“Really? Then how come we never see him anymore?” Chloe asked, peering at Shawna over the tops of her wire-rimmed glasses. “I can’t remember the last time he came over.”
“He’s been busy,” Shawna snapped in her I don’t want to talk about it tone. Chloe hadn’t started dating yet so she was clueless when it came to guys. Although maybe if she glammed herself up a bit, the guys would start calling. Cassidy was supercute, but Chloe downplayed her looks. Most days she looked like the BEFORE girl in makeover ads. Shawna wished Chloe would replace those granny glasses with contacts, do something with her hair instead of always pulling it back into a messy ponytail, and start sneaking into her closet to borrow her clothes!
“You look like the guy from Mad magazine,” Cassidy told David.
“Alfred E. Neuman,” David said. “Yeah, I know.”
“He does not!” Chloe exclaimed. “I think you look more like Ron Howard, the film director, when he had hair. That’s when he used to be an actor. Have you ever watched him on Happy Days, that sitcom set in the fifties? TV Land shows it all the time.”
“Chloe lives for old TV shows,” Shawna said, taking a biscuit from a basket and passing the basket to David. “She’s always watching TV Land and Nick at Nite.”
“Me too!” David exclaimed. “Which shows are your favorites?”
Dinner with David wasn’t as bad as Shawna had expected. He didn’t focus all his attention on her, which was what she had been expecting him to do. The last thing she needed in her life was a lovesick nerd. He talked with both her sisters, as well as her parents. When dinner was over, he offered to help her mother clean up, but she shooed him out of the kitchen.
“What do you want to do now?” David asked.
Okay, it was time to put an end to things. She didn’t want David thinking he could hang around for the rest of the night.
“I’m going to do my homework and you’re going home,” she announced, handing David his parka and marching him to the front door.
“Dinner was fun. We’ll have to do it again. Maybe at my house next time.”
Shawna didn’t reply to his comment.
“Here’s my cell phone number,” he said, handing Shawna a piece of paper before she closed the front door in his face. “If you wind up needing a date for the dance, call me!”
∗ ∗ ∗
Froggy was between customers when the phone rang at Icing on the Cake. When he picked it up, he was surprised to hear Celia’s voice on the other end of the line.
“Hey, Celia. What’s up?”
“Sorry I ran out so fast this afternoon. Things were getting kind of scary with Amber.”
“Remember that scene from The Wizard of Oz when the Wicked Witch of the West first shows up? We witnessed it today.”
Celia laughed. “You are bad!”
“What? It’s the truth!”
Froggy couldn’t believe it. He was talking with Celia! Maybe it was because she wasn’t standing across from him, but the words were just flowing. And he was making her laugh!
“Thanks for sticking up for me, but you really didn’t have to do that. I’m a big girl. I know how to take care of myself.”
Froggy didn’t think so. He had watched the scene through the front window when Amber had grabbed Celia by the arm. At first it looked like Celia was sticking up for herself, but then she had backed down. He wondered what they had been arguing about.
“Why are you friends with her? She’s so mean.”
“Amber’s not so bad. You just have to get to know her.”
“Thanks but no thanks.”
Celia’s next question caught Froggy off guard. “Is Jake around?”
Jake? Why did she want to talk with Jake?
“He’s gone for the day. Want to leave a message?”
“That’s okay. I just wanted to apologize for disappearing. I’ll tell him tomorrow. Bye.”
Froggy gave a sigh of relief as he hung up the phone. Phew! For a second there, he thought Celia was interested in Jake.
The following morning another package was waiting on Noelle’s front porch.
She had opened her front door slowly, hoping that when she looked down at the welcome mat, there would be another wrapped present.
And there was!
This package was wrapped in gold foil and had a purple bow on top. Like last time, there was a sealed note. Noelle decided to read the note first and ripped open the envelope. She gasped when she read what was written: These kisses are sweet, but my kiss will be sweeter. Hope you’ll want to try one!
