Fred lunges onto his bed and grins at Seth. Seth swears and sits on the floor. “You’re absolutely right, Elliot,” Fred says, chuckling. “Now, everyone close your eyes and toss your gifts into the middle of the room. I’ll distribute them.”
I take my wrapped parcel out of my bag and toss it a bit in front of me, and after Fred asks if we’ve all pulled out our gifts, he says we can open our eyes. He hands Seth his first.
“You get first honors, bro.”
Seth takes the box from him with narrowed eyes. “Almost makes up for losing my throne. Not quite.” The instant everyone has their gift, Seth tears into his.
“No way,” he says, peeling back the tissue paper inside. He lifts a varsity jacket from the box: a sleek, navy blue and white jacket with anFlike in our school design over the chest on the front left side.Falconsis embossed on the back, his jersey number below it. He lets out a laugh. “A varsity jacket!”
“Perfect for an upperclassman, don’t you think?” Fred asks, a twinkle in his eyes.
Seth pulls the jacket on. “I don’t care if it’s dorky to anyone else—they’re wrong. I know I look amazing. Right? Right!”
“It’s so cool!” Jack says, going to the floor to touch the sleeve.
“All right, Freddy boy, you’re the only one who knew I wanted this, and since it’s so epic—all’s forgiven,” Seth says. He can’t stop looking at the jacket, extending his arms and twisting to look at it from different angles. “I can’t believe you actually got me one.”
“This way you can wear it next year.”
“Next year? I’m wearing it next week!”
I look at Fred. “You might have created a monster.”
“Created, or just given him more strength?” he asks out of the corner of his mouth.
“Did you get yourself one too?” Seth asks.
“Who do you think I am?” Fred asks, deadpanning. He goes to his closet and pulls out a hanger with a matching jacket. “I can’t let you be the only Falcon wearing one.”
“Where can I get one?” Jack asks.
Fred looks at all of us. “I bet we could get Coach to get one, too. And some of the guys. I’ll send you the link in our chat, and we can run it by the others at the follow-up Friendmas with them.”
“We can show them exactly what they’re missing ,” Seth says, pulling on the edges of his jacket as if flexing it.
“Eli, are you gonna get one too?”
“We’re on the same team, aren’t we?”
Jack grins. “Fred, you go next. It makes sense to go in order like that, where whoever got the gift for the last person opens theirs next.”
I know I don’t reveal anything on my face, but I watch with extra attention as Fred opens my gift, and it’s hard not to smile right before he realizes what it is.
“A collection of hot sauce?” He turns it over and sees the envelope I taped to the back. The hot sauce packet from Bueno Burritos falls into his palm, my note sayingtohelp you be a betterhotheadwrapped around it. He reads it aloud, reveals the hot sauce packet, and groans. “Ah, not this one!”
He and Seth had a competition to see who could handle hot sauce best, a while back. This was the hottest one they tried, and the one that sent Fred into a coughing fit.
“That’s just mean,” he says through a laugh, looking at us each in turn to guess who gifted it. “This one hurt!”
“Looks like your Secret Santa wants to build up your hot sauce endurance,” Jack says.
“Okay, ‘fess up. Who is it?”
I raise one hand, and Seth gasps. “Elliot James, you conniving son of a bitch!”
I let the smile tugging at my lips show. “Couldn’t resist.”
Fred tosses the solo packet of hot sauce to me. “You’re trying all of these with me. You know that, right?”
