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Phone pressed tightly against one ear, Lara Jean glares up at the departures board, every single flight status saying "canceled." She is trying not to think about it too much, but it's December 23rd and there is a very real possibility that she won't make it home by Christmas. Kitty is completely distraught. "But what about our traditions? Lara Jean, you have to be here!" "And I'm going to do my very best to be home in time," she promises. "Now, can you put Dad on the phone?" There's some grumbling and rustling noises on the other end as Kitty gets up. Lara Jean had just known it was a terrible idea to travel to New York right before a major holiday. However, she'd gone against her gut instinct because of Chris's promises of seeing the extravagant decorations at Times Square and shopping at thrift stores in East Village. And Lara Jean had actually enjoyed herself. It would have been impossible not to when she was with her firecracker of a best friend. However, now she is currently stranded on her last layover back to Portland, while Chris is still back in New York, probably grabbing sushi with her aunt and uncle. While it was planned this way from the beginning, an unexpected snowstorm causing all flights to be canceled could really make one question their decision to fly back alone. "Hey, sweetheart," her dad says, finally coming on the line. "How are you holding up?" Lara Jean takes a deep breath. Hearing her dad's voice always has a calming effect on her. Even though there's nothing he can do since she's in Denver and he's over a thousand miles away, now that she's talking to him it feels like everything will be okay. "Fine," she says, simultaneously balancing her phone in one hand while trying to peel the lid off a yogurt cup in the other. "I'm close to the customer service desk so I can jump in line whenever they start scheduling again." "Did they say when that may be?" Lara Jean licks the lid of the yogurt cup. Strawberry, her favorite. "No, the airline lady said it could be several hours at least." Her dad hums on the other end. "The news is saying that this is one of the biggest storms to hit in the past few years." "Not comforting!" She takes a bite of yogurt and leans back in her seat with a sigh. "Sorry," her dad replies, although the apology loses its effect when he proceeds to read the depressing weather report from the news scroll. "Gusts of wind up to 60 mph, temperatures dropping to..." Lara Jean doesn't hear the rest, though, as she's distracted by someone taking a seat two over from her own. It's with an uneasy feeling that she recognizes the other person's clothing. It's not as though a canceled flight wasn't enough to ruin her life. No, to make matters even worse, Lara Jean is pretty sure that somehow in the two hours since the announcement was made she's acquired a stalker. Now, Lara Jean isn't usually one for dramatics and had initially convinced herself she was just imagining things. Maybe the guy had had the same idea as her in waiting out the customer service desk. And maybe when she'd gotten up a half hour ago to get the yogurt and he'd done the same that had also been a coincidence. After all, the odds of two people being hungry at the same time weren't impossibly high. But she'd purposely chosen this seat on the opposite side of the desk as before. And now that he's sitting just a few chairs down her row she can't rationalize it away any longer. Lara Jean tunes back into her dad and is startled to realize he's making his goodbyes, but of course he can't stay on the phone with her forever. "Make sure to keep us updated with the flights," he's saying and for one brief moment she considers telling him her worry. That she's pretty sure some guy has been following her and she's scared out of her mind. That wouldn't change anything, though. Her dad would still be in Portland and she'd still be in Denver. The only difference would be that her dad would be concerned and really, she doesn't need to do that to him right now over what's probably nothing. So she pushes the urge to tell him deep down and locks it away. "Yeah, I'll do that," she says quietly. "Love you, Dad." "Love you, too. See you soon." Then there is a click and he's gone. She keeps the phone against her ear for a long moment before putting it down. Trying to distract herself, she takes another bite of yogurt and almost spits it out. Whereas before it was fruity and sweet, now it tastes like acid going down her throat. So much for that plan. Afraid turning to look at her stalker would be read as an invitation for him come over, she takes a quick glance out of the corner of her eye. He appears to be just slightly older than her, with light blonde hair and a dark green hoodie on. It's definitely possible that the guy is actually friendly, but something about it all just feels really, really wrong. Her palms are starting to feel clammy and she thinks about getting a hotel room to wait this out. Even if it means risking not getting on an early flight and not being able to spend Christmas with her family for the first time in her life. She holds out for another minute before putting down her yogurt cup and getting out her phone to see if she can connect to WiFi or if she'll have to bother the desk lady again about hotel options. At the same time, a body drops into the chair next to her and Lara Jean is so surprised she nearly drops her phone. Stomach in knots, she turns to see stalker guy way too close and smiling in a way that sends a chill over her skin. His next words do nothing to assuage her fears. "Hey, I noticed you were over here by yourself and-" Frozen, Lara Jean feels panic overwhelm her and blood rush through her ears like a loud roar. She doesn't hear what he says next but when an arm slides over the back of her seat she feels like she's going to puke. Lara Jean’s not sure if seconds or minutes go by after that, but it takes her a long moment to realize that someone is saying her name. At first she thinks it's the guy beside her, but when she looks at his mouth it's no longer moving but frowning. And his attention is no longer on her but on something behind her. Then she hears her name again and what happens next is all a blur. A finger tapping her shoulder. Her turning around and being pulled up from her chair. A vaguely familiar male voice saying, "Hey, I'm glad I finally found you. Ready to go?" When her body and mind finally catch up with each other, Lara Jean feels her eyes almost pop out of her head in recognition of the new person. Peter Kavinsky. The name is on her tongue in a split second, even though she hasn't seen him in years. Probably the last time was at their high school graduation. Or maybe the after party that Chris had forcibly dragged her to. One doesn't easily forget Peter Kavinsky, though. That's just not how the world works with people like him. His face looks practically the same as before, although it has filled out slightly and his hair has gotten even more unwieldy than it had been in high school. Lara Jean has the sudden ridiculous desire to run her fingers through it. And she actually does. Well, sort of. It's more like a light graze, her fingertips brushing the ends of his curly brown hair and oh, he's actually real and not some hallucinated knight in shining armor her mind has conjured up in all its panic. Realizing a moment too late what she's doing, she yanks her hand back. "Sorry, what did you say?" she asks, voice cracking. She can't quite remember now what she was doing before Peter appeared. At her