Making Our Mark

Chapter 23: Gifts

"I can't look," I said, shielding my eyes with my hands. "You look."

A chuckle resonated from behind me. "Amor, you have to look at it yourself."

"Because it's my grade and it's confidential?" I said as we came to a halt in an upper-level hallway somewhere within the School of Liberal Arts and Monstrosities.

"Sí and I don't know your student number," Javier pointed out. "Grades are posted with student numbers, so you won't know who else got what."

I bit my bottom lip nervously as Javier, with hands over my biceps, gently turned me to face what I assumed was the list of grades for the Department of Modern Languages. My stomach did a flip. I was about to find out how I did on my first set of final exams and, overall, in my first semester of courses at Monsters University. I was either going to go home for the Clawsmas break with good news or a head hung in disappointment. I silently pleaded for the former.

"Go on, amor," said Javier encouragingly, pressing a kiss to the back of my head in comfort.

Exhaling the breath that I just realized I was holding, I drop my hands from my face and looked straight ahead at the bulletin board before me on which the grades for my Spanish classes were posted. A yellow sheet of paper that appeared to be a list of some kind was flanked by two white sheets of paper that also seemed to be lists. The bright colour drew me to the center paper first and I began to read it with immense apprehension. However, I did not have to read far down because my student number was at the top of the list and for a good reason.

"Well?" Javier prompted in anticipation.

"I'm ranked the highest out of all the freshmen majoring in Spanish Studies," I breathed as though saying it would actually help the news sink in.

"Amor!" Javier exclaimed, shaking me in excitement and pride.

I glanced at the white sheets of paper, one which outlined the results of the Spanish Language Training I course and the other which was comprised of those for Introduction to Literary Studies. Sure enough, my student number and the A pluses at the top of each list confirmed that the information on the yellow page was indeed accurate. I felt a smile grow on my face.

"The first step towards Señorita Worthington," said Javier, rubbing my shoulders.

That was when I remembered that I was a double major.

A sudden dose of adrenaline sent me springing out of Javier's arms without any kind of warning and sprinting further down the hallway and around a sharp corner. Screeching to a halt outside the Department of Education, I saw that the results for my other classes were pinned on a bulletin board of their own. The class lists for Pedagogy of the Arts, Assessment and Evaluation, and Philosophy of Education featured my student number at the very top, along with more glowing A pluses that had me feeling absolutely giddy.

"Yes!" I cheered, slamming a fist into the air in the middle of a victorious jump.

"More good news?" Javier's voice rang out knowingly as he finally caught up with me.

"Oh yeah," I answered as my feet hit the ground again. "Number one again."

"Felicidades, amor," said Javier, taking me into his arms again. "You killed it."

Out of pure happiness, I pulled Javier into a passion-filled kiss, which he chuckled into and returned. All of the time and energy that I had poured into my first semester of post-secondary studies had paid off. I felt like I could take on the world, but decided against it. For one thing, my packed schedule of studying, teaching, and socializing would not allow it. Secondly, I did not consider myself much of a dictator. Finally, world domination would probably give the Monstropolis Federation of Teachers a legitimate reason to not certify me upon my graduation.

"For the record," Javier began after pulling back, "I knew you would kill it."

I giggled and asked, "Is there anything you don't know?"

"Well, I still don't know how I did this semester," Javier mentioned. "How about we go find out?"

I nodded as I looped an arm around one of his and we headed for the exit of the building. It was a relief that final exams for the semester were over, even more so now that I knew how I had done on them and in all of my courses as a whole. The fact that I ranked the highest out of all of the incoming freshman in both of my majors was an early Clawsmas gift to me and put me in an absolutely joyous mood for cooking, something that I planned to do later today.

As we exited the School of Liberal Arts and Monstrosities and began our trek to the School of Scaring, it was clear that the campus was emptier than usual as most of the students had finished their exams and had gone home for the Clawsmas break. Most of those who lingered belonged to the Greek community as they planned to host mini parties within their respective fraternities and sororities to celebrate Clawsmas together before they headed home. Roar Omega Roar was no exception.

Upon reaching the School of Scaring, Javier made a beeline for the main bulletin board that greeted us the moment we entered the main entrance of the building. He began studying the familiar yellow and white documents tacked to it. The silence that fell upon the area that we were in was almost unbearable. The longer it lasted, the more my thoughts of the results worsened. Was our celebratory mood about to be soured with his less than satisfactory academic results, ones that would probably have his parents hitting the ceiling in outrage?

"You're killing me here, mi cielo," I spoke up, tapping my foot rather impatiently.

