Santa Is A Sl*t (Holiday Hoemies #2)

Chapter 12

Chapter Twelve

NOEL

After leaving Nico’s office, I was upset.

I wanted to call Val and ask her to meet me at the apartment with a bottle of vodka and I almost did. Then I thought about how before I overheard Nico, I planned to take the necessary steps to move forward with my life in a more serious manner. The first was to try my hand at a relationship with three other people.

That might be on hold for now but there were other things I could do to start my journey.

So I called Val anyway. I asked if she could meet me at the apartment. She said she would as soon as she got out of an important meeting.

I’m waiting outside the apartment leasing office for her now, thinking about how easy it felt to not chase my sadness with anger.

I’ll still be having vodka later because I’m still really fucking mad. But I can be a grown-up first.

Val runs up the sidewalk and hugs me tight.

“Are you okay?” I ask.

She’s very energetic, practically jumping in place. “Me? I'm wonderful. What are we doing here though?” Her tone turns suspicious. “Wait is there someone waiting in there to hold me hostage so that I have to extend the lease and stay in our apartment with you for the next fifty years?”

I laugh so hard I have to bend over, completely out of breath.

We both know that I would pull something like that.

“It’s the opposite. I’m trying to grow up.” I tell her.

Val’s face drops and I’m surprised. I’ve put her through some wild things over the years and I thought she’d be relieved.

“Noel, you are perfect. You’re a majestic unicorn in a world of darkness.” She tells me while pulling me in for a hug. “Please don’t change that.”

My eyes water up. “It’s okay, Val. I’m still going to make you go out for girls’ night just to end up at a tattoo parlor while we wait for your guys to come and stop us.”

It’s happened three times in the last six months. I can’t help it, drunk Val is always convinced she wants some ink and I enjoy the way Hart stares at all the male tattoo artists who could have tried to touch her.

“What’s this growing-up nonsense?” She asks, pulling away and putting her hands on her hips.

I shrug, feeling eerily calm. “I’m ready to make some changes. I was even thinking about trying my hand at relationships and careers but I thought we could start with something small.”

She raises her left brow curiously. “And that would be?”

My arm winds through hers, leading the way into the building. “Getting my own lease.”

A kind lady takes us to her desk and begins explaining our options.

Assuming I’d need to find a smaller place that I could afford on my own, I was prepared for us to both move out of our apartment. Then Val pulled out her checkbook and paid twelve months’ rent to ensure that I could keep our place for another year.

When I asked her why, she said it was a Christmas present from her and the guys, but mostly the guys. It’s annoying that they love her so much that they’d do something so nice for her best friend. It’s a little hard to be mad at them for stealing her way now.

The paperwork takes no time at all and within an hour, we’re sitting at a bar down the street, celebrating our new living statuses.

“Now, spill, what encouraged this new journey of maturity,” Val asks.

Rolling my eyes, I sip my drink slowly before I answer. “After you told me that you were moving out, I decided I wanted to make some changes.”

“Making some changes would be turning my room into a home gym or adding a sex swing in the living room. You said career and relationship. Those are not even in the same ballpark, my friend.”

Val looks smug, as if she believes she’s caught me in a trap.

“Okay well, first of all, a gym is for people who don’t puke at the thought of cardio,” I tell her with my nose wrinkled in disgust. “Second of all, I…might have started fooling around with Eve and Kane again.”

Val squeals. “And?”

“I like them. They’re fun and thoughtful and I’ve always felt safe with them.”

“What are you leaving out?” Her eyes narrow.

Grinning, I wiggle my brows up and down. “That Nico also bent me over his desk and gave me a spanking. Then I watched him fuck Kane while eating Eve’s pussy in Santa’s sleigh.”

Luckily, Val turns her head in time to not spray me with her drink. “Holy shit.”

If I look smug, it’s because I am.

“So is that why you mentioned a relationship?”

I catch her up to speed on everything. Val is sympathetic and understanding, even when she tries to add reason to a situation I’m not quite willing to focus on resolving right now.

When we’ve finished a second round of drinks, we close our bar tab and part with a hug.

She leaves to be with her guys and I feel a sense of longing. This morning, I thought I would be on my way to something special like that.

I’m disappointed that today didn’t turn out how I expected but I’m also grateful that at least one part of my future doesn’t look so uncertain.

When I walk through the apartment door, I’m expecting to feel something. Instead, I still feel empty. I can’t help but wonder what it’d be like to call Eve and see if she wants to come over and eat a gallon of ice cream with me. Or to ask Kane if he wants to hang out on the couch and watch a movie.

And Nico. Maybe I could learn what he likes to do for fun too.

But for now, I’m going to keep taking my baby steps. I have time to figure out the rest.