Edd loved Christmas shopping. Although the mall was filled to the brims with people, He still couldn't get himself to stop smiling. He had an alphabetical list of all the things he had to buy for his parents and friends, which he spent a better part of the week on coming up with. After so many years with Ed and Eddy, he could only think of all the things he shouldn't give them, either because they would hate them or get stupid ideas thanks to them.

He was strolling through a music shop, looking for the metal section (why on Earth would Ed like a band called They Killed My Turtle?) while simultaneously checking his list for any other CDs (maybe I'll also get Bach for my mother this year?), so it was really unsurprising when he collided with someone.

Surprising, however, was the scalding hot chocolate that spilled on his shirt.

"Oh my God, I'm so sorry, I wasn't really looking where I was going and-"

"No, no" He looked down at his shirt, wincing at the sting he felt from the beverage on his skin. "I'm sorry, I should pay more attention to-"

"Double D?"

He looked up from his chest and froze, the ruined shirt slipping from his mind completely.

Marie Kanker.

His eyes roamed the shop for the nearest exit, finding one directly behind her. He couldn't move to the next alley, they were in the middle of one long enough to seem endless. He considered jumping over the shelves, before she let out an awkward laugh.

"Seems this couldn't get any worse, huh?"

It could. His mother could always appear right behind Marie, wanting him to introduce them to each other and later try to get out of him how they knew each other.

But the question itself made Edd snap back to reality. He wasn't a child anymore – his seventeenth birthday were just two weeks earlier – and neither was she. Frankly, he could hardly recognize her. Although her appearance didn't change much at all, the crazed, terrifying look in her eyes seemed to disappear. The wild smiles she used to give to him were gone too – she looked just as uncomfortable as he did.

Well, maybe not as much. He still had a sticky, chocolate stained shirt on.

Marie, who to this moment silently looked him over, seemed to realize the same thing.

"Once again, I'm so sorry."

"I'm sure I can live with that" He didn't even notice when he said the next sentence. "I can buy you another one."