Felt like writing something for Christmas. Hope you enjoy.
Disclaimer: I own nothing.
"This is really sweet of you, Frank," Calleigh smiled at her colleague as they walked into the vacant waiting room in the hospital, the children's waiting room to be exact. There wasn't a soul in the room, with the exception of a few nurses behind the counter, wearing scrubs with a poinsettia design. The room had been decorated festively with red and green lights hanging around the ceiling and pinups of pictures ranging from Rudolph to packages covered the bulletin boards. But the corner of the room drew ones eyes the most, an artificial pine tree stood tall with various ribbons, lights and tinsel entangled within its branches and a radiant angel placed on the top, gently smiling down upon the onlookers of the tree. At the base of the tree sat a wooden chair, the chair symbolizing their reason for arriving at Dade General during work hours.
The team had received a call from Alexx the day before and she was in need of a favor. She had explained that the hospital's tradition of having a Santa Claus come in for a few days before Christmas to bring some light joy to the children in the pediatrics ward of the hospital. But unfortunately the doctor who had originally been chosen for the role had had to cancel due to certain circumstances that were out of his control. None of the other doctors or nurses were able to take his place, the hospital needing everyone available to work, due to many of them leaving for the holidays. Thus, Calleigh and Frank walked into the hospital, prepared to help their friend. Frank dressed in complete St. Nick uniform, including a thick red coat with a black belt around the middle, black boots, red pants and the scarlet hat with the white bobble at the tip.
"You know me, Calleigh," Frank grinned under the mess of the white beard he had attached to his face. "I'm willing to help out with a good cause."
"And out of yourself, Horatio, Walter, Eric and Ryan you drew the short stick," Calleigh pointed out with a chuckle.
Frank shrugged in admittance as a brunette nurse from behind the counter noticed their presence and walked over to them with a warm smile.
"You must be Ms. Duquesne and Mr. Tripp, thank you so much for coming," she said, shaking their hands. "I'm Barbara Kendall."
"Nice to meet you," Calleigh smiled.
"Likewise," Barbara nodded. "We are so happy you were able to come, this means so much to the kids here. There is a bag of teddy bears underneath the tree to hand out along with a Polaroid camera to take pictures with. If you run out of bears there is more at the nurses' station downstairs. If you need anything, just let one of us know."
"Thanks," Frank grinned at the woman as the two parties went their separate ways. Frank took his seat in the chair by the tree, struggling a bit due to the extra padding that came with the suit.
"I appreciate you staying with me, Calleigh," Frank grumbled in appreciation, but he was becoming frustrated with the wiry beard as he tried to adjust it.
"It's no problem," Calleigh promised as she scooped up the old-fashioned camera. "Besides, who else was going to be Santa's helper for the day?"
Frank shrugged in agreement as he finished adjusting the beard and got comfortable in the chair. Calleigh looked through the eye lens of the camera and snapped a picture of Frank before he had the time to protest.
"The camera works," Calleigh smiled, pulling out the printout picture as it ejected from the slot.
"What are you doing?" Frank asked, incredulously.
"The guys wanted a picture," Calleigh explained with a guilty grin, sliding the photo into her purse.
"I swear to God, Calleigh, if you show them that-." Frank started to threaten, only Calleigh cut him off.
"Frank, ''tis the season to be jolly,'" Calleigh reminded him and, more importantly, the figure he was supposed to be portraying; Kris Kringle wasn't known for handing out threats, even if Frank was. He shot her a light look of frustration before sighing in defeat.
"Ho, ho, ho," he mumbled, a poor attempt to get back into character.
Calleigh rolled her eyes and took a seat in one of the waiting room chairs beside Frank.
"Okay, the picture will never be seen by anyone at PD," Calleigh promised.
"Not even that boyfriend of yours," Frank warned, glaring at her from behind the mess of white whiskers.
Calleigh rolled her eyes, angrily, she couldn't believe that Eric would come up now. They were here to help spread Christmas cheer, but talking about Eric brought back emotions that didn't blend well when it came to decking the halls.
"I don't have a boyfriend, Frank," Calleigh sighed, having a change heart and was now considering displaying the Polaroid printout all over the Crime Lab.
