Clay smiled to himself as he woke up at 9:00am on a Saturday morning. The teen had talked to his boss at the Crestmont theater about starting to work there again, and the older man had happily agreed, saying that Clay could start back when he felt he was ready to. The 18-year-old admired how nice his boss was, given that the man had heard about what happened to the Jensen boy through the news. The older man had been accepting, easily welcoming Clay back to the theater, as well as the people who had been working the day he talked to Hannah on the Crestmont roof. Clay came out of his thoughts and made his way towards his bathroom to take his usual morning shower and get ready for the day.
When Clay returned to his room to get dressed, he paused and glanced down at his desk to check his phone. But as he went to pick up his phone, he paused mid-action when he spotted the polaroid photos sitting on his desk. Clay picked the photos up and looked at them. One was a picture of Hannah and Zack kissing behind the theater during one of her shifts, another of the two leaning on the Crestmont theater consessions counter and staring into each other's eyes, but a more recent photo he had found in his locker was of Hannah and Zach cuddling close together down at the docks. Clay sighed at the three photos, still not too sure how to approach the situation.
Clay tossed the three polaroid photos back on his desk with a sigh before picking up his phone and placing it into his jean pocket. Clay then left his room to head downstairs to the kitchen for some breakfast before his work shift. Once he got downstairs, Clay smiled to himself when he took notice of the wonderful aroma that filled the room. He would never admit this out loud to anyone, but during the seemingly long time he was in jail, Clay truly missed his mother's cooking. He never thought he would say that, but some thingd just happen that make you realize you would miss the little things a lot more than you think.
"Morning, Pal." Matt Jensen greeted his son as he saw him enter the kitchen. Clay would never confess this either, but he also missed his dad calling him "Pal" when he was behind bars for those couple of months. Instead of commenting about the unliked nickname, Clay playfully rolled his eyes with a small smile. "Good morning, Dad." He replied back. Clay then walked over to where his mother was, grabbing a plate and filling it with some of the delicious-looking food she had prepared. After fixing himself a plate of food, Clay took a seat at the circular kitchen table. Once she had fixed herself a cup of coffee, Lainie joined her family at the round table, taking a seat between Matt and her son.
"Clay, there's something we want to tell you." The older woman spoke after taking a sip of her coffee and sharing a glance with her husband. "Ok. What is it?" Clay asked curiously, giving his parents his full, undivided attention. "After Thanksgiving, the three of us are going to be spending the holidays with Aunt Taylor, Bailey, and Kasey." Matt said, placing his newspaper down on the table after folding it neatly. "We are?" Clay asked, smiling a little. "Yeah. We discussed it back when they were staying here with us." Lainie said. "Why are you telling me this now?" Clay asked, genuinly wondering why his parents were telling him about their Christmas plans so early. "We figured you would want to know ahead of time so that you could have some time to think about some gift ideas for them." Matt said with a small shrug of his shoulders. Clay slowly nodded his head in agreement. Bailey and Kasey were pretty easy to shop for since they were young, so finding something for them wouldn't be too hard. But Aunt Taylor was a little harder to shop for, because she wasn't very picky in what she liked, so you never really knew what to get her. It was kind of a shot in the dark when shopping for Aunt Taylor.
After Clay had finished breakfast, he said goodbye to his parents before leaving the house to drive over to the theater to begin his work shift. When Clay arrived, he saw that Hannah hadn't shown up yet. This made Clay smile as he had hoped he would be able to surprise his girlfriend. Stepping inside, Clay talked to his boss for a few minutes before going over and getting settled behind the consessions counter as he waited. As Clay stood there, patiently and axiously waiting, his mind kept going back to the polaroids he had back home that someone had unanimously been slipping into his locker. Wanting to distract himself, Clay took some candy boxes and began stacking them into a tower while he waited for his girlfriend to come in to start her Saturday shift.
Not too long after Clay began stacking the boxes of candy, the boy heard the sound of one of the main entrance doors opening and closing. "Helmet?" Hannah asked, sounding surprised as she hadn't expected to see Clay at the theater, let alone in his work uniform. "Hey, Hannah." Clay greeted with a smile as he placed another box onto the candy tower. "What are you doing here?" Hannah asked, not being able to think of anything else to say. Clay glanced at his girlfriend before focusing on the tower in front of him again. "I talked to the manager not too long ago about working here again, and he agreed to let me start back when I was ready to, so here I am." He explained, making Hannah smile at his response. "Now, are you going to help me build this candy tower or not?" Clay asked, making Hannah smile a bit more as she walked over to stand across from Clay at the consessions counter to help him build the tower that sat on the counter between them.
