FicWad

I usually enjoyed the holidays. I loved to go back to Minnesota and see all of my family and friends that my mom and I had left behind to escape to Illinois. It was a good break from life in a way. So when we got the phone call from a friend of the family stating that there had been a sighting of HIM in our hometown, we canceled our plans quickly. I was extremely bummed out especially since Pete was going to be out of town from before Christmas to right before New Years, and my mom took the opportunity to get overtime.

"What are your plans for Christmas?" Patrick asked as we walked through the fully packed mall.

"Oh, nothing really. We were going to go back to Minnesota, but our plans got canceled, and my mom decided the overtime pay would be nice, so she is going out of town," I said taking a big sigh while swinging the bags in my hand back and forth.

"Are you going to spend Christmas with Pete?" he asked quietly.

"Nope. Pete gets a little unbearable over the holidays since he has to spend so much time with his father, so I try to stay clear of him during this time," I said looking straight ahead as I talked.

"Why is that?" Patrick asked confused.

"Why is what?" I asked looking at him through the corner of my eye.

"Why does Pete hate being around his father?" he asked.

I was kind of surprised that Pete never told Patrick about his past. I thought Pete told Patrick everything. They spent more time together than Pete and I did, that was for sure.

"I dunno. They just don't get along," I said lying. Patrick just nodded.

I knew he was smarter than that. He knew there was something deeper than just not getting along with his father.

"So, you are going to be all alone on Christmas?" Patrick asked now looking at me concerned.

"I guess. It's not a big deal. My mom and I will celebrate before she leaves and Pete and I will celebrate when he gets back," I said shrugging and finding the window of Hot Topic very interesting.

"Well, maybe we could do something Christmas evening or something. I would hate for you to be alone," he said grabbing my wrist to get my attention. My head shot up surprised.

"No, you should hang out with your family," I smiled at him grateful for his concern.

"Please, by the end of the day, I will be all familied out," he said and began walking again.

I swallowed hard. Why was it at times I felt that Patrick cared for me more than Pete did? That wasn't how it was supposed to be, but that's the way it was. Pete has been more than just crabby lately. I knew it was because of the fact that he had to spend extra time with his father, but he took it out on me and I was emotionally drained. I was actually looking forward to the end of the holidays, so we could get back to some normalcy.

"Sounds like fun," I said answering Patrick's suggestion to hanging out.

"Great! I get to pick the movies this time," he said glancing at me. I just laughed and continued walking with him.

----
"Ho! Ho! Ho!" Patrick said as I opened the door for him. It was snowing quite a bit outside and I told him to stay home, but he refused.

"Merry Christmas!" I said allowing him to come inside.

"It's really coming down out there," he said shaking the snow off of his head and shoulders.

"I told you that you shouldn't drive in this," I said grabbing the bag that was in his hands.

"And I told you that no one should be alone on Christmas," he said back. My heart melted.

"So what's in the bag?" I asked peering in.

"Leftovers, compliments of my mother, some movies, and this," he said reaching in and handing me a wrapped box. My eyes shot open and I looked up at Patrick.

"Patrick, you shouldn't have," I said not reaching for it.

"I wanted to, and it's nothing big," he blushed slightly.

"Well, if that's the case then I got you something too," I said walking into my living room towards the tree.

"Izzy, I thought we weren't going to get each other gifts," he said peering at me.

"Well, you broke the rule too!" I said laughing and handing him a box as well.

We took each other boxes that were wrapped in red and green and looked at each other.

"You first," I said to him excited for him to open it.

"Ok," he said smiling and ripping into the paper. I smiled watching him in hopes that he would like the gift I gave him. He opened the box and removed the tissue paper. His smile turned to slight shock as picked his gift up out of the box.

"Oh Izzy," he said quietly.

"Do you like it?" I asked as he held it up to take a better look at it.

It was a picture of me and him at one of their performances in a nice frame. Pete had taken it with my camera, since he either has a camcorder or a camera attached to his hands at all times. We were sitting on the stage with our feet dangling and I was looking over at him laughing as he talked with his hands. Pete had taken it of us unknowingly, and I had just found it recently.

"I love it," he said still staring down at it.

"Pete must have taken it when we weren't looking," I said simply.

"Yeah, he's good at that," Patrick said laughing, but keeping his eyes on the picture. I just stood there and smiled at him. He looked up at me.

"You now!" he said excitedly.

