Chapter 12: Todd

       If people asked why I wanted to go to the ski lodge, I told them the simple answer of wanting to get away from my parents. However, the real reason was because I was suffering from being away from Nick.

       Okay, not really. In fact, the real reason was because I did want to get away from my parents. Seeing Nick was just a bonus.

       I couldn't wait to see his reaction. He was going to be pissed to see me.

       "Yeah, are you sure it's me you like?" my boyfriend Darby asked as we walked to the ski lodge with our luggage. "Because you look awfully excited to see Nick."

       "Uh, because you know how much I like bugging him," I said. "Are you jealous of Nick?"

       "Shut up, you know I'm not," Darby said. 

       "You kind of sound jealous," I said. "It's not like I'm going to break up with him for two reasons. One, he's in love with Ginny. And two, he's straight."

       "But let's say he wasn't in love with Ginny and he wasn't straight."

       "Oh, yeah, totally not jealous," I said. "Relax, Darby. It's you I love. And Nick."

       Darby scoffed as he opened the door to the ski lodge. He didn't even bother holding the door open for me. He just let it close, so I sighed and dropped one of my bags to open the door. I placed my foot in front of it and picked up the bag before walking in.

       "Thank you," I said sarcastically. "You are so sweet for holding the door open. What would I ever do without you."

        "Oh, I'm sorry, did you want me to hold the door open for you?" Darby asked. "My bad."

       "You can be nicer to me, you know," I said.

       "Why would I be nicer to you when you're a pain in the ass?" Darby asked.

       "Literally."

       Darby sighed and looked down. "Oh heart. Why must have you fallen in love with this douche bag?"

       I smiled to myself as I looked around the ski lodge. My eyes soon landed on Nick, who was sitting with Ginny on one of the couches near the fireplace. He soon looked over at me and as soon as he did, he groaned and rested his head on the back of the seat.

       "Hey, Darbs, I'm gonna go bug Nick," I said. "You go get us checked in."

       "Oh, sure, leave me with all the work," he said.

       "Thanks, you're the best," I said before kissing his cheek and walked over to Nick. "Hey, there's my roommate. Fancy running into you here."

       "What are you doing here, Todd?" he asked.

       "Well, I didn't want to be with my family for Christmas, so Darby and I came here," I said. "Mainly because we found out you're here. Haven't you missed me?"

       "Nope, not at all," Nick said. "Please do me a favor and don't come near me."

       "Aww, but we're roomies," I said. "Hey, what's your suite number?"

       "Nine, why?" he asked.

       I smiled. "Darby and I are in ten."

       Nick groaned. "No. Why are you doing this to me?"

       "It was just a coincidence," I said. "By the way, Ginny, Darby got Julian to cover your shifts at the bakery. His family actually owns a few bakeries so he was taught at a young age how to bake and decorate and all that shit."

       "That's great, now can you leave me and Ginny alone?" Nick asked.

       "But I came here just for you," I said. "So we could be friends again. Best friends forever."

       Nick got up from the couch. "You. Stay away from me." He then made his way upstairs.

       "Aw, come on!" I heard a voice say. I looked over and saw someone standing by an older version of Nick. "Munro, you told me it's impossible to irritate Nick."

       "Yeah, that's what I thought," Munro said before looking at me. "So, who are you and how were you able to irritate Nick?"

       Darby walked over, carrying his luggage. "He's the most annoying person in the world. Also known as Nick's roommate."

       "Yes, and thank you so much for getting him annoyed, Todd," Ginny said. "I haven't seen him annoyed in a while."

       "You are very much welcome," I said. "Now come along, Darby, let's go into our suite."

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I can't believe I didn't think about adding Todd in sooner. cx But don't worry, Liliana will be staying far away from the lodge.

I might get through the whole book with everyone getting a POV. Well, those who are 16 and older. cx