember he’d talked about it?
I sighed inwardly, eyes still trained on Eli, who kept staring into the open box.
“If…” I cleared my throat to get rid of the lump in my throat. “If you don’t care for it, there’s something else in there that’s hopefully more to your liking.”
Did I sound as crushed by his reaction as I was? I’d tried sounding cheery and unaffected. As if his unwillingness to even show anyone what I’d given him hadn’t felt like a dagger to the heart, that his non-reaction wasn’t the final twist of that same dagger that guaranteed the lethality of the blow.
“Are you crazy?”
I bit my lip to keep from apologizing for the gift I’d been so incredibly proud of up until a few minutes ago. I nervously adjusted my glasses, desperately searching for the right words. Everyone was looking at me, staring at me, their eyes burning me, making me squirm.
“Thank you!”
Before I got the chance to raise my head, a body collided with mine, arms wrapping around my neck, lips kissing my cheek exuberantly.
“Thank you, thank you, thank you. The gift is brilliant… amazing. It’s exactly what I wanted. How did you know?” Eli’s warm breath gusted over the shell of my ear, raising goosebumps all over the back of my neck. His unique scent hit my nose, fogging my senses. I still hadn’t worked out what exactly he smelled like. It was sweet but not flowery, fresh with a slightly crisp and tart undertone.
“What is it?” Marc inquired, breaking the moment.
Eli hastily let go of me and straightened back up. I instantly missed our contact, his warmth, his slender arms around my neck, his breath on my ear, his hairs tickling my cheek. And his lips. Oh, how I would love to feel his lips again, the feathery light pressure on my cheek.
“It’s a bag.” Eli smiled at me so brightly, the warmth of his smile melted all my doubts and mended the wound left by the dagger just seconds ago.
“A bag?” Jack raised his eyebrows at me. Blood flooded my cheeks, and I quickly shrugged, trying to look as unaffected as possible. “You’re freaking out over a bag? What is it?Gucci?Prada?”
Eli snorted and gave Jack the finger.
“It’s a leather messenger bag. For school. Look!” Grinning, he finally pulled the bag out of the box and showed it off in all its glory.
It wasn’t a new bag; the leather already showed signs of wear. A few spots were discolored, no longer the reddish-brown of the rest of the bag, but darker, some almost black, and a couple of ink stains adorned the inside of the bag. The old buckles had been rusty and broken, so I’d replaced them after I’d bought it. The shoulder strap was also new. When I’d seen the bag at a yard sale, I’d had to have it. It’d screamed Eli, matching the description about his dream school bag almost to a ‘T.’
It hadn’t been in good condition, the leather all brittle and the shoulder strap chewed through by a dog, but I’d had a vision, and I’d made it a reality. Would Eli notice the shoulder strap was new?Andthat it was made out of an old seat belt?
It didn’t really matter. What mattered was the light in Eli’s eyes that hadn’t been there an hour ago.
“Cool,” Cassy said, giving me a strange look. Almost… benevolent? As if she wanted to tell me I’d done good.
“Now look inside,” Marc urged Eli. “Will said there’s something else in there.”
“But… you were serious?” Eli looked at me with wide eyes.
I nodded hesitantly.
“But… you must’ve gone so far over budget. The bag alone…”
“It was a lucky find.”
And if I hadn’t had to replace the buckles and shoulder strap, the bag really wouldn’t have cost much. In addition to the books and the old dresser I’d bought, the bag had been almost free. Hardly worth mentioning compared to the rest of my acquisitions.
Eli nodded slowly, but his eyes remained doubtful. His furrowed brows told me he didn’t believe I hadn’t gone over budget. Which, fair, I definitely had. Fortunately, he didn’t call me out on it. Instead, his curiosity won out, and he opened the bag to reveal the second present. The one I’d originally gotten for him.
This time, he was less patient, tearing off the wrapping paper within seconds.