question, Peter's gaze moves to behind her and she glances over her shoulder. It all comes rushing back in one quick wave as she sees her stalker sitting there and unconsciously takes a step away from him, practically colliding with Peter's chest. When she turns around again, they are very, very close. She can visibly see him tense up, can see the almost imperceptible tick in his jaw as his eyes flick from stalker guy to her. His laugh as he grabs her suitcase is fake, a forced sound that sounds so wrong coming from his mouth. Then his hand is closing around her own and she's being tugged away. "Come on, let's go figure out this flight mess so my mother won't kill us for missing Christmas dinner." She allows herself to be pulled away before it dawns on her that she hasn't seen Peter's practically a stranger in his own right. Before she can even think to protest though, Peter whispers, "Just another minute." She nods, because she is just so overwhelmingly relieved to be out of the previous situation. And she was being ridiculous before. This is Peter Kavinsky. He was her first crush. The boy that she tutored in English in seventh grade. She's safe with him. When she feels eyes on her back as they're walking away, she grips Peter's hand all the more tightly. A moment later they're in a waiting area on the opposite side of the customer service desk, only a hundred feet or so away from where she was before, but completely out of sight of the guy. When Peter stops, he motions for her to sit down and then places a random yogurt cup in her hands. Wait, this is her yogurt cup. When had he grabbed that? Peter slings his bag off his shoulder and stands in front of her, looking somewhat unsure what to do now. "I hope I didn't freak you out by coming over, but I figured you'd appreciate the help with that guy following you." Lara Jean stares at the yogurt cup in her hands, embarrassment now replacing her previous fear. "Thanks, I, uh... thought I was just imagining it. Being paranoid." Her hands shake a little as she gives a dry laugh and stirs the spoon aimlessly around in a circle. "Nah, you weren't imagining anything. I watched him follow you from our gate. What a creep." Hearing Peter confirm her thoughts about the guy should make her feel better, but she kind of wishes she had been imagining it all to be honest. The feeling that something really bad could have happened hits her like a wave and she swallows hard. Peter sits down beside her and throws an arm over the back of her chair. Unlike before, the arm doesn't unnerve her but instead makes her feel somehow safer. "Are you okay?" "Yeah, I'm fine." Trying to fake a smile, she thinks back over his previous words. "Wait, our terminal? Were you going on the same flight as me?" Leaning away slightly, Peter throws one hand dramatically over his heart and pretends to be wounded. "Ouch, Covey. That hurts my pride a little that you didn't notice me." Then he winks. "But I'll give you a pass just this one since you had more concerning matters at the moment." Lara Jean's stomach does a little happy flip at the sound of her old nickname and she quickly dismisses it. Now is not the time to be resurrecting long-forgotten crushes. "How considerate of you," she quips. She leans back in her seat and feels Peter tug at her long ponytail. The smile on her face this time is real. "So, what are you doing in Denver?" At her question, Peter looks away and his voice takes on an edge. "Visiting my dad and his wife. He moved here from California for work." Mr. Kavinsky had left when they were in middle school, if Lara Jean is remembering correctly. Unlike how others may have reacted in a similar situation, Peter hadn't rebelled or lashed out when his dad had left, although he'd probably felt like it. Instead, for the entirety of sixth grade, he had just walked around with this sad look to him, like his whole world had been turned upside down. His expression reflects that now. "You don't have to talk about it, but I'm sure that was tough. Seeing him with another family. Feeling out of place." Lara Jean stops talking before she says anything else stupid. Who is she to pry into his life and open up old scars? Instead of looking irritated at her assumption though, Peter cocks his head and almost looks... surprised? "Yeah, that's exactly it. I know I'm supposed to be happy to see him, but every time I do I can only think about how he hurt my mom." "And your brother," Lara Jean adds softly. And you, goes unsaid, but Peter seems to hear it anyway because his eyes flash knowingly. "Exactly." He sighs, turning his head to look out the window on their right. The runways are invisible with the whirlwind of snow. "I see him once a year. I can't do anymore than that, but I always come once a year because even though what he did..." Peter trails off. Lara Jean fills in the gap. "You never get over someone leaving you. It's okay to miss him, even if what he did was terrible. You can love him and be angry at the same time." "Are you angry at your mom?" The unexpected question throws Lara Jean completely off balance and she jerks a little in her seat. Her mom had died about a year after Peter's dad left and she's surprised he even remembers. It takes her a second to formulate a response, and when she does there's a lump in her throat like always when she talks about her mom. "It usually hurts the most around the holidays." Peter's expression is soft when he looks back at her. "I know what you mean." And she believes him. He isn't just saying it like everyone else did to make her feel better. Peter gets it. She clears her throat. "But to answer your question, I was angry for a while when it first happened. Not exactly at my mom but at the situation. It felt so unfair. I'm not angry anymore, just..." "You still miss her." Lara Jean exhales. "Every day."After that they sit in silence for a few minutes, letting everything get drowned out by the heavy beat of frozen ice and thunder. When a voice comes over the sound system, Lara Jean perks up, only to slouch back down again when the monotone woman's voice just reiterates that all flights are canceled and they will keep them upraised of any updates. When the speaker cuts out and it is silent once again, Peter turns to her asking, "Hey, you want to go get something else to eat?" Lara Jean eyes her uneaten cup of yogurt and shakes her head. For some reason Peter looks disappointed. "But you go ahead, don't feel like you need to stay with me or anything." She pulls out her phone with the pretense of looking busy. "I'm good." The look she gets in return is one of complete disbelief. "Um, yeah, I'm not leaving you alone until we're on our flight heading home, Covey, so you can get that thought out of your head right now." The idea that he somehow feels responsible for her now, like he needs to babysit her, makes her feel terrible. "No, Peter. You don't have to do that. I'm fine, really." "Hey, it's mutually beneficial if we stick together," Peter argues. Lara Jean's eyebrows shoot up her forehead. "How so? What could you possibly get out of..." she gestures vaguely between the two of them "... this?" Peter rises from his seat, stretching his arms over his head. "You mean other than getting to hang out with you, Covey?" He smirks, then picks up his bag and loops the strap across his body. Lara Jean just waits. She needs a better answer than that. Peter groans. "Okay, fine." He gestures for her yogurt cup and she hands it over. "You don't want this anymore, right?" She nods her head. "Right." Yogurt isn't going to be on the menu again