Noelle tore away the wrapping paper and found a box filled with dark chocolate kisses. She peeled the purple foil away from one and popped it into her mouth, savoring its taste and wondering which kiss her Secret Santa was referring to in the note. The ones she could eat or the one he was hoping to give her?
Noelle’s heart instantly started pounding. The kisses had to be from Charlie. He knew she only loved dark chocolate kisses. She had told him on Halloween when he stopped by her house to drop off a package from his mother and inspected the candy in her candy bowl. In addition to the dark chocolate kisses in the bowl, there had been mini–Mounds bars and mini–Midnight Milky Ways.
“No Reese’s Peanut Butter Cups?” he had asked with a sad face. “Or Almond Joys?”
“I buy our Halloween candy, and I only like dark chocolate, not milk chocolate,” she had told him. “If any candy is left over after the trick-or-treaters come, I want to be able to eat it!”
Noelle ran her fingers over her lips. Would she be able to handle a kiss from Charlie? The thought of kissing him gave her goose bumps, especially when she remembered the nickname some of the girls at school had given him: Hot Lips!
Still in her pj’s, she dashed back inside, tossed on her overcoat, and grabbed her latest present for Charlie from under the Christmas tree. The amount of wrapped packages underneath was slim, but hopefully there would be tons of presents by Christmas morning. And with her name on most of them!
She could feel the morning dew seeping into the bottom of her slippers as she raced across her front lawn to Charlie’s house. Ick!
When she reached Charlie’s front door, she left her second package for him and then hurried back home. She hoped he liked this second gift. She knew how much Charlie loved the beach — during the summer he worked at Jones Beach as a lifeguard. She had filled a box with colorful seashells of all different shapes and sizes that she had collected over the years and included a note. The note said: Like these seashells, you’re one of a kind!
When she got back home, Noelle jumped into a steamy-hot shower. Then, wrapped in a fluffy towel, her hair in a turban, she stood in front of her closet, trying to decide what she wanted to wear.
Usually she dressed for warmth when the weather got colder, wearing oversized sweaters and turtlenecks, corduroy jeans, and fleece-lined boots. But she wanted to wear something chic and stylish today. An outfit that a guy would notice. If Charlie was her Secret Santa, she wanted him to see that she could look just as good as the seniors he was dating!
After rummaging through her closet, she decided to wear a sleeveless V-cut silk top in aquamarine and a black suede miniskirt matched with a silver chain belt. She put her hair in a French braid and for jewelry added a pair of silver hoop earrings — very Beyoncé from her Ring the Alarm video — and an arm of silver bangle bracelets. The fleece-lined boots were left in a corner. Instead, she slipped into a pair of high-heeled black leather boots that came just above the knee (again, very Ring the Alarm!).
She studied herself in the full-length mirror hanging on her closed bedroom door, pleased with what she saw.
Perfect.
She had achieved the look she wanted.
Older.
Sophisticated.
Now all she had to do was hope that Charlie noticed.
∗ ∗ ∗
Celia hoped Jake would notice her.
She had dressed up for school today, deciding to go a l
ittle … hotter.
She was wearing an off-the-shoulder, pink, wrap chiffon top that tied with a funky jeweled brooch, a pair of slim-cut pink jeans, and studded platform boots. Instead of her hair being long and straight the way it usually was, she’d set it with rollers last night. When she’d taken them out this morning, she had supermodel hair — big and bouncy with lots of waves!
Her look was very Sandy at the end of Grease, just not all in black!
Guys always turned their heads when she walked down the hallways, but today they were doing it more than usual. Hmmm. Maybe she had overdone it. If they were noticing her, then Amber was definitely going to notice her.
And that wouldn’t be a good thing.
She could already sense that Amber was suspicious, but Amber didn’t know what to be suspicious of.
But given enough time, she would figure out that Celia was interested in Jake.
She needed to come up with a story by lunchtime — luckily she wasn’t going to see Amber today until then — because once Amber saw her she was going to ask why she looked the way she did.