"Right," Frank scoffed, not believing her, Calleigh wasn't surprised; no one believed her or Eric when they talked about how their relationship had ended. Calleigh didn't press the conversation onward, she knew no matter what she said he wouldn't believe her. Instead, she gritted her teeth in light frustration, finding it typical that the one time gossip didn't spread about Eric and Calleigh's relationship was the time she wished it did. She remembered oh-so clearly that the second there was any suspicion that she and Eric were seeing each other, whispers followed her and Eric everywhere. Then once their relationship was confirmed via certain horrific events that arose in their work, people no longer whispered, instead jokes began to arise. Sure, it was nice not to hide the truth, but the little quirks from Ryan and Walter, who found teasing the two as amusing as Ryan did, quickly became irritating. But the two were willing to deal with it…when they were together. But, even though they had opted to take a break some time ago, the comments and jokes continued. After a jab from Walter one morning, the two had tried to set the record straight among their friends, the two separating was hard enough for both of them without their assistance, otherwise they wouldn't have said anything. Unfortunately, everyone seemed to think it was an act, as though it were impossible for Eric and Calleigh to break up and assumed this was just a way to shake off any suspecting eyes outside the lab who could be watching.
Calleigh knew that if their colleagues ever accepted facts, many questions would arise, but eventually things would calm down and she would be free to move on. But the comments at MDPD had become so frequent that neither her nor Eric bothered to deny the allegations and let made point of ignoring them all together.
Calleigh let Frank believe what he wanted, not that she had a choice; a child in a wheel chair had just entered the waiting room with her parents, her blue eyes lighting up when they saw "Santa."
Calleigh and Frank worked for what felt like hours, tons of children lined up to sit on Santa's lap. Calleigh would help them get up on Frank's knee, all of them smiling when Frank asked them what they wanted for Christmas after Calleigh captured the pictures.
Frank impressed Calleigh by putting on a smile and acting like the fictional elf from many stories, wishing them a Merry Christmas as he gave them each a bear. Calleigh couldn't help but smile at the sight of all the children. She could tell many of them had been in the pediatrics ward for a long time, she also knew that for some it was to be their last Christmas, and with every smile from Santa brightened their holiday. At the end of the day, this was Calleigh's favorite part about being in law enforcement; she got to help be apart of making others feel safe and happy, even if she was just taking the pictures.
The afternoon had flown by so quickly that Calleigh was surprised to look at the sack of teddy bears to see that it was close to empty, she was certain that they had just started. Calleigh informed Frank that, whilst the number of kids in the room had decreased to zero, she was going to run downstairs to grab the next bundle as Barbara had instructed.
Calleigh walked through the lobby of Dade General toward the Nurse's Station. It was almost empty save for the doctors and the odd patient walking in, there was only one that was beside the counter; a familiar face.
"Hey stranger," Calleigh smiled at the woman
Alexx looked up from filling out a chart towards the perky, Southern voice she had known for many years but hadn't heard in the longest time.
"Hi," Alexx greeted her back. "What are you doing here? You didn't get in another fire did you?" Alexx narrowed her eyes playfully at her friend.
"Oh Alexx, fires are in the past . . . me and the team have moved on to bigger and better things, like inhaling toxic gases," Calleigh joked.
Alexx rolled her eyes in faux annoyance, having heard about the catastrophe at the Crime Lab several months back.
The two shared a chuckle for a brief moment.
"No I'm the one who accompanied Frank on his journey to the North Pole."
"Oh. How is that going?" Alexx asked curiously.
"Good," Calleigh smiled truthfully. "The kids are loving and I think Frank's enjoying it, not that he'll ever admit it."
"Of course he won't," Alexx shook her head. "But, when you see him, tell him I said thank you for volunteering."
"Well, he didn't technically volunteer, the guys drew straws. Personally, I was rooting for Horatio."
"That would've been a sight," Alexx laughed.
"Yeah," Calleigh nodded in agreement.
"So is there anything I can help you with?" she offered.
"Yes," Calleigh said, remembering her original reason for traveling down here. "We ran out of bears upstairs and the nurse said there was back-up down here."
Alexx nodded, went behind the counter of the Nurse's Station and lifted up an extra bag filled with numerous bears. Calleigh smiled gratefully and took it.
"Thanks, Alexx," she grinned in appreciation, recollecting for a brief moment how many times she had said that to Alexx after she had handed her a key piece of evidence from a victim's corpse.
"No problem," Alexx assured her.
"Well, I'd better be getting back upstairs," Calleigh said, wishing she could continue her conversation with her old friend.
