Chapter 43 | Christmas tree

Isabella:

Why didn't you tell me that you and Lucas are dating," my abuela asks casually as the two of us stroll into the kitchen a few minutes later. Her tone is in inquisitive, not harsh, but the way she is chopping the onions with more vigour and force than necessary tells me she's annoyed.

Lucas and I share a look from the opposite ends of the kitchen island where we're stood frozen.

"Erm-" I begin, racking my brain for a way to tell my grandmother that we're not actually dating.

However, before I even get to open my mouth to speak again, my abuela swiftly interjects.

"Oh whatever," she says enthusiastically, a grin playing in her lips, placing the knife down on the cutting board and quickly rinsing her hands. She slides over to where Lucas is, her arms outstretched, before tugging him into her embrace before dragging herself over to me and pulling me into the awkward three way hug. "I'm so glad you two finally came to your senses, I always knew that you two would end up togethe-"

"Abuela!" I cut her off, my voice coming out in a muffle from the way my head is pressed against her shoulder. Lucas hasn't made a sound since my grandmother pulled him into the embrace - he's probably dead from suffocation. "You've got the wrong idea-"

"Abuela, Bella and I, er, aren't dating," a deep voice continues for me and I finally see Lucas' tall body twitch as he tries to wriggle out of my grandma's arms. Okay...maybe he hasn't died from suffocation then.

Dammit.

I feel my grandmother freeze. "What? But your mom just called me-"

"My mom...for some odd reason...thinks Isabella and I are dating and I didn't have the chance to tell her we're not," he explains, cutting her off. His black t-shirt is a little rumpled from my grandmothers attack and his hair a little messy too.

My grandmothers face falls and she finally releases me from her tight grasp. "Why would she think that?"

"Er well-"

"OH, it's because she saw you guys kissing didn't she."

I'm about to nod my head when my brain finally registers what my grandmother had just said.

"What?" I gasp, my mouth falling open in shock whilst Lucas' eyebrows raise so high I'm surprised they don't fly off of his forehead.

At our stunned expressions my grandmother waves her hand dismissively. "I saw you guys from the window yesterday."

Oh hell to the no.

I flame with absolute mortification. "Abuela you...saw us?"

She nods her head enthusiastically, her eyes twinkling and her face glowing with absolute glee.

She saw us kissing...she saw us kissing with Lucas' hand up my dress. SHE SAW THAT?

"Fucking hell," Lucas groans, running a hand down his face, his cheeks tinged red. "Please erase that from your memory abuela please."

"No, this is a memory I was to tell my great-grand kids!"

"That you saw Lucas and I making out with his hands groping my ASS CHEEKS?" I cry with shake my head before smacking my forehead against the edge of the counter. Had the entire universe been watching us for fucks sake?

As I raise my head up from the counter, rubbing the part I had just repeatedly hit, my eyes lock with Lucas and annoyance floods through me. I point a finger at him menacingly.

"What?" He asks, crossing his arms across his chest. "Why are you pointing your finger at me."

"YOU!" I seethe. "Abuela will never shut up about this and it's all your fault!"

"My fault?" He repeats in utter disbelief, his eyes narrowing promptly. "How is it my fault?"

"Er well," I begin, tapping a finger against my chin in mock thought. "I distinctly remember you going on about how 'you want to do something stupid' and then attacking me!"

"ATTACKING YOU?" His eyes darken with anger. "I distinctly remember you letting me kiss you! You agreed so don't turn this around on me!"

"YOU WERE THE ONE WHO CAME UP WITH THE IDEA IN THE FIRST PLACE!"

"BUT YOU WERE THE ONE THROWING YOURSELF AT ME THE WHOLE NIGHT!"

"THROWING MYSELF AT YOU? YOU CAN'T BE SERIOUS?"

Lucas glares at me so hard, I'm surprised my face doesn't catch on fire. "DON'T ACT LIKE YOU WEREN'T FLIRTING WITH ME THE WHOLE NIGHT!"

"FLIRTING?" I yell back incredulously. "I WAS NOT FLIRTING WITH YOU!"

"EVERY CHANCE YOU GOT, YOU WERE TALKING ABOUT YOUR UNDERWEAR!"

"ER I WAS DRUNK AND JOKING, I HARDLY COUNT THAT AS FLIRTING!"

"RIGHT, CHILDREN CALM DOWN!"

Both of us snap our heads to face my grandmother.

"The sexual tension coming from you two is giving me a headache, why don't we just calm down and eat some of the pancakes I made for you two." An amused expression rests on her face as she says this before turning around and leaving the kitchen. "I'm getting more napkins, don't kill each other when I'm gone."

I turn back to Lucas once my grandmother leaves, my breathing laboured from our screaming match, suddenly taking in our close proximity. Lucas is leaned down, one hand gripped on the edge of the island beside him so hard his arm veins are protruding and is standing so close to me that our noses are almost touching. I take a sharp intake of breath and in reflex take a number of steps back.

"God, now you're all up in my face," I mutter, pulling out one of the island stools and sitting down on it dramatically.

