Ethan

Ethan stared out the window in disgust. The snow was so bright he had to wear his sunglasses. At least something he’d packed for Bermuda had come in handy. He couldn’t believe he was actually crammed in the back of an old Toyota 4-Runner on a road trip to meet his brother’s girlfriend’s family.

Ethan wasn’t the biggest fan of the bubbly girl, but since it was Owen’s year to choose he didn’t have much choice in the matter. The Hall boys had a lot of strange traditions—some born from being brothers, others from their unfortunate childhood. But at least they had each other. That was one thing that Ethan hoped would never change. Although Ethan had a sneaking suspicion if Owen’s girlfriend had her way, Ethan wouldn’t get any time with his brother. As it was they seemed to spend every waking hour together. It was beyond annoying. Especially since Ethan and Owen shared a tiny college apartment.

It was challenging at times; being so dependent on his brother. But after suffering the losses they had, Ethan was determined to keep the little family he had left. So that’s how he found himself on the tail end of a road trip to upstate New York to spend Christmas with a family of strangers.

“It’s every bit as pretty as you said, babe,” Owen murmured from the driver’s seat.

Unlike Ethan, Owen wasn’t wearing sunglasses. Instead he was squinting like an idiot as he took in the quaint surroundings of the wintery rural town. It was a far cry from Manhattan.

“Hard to believe we’re still in New York, “ Ethan muttered.

Owen had just pulled off the exit into the little town of Pine Island. They’d passed dozens of billboards for Everett’s Christmas Lodge and Tree Farm on the way, boasting they did Christmas better than the North Pole.

“Don’t be a city kitty,” Owen’s girlfriend said, smirking at Ethan in the rearview mirror. “You’ll love it here. It grows on you, I promise.”

Ethan found himself rolling his eyes for the millionth time. He honestly didn’t know what the hell Owen saw in Margot Price. In Ethan’s opinion, she tried too hard. She was always so perfectly dressed, her hair and makeup flawless, her smile dialed up way too high, her enthusiasm even higher. It was exhausting being around her. It wasn’t one thing in particular that Ethan didn’t like. It was just the total sum of her overly happy parts.

He glared at Margot’s endless smile in the rearview. She was easily the prettiest girl Ethan had ever disliked. Sighing, he found himself hoping this trip would go horribly wrong and Owen would finally break up with Margot. It would certainly be nice to have his brother back. For a second, the thought lifted Ethan’s spirits, but as he watched Owen lean over and kiss Margot at every stoplight, his hopes evaporated.

Owen was way too smitten to even notice if Margot’s family was full of lunatics. Which Ethan was sure they were. In his opinion, anyone who celebrated Christmas every day and spawned a daughter that smiled as much as one of Santa’s elves must have a few screws loose.

“We should be there in about forty-five minutes,” Owen added.

“Great,” Ethan replied, sarcastically. “I’m starving. Can we stop and pick something up for dinner?”

“No way,” Margot replied. “My parents will want to cook us dinner.”

Ethan mock strangled Margot for the third time this trip, but of course she didn’t notice. She was too busy snapping a picture of herself and Owen at a stoplight. She’d been documenting the entire drive.

Laughing, Margot turned and snapped a photo of Ethan to add to her feed. “You’re too funny, E. You’ve really perfected your Scrooge face. My family is just going to eat you up!”

Ethan let out an exasperated sigh and glared at his brother in the rearview. Owen smirked, knowing that Ethan hadn’t really been joking when he pretended to wrap his hands around Margot’s skinny neck.

“Can we bring anything to dinner?” Owen asked.

But Margot was so engrossed in posting her photos she didn’t respond.

“Margot,” Owen said more forcefully.

“Hmm?”

“I was asking you a question,” Owen continued patiently.

“Oh, I’m sorry, baby. This photo of us is just the cutest. I made it my new background on my phone. See.”

Owen grinned and kissed her. “You’re the cutest.”

“No, you are.”

“I’m gonna be sick, “ Ethan muttered.

Owen smiled and repeated his original question, while Ethan cracked his knuckles praying he’d never meet a girl who could turn him into the pathetic sap that Owen now was. What the hell was the draw? Ethan stared at Margot trying to see what his brother saw. Maybe she was phenomenal in bed?

Ethan snorted. Of course she was. Everything was phenomenal in Margot’s sparkly snow globe world. Ethan shook his head, smirking at his own joke until his brother’s words recaptured his attention.

“So they don’t know we’re coming?” Owen asked.

Margot grinned. “Nope! I thought it would be fun to surprise them. I can’t wait to see their faces!”

A sinking feeling settled in Ethan’s gut. This trip just kept getting worse and worse. Not only was he being dragged along on this holiday honeymoon, but he knew from experience that no one loved surprise guests.