"Well, I have to get some blood results from the lab upstairs. Do you want to ride up together?" she asked.
"That'd be great," Calleigh nodded as the pair headed toward the nearby elevator.
"So have things been at PD?"
"Um, pretty good," Calleigh said, pressing the up button on the pad next to the elevator.
Alexx caught on to Calleigh's hesitation before answering her question, leading her to draw only one conclusion; everything was not, quote, "pretty good".
"What's going on?" Alexx asked as the elevator arrived.
Calleigh should've known that Alexx would've caught on to her melancholy tone. She had always known when a member of the team was experiencing something. She had practically been the mother of the team, and mothers seemed to know everything.
"Nothing," Calleigh lied as they stepped into the elevator.
"Baby, I don't know why you bother lying to me," Alexx sighed as she hit the two buttons for the two separate floors. "You know I'm gonna find out eventually."
Three more people entered the elevator, two of them pressing the dial for floors that were to arrive at before the two other women. Alexx squinted at Calleigh suspiciously, but let the subject rest.
"So, you're still coming to the party on Friday, right?" the two talking quieter now as to not draw attention from their newfound company.
"Alexx, when have I ever been known to miss your Christmas party?" Calleigh asked, raising a questioning eyebrow.
"True," Alexx nodded. "And Ryan called requesting that I have something special at the party."
Calleigh had an uneasy feeling considering this was Ryan they were discussing, especially with the tone Alexx was using.
"Special being . . ."
"Oh, he said something about hanging a bunch of mistletoe over every doorway for you and-."
"Don't listen to him," Calleigh quickly cut across her as the elevator made its first stop. Alexx was taken aback by Calleigh's tone-of-voice; she almost sounded angry, something she had seldom heard from Calleigh. She quickly followed the evidence and inferred what had been on Calleigh's mind.
"Honey, is there something going on between you and Eric?" Alexx asked, deeply concerned.
"No," Calleigh shook her head. "And that's the point . . . Eric and I have decided to spend some time apart," she admitted, sadly.
Alexx noticed how Calleigh's eyes saddened as she told the truth.
"Ryan and the rest of the team just don't seem to believe it when we say so," she explained, her voice heavy.
Alexx shook her head, not wanting to believe it herself and reached up to pat her friend's arm; she made a mental note to herself to remove all mistletoe hanging in her house before Friday.
"I'm sorry, baby," she whispered, sympathetically.
"It's okay," Calleigh shrugged, trying to put on a brave front. "Everything happens for a reason, right?"
Alexx smiled at her encouragingly and nodded.
"I'm sure everything will work itself out," she promised.
"Yeah," Calleigh whispered as the elevator dinged. "Here's my stop; see you Friday."
"You will. Tell St. Nick I said hi."
"Will do," Calleigh chuckled as she got off the elevator. She turned back for a second to exchange a quick wave with her friend before the silver doors slid closed.
Calleigh walked back into the waiting room, the group of kids out of sight, leaving Frank alone on his chair.
"We've got more bears for the next bunch of kids that come through," she informed Frank as she set the bundle beside him. But when he looked up, Calleigh realized that it wasn't Frank at all, instead it was a rather old man with half-moon glasses and a snowy beard that matched the white gloves he was wearing.
"I'm sorry, I thought you were-," she began to apologize.
"Your friend Frank?" the man assumed with a smile. His voice was friendly and sweet, surprisingly smooth and not as gruff as it was to be expected, considering how old he appeared.
"Yeah," Calleigh replied, becoming more confused by the second. "Can you tell me where he went?"
"Certainly, he said that there was an emergency regarding when of his older cases at the police station he needed to take care of," he reported. "He asked me to tell you that he'd be back in about an hour."
"Okay," Calleigh nodded. "And you must be...?"
"Someone who was in the right place in the right place at the right time and was willing to help," the man smiled, broadly.
"Well, that was nice of you."
"Your pretty nice yourself, Calleigh, spending the day here to help."
"I'm happy to-." Calleigh broke off and looked at gave the man a questionable look. "How do you know my name?"
"I know everybody's name," the man shrugged as though it were obvious.
"Right, you're Santa Claus," Calleigh rolled her eyes, smiling at the charade, she supposed Frank must have told him.
The man chuckled, deeply, a warm smile spreading across his face, the corners of his eyes crinkling behind his spectacles.
"You always did have a good sense of humor," he sighed, happily, adjusting the cotton cap on his head.