After a little while, Hannah was standing behind the consessions counter while Clay stood alone in the box office, waiting for customers to purchase movie tickets. It was a slow Saturday, and there weren't too many movie-goers on the nice, cool, Fall day. People must have been out with families, just enjoying the nice, cool, hoodie-wearing weather. Clay stood in the booth, silently watching as people passed by. But the teenager soon smiled happily to himself when he saw two familiar faces making their way towards him.
"Hey, guys." Clay greeted Alex and Jessica when they had stopped in front of the ticket booth. "Hey, Clay." Alex greeted back with a small smile. "When did you start working here again?" Jessica asked curiously. "Today's actually my first day back." The boy replied. "Is Hannah working today too?" Alex asked. Clay gave a nod of his head. "Yeah. She's inside at the consessions counter." The boy told his friends. "So, what can I do for you two?" He asked after a couple seconds of a comfortable silence. Jessica and Alex smiled at each other. It was only then that Clay took notice of their joined hands. "Two tickets for Dog Days." Alex said. "Movie date?" Clay questioned curiously. At the question, Alex slightly blushed while Jessica looked away shyly before bringing her gaze back to the Jensen boy. "Yeah." The dark-skinned girl said, smiling at Alex and making him blush a slightly darker red. "Good movie choice." Clay said with a genuin smile as he handed them their requested tickets. "It's on me." The 18-year-old added when he saw Alex going for his wallet. "You sure?" Alex asked. Clay smiled at his friend. "Yeah. You two just go enjoy your movie date." He said. Jessica and Alex flashed their friend grateful smiles before heading inside the movie theater together, hand-in-hand.
During their lunch break, Clay and Hannah sat outside at a circular lunch table together. The two were sitting across from each other as they talked about anything and everything. The two teens had been surrounded by a comfortable silence for the last couple of minutes, but Clay was debating on whether or not he should tell Hannah about his family's Christmas plans now or when it gets a little closer to Christmas. He recalled how she had occasionally talked about this year being their first Christmas together, and she seemed really excited about it. This made Clay's decision harder, so he just decided to tell her about him and his parents spending the holidays in South Dakota with his aunt and cousins. Suddenly, a chilly breeze came over the two teens, making Hannah shiver ever so slightly. "Are you cold?" Clay asked, smirking a little because Hannah forgot to bring a jacket with her to work. "Maybe just a little." The cold girl admitted, hugging herself to try to keep warm. "Here." Clay said, easily removing his unzipped hoodie. Before Hannah could protest, Clay got up from his seat and walked over to her, gently wrapping the warm material around the girl's shoulders. At the gesture, Hannah placed her hands over Clay's, accepting the new warmth her boyfriend's jacket provided. "Better?" Clay asked quietly as he wrapped his arms around his girlfriend and rested his head against her shoulder. Hannah mumbled a reply as she slowly nodded and gently leaned her head against Clay's. "But aren't you cold now, Helmet?" The girl asked since Clay surrendered his jacket, leaving him in his short sleeve white collared shirt and dark red uniform vest. Clay smiled at the concerned tone of her question. "No, I'm warm enough just by being close to you, because you always manage to light up my world without even trying." Clay said, instantly making his girlfriend blush at his comment. "I wish time would freeze so we could just stay like this forever." Hannah said quietly as she enjoyed being so close to her boyfriend. Clay smiled at the comment. "Me too." He replied, taking a seat beside his girlfriend. The boy then reached over and pulled the pack of candy he had been munching on across the table so it was right in front of him now. He then started snacking on the sugary sweetness again while he kept one arm around his girlfriend, holding her close to him and keeping her guarded and safe from the cold Fall weather that surrounded the happy couple.
