Mitch POV

I look around the room and smile, happy with what I see. My three sisters, triplets, are dancing around the expansive room in a circle and Connie and Rick Hoying are swaying gently to the music produced by the piano at the end of the room.

"Mitch, why aren't you singing?" my dad asks, coming to sit next to me as my mom goes over to Scott and watches him play the piano over his shoulder.

"Because, I don't know this song."

"Mitch, get over here." Scott says, turning toward me as the piano goes silent.

"Scott..." I whine with a grin as he breaks out in one of his own.

"Good, you know my name. Now come here."

"Where's Lindsay?" I ask suddenly, noticing the absence of one of Scott's sisters.

"I don't know. Why?"

"We must find her!" I say, puffing out my chest and planting my hands on my hips as I stand up.

"Not right now, Superman."

"Mitchie, please." one of my sisters, Kara, says. "Sing for us."

"You hear me sing all the time." I say with a roll of my eyes.

"Yeah, but Christmas Eve doesn't happen very often, so you have to do it." I look around the room again, noticing Lindsay at the bottom of the stairs.

"Look, a girl! We must map its territory!" I call, using her presence as a distraction as I run toward her with my hands outstretched, ready to tickle her mercilessly. She lets out a short shriek mixed with laughter and runs away from me, only to be caught by Scott.

"Get her!" he yells, laughing so hard he is nearly in tears. This is how it goes every year. Our two families, the Hoyings and Grassis, bought this house more years ago than I can remember and come here for every Christmas. Between mine and my best friend's families, we are eleven people: Scott and his two sisters, Lauren and Lindsay, their parents, and me and my three sisters, Kara, Rylie, and Meghan, and our parents.

"Come on, guys, let me go!" Linsday laughs as I start tickling her sides. Scott holds her still until Lauren comes running down the stairs and jumps on his back.

"Run, Lindsay, run!" Lindsay takes the opportunity to break out of her brother's grasp and hide behind her dad.

"Alright, boys, stop tormenting her." Rick says, laughing and shaking his head slightly as Scott and I share a glance. From its spot on the table in the living room, my phone goes off. I run to answer it and call to Scott, "It's Kirstie!"

"Answer it!" He runs up behind me and I put the call on speaker.

"Hey, babe!" I say excitedly.

"Hey, queen. Is Scooter there?"

"Right here." he says, sitting on the couch. It takes all I have not to sit down directly on his lap, but I sit next to him instead.

"Okay. I sent your gifts to your house because I forgot that you aren't there, so you get that when you get back."

"How's Wywy?" I ask eagerly, missing my kitty.

"Priscilla and I are getting along very well."

"Why do you insist on calling him that?" Scott asks with a laugh.

"Why would't I?"

"How. Is. He?" I ask again.

"He's doing great. I just fed him and Jeremy is currently playing with him."

"Hi Jer!" I scream. On the other end, I hear muffled laughter.

"He says hi back, and I say, stop being so loud unless you want me to go deaf. Okay, gotta go. My momma just showed up."

"Bye, sis, love you." Scott says.

"Love you too."

"Bye!" I hang up and exchange a small glance with Scott.

"We'll be right back." I announce to everyone else in the room.

"We will?" Scott says quietly. I respond with a small head nod and he follows me up the stairs. We get up to the bedroom that no one knows we partly share and I kiss him immediately.

"Ugh, it's tiring to not be able to tell anyone about us. I'm tired of having to hide to be with you." I say, leaning against his chest as he lets his hands settle on my lower back.

"I'm ready to tell them whenever you are."

"My parents still think I'm asexual. There's no way I can tell them." He chuckles a little, and the sound echoes through his chest and sends slight vibrations through my head.

"Why do they think that?"