When she walked into Anatomy and Physiology, Freddy’s eyes practically bugged out of his head.
“Wow!” he exclaimed, nearly jumping out of his seat. “You’re all dressed up. What’s the occasion?”
Okay, it was official.
If Freddy — who barely ever said more than two words to her — had noticed the way she was dressed, then she had overdone it.
However, on the positive side, if Freddy had noticed, then Jake definitely would!
“No special occasion. I found this outfit at the back of my closet and decided to wear it.” She wondered if Amber would buy that story. Freddy seemed to.
“You look great. Really great.”
Celia smiled at the compliment. Then her smile grew wider as she approached her seat and saw what was sitting on top of it.
It was a small purple shopping bag.
Another gift from her Secret Santa!
Celia tossed her books to the floor and rummaged through the purple tissue paper inside the bag. She pulled out a purple pen, a purple pencil, a pack of grape gum, and a stuffed purple cow.
“What’s with all the purple?” Freddy asked. “Is it your favorite color?”
“Yes, it is,” she gasped as his question sank in.
Only one person at North Ridge High knew that purple was her favorite color.
Jake.
She had told him yesterday during Art class.
He had to be the one who left her this package.
Which meant he had to be her Secret Santa!
∗ ∗ ∗
Froggy couldn’t take his eyes off Celia. He’d never seen her look so gorgeous!
All he wanted to do was sit and stare at her, but he knew he’d freak her out if he did.
It was something only a nerd would do.
He needed a distraction.
He reached into his backpack, pulled out the copy of Pride and Prejudice that he had checked out of the library yesterday afternoon, and started reading where he last left off. Seconds later, he was aware of Celia standing next to him, holding out the pack of grape gum he had bought her.
“Want a piece?”
“Thanks,” he said, taking a stick. “So you like all the stuff your Secret Santa bought for you?”
“I love it!”
Froggy was thrilled with her answer. He really wanted to outdo yesterday’s gift.
“Are you reading that for English class?” she asked, pointing to his book.
He shook his head. “I’m reading it on my own.”
“How come?” She blew a purple bubble and popped it, sucking the gum back into her mouth. “Most guys don’t like Jane Austen.”
“My mom rented the movie last weekend and made us all watch it. She likes to expose my father and me to culture. I wanted to see how close the movie was to the book. Sometimes they’re different, you know? Plus, I figured it would impress my mom.”
And you! Froggy thought.
Actually, he had rented the movie last night and only been able to watch half of it before falling asleep. All those English accents and weird costumes had bored him. And he couldn’t believe that back then it was scandalous for a woman to show her ankle!
“I love Jane Austen,” Celia said. “All the movies based on her books are great. Sense and Sensibility is my favorite. I love Kate Winslet in it. Hey, did you know that the movie Clueless is based on Jane Austen’s novel Emma?”
“Really?” Clueless was a pretty funny movie. Maybe Hollywood should set all her novels in the present, rather than the past.
“Uh-huh.”
Celia was a walking encyclopedia of Jane Austen information and began telling Froggy tons of facts.
He propped his chin in his hand and intently listened to every last word.
It meant he could stare at Celia to his heart’s content!
∗ ∗ ∗
When Celia got to Art class, she decided she wasn’t going to say anything to Jake about her Secret Santa gift. She was going to wait and see if he said anything to her. After all, if he was her Secret Santa he was going to want to know if she found his gift and liked it, right?
Speaking of Secret Santa gifts …
Celia reached into her shoulder bag and pulled out a wrapped package. Making sure she wasn’t seen, she slipped it on top of Jake’s desk and then started flipping through her sketch pad for a clean page.
The classroom started filling up, and right before the final bell rang, Jake raced in.
“Right under the wire, Mr. Morrisey,” Mr. Catini said, closing the classroom door as the bell rang.
Jake gave Celia a nod as he slipped into his seat. He glanced at the wrapped package on his desk and then shoved it to one side.
“Aren’t you going to open your gift?” Celia asked, pointing at it.