for at least a week until she no longer associates that sour taste with being back in that chair with the guy in the green hoodie. Lara Jean watches Peter take the yogurt cup and walk it to a trash can a few rows away. At first she's confused since there's a trash can right beside her, but then she notices him glancing around as if looking for something. When he comes back to their seats, he takes her bag without explanation and she gets up to follow, interest piqued. It turns out that it was a someone rather than a something that he had been looking for. His hand slips into hers again and he leans down to whisper in her ear. "Redhead ten o'clock. About your sister Margot's age. Be subtle." As they walk out of the waiting area, hand-in-hand, Lara Jean looks quickly over at the left wall. It isn't hard to spot the woman that Peter is referring to. Lara Jean can feel the force of the woman's frowning disapproval all the way from over here. "Who is she?" She feels, rather than sees, Peter's shrug as his shoulder knocks into hers. "We were sitting beside each other at the gate. When the flight was canceled, she looked at me after the announcement and told me she knew of a good hotel nearby if I wanted to have some fun while we waited." Lara Jean trips. Peter, laughing, tightens his hold on her hand so she doesn't fall over. "You're joking." "We had said maybe two sentences to each other before that." Peter's cheeks are slightly pink. "I didn't know how to respond." Lara Jean is very glad that her stalker hadn't gotten that many words in. If he'd said something similar to her she would have fainted on the spot. "So what did you say?" Another shrug. "That I had a girlfriend, but thanks." "Gen." Lara Jean remembers her well from high school, although her memories of the girl weren't positive like her memories of Peter. Gen was always making petty comments about her clothes. Subconsciously she glances down at her combat boots now. At Gen's name, Peter let's go of her hand and they stop walking. "Actually, we broke up freshman year of college." That was over two years ago. When they were younger, Lara Jean knew all about Gen's life because Chris was her cousin. Then the two had a falling out at a graduation party and hadn't spoken much since, not that they were especially close before or anything. Lara Jean half-suspected that's why Chris was always traveling places around the holidays - to avoid running into her cousin. Thanksgiving this year had been some relative in Texas and the Christmas before was Ohio. She'd have to text Gen after this to see if she'd heard about the breakup. "Oh, who are you seeing now?" Something flicks through Peter's gaze so quickly that Lara Jean can't quite identify it. Nerves, maybe? "I'm not." "Okay..." Lara Jean doesn't see where he's going with this. Does he think she'll judge him for lying? That woman was being ridiculous. Or for being single? Well, she wouldn't. After all, she's single too. Then she happens to look over at the redhead again and finally she sees that the eye daggers aren't exactly aimed at them but at her . Lara Jean's mouth drops open. "Oh!" Peter winces. "It's not a big deal, right? It's not like I said your name or anything. I think she saw us and just assumed." He shrugs. "Like I said, mutually beneficial to keep the crazies away." The pretending still seems a little over the top and unnecessary to Lara Jean, even with that extra knowledge. She doesn't say that to Peter, though. Instead, she finds herself thinking back to the pure panic she'd felt just a few minutes ago and how she never ever wanted to experience that again. "Sure." Trying to feel a measure of confidence that she definitely doesn't possess, she straightens her ponytail and holds out her hand for Peter to take. "Let's do this."Being that it's almost midnight, none of the restaurants near their gate are open. Instead they settle for raiding some vending machines, and after acquiring quite the haul of food, they start wandering back to their gate. When they are about halfway back, though, the same woman as before starts to speak over the sound system. Lara Jean prepares herself to hear the same spiel about canceled flights but is surprised to hear a different opening this time. "We are pleased to announce that a limited number of flights have been given permission to take off tomorrow morning given improved weather conditions. As a reminder these tickets are limited, but an increasing number of flights should be available as the weather continues to improve." Peter and Lara Jean pause and look at each other, both grinning from ear to ear. Lara Jean pulls out her phone to start looking for flights to Portland online when the voice continues. "Unfortunately our online reservation system is currently experiencing outages so please make your way to the nearest customer service desk for assistance." Already there are masses of people flocking to purchase tickets. Lara Jean feels a nudge on her shoulder and she draws her attention away from her phone. "Covey, you run ahead and get a spot in line." Lara Jean glances guiltily at her heavy rolling suitcase. Peter pushes her shoulder. "I'll catch up with the bags. Just go!" "Okay, okay!" She starts off walking and quickly transitions into a run as she tries to weave around people and not bump into anyone. When she finally finds a customer service desk, there are already dozens lined up. She goes to get in line, slightly out of breath, and looks to see if she can spot Peter in the crowd. She can't. And she doesn't have his number. Oh, this was not well-planned at all and DIA is a huge airport. Lara Jean quickly gets out her phone and texts Chris. "Do you have Peter Kavinsky's number? Need it ASAP." When she doesn't see Chris texting back immediately she pulls up every social media app installed on her phone and messages Peter. "By McDonald's in the middle line about 15 back..." Twitter, Facebook, Instagram. Hopefully he'd see one of them. A second later she realized she should have DM'd him instead of putting the messages on his pages... Oh well. A second later she gets a message from Chris. "PK just texted me the same thing. What's going on?" Then another message pops up, this one from an unknown number. "Where R U? - Peter." Lara Jean forgoes texting back and decides to just call him. "Covey?" "Hey, I'm by the McDonald's. I tried messaging you on Facebook..." "Wait, hold on," Peter's voice gets distant for a moment as he presumably goes to check his phone. "And Twitter and Instagram. I saw them. All of them." He sounds amused. "I was just trying to be thorough. I didn't have your number." "I texted Chris for yours. I was actually kind of surprised I didn't have it from high school." Lara Jean snorts. "We weren't exactly in the same social circles or anything. You were popular and I was-" Suddenly there's a tap on her shoulder and she cranes her neck around to find Peter standing there, phone up to his ear and her suitcase sitting beside him. "You were too smart for us," he says into the phone, finishing her sentence, then hangs up. Lara Jean puts down her own phone and takes the suitcase from him. It's a tight squeeze and a few people in line don't look too happy that he's slipped up there. Peter notices the pointed stares and steps closer so that they are facing each other, as if taking up less physical space would make them forget he'd cut in line. "That's just another way of saying unpopular, nerd, teacher's pet," Lara Jean says, picking their conversation back up as a distraction. She's currently finding it very hard not to