On a snowy December night, a lone girl cautiously navigated the crowded streets of the city, glancing around as she made her way past lovey-dovey couples and excited kids running around, gawking at the decorations and bright lights hung up by businesses and homes.

She stood out amongst the crowd, and she knew it. She wasn’t exactly trying to match the holiday spirit- hell, she was trying to go against it with her loads of piercings, dyed hair, and black leather boots that matched her roughed up jacket. Passersby shot glances at she strolled past, but she didn’t pay them any mind.

As she approached a plaza, she carefully drew her gaze across the crowd, then sighed heavily as she reached into pocket and pulled out a flip phone.

“Boo!”

She nearly jumped out of her skin, whipping around with a nasty glare. “Fuck, that was not funny!”

The girl in front of her, her classmate and friend, gave a bubbly giggle. “Sorry, Sara. You left yourself wide open.”

Sara crossed her arms. “Yeah, whatever. Now spill- why did you want to meet in the plaza first? We could have just met at your house.”

“Mm…” Her friend twirled a strand of her raven-black hair around her finger. “Promise me you won’t be mad?”

“…Depends,” Sara began cautiously. “Wait, did you bring him here?!” She immediately started fixing up her hair and straightening her clothes.

“No, no no!” The girl waved both hands. “It’s, um, a little more complicated than that-“

Sara followed the trajectory of the girl’s gaze and whipped around. Another classmate stood behind her; Rachel, the ultimate stuck-up, kiss-ass of Northeast Academy, donned in a fancy bright red winter coat with a green scarf and black gloves. She wrinkled her nose at the sight of Sara, then spoke to the raven-haired girl. “What the hell is Pincushion doing here?”

Irritated, Sara took an aggressive step forward, but their mutual friend grabbed her hand. “Don’t be like that!” She led a reluctant Sara over to Rachel and took her hand, being the bridge between the two girls. “I had the most amazing idea yesterday. The three of us could go shopping for Christmas gifts together, considering we all have boys we like.”

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In response, the girl received two incredulous looks.

“Like hell I’m doing that,” Sara declined. “Not sure I could help Miss Posh and Privileged pick out a present anyway.”

Rachel agreed. “It’d be even harder for me to pick out a gift for whatever idiot thinks dating you is a good idea.”

“Give me a second, gonna adjust the colour of that jacket,” Sara growled, her free hand balled into a fist.

“Enough, both of you.”

The words weren’t spoken harshly, but both girls quieted down as their friend crossed her arms, speaking sternly as if she were their mother.

“It’s the holidays. You’re supposed to be making new friends, not enemies. Stop arguing like little kids and try to empathize with each other, as much as you can.” She first glanced at Rachel, then at Sara. “I’m pretty sure both a police officer and a psychiatrist would need that skill.”

Sara’s jaw dropped. “You want to be a cop?”

The rich girl looked away. “Got an issue with that?”

“No, I just…” She trailed off. She actually thought it was pretty cool, but there was no way she could tell her that, so she opted to change the subject. “What are you trying to buy?”

“Uh…” Rachel began to fidget. “Well… John has really been into these niche rock bands recently.” She sighed heavily. “And I have absolutely no clue where to start, honestly.”

“What, like Red Hot? Spitfire? The Trench?”

Rachel was slightly taken aback. “How did you know?”

“I can help you, but not for free.”

“Sure.” Rachel reached into her purse and pulled out a wad of hundred dollar bills. “How much do you-“

“What are you, crazy?!” Sara ran up and grabbed Rachel’s wrist, shoving the bills back into her bag. She glanced around to see if anyone else had noticed the obvious display of wealth, but thankfully, everyone seemed self-absorbed in their own activities. Sara let out a sigh of relief. “You’re begging to get robbed.”

“Oh. Uh, sorry.” Rachel frowned. “But we’re in a public space though. Who would rob me here?”

Sara pinched the bridge of her nose. “Oh, god… look, just help me pick a cute scarf out for Sam, and we’ll call it even with that, deal?”

Their mutual friend giggled. “See? You two are already getting along great. Must be that holiday spirit.”

“Not a chance!” Both girls snapped in unison.

Giggling more, the girl walked and linked arms with both of her friends. “Let’s get to it then, shall we?”

The two girls exchanged brief looks.

“I suppose I could tolerate you for today,” Rachel murmured. “And I know just the place for the scarf. They hand knit them. Cute colours, too.”

Awkwardly, Sara scratched the back of her head. “Yeah, I’d, uh, appreciate it. I know just the spot for band merch, too, though it’s a little sketchy.”

The girl hopped up and down excitedly. “This is going to be so much fun!” She began to run forward, yanking her friends forward towards the brightly lit shops.

“Ahh!” Rachel yelped. “Angelina, wait, wait! Slow down! And don't pull so hard!”

Sara just sighed in reaction, but a small smile formed on her lips that she didn't let anyone else see.

"Never change, Angie."