Javier chuckled, finally turning to face me with a radiant smile. "Is that any way to talk to the highest ranking junior in the Scaring program?"

I paused to take in what he had just said before beaming at him. "Congratulations!"

"Gracias," said Javier. "That should keep Johnny and my parents off of my tail."

"You don't have one," I reminded him with a laugh.

"You know what I mean," said Javier playfully. "We kicked some major ass, amor. This calls for a celebration."

"Guess it's a good thing that I'm treating you and the RΩRs to an early Clawsmas lunch today," I told him. "I have several options in mind and, because of your spectacular academic achievement, I'll let you choose what I make."

Javier grinned, regarding me with interest. "What are the choices?"

"So what do you call this again?" Chet asked through a mouthful of meat. "Toe tier?"

"Tourtière," I enunciated with a French accent and a roll of my eyes. Seeing Chet chew with his mouth open was enough to kill my appetite, so I tried to avoid looking at him whenever he was eating in my presence. "It's a classic dish that originated in the Clawnadian province of Quebark."

"What did you put in it?" Chip asked from his place on the couch in between Bruiser and Chet. "You know, besides all things good?"

"I think the question should be: what did she not put in it?" Javier joked, nudging me lightly with his plate of half-eaten pie. "If I let you, you probably would have bought the whole store."

I laughed and started ticking ingredients off on my claws. "Bison and pork with potatoes, rosemary, sage, thyme, and a few bay leaves. I also put some cayenne and black pepper inside of the pie crust itself."

"Where did you pick that up?" Bruiser garbled curiously.

"High school ski trip," I explained. "One of the activities on our schedule was a cooking class."

"Since then, she makes this every Clawsmas," Johnny told the group. He then looked at me expectantly and said, "I hope you're still going to make this for our family during Clawsmas."

I sighed in exasperation and said, "Yes, you'll get a second helping. Surely, you can wait until our annual Worthington family get-together for that."

Johnny grinned and leaned back in his armchair, obviously satisfied with my response.

"Just as I'm sure that you can wait until that day to open your present from me," I added with a smirk.

Johnny sat up abruptly as though someone lit his tail on fire. "What?"

"Did you not notice that I only brought four gifts with me to the house?" I asked, nodding my head over at the coffee table in front of us on which four carefully-wrapped presents of various shapes and sizes sat.

"Can't say that I did," Johnny huffed, looking like a dog whose favourite toy was just confiscated by its owner. He coughed into his arm and sat back in his chair with a pout.

"We'll be together during Clawsmas, but we won't see the RΩRs until New Year's Eve," I explained. "I'd rather give them their gifts now than later."

"You didn't have to get us anything," Chip spoke up kindly.

"I wanted to," I insisted. "You guys are friends to me. Plus, it's the least I could do to thank you for letting me hang here all of the time."

"Hey, you're cool to be around and your cooking is the bomb," Bruiser praised. "Why wouldn't we like hanging with you?"

I smiled at the sincerity behind his compliments. "Just for that, Bruiser, you can open yours first. It's the green one."

"Yeah!" Bruiser cheered triumphantly, abandoning his pie on the couch in favour of the the thin rectangular box wrapped in shiny paper and adorned with a red bow. He eagerly tore into it with no sense of precision, sending scraps of olive green flying in random directions.

"Dude!" Chip exclaimed at the big reveal. "Is that the new Monster Party Eight game?"

"Hell yeah it is!" Bruiser confirmed, gazing at the newest addition to the growing collection for his gaming console. "Thanks!"

"Glad you like it," I said, laughing at his enthusiasm. Looking to the only sophomore in the group, I said, "I guess we'll just work our way up the seniority ladder then."

Chip grinned and leaned forward towards the gifts that remained. "Which one is it?"

"The purple one," I pointed out, referring to the large cube in question that was topped with a gold bow.

Chip reached for his present and sat back on the couch to open it. He was more composed than Bruiser was, peeling the paper apart like it was a banana peel. Coming across a plain cardboard box, he removed the lid from atop it to reveal an ordinary basketball. At least, that was what Chip probably thought it was.

"Do you see what it says on it?" I prompted with a smile.

Lifting the basketball out of the box, Chip rotated it and his grin grew when he saw what was written on it. He then turned it around, so everyone else in the room could see his first and last name and the number four imprinted on it in a solid black block font.

"You did say yours was getting a bit worn," I continued.

"I did," said Chip, giving me a warm smile. "You even got my jersey number right. Thanks, Danica."