focus on how the tips of Peter's shoes are touching her own and how they're so close she can see the rise and fall of his chest. Peter doesn't respond right away, so Lara Jean looks up, assuming he's trying to find a way not to offend her, despite her having long ago accepted her status in the social hierarchy that was high school. But when she meets his gaze, he doesn't look hesitant or sorry, but contemplative. "You know, that's why Gen was so mean to you in school." "What?" Lara Jean asks in disbelief. "You're saying she made fun of my clothes because she was jealous of me? What in the world did she have to be jealous of?" "Good grades, you were nice, everyone liked you, you wore the coolest boots..." Peter lists off, nudging her toe slightly with each point. "Trust me, she was jealous." Lara Jean frowns. Gen was the one everyone had liked and envied. Peter is just plain wrong. "Sure, she wasn't exactly nice, but she was well off and pretty, she was a cheerleader and always had a boyfriend." "You're pretty and nice." Lara Jean can feel the heat rising to her cheeks and she immediately covers the blushing skin with her hands. "You're not a very good liar." Peter leans back slightly and snaps a picture with his phone before she realizes what's happening and thinks to look away. "You have no idea, Covey." "Hey, what are you doing?" she exclaims, reaching out to grab his phone and simultaneously realizing just how much taller he really is than her 5' 2”. "I needed a picture of you to save with your number." Lara Jean gives up at getting his phone and lowers her hands. "My name isn't enough?" Peter shakes his head and then he's stealing Lara Jean's phone. Knowing it's a lost cause, she doesn't bother trying to get it back and just watches as he snaps a picture of himself and taps a few buttons. "There, now you'll know who I am too." The fact that they probably won't talk again after this doesn't seem like a productive addition to the conversation, so Lara Jean doesn't bring it up.Noticing the line has moved a little, she shuffles forward a few steps and turns back to Peter, arms crossed. "Why did you and Gen break up anyway, if you don't mind me asking?" Even though Peter looks slightly uncomfortable at the direction the conversation is going, Lara Jean figures he's the one who brought up Gen again in the first place. "I wish I could say it was because I finally saw through her act, but I'd kind of always known she wasn't exactly nice. Besides, she was the one who broke up with me... for some psychology grad assistant who had been a TA in one of her classes." "Sorry." The word is barely out of her mouth when somebody knocks into her and she basically falls forward into Peter's chest. Strong hands keep her from tumbling to the floor though. "Whoa, whoa, you okay?" Mortified, she nods and straightens, although can't help but notice that Peter keeps his hands on her, braced around her shoulders. Maybe he's worried she will fall again. She ignores the voice in her head telling her that she is enjoying this whole fake dating thing a little too much. Suddenly Peter yawns and then leans more of his weight on her, hanging his head down. "You tired?" He hums in response without looking up and Lara Jean laughs, placing her hands on top his where they rest on her shoulders. "Thank goodness we can go home soon," he mumbles. Lara Jean shuffles them forward a few steps again when the line moves. This is taking forever. "Want a snack?" Peter's head pops up at that and he blinks one eye open. She has to bite back a laugh as she tugs a bag of Sun Chips from her purse and tears into the side. She hesitates for a moment, debating, then reaches in for a chip and holds it out for Peter to take. Instead of using his hands, he leans forward and surprises her by snapping it up with his teeth. As he chews, he sighs in contentment. "You're the best." Opening her mouth to respond, Lara Jean is cut off by a loud "Next!" and realizes that they have reached the front of the line. "You go first," she tells Peter. He looks like he's going to protest, but the inpatient glare he gets from the customer service rep has him rushing up to the counter. A moment later Lara Jean is called to a rep a few registers over to purchase her own ticket. Peter is waiting for her when she's finished, back leaning against the wall where the McDonald's sits. His eyes are closed and he looks about as dead on his feet as Lara Jean feels. She goes to stand beside him. "You get a ticket?" he asks, and it must have been some kind of magic that he knew it was her because his eyes are still closed. "How-" "You smell like cherries," Peter explains without her finishing, as if the question and its answer are obvious. Lara Jean straightens her ponytail, not quite sure how to react about him noticing the scent of her shampoo. Although, she supposes they had been standing pretty close there for a while. "I got a ticket for 7 AM." Now Peter's eyes do open. "Me too." She jabs a thumb over her shoulder and holds up her phone. "I'm going to call my dad or Margot to see if they're awake and let them know." "Good idea. I think my mom was going to stay up waiting for an update." Lara Jean dials her sister's number first, thinking that Margot is the one most likely to still be awake at midnight. Wanting to give Peter some privacy, she wheels her suitcase behind her and walks down the terminal. With everyone at the customer service desks, where they are feels pretty deserted. Her sister answers on the second ring. "Why were you posting about McDonald's on Peter Kavinsky's Facebook page?" No hello. No how are you? Classic Margot. "Um, funny story..." Lara Jean starts, but then stops when she realizes she doesn't know exactly how to explain everything without having to bring up her sort-of stalker and having Margot freak out. "It turns out he was on the same canceled flight back to Portland as me. We've been hanging out waiting to get a new flight." There, she wasn't lying. Everything she'd said was completely true. Lara Jean would tell Margot about everything else in-person. "Didn't you have a crush on him in middle school?" Lara Jean snaps her head to look over at Peter as if he has Superman hearing and could have heard her sister's mortifying question. When he notices her looking over, he stops talking to his mom for a second and waves. Lara Jean laughs and waves back. Then turns to the phone and hisses, "Margot, that was forever ago. Why would you bring that up now?" She can practically hear the gears turning in Margot's head through the phone. It is never good when her sister started thinking. "What were you doing just now?" Lara Jean hesitates. "Peter did something funny and I laughed, why?" Her response comes out sounding more defensive than she'd intended, but what exactly is Margot trying to get at? There is a significant pause on Margot's end. "Nothing. He's dating Chris's cousin, isn't he?" Lara Jean shakes her head in response and then realizes Margot can't see her. "No, they broke up. She's dating her TA or something." "Interesting." Lara Jean doesn't like how Margot says the word. "So, did you get a ticket home yet?" "Yep, 7 AM." Doing some quick math in her head, she determines that will still give her enough time to bake the traditional cookies with Kitty tomorrow night and watch Santa Clause 2 like they do every year. "Good. I really hated the idea of you missing Christmas. So, are you getting a hotel for the night since your flight's not until tomorrow morning?" "Ummm..." Lara Jean hasn't really thought that far ahead to be honest. She