Author's Note: Here's my Christmas story. It was inspired by a combination of Jay Althouse's Below the Mistletoe and Kissy Fishy's story New Eyes.
I own absolutely nothing, except the storyline.
Sixteen-year old Isabella knocked on the Flynn-Fletcher's door. She shivered as she glanced at the snow-covered house.
Although she usually saw this house, and its inhabitants, every day, she had been away for a few days for a Fireside Girls' Jamboree. She was glad to be back, especially since she had heard something had happened with Phineas.
Mrs. Flynn-Fletcher opened the door. "Isabella! Come in! The boys are in the living room."
Isabella thanked Mrs. Flynn-Fletcher and walked into the living room. As she did, she said, "Hey Phineas, whatcha-"
She stopped as she failed to see the boy she was in love with anywhere in the living room.
She did notice a certain green-haired British stepbrother, however. "Hey Ferb."
The silent boy waved to her. "Where's Phineas?"
Ferb pointed to a corner of the room.
Isabella looked to see a red-headed boy facing the corner, hunched over like he was hiding something.
Isabella approached him. "Phineas, is something wrong?"
He silently shook his head. The lack of speech told Isabella that something was up.
"Then why are you in the corner?" she asked, wanting to get to the bottom of this.
"Well, you know when you think you may have a slight problem, only to find out after it's been fixed that it was a lot worse than you thought?"
"Sort of…"
"Well, I did, and now I, well, I just look stupid."
Isabella remained confused for a moment longer. Then Phineas turned around.
Perched on his nose was a pair of large, nerdy glasses.
Isabella couldn't help but giggle at the sight.
Unfortunately, Phineas seemed quite upset over it. "See! Even you laugh at them! I told mom they looked stupid!"
"Phineas, you got the wrong idea! I just found it funny that you're making such a big deal over getting glasses."
"But they're just so big and blocky! I look ridiculous!"
"Phineas, you know that looks don't make you who you are. If they did, we wouldn't do the impossible every day."
"Yeah, but it was easier to say before now."
Isabella smiled at him. "If it helps, I think they make you look cu- smart!"
Isabella's smile gained a slightly phony look as she hoped he didn't notice her slipup.
To her relief, Phineas smiled and said, "Thanks Isabella. That does help."
/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\
That night, Phineas placed his glasses on his nightstand. The day had been rather enjoyable. After Isabella had come to cheer him up, they had made enormous snow sculptures that had melted right before mom entered the backyard. But Phineas wasn't thinking of that.
He was thinking of Isabella.
Before the glasses, Phineas had never noticed her as more than a friend. He had never been able to make out all the details he could now see. Before, everything had just blurred together, but when he had gotten that first crystal clear glimpse of her, everything seemed to change.
She was beautiful.
It was that simple, yet that one fact seemed to affect more than just how he looked at her.
And he wasn't just thinking about her looks. Although they did play a part in one thing he now noticed about her. If she was so beautiful, she could have been hanging out with practically anyone she felt like. Yet, she chose to be with him. He noticed how, when she talked to him and Ferb, she only looked at him. How he saw her personality went through a complete overhaul.
He felt different about her, too. He wanted to be close to her all the time. He wanted to run his fingers through her hair. He wanted to hold her close to him. He wanted to feel how her lips felt against his.
It was like his glasses had unlocked a place in his heart that he had never known existed.
And, for the first time in a very long time, Phineas felt nervous. He wasn't sure how he could tell her all of this.
Perhaps…
His parents were holding a Christmas party Christmas Eve morning.
Perhaps…
Yeah, that might work.
With thoughts of Isabella bouncing around his head, he drifted off to sleep.
Phineas grunted as another snowball smacked into his head. He wouldn't have minded if he had been in a snowball fight, but he was shoveling snow of his family's driveway. He looked in the direction the snowball had come from.
Unsurprisingly, he saw Buford laughing at him.
With another sigh, he kept shoveling. It was Christmas Eve, and so far, Isabella was the ONLY one to say anything positive about the glasses, excluding his family, of course. Even Baljeet, who was considered the biggest nerd in Danville, had laughed at him.
Well, he had tonight to look forward to anyway. When he had asked Isabella if she would come, she had excitedly accepted. Phineas had actually zoned out at her smile, but luckily Ferb had snapped him out of it before Isabella noticed.
Another snowball interrupted his thoughts. He turned to see Django giving Buford a high-five before the pair walked away, laughing.
/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\
Isabella was desperately struggling to keep herself out of Phineasland. Tonight was the Flynn-Fletcher Christmas party and Phineas had asked her, just her, if she was going. True, most of their group of friends had been invited, but Phineas had asked her!
"Chief! Snap out of it!"
"Huh?" Isabella suddenly noticed Gretchen shaking her.