Jake tossed it to Celia. “You do the honors, Ceel.”
Celia wanted to say that it wasn’t any fun unwrapping a gift you had wrapped yourself but caught herself in time. Instead, she tore away the wrapping paper, revealing a DVD. She showed it to Jake. “It’s Rebel Without a Cause,” she said, handing it over.
Jake skimmed the cover copy on the back of the DVD case. “Never heard of it.”
“It’s about a guy who’s considered an outsider at his high school. He doesn’t fit in. Maybe you remind your Secret Santa of James Dean.”
“Who’s James Dean?”
Celia wanted to clutch her heart. How could he not know who James Dean was? Did he never watch Turner Classic Movies on cable or go to the revival house in town? They were always showing great old movies made before even their parents were born!
“He was a movie star,” Celia patiently exclaimed. “From the 1950s. He died really young in a car crash and only made three or four movies. Rebel Without a Cause is considered a classic.”
Celia had bought Jake the movie because she thought he might identify with James Dean’s character, who didn’t really fit in, and who falls in love with the “nice” girl by the end of the movie. Hint, hint!
“Never heard of him,” Jake said, tossing the DVD at Celia. “It sounds boring. You keep it. I never watch movies made before 1990.”
A bummed Celia put the DVD back in her shoulder bag. She already owned a copy of the movie. Maybe she’d be able to get her money back at the video store.
Celia waited for Jake to notice what she was wearing, but he didn’t say a word. He hardly even glanced at her.
Humph!
He also didn’t ask if her Secret Santa had left her anything that morning.
“I called the bakery last night,” she said, trying to make conversation. “Freddy told me you weren’t working.”
“I was at the mall Christmas shopping. I’ve still got a bunch of presents to buy.”
“Shopping for anyone in particular?” Celia asked, hoping her question sounded casual. She wanted to hear Jake say he had been shopping for a gift fo
r his Secret Santa! “Someone special?”
“Everyone on my Christmas list is special,” Jake said, giving Celia a wink “Didn’t you know that?”
Was Jake trying to tell her something? Celia wondered. Send her a message? Was she one of the “someone specials” on his Christmas list? Could it be that Jake didn’t want to spoil the surprise? That he wanted to wait until the night of the Christmas dance to reveal himself as her Secret Santa?
Or was she totally wrong and Jake wasn’t her Secret Santa?
∗ ∗ ∗
Shawna was walking to her American Literature class between third and fourth period when she saw Connor in the hallway. She decided she would give him a smile, as a way of showing him she was approachable. That she wasn’t holding any sort of grudge from the day before. Hopefully, he’d wanted to come over and talk to her. Maybe they could patch things up.
But he completely ignored her.
Correction.
He didn’t see her because his attention was focused elsewhere.
On his locker.
Where his Secret Santa had left him another gift.
It was hanging from the handle of his locker, in a cute little stocking that had his name stitched on the front of it. Stitched on the front of it! That was such a girly thing to do!!!
As soon as Connor saw the stocking, he made a beeline for it, snatching it up with a huge smile on his face.
She didn’t see what was inside the stocking because Connor continued on to his next class.
But she was livid.
Livid!!!
Only a girl would be leaving Connor such cute little packages.
A girl who was trying to steal her boyfriend!
She was still mad at lunchtime. When she got to the cafeteria, she could see Celia already sitting at their table. She instantly noticed her outfit.
“I’m impressed,” she said, taking the seat next to her. “You look like you just stepped out of the pages of Elle.”
“Thanks.”
“I’m glad to see you’re finally dressing like one of us,” Amber said, slipping into the seat on the other side of Celia. “I’d wear what you have on.”
But it wouldn’t look as good on you as it does on Celia, Shawna wanted to say. Instead, she began eating her salad, dipping the leaves into ranch dressing, listening to Amber talk about their plans for next week during the break. But she wasn’t paying attention. Her eye kept darting across the cafeteria to where Connor and Simon were sitting. The Christmas stocking Connor had found was on the table, but what had been inside it?
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