"I got it, I got it!" a girl with highlighted dark brown hair that traveled a smidgen past her neck yelled to her parents from her room. She sprinted down the stairs, almost tripping over an unsuspecting Taby cat catching some z's at the bottom. "I'm sorry, Tarny," the girl apologiesed quietly, rubbing her hand soothingly over its silky fur. The cat only purred, not stirring a wink from slumber.

She jerked the white door open. Greg stood behind it, clutching Stephanie's gift from the cold in his muscular arms. His smile brightened up the cold, drab porch, naked of any lighting. Stephanie beamed as she peered in his warm eyes. She took his hand and laid a kiss on his frigid cheek to heat them up. "I've missed you," she whispered, leading him into her lavish home.

"I've missed you, too," Greg replied honestly, engulfing Stephanie in a hug and sweeping her off her feet. Stephanie held his cold hand and navagated him up the white stairs covered in maroon carpeting to her room.

She flicked on the light switch to reveal a room of blue walls, 2 wood dressers, a TV, stereo and bed smothered in floral sheets. Greg layed his leather jacket on the bed and plopped on the wood floor. "Where did I put your gift?" Stephanie asked allowed, creeply slowly around the room and then streaming to her opened closet door. She reached high into the obscure unknown and brought down a wide box covered in orange paper. She strolled to her dresser and turned up the radio slightly, the smooth rythums of Ginuwine's "Differences" circiling the room. "I love this song," Stephanie told Greg, slowly waltzing with Greg's present close to her, obviously absent in the music. Her green eyes were fixaded to the floor, too weak to fight the beat sinking into her head. Greg adored it when she did this. Dazed, her eyes fluttered to Greg as she squatted down next to him.

"Open yours first," Greg insisted, lightly placing the purple-wrapped box in her hands.

"OK," was her responce as her fingers delicately tore at the paper. A white box was hidden under the paper. With her sky blue manacured nails, she dug like a gopher through the tape and opened the lid. Lights sprinkled in her eyes as a smile bloomed like a flower on her face.

A danty crystal statue laid unharmed in the box. Three roses, red, white and yellow huddled together in a sea of green leaves, praising upward to the sun. The leaves encompassed all the beauty and craftsmanship of these precious flowers. Silence flowed through Stephanie's body like blood. "I knew you liked roses," Greg told her, resting his hand on her thigh. "These are just as beautiful but last forever."

"I..." she started, the sparkles impairing her speech, "I can't accept this." She began to close the box, but Greg slipped his hand inside to stop her. She knew he was right; you can't put a price on love and she adored the gift. She smiled, her lips lightly whisking Greg's as she lowered Greg's present onto his lap.

Greg looked down at the gift and began to unwrap it. White tissue paper blocked his view, so he shoved it aside. A maroon sweater and a black snow hat laid obediently in the box, itching to cover a deserving person up for the cold winter. "Thank you," Greg replied smiling as he kissed Stephanie sensually. He yanked the sweater out of the box to get a better look at his gift, but only a large rip in the side grasped his eye.

"Oh no," Stephanie gasped, leaning in to investagate. "I'm sorry, Greg. I didn't see that when I bought it. I can give you the receit for it. I got it from Gaffney's..."

"No, I'm sure I can..." Greg interrupted, peering at the hole unsure.

"I insist, Greg," Stephanie retaliated, pressuring the sweater to fall onto his lap, "You don't deserve ripped things......"

"Hey Railyn," a blonde girl called from her unmade bed as her eyes skimmed the pages of 'The Green Mile', "How come you haven't told us about those guys from the pizza place?"

"Danielle," Railyn yelled smiling as she looked into a mirror resting on the chestnut dresser, "You told them about those boys?"

"But of course, my dear," Danielle responded, tying her curly tresses in a black tie. "I wouldn't hide such sweetness from Hannah and Natalie."

"Who were they?" the blonde girl named Natalie enquired, sifting with her arm deeply under her bed for her track pants. Her short hair got snagged on some gum she left under the bed last night but luckily, it was pretty dry.

"I don't know," Railyn responded with deliberation, lightly brushing at her waving marron hair with her elegant fingers. She turned to look outside, light flakes of snow sputtering from the sky and floating down like fairies. She interrupted her own train of though. "They were cuties, though. Definately."

"That one with spikes is sure a player," Danielle said with a whistle. She shuffled down the stairs and into the bathroom to look for her hairspray.

"You're telling me," Railyn joked loudly, shoving her hands into the draws of the dresser for her gloves. "If flirting was illegal, he would be encarcerated by now..." Fustrated, she continued with "Has anyone seen my black gloves?!"

"I think Natalie used them yesterday," Hannah replied, secretly smiling behind her book.

"Don't pin it on me, Hannah," Natalie warned as she slipped on her pants, "I haven't seen them."

"Ya know," Danielle continued as she climbed the stairs, slicing through the siblings bickering and the room. "The other one, the quiet one?...He was feeling you, Rai."

"Nuhuh!" Railyn replied loudly, grabbing her tan coat from a cherry-wood rocking chair and engulfing her body in it. Yet, Railyn thought that was an inticing statement.

"I think so..." Danielle persued, plopping down on Natalie's bed with the hairspray.

"Look, Dani," Railyn said heated as she buttoned her coat. Another speech was coming on. "I am a free flower; I can't be tied down by a guy...not even a hottie like that one. I got goals and dreams like every other girlie. I gotta life to live that could be taken away from me at a moment's notice. Now, if you'd lovley ladies excuse me," She began to walk backwards towards the stairs descending from the attic, "I have to make me some money." Natalie and Danielle stood up and gave her a routy ovation.

"Another day at the salt mines for you, Railyn," Hannah stated dully, her eyes involved in the tale as Railyn trudged down the stairs.