I noticed dad arrive to the Christmas party and welcomed him with a large hug. He let out a small chuckle and held me tightly.

"How's my little girl, huh?" he asked.

I gave him a small look. "I'm great, Dad. Mom's in her office, I think."

"I'll get to her later. We've got lots to talk about." he said, taking a drink from a tray.

"Well, I graduated last week."

"I heard. Saw the pictures online. You looked beautiful."

"Thanks, Dad. Wish you could've been there."

He sighed. "I know, baby. But, I'm here now."

I gave him a content smile.

"So, Jen, where's Mom again?"

"Come on."

I led him to mom's office and she was surprised to see him as I was. "John..."

They just stared at each other and talked. I couldn't help but smile at that. I couldn't have asked for a better Christmas gift than seeing my parents together and talking. Just like they used to.

"Mom? I'm going to head to the lobby and see if Chris is here." I said, from the door.

"Okay, honey." she said, staring at my father.

Dad turned to look at me in shock and smiled. "Jennifer? You didn't tell me you had a boyfriend!"

I laughed. "If he shows up, you can meet him, daddy."

"I'd be honored." he said, with a smile.

"Okay, but no awkward questions. You said you'd promise to leave your fancy cop badge in New York." I said, giving him a warning look.

"Did I say that?"

I gave him a look and we both laughed. I hurried down the elevator to call my my boyfriend. It had already gotten dark and he still hadn't shown up.

"Chris, are you coming or what?" I asked, on the phone.

"Hey, babe. Look, I...I think that, uh,-"

I knew that tone. "You can't come."

"Look, I know I promised to meet your dad, but my dad's been drinking again and he...well, you know how he gets. I don't want to upset him and ruin the evening for my mom, okay?"

"No, Chris, it's fine. Really, i-it's okay. I understand." I sighed.

"I'm really sorry, Jen. I'll make it up to you somehow. I swear."

"No, you don't have to do that, babe, okay? I love you, you know that. I understand that you can't make it. Maybe some other time, alright?"

"Okay. Sorry again. But, I'll try to call you later. Maybe I can at least talk to your dad."

I smiled. "I'll be waiting for your call. Bye."

"Later."

I hung up and sighed. I understood completely. Chris' father was unbearably cruel, but only when he drank. I could only hope that he'd be okay. Before going back up, I went to the bathroom. The elevator was about to close, but I rushed over.

"Hey, wait! Hold the elevator, please!" I called out.

The doors stopped and opened up. Inside was a large group of men. The one in the middle of them wore a long coat and had a well-groomed beard. His hair was alight brown, blond-ish color, and he had hazel eyes.

I sighed with relief. "Thanks."

Because it was so crowded, I had to stand next to the blonde one. I could tell when he eyed me from head to toe that he was creep. I shot him a glance when he was looking at me and he smiled.

"Can I help you?" I asked.

"I beg your pardon?"

"You mind not staring at me? I get chills being in an elevator, and your vulture stare doesn't help ease them."

His accent was a bit off to me. It sounded German, but I wasn't sure. I wasn't an expert in accents. My major was English.

"You were invited to the festivities?" he asked, slowly.

"No, I'm just party-crashing." I said, with a small laugh. "Yes, I was invited. Did you think I was trying to rob the place?"

He side-smiled. "No."

Ding!

"That's our job." he said.

Suddenly, all the men behind him took out machine guns and I gasped. His hand grabbed my throat, choking me. He leaned in close to my ear, and I could smell whatever cologne he had on.

"Stay quiet and you might live." he sneered.

He released my neck and one of his goons wrapped his arm around my waist. The doors opened and they entered, firing a few shots into the room. The guests all screamed and were moved to the center of the room. The goon holding me followed the blonde one, whom I realized was their leader.

While the goons were rounding up the guests, the blonde one took out a gun and fired at me. The bullet nearly hit me and I screamed. The guests saw this and slowly grew silent with a few murmuring. The blonde one grabbed me from the back of my brown hair, and held me close.

"Next person to talk and I will not miss the next shot." he said, aloud.

He placed his gun at my side, roughly. Once the room had quieted down, he let out a small chuckle. "Now, let's start from the beginning, shall we?"

A/N: So I recently got into Die Hard and fanfics related to it, and I am surprised at how few there are about Hans Gruber! He's awesome and I think he deserves another fanfic in his honor. May or may not continue this, but here's chapter 1, regardless!