"Jesus why do you always do this? Why do you always make a big deal out of everything, you literally just promised you'd stop overreacting 30 seconds ago and then you went started yet another argument with me."

"I do not make a big deal out of everything!" I retort indignantly, slumping down in my seat, my eyes narrowing into little slits.

He merely sends me a look before taking a seat on the stool beside me. "Okay whatever," he mutters, lifting up the cover from the plate where a stack of pancakes are piled high.

Silence stretches over us as Lucas munches on his pancakes and I sit beside him with my head buried in my hands, trying to find a way to make abuela forget that memory. Maybe making her inhale a little bleach will help her forget?

"So what are we going to do today."

I lift my head from my hand and slowly turn to glance at Lucas.

"We?" I question with a raise of my eyebrow.

"Yeah we," he repeats, shoving another piece of pancake into his mouth.

"We're not doing anything, I'm putting up the Christmas decorations with Sofia."

***

"You're doing it all wrong!"

"There is no correct way to put a bauble on a Christmas tree Lucas!"

"Yes there is!" He argues back, snatching the silver ball from my hand as I rub my temples frustratedly.

"This is why I didn't want you to help me," I mumble, bending down to pick out more tinsel from the box placed on the sofa that is filmed to the brim with Christmas decorations. I pick up both the silver and gold one, deciding which would suit the tree better.

"Too bad your grandma asked me to," he retaliates, stepping back from the tree to check how the décor looks so far, with a nod of approval he turns back to face me.

"She asked you to help carry the tree into the living room, not to stick around for the decorating."

"Well I had to fill in for Sofia when she went on a nap break."

"Sofia was hardly doing anything anyways," I sigh exasperatedly, turning around to face Lucas with my hands on my hip. "Seriously Lucas...just go home."

He tsks, tugging the tinsel from out of my grasp. "Sorry no can do, I'm not going home."

"Why not?" I groan, snatching the tinsel back from him.

"I already told you, my parents are driving me crazy." He takes the tinsel from my hands once again. "Also you better get used to my presence I'm going to be attached to your hip until the 27th."

I shake my head. "No I didn't agree to that."

He hums absentmindedly at my response as he spins back around and begins draping the silver tinsel around the tree.

I'm suddenly filled with the feeling that I'll be seeing a lot more of Lucas from now until boxing day and that thought alone makes my want to smash my head against the wall.

God, just being around Lucas in general makes me want to throw myself out of the window and smack him silly but now there's that added feeling of wanting to kiss him mercilessly. Yes, that feeling too. Either out of angst, anger or pure attraction I have no idea what it is but since waking up this morning all I can think about is his lips on mine and with his comment earlier on - it's not exactly helping to remove that feeling either. God dammit. How had we gotten here? Literally yesterday morning I wanted to shove him down the stairs and now I want to kiss him?

"So are you putting the star on the tree then?" Lucas asks, snapping me out of my train of thought. I blink, processing what he had just told me before nodding my head.

"Er yeah, let me go grab a chair."

As I'm about to exit the living room, Lucas teacher out and grasps my elbow halting me.

"No need," he says with a sly grin, before crouching down in front of me. I furrow my eyebrows in confusion.

"You can use my shoulders," he explains and I stare at him incredulously.

"What?"

"Use my shoulders."

"Do you want me to break you?"

He gives me a dead look. "Shut up Bella, just get on."

I glance at his shoulders and then at the star ornament sitting on the top of the box on the sofa beside me.

"Okay fine," I tell him, grabbing the star before signalling him to crouch down lower so I can climb on. "Beats trying to drag a whole ass chair from the kitchen."

Lucas grips my shins as I grab his head, trying to get stable. He then slowly stands back up.

As he makes his way over to the tree he wobbles slightly and his grip on me loosens and I almost topple over and fall of of him in the process. I let out a shriek in fear causing Lucas to laugh, letting out a deep chuckle and I roll my eyes realising he did that on purpose.

As a result, I smack his across the head.

"Okay I deserved that," he mumbles, continuing his journey to the tree. Once he's standing directly in front of it, I reach over and place the star on the top, adjusting it so it's sitting up straight and not slanted.

"Perfect." I tap his head. "You can let me down now."

He bends down and I swiftly get off from his shoulders. "Thanks," I mumble, brushing my hands on the thighs of my leggings.

I take a couple of step backs so I can admire how the tree looks, Lucas following me and standing beside me.

"Looks so pretty," I smile, admiring how the gold and silver decor looks. We had gone for a more simple theme for the tree this year, one with minimal colours and I thought it looked really nice.

"Yeah, really pretty," Lucas murmurs from beside me and I turn my head to look at him. My eyebrows furrow when I realise he's staring at me and not at the tree.

"What?" I ask, confused. "Why are you looking at me?"

He merely smiles and turns back to face the tree. "We did a good job don't you think?"

"We?" I tease, nudging him with my elbow. "I think you mean me, I did most of the work."

He rolls his eyes, nudging me right back. "Shut-up Bella."