Chapter Text
Rocking around the Christmas tree,
Have a happy holiday
Tori felt herself getting dizzy, making her uncontrollable giggling even worse. She held onto Cat's hands tighter as they swung each other around in circles.
Everyone dancin' merrily
In the new old-fashioned way
The door behind them slammed, and the sound of heavy boots cut through the music and laughter.
"Dorks."
Jade entered Tori and Cat's apartment and dropped her bag by the door. As usual, Jade took her boots off haphazardly at the entrance, leaving them askew by the wall, then made a beeline for the fridge.
"Jade!" Cat excitedly separated herself from Tori, nearly flinging her in the process.
Tori stumbled, catching herself on the arm of the couch, still laughing breathlessly. "A little warning next time!"
But Cat wasn't listening. She'd already bounced over to Jade, who had opened the fridge and was examining its contents with a critical eye.
"You're here early!" Cat said, practically vibrating with excitement. "We're decorating! Well, we were dancing, but before that, we were decorating. Do you like the tree?"
Jade glanced over at the slightly lopsided Christmas tree in the corner, covered in a chaotic mix of ornaments that ranged from elegant glass balls to Cat's collection of handmade felt animals. "It looks like a craft store threw up on it."
"Thank you!" Cat beamed, completely missing (or ignoring) the insult.
Jade pulled out a container of leftover Chinese food, sniffed it, and deemed it acceptable. "This mine?"
"That's mine," Tori said, finally catching her breath. "From like three days ago."
"So... mine now." Jade grabbed a fork from the drawer and leaned against the counter.
"You have food at your place," Tori pointed out.
"Not as good as yours." Jade took a bite, maintaining eye contact with Tori in a way that was probably meant to be annoying but just made Tori roll her eyes.
Cat had already moved on from the Jade/Tori banter, used to it as background noise. She grabbed Jade's free hand and tugged. "Come see what we did! We put lights on the balcony, and Tori made a playlist, and I baked cookies...well, I'm baking cookies. The first batch is cooling."
"The first batch you burned, you mean," Tori corrected.
"They were caramelized," Cat insisted. "There's a difference."
Jade allowed herself to be pulled toward the living room, still eating Tori's leftovers, and Tori couldn't help but notice the way Jade's expression softened when she looked at Cat. It was subtle. Jade was good at hiding her emotions, but it was there. A gentleness that Jade didn't show many people.
Cat threw her arms around Jade in an impulsive hug, and Tori saw Jade stiffen for just a moment, and she always did, like affection was a foreign language she was still learning. She eventually returned it, one hand coming up to rest briefly on Cat's back.
When Cat pulled away, she was already moving on to the next thing, the next decoration that needed adjusting, the next Christmas song that needed to be sung along to. But Jade stayed still for a moment, watching Cat flit around the room, and Tori caught that look again. The one she couldn't quite name.
"You gonna help or just stand there judging our decorating choices?" Tori asked, moving to the couch where wrapped presents were scattered across the cushions.
"I'm gonna judge," Jade said, but she sat down in the armchair anyway, making herself comfortable. "It's what I do best."
Tori sat cross-legged on the couch, wrapping presents with more tape than was strictly necessary. At twenty-four, she still hadn't mastered the art of neat corners, but she'd gotten pretty good at hiding her mistakes with strategically placed bows.
"You know you can just use gift bags, right?" Jade's voice came from the armchair, dry and amused. She was sprawled across it like a cat with one leg hooked over the armrest, her phone in hand. She hadn't helped with any of the decorating, but she'd shown up, which for Jade West was basically a Christmas miracle.
"Gift bags are impersonal," Tori said, wrestling with a particularly stubborn piece of ribbon. "Wrapping paper shows you care."
"Wrapping paper shows you have too much time on your hands."
"Some of us don't spend all our time brooding in coffee shops, writing screenplays about serial killers."
"It's about a reformed serial killer, thank you very much. And he's an antihero. Very different."
Cat emerged from the kitchen carrying a tray of hot chocolate, each mug topped with a mountain of whipped cream and crushed candy canes. Her red hair was pulled into two high pigtails, and she wore a sweater with a light-up Rudolph on it that blinked aggressively every few seconds.
"I made hot chocolate!" she announced brightly, as if this wasn't immediately obvious. "With extra marshmallows for Tori, and extra dark chocolate for Jade because she has 'refined tastes.'"
Jade's expression softened almost imperceptibly as she took the mug from Cat. "Thanks, Cat."
"You're welcome!" Cat beamed, settling onto the couch next to Tori, her own mug held carefully in both hands. She immediately took a sip and got whipped cream on her nose.
Tori reached over with her thumb and wiped it off without thinking. "You're a mess."
"A festive mess," Cat corrected, grinning.
Tori and Cat had been roommates for almost two years now after college, with Tori chasing a music career that was slowly, painfully gaining traction, and Cat working at a preschool while doing community theater on weekends. The apartment was small, a little run-down, but it was theirs. They'd painted the living room a warm cream color together, argued about furniture placement, and established a routine that felt comfortable, easy. Jade came around often enough that she had her own mug in their kitchen cabinet.
"So what are we watching?" Cat asked, bouncing slightly on the couch cushion. "I vote for Elf!"
"We watched Elf last week," Tori said.
"And it was perfect! So we should watch it again."
"How about Die Hard?" Jade suggested, smirking when Cat's face scrunched up in confusion.
"That's not a Christmas movie!"
"It takes place at Christmas. That makes it a Christmas movie."
"By that logic, Batman Returns is a Christmas movie," Tori pointed out.
Jade's smirk widened. "It is."