"I'm sorry, but have we met before?" Calleigh asked the man.
"Indeed we have," the man replied. "But it has been so many years, I doubt you remember me."
Calleigh tried to think back to when she met a man with similar features. However, she had met so many people through her job it was difficult to remember every single-one-of-them. There was something strangely familiar about the man; she simply couldn't put her finger on it.
"I think the last time I saw you were probably six, maybe seven," he mused, running his hand, thoughtfully, over his bread. "Yes, that's it. But you were still a youngster in Darnell then."
"Were you a friend of my dad's?" Calleigh asked, knowing that was the only way she could have had ever had contact with him if she were that young, except if he were also one of her dad's clients, but he rarely ever had Calleigh and her mother meet them; defense attorney's clients weren't necessarily the best company.
"Acquaintances. I was with your mom as well," he added.
Calleigh nodded; the answer acceptable enough for her. She racked her brain for a way to change of subject before the man asked how her parents were; she already had enough on her mind without having to think about her broken family.
Luckily, the conversation didn't have to continue in that direction, for an assembly of children filed into the waiting area. Nurses escorted in many via wheelchair, some walking at a weak pace alongside the other children. Thus, Calleigh continued her duty as the Santa Helper of the day, picking up each small child with care to place on the knee of the elderly man.
"It's a good feeling, isn't it?" Calleigh smiled in delight as the last of the children were wheeled out of the room.
"It sure is," he agreed with a chuckle. "And what about you?"
"What about me?" Calleigh asked, confused.
"What do you want for Christmas?" he clarified.
"Oh, nothing," Calleigh shook her head, honestly.
"Calleigh, everybody wants something for Christmas; it doesn't necessarily mean it has to be a material item. It can be something you want desperately, so desperately in fact, that you might not even know you want it."
"But if I don't know what I want, how can I ask for it for Christmas?" Calleigh pointed out, cocking an eyebrow.
"Well, most of the time, it's so obvious you don't even see it. For example, when you were younger, the thing you probably really wanted was for your parents to stop fighting, or for your father to not have that one more bottle of beer, or for your mother to shed a tear once-in-a-while."
"I thought you said you and my dad were acquaintances?"
"My point is," the man said patiently, "They were probably the things you probably wanted as a child, even though, at that age, you probably didn't know you wanted them. Am I right?"
The man looked at her, his eyes twinkling behind his glasses. Calleigh folded her hands in her lap as she looked at the ground. She wasn't used to people reading her so easily; she only knew one person able to do that. But here was this man, a perfect stranger, telling her aspects of her early childhood that she didn't even find within herself. It made her feel slightly uneasy for reasons she could comprehend.
"How do you know that?"
"Well, I know when you're sleeping, I know when you're awake," the man shrugged.
Calleigh let out a small chuckle, but she wasn't laughing in amusement, but with frustration; obviously this man wasn't going to drop his act and she was going to be left having a conversation with a man who had a little too much Christmas spirit.
"Well, if you know when I'm sleeping and when I'm awake," Calleigh quoted the words back, "Then you should know what I want and I shouldn't have to tell you."
"Ah, you present an interesting point, but part of making your wish come true is you yourself realizing what it is you want."
Calleigh malled these words over in her head and tried to take them to heart. She couldn't remember the last time she thought about something that she wanted, especially something from a man in a red suit. The only thing she could think of that she truly wanted was something that couldn't be delivered.
"Okay, let's say, hypothetically, that there was something I wanted for Christmas, what would be the point in telling you?"
"Absolutely none, for I already know," the man said with a wink, tapping his finger on the side of his nose.
"So, what was the point in me figuring it out," Calleigh asked; she couldn't believe she was still playing along with this ridiculous charade.
"Well, once he's delivered to you one Christmas Eve, you will know not to block him out, but rather let him in."
Calleigh's ears perked up when she noticed the man had said him rather than it; the specifics were spot-on and she couldn't help but wonder if this man was suggesting what she thought he was.
"And by 'him' you mean . . .?"
"Well, Eric, of course," the man shrugged with a grin.
Had Calleigh not been an expert in self-control, she certainly would've let all anger combusted within her and she would've started shouting. Instead, she clenched her fists so hard that her nails were digging, leaving red crescent marks, and gritting her teeth so hard that her jaw hurt.