"You're welcome," I replied before shifting my gaze to the crab-like monster who was more likely to stick his pincers in a wood chipper than make pleasant conversation with me. "Wanna go next, Chet? Yours is the scarlet one."

Chet's eyes landed on the tiny rectangular box that was tied together with a shiny gold ribbon. It was the size of a bar of soap and easily the smallest gift out of the four that I had brought to the house. Plucking it off of the table, he stared at it in between his pincers and muttered, "Why is mine the smallest one he – ouch!"

"Show some respect, amigo," Javier scolded, resting his upper left hand back on the arm of the loveseat. "You should be thankful that she even got you something."

I silently agreed with Javier on that. While Chet merely tolerated me, I was amicable with him, going as far as to get him a Clawsmas present. He didn't seem to like me since day one for a reason that was beyond anyone's comprehension, but I held out hope that our relationship would improve, or at least remain cordial, for the sake of keeping the peace in the house.

After rubbing the back of his sore head, Chet tugged on the ribbon, causing the intricate bow to come undone and slide to the floor. He popped open the box and tilted it to the side slightly, allowing a neon blue card to slide into his open pincer.

"Is that a gift card?" Chip spoke up, squinting his eyes to get a better look.

I nodded. "Yeah, to the Monstropolis Candy Castle."

Johnny coughed again and laughed. "That's his favourite place in the whole city."

Chet slowly glanced up from the card and asked me, "How did you know?"

I shrugged my shoulders. "I may not have known you as long as these guys have, but I've known you long enough to guess what keeps you so hyper all of the time."

Chet looked back at the card in his grasp with an expression on his face that was challenging to decipher. Was he, dare I say it, impressed? Stunned? Speechless? That third one, if it was true, would certainly be an accomplishment for me given that he is usually quite the chatterbox.

"Well, are you going to say anything to that," Javier questioned his fellow junior, "or do I have to hit you again?"

Chet swallowed and met my eyes, mumbling, "Thanks."

"No problem," I replied casually. At least I got one word of gratitude from him. It was progress and I would take any that I could get.

"I guess the last one is mine, amor?" said Javier, reaching for the rectangular box of sapphire blue with a glimmering red bow sitting atop it. It was short in height and about the same length and width as a world atlas.

I nodded again, going back to eating my pie in silence and mentally praying that Javier liked what I got for him. I took a huge chance with his gift; if he did not like his gift, I would not be able to return it.

Eyeing his gift with intrigue, Javier ripped the paper aside with ease thanks to his long and sharp claws. A polished box of mahogany with a hinged lid stared up at him. He flipped open the lid and grinned at the sight of the contents: four red ping pong paddles with mahogany handles. His initials, monogrammed in gold, gleamed in the middle of the paddles. The box was lined with maroon velvet, with space inside the box carved for two of the paddles and spots carved inside the lid for the other two.

Breathing a sigh of relief at the awe on his face, I said, "I take it you like them?"

"Si," Javier answered, pulling out one of the paddles and turning it over, relishing in the feeling of how it felt in his hand.

"Bro, those are sweet!" Chip commented enthusiastically. "You gotta break them out at the party on New Year's Eve."

I nodded in agreement with Chip, knowing that he was talking about the party that Johnny and I planned on hosting at the Worthington estate at the end of the month. Johnny invited most of the Greek community to attend, obviously excluding Oozma Kappa. I planned on inviting them anyway, even though I was uncertain as to whether or not they would come.

"Me gustan mucho," Javier told me with a grateful tone. "Muchos gracias, amor."

"De nada, mi cielo," I replied tenderly and leaned back against his arm stretched across the back of the loveseat. Mission accomplished. "That's it for gifts."

"Not really," Chip corrected, reaching under the couch and pulling out a shimmery purple gift bag the size of a textbook. "This is for you from us."

"You guys," I sighed as Chip reached forward to hand me the bag. "I don't need anything."

"Trust me, sis, you need this," Johnny assured me, grinning mischievously.

"Sorry that we didn't wrap it," said Chip sheepishly as he sat back on the couch. "We're not the greatest at things like that."

"Hey, it's the gesture that matters most," I reminded him, stretching an arm into the bag, Fingering what felt like string, I pulled it out and came face to face with a scarf of scarlet and yellow with fringes hanging from the ends. The material was soft, airy, and of a high quality as expected from a group of monsters who came from wealthy backgrounds.

"We figured you could use this when you root for us during the Scare Games next semester," said Johnny before muffling another cough with his arm.

"Thanks guys, I guess I needed something after all," I laughed, examining the floral design of the scarf up close. I wanted to wear it immediately to start showing my support for Roar Omega Roar, but I felt that it would not be seen around my neck due to the collar of my jacket.

