Joey was driving Lauren to work, and they were stuck in LA traffic. He was tapping his fingertips on the wheel to the music before he even realised what song was playing. Lauren was oblivious too, staring down at her phone screen, only looking up when Joey reached out to turn it up.
"I'm dreaming of a white Christmas," Joey sang along, and Lauren rolled her eyes. "Just like the ones I used to know."
"Joey, you've lived in California basically your whole life, you've never had a white Christmas."
"Stop ruining my fun Lo!" he said, as they inched a few feet forward in the traffic.
"Trust me, a white Christmas is overrated," Lauren said, shivering even at the thought of the snow.
Joey opened his mouth in mock outrage.
"You're really telling me you're not gonna miss the snow even a little bit this year?" he asked, knowing this would be the first year she wasn't spending Christmas in Michigan with her parents.
She shook her head, wrinkling her nose.
"Maybe I should go to your parents instead," he said jokingly. Lauren shoved his arm.
"Whatever, I'm not sitting in this car for another hour listening to you singing Christmas songs," she told him forcefully.
"I'm dreaming-"
"Joey, I swear to god!"
"Where's your Christmas spirit?" he said, laughing at his girlfriend's outburst.
"We're barely into December," she said, becoming absorbed in her Twitter timeline again.
Joey reached out to change stations, bursting into laughter as "Santa Claus is coming to town" blared through the speakers.
Lauren let out a grown and turned the volume down to zero. Joey glanced over at her, but her face was expressionless.
"Are we just gonna sit here in silence?" he asked after a pause.
"Yep."
He shook his head and laughed at her stubbornness. Luckily for Joey, the traffic suddenly cleared up a little and they made quick progress.
"Am I still picking you up later?" Joey asked as he pulled in.
Lauren leaned across to kiss him goodbye. "Yes please." She pressed her lips familiarly against his. He leaned forward as she pulled away, extending the kiss, not wanting to see her go.
"Have a good day. I'll see you later," he said, smiling after her as she grabbed her bag from the back seat and opened the car door.
"Oh, one thing," she said before she got out, and Joey stopped humming to himself to look at her questioningly.
"No Christmas songs," she said, trying to muster up a glare, but the corners of her mouth turned up in a smile.