Cat looked between them, genuinely distressed. "You're both wrong! Christmas movies have to have Christmas feelings. You know, like... warm fuzzies and believing in Santa and—"
"Cat, you're twenty four," Jade said, though her tone was gentler than her words. "You don't still believe in Santa."
Cat's silence was damning.
"Oh my god," Tori said, trying not to laugh. "Cat."
"I just think it's nice to believe in magic!" Cat protested, her cheeks flushing pink. "Why does everyone have to be so cynical?"
"We're not cynical, we're realistic," Jade said, but there was something almost fond in her expression as she looked at Cat. Something soft that Tori had noticed more and more lately.
"Fine," Cat huffed, crossing her arms. "But if we're watching Die Hard, I'm making more cookies, and they're going to be so good that you'll both believe in Christmas magic whether you want to or not."
She bounced off the couch and headed back to the kitchen, her Rudolph sweater blinking enthusiastically with each step.
Tori glanced at Jade, expecting some sarcastic comment about Cat's eternal optimism. But Jade was watching Cat go with an expression Tori couldn't quite read—something almost wistful, tinged with an emotion that looked dangerously close to longing.
"What?" Jade said sharply, catching Tori's gaze.
"Nothing," Tori said, returning her attention to the present she was wrapping.
But before either of them could say anything else, Cat called from the kitchen: "Jade! Can you come help me? I can't reach the vanilla extract!"
Jade was out of her chair immediately, moving toward the kitchen with a speed that seemed almost eager. "You literally just have to stand on a chair, Valentine."
"But you're taller! And what if I fall?"
"Then you fall. Natural selection."
"Jade!" Cat's voice was scandalized, but Tori could hear the laughter underneath it.
Tori went back to her wrapping, listening to the sounds of Jade and Cat bickering in the kitchen. Jade's dry sarcasm met Cat's bright sincerity in a way that somehow worked. She heard Cat's giggle, high and delighted, followed by Jade's lower chuckle, and something in Tori's chest felt warm.
She loved this. The three of them together, the easy comfort of it. It reminded her of high school, of the brief moments when the rivalry had faded and they'd just been kids. Except now they were adults and this felt different. Steadier. Real.
The afternoon passed in a blur of cookies, Christmas movies, and spirited debates about the logistics of Santa's workshop. Cat sat between Tori and Jade on the couch, her feet tucked under her, occasionally stealing cookies from Jade's plate when she thought Jade wasn't looking. Jade pretended not to notice, even though Tori saw her deliberately leaving cookies within Cat's reach.
As the sun started to set, casting orange and pink light through their living room windows, Cat fell asleep against Jade's shoulder, her breathing slow and even. Jade had gone still, her body carefully positioned to not disturb Cat, one hand hovering near Cat's hair like she wanted to touch it but didn't quite dare.
"You're gonna let her sleep on you?" Tori whispered.
Jade's eyes flicked to Tori, something defensive in them. "She's tired. Long week at the preschool."
"You could wake her up."
"I could." But Jade didn't move, and neither did Cat.
They sat like that for another twenty minutes, watching the credits roll on the movie, the room growing darker as the winter evening settled in. Tori should have gotten up to turn on a lamp, but the moment felt fragile somehow, like any sudden movement might shatter it.
Finally, Cat stirred, blinking sleepily. "Did I fall asleep?"
"Only for like half an hour," Tori said.
Cat sat up, yawning and stretching. "Sorry, Jade. Did I drool on you?"
"Surprisingly, no."
Cat smiled, soft and grateful, and for just a second, her hand squeezed Jade's. A brief touch, barely there, but Tori saw it. And more importantly, she saw the way Jade's fingers curled slightly, like she wanted to hold on but knew she couldn't.
"I should go," Jade said abruptly, standing up. "Early shift at the coffee shop tomorrow. Rent doesn't pay itself." Jade grabbed her leather jacket from the back of the chair, shrugging it on. "Thanks for the hot chocolate, Cat. And the sugar coma."
"Anytime!" Cat walked Jade to the door, Tori following behind. Cat hugged Jade suddenly, quick and tight, and Tori saw Jade freeze for just a moment before her arms came up to return it. The hug lasted maybe three seconds, but there was something about it. The way Jade's hand pressed against Cat's back, the way Cat's fingers clutched at Jade's jacket that felt significant.
When Cat pulled back, her cheeks were pink. "Bye, Jade. Text me when you get home safe?"
"I live fifteen minutes away."
"So? Text me anyway."
Jade shook her head, but she was still smiling. "Fine. See you Cat." Her eyes flicked to Tori. "Vega."
"Jade," Tori said, nodding.
And then Jade was gone, the door closing behind her, leaving just Tori and Cat in the apartment.
Cat immediately started gathering mugs and cookie plates, humming White Christmas under her breath. She seemed lighter somehow, like Jade's presence had filled her up with something that was only now starting to fade.
"That was nice," Tori said, helping clean up. "All of us hanging out."
"Yeah," Cat agreed, her smile soft and distant. "Really nice."
That night, Tori went to bed feeling content. Full of cookies and hot chocolate and the warmth of friendship. She fell asleep easily, the kind of deep, dreamless sleep that came from a good day.
She didn't know yet that everything was about to change.
She didn't know that in a few hours, she'd wake up thirsty, pad to the kitchen for water, and hear sounds that would make her question everything she thought she knew about her best friend.
But for now, in the soft darkness of her room, with Christmas lights twinkling outside her window and the lingering scent of cinnamon in the air, Tori Vega slept peacefully.
The last peaceful sleep she'd have for a while.