Javier suddenly cleared his throat rather loudly. I didn't think much of it at first – maybe he swallowed a loose bay leaf from his lunch and was trying to dislodge it from his throat – until the other RΩRs began to leave the room at the same time.

"I think I'll go shoot some hoops with my new gift," Chip announced, tossing his personalized basketball into the air. "Anyone up for a game?"

"Yeah!" Bruiser exclaimed, hopping to his feet a little too eagerly.

"Sure," Johnny agreed, shooting a pointed look towards Chet. "Join us, Chet."

"Awww, but I want to finish my pie," Chet whined childishly.

"That wasn't a question," Johnny muttered threateningly.

Chet grumbled as he tipped the plate over his mouth, allowing his half-eaten pie to drop into it. Chewing rather obnoxiously, he slid his empty plate onto the table and scuttled after his frat brothers, leaving me alone in the living room with Javier.

"You're not going to play?" I asked him, sliding my scarf back into its bag.

"Nah, the teams wouldn't be even then," Javier pointed out. "Besides, it's not every day that I'm alone in the house with my girl. I say we enjoy it while it lasts."

Something told me that Javier cleared his throat deliberately to get his frat brothers to give us some privacy, but who was I to complain about it? Any time spent with my boyfriend was time well spent. "For sure. After all, it won't be long until this place floods with monsters looking to blow off some steam after finals."

"You sure you can't come tonight?" Javier asked. "You know you're welcome."

"I appreciate that," I told him, "but I already promised the Oozmas that I would go to their party."

Javier scoffed. "It won't be as fun as ours."

"And you will never know, now will you?" I asked, smirking at him.

Javier nudged me gently and said, "I don't supposed I could pay you to change your plans for tonight."

I smiled widely and answered, "Nope, that would mean that I'm only with you for your money and we both know that I'm not."

Javier's mouth fell open in faux shock. "You're not?"

I laughed at his dramatics. "Sorry, mi cielo, I just like you. Hope you're not too disappointed."

"I'll try not to be," Javier chuckled. "Guess the next time I'll be seeing you is at this Saturday's gala."

"You waited over a month for me to agree to go out with you," I reminded him with raised eyebrows. "Two days will be nothing."

"True," Javier agreed. "Speaking of the gala, can you tell me what you'll be wearing?"

"Sorry, Jav, it's a surprise," I teased him. "The only monsters who know what I'll look like are me, Brynn, and the sales consultant."

"Can you at least tell me the colour, so I don't show up out of place, looking like a total tool?" Javier asked. Was that a hint of begging in his voice? "It might give your dad a reason to throw me out of the hall."

I giggled. "Sure, it's red, like the RΩR red."

A gleam flashed within Javier's pink orbs as though he sensed a window of opportunity to act on something. He slipped a hand behind his back, not taking his sly gaze off of me for a second.

"What are you doing?" I asked, letting out a nervous laugh.

"Just wondering if it's the same red," Javier began, bringing his hand out from behind him, "as what's in here."

I felt my eyes widen at the sight of a small flat box of royal blue velvet sitting in Javier's open palm. Perched atop it was a sparkly purple bow that glimmered under the sunlight beaming through the window next to us.

Oh, wow, he got me jewelry? What did he get? It's too small to be a bracelet. Earrings maybe? It can't be a ring. Or is it? Shoot, I hope it's not. Goblin, we've only been dating for a few months! No way we're ready for…I mean…we didn't even talk about –"

"It's not going to explode, amor," Javier joked, bringing the box closer to me. "Open it."

Snapping out of my rambling thoughts, I took the box gently into my hands. I ran a claw along the bronze hinges on the side before flipping the lid open to reveal a hollow charm of yellow gold that was shaped like an apple with a loop in the center that surrounded a circular ruby.

"An apple for the best teacher I know," Javier proclaimed affectionately.

"I love it," I breathed, studying the charm up close. "Is that an eye in the middle of it?"

"Sí," said Javier, seemingly pleased with my reaction to the gift, "because that's what you are to me: the apple of my eye."

"Oh, Jav," I murmured, feeling warm tears prick the corners of my eyes at how sentimental the gift was. I didn't think it was possible to make someone go from surprised to in awe to touched in less than thirty seconds, but Javier managed to do that with something so precious. Tracing the delicate design, I whispered, "I don't know what to say."

"A thank you would be nice," Javier suggested jokingly. "I did just buy you something custom-made."

I choked out a laugh and said, "Thank you, mi cielo. This was very thoughtful of you."