"Okay, buddy, I don't know how the hell you know any of this stuff about me, I don't know if Frank told you anything or if you are some kind-."
"Calleigh, Calleigh," he said, his voice patient and calming. "Frank didn't tell me anything and I'm not some kind of spy."
"Then explain to me how-."
"Calleigh," the man sighed. "Too many people you are quite difficult to understand, but I can read you very clearly."
"I doubt you can read me well enough to know the name of my-." Calleigh stopped herself and cleared her throat. "Friend."
"True, but word does travel. And, believe it or not, he is wishing for the same thing."
Calleigh shook her head at him in disbelief, it was one thing for her friends to tease her and Eric, but this was a stranger, who somehow acquired this information by ways she did not know, who was implanting ideas into her mind that she could only hope were true.
"You don't believe me, do you?" the man accused.
"No," Calleigh shook her head. "Not at all."
He smiled a sad smile, he almost appeared frustrated. "I know you find it hard to do with most people, Calleigh, but trust me."
"Why should I?" Calleigh asked.
"Because everyone does," the man whispered, gently placing his hand on top of her knee.
Calleigh was about to protest, both at his statement and his hand on her body, but she was suddenly overcome by intense tiredness, to the extent that she could barely keep her head up, much less her eyelids. She felt herself succumbing to the darkness of sleep, but she got one final look at the man, barely able to make out the words his mouth was forming; he was whispering "trust me."
"Calleigh…Calleigh, are you okay?"
Calleigh heard the Texan voice as she opened her eyes; her head was resting against the palm of her hand as her elbow sat propped on the arm of the waiting room chair. She felt Frank's hand shaking her awake. Calleigh blinked a few times to draw herself back into the here and now, she looked around the room to see Frank in his costume and the nurses, but not another soul.
"Where is he?" Calleigh asked, groggily.
"Who?"
"The man, the old man," Calleigh explained, reaching up to massage a kink in her neck. "He took your place when you went to take care of a case."
Frank's eyebrows knitted together in pure confusion. "Calleigh, I haven't had to take care of a case. I've been here, sweating like a pig, in this costume all day."
"No," Calleigh insisted. "I went downstairs to get more bears and when I came back you were gone. There was this guy, he was dressed up like Santa Claus and he knew things and he knew my name…" Calleigh trailed off, everything she was saying sounding completely ridiculous. "You really didn't leave?"
"No," Frank shook his head. "You went downstairs to get more bears, came back up here and fell asleep. I didn't even notice until you started mumbling something about not trusting someone. Were you having a nightmare or something?"
Calleigh looked at her friend, unsure of what answer to give him; the man and her feelings felt too real to be something her subconscious had simply conjured up. Then she tried to be logical about the situation and she had to admit that Frank's version was more probable.
"Yeah," Calleigh nodded. "Something like that."
Friday came around, but hardly anyone was going to call it Friday, instead it was known worldwide as Christmas Eve. Calleigh pulled up in front of Alexx's house in Coral Gables, a fair few cars already parked in the driveway and along the street. She glanced up at the house with a smile. She had been many at Christmas parties at Alexx's over the years, Brian and Jamie getting older with every year, both of home from college for Christmas. The multi-colored Christmas lights outlined the exterior of the house, making it appear more of a Hallmark Christmas card other than a house in the middle of Miami-Dade County. But, for the first time since she began attending Alexx's get-togethers, she felt uncertain about going in. Her and Eric's relationship last year was completely different as opposed to the situation they were in now. This time last year they had easily made the transition from lovers to friends, their changes in profession and inability to see each other everyday making that easier. Thus, last year they had been able to lightly tease each other and talk, able to pretend the history between the two of them had never existed, though it was certainly on their minds. However, this year was as different as fire and ice; not only was it going to be impossible to shield their history, but the tension between them was going to be carried throughout the evening, she was certain.
But she had to forget about Eric for tonight, though it was a task that was going to be easier said than done, it was the night before Christmas and she was going to have to make a sincere effort to enjoy the company of her friends. Bearing this in mind, Calleigh opened the door of her car and stepped out into the nighttime air, running her hands over her red blouse and black skirt to smooth out any wrinkles of her semi-formal attire.
She stepped up onto the path leading to her friend's front door, paying minimal attention to the fact that Eric's car was already parked beside Natalia's in the driveway.
