Page 59 of A Winter in Wonderland
Chapter 27
OnChristmas Eve night, over the past few years, I’ve fallen asleep in bed watching something completely out of season, like a summer road-trip movie. In fact, last year, after refusing Shay’s invite to spend the holidays with her and Tess, together with my dad, and still wallowing over the loss of my dream job, I’d holed up in my flat alone and cranked up the heating. With Jamilia away with her friends on a winter sun holiday that she didn’t invite me on, I padded around home in shorts and T-shirt, made myself margaritas, and watchedMamma Mia!with the curtains closed. This year, I had anticipated doing something very similar, and had already decided that I’d do an eighties theme ofWeekend at Bernie’sas my Christmas Eve movie choice, with perhapsDirty Dancingfor Christmas Day.
Usually, on the night of Christmas Eve, I do not stay up until midnight to celebrate the big day. Does anyone usually do that? The point, surely, is to go to bed early and wakeup with Santa having been. Or in my case, go to bed early because you’ve had a sugar crash from margaritas and you’re furiously refusing to believe it’s Christmas tomorrow.
But tonight, for the first time in years, I was excited. I was right there with the other partygoers as the clock ticked ever closer to midnight.
You did it, Myla, I told myself.You nearly made it to Christmas unscathed!Now I could finally start to enjoy myself.
Hmm, that wasn’t quite fair. I’d been enjoying myself more than I was letting myself believe. But now the pressure was off.
‘Are you really excited for Christmas Day?’ Esteri asked me, looking a little bemused as I jiggled next to her while we stood at the back of the hall.
‘You have no idea,’ I replied.
I kept checking my phone under the guise of taking lots of pictures, and then it was only five minutes away, then two, then one. And then the room erupted in choruses of ‘Merry Christmas!’ before the band struck up again for their final set.
I hugged Esteri, and gave myself a little hug too, beaming with happiness. I’d made it. I’d made it!
The guests were still having the times of their lives, with the party only thinning out slightly as any last visitors with children took them back to their nearby hotels. But I was buzzing – me, buzzing, instead of being a buzz-kill, so I was willing to stick it out until the end and try some more of thatglögi.
Separating from Esteri again, I took a lap around theedge of the dance floor, smiling at people and wishing them happy holidays.
As I came level with the stage, I dropped into the shadows and leant against the wall, taking a breather and watching the scene in front of me. The back of the stage consisted of a tall wooden backdrop painted with a snowy scene, and it created a hidden walkway between the stage and the wall, partially obscured by lengths of material hanging from the ceiling. And that’s where I spotted Josh.
He reached out to me, his fingers slipping into mine, and he pulled me into the space with him. From back here, the music was muted, the crowd disappeared, and it was just him and me.
He held onto my hand for a second longer than necessary, before dropping it.
‘What are you doing?’ I asked, looking up at his face, aware of our close proximity with every inch of my body.
‘Just taking a tiny break.’ He smiled. ‘I thought you might want one too?’
His hat and waistcoat were resting on top of a wooden crate beside us, and I realised that for the first time in what felt like for ever, it was really just me and him here. He wasn’t in character; he was just with me.
‘Well, hi, Josh,’ I found myself saying.
‘Hi, Myla.’
‘I didn’t even know about this area back here,’ I said, gesturing around, trying to keep my eyes from flickering to his face and his lips and those eyelashes.
‘Yeah, I just found it,’ he said, his voice caramel. ‘I’mdefinitelynot supposed to be back here and out of my costume. Don’t give us away, OK?’
‘I won’t.’
‘I hope you don’t mind me bringing you in here; if you want to get back out there—’
‘No, no, it’s nice. I mean, notnice, but it’s nice to take a break from being “on”, you know?’
‘I do know. Are you having a good evening?’
‘I am, actually,’ I admitted.
‘You sound surprised.’ Josh leaned back against the wall and gave me a lopsided grin.
‘Um, not surprised, but … ’ I chose my words carefully. ‘I’m not usually great at parties. Unlike you.’
He shook his head, glancing down at our feet. ‘Nice shoes,’ he said.
