Acting Out [Student/Teacher, GxG]

Christmas Eve

I'd been scrolling through my Instagram timeline while Claire read a book when there was a knock at the door. My parents hadn't made any effort to contact me regarding plans for the Holidays, and I couldn't say I was surprised, but the idea of being alone on Christmas still filled me with an indescribable sadness. When I'd made an offhand comment about my lack of plans, Claire had looked at me like I had two heads, telling me that of course I was welcome to stay with her, and that she'd assumed I was staying all along. Nina and her husband would be flying in late that night, and Brielle would be driving over in the morning.

"Are Nina and Michael here already?" I asked, and she brought her book up to cover her conspiratorial smile. What was she up to?

"They must've caught an earlier flight. Could you grab the door for me?"

I nodded, confused. She was definitely hiding something from me, and I couldn't for the life of me figure out what it could be.

I walked to the door, bracing myself for an awkward greeting with Nina, followed by some sort of explanation for why I was living with her sister. So good to see you again, Nina. I'm staying here because I've been orphaned by my parents. No, they're not dead, just in prison.

When I opened the door, I was met with a suffocating hug.

"Caleb?" I gasped, stumbling backward.

"Merry Christmas, Ro," He squeezed me even tighter. When we separated, I stared at him in shock.

"I don't understand — how did you get here?"

"I walked," He joked, pushing past me into the house, leaving me with my jaw on the floor in the doorway. Claire was standing in the hallway with a cheshire grin, and I watched as she opened her arms and hugged him, book still in hand. 

"How was the flight?"

"When you said you would cover the ticket, I thought you meant coach!" He exclaimed, "Did you know they have beds on the plane now?" He turned back to me, "You weren't joking about this being the Barbie Dream House, hey?"

The pieces started to come together and I couldn't believe what I was hearing. Had Claire flown Caleb in for me? I brought my hand to my mouth, choking back tears. "Claire?" I managed quietly through my fingers, "Did you do this?"

"Surprise!" She threw up her hands and I was rendered completely speechless, my head spinning, looking between the two of them with eyes as wide as saucers. 

•••

I'd followed Claire to her bedroom that night in the hopes that she would finally bring up the conversation we'd had on set that morning. When Nina and Michael had finally arrived, Nina had cooked us all dinner, shoving Claire out of the kitchen every time she tried to insist on helping. "Jebi se! Uništit ćeš hranu!" She'd shrieked, "Vratite se tvoja draga." The last part had sounded mocking, and I heard Claire groan before grumbling, "Prestani pričati hrvatski," and walking away. Before she joined Caleb, Michael, and I back in the living room, she'd shot over her shoulder, "You kiss your husband with that mouth?" From the sound of it, she'd said something pretty vulgar. 

The five of us had gotten along remarkably well, drinking wine and sharing stories. Caleb talked about NAF and his horrible replacement teacher, which had left Claire wheezing with laughter, apologizing through fits of giggles for passing him off to such an awful instructor, and Nina and Michael talked about their lives back in Toronto. Nina, who I came to learn was in her first year of Medical School, studying to be an oncologist, had made the Dean's List, and Michael shone with pride as she spoke modestly of her accomplishments. Claire had raised a toast to her — 'To my baby sister, the most incredible woman I've ever known.'