"Ok," I said ripping into the paper just as he had. I peered into the box and squealed pulling the C.D. out of the box.

"Thank you! Thank you! Thank you!" I said running up to him and hugging him. He had given me an Otis Redding C.D., which was one that I had wanted for a while.

"Do you like it?" he asked laughing at me jumping up and down.

"I love it!" I said holding it up to my heart.

"Good, now you can give me mine back," he said laughing. I just rolled my eyes.

"Thanks Patrick," I said more seriously.

"No problem. And thank you," he said quietly.

He hugged each other tightly. I pulled back slightly and looked up at him as he peered down at me. I was holding my breath. He had never looked at me like this before. I was unable to read it. I noticed that he began to lean in towards me and I didn't know what to do. We were suddenly interrupted by the phone ringing. I jumped back and put my hand up to my heart.

"Are you going to get it?" he asked laughing slightly at the situation.

"I screen," I said and walked into the kitchen with Patrick on my heels.

I leaned against the counter to hear who ever was on the other end of the phone.

"Hey Izzy, it's me. I tried your cell, but you don't have it by you. Are you there?" I heard Pete say.

I quickly reached for the phone and picked it up.

"Pete, hi," I said. Patrick stood there listening in.

"Iz, why don't you have your phone by you? You knew I was going to call," he said angry.

"I'm sorry. It is charging up in my room," I said not wanting to argue with him. I heard him take a big sigh on the other line.

"It's fine. How was your Christmas?" he asked still not sounding like he wanted to be talking to me.

"Uneventful. Yours?" I asked trying to be as nice as possible.

"Don't ask. Look, we will be getting home New Years Eve day, and I guess Will is having a party that night. Do you want to go?" he asked shortly. There was little to no emotion in his voice.

"Sure. Sounds like fun," I said chipper hoping it would rub off.

"Alright. I gotta go. Have a good night, I love you," he said quietly.

"Me too. Bye," I said and hung up the phone. I took a deep breath and almost forgot Patrick was standing there.

"How's Pete?" he asked breaking me out of my thoughts.

"Pete's Pete," I mumbled looking over at him. He just nodded knowingly.

"Want some food?" he asked holding up the bag that was sitting on the table full of the leftovers his mom packed.

"Yes, I'm starving!" I said rushing towards him in a dramatic way.

Patrick and I sat in front of the TV full of leftovers and watching the movies he had brought over. He figured that since it was Christmas we should watch Christmas movies, so he brought over National Lampoons Christmas Vacation and A Christmas Story. Two of my favorite Christmas movies ever.

"Oh those crazy Griswalds," I said as Patrick turned off the movie after it ended. I stood up and stretched and noticed it was already midnight.

"I suppose I should go," Patrick said putting the movie in it's case.

"I guess," I said and looked out the window. "Or not," I said startled at how much it had snowed in the couple of hours that Patrick was over.

"Holy Shit!" he said shocked looking out the window with me.

"I'm sorry, but I can't let you drive in that," I said as the snow continued to pour down.

"I don't think I could if I wanted to," he laughed a little.

"Sleepover!" I said happily.

"I guess so," he said still shocked. "I better call my mom, so she doesn't think that I was buried alive in the snow," he said walking into the kitchen.

"Will she be okay with this?" I asked following him.

"Oh yeah. My mom's pretty cool with that kind of stuff. As long as I am safe, she's pretty much okay with anything," he said dialing the numbers on the phone.

I nodded and went upstairs to find some clothes that he could sleep in. He wasn't as skinny as Pete, but I was sure I had something that would fit him. I dug through my lazy clothes pulling out various articles of clothing.

"She's cool with it," Patrick said from behind me startling me.

"Good," I said taking a deep breath.

"What are you doing?" he asked.

"Finding you something to wear to bed," I said simply. "I hope you don't mind wearing Twins stuff. I mean I know you are a White Sox fan and all, and I won't hold that against you or anything, but it is pretty much all I have," I said rambling. Suddenly I was nervous.

"I think I can handle that," he said laughing at my odd mannerisms.

"Pete leaves sweats here all the time. You should be able to fit into these," I said handing him a pair of sweats and a Twins t-shirt.

"Thanks," he said and walked into my bathroom.

I exhaled deeply. Alright, Izzy, you have got to get a hold of yourself. It's just Patrick. Nothing is going to happen. Just breathe.

"Are you ok?" he asked standing in the doorway of the bathroom.

"I'm fine," I mumbled. "I'm just being a girl," I confessed.