Chloe

December 22nd

Chloe stared down at her journal. She was in Mrs. Murphy’s English class. No one was paying any attention to her. Christmas-itis had officially set in. And if Chloe was honest, she’d caught the fever, too. Running into Brady in the hall earlier had solidified her need to get over him. She couldn’t live like this. She wanted to move on already . . . to find things to look forward to again.

Flipping back through the pages of her journal would reveal nothing but the musings of a broken-hearted girl. And Chloe didn’t want to be that girl. The sappy one who couldn’t get over the first guy she fell for. But no matter how hard she tried she couldn’t seem to get Brady’s rejection out of her head. It was maddening.

She didn’t know what she was waiting for. It’s not like Margot was going to come home and magically fix everything. Chloe needed to get used to figuring things out for herself. Maybe that’s why being cast aside by Brady hurt so badly. It made Chloe realize she was truly on her own.

She rubbed her eyes with the heels of her hands until she saw spots. She just wanted today to end. It’s not like she was looking forward to an exciting winter break, but at least she wouldn’t have to sit around listening to everyone else talking about their amazing plans. Bitter, party of one.

All of Chloe’s plans for the perfect senior year had deflated. Every time she saw Brady and Maci in the hall, pain seized her. But the thing that hurt even worse than getting dumped was that she’d lost her friend. Besides Margot, Brady had been one of Chloe’s closest friends before he’d kissed her and catapulted himself out of the friend zone.

At the time, Chloe hadn’t realized that meant they wouldn’t be able to go back. Her stupid optimism had never let her imagine that things might not work out. Of course now she knew how ridiculous that was. It’s not like many people found their soulmate in high school. Actually, at ten years old if she wanted to be technical.

Brady moved into the only other house on their street the summer before fifth grade. For as long as Chloe could remember he’d been a fixture in her life and she’d never imagined it any other way. Maybe all of this was her fault for holding her feelings back.

She’d known she had a crush on him for a long time, but she’d been too afraid to tell him. Chloe blew out a breath in frustration, realizing she’d allowed her fear to have a hand in ruining her chances with Brady. If she’d told him how she felt earlier they would’ve had a stronger relationship and he wouldn’t have been tempted by Maci.

Today had been the perfect opportunity to talk to Brady. She should’ve told him how upset she was and that she missed her friend. Why hadn’t she?

Chloe let her forehead sink to the desk. Too late now.

There had to be something she could do to get over her misery. Maybe the long winter break would do it. She told herself she was grateful she wasn’t going on the Westerly ski trip. She’d never gone. She always had to work. She tried to tell herself she didn’t mind, that she preferred to observe the winter weather from the warmth and safety of her home. It wasn’t really true, but sometimes if she told herself something enough, she started to believe it.

What Chloe really wanted to do was go ice skating with her family or build snowmen in the front yard or have snowball fights. They hadn’t done any of those things since she was a little girl. It seemed every year the farm got busier and there was less and less time for fun. It was strange how the family business seemed to be ruining her sense of family.

Chloe tried to shake the sadness that thought evoked. Instead she focused on her hopes for curling up by the fire with a novel and a mug of cocoa. That was still a good time in Chloe’s book.

She laughed to herself realizing how much Brady would hate that idea. Why was she so devastated over losing a boy who was completely wrong for her?

Brady was athletic and adventurous. He hated sitting still. Working at the farm over the summer had exhausted Chloe but Brady loved it. When she had a rare moment to herself she’d wanted to lay in her hammock and cuddle with her boyfriend, but Brady always wanted to play volleyball or drag her to parties. She was quiet and didn’t really like crowds. He was outgoing and craved attention. She liked reading medical books or cheesy romance novels. He liked watching gory movies where people were always getting blown apart. She wanted to be a nurse or maybe even a doctor. He wanted to be a hunting guide like his father. She was a vegetarian. He ate meat like a boxer trying to make weight. She loved classical piano music. He loved old school rap. The list went on and on.

At first, Chloe thought their differences kept things interesting, but in the end they’d never been on the same page because they didn’t have much in common. Of course Brady had chosen Maci. They made sense—the jock and the cheerleader, not the nerd.

Chloe picked her head up and forced herself to stop wallowing in self-pity. Just because things hadn’t worked out with Brady didn’t mean she’d never find love. Chloe was a glass half-full kind of girl or at least she wanted to be. She couldn’t help it. Growing up in a family that celebrated Christmas year-round bred joy into the soul. She didn’t want to let one failed relationship ruin her.

Enough was enough. She was going to give herself winter break to get over Brady for good. She’d just lock away that part of her heart, bury herself in college research and then she would return to school refreshed and with a new attitude. No more excuses. A boy cleanse was all she needed . . .