Juliana Woodland and Nate Jacobs have been best friends for as long as they can remember.
They are now in their junior year and East Highland High School and things are starting to get complicated.
*Had this story up on my old account and it got del...
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Can't believe this story is up to 10k, never thought so many people would read it, thank you!🩶
Juliana and Nate's laughter blended together and echoed through her otherwise silent house as they sat side by side on her bed. Her room was dimly lit, the flickering light of the television and the small lamp on her nightstand casting a glow on their faces.
They were getting ready to spend their night playing the same drinking game they played every year during Christmas time ever since they first got into their parents' alcohol stash in junior high.
Neither of them could remember who came up with it first, so they agreed it was a joint effort. When the holidays approached they would watch Elf and have holiday-inspired drinks, which Juliana always had fun making.
This year she made what she called Christmas punch, which was several different types of alcohol and juice, along with some sliced oranges because she wanted to make it look fancy.
Making the drinks had gotten a lot easier since Nate got a fake ID, plus being able to buy alcohol at Fez's store. They could actually pick what they wanted instead of settling for whatever their parents had at home.
They would always write down the rules on a piece of paper and swear they would keep it for next time, but of course, the list was nowhere to be found by the following December.
"Come on, Natey, think! We're definitely forgetting some."
Juliana tapped the pen on her chin as she racked her brain for other rules they used years before. So far they had written down: drink when anyone says Christmas spirit, drink when you see a fake Santa, drink when Buddy eats something sweet.
"Drink when Buddy mentions the North Pole." Nate took the list and pen and jotted it down before handing them back to her.
"Yes! That's definitely an important one."
It was a typical Friday night, the kind they had shared countless times before their tumultuous relationship had come to an end. They were still doing well with being friends, especially considering neither of them were actually over their relationship.
It took a little bit of time to adjust, but they had gone back supporting each other, talking about everything, sharing laughs, while avoiding the heavy conversations that could lead to unraveling the delicate balance they had both worked so hard to achieve.
It was almost the same as it was before they got together, with them both pining for each other without realizing it. But now they actually knew what it was like to have each other, which made it all the more complicated.
After writing down a couple more rules, Juliana read the whole list out loud, sounding like she was giving an important speech to a room full of people.
"You are taking that list very seriously." Nate chuckled as he picked up the drink pitcher from her dresser to pour into their glasses.