"A girl?" he asked confused.

I sat down on my bed and he followed me.

"Yes, a girl," I said looking down at my hands.

"Would you care to explain?" he asked still sounding very confused.

"Well, my overactive mind, which I'm sure is a female quality, is going crazy because you are spending the night and I'm just scared that if Pete finds out he will go ape shit, because he has that damn jealous trait, and I would really like to have the shit not hit the fan, if you know what I mean," I said in one big breath.

"Wow. That's a lot you are thinking," he said laughing slightly.

"I'm being stupid, right?" I asked.

"Not at all. I don't want Pete to freak out either, so I guess we will just have to be sure not to tell him. Even though he has no reason to be jealous," he said looking straight ahead with a look of thought on his face.

"I know, but he is," I sighed shaking my head. "And I hate keeping things from him."

"Well, I think this one thing won't be a big deal. No one will know," he said gently.

"Thanks Patrick. You are too understanding," I said placing my hand over his.

"I know," he sighed.

I smiled and got up to get ready for bed.

-------

I blared my Otis C.D. singing along to Try a Little Tenderness while folding clothes in my room. Since I was the only one home, the stereo usually reached close to max volume.

"Babe?" I heard from behind me. I screamed and reached for the stop button on my stereo.

"Pete!" I said running into his arms. It had been since before Christmas since I had seen him.

"What are you doing?" he laughed hugging me tightly.

"Cleaning," I said simply.

"To Otis Redding?" he questioned.

"Yeah," I said simply.

"I missed you," he said quietly still holding on to me tightly.

"Really?" I asked looking up at him. It was good to hear that he missed me and I wanted to hear it again.

"Yeah, of course. Why do you ask that?" he questioned giving me a concerned look.

"No reason. I missed you too," I said hoping he wouldn't get angry.

He smiled and leaned down to kiss me. It felt good to be in his arms again.

"Merry Christmas," he said bringing the box he had in his hand in front of my face. It was a small box, which meant jewelry. I looked at the box and bit my lip. I grabbed the box and sat down on my bed. Pete came and sat down next to me. I opened the purple velvet box.

"Oh Peter!" I said pulling out the flip flop necklace with diamonds on it.

"I know your obsession with flip flops, so here is way you can wear them all year round," he said grabbing it to put in on me.

"I love it. Thank you," I said. I reached over and placed a hand on his cheek as I kissed him.

"You are welcome," he smiled down on me.

"I have something for you!" I said getting up from my bed and grabbing the box that was under my dresser. I handed him the box and he opened it up quickly.

"Babe!" he said shocked. "This is too much," he said turning the box around and examining it. I had gotten him a new digital camera since he used his so much.

"This one has a video feature on it, so now you can make your movies and take pictures at the same time," I said pointing to the listed features on the box.

"You shouldn't have," he said looking down at the box.

"I wanted to. Nothing is too much for you," I said quietly resting my hand on his thigh.

"Thank you," he whispered and kissed me again. He started to push me down on the bed.

"No, no, no," I said pushing him up.

"What?" he asked disappointed. "I haven't seen you in forever," he whined.

"We have to get ready for Will's party. It's semi-formal," I said sitting up trying to push his prying hands away.

"Ohhh, can't we be late?" he asked pouting.

"No way. Now if you are a good boy, maybe you will be rewarded later," I said leaning down to look him in the eyes. Pete just got an evil grin on his face.

"Ok. I'm going to hold you to that," he said standing up. "I'll be back in 2 to pick you up. Be ready," he said walking out the door.

I smiled to myself. Things were going much better.

-------

Pete surprisingly was on time picking me up, but I had lost an earring, so I was running late.

"Come on! You are the one that insisted that we can't be late. Forget the fucking earring!" Pete yelled.

Sometime from when he left my house to when he came to pick me up things had gone bad. I assumed he had a fight with his father, but who was to tell.

"I'll find it, just give me a second. It doesn't help that you are breathing down my back!" I yelled back.

"I'm going downstairs," he grumbled.

I took a sigh of relief. At least he wouldn't be yelling at me. Finally I had found the earring I was looking for and I put my heels on.

"Ok, I'm ready!" I said coming down the stairs.

"Finally," he said sounding irritated.

I really didn't want our evening to start out this way. It was New Years, a time for new beginnings.

"Babe," I said and grabbed his hand so he would look at me.

"What?" he snapped.

"Sorry about keeping you waiting. You look very nice tonight," I said and put my body against his.