After their shifts ended, Clay and Hannah went their seperate ways. The 18-year-old had stopped by his house to change before getting back out again and deciding to head to the mall to see if he could get any gift ideas for his parents, Andy and Olivia Baker, Skye and her mother, Tony, and his Aunt Taylor and cousins, Bailey and Kasey. Clay was already extremely excited as he had talked to Andy and Olivia about ideas for a present for Hannah. The result of their conversation was a solid gift idea that required Clay to make a couple phone calls, and possibly drive somewhere to meet someone later on, but he was extremely happy about it, because he already knew that his girlfriend would love the Christmas present he planned to give her before he left for the holidays. Once Clay arrived at the mall, he found a parking space and headed inside the large building. Entering the warm and welcoming atmosphere, Clay started walking around the mall, going through some of the many stores to see if anything would catch his attention or spark gift ideas for his friends and family.
After a little while of walking around, Clay had still come up with no gift inspiration, so he kept making his way through the multiple stores in the mall. At one point, Clay ran into Skye and her mother in one of the many stores. "Hi, Clay." Skye greeted, smiling at her friend. "Hey." The 18-year-old greeted back, smiling as well. "What are you doing here?" Skye's mother asked curiously. "Oh, I was just looking around to get some gift ideas, I guess." Clay replied, giving a small shrug of his shoulders. "Gift ideas?" Skye asked, sounding slightly confused. "Yeah. This morning, my parents told me that we're going to be spending Christmas and New Year's Eve with my aunt and cousins in South Dakota. They just told me a bit early so I would have some time to get something for them before we would leave." Clay explained. Hearing this new information, Skye was slightly disappointed that Clay would be away for the holidays, but she was glad that he would be spending time with his family again. Ms. Miller smiled fondly at her daughter's friend. "That sounds wonderful. I bet you'll have fun spending the holidays with them." She commented. Clay smiled at the older woman. "Yeah, I think so. With how cold it gets there, there's a good chance it will snow when I'm up there too." Clay said, knowing how much Skye's mother loved the snow from the time the two had dated. "That will be nice. I've always loved cold weather because of the snow. It's always so peaceful and fun." Ms. Miller said, remembering the times she had spent in Colorado with her parents before she got married and moved to California. Clay smiled. "I'd have to agree on that. There's just something about cold weather that is so likeable to me, because Winter is my absolute favorite time of the year." Clay said. After their short conversation, Skye's mother had left the two friends alone, saying that Skye could hang out with Clay for a little while and just meet her back home later.
After almost an hour, Clay and Skye left the mall with a couple shopping bags. Clay had found a couple gifts for some of the people on his gift list, making him proud that he had made some progress today. Once the bags were placed in the trunk of Clay's car, the two friends got into the vehicle and left the mall. "You want to stop somewhere for some food?" Clay suggested after catching a glimps at what time it was. "Sure. Let me just see if that's ok with my mom." Skye said, pulling her phone out to double check with her mother.
After getting approval from her mother, Skye and Clay stopped at Rosie's Dinner to grab a bite to eat together. The two friends easily shared conversation with each other, talking about certain things going on, but then sometimes talking about the most random things they could come up with. "So, South Dakota, huh?" Skye asked with a small smile, making Clay nod his head as a reply. "Yeah. I think it will be fun though. It will kinda be nice to get away from this town for a short while." Clay said. "Yeah, I'd have to agree. I could use a vacation from this town too, sometimes." Skye said, agreeing with Clay's statement. "Does Hannah know about you leaving yet?" She asked after a few seconds. Clay gave a small, flat smile as he shook his head. "No. She doesn't know about that yet. I will tell her about it soon, though. But I don't know how I'm going to tell her." Clay said. "What do you mean?" Skye asked curiously. Clay sighed. "She's mentioned every now and then how she's excited about this year, because it will be our first Christmas together. I don't know how I'm going to tell her I won't be here, because I don't want to disappoint her or anything." Clay said, feeling torn about how to break the news to his girlfriend. Skye gave her friend a sympathetic look. "I think you should just tell her, Clay. Sooner rather than later. She is your girlfriend, after all. I'm sure she'll understand." Skye said, causing Clay to give her a small smile. "You're right. I'll wait until the holidays get a little closer, but I will definitely tell her." Clay said. Skye nodded at her friend, satisfied with his answer. The two friends became developed in a comfortable silence as they enjoyed their food while it was still fresh from the kitchen and warm. Clay knew Skye was right with what she said. It would be better to tell Hannah about him leaving for the holidays sooner rather than later. Clay figured he would wait about a week or so before breaking the news to his girlfriend and the others.
