“If the two of you are finished bonding over picking on me, let’s watch a Christmas movie,” Eri proposed.
“Amate, we’ve watched Christmas movies all day for the past two days. There can’t be any more left that we haven’t seen.”
“There are,” she replied, going to look through her dad’s small collection of VHS tapes. “We’re watching A Year Without a Santa Claus and Mr. Magoo’s Christmas Carol.” She pulled both tapes out.
“We watch them every year,” her dad said.
Eri popped in the first movie and went back to the couch, taking her seat beside Elias, while her dad got comfortable in his recliner.
“Romi’s finished moving into her new place, and she invited us to a New Year’s house warming,” Eri informed Elias as they lay in bed later that night, watching a non-Christmas movie which she was sure her boyfriend was thankful for.
“That’s cool. Does she need us to bring anything?”
“I asked, but she said she’ll let me know tomorrow. I do want to get her a housewarming gift. I think I’ll see if Avi wants to go with me tomorrow to shop for one since you have to work.”
“You have two new jobs you’re starting, right?” Elias asked, running a hand along her arm.
“Yeah. I’m waiting for one client to approve the color scheme I sent them before Christmas. I knew it would be a few days, if not a week, before I heard from them because of the holiday, and I’m waiting on Koa to approve the new design for a limited drop she wants to do for Valentine’s Day.”
“She’s keeping you busy. This is what? The third one you’ve done for her?” Elias asked.
“Yeah, but I’ll be looking at three to four a year with her, and it’s pretty easy since I’m only creating one new design for each drop. At least for now. Thanks to her putting my infoin her video description and on her website, I’ve gotten a lot more inquiries from other creators and streamers.”
“She might have tagged your information, but your designs spoke to them. You’ll have a large client base before you know it.” He kissed her forehead before focusing his attention back on the television, and Eri snuggled closer into his side.
It was barely ten minutes later when she felt drowsy, and she shifted to lie on top of him. Elias wrapped his arms around her, and she was soon drifting off to sleep.
43
Eri knocked on Romi’s door, Elias behind her holding the wrapped housewarming gift. The door opened a few seconds later, and Romi greeted them, stepping aside to allow them in.
“Thank you both for coming,” Romi said, closing the door behind them.
“Thanks for the invite,” Eri responded. “This is for you,” she added, gesturing to the gift her boyfriend was holding. He handed it to Romi.
“Thank you,” she said, placing it on the entry table. “Let me take your coats.”
Romi hung their coats in the entry closet and led them further into the apartment. She stayed on the ground floor and gave them a general tour before introducing them to the people there that they didn’t know.
Romi left them to their own devices as another knock came on the door. Eri and Elias went over to their friends, who were by the sliding doors that led out to a small patio.
“Hey, you two,” Avian greeted.
“Hey,” Eri responded. “Did Nesiah and Javier decide if they were coming?”
“They’re coming. Just running late,” Ricardo replied.
“Do you want a drink, Amate?” Elias asked.
“Sure, baby. You know what I like, so whatever you bring is fine.”
“I’ll come with you,” Marco volunteered. “I need a refill.”
The two left and the three remaining struck up a conversation until Ricardo told them he’d be back in a minute and went over to where food was laid out on the dining table and bar.
“We should play one of the games when Nesiah and Javier arrive,” Avian suggested.
Eri looked at the games set up around the room: Jenga, Guess Who, and Uno. Romi had decided Uno was the only competitive game she would have. She didn’t want the night turning into one long competition.