I saw his features soften and he smiled down at me.

"I'm sorry I was short with you. You look nice too," he said and kissed me quick on the lips.

I smiled and sighed as we walked out the door; he dressed in nice dress pants and a blue dress shirt and me in a black knee length dress and heels.

-----

We didn't get to Will's too late. The party was just starting to get going when we walked in. Immediately I noticed Ady and Andy standing with Patrick. Everyone looked so nice in their dress clothes. Pete and I walked over to them hand in hand.

"Hey you guys. Happy New Year," I said happily.

"Izzy, Pete. How are you guys," Andy greeted us.

"Good," Pete said quietly. I just nodded.

"Hello Darlings! Would you care for some champagne?" Will asked our group as he walked up to us.

He was dressed in a pin-stripped suit with a top hat and a cane. I'm pretty sure he had this party be semi-formal just so he could dress up in the outfit.

"Will, nice outfit," Patrick said nodding at him.

"Patrick, the trucker hat and sneakers don't really go with dress pants and a nice dress shirt," Will said looking over at him. Patrick just shrugged. Will looked down.

"All you boys are wearing chucks with your dress pants! Ladies, what are we going to do with these boys?" he asked Ady and me. We just giggled at his little antics.

"I honestly don't know what's worse. Wearing chucks with dress pants or wearing what you are wearing?" Ady asked to Will.

"I'm hurt, really," he said putting a hand to his heart. We all just laughed at him.

"So where is this alcohol you speak of?" Pete asked bluntly.

"Kitchen my friend. Help yourself," he said pointing towards the kitchen with his cane.

Pete left my side without even asking if I had wanted anything. I just rolled my eyes at him. I had a feeling it was going to be a long night.

After standing with Ady, Andy, and Patrick for about forty minutes with no return of Pete I decided to go find him.

"Do you want me to go with you?" Patrick asked.

"Naw. I'm fine," I forced a smile. The truth was I was irritated.

I walked through the crowd of people that filled the living room and pushed my way into the kitchen. There Pete was talking to Joe and A.J. smiling and laughing. This just made me more irritated.

"Hey," I said walking up to him.

"Hi," he said to me quickly but continued on with his conversation with Joe. I looked at him shocked. I'm not really sure why I was being treated in such a way.

"Are you going to come join the rest of us?" I asked quietly.

"Izzy, I'm talking! Stop being so damn rude," he snapped at me. I stood back for a second with my mouth hanging open.

"Fuck you," I snapped and turned to leave grabbing a bottle of champagne on my way out of the kitchen.

I found the steps and sat down and began drinking from the bottle. I don't know why he was being such an asshole, but he would be more bearable with some alcohol in my system. I sat there for what felt like hours, when in reality it was only one.

"I've been looking everywhere for you," Patrick said sitting down next to me.

"Well, you found me," I said pouring the rest of the champagne in my mouth.

"Did you drink that whole bottle?" he asked pointing at it.

"Yeah, do you want to bitch at me now too?" I asked not in the mood for a lecture.

"Nope. I'm just bummed you didn't save any for me," he said leaning back against the steps. I scrunched up my face and looked over at him.

"I don't understand," I said quietly.

"What's that?" he asked. He was so easy-going at that moment. How did he always know how to make me feel better?

"I don't understand why you treat me better than my own boyfriend," I said just staring down at Patrick.

I knew it was the champagne talking, but I didn't care. Patrick sat up quickly at this and looked at me. He didn't say anything, he just stared into my eyes not sure of what to say.

"I mean what the hell? He's been treating me like crap all night and you can swoop in and make all the bad feelings go away. That's not right," I said shaking my head. What was I saying?

"I'm sorry that he makes you sad," Patrick whispered looking at me almost in pain that I was in pain.

"Me too," I whispered back to him. He put his hand on my cheek and I leaned into it grateful for a gentle touch.

"Holy Shit. What did I stumble across?" we heard from in front of us.

My head snapped up to be face to face with her.

"None of your fucking business, bitch," I said standing up with Patrick following suit.

"Oh, Pete is going to love this," she laughed slightly.

"You stay the fuck away from him," I pointed at her.

"Fat chance," she said going upstairs into the party.

"Fucking Bitch!" I shouted to myself and followed behind her with Patrick still standing there in shock.


AN: Oops...I'm leaving you guys in suspense. Sorry. It's a longer chapter this time, so hopefully it will make up for it.