Kasey spent Christmas alone. Carleigh FaceTimed for about an hour in the morning, but then was dragged along ice skating with her family. Kasey looked over some of her music, mainly 'For the First Time in Forever', to make sure she had all the phrasing how she wanted it.

After that, she scrolled through her Instagram feed, a little puzzled to see that she was being tagged in people's photos. She was somewhat used to it from Hamilton, but it seemed more frequent over thee holidays. She checked the pictures she was tagged in and fans were just using a photo of her and Carleigh wearing Santa hats for their 'Merry Christmas' posts.

She got sick of Instagram after a few minutes and moved on to baking cupcakes, anothe one of her common hobbies when she wasn't rehearsing.

Carleigh: in my room, there's a pile of gifts on the bed. They're for you :) open them whenever you want

Kasey: aww Carleigh you didn't have to

Carleigh: I know haha, don't worry, some are from my mom, my sister, and I wrapped some from Alaina too

Kasey: I sent your gifts to your mom, did she get them?

Carleigh: yes, we're opening them soon

Kasey: good! Merry Christmas!

Carleigh: enjoy the gifts :)

Kasey put down her phone and went to Carleigh's room. The door was shut but not locked. She pushed it open.

Carleigh's room smelled like her- vanilla and fresh laundry detergent. It was lit with Christmas lights hung from the ceiling, and a lamp on her bedside table. She and Kasey had similar tastes. They had the same favorite colors- greenish blue and grey.

There was a line of string running across the room on which Carleigh had clipped pictures. Kasey saw Carleigh's mom, Brooke, the Hamilton cast, and herself on the line.

The bed had numerous presents sat on it, separated into neat piles. Kasey could tell who they were from before reading the tags. Carleigh's handwriting was on one set of tags, Patricia's on another, and a mashup of different handwritings on the final pile.

Kasey snapped a picture to send to Carleigh before sitting down on her friend's bed to open the gifts.

Carleigh had gotten Kasey another scarf, with pink swirls and geometric snowflakes, just like the designs on Kasey's Anna costume. She'd also given Kasey a set of reindeer socks and many movies, with a note telling her to save them until Carleigh was back.

Kasey laughed when she opened her final gift from Carleigh. It was a new phone case, with three painted figures in 'Yorktown' jackets. They were faceless, but one had a pouf and one had a curled ponytail- which were Carleigh and Kasey's hairstyles for the show. The other one was clearly Ariana DeBose.

She had laughed because she'd gotten Carleigh the very same case.

After opening her gifts from Carleigh, Kasey moved on to the ones from Patricia.

She was shocked when she opened the first gift and found a framed photograph of Kasey's family portrait. It was from when Kasey was about seven, the Christmas before her family died. She'd had that photograph hanging in her quick-change cubby, but someone had spilled water on it before Kasey left the show. Kasey had been devastated. She'd thought it was lost forever.

The second gift was a box of assorted teas and cookies. Kasey smiled at that. Her nationality was a constant presence in the gifts that people got her. She didn't mind.

Alaina's gift was a Schuyler Sisters ornament and a painting of Anna. She was an extremely talented artist. Kasey had gone to a painting session with her once and Alaina had done much better than she had.

There was also a letter from Renee, which Kasey found to be slightly strange. Renee had her number- she could have texted.

Kasey,
I know this seems weird. I didn't want to get you anything because I'm quite sure you don't always like to get gifts. So I decided to write this to you. Over the course of Hamilton, I watched you grow before my eyes. When you stepped into the first Hamilton rehearsal, you were timid, shy, and sad. I remember you sitting next to Carleigh only because it was the only seat open, and you jumped when she talked to you. But now you're a leading actress on Broadway. I could not be more proud of how far you've come. You have such talent, heart, and kindness. You deserve every happiness, Kasey. Savor every moment, and never let anyone change how wonderful you are. Make sure to keep in touch even if we don't share the stage anymore!
Lots of love,
Renée

Kasey reread the letter over and over. No one had written her anything quite so heartfelt and sweet before. It was an amazing present, even if it hadn't cost Renee anything.

She checked her phone and saw that Carleigh had texted a photo of her new phone case, and she'd gotten a text reminding her about rehearsal.

It was getting hard to keep her eyes open, so she cleaned up the stray wrapping paper.

Ultimately, she decided to drag a bunch of blankets to the living room and turn on the admittedly fake fireplace. It was going to be a long day of rehearsal the next day.