"Because they think I haven't been interested in anyone in so long that it's the only logical explanation." He leans down and kisses me gently, easing away all of my worries. I reach up to cup his face with my hands and let one tangle into his hair. My heart flutters when his lips part against mine and he gently bites my bottom lip. I pull away with a deep breath and say, "Okay, let's go back down." I start to go around him and out the door, but he catches me by the hand and pulls me back into the room. He whispers in my ear, "Can we plan on a date later?"

"Absolutely."

"Guess what?" I smile a little, knowing what he is about to say.

"What?"

"I love you."

"How much?"

"A little more than I did yesterday, and a little less than I will tomorrow." With a final kiss, we head back downstairs.

****

While mine and Scott's moms make pies and other food in preparation for our evening, Scott plays Silent Night on the piano while I sing along, sitting on the back with my eyes closed.

"You're so good." he says when the song ends.

"So are you."

"I can't sing, though." Scott scoffs.

"I can't play the piano. And," I say, lowering my voice and making sure we are alone, "I definitely can't kiss like you can." He smirks as a blush reaches his face.

"Let's do another song." he suggests.

"What song?" I ask, sliding off the piano and leaning over him to look through the book with him. I notice him glance up at me when my stomach connects slightly with his back. I take the opportunity to wrap my arms around the front of his shoulders and lean against him a little more.

"Why'd the music stop?" my dad calls from the dining room where he, Rick, and all five of our sisters are doing a puzzle.

"Sorry, got distracted." I call back, stepping back from Scott. "Let's do Carol of the Bells."

"Okay." He takes a few seconds to search for it in the book. "One, two, three."

****

I lay on my bed, staring up at the ceiling, knowing that Scott's bedroom is directly above mine. The house is so spread out that it sounds and feels empty when we are not together. I just heard my parents' bedroom door shut and grab my phone to text Scott.

Me: Hey is it clear up there?

Scott: I think so. Do you want me to come down?

Me: Yeah bring a movie and a blanket

Me: Oh and one of your shirts

Scott: Okay I'll be there in a minute. I get off the bed and straighten the comforter and arrange the pillows as I wait for Scott to get to my room. I hear his footsteps on the floor above me and a pair of footsteps coming from below. On the stairs near my room, I hear a light conversation between Scott and what sounds like Lauren. Fear spikes in my stomach as I wonder if she is going to figure us out, but when Scott shows up a few seconds later, I assume that everything is fine. As soon as the door is closed his lips are on mine and my hand is in his hair. His hands find my hips and pull me closer.

"I brought The Polar Express and Christmas With the Kranks. Which one do you want?" he asks after we break apart.

"You pick." I say, changing into his shirt and letting it fall down my legs.

"Don't make me." he whines.

"It's not my fault you're indecisive."

"You're just as indecisive as I am."

"Okay, fine. Give me them." He hands me the two cases and I hold one in each hand. "Close your eyes." He does as I say, skeptically, and I shuffle the two movies back and forth in my hands. "Left or right?"

"Left."

"Okay, Polar Express it is. Was that so hard?" He sticks his tongue out at me and gets under the covers while I put the disk into the DVD player. "You got the remote?" I ask over my shoulder.

"Mhm." The TV pops to life and I get into the bed next to Scott, leaning against him as he puts one arm over my shoulders. Our legs rest comfortably against each other and I put my arms around his waist while my head falls lazily onto his shoulder.

"Don't fall asleep on me, okay?"

"Why not?" I ask, readjusting a little to be more comfortable.

"Because I have to leave eventually. No one can find us together in the morning, remember?"

"Right." I say, disappointment sinking like a ship in my stomach.

"And it's hard to wake you up once you've fallen asleep."

"Is not." I deny weakly with a chuckle as exhaustion begins to lay over me. I barely hear the train whistle before my eyes slip shut.

****

A/N
Heeey! Whoever you are, you showed up! I'm going to be following my regular schedule with this story (for anyone who doesn't know, that's updating on Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays at whatever time I can) and this is replacing the Story of Scömìche, the series I just finished. I value every bit of feedback I get so give me lots please!

_grassihoying_

Love y'all!