Page 78 of Falling Like Snow

I swat it away. “Shut up,” I chuckle. “He ate some too,” I tell Slug.

“Don’t you guys know sharing is caring?” Jake says. He leaves the room and returns with a box of Lucky Charms. “Dry cereal with dry marshmallows, anyone?”

He plops down on the floor next to Fern when no one raises their hand.

We spend the next hour talking about absolutely nothing important. Jake puts on Red and quietly sings along while scrolling on his phone and pretending not to keep glancing at Fern, Hannah discusses some up-and-coming fashion designer with Ellis, Parker rattles off a list of her celebrity crushes, Slug argues with her about which one is the hottest, Chloe watches the two of them with an indecipherable look on her face, and Cooper and Fern talk about food and NYC while I absolutely obliterate Asher at Mario Kart—as usual—and he tries to get me to tell him what I’m giving him for Christmas.

Not that I have a clue. Because I have eight days to figure it out, and I’m still at a loss. Nothing is good enough.

Eventually, Ellis pulls out her phone and looks at the time. “We should get some sleep.”

“Party pooper!” Jake bellows.

“What if we do have school tomorrow?” the ever-studious Ellis asks.

Outside, the snow still threatens to bury the house. School is unlikely.

“I’m tired anyway,” Cooper says.

“Same,” Hannah yawns.

“Now do I get to set up beds?” I ask Asher, my voice dripping with sarcasm.

“You have my permission,” he says with a straight face.

I flick him in the leg and go to change the bedding in Mom’s room and mine, set up the air mattress, and gather every blanket and pillow I can find. Then I put on sweats and Asher’s old Bramble Falls High tee that I basically stole last year because the fabric is so worn and soft.

When I get back to the living room, Jake is returning the cereal to the kitchen, and Fern’s following behind him with the forks and empty marshmallow bag. I’m about to announce that the girls can go through my drawers for comfy pants if they want, when the two of them pass under the mistletoe, and Jake stops and tugs Fern backward.

“What?” she says, completely unaware of the fake plant hanging over their heads.

Jake points up, and Fern’s eyes slowly find it, widening for a split second.

“Looks like we have no choice but to kiss,” Jake says.

“It is the rule,” Ellis says, earning her a glare from Fern. “But no pressure,” she adds.

Fern lets out the biggest sigh I’ve ever heard and faces Jake with a tight smile. “Fine.”

“I’m not used to having an audience,” Jake says, pink blotting his cheeks.

This gets a real smile out of Fern. “Aw, is someone feeling shy?” She wraps her arms around Jake’s neck and pushes up on her toes. “You know, performance anxiety is a real—”

“I don’t think that’s going to be a problem,” Jake says, a breath before pressing his lips to hers.

All the girls—and Slug—cheer and hoot and holler. Asher and I look at each other and laugh, shaking our heads.

“None of us saw that coming,” he murmurs.

Jake straightens, pulling away from Fern first, leaving her looking almost gobsmacked, which makes me laugh harder. She drops her arms, turns to the group as she clears her throat, and bows.

“Yes, thank you all for coming to the show,” she says.

“All right,” I announce. Everyone turns their attention to me. “Jake and Slug, you can have the attic. Ellis’s old bed is up there. It’s not huge, but if you’re not comfortable sharing, one of you can sleep on the floor,” I tell them. “Cooper and Ellis, I’m just assuming you’ll want to share a room, so you can take mine. Please no teenage pregnancies.” Cooper blushes and averts his gaze. “Fern, Hannah, Chloe, and Parker, I figured you could take my mom’s room. She’s got a king-sized bed, and I put the air mattress in there.”

“Sounds good,” Chloe says.

“Ash, you’ll take the couch,” I say.