the ghost of christmas love

nini

HEYYY!!!!! THIS STORY IS ALMOST DONE AHH. this is the second to last chapter...

ENJOOOOY!!!!

it's christmas eve and ricky and i have been doing our separate shopping all day. it's 5pm now and we're both just now getting to spend time with each other.

"how did it feel today? out in the world alone?", ricky asks.

i shrug, "it was interesting, a little nerve wracking. the world has changed a lot."

he chuckles at me as he dishes up servings of pizza and garlic knots for us both. we decided on just having a simple dinner tonight.

he sits next to me at the island and i take a bite of my pizza. i glance to the side and notice his silence as he just stares at me.

"you know to always call me if anything happens right?", he asks.

i nod, "mhm."

he kisses my cheek before we both begin eating our food together.

"i'm so excited for tomorrow.", i smile, wiping my face with a napkin.

"oh yeah me too. my sister and her family are coming over around 11am.", ricky mentions and i nod.

a couple days ago ricky sat down and explained everything to them. so now i can freely see them without questions! well...mostly. it's still hard for some to wrap their head around.

once ricky and i finish eating our food, he cleans up the dishes while i put the leftovers away. i'm closing the fridge when ricky comes behind me and wraps his arms around my waist. i squeal as he picks me up and sets me on the counter.

i laugh and lean forward, resting my forehead on his. i smile at him, feeling my stomach's butterflies fluttering. the smell of his cologne on his neck puts me in a daze.

he kisses my lips and then pulls away. i can tell he's thinking about something but before i can ask he speaks up.

"let's make sugar cookies.", he suggests.

a huge smile appears on my face and i nod, eagerly. i jump off the counter and we begin gathering the ingredients from around his kitchen. once everything is placed out we begin to follow a recipe.

"okay put 2 cups of sugar.", i read.

i look up and watch him dump the sugar, seeing half of it miss the bowl. i put my face in my palm as he laughs and sets the measuring cup down on the counter.

"have you never baked christmas cookies before!", i laugh, taking the measuring cup and finishing it.

"hey hey hey...i didn't like christmas before, okay?"

i let out a breath of defeat, shaking my head at him with a small laugh, then we finish adding the ingredients. i let him mix because i figure he can't mess that up. we then roll the dough out and use cookie cutters to cut out fun shapes.

after we decorate them with sprinkles, we stick them in the oven to bake. we look back at the mess we've made and i press my lips together, looking up at ricky.

"we don't keep clean...at all.", i chuckle.

"well before you came my apartment was spotless?", ricky jokes.

i playfully punch his chest and he scoops me up and over his shoulder. i flail my arms and legs around until he puts me back down on my feet.

i laugh and catch my breath. he looks down at me and i get lost in his eyes. his fingers trail down my jawline before he tilts my head back to look at him more. he kisses my lips multiple times before dragging me back to the kitchen to clean.

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ricky and i finished baking our cookies and we're now sat on the couch, the plate of cookies in our hands.

bundled up under the blanket together, i lean my head on his shoulder and he starts a christmas movie. we begin to eat some of the cookies and occasionally take sips of milk.

once i eat enough cookies to the point where i feel sick, i move the plate away from me. i groan and shift positions so i'm comfortable.

"you okay?", ricky quietly asks.

i yawn, "ate too many cookies."

he chuckles, "do you wanna go to sleep?"

i nod and he stops the movie, getting up. i hesitantly toss the blanket off of me because it's cold outside which then makes it cold inside.

he puts his hands out and i take them. he pulls me up and we walk to the bedroom. i quickly jump into the bed, scurrying under the covers to get warm.

"it's so cold.", i shiver.

ricky opens the covers and slides in close to me. i cuddle up against him, relaxing at his body warmth warming me up. he pulls me close to his chest and runs his fingers through my hair. my eyes eventually get heavy and soon i give out and let them shut.