This isn't about him, this is about you having a good time, she told herself firmly as she twisted the knob of the Woods' front door. She pushed on the door and stepped over the threshold, the delightful smell of baked food whirled in the house and the enchanting voice of Judy Garland singing "Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas" surrounding the guests, the living room alone containing at least ten people. Calleigh stretched on her toes to identify a face she recognized, the only people she was seeing being people Calleigh didn't know; she supposed either from Henry's job or some new friends Alexx had made at the hospital. She craned her neck, yet to notice a familiar face, that was until a welcoming voice called out to her.
"Hey, Calleigh," Alexx smiled, walking over to her friend, wrapping her arms around her shoulders.
"Hi," Calleigh greeted her, returning the hug. "Merry Christmas."
"You too," she said, leaning out. "I was thinking you weren't going to show up."
"Sorry, I had some last minute case reports that had be written and you know how traffic is on Christmas Eve," Calleigh sighed.
"Well, the important thing is you got here in the end. There is someone here who was starting to get a little worried," Alexx added, nodding her head towards the corner of the living room.
Calleigh looked in Alexx's line of sight to see two familiar face; Henry, Alexx's husband, and Eric catching up in the corner.
A light blush rushed to Calleigh's cheeks as she turned to look back at Alexx.
"I didn't know Henry cared so much," Calleigh smiled coyly at Alexx.
Alexx gave her a look of mock annoyance as she crossed her arms.
"Eric has been standing outside waiting for you a good portion of the evening," Alexx informed her. "He looked so anxious I thought he was going to have a heart attack, I had to ask someone to strike up a conversation and lure him back inside he was making me so nervous. But even now, he keeps looking out that window every ten seconds."
No sooner had the words escaped Alexx's mouth, did Henry and Eric's conversation appear to end and the two walk their separate ways; Eric glanced out the window again, an excited grin forming on his face.
"That's your cue, honey," Alexx whispered, slyly.
Calleigh looked at her friend and nodded, knowing Eric would be tracking her down in a matter of minutes anyway.
"Wish me luck," Calleigh sighed, nervous for a reason she couldn't fathom.
"Good luck," she smiled, giving Calleigh a gentle nudge forward towards Eric.
Calleigh maneuvered herself around the few people in order to get to Eric, unthinkingly quickening her pace in the process. Eric was looking over the heads of people towards the door, looking directly over Calleigh's head.
"I heard you've been looking for me," Calleigh grinned as she approached him, his eyes finally dropping down to the appropriate level.
The same gorgeous smile she had seen for years spread across his face; she didn't like to admit it, but it made her heart skip a beat.
"Yeah, I was getting worried."
"What else is new?" Calleigh asked, kiddingly.
Eric chuckled, guiltily. "Point taken."
"So, is there a certain reason that you've been scoping the neighborhood all night just for me to arrive?"
"I just wanted to talk . . . we haven't done a whole lot of that lately."
"No, you're right, we haven't," she admitted. "We haven't even seen each other at work all that much."
"Yeah, they've been given me all the call-outs lately," Eric shrugged.
"I know, lucky," Calleigh narrowed her eyes at him. "Leaving me stuck in the lab all day while you get to do all the chasing."
"You get out of the lab sometimes," Eric pointed out.
"Not as much as I would like. But it's probably because they are wanting to break in this new guy," Calleigh sighed with a playful shrug.
"New guy, hu?"
"Yeah. Well, actually, he left and then came back, so maybe we are just making sure he still has what it takes," Calleigh joked, gently nudging him with her elbow to assure him she was playing around; they both knew he was just as capable of being CSI as he had been before the incident last year.
"And what happens when this new guy proves himself?"
"Well, then his friend can shoot a couple of people out while he does all the evidence analysis," Calleigh shrugged.
Eric laughed with her as they shared a friendly glance. This was the first time they had a friendly conversation that wasn't work-related since their less-than-loving chat in the locker room.
"You know, I'm getting a bit hungry. You want to get something from the kitchen?" Calleigh suggested, knowing Alexx always made an abundance of food for her parties.
"Yeah, sounds good," Eric nodded as they began to their way towards the kitchen. They were careful not to run-over anyone on their way to the kitchen. They were sharing smiles and meeting each other's eyes as they walked side-by-side. Suddenly, someone put a hand on each of their shoulders and sandwiched between the two of them.
"Feliz Navidad!" Ryan grinned as he hung on the two.
"Hi, Ryan," Eric and Calleigh chorused, amused by his cheerful attitude, it was a side that seemed to become rare in the last few weeks.
