This was written for the 2016 A2A Christmas Exchange on LiveJournal for a prompt written for scarlett2112. Hope you enjoy this.
Prompt: Elena's is the owner of a busy department store. She expects Ric or Stefan (whomever you choose) to show up to play Santa Claus.
Damon is the middle of a high stakes poker game when he finds his pockets empty. Ric or Stefan happen by and give him the cash on the condition that Damon do has do something for him. He's under the impression that he has to pick something up at Elena's store when what he really has to do is be the Santa Claus.
Playing Santa is not something Damon's is prepared to do and tries to walk out. However, Elena isn't one to say no to.
You take it from here. Sex is optional. Bonus points for a kid, either a cute one, that melts Damon's heart or one that drives him crazy the same way that Elena does?
Damon
I was all in about to lose it all when I found out my pockets were empty. I had absolutely no money left and these were not the type of people to fuck around. Some of these players would rather hurt you than wait patiently for what is owed to them. When I heard the front door open I finally saw a light at the end of this very dark tunnel.
"I'll be right back, guys." I said getting up from the table and rushing towards the front door. I didn't care if the guys cheated and looked at my hand, I lost no matter how anyone looked at it. It was what I got for being an overly cocky player.
"I see its poker night again." My brother said from the fridge where he was reaching for a bottle of water.
"Yeah and about that…" I trailed off and Stefan sighed.
"How much do you need?" He asked me with a subtle shake of his head. He'd had to bail me out more than once in these games, and he'd warned me time and time again that it would be the last time. He wanted me to stop gambling, but next to drinking gambling was my favourite past time. It was hard to make yourself stop doing something that you really didn't want to stop. Some might call it an addiction but I wasn't quite at that level. I knew I could stop if I had to, I just didn't really want to. Especially if my brother kept bailing me out of trouble with these guys.
"$350." I told him and Stefan sighed again. I knew he was relieved I hadn't moved up to high stakes poker. That would get bad real fast. I wasn't a bad player, but I wasn't great either. I won more than I lost but it was close.
"Fine, but Damon this really is the last time now. And you're not getting it for free this time." He said as he went into his office. Stefan took over the den since I claimed the parlour where my games were held and my booze was stored. He opened a locked drawer and pulled out a wad of cash, handing it to me.
"What do I have to do for it?" I asked him, knowing that I would have to give him something eventually. He couldn't keep saving my ass and asking for nothing. I owed Stefan my life a few times over by now.
"I just need you to run an errand for me. Go to the Toy Emporium tomorrow morning at 9:30. Elena is expecting me but she'll be fine with it being you." Stefan told me.
"Why am I going to your ex-girlfriend's store?" I asked him suspiciously.
"I just need you to do something for me while you're there. It won't be bad and it shouldn't take too long. It's just far too awkward for me to be around Elena right now, considering how we broke up." He told me and I shrugged. If going to a toy store got me $350, I would do it. I was getting a deal once again.
"Alright, how bad can it be? Picking up a toy or two is easy to do." I grinned at Stefan and he smiled and shook his head.
"Better you than me." He said and I shrugged. Stefan was just nervous about seeing his ex again. I could understand the sentiment, I still avoided places where girls I'd screwed over frequented. Out of trouble once again, I returned to the table, ready to end this game once and for all.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~DE~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Elena
The Christmas season was my toy stores biggest time of the year. I owned the biggest toy store in town and it was always packed with Christmas shoppers. One day a year I always brought in a Santa to sit down and take pictures with the kids. Santa was always played by one of two people, either Stefan my ex or Alaric my aunts husband. They were both excellent Santa's and as far as I knew it was going to be Stefan today.
