Buzzing noises were coming from all around the room during Christmas Eve. Beautiful white snow was continuously falling outside.

Sipping my hot mug of eggnog, I looked out at the window as the snow fell down. Hmm, I might make a snowman or throw a snowball at Jack's face tomorrow? I laughed at that thought.

"What's got you smiling there, all alone?" A voice came up beside me before pulling me into a needed warm hug.

I looked up at him and smiled. "Oh, nothing... I was just thinking about something."

"Like me?" Jack confidently said.

"Most definitely." I pulled away from the hug and faced him.

Even dressed in an ugly Christmas sweater, he still managed to look good. I brought my hand to brush out his hair when I noticed there was some snow on it.

"Did you go outside?" I asked, running my fingers through his hair. He bowed down his head a little, noticing how I was struggling a bit because of his humongous height.

"Yeah, I just took some pictures with Di." He answered, laughing. "She was complaining about how she was gonna get hypothermia from the snow."

I stopped what I was doing when I got a notification on my phone.

"Well, she just posted your pictures on social media." I said, liking the post and showing it to him. "And did you really have to model your hot milk?"

"It's white chocolate latte, excuse you." He corrected me. "And damn, I looked good!"

"You're so full of yourself." I rolled my eyes at him, setting down my mug on a nearby table.

His family invited my mom and I over to spend the holidays in their lake house. We'll be staying for a week or so here. Lav and I already went ice skating earlier this afternoon while Jack and his dad were playing hockey.

The moms were busy in the kitchen cooking and baking. Morgan and Di volunteered to put up the decorations around the house. They even hung mistletoes. For the tree though, everyone was going to help in setting up the tree.

Lav and I ordered Jack to bring down a bed by the fireplace because we'll be sleeping there later so we'll be the first ones up during Christmas morning.

"The air is so cold!" I exclaimed.

Jack thought it was a good idea to go outside on the porch. I don't know why I even agreed with him? I really don't do well with the cold.

"Come here," Jack had his arms open wide and his oversized jacket was open that could probably fit the both of us in.

I ran to him, crashing right into him. We both laughed. He was holding me tight against his chest. I can hear his heart beating loudly.

"Callie?" He called out.

"Yeah?" I answered, my voice muffled.

"C-can I tell you something?" I looked up at him and I don't know if it's because of the cold or what, but his cheeks were red.

"Su-" I was cut off when we heard a familiar loud shriek that only came from one person.

"Oh my God, you guys!" Lav was practically screaming, her phone was in her hand and she was standing by the door. "You're under a mistletoe. Don't try with me with your bullcrap of how you're just friends." She cooed.

Jack and I slowly looked up, and she was right. There was a mistletoe above us.

"FREAKING KISS ALREADY AND DATE! I KNOW YOU GUYS LIKE EACH OTHER!" She cheered.

Damn it, Lavender! I should have never told you about it.

"I mean, it's the rules." Jack whispered to me, a small grin on his face as we made eye contact.

I shrugged as if I didn't want to do it. I tried not to show a smile on my face.

I had my first kiss with him, for heaven's sake! It was during a truth or dare back in middle school.

"But Lav's lying, I don't like you." He looked at me straight into my eyes like he was looking into my soul.

My face crestfallen. I think I can physically hear my heart break a little. No scratch that, I can hear my heart break big time! I had to look away from him, my arms loosening around him.

I tried focusing my attention on the falling snow to prevent me breaking down from what he just said. Like fine, whatever! You don't like me, I'm going to be unlike you, too!

"Hey," He placed his hand on my chin and made me face him. "I said,"I don't like you.""

I pushed his hand away. "Yeah, I heard you the first time-"

My sentence was cut off when he crashed his lips on mine, pulling me into a deep kiss. We pulled away shortly and it was like we ran out of breath.

We didn't even acknowledge Lav jumping in her place, fanning herself.

"I said that I don't like you because I am in love with you, Callie." Jack confessed, cupping my cheeks. "I was going to tell you that but that one came out of nowhere." He gave his sister an annoyed look.

I blinked once as I stared at him.

I told him about my feelings, too, and he asked me to be his girlfriend that night. I said yes to him, and that was one of the most memorable nights of my life.

~~~

I was walking back to my dorm room after my classes, when I decided to call my boyfriend. I was happy and relieved when he finally picked up.

"Jack, I haven't heard-" I began but stopped when another voice answered the call.

"Hello, who is this?" A familiar sounding woman questioned.

I got immediately annoyed. "I should be the one asking you that question. Where's Jack? And why do you have his phone, whoever you are, bitch?" I mouthed the last word.

My eyes widened when I heard Jack's voice in the background. "Who's that?"

"Jackson!" I screamed through the phone hoping he could hear me. "Jackson Vallen!"

"Just a wrong number, babe." The girl with him answered before ending the call.

I stopped my tracks.

"Babe? What do you mean babe?" I asked a question like someone was going to answer.

Who was the girl with him who answered the phone? Why was his phone with her? And why did she call him babe.

A million questions and what-ifs crossed my mind.

I was beginning to assume and over think things.

Was she the reason he has been barely answering my calls and texts?

For the next following days, I found myself staring blankly at my ceiling and thinking to myself the worst things that could be happening right now.

I grabbed my phone beside and saw a text message from him.

Thinking about how things played days ago, I began to doubt him and our relationship.

And my doubts made me stay past midnight typing an email to him on my computer on ending things with him as my phone beside the article I finished reading about him seen going out and kissing Marianne Zane.

=====

A/N: I am so sorry for disappearing for almost a month. A super typhoon hit my country and we didn't have electricity until now. I definitely missed writing when I was gone since I couldn't use any of my devices because I needed to save my battery. If none of that happened, I might have already finished this book before 2022. No worries, I'm back. I still don't have my internet connection though so it will be a little harder to post updates. Also, this is not edited because I wrote this all today.