immediately spins around and speed walks toward Peter. Margot sighs. "Lara Jean, you can't just sleep on the chairs in the airport. That's not safe." "I know, I know," she replies in exasperation, stopping in front of Peter who is no longer talking on the phone. "I was just so excited about getting a ticket that I didn't think about where I was going to sleep." She shrugs at Peter helplessly, figuring he hasn't thought about it either. Apparently he has been thinking about it though, because in response he whips out a brochure and hands it to her. Westin Hotel. Located right in the airport. Relieved, she gives him a thumbs up. "That could totally work." She flips the brochure open and starts reading the inner flap. Peter, who looks like he's ready to curl up into a corner and go to sleep right then and there, once again grabs her suitcase and puts a hand on her back to guide her in the direction of the escalator. "I can pull my own suitcase, you know," she tells him, but doesn't try to get it back. "Covey, no offense, but you're not the most coordinated person I know. Just read the brochure and keep walking." Margot snorts, obviously overhearing their conversation. "For someone that you haven't seen in years, he knows you pretty well." "Shut up," Lara Jean replies, not knowing why she is even still talking to her sister. Peter glances over at her, eyebrows raised and she rolls her eyes and looks pointedly at her phone. "Look, Margot, I..." "Don't you dare hang up until you get safe and sound into a hotel room," her sister says, cutting her off. "I'll wake up Dad if I have to." Lara Jean snaps her mouth shut and reaches into her bag for another snack. If Margot was going to comment on everything she and Peter said to each other, it's probably best if they just don't talk at all. She eats her bag of pretzels in absolute silence aside from the sound of her chewing. Margot was always watching those ASMR channels anyway. Thankfully Peter was apparently born with a built-in GPS. Lara Jean simply allows herself to be led along as they ride the tram to various stops until finally arriving at the main terminal. After that they follow the signs to the total lobby. It's not very busy, probably everyone already having checked in hours ago. When they enter the lobby, Lara Jean's eyes drift around, taking in the glowing geometric ceiling and tall, arching walls. They make their way to one of the front desks where there is an obviously sleep-deprived lady manning the counter. Peter shoulders off his bags and gets out his wallet. "I'll take a single, please." The woman frowns and Lara Jean's stomach plummets, worried that there are no rooms available. "I'm sorry, we only have one room left and it's a double. Everything else has been booked because of the storm." Peter doesn't even look back her way before pulling out his credit card and handing it to the woman. She practically chokes on a half-eaten pretzel. Margot's laugh is loud in her ear, almost a cackle. "You okay?" Peter asks in concern patting her back as Margot continues to laugh. The hotel employee glances over briefly before going back to her computer screen to finish booking the reservation. "I'm fine," she replies, then promptly hangs up on her sister. All too soon the room is booked and Peter hands her one of the key cards. Her mouth goes dry. "I'll pay you back for my half," she manages. Peter shakes his head and they start walking in the direction of the elevators. "Don't worry about it. My dad has enough frequent flier points to last a lifetime so I just used those. He won't even notice." "As long as you're sure," she says, rolling her suitcase into the elevator as Peter hits the button for the tenth floor. While they wait, she responds to the long string of text messages she has from Chris. This time Chris texts back right away. "Are you guys pulling my leg? You're really there with PK?" Lara Jean's snicker prompts Peter to lean over and try to read her screen. She tilts her phone away, hiding the texts from his view. "Chris doesn't believe me." "It is a pretty big coincidence," Peter says around a yawn. On a whim, Lara Jean opens the camera app on her phone and puts it on selfie mode. "Say cheese. I'm going to send a pic to Chris." She doesn't wait for Peter to react before snapping the picture. She attaches it to a new message and sends it without any text. She receives a bunch of flame emojis in return. And one random piece of cake. "Lara Jean?" "Hmm?" she says, scrunching her nose as she types back a reply and tries to find the fork emoji she knows is in there somewhere. Peter doesn't say anything else, forcing her to look over to where he's leaning against the elevator wall, face drawn into a frown. "You didn't tell Chris or Margot about the guy stalking you." It's not a question. She looks back at her phone and thinks about denying it, especially since he couldn't have possibly heard her whole conversation with Margot when she was so far away, or have seen all the texts she'd sent to Chris... "Covey." She sighs, pausing in the middle of her text and letting her phone's screen fade to black before replying. "It's not a big deal, Peter." He gives a humorless laugh. "It is a big deal. If it wasn't a big deal you would have told them." He's not wrong, not on either count and Lara Jean finds herself unable to argue with him. She doesn't know if it's due to tiredness or because he's Peter. "If it will make you feel better, I'll tell them when I get home." "I'll hold you to that." As if he'll personally come over to her house on Christmas day to ensure that her whole family knows some guy stalked her at the airport. And she's beginning to think maybe he really would. Maybe that's why she finds herself admitting, "I hate that such a little thing can make me feel so... unbalanced. It really freaked me out, Peter." "I know." Peter pushes off the wall and goes to say more just as the elevator doors open. It's perfect timing and Lara Jean readily takes the out from this much-too-deep-for-midnight conversation. "What's our room number?" Peter blinks down at the receipt. "315, which is..." Glancing at the numbered signs, Lara Jean points to the right. "That way." It takes Peter two tries to open the door with the keycard. Lara Jean immediately claims the bathroom, rolling in her suitcase and changing into an oversized t-shirt and shorts before quickly washing her face and brushing her teeth. When she gets out, Peter is already in the closest bed, plugging his phone charger into a wall outlet. "I gave you the bed with the window. Hope that's okay." Lara Jean doesn't care in the slightest. She just hopes the pillow is soft. "What time should we get up?" Peter asks, squinting down at his screen. "5:00?" Lara Jean collapses onto her bed and groans, thoroughly exhausted. She'd already been going to sleep later than usual on her trip with Chris in New York and now compounded with jet lag she feels like she could sleep for a year. "That's barely over four hours!" "5:15 it is. We have to give ourselves time to get through TSA again." He's right again, of course. She slips into the covers and sighs. "Fine." With a soft beep, Peter sets the alarm on his phone and turns off the lamp with a click, plunging them into darkness. Later on she'll probably dwell on how she was entirely too comfortable at sleeping in the same room as Peter Kavinsky, but at the moment she's too tired to care. "Night, Covey." Lara Jean pulls the covers up farther and burrows into her pillow. "Goodnight, Peter."Since Peter was the one who had set the alarm for so early, she'd