"You were in Phineasland again, weren't you?"
"Well…"
"Come on, chief! If you really want tonight to be a night to remember, you have to stop daydreaming, and pick out a dress!"
Isabella returned her view to the dresses on display. All the Fireside Girls were getting new dresses for the party. Isabella, who only celebrated Christmas when she was with Phineas, was hoping to catch his eye tonight. And, since he was very oblivious, that meant the dress she got had to be extremely eye-catching.
As she felt herself begin to drift off again, a particular dress caught her eye. She focused on it for a moment. Then, she felt a smile break out on her face. This dress was perfect.
The Christmas party was in full swing. It seemed like half of Danville had shown up. Christmas decorations were all over the walls, and the occasional sprig of mistletoe hung from the ceiling.
But Phineas was too depressed to notice. As more and more people saw him for the first time, they all had the same first reaction; to laugh. While most tried to apologize, a few didn't do anything of the sort. Among those few were Adyson, Millie, and Holly of the Fireside Girls. They had seen him, laughed, then proceeded to act like he wasn't there.
"Um, Phineas?"
He looked up from his sulking in the corner to find a rather guilty looking Baljeet in front of him.
"Listen, I came over here to apologize, my friend. I realize that my reaction to your glasses was inappropriate. You remained my friend in our early years, despite my un-cool appearance, and I feel that I was not a good friend because of my reaction. I-"
"Baljeet," Phineas interrupted, "it's no problem. Thanks."
Baljeet grinned. "Thank you, my friend."
/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\
Isabella entered the Flynn-Fletcher residence, wrapped in her coat, with Ginger and Gretchen right behind her. They looked around for their friends and spotted Adyson, Millie, and Holly almost immediately. Placing their coats aside, the three girls walked up to the other Fireside Girls.
Adyson was the first to notice them. "Hey girls! Looking good tonight! Trying to catch a boy tonight?"
Isabella grinned. "Well, duh! Phineas, of course."
Holly laughed, although it somehow sounded spiteful. "You might want to reconsider that."
Suddenly worried that someone else had gotten Phineas, Isabella glanced around. But when she found Phineas, who was standing in a corner, he was alone.
"See? He looks like a geek!" Millie exclaimed.
Gretchen, who was the only one of the girls to wear glasses, and Ginger frowned. Isabella placed her hands on her hips. "Have you gotten self-centered lately? He's still Phineas. And," she proceeded to jab her finger in their direction, "I happen to think he looks cute with them."
The three girls stared at Isabella like she had lost her mind. "Girls," Adyson began, "I think we need to confiscate Isabella's I Just Saw A Cute Boy patch."
Isabella gasped. While the patch itself didn't matter to her, it proved that three of her so-called friends basically thought Phineas was now worthless.
"Hold up. You can't take that patch when there are two witnesses who agree with the patch achiever."
"But Gretchen," Holly sputtered, "there ARE no girls who agree."
Gretchen and Ginger took a step forward, glaring at them. Holly, Millie, and Adyson stood their ground for a moment longer, then turned and vanished into the party.
Isabella gave her friends a grateful smile. "Thanks, girls."
Ginger just giggled. "Hey, you did it for me last month. It was the least I could do."
"And, don't forget, Chief, Phineas is our friend. We couldn't just stand by while they insulted him."
The three girls had a quick group hug. Ginger spoke up. "Now, if you'll excuse me, I've got to go find my man!"
She disappeared into the crowd. Gretchen and Isabella giggled as they heard Baljeet's surprised yelp over the general chatting of the crowd.
"WHAT DO YOU MEAN, WE HAVE TO LEAVE?"
The entire party suddenly went quiet. Everyone turned to look in one direction. Isabella and Gretchen tried to see over the crowd, but to no avail.
Suddenly, Adyson, Millie, and Holly shoved their way through the crowd. They didn't even spare the two girls a glance as they made their way to the front door.
"Well, they were all up in my face."
The two jumped as Ferb's voice suddenly sounded behind them. They turned to see the young man in a simple tuxedo.
Isabella said, "Hey Ferb."
He bowed to the two of them, confusing Isabella. That is, until she glanced at Gretchen, who was now a bright red.
Ferb cleared his throat and looked pointedly at Isabella. When she returned her attention to him, he pointed to the corner Phineas was in. Or, to be more exact, above the corner he was in.
Isabella saw that there was mistletoe hanging right above Phineas.
She grinned.
"Look at him! He's standing right below the mistletoe."
She turned to the others.
"I know what I'm going to do! I'm gonna kiss him tonight!"
/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\
Phineas sighed. Isabella was here. He could feel it. He didn't know how, but he did. He looked around, almost desperate for the sight of her.
