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“C'mon, Carm,” Laura urged, tugging a reluctant Carmilla towards the dorm lounge where the other students stuck in the dorm were already set and ready to dig in to the Christmas dinner. “Perry, Laf and JP are there already, waiting for us. JP, especially, has been looking forward to that ham that Perry loves to make, plus her brownies.”
“Laura, they’re not going anywhere, and Perry always cooks way too much. There’s bound to be leftovers for tomorrow,” Carmilla tried to placate the other girl, trudging begrudgingly behind her.
“I know, but it’s much better when it’s freshly cooked,” Laura replied, tightening her hold on Carmilla’s hand, dodging several down-turned luggages and rubbish scattered across the hallway.
When news hit Silas University about a week ago that all the roads were closed due to the recent snow storm, most of the students opted to stay in Silas instead of braving to find their way home. Another thing that they opted to do was to leave their luggages all over the place. Laura still did not fully understand their logic behind that, but she supposed that they still held hope that the storm would be over soon and that they could go home before the Christmas holidays were over.
“They’re idiots for hoping that this storm will blow over soon,” Carmilla dead-panned as if reading Laura’s mind. “You heard what the news said.”
“I know, I know… Just- isn’t it kinda sad? That all these people are stuck here instead of spending time with their family…” Laura let out a sigh, thinking about her dad that she hadn’t seen ever since he dropped her off at the start of school year. The thought of him spending Christmas all alone, what with her mom gone…
“Hey.” Carmilla pulled Laura to a stop, grabbing a hold of Laura’s shoulders and twisting Laura to face her. “Your dad will be fine, Cupcake. He’s survived this long with you stuck in this hell hole of a place for months, I’m sure he can survive another couple of weeks,” Carmilla added. When Laura still refused to look up, Carmilla raised one hand and used it to gently tilt her chin up.
“He’ll be fine,” Carmilla tried to reassure her once more. “You should worry more about yourself, Cupcake.”
“I’m fine, Carm, just… a little more than homesick and…“ Laura sighed once more. “You know what, you’re right,” Laura piped up, shaking her head, a bright smile replacing the melancholic expression that clouded her face not a minute ago. “My dad will be fine... We should hurry up before all the food runs out.”
“There you go,” Carmilla said, walking at a leisurely pace beside Laura and elbowing her side playfully.
“There you are!” Perry exclaimed as soon as Laura and Carmilla walked onto the dorm lounge, speed walking towards them and urgently pushing them to take their seats beside Lafontaine and JP, who seemed very much engrossed in an intense game of sudoku.
“You are both very, very late. It’s a good thing that the ham is just about done,” Perry reprimanded, turning around and briskly walking back to the kitchen to fetch the ham out of the oven.
“Looks like Miss Periwinkle has her hands full in the kitchen,” Carmilla drawled, earning a soft glare and a smile from Laura, turning to Lafontaine and JP to check out what was keeping them occupied.
“Alright, everybody needs to clear off the table!” Perry ordered the moment she walked back in with the ham.
“Sweet! Jeep, the food’s ready,” Lafontaine exclaimed excitedly, a huge grin evident on their face as they set aside their game of sudoku to grab the drinks and glasses in the kitched, JP following suit. All the other students present immediately set about clearing off the table and making room for the food, a few going to the kitchen to help lay out the rest of the dinner.
The next few moments were a bit of a blur for one Laura Hollis as everyone said a quick Happy Holidays! before attacking the food with the vigour of a starved lion. Laura barely blinked before half the food was gone. Luckily enough, she managed to snag a few slices of ham, some pasta and brownies before those also vanished to thin air.
Laura took a few bites of the ham and groaned in appreciation. “Perry’s cooking is always the best!” She exclaimed oblivious as Carmilla pulled her bottom lip between her teeth. She let out another groan as she tasted the other food on her plate before Carmilla stopped her hand mid-air, a slightly darkened look on her face.
“If you want to finish that food, I suggest you stop making those noises, Sweetheart,” she hissed, biting her lip as if to stop herself.
Laura took a moment to swallow her food, burning bright red when she realised what Carmilla had meant. “Uhh, right - gotcha.”
Carmilla hadn’t stopped Laura from eating her fill after that, and Laura hadn’t made any more sounds for the rest of the Christmas dinner.
Everyone helped out with clearing the plates and setting aside any leftovers (no matter how little there was of it) upon careful guidelines from Perry. Eventually, though, most of the students drifted off to their respective dorm rooms to spend the rest of the evening to rest or try and get ahold of their family. This left Perry cleaning out the kitchen along with Lafontaine and JP, leaving Laura and Carmilla alone in the dorm lounge.
Carmilla got up from the couch and walked over to the CD rack, perusing the different genres of music that over fifty students had accumulated over the years. Spotting a familiar favourite, she took it off of its case and popped it into CD player. Soft, steady beats began to drift across the lounge. She then walked back to the couch where Laura was lounging, munching on a brownie, and extended a hand to her.
“May I?”
A huge smile slowly stretched across Laura’s face before she took hold of Carmilla’s hand and allowed her to lead the way.
“You may.“
Carmilla led both of them to a spacious spot behind the couches, placing one hand on Laura’s waist and the other holding Laura’s other hand up. She took one step back, prompting Laura to take one step forward. They continued on as such as the first few lyrics of the song floated out.
Winter Snow is falling down
Children laughing all around
Lights are turning on, like a fairytale come true…
Laura let out a loud, melodious laugh. Winter snow gently falling down? Understatement of the year.
All I want is to hold you forever
All I need is you more everyday…
Laura stopped short. “Carm…,” she whispered staring up at Carmilla.
You saved my heart from being broken apart…
Carmilla hummed, bringing Laura closer to her and twirling her around, pulling another incredulous laugh from Laura. Laura then tightened her hold on Carmilla, pressing her forehead against Carmilla’s.
You gave your love away
And I’m thankful everyday
For the gift.
Laura gave pause, allowing for the next few notes to fade into the background before she spoke up, worrying her bottom lip.
“I’m thankful, too, you know,” she said. “For my dad; for having met Perry and Laf and JP; for going to this university, no matter how whack it’s been; for… For you, especially.”
“...”
"Carm, I..."
"I know, Laura. Me too."
Laura's smile brightened even more.
"Merry Christmas, Carm."
"Merry Christmas, Laura."