After finishing their food and paying for the meal, Clay and Skye headed back to his house for a little while. When they pulled up to his house, the two close friends bacame confused when they saw three figures sitting on Clay's porch steps. Parking his car, the 18-year-old shut off the engine before he and Skye got out of the vehicle. The Jensen boy smiled to himself when he realized that the three figures were none other than Jessica, Hannah, and Alex. "What are you guys doing here?" Clay asked curiously as he and Skye walked to up them. "Did you seriously think we forgot, Jensen?" Jessica asked teasingly as she stood up. "Forgot what?" Clay asked after giving Skye a confused glance, sounding and feeling completely clueless." Jessica and Hannah playfully rolled their eyes at their confused friend. "You promised us some of your famous hot chocolate, Helmet." Hannah told her boyfriend, making realization flash across his face. "I did, didn't I?" He questioned with a smile on his face. "Well, ok then. A promise is a promise, I guess. And I always keep my promises." Clay said, making his three friends smile at him as he and Skye led Alex, Hannah, and Jessica inside and out of the chilly weather.
Once the teens were inside, Clay set to work fulfilling his promise as he started to make his famous hot chocolate. "Is it really better than Monet's hot chocolate, like your cousins said?" Alex asked curiously as he and the others watched Clay at work. The boy smiled over his shoulder at his four friends as he stood in front of the stove. "I'll let you three be the judge of whether it is or not." Clay stated with a small smile, directing his statement towards Alex, Hannah, and Jessica. The boy then focused back on his task and slightly blushed after he realized that Hannah was still wearing the hoodie he lent to her earlier in the day during their work shifts. "Trust me. His hot chocolate is like nothing you've ever had before." Skye commented, having had Clay's famous and delicious hot chocolate many times before during the time they had spent together.
Once the warm bevarage was ready, Clay retrieved five mugs and poured some hot chocolate into each mug. The boy then topped the warm beverages off with some whipped cream, peppermint sticks, and some mini marshmallows. Once the drinks were ready, Clay served them to his guests. "Wow. These already do look better than Monet's." Jessica commented, sounding and looking very impressed. Alex and Hannah nodded in agreement with the dark-skinned girl, both looking equally as impressed. "No offense, Skye." Jessica added with a small smile. Skye smiled back with a shrug of her shoulders. "None taken. Because it's true." The tattooed girl said with a genuin smile before she took a sip of the hot chocolate Clay had made. The Jensen boy smiled at the trio as they admired the warm drinks before testing them out.
"Ok, this is definitely better than Monet's hot chocolate." Alex said after tasting the bevarage, some whipped cream coating his upper lip. Clay smiled at his friend before passing him and the others a napkin. Seeing the napkin, Alex blushed from slight embarrassment before accepting the napkin and wiping the whipped cream from his mouth. After watching Alex with amused looks on their faces, Jessica and Hannah tested the waters as well as they each took a sip of the hot chocolate Clay had made for them. Jessica nodded in approval as she took in the pepperminty flavor that complimented the hot chocolate. "This is easily the best hot chocolate I have ever had." She said, smiling at Clay who blushed from the compliment. "I'd have to agree, Helmet. This hot chocolate of yours is by far the best I have ever had as well." Hannah said, smiling brightly at her boyfriend. Clay smiled before taking a sip of his own drink. "I'm glad you guys like it so much." He said happily. "We might just have to meet here after school every day instead of Monet's." Jessica joked, making the others laugh at her comment. The five friends continued sipping on their drinks, savoring the flavor with each gulp they took while carrying on a conversation into the night as the sun soon began to set and the world around them became dark and colder.
After everyone had finished off their drinks, and after they had all hung out together for a little while at Clay's house, the boy had offered to drive his friends home, which they had all agreed to. Hannah had sat up front with Clay while Jessica, Alex, and Skye sat together in the backseat of the car. Clay had dropped each friend off individually, leaving Hannah for last. When they arrived to Hannah's house, Clay got out of his car and walked his girlfriend up to her front door. The two then talked there for a few minutes before sharing a small, gentle, yet passionate kiss. After their kiss, Hannah stepped inside her warm house, and Clay made his way back to his car before heading back home to his own house again.