"De nada, amor," Javier replied, toying with a strand of my hair.

"And I know exactly where I'm going to put it," I added, removing the charm from its box. Pressing on the little latch to open the clasp, I hooked the charm to the zipper on the left chest pocket of my leather jacket. Unlike its counterpart on the right, this pocket rested over my heart and I figured it would be the best place to keep a reminder of how much Javier cared for me.

"You look good in ROR colours," said Javier observantly.

"Excuse me, I look good in everything," I objected pompously.

"No argument there," Javier agreed with a laugh before kissing me sweetly.

"More tea, Danica?" Terri asked as he and Terry offered me a tray of steaming cups.

"Thank you," I responded, graciously accepting one of them.

The twins smiled as they moved to serve their fellow frat brothers next. All five of them, to my utter relief, loved their presents from me, especially Terry. Once we finished unwrapping our gifts, he decided to break open his basket of assorted tea leaves from me and boil some for us all to try.

"We're so glad you could come tonight," said Don from his favourite armchair.

"Well, thank you for inviting me," I told the whole group, "and thank you for the gifts. You really didn't have to –"

"We wanted to," Art piped up with a grin. "It's not every semester that we make a new friend."

I smiled again, gazing upon the small pile of presents that sat on the floor by my feet; I was given a new pencil case made entirely out of zippers from Squishy (a project from his art class), a gift certificate to the Bronze Ladle from Art (which I saw as a free date night for Javier and me), two sky-blue MU T-shirts from the twins (one had 'Spanish Studies' written on the front and the other was emblazoned with 'Education'), and new notebooks from Don (these would definitely come in handy for jotting down class notes or choreography ideas next semester).

Art took a big gulp of tea and sighed, "It'll be a few weeks until we get to hang out together again."

"Are you guys sure that you don't want to come to the New Year's party?" I asked for the second time that night. "I know Johnny was dead set on not inviting you guys, but he forgot that I live with him and am cohosting the party, meaning that I get a say in the invitations too."

"We're sure," Don responded. "We appreciate the invitation, Danica, but we don't wish to anger your brother by showing up."

"Yeah, who knows what he will do," said Terry with a grimace.

I nodded understandingly. As much as I wanted them to come, I wasn't about to push them into a situation that would make them uncomfortable. "Well, the offer still stands if you guys change your mind between then and now."

Terri smiled and said, "Even if we don't, there isn't much of a gap between the party and the start of next semester. We'll be back together before you know it."

"It'll fly by quickly," I agreed brightly, "much like the construction of your frat house."

"Yeah, I swung by Frat Row yesterday to check on the progress," Don mentioned. "It's coming together great."

"Before long, you guys will be moving your stuff in there," I pointed out with a smile. "I'm sure you guys are looking forward to having a shorter walk to and from your classes."

"Yeah," said Terry in a low voice, "but the place will be emptier, that's for sure. Not exactly very welcoming."

I nodded solemnly, remembering the difficulties that the fraternity was facing in finding furniture for their new place. While they could take their bedroom furniture with them, nothing else in their current house was theirs. Sure, the Greek Council allocated funds to all of the fraternities and sororities for the year to do with as they pleased, but it was not enough for the essentials such as living room seating and kitchen appliances.

"I'm still advocating for additional funding at the weekly Greek Council meetings," Don shared with the group, "but there isn't much budging, especially with the focus being on the upcoming Scare Games and the talent show next semester."

"Have you guys tried asking around?" I suggested. "Students who are graduating at the end of next semester will probably be looking to get rid of some of their things, especially if they're originally from out of town. You could probably find some good deals on stuff like futons and kitchenware."

"That's a good idea!" Art chirped. "I'll talk to some upper year Philosophy majors."

"We'll ask around the English and Drama ones," Terri chimed in, speaking for himself and his twin.

"You guys can also use those campus bulletin boards to get the word out too," I added in an attempt to continue being helpful.

"I can make a poster," Squishy whispered, sounding unsure if his idea was a good one.

"That would be awesome, Scott!" Don praised the youngest member of the fraternity by his real name.

"If you guys would like, I can ask around the Modern Languages and Education departments," I offered, "plus around the MU Fitness Center whenever I go to work."

"Thank you, Danica," said Don kindly. "That would really help us out a lot."

"Next semester is looking better already!" Art chirped optimistically.

"Let's drink to it," Don announced, raising his cup into the air. "To a great semester!"

There was a chorus of agreements and a clink of fine china as the six of us toasted to a semester that was brighter and less dramatic than the one that had just ended.

Goblin knows we would all appreciate it.