"Alright everyone, get ready for swarms of shoppers today. It's the busiest day of the year for us because of the Santa pictures. I want every lane open and shoppers should not have to stand in line for long. Stockers I don't ever want to see you with an empty cart, and I don't want to see only one or two boxes on it. You all know what the biggest sellers are, I want the displays full at all times. I refuse to lose sales to places like Walmart and Toys R Us. But above all customer service. If someone asks you something, help them to the best of your ability. If you can't, then radio me. I always have my radio on. I want to only see happy faces in here today. So, have fun and let's get out there." I told them. I tried to keep my staff motivated at all times, so I tended to work on a reward system. The cashier with the highest ring time and the customer service clerk with the highest rating were awarded with a gift. The store opened at 10 and Santa was scheduled to be here any minute to get everything set up. My stockers went out to the floor and started ensuring everything was filled, while maintenance prepared the spot at the front for Santa's visit. His chair and all the candy canes and fake snow was set out, now we were just awaiting Santa. I was rushing around the store when a security guard came up to me with Damon Salvatore in tow.
"He's here to see you." He said before walking away.
"Did Stefan send you?" I asked Damon and he smirked.
"Yeah he did. He didn't say why and I didn't ask. I can only assume he didn't want to see you since you dumped his ass." Damon said and I shook my head and straightened.
"Did he tell you why you're here today?" I asked him and he shook his head.
"I can only assume I'm here to pick up a few things for someone. What else would I be doing in a toy store?" He asked and I had to laugh.
"Playing Santa." I told him and he immediately started laughing.
"You're kidding, right? Of course, you're kidding. I'm not playing Santa." He said and I kept a serious expression on my face.
"I'm not kidding, Damon. You're this years Santa, so go into my office, there is a costume there waiting for you." I told him and he started laughing again.
"I don't do costumes, and I sure as hell don't do grimy little children sitting on my lap. The only person in this whole place that has any potential of ever being on my lap is you." He told me and I sighed.
"Damon you're Santa. You may as well just get over it now and put the costume on. You're not getting out of this." I told him seriously.
"How about I just leave right now and you forget you ever saw me? I think that's a much better idea." Damon tried to convince me.
"Not going to happen. I advertised for a Santa and your brother delivered you to me, so ergo you're Santa. You're not getting out of this Damon, so you may as well just suck it up now." I stated and he shook his head furiously.
"I am never borrowing money from Stefan ever again. If this is a lesson, it's sure as hell going to work. I'll never play poker again if it means I don't have to do this." He prayed.
"Use the whole experience to never play poker again, you're not getting out of this Damon. Get back there and get dressed, you're running out of time." I ordered and he reluctantly walked to the back-room doors. I figured I should follow him, to ensure that he didn't veer off and run away. I wouldn't put that past him.
"So, what do I get out of this?" Damon asked me when he was all dressed up and sitting in the big chair.
"Whatever you got from your brother." I told him before stepping back to supervise him. Within minutes the lineup for Santa was almost to the exit doors and I grinned. Some people were leaving their slightly older children in line while they went to get some shopping done. Santa was a huge draw and I was glad this was working out so far. It had every year so far, I was just worried that somehow Damon would mess it up. He wasn't happy to be here, that much was clear.
"What do you want for Christmas?" He asked when the elves put the first kid on his lap. I wished that he would be more enthusiastic but I guess I should be happy he wasn't guzzling bourbon or swearing.
"I want a pony." The little girl said.
"I think you may want to lower your expectations a little bit. A pony won't fit in my sack." He told her and she smiled at him.
"I don't want the pony hurt, so maybe I'll ask for a new dolly instead." She said before smiling at the camera.
"You don't tell them to lower their expectations. And a little enthusiasm please." I hissed at Damon before the next kid launched themselves onto his lap.
"No promises." He said with a smirk before focusing on the screaming baby that was being placed on his lap. I knew the babies would be the easiest for him because he wouldn't have to pretend to be happy to be there besides the smile. The next few kids went by with no issues and it seemed like Damon was starting to tolerate his job. He still hadn't ho-ho-ho-ed or given anyone a genuine smile but he wasn't complaining any longer.
When I went back to check on him a little while later, the cutest little girl I'd ever seen was climbing onto his lap. She was a chubby little thing, with a round face and big pink cheeks. Her blonde hair was pulled into curly pigtails and she was smiling at Damon.
"What do you want for Christmas, little girl?" He asked her and she smiled at him.
"I want a whole bunch of things." She told him.
"Yeah, like what?" He asked.
"I want a new brother." She told him and Damon looked at her.
"Me too, why do you?" He asked her.
