Just a little Christmas story for you guys! I hope you all had Merry Christmas, and I wish you many more to come!
I do not own the Chipmunks and Chipettes.
Summary: Feeling abandoned by friends and family during the holiday season, Eleanor runs off without a trace, and only one person might know where to look.
Alone
Chapter 1
Tick. Tock. Tick. Tock.
The red and skinny second hand upon the clock stroked the six, going on to the seven.
Tick. Tock. Tick. Tock.
The seven was stroked, on to the eight.
Anxiously, two fervent brown eyes watched the clock attentively, her face fixed in an awkward gawk. Her books were clasped tightly in her arms against her chest, only fifteen seconds remaining before the bell would ring to dismiss the apprehensive students to Winter Break. This blonde-haired chick was the most apprehensive of them all; her behind was literally at the edge of her seat, her legs propped in the position to race everybody to the door. There was no time to be wasted; there was so much to do!
Tick. Tock. BIIIING.
Before the teacher could open his mouth to wish everybody a safe and wonderful holiday break, the sixteen-year-old blonde was out the door and the first to enter the empty hallway decked out in Christmas decorations for the special holiday occasion. She raced to her locker on the opposite side of the school, dodging students left and right, tearing down school flyers, her book bag hitting her from behind with each stride. Some students questioned her energy as she ran pass; others thought she was crazy. Indeed, they were all wrong.
Eleanor was in fact, in the holiday spirit.
Upon turning the corner down another hallway, she gazed upon some familiar faces, a broad smile spreading across her face. "Brittany! Jeanette!" she greeted as she jogged her way over. "We're finally outta school! Aren't you guys excited?"
The brunette exchanged glances with her blue-eyed sister, and the two soon joined each other in a fit of laughter. "Oh Ellie, of course we are!" Jeanette exclaimed as she bit her lip to keep down any more laughing.
"But we're not as excited as you are, little sis!" the blue-eyed Brittany blurted, her laughter regaining strength as she ruffled Eleanor's hair. "You're always so crazy this time of year! Saint Nick might be a little jealous!"
Eleanor rolled her eyes and scoffed before she answered with, "There's so much to do, so much Holiday spirit wanting to explode out of me!" she attempted to convince her older sisters. "You know, download Christmas music, making Gingerbread houses, putting up the tree, and being with friends and family!" she listed upon her sweaty fingers. "With school in the way, I couldn't get anything done, but NOW is the time!"
Jeanette's green eyes grew wide with each word that spilled from Eleanor's mouth, unable to fathom such energy. "Wow Eleanor, I've never seen you so… cheery, and full of… bliss!"
"If only I could share this energy with you guys," she replied through an airy, dream-like sigh. "I have a feeling this is going to be one of the best Holiday seasons ever!" she bellowed, her cheeks beginning to turn red. "And best of all, me and Theodore might be going Christmas shopping together this year!" she felt the need to mention as her gaze drifted over her shoulder to notice a not-so-chubby Theodore attempting to pry his locker open, each attempt reading failure, his green eyes planted to his combination lock.
"And don't worry, Ellie," Brittany began, "we'll have our Girls' Shopping Day the following weekend!"
Eleanor smiled to her heart's content and heaved a quick sigh. "Well, I have to get my stuff from my locker! I'll be out in a bit!" and with that, she continued on to her locker, her sisters left baffled by the spirited Eleanor.
Once more, Eleanor weaved and bobbed her way through the crowd, her books tight in her grasp. Considering the fact that school would be out for two weeks, the students made no hesitation to clear the halls, the majority of the students already gone, so maneuvering through the hallways was made easy for Eleanor. She turned down the hall that held her locker, but in an instant, she ran into someone head on, sending her and the other student to the ground, her books flying through the air and dropping upon her head with a crash.
"Ellie, I'm sorry!" the voice exclaimed as he stood to his feet, his eyes wide with sorrow. The boy reached out a hand to help the dizzy girl to her feet, her vision just a bit jumbled, but she managed to see the kind pupil. Through her hazy vision, she recognized it as the green-eyed Theodore, a smile appearing on her face once more as he pulled her effortlessly to her feet.
Through a blushing face, Eleanor shied herself away and spoke. "Theodore, I'm sorry! I was in such a rush-"
"It's fine!" he assured, his hands still having a hold of hers. Suddenly, realizing so, he slowly pulled away and shoved his hands in his jeans' pocket. "I want to get out of here, too, but sadly, I have a Foods test I have to make up for Ms. Blevins," he replied with a heavy sigh, referring to his Family Consumer Science class.
Eleanor frowned and scoffed. "I'm sorry you have to spend the first part of your break taking a test!"
In all honesty, it wasn't such a great deal for Theodore, although he could think of many other meaningful activities he could spend his hard-earned time on. "Eh, it's alright. It should only take me fifteen minutes to finish!"
The two uttered heart-felt laughter when Eleanor, quickly ending hers, took Theodore by the shoulder and lead him down the hallway. "So," she began before stopping him midway through a step. "I was wondering if…" she paused, her cheeks turning the brightest red possible. "… You know… if you weren't busy, would want to hang out tomorrow and do some Christmas shopping, maybe?"
Avidly, Theodore took Eleanor's hand and caressed it tightly, but in that same motion, a frown crept upon his face, his eyes avoiding hers. "I'd love to, Ellie, but…" he too paused in mid-sentence, swallowing anything that held him back from telling her. "I kinda have… plans this weekend… with Tricia…" she admitted slowly. "You remember Tricia from Biology, right?"
All at once, Eleanor's heart fell to the pit of her stomach, but she fought to keep a somewhat pleasing smile on her face. "Oh that's cool!" she spoke cheerfully, however, thinking the direct opposite. "Yeah, I know her! She seats right behind me in that class."
The sweet and caring Eleanor was never envious or spiteful of the girls Theodore infrequently spent time with - by him losing a significant amount of weight over the summer and all, he attracted more girls than ever - but when it came to Tricia Greene, there was no one she was more jealous of, considering the fact that she knew Theodore took an interest in Tricia… while Eleanor took a heavy interest in Theodore. "So what if she's slightly smarter than me? Who cares if there's not a blemish on her tanned skin, and her black hair makes her silver eyes stand out magnificently? Who cares? Maybe Theodore cares. I'm just as extraordinary! But can Theodore see that?"
Eleanor knew it was wrong to feel such emotions towards a person, but she couldn't help but to think that there was something Theodore strongly admired about her; maybe something so deep he was willing to date her over Eleanor. "Well, I hope you enjoy yourself with Tricia!" she exclaimed through a forced smile, her jaw clamped tight, her mandible become sore.
Theodore, who was oddly less than enthusiastic, Eleanor noticed, smiled back. "Thanks Ellie. B-b-but we can still hang out tonight, if that's not a problem with you," he proposed with wide eyes, his facial expression full of hope and urge.
Eleanor nodded with no doubt in her mind. "Of course we can! That'll be great…"
An awkward silence soon filled the area between the two when Eleanor, the brave soul, spoke up. "Well, I'm pretty sure Ms. Blevins is wondering where you are, huh?"
With a gasp, Theodore chuckled and raced off down the hall, waving about to Eleanor as he did. "Oh man, I almost forgot! Thanks Ellie, I'll see you later!"
Before Eleanor had time to wave back, Theodore was out of sight around the corner, leaving Eleanor a bit out of spirit. "Just a slight setback, but I still have other things to look forward to, right?"