That's when the crowd shifted. That's when he saw her.
She was with Gretchen and Ferb. She was chatting with them. But Phineas barely noticed.
His breath was taken away. She was in a red dress, very modest but more beautiful than any other dress he had seen (which wasn't much, considering how bad his sight was). And, making him even more nervous, she continued to glance over at him! Did she like him?
Well, he thought, I'll find out tonight, I hope. After all, I'm standing underneath the mistletoe.
I'm just waiting for her. But, it may take all night.
/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\
Gretchen and Ferb were openly dumbstruck. "Are you serious, Chief? After all this time, you're just gonna kiss him?"
"He's been miserable all week! I can't stand it!"
Isabella's voice took a desperate turn. "Can't you see how much he means to me? I love him so much! I can't stand to see him so miserable."
She looked sadly at him. "He thinks everyone is laughing at him because of his glasses. I haven't seen him this upset since we got stuck on that island on the summer solstice."
Ferb and Gretchen glanced at each other. They both knew it was serious for Isabella to mention the day she went to the city of love and was ignored. Ferb gave her a nod and Gretchen gave her a push in his direction. "Go get him, Chief."
Isabella took a deep breath. Here I go. I'm walking over to Phineas. I'm walking over to the mistletoe.
/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\
Phineas looked up to see Isabella walking over to him. Is she really coming over to see me?
"Hey Phineas. Whatcha doin'?"
Yes, yes she is.
"Hey Isabella. I'm just standing over here." I'm standing right below the mistletoe.
And, if I'm right, we're gonna kiss tonight.
/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\
Isabella took a step closer to him. She wondered why he didn't do anything. After all, his family was the one to celebrate Christmas their entire lives, and should know about the mistletoe. She, on the other hand, was Jewish and only celebrated Hanukah at home. If he meant something by standing under the mistletoe, he'd have to prove it!
"You want some company?" she asked.
He nodded and she moved beside him. She could feel his hand only an inch away from hers. Oh how she longed to reach out and take it. But, she would wait. After all, she did want him to show he cared at all.
/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\
This is killing me!
Isabella was right beside him. How could she not see how badly he wanted to take her hand? To kiss her?
Maybe it'll help if I make a little conversation…
"So, who was yelling earlier?"
Isabella frowned. "That was Adyson. Ferb kicked her and her friends out."
"You mean Adyson, Millie, and Holly got kicked out? Why?"
"I'm guessing because Ferb overheard what they were saying about you."
"Who were they talking to."
"They were talking to me, Gretchen, and Ginger."
I guess this might be where I really find out how she feels!
"Do you agree with them?"
Phineas mentally scolded himself. That question came out completely different from what he meant to say. I guess it'll have to do…
/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\
Isabella flinched when Phineas asked her reaction.
Should I just tell him? Or should I give the safe answer?
"I didn't agree with her at all."
She paused, and looked at him. He looked right back. There was a longing in his eyes, something the glasses on his face seemed to magnify. She decided to keep going.
"They all said you looked nerdy now. But you know what?" She took a deep breath, and let it out.
"I think they make you look cute."
There. I said he looks cute with the glasses. How is he going to take it?
/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\
She said I look cute.
Well, I don't think I have anything to lose then.
Phineas reached out and took her hand. He clearly saw the blush on her face as he did. "Thanks, Isabella. You've always been there for me, haven't you?"
She opened her mouth to answer when most of the Christmas party Awwwwed. The pair turned to look at what the event that had everyone's attention was.
It was Ginger kissing Baljeet, underneath one of the mistletoe sprigs.
Phineas looked at them for only a moment before returning his gaze to Isabella. She was blushing deeply as she looked at the couple. Then, she looked up at the sprig above them.
"I can't take it anymore!" she suddenly exclaimed.
She grabbed him and pulled him in for a kiss.
Phineas was floored. His rational mind shut down and he returned Isabella's kiss.
/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\
The pair finally separated, actually gasping for breath. Isabella felt her face burn. "Phineas, I-"
He surprised her when he placed a finger on her lips. And his gentle smile was followed by the largest surprise of all: "I guess I should return the favor."
And he kissed her.
Isabella's thoughts flew a hundred miles a second, until one finally stuck in her mind: He likes me!
She returned his kiss with even more passion than she had kissed him with before.
/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\
Ferb grinned as Phineas and Isabella continued to kiss under the mistletoe.
"Well, Ferb. I'd say they're set."
Ferb glanced at Gretchen, who blushed once Ferb turned his gaze on her. Then he looked around.
There had to be a free sprig of mistletoe somewhere…
Yeah, I made three of the Fireside Girls jerks. I figured that I needed someone in those roles and I was too lazy to make OCs for the story.
But, I hope you liked it. Enjoy!