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I rolled my eyes. "I'm not telling you."
"Oooh, it is! What is it? You can tell me. I promise I'll act surprised tomorrow."
Ave Madre Luna, he was as bad as the pups. It'd be interesting to see what he'd be like when we had kids of our own someday. I could see him plotting with the pups to sneak under the Christmas tree and get a peek at their gifts when the rest of us weren't looking. "I'm not going to tell you, Kao!" I got up from my seat and backed away.
Like the pup he was acting like, Kao pouted and crossed his arms. It reminded me of when Kai pouted from mine and Rowan's teasing, and it sent a stab of pain to my heart.
Kao noticed my change in mood, and dropped the act, rushing over to me and holding me in his arms. "Hey, what's wrong?"
"Sorry," I whispered, giving myself a moment to breath and compose myself. "I'm okay, it's just I really miss Kai."
Kao frowned and dropped his gaze to the floor. "I know. I miss him too. I'm so worried about him. I hate not knowing what's happening to him."
He wasn't the only one. "Sooner or later, we'll find out, and if he can be saved, we'll do everything in our power to bring him back to us."
Kao knew that, but it was hard to hold onto hope that we Kai could be saved. Still, we had to keep hoping because that was all we had right now. Kao’s hands on my arms rubbed up and down, his silence deafening as his mind wandered elsewhere. "You know, this is my first Christmas without him. It doesn't feel right to celebrate with Kai not here."
"Trust me, I feel the same way." I reached up with my free hand to grip his wrist. "But this may be the last time we get to eat, drink, and be merry before we have to fight for Kingsrose. This may be our last Christmas, period. While I know it's not a good idea to think negative, acting like this may be our last holiday together is better than dwelling over what we can't control right now. We've already tried looking for Kai and found nothing. We have other packs scouting for any clues pertaining to Pierce and Mordred. We're doing all we can right now, but our pack needs this night. Besides, do you think he would approve of us sulking on Christmas Eve?"
"No,” he said right away. "And I get what you're saying, I really do. But—"
"But you want him here with us," I finished for him. "I do too, and hopefully we'll be able to make up for it next Christmas, so let's hold onto that, okay?"
"I'll try," he said with an attempt to smile.
Kao did try to lighten his mood and enjoy the holiday. Eventually he warmed up enough to laugh and dance and have a good time with the rest of the lodge. Somehow everyone got me to dance to a Christmas song for them. Even when I tried to refuse, nobody would let me. The betas and the rest of the pack residents were excited to see me finally dance, including Byron who was anxious to see it. Kao offered to show him one of my videos on social media, but he insisted that he wanted a live performance. I relented, because as I reminded myself, this may be our last chance. Rather than dance to a traditional Christmas song, I chose Christmas EveL by Stray Kids. Thankfully, I hadn't lost my touch with recreating KPOP choreography. When I was done, I had a few betas asking if I could teach them the choreography later, to which I said yes.
I did talk to Joaquin and Kao about opening my own dance studio, and no surprise, they were supportive of it. It was another one of those “when the war ended” goals that we added to the list. When I told them that I'd pay for renting and renovating the old ballet studio, Joaquin protested. "I have money invested that could cover for that. This is a business expense, so the pack should cover it."
"But it's not part of the event planning or flower arrangement. It's not the pack's business, it's mine," I said, not wanting the pack to lose money on my account. I had more than enough to cover for it.
"Rosie, you're our pack alpha. Whatever business you want to start is automatically pack business," Kao said. "Please, let us help you. We want to do this for you. If it'll make you feel better to contribute, we can split the cost in half. Would that be okay?"
It took a bit more convincing, but I eventually caved. I was excited to get started the first chance we got. I already had a vague idea on how to remodel and decorate the interior. We partied and carried on until it was well after midnight. Everyone started going to bed early, so we could wake up early and open presents. My mates and Byron were about to do the same when I stopped them. "One second, I wanted to give you guys something first."
The three of them exchanged glances before huddling around me. I grabbed the white box from earlier and help it up. "This is for you guys," I said as I handed the box to Joaquin to open. He pulled the top up to reveal the contents inside. It was five gold bracelets that came together to form a star in the center. Each of the star's five corners were attached to one of the bracelets. The boys each took one from the box, holding them up to inspect them closely.
"Rosie, these are beautiful," Joaquin said, already slipping his down his arm until it reached his wrist.
"I agree, I love it," Kao said.
Byron put his on but said nothing. That was until he leaned down to press a quick kiss to my lips. "It is beautiful, just like you. Thank you, baby, and Merry Christmas."
"Oh, come on!" Kao bellowed obnoxiously. "Why do you always feel the need to one up us?"
Byron shrugged with a conceited look plastered to his face. "What can I say, I have to make up for lost time."
Kao grumbled something under his breath, then stomped closer to me so he could grab the back of my head and pulled me into a deeper kiss. "Merry Christmas, my love. I love you more than anything in the world."
"Kiss ass," Joaquin murmured.
With the way Kao was trying to eviscerate Joaquin with the flames in his eyes, it was amazing how he didn't spontaneously combust. Not wanting to be left out, Joaquin came to kiss me next, his rough fingers gently lacing through my hair. When he pulled apart, he pressed his forehead to mine and had his eyes closed. "Merry Christmas, cariño."
"Now that's how it's done," I heard Byron say right before Kao's, "Fuck off, Byron. Mine was better."
There was never a dull moment with these guys. Looking down at the box in my hand, my smile faltered slightly at the single bracelet remaining. Kai's absence hitting me once again.
Joaquin, sensing my distress, rested his hands over mine. "We'll get him back, Rosie. You guys never gave on me when I was held captive, so I won't let you give up on him."
