31 Days of December

December 7th

It was after midnight when the roomies and I returned to our apartment. We all put pajamas on and curled up on the couch to watch Home Alone. None of my roommates asked any questions about Ethan, which I was grateful for. The four of us just spent the next two hours judging the parents in the movie before going to bed around two in the morning.

I woke up at eleven and went straight to the shower. It seemed like my apartment was dead, so I figured my roommates were asleep. Well, for sure, Ronnie and Layla were still asleep. The hot water from the shower helped slowly free me from my daze, but I was struggling to feel completely awake.

Once I was out of the shower, I threw on a hoodie and leggings before going back to my room. I didn't have enough energy to do the rest of my morning routine, so I collapsed on my bed. Not much later, my phone vibrated. I saw I had a text from Alice, letting me know my assumptions that my other two roommates were not getting up anytime soon.

Alice: Are you awake?

Hailey: Barely

Alice: Do you want to go Christmas shopping with me?

Hailey: Let me brush my hair and teeth first.

Alice: Okay

When she heard me in the bathroom, Alice popped her head out of her room and said, "I thought it was you showering. I wasn't sure, though."

"I don't think the other two are even close to being alive," I said as I quickly brushed my hair and teeth.

"You're probably right," She laughed. We both quickly slid on our shoes before heading out the door.

Alice drove us to the mall first to see if there was anything she needed to buy as presents. For it being the middle of the day on a Saturday during the holiday season, the mall looked fairly empty from the parking lot. Then again, online shopping was the thing to do.

"I can't believe how nice it is," Alice said. It was currently 60 degrees Fahrenheit in December. The average of December would normally be around 30 and 40 degrees Fahrenheit.

"How am I supposed to have a white Christmas if it isn't even close to freezing?" I whined. Alice shrugged as we walked to TJ Maxx. If Alice was going to possibly find something unique for a present, it was going to be at TJ Maxx.

While Alice walked around TJ Maxx, I followed her around like a lost puppy, pulling out the most ridiculous or hideous items I could find to show her. Alice turned down all of my suggestions, so I got bored and pulled out my phone to text my mom.

Hailey: I ran into the cute guy again yesterday.

Mom: What happened? Did you talk to him?

Hailey: So in true fashion, I literally crashed into him while ice skating and knocked him over. I apologized and he asked if I wanted to skate with him.

Mom: You said yes, right?

Hailey: Did I forget to mention that he was with another girl, and she was glaring at me? I said no. I didn't want to be that girl.

Mom: I'm sorry

Feeling my social battery drained from yesterday, I could tell I was going to get frustrated with my mom. I slid my phone back into my pocket so I wouldn't snap at my mom. Having no social battery can make getting advice from other people frustrating.

After making sure there were no other stores we needed to go to, Alice and I left the mall, unsuccessful in the trip. Climbing into Alice's car, we headed to Walmart to see what they had and get enough groceries to survive the end of the semester. After all, a trip to Walmart is almost always successful. Walmart always knows what is needed, even if I don't know what I need.

"I don't want a lot for Christmas. There is just one thing I need. I don't care about the presents underneath the Christmas tree," Alice and I sang along to the radio. It is hard to be in a bad mood when Mariah Carey is playing on the radio. This song is a fucking bop. "I just want you for my own. More than you could ever know. Make my wish come true. All I want for Christmas is you."

As Alice and I entered Walmart, we were laughing our heads off. Alice went to pick out a cart, hopefully one with four functioning wheels. I stood to the side waiting when I saw a familiar figure walking towards the exit.

"Fuck," I whispered loud enough for only Alice to hear.

She looked at me confused and asked, "What?" When I nudged my head toward the direction of the figure, she understood. We started walking into the store, hoping we wouldn't get caught. However, that plan did not work out as planned.

"Hailey," Ethan's voice called. He was there with three other guys, all staring at him. Alice and I pretended to ignore him until I felt a hand touch my shoulder.

"Can you please not touch me?" I asked politely as I stopped.

"Can we talk? Please," He pleaded. I saw his friends looking at us in confusion while Alice watched to ensure I didn't need an escape. "Can I please explain what you saw last night?"

"Dude, we have to get going. Coach will be pissed if we are late to the meeting," One of Ethan's buddies called out.

Ethan called back, "Just give me a minute."

"Look, Ethan," I said with a small smile. His eyes lit up with hope. "You clearly don't have the time, and I don't really feel in the mood to talk to you. So no. You don't get to explain what happened because it doesn't matter. We don't know each other, and I hope you have a good day." I turned back to Alice, and we took off into the store.

Alice and I wandered around Walmart, from the plant section to the Christmas decorations and, of course, the grocery section. Alice found a few plants she thought her mom would enjoy while I got some Christmas decorations for the apartment. Even though the decorations were going to be up for two weeks, it was nice to make the apartment feel festive.

We made our way to a self-checkout, grabbing sodas on our way. Somehow, we were able to find an open one without having to wait and took turns checking out our stuff.

Once we finished checking out and headed to the car, Alice said, "I was thinking about getting sandwiches for lunch for something different. Is that okay with you?"

I smiled and answered, "That sounds good to me."

"I don't want a lot for Christmas. There is just one thing I need. I don't care about the presents underneath the Christmas tree. I just want you for my own. More than you could ever know. Make my wish come true. All I want for Christmas is you," The song sang faintly from the Walmart loudspeaker as Alice and I got into the car.