figured he was a morning person. Given the fact that his alarm has now been going off for a solid minute without him so much as twitching, she had either been wrong or she is catching him on an off day. Lara Jean decides to be nice and grant him a few extra minutes of sleep while she changes in the bathroom. Since they're about to go on a long flight she opts for comfort with a pair of stretchy black leggings and an oversized gray sweater. When she exits the bathroom, she grabs her phone and finds a new message that Chris sent hours ago. It must have been right after they went to sleep. It just says "WTH?" and although Lara Jean usually prides herself on being able to interpret Chris's language pretty well, she's honestly at a loss for what the message means until she scrolls up and sees the previous image she'd sent Chris. It's the one she'd taken the night before where she and Peter are grinning like two-sleep deprived cheeseballs. It's actually pretty cute and if they were actually dating she would definitely set it as her lock screen. Lara Jean shakes her head at the thought, then steels herself to wake up Peter. He must have shut off his alarm while she was in the bathroom because it's no longer ringing and his arm is still partially extended on the empty space next to him in bed. She walks over quietly and pokes him in the shoulder. He doesn't budge. "Peter..." she tries again. This time he groans and rolls onto his side, grabbing her hand in the process so she won't poke him again. "Just a couple more hours, Covey." Her response is swallowed up in a grunt as he unexpectedly pulls her arm and she falls onto the mattress beside him. Righting herself into a sitting position, she yanks to free herself, but Peter has a strong grip. "We can't miss our flight." "I'm sure there will be another one in a few hours," he mumbles, almost incoherently. But because she has a younger sister who hates mornings, Lara Jean has become a master at deciphering words mumbled into pillowcases. "Peter." She squeezes his hand. "We're going to miss Christmas." She had meant to say it jokingly, but her voice cracks at the end belaying just how much the idea upsets her. There's a beat of silence after that, then Peter rolls over and blinks his eyes open. Lara Jean hasn't turned on the light in the main room yet, so there is just the faint glow coming from the bathroom to outline the features on his face. "Fine... but we're getting breakfast." He pats her hand once before letting go and pushing himself up into a sitting position. "Deal." Lara Jean jumps up and collects her things. After a long yawn he gets out of bed on the other side and walks into the bathroom with his duffel bag. The faucet turns on for a minute then off again. "I want pancakes!" Peter shouts loud enough for her to hear through the door. Lara Jean leans against the wall opposite the bathroom, suitcase by her side, and pulls out her phone. "I'll look for what restaurants are open this early." She is still frowning down at her phone, trying to look at the menus of the various restaurants around their gate, when the bathroom door creaks open and Peter reemerges. "Are you willing to settle for hotcakes at McDonald's?" she asks. The closest other thing was someplace called Root Down but they didn't open until 7:00... "It's all the same to me as long as they have butter and syrup." Peter switches the bathroom light off and opens up the door to their hotel room gesturing for Lara Jean to go first. He looks about 25% more awake than before. "McDonald's actually makes a pretty solid breakfast, although I never really liked their sausage patties growing up," Lara Jean muses as they make a left out of their room and head towards the elevator. "Too spicy." They reach the elevator and Peter punches the down arrow with his index finger. "Let me guess... you were a Burger King breakfast kind of girl." Lara Jean opens her mouth to defend herself and Peter laughs, holding up his hands in surrender before she can even make her case. "I'm not going to bash your precious Cini-Minis. They should have never gotten rid of them in my opinion." Oh. Lara Jean's head jerks back in surprise at just how well he'd read her. Peter just taps his temple as if to say "who's the smart one now?" They get the answer to that question approximately twenty minutes later when they are going through the TSA line. Thankfully it's mercifully short; however, it being so short also means they don't have much time to get ready for the scan. Currently Peter is attempting to get his shoes off as Lara Jean watches on. Her combat boots, purse, and suitcase are already loaded onto the conveyor belt. "Need some help?" she smirks, reveling at seeing athletic, super-coordinated Peter Kavinsky struggle. Peter glares, but it's softened by his bedhead and sleepy eyes so he doesn't look very threatening. She steps closer. "Here, lean on me for balance." He snorts but places a hand on her shoulder and a minute later manages to pull those darn sneakers off. "Thanks. Your short stature finally comes in handy." "I know that's just your grouchiness talking because you only got five hours of sleep so I'll overlook it this once," she says primly, picking up his shoes from the floor and placing them in the bin where his cell phone and headphones are. "Don't forget your sweatshirt." Peter throws back his head with a sigh but does as he's told. The female TSA agent who has been watching the scene in amusement leans over to Lara Jean. "My husband's the same way. Couldn't survive without me." Lara Jean is at a loss for how to respond to that, but thankfully Peter is there to save the day. After throwing his sweatshirt in the bin, he shoots a grin at Lara Jean, clearly having overheard the TSA agent's comment. "She's obviously the smart one in this relationship." "Really? That's not what you alluded to this morning in the elevator." Peter rolls his eyes. "Save the multiple syllable words for after I've had breakfast. And I never said you aren't smart. You're the most intelligent person I know, Lara Jean." Hearing him call her by her first name gives her pause, throwing a bucket of cold water on her brain metaphorically speaking. It was a silly thing to dwell on, but up until that point it has been so easy pretending like they’re together - Peter is funny and nice and surprisingly sweet. But this is pretend. It was a ridiculous idea concocted by two stressed out people and once they board the plane for home it won't mean anything. Still, as she watches Peter walk through the detector and cock his head around to give her a thumbs up, she has to admit to herself that it doesn't feel fake. Not at all. "You two are cute. How long have you been together?" the TSA agent asks. "Oh, not very long." Lara Jean forces a laugh, heading to the detector. "It feels like just yesterday!"Afterward, if Peter notices Lara Jean being more silent than usual, he doesn't immediately comment on it. Even when she insists on carrying her own suitcase he lets her, but still circles around so he can hold her free hand. She doesn't have the heart to stop him. She’s being stupid. Falling back on an old crush that will never become anything. Peter doesn't like her like that. After this, maybe they're friends, sure, but anything more? Definitely not. "You know, I'm an expert at cheering people up!" Peter says brightly, breaking the silence. Lara Jean immediately schools her expression, not realizing she had been letting any of her inner turmoil show. "I don't need cheering up." Peter raises an eyebrow. "What? I don't!" she says and