When Max finally made it to Addy's apartment, he stopped for a moment before ringing the doorbell. He didn't know what the hell was going on inside his head, but he simply couldn't stop thinking about Holly. Holding the golden star in his hand, he was mad at himself for not stopping her, for not inviting her.

He had no contact, no social media, nothing. Only name.

Choosing to ring the doorbell, Max saw the door swing open almost instantly. Addy was standing there, wearing an apron. The sweet scent of sugar cookies wafted through the air, accompanied by the laughter of his friends in the background.

"Max, finally! Come in!" Addy laughed, hugging Max. When Max didn't say anything back, she let go of him and looked into his eyes. "Are you alright?"

"I screwed up," Max shook his head.

Addy only nodded when she noticed the golden star in Max's hands. "Come on in. We have cookies and everything. You'll tell us what happened, okay?"

After Max received a comforting cup of hot chocolate from Hazel and ate a few of Addy's delicious cookies, he found himself surrounded by his friends staring at him, waiting for him to finally say something.

"Will you finally tell us what happened?" Pierre almost shouted out impatiently, receiving a death stare from Hazel.

"Show some compassion, please. It's obvious he's dealing with something," Hazel clicked her tongue. Pierre then nodded in understanding.

After that, Max shared the whole story with them. Starting from the early morning, when he had been peacefully driving a car, and a crazy girl had jumped in the middle of the street. He described every single detail. When he finished the story, he let out a sigh. "Am I an idiot?"

"Yep, you're definitely an idiot," Addy nodded, rolling her eyes. "You claim to hate Christmas, yet you find yourself at Winter Wonderland, ice skating, having coffee with her in the most festive café in London, and then you enjoy buying decorations and food," she said, tilting her head. "And she even gives you a star. Clearly, she's paying attention to the details you shared with her. So, yes, Maxie. You are an idiot."

"Holly has feelings for you. And trust me, she doesn't want to be alone on Christmas. She simply didn't want to bother you," Charles said, resting his elbows on his knees. "She lost her dad, and her family is in Copenhagen. Being alone is the last thing she wants."

"She's your Christmas miracle, Max. She's here to melt your heart," Adeline nodded with a smile.

"Addy's right. You need to find her, mate," Charles agreed, locking his gaze with Addy's.

Max couldn't ignore the fact that Addy and Charles had their hands intertwined. They were made for each other.

He wanted something like this. He wanted someone to spend Christmas with, to transform this cold and gray holiday into something beautiful and warm.

And Holly was the only one who had stirred such feelings within him.

"I don't have her address," Max sighed, pinching the bridge of his nose. He had indeed messed things up.

"But you do know the name of the village, don't you?" Pierre asked. When Max nodded, Pierre chuckled. "Then it's settled. Addy and I used to be detectives when we were kids. Let's go find her!"

"I agree. She can spend Christmas Eve with us," Hazel exclaimed, clapping her hands with enthusiasm. "No one should be alone on Christmas. Don't you think?" She rose from her chair, directing her gaze at Max.

"That's right. No one should be alone," Max nodded. When his friends started getting up from their chairs and Addy started running around to gather all the coats, Max realized one more thing.

"We need to do something first."

∘₊✧────────────────✧₊∘

LET'S GO GET YOUR GIRL MAX!!

also, had to make some addy and charles appearance (and hazel and pierre) 🤭

epilogue will be posted tomorrow, on christmas eve <3

love, zu 🫶🏻