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Cody looks between the pencils in his hand and his phone.
"Okay, this set is easier to hold…this one breaks less often…this is best but really really really expensive…would she like it if it was more expensive?" He groans. "Does she even need these pencils? She probably already has her own! But these are…better? But she hates wasting things…"
Impressing girls is hard. Especially girls you think you're over but realize you are most definitely not over as soon as you get their name in the Secret Santa that Geoff held.
…not that he would know anything about that!
"Oh, god, what if they break in the mail?!"
Pencils, no.
…wait, that rules out a bunch of other art things too. Darn it. Um. Should he just go with the backup plan of stuff exclusive to the Hot Topic close to his house? No, then she'd think he'd want to see her in it. Which he does! But not that much! Not enough to pressure her into wearing it for him, anyway.
Her feelings are important! And that's something that Duncan never understood. (Also Trent, he guesses, but he can forgive that one.)
He runs over to the next aisle in the art supply store. Paint? Paintbrushes? No, he has no idea what sorts of paintbrushes she needs. He scrolls through her art Instagram again. Barely any colours…should he just buy her black and white paint and let her mix it? Should he get her red and little brushes for highlights? Does she do acrylic? Watercolour? Gouache…whatever that even is?
No, no, no, all of it feels not personal enough.
She likes art, but a lot of people like art…
"Why can't girls just be impressed by anything you give them?"
He wants to scream. Just a little. He instead tilts his head and exhales through his nostrils…and catches sight of a display on the back wall of the store.
"Of course!"
The call had started at 8 in his time zone. This, Cody thinks, is a good time to pick. It's not too late for anyone–maybe a bit early for the people on the West Coast, but nothing too bad–and it can go for hours without people being too late. It's perfect.
Geoff had, mercifully, started with the Secret Santa reveal since he wanted everyone to not die with anticipation. Or be late for other events. He really is good at throwing parties.
Cody takes the cardboard box that had come in the mail two days ago and sets it under his feet. From the vague smell of vanilla cupcakes, he's pretty sure he knows who sent it, but he'll be surprised anyway. (He heard that some people had only gotten their packages last night and Beth still hadn't gotten hers. Something about a van crash?)
He's only sort-of paying attention. Sierra got Courtney a musical poster, Tyler got Harold an illustrated medieval history book, and Lindsay definitely got him. And sent him a shirt.
"You should stop wearing two shirts like that, Coby!"
Cody holds up the shirt. Admittedly it's a pretty nice shirt, really soft and smooth and the sort of thing people at his high school wore.
"Lindsay…um…thanks?"
…does wearing two shirts really make him look that bad?
"Of course! You should put it on! It'll make you look less terrible!"
He does. Reluctantly. But Gwen seems to agree with Lindsay, at least? So he slips the shirt on over his other two shirts.
"No shirtless Cody?" Harold jokes.
"Binder."
"Ehhh…" Harold waves his hand in the air and goes quiet.
"Cody! You got a gift last, so it's your turn!" Geoff says excitedly. "Who'd you get?"
Okay. Here it goes. Now or never. "...Gwen."
The Zoom call goes collectively silent. Oh, god, is it that bad?
"Congrats!" Sierra starts clapping quietly.
Cody is never sure what to think of her. She definitely acts over him, and she still definitely doesn't like Gwen, but…does that make them friends? Is that her being a good friend? Is she actually happy for him? He thinks the answer is yes, but what if it's only yes because he wants it to be yes?
Gwen takes a breath he's pretty sure is at least a little nervous and opens her box.
"Wow, that's a lot of bubble wrap…how many layers…?
She stops and stares into the box.
"...you…actually gave me something I wanted. Huh."
"H-hey, did you really think–"
"Hold it up! Show us!" Lindsay interrupts. Gwen sighs and quietly holds up a spiral-bound sketchbook, bits of bubble wrap clinging to it.
Cody had spent an hour looking up various sketchbook reviews before he could actually pick something he wanted to give to Gwen, and then he'd discovered it didn't ship well, so he'd added so much bubble wrap he had to pay extra. It's worth it.
He opens up the chat and shoots a little message to Gwen.
open it but not in front of everyone
ok?
"...that was…a lot nicer than I expected…it's Bottleson, and the paper is so smooth. Thanks, Cody." Gwen cracks a tiny smile.
He stops paying attention afterwards, and it's only when Geoff is hosting Jackbox that he manages to pull Gwen aside for a talk.
"You're not gonna be weird about this, right?"
"N-no! I just want you to be happy, but what I wrote in there is a little personal…"
Gwen sighs and opens the sketchbook. There's a little doodle of himself, closer to stick figure than anything passable, but it's the thought that counts!
"'Merry Christmas Gwen! Keep in touch?' Cody, is that…your number?"
"Yeah–oh. Is this too much? Is that it?"
"Well, it's less violating of my boundaries…still a little weird, but it's fine."
"So…are you gonna…"
"Still don't like you like that, but sure."
Cody laughs nervously.
"Okay. That's…okay. As long as you're happy, it's okay."
…it really is, he thinks.