"He pulled the head off my Barbie doll and didn't get in trouble for it. I want to trade Noah in for a brother who won't hurt my dolls." She told him.
"Okay, so what else?" He asked her.
"A new doll because mine are broken." She told him and Damon nodded.
"Anything else?" He asked.
"No, I probably won't get what I want for Christmas anyway." She said looking down.
"And why is that?" Damon asked her looking at her. It appeared that he might actually be intrigued by this child.
"Because I'm on the naughty list. You should know that, you're Santa." She told him.
"There are so many children on the naughty list that sometimes even I forget some of them from time to time. Why are you on the naughty list?" Damon asked her.
"I cut my other brothers hair with scissors when he was sleeping and then I lied to my mommy and told her he did it. He got grounded and wasn't allowed to play with any of his toys for two weeks. And now his hair looks stupid. My mommy told him he had to keep his hair like that until he learns his lesson." She told him and Damon couldn't help but laugh.
"You know, I wasn't always all that nice to my brother either. I'll make sure to make a special exception for you." Damon said and she beamed at him.
"Thank you, Santa! Thank you! My name is Maggie Chapman." She said wrapping her arms around his neck and hugging him tightly.
"You're a special child. Now smile so we can get our picture taken." He said and she beamed at the camera. For the first time, he smiled genuinely and I had to smile at them. When she got off his lap and rushed away, I walked in and stood in front of the chair.
"Santa has to take his break now. He'll be back in 15 minutes." I told everyone as Damon stood up and walked back around the chair.
"This beard is so damn itchy." Damon said as he walked with me towards the back room. He reached under it to scratch it until he saw Maggie standing in front of him.
"It's okay, you can scratch. I know you're not really Santa." She said with a grin on her face.
"You do, do you?" Damon asked her but he took her advice and pulled the beard down so he could scratch his face.
"I do. Santa doesn't have a brother. But you work for Santa so that's why I still like you." She told him and I had to smile. He was handling this so well.
"You're right, I'm one of Santa's helpers. Santa is so busy building the toys in the workshop that he doesn't have time to do these. If he did, he wouldn't be able to hand out presents on Christmas Eve." He told her and she nodded her head.
"I understand. But I think Santa should be smarter about who he picks. I knew you weren't really Santa before I even sat down. You're not fat enough. Santa is fat and so should his helpers. And your beard is fake. I think you need to get fired." She told Damon and he started laughing.
"I'll make sure to tell the big man that he should fire me after this. Thanks for being honest with me Maggie. I need to take my break now." He said as she waved and walked away.
"You did really well with her Damon. I'm impressed." I told him when we got to the back room.
"It's not quite as bad as I feared. How much longer?" He asked me and I smiled.
"A couple more hours then you're free to go." I promised him and he nodded.
"I don't want to leave any of the kids out, in a couple hours close the line and I'll stay until we make it through." He told me and I smiled at him.
"That would be wonderful Damon. Thank you." I said.
"Are you still going to be watching over my shoulder?" He asked and I shook my head.
"No, you're on your own now." I told him as I squeezed his arm and walked out of the back room. If I wasn't careful, his dedication to this task could possibly make me start liking my ex boyfriends older brother.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~DE~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Damon
The next couple hours went by fairly quickly, considering how much I was dreading this when I started. Some of the kids pissed me off, with how they were demanding so much more than they deserve, but others made me want to melt. Elena had closed the line a little while ago and I was getting ready to receive the final child. He looked to be about 4 and he looked solemn.
"What's your name?" I asked when he was sitting on my lap.
"Ethan." He told me.
"Ethan, have you been naughty or nice this year?" I asked him and he looked straight ahead.
"I've been trying very hard to be a very good boy this year. Sometimes I do a little bit bad but I try really hard." He told me and I nodded.
"Well I didn't see your name on the naughty list, so you should be good." I told him and he seemed to relax a little bit. I hadn't met a kid yet who took it this seriously. "So, what do you want for Christmas?"
"I don't want any toys, or games or anything like that. There is nothing like that I want." He told me and I was especially curious now.
"Well, what do you want then?" I asked him and he seemed to take a deep breath.