even to her own ears the lie is unconvincing. "Listen, I know this is the first time we've seen each other in years," he says, "but I think I’m pretty good at reading you. Don't lie to me, Covey." His words basically echo what Margot said last night and of course Peter's right. Somehow he is able to read her, almost better than anyone she knows save maybe for her family and Chris. It's really unfair. "And I don't know what's suddenly bothering you, but I'm here if you want to talk about it." The genuine sincerity in his voice makes Lara Jean want to cry. She wonders if he realizes how his words affect her, how hard it is to hold hands with a boy who says such sweet things and know it's all fake. "Thanks, Peter. You know you can always talk to me too." Peter looks both surprised and touched at her words. Even though he'd said something similar first, Lara Jean guesses he hadn't expected to hear the sentiment back. At that moment, she makes a promise to herself that no matter what else, she will make an effort to keep Peter Kavinsky as a friend when this is all over. "So... you said something about cheering me up?" she asks, because she really needs the distraction. "Food," he says simply, suddenly veering them towards the left where a McDonald's is in view. "It always makes me feel better." They must have either missed the morning rush, or everyone else had gotten later flights because like with TSA, the line at McDonald's is basically nonexistent. They hardly have to wait at all until the cashier is asking for their orders. "An order of hotcakes, no sausage..." She elbows Peter in the ribs at his mock gasp, "and hash browns." "And to drink?" "Um... milk, please." Peter goes next and orders orange juice with one of the "big breakfasts" that are monstrous and Lara Jean thinks no one person can possibly finish it by themself. She doesn't say this out loud though because Peter would definitely take it as some kind of challenge. When she goes to pay, Peter brushes her money away. "Hotcakes are on me, Covey." He's just trying to cheer her up, but she can't help the voice that pops into her mind remarking that it also kind of feels like something a boyfriend would do. After they get their food, they wander over to their gate and pick some seats by the large glass window. The snowfall has lightened considerably and most of the runways have been cleared. Seeing an airplane take off in the distance is an enormous relief. They're actually getting out of there. It's not like it has been that long since rescheduling, but the fact that all flights had been grounded had somehow made Lara Jean feel like she'd never get home. And now, they have less than an hour left before takeoff and they'll be home in time for Christmas! "See?" Peter says, stretching his legs out in front of him and opening the familiar styrofoam container to a puff of steam. "You've not even taken a bite yet and already the food is making you feel better." Lara Jean cracks open her milk bottle and takes a sip. "I'm just really glad we're going home. I can't imagine not spending Christmas with my family." "My mom always says it's the people you're with and not the day you celebrate that makes it special," Peter remarks, taking a bite of eggs. Lara Jean has only spoken to Peter's mom in passing a few times and that was when they were much younger. Once they'd gotten to high school and the annual class musicals were replaced by sporting events, which Lara Jean rarely went to, she hadn't seen Mrs. Kavinsky as much. "I always liked your mom. She seemed nice." Peter pauses, a forkful of stacked pancake slices halfway to his mouth, and looks at her from the corner of his eye. "That's funny. My mom said something similar on the phone last night." Lara Jean opens her own styrofoam container and peels the seals off her syrup containers, properly dousing her pancakes. "Oh, Covey, why?" Peter asks in horror, then tilts his head to the side with a considering look. "Maybe you're not so perfect after all." He sounds ridiculously pleased at the notion. Lara Jean covers her mouth as she chews, frowning in confusion. "Who said I was perfect?" "My mother. Or, well it was implied. When I told her I'd run into you she was like 'Oh, Lara Jean Song-Covey, the one we have to thank for you passing eighth grade? What an angel." Again, Lara Jean had only met Mrs. Kavinsky a few times, but she knew Peter's high-pitched imitation of the woman's voice was very far off from reality. "My mom actually sounded excited that we were here together. She barely commented on the fact that we were stranded in a blizzard at the time!" Peter exclaims, drawing the attention of the people trickling in who glance over at the guy way too awake for this early in the morning. If only they had seen him an hour ago. "I'm sure your mom was concerned," she replies, trying to placate him. "She just didn't want to show it and tried to focus on the positive." "Hmph. Well, at least it confirms my theory that she likes you more than she likes Gen." Lara Jean raises an eyebrow in question because that definitely requires further explanation. Peter sighs. "I dated Gen for, what, three years? And I never heard my mom say a single positive thing about her, not that she ever talked badly about her either... but one mention of you and bam. You must excel at meeting the boyfriends' parents." Lara Jean's shrugs. "Wouldn't know, I don't date much." This tidbit causes Peter to falter a second, but thankfully he doesn't prod further. "Anyway, my mom basically spent the whole conversation asking about you and she made me realize that I don't know what you've been up to." "What do you want to know?" Peter thinks for a moment. "What's your major?" "You don't already have a guess?" she teases, closing the lid on her food container and tossing it into the bin on her left. "Sure I do. But I'm probably wrong." She waits, patiently crossing her arms. "Fine! I'd have to guess English. Didn't you win an award for one of your essays? Plus there were all of those letters you gave people when we were younger." Lara Jean doesn't know how to reply. Peter grimaces. "Sorry, I was way off, wasn't I? You're probably majoring in something super complex like statistics or chemistry and are super insulted that I-" "I can't believe you remembered the letters," Lara Jean cuts him off, shocked. When she was in middle school she'd written a letter for practically everyone she knew - family, neighbors, classmates, teachers. Looking back now, the whole thing was actually kind of embarrassing. Now it's Peter's turn to be surprised. "Of course I remember. You gave me one after my dad left. It was two pages and I think it's the longest letter I've ever gotten from anyone aside from Gen's marathon length text messages." Lara Jean bites down on her lip to keep from laughing. "It had a stamp and everything." Peter just shakes his head. "You have no idea how many times I reread that thing. It's probably still in one of my drawers back home." He'd kept her letter? He'd reread it and kept it for this long? Lara Jean's mind is reeling at the new information, not quite sure how to process it. "My grandma Song used to send me and my sisters letters all the time. After my mom died those letters are what helped me get through everything. I went back to them whenever I was feeling sad." "So then you started writing letters to make everyone else feel better. Dang, you're such a good person, Lara Jean." This time his use of her first name doesn't throw her off like before. It's like confirmation that he really believes what he's