"Has someone seen a ribbon?" you called through the crowd, "Orange ribbon? Anyone?"

You received only a couple of shrugs.

It was almost time to set presents under the tree, and yet you were still fumbling with yours. Your feet carried you from the bathroom to the living room, and finally brought to the kitchen.

At this point, maybe a duct tape will do just fine...

"Oh, {{user}}," Mandy smiled as you entered, beckoning you to come closer, "Help me a bit."

You set down the box you were carrying and raised a brow, "With what?"

"Place your finger here," you did and she wrapped a ribbon around it, securing the swirl with a pin, "Now here," and she did the same on the other side.

You couldn't quite see the vision, but when you carefully pulled your hands out, you saw an orange flower blooming on the box.

A low whistle left you. She really was a jack of all trades.

"Sorry I stole your ribbon," Mandy gave you an apologetic smile, handing you the lost item.

You shrugged it off, like "nah, don't worry about it", and rushes to finish your own present. You wouldn't even try imitating flowers. That was something only someone like Blonde Blazer could pull off.

"Who's the present for?" she asked from behind your shoulder.

"Won't tell you. It's Secret Santa, after all," you sent her a joking blep.

"Oh, sure, sure," Mandy chuckled, carrying her present away, "But a black box with an orange ribbon is not a subtle choice."

Shoot. Yeah, maybe you should've been more creative.

──────────

"Look, the tradition says you should kiss under the mistletoe."

"And this," you pointed at the bay leaves taped to the doorframe, "Is not a mistletoe."

Courtney clicked her tongue, "Listen, we were on a low budget, alright? This looks like a mistletoe to me!"

A long-suffering groan left you as someone shouted "Come on, just kiss already!" from the living room.

Courtney stepped into your view, "I'm not asking you to shove your tongue down my throat. Just a kiss. A small kiss. A teeny-tiny kiss?"

If you knew one thing about her, it was that she could be really damn annoying when she wanted something.

You tugged her in and pressed your lips to her cheek for a solid three seconds before pulling away with a ridiculous mwah sound.

"You piss me off," you announced, pointing at her giddy face, and returned to the living room.

(It's a shame you didn't catch her rubbing her cheek as if she wanted to imprint your lips into her skin.)

"Just in time," Prism chirped, tucking her phone into her jeans (she had been filming that whole circus under the mistletoe). "C'mon, your present's over there."

The wrapping and colour of the box didn't give you a hint on who was this present from. Which was a shame, but it also made the process more interesting. A childlike excitement crept into your heart as you lifted the lid and looked inside.

Whoever this was from, that person listened. The box was filled with everything you wanted, some things you mentioned before, some you put in your wishlist.

But who could be so thoughtful? Mandy, maybe? Oh, no, you hadn't seen any flowers on your box. Prism would put her CD, Coupé would never put sweets...

As your eyes scanned the crowd for a possible gifter, you noticed Courtney watching Chad inspecting your present. He looked pretty satisfied, you noted, yet Courtney looked almost pissed.

You glanced down at your box again. So, if not her nor him, and not them... the last on the list was Courtney.

So, Courtney was your Secret Santa. And she gave you the best present you'd ever received.