"Calleigh, Alexx informed me that you wanted to . . . banish a certain idea of mine," Ryan sighed. "And I would like to know why."
Calleigh's heart sank, she knew instantly the idea Ryan was referring to; the mistletoe and, more specifically, Eric and Calleigh underneath it.
"And I would like to know how many glasses of eggnog you have had," Calleigh said, trying to change the subject.
"Three, maybe four, but that's not important," Ryan said, waving the comment away as Calleigh rolled her eyes.
"What are you two talking about?" Eric asked, not understanding what idea Ryan had that Calleigh was so opposed to.
"Oh, you'll see," Ryan promised, increasing his hold on Eric and Calleigh's shoulders and it seemed like he was leading them somewhere. "Consider me your personal Christmas Angel."
He froze in his tracks underneath the doorway that would lead into the kitchen, causing the other two to stop as well. He took his hands off Eric and Calleigh and pointed above their heads. Sure enough, a bundle of mistletoe was hanging from the ceiling, directly above them.
"And, you know what, three is a crowd under mistletoe, so, I'll just let you two be," Ryan grinned as he slowly backed away from the couple.
Calleigh and Eric shared a frustrated glance, knowing they were only getting out of this one way; they were going to have to follow the orders of the hierarchy. Calleigh stretched up on her toes as he bent down for their lips to touch the others. They had meant for it to be quick, just long enough for the people surrounding to leave them alone. But the instant their lips met, neither wanted it to end, if anything, they made the kiss more serious, passionate than a quick peck.
Calleigh snaked her arms around Eric's neck as he placed his hands on her waist, his lips tenderly caressing hers. Within seconds both of their minds had lost sight of everything except for each other as everything they had been missing for weeks. Had a wolf whistle not broken through the silence, they probably never would have been drawn back to Alexx's house. But the hollow sound had met their ears and their lips broke apart, both a bit astonished to how they were wrapped in each other's arms under mistletoe.
Most of the people surrounding them broke out into a light applause and a few even whooped at the two of them. Knowing they were in for much teasing from the others, the two slipped out the house for a few quiet moments together. They kept their hands at their sides, the only physical contact they would have would be if one of their knuckles accidentally brushed against the others as they walked off the Woods' property and down the street.
"So what are you doing tomorrow?" Calleigh asked, attempting to start a conversation devoid of what they had just experienced inside.
"Spending the day with family. You?"
"I don't know," Calleigh sighed. "I may just head in to work on some open cases -."
"You're working on Christmas?" Eric asked, incredulously.
"It's either that or watch It's a Wonderful Life for the tenth time the entire day," Calleigh shrugged, realizing how utterly pathetic she was making Christmas sound.
"Well, you know, my mom was saying the other day how she hadn't see you in awhile. Would you be interested in giving her a Christmas surprise?"
Calleigh smiled at the idea; she hadn't seen Carmen, Pavel, or either of Eric's sisters and their families in the longest time. Spending Christmas with them, she was certain, would be something special. They were such warm, loving people and Calleigh couldn't think of a better way to spend the blessed holiday. There was just one problem.
"Do they know of our past . . . situation?" Calleigh asked.
"No," Eric admitted.
"So, they'll be expecting us to show up as boyfriend and girlfriend?"
"Maybe. Is that a problem?" Eric asked softly. He tried to be subtle, but Calleigh could hear the hope in his voice. Calleigh smiled up at him and brushed her fingers alongside his hand.
"Not for me it isn't," Calleigh whispered as their hands intertwined and they walked down the street, Eric giving her fingers a gentle squeeze.
In the midst of the night came the sound of a bell ringing from the end of the block. A Santa Claus was standing beside a red collection tin, which held the donations for the Salvation Army. The two stopped to slide in a few bills and extra change through the slot. The Santa look-a-like smiled at the Eric and Calleigh, her breath catching when she realized that she had seen this man before.
"Thank you," the man smiled, tilting his head towards them. "Merry Christmas."
Calleigh couldn't be certain at that point, but she was willing to bet that the man gave her a wink.
The man went back to ringing his bell in the same rhythm as he watched the two young people walk away under the glow of streetlights, hand-in-hand. He chuckled lightly at one of the many miracles he was to perform tonight, which reminded him he needed to get going to be on time for the next one. But that's another story.
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P.S. Happy Holidays!