saying. "Well, I'm just glad it helped." "Now you have to guess my major." Lara Jean feels guilty that she doesn't seem to have as vivid of memories of Peter as he does of her. She remembers his love of lacrosse and also that he sometimes helped his mom out at her store... "Business?" she guesses. Peter snaps his fingers. "Ooh, so close. But it's marketing." "That's basically the same thing," Lara Jean argues. Peter's holds up both of his hands. "Let me just have this moment where I'm right and you're wrong, because it's unlikely to ever happen again." Their conversation is suddenly interrupted by a woman's voice coming over the sound system. "Good morning, passengers. This is the pre-boarding announcement for flight WN3408. If you have a boarding group A pass, please make your way to Gate 41 and line up by your number. We will begin boarding momentarily and will then proceed to groups B and C." When the voice cuts off, they both pull out their tickets. "What did you get?" Peter asks, leaning over. "A31," Lara Jean reads off. "You?" "C1. How did you manage to pull that off with me buying my ticket before you?" Lara Jean shrugs helplessly while tamping down on the disappointment she feels at the realization that they probably won't be sitting together. Their airline doesn't have assigned seating, but with them in different groups, the seat beside her will probably be taken by the time Peter gets on. "Well..." She stands up and grabs her suitcase. Peter stands, too, and the goodbye is all so much more sudden and awful than she'd been expecting. "I guess I'll see you when the flight's over?" Although with how hectic airports are, that too seems unlikely. Peter's expression is unreadable. So when he leans over to give her a hug she's momentarily shocked and only has a moment to lean into it before Peter is pulling back. "Yeah, see you later, Covey." She can't tell if it's just her imagination or if his voice has suddenly gone all scratchy. With a half-hearted smile, she rolls her suitcase up to the post labeled A31. A few minutes later and she's boarding. She forces herself to not look back. When she gets on the plane, she makes her way to the middle and chooses a good window seat. At least if she can't sit with Peter, she can enjoy the view. It's a bit of a struggle to get her carry-on into the overhead compartment, but an older man behind her helps and then she's sliding into her seat. She’s looking out the window lamenting how they are in a tall-favoring world when she notices someone has stopped at her row and looks over to see a familiar green hoodie standing there, its owner storing his suitcase up above. Her pulse skyrockets and she's pushing out of her seat when he plops down next to her, the stalker. Because there is no way she can rationalize it away now. He's stalking her and she needs to get out of there immediately. "Fancy meeting you here." His smile makes her every nerve stand on end. "I think I actually want to sit somewhere else," Lara Jean says quickly, panic rising. "I, uh, just remembered I prefer the front of the plane." The smile turns into an amused frown that sets her teeth on edge. "Now don't be like that. I promise I'm a good seat partner." The cabin is quickly filling up with more passengers and Lara Jean sees her opportunity to move dwindling away as the seats around them continue to fill up. If she had room to leave, she would, but to get out of the row she'd have to physically crawl over him. "Please move." The guy ignores her request and pats the seat for her to sit back down. Instead of listening she continues to stand, hoping to catch the eye of a flight attendant. It's just more and more passengers though, and she starts thinking that it will be too late to switch when one finally does come around.Lara Jean doesn't know exactly when she'd closed her eyes, but they pop open again when she hears "Covey?" and suddenly Peter is standing there, almost a mirror image of before. He looks from hoodie guy to Lara Jean. "You okay?" She doesn't say anything out loud, but he must see something in her expression because he immediately reaches up and opens the overhead compartment, removing the guy's suitcase with a harsh jerk. "Hey, what are you doing?" the guy shouts, standing up in a rush. And now is when a flight attendant finally appears, pushing through the few passengers still waiting to get by. "Is there a problem here?" she demands, looking from the guy to Peter and back. Peter leans over and says something in the flight attendant's ear that Lara Jean can't hear. In return the woman quietly asks Peter a question and when he shakes his head, the flight attendant's eyes flick momentarily to her and then dart to the guy beside her with a hard stare. "Sir, I think it would be best if you find another seat." Miraculously that's the end of it. With a grumble about personal rights and how he'd never be flying on this airline again, her stalker disappears into the back of the plane. Lara Jean turns to the flight attendant, Maggie, according to her name tag. "Thank you so much." Maggie nods. "Please let me know if there are any further issues." Then she makes her way back to the front and the flow of passengers starts up again. As Peter stores his suitcase, Lara Jean sinks into her seat, suddenly exhausted. She doesn't realize that she's crying until one of his hands comes up to brush away a tear. "I wish this trip had never happened," she whispers. With a sniff, Lara Jean quickly takes the sleeve of her sweater and wipes at her eyes. When she sits on her statement for a moment, though, she realizes what she’d said wasn't exactly true, because that would mean she'd never have spent any of that time with Peter. "I mean...." "I get what you mean. You'd just like to forget all the bad stuff." Peter pauses. "And I would do anything I could to make that happen for you. But I can't. You really need to tell your Dad about this." For the first time since the flights were canceled, Lara Jean isn't so eager to go home. "I know." "If you want, I can be there when you tell your family what happened," Peter offers, obviously sensing her dread at the thought. He's already done so much for her, she can't let him do that. "It would just take Christmas Eve time away with your own family." Slowly, ever so slowly, Peter takes her hand in his and interlaces their fingers. It's not the first time in the last 12 hours that she's thought it's a perfect fit. "If you want me there, I'm there." She wants to say yes, of course she wants him there. Instead she asks, "But why? Why would you do that?" Peter stares at her as if the answer is obvious. She stares back. Finally Peter heaves a sigh. "Covey, did it not cross your mind at all over the past day that all of this pretending was a little..." "Over the top?" Lara Jean supplies. "Unnecessary?" Peter nods which almost makes her ask why he suggested it in the first place. Then she looks down at their hands again and it hits her. "Oh!" "It never really felt fake to me," Peter admits and Lara Jean feels like she's going to float off her seat at his admission. "Me either." Peter looks genuinely relieved, like he wasn't sure what her response was going to be. "Good. So believe me when I say that while part of the reason I want to be there when you tell your family is to support you, the other part, the selfish part, just wants an excuse to spend more time with you." Lara Jean doesn't think she's smiled this hard in her entire life. "Well then, Peter Kavinsky, would you like to come to my house for Christmas Eve tonight?" "It'd be my pleasure, Covey."