Finally Us

Snow

Note: This chapter has a major emphasis on Rydel and Ellington. First time ever writing them. Let me know how I did, okay?

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Snow, snow, snow, snow. There was just so much snow.

A California girl through and through, she hadn't experienced much snowfall but after Ross's instructions and Rydel's insistence, Laura ended up buying what she thought was the best winter coat, the best winter boots and many many cold weather accessories to keep the cold out and warm in. But she was wrong. So wrong.

Instead of wearing her gorgeous ebony, fleece-lined, nylon shelled coat that supposedly withstood moisture and strong wind gusts, she was in Ross's. She was bundled up in his steel colored coat that ended just above her knees, two scarves wrapped around her neck and face and was rooting for him as he played some two on two hockey with Riker, Rocky and Ryland. She kept a cup of warm cocoa in between her gloved hands, careful not to spill it and watched the Lynch boys skate from one end of the frozen pond to the other in attempt to get as many goals as they could.

November and December had come and went just as quickly as they arrived. After Halloween, Laura had ventured up to San Francisco to visit her sister before she got to work on her new TV movie, and before she and Ross returned to the Disney Channel set for Calum's show. As promised, the episode on Calum's new show did feature Austin Moon and Ally Dawson almost everywhere except the girl's dream. They were on posters, their voices on the radio and if you paid close attention could see them walking through the crowds of a New York City set and trying to go incognito and failing miserably.

The episode did well after it's first airing on the network a few weeks ago. Laura remembered making Ross watch the episode with her before he flipped the channel to an old hockey game that was playing. She didn't mind, just as long as they got to watch the episode. While he was watching the game, she was trying to memorize all her lines for the movie, but it wasn't working. Laura was never that big of a sports girl either, but Ross was rubbing off on her. In the middle of the game, while she was rooting for one team and him the other, he was asking her to join the family for the holidays.

It was an annual thing with the entire Lynch family - cousins and second cousins and even third cousins - heading to Keystone for the Christmas and New Year's holidays. While she still wanted to spend Christmas with her own, she did make him a deal for New Year's. So, here she was, two days before the last day of the year, trying to stay warm underneath two sweaters, his coat, two scarves, three pairs of socks and one pair of the best winter boots money could buy, and watching him trying to beat Rocky and Ryland. By her calculations though, Ross and Riker were losing by three.

"They are just going at it today," Rydel popped up by her with her own cocoa in her hands, trying to keep warm. It wasn't just Laura, it was everyone. It was freezing and yet, they were both outside, watching the guys fight it out on the ice.

"Why are they going at it this hard?"

"Apparently the top floor master is up for grabs. They all want it," Rydel informed her and they shared a laugh. "So, want to do a tea party later? My mom has all the cousins coming over to bake and I thought it would be the perfect time."