"My sister is sick. My mommy and daddy only tell me that she has cancer. I'm only 4 and I don't know what cancer is but it sounds like a monster trying to hurt my sister. I don't want my sister to hurt anymore and I know Santa can't hurt anything, but what I want most for Christmas is for someone to save my sister from the monster. I will never ask for anything ever again if you save my sister from the monster." He told me and I was completely floored. I didn't know what to say but he looked so desperate for an answer. I looked over at his parents standing on the other side of the rope and they were crying. I heard sniffling from the other side of my chair and knew that he had affected Elena too.
"Look Ethan, I might not be able to get rid of the monster, but I'll for sure try my best." I told him, not sure what else I could say to him.
"Thank you, Santa." He said to me with a small smile.
"Is there absolutely nothing else that I can bring you? Any toy that you want?" I had to ask before he left.
"I really like Lego." He told me just before he smiled at the camera. When the picture was taken, he jumped down and returned to his parent's sides and took their hands. I watched them walk away, instantly happy that I did this today.
"Are you okay?" I asked when I got to Elena.
"I'll be fine, that kid just broke my heart a little bit." She told me as we walked to the back. The store was still busy but my job was done so I could leave.
"Mine too. I wish there really was something we could do for their family." I said when we got to the back room.
"I know." She told me as she went to her office.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~DE~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Elena
When it was time to leave, I grabbed the Santa suit and the envelope I had put together earlier in the afternoon. I took a deep breath and got in my car, making the familiar drive to my ex-boyfriend's house. Once I parked I got out and walked up the front walk, and knocked on the door.
"Elena, what are you doing here?" Stefan asked when he opened the door.
"Is Damon here?" I asked him and he nodded and invited me inside. He pointed to what was always Damon's area of the house so I walked in to find Damon sitting on the couch not drinking or anything.
"Hey, what are you doing here?" He asked when he saw me.
"I had an idea, but I need your help to do it?" I said producing the Santa suit.
"I think I'm afraid." He told me and I laughed.
"There were almost 1000 kids at the Santa thing this morning. Every person paid $5 for one picture and another $2 if they wanted duplicates. We made $6500 on the Santa thing along today." I told him and he still sat there.
"That's great. What does that have to do with the Santa suit?" He asked.
"You're going to dress up and we're going to take the money to Ethan and his family. They need it more than my store does. This will be Santa's contribution to helping slay the monster that's attacking his sister. Cancer treatment is not cheap and I'm sure they need all the help they can get." I told him.
"Wow. Okay I'm in." He said taking the suit from me and putting it on over the clothes he was already wearing.
"What's going on in here?" Stefan asked coming into the room.
"Elena have a Christmas wish to grant. I'll be back later." He told him as he put his hand on my lower back to lead me out.
"I'm sure you're wondering how I got their address." I stated as we started driving.
"That was on my list of things to ask." He pointed out and I smiled.
"They asked to get their photos mailed out instead of waiting around the store for the hour to pick them up. I just stole their address from that and figured I'd deliver them along with this." I told him and he nodded.
When we got there, I parked on the opposite side of the street and we walked across the street. When we knocked, Ethan opened the door right away and immediately shouted that Santa and the lady from the store were at the door.
"Hi, can we help you?" Ethan's mom asked and I smiled.
"I just thought I'd deliver these in person, because Santa has a present for you." I said as Damon held the envelope. I handed them the pictures and they smiled at me.
"Thank you." Ethan's mom said as Damon kneeled at Ethan's level.
"Here you go, this is for you. It should help with your Christmas wish." He said as Ethan carefully opened the envelope. When he saw the cheque, he handed it to his mom and dad who almost started crying right away.
"What can we do to thank you for this?" She asked and we shook our heads.
"Absolutely nothing. Merry Christmas." I said as Damon and I turned and walked back down the walk.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~DE~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Damon
Back at the house, I invited Elena inside and she agreed and followed me inside. She'd been quiet the entire drive back. When I tried to open the door to get out of the car she reached over and grabbed my hand.
"What?" I asked. When she grabbed me, and pulled me in to meet her halfway in a kiss I was shocked. We kissed for a couple minutes before she broke it.
"What was that for?" I asked and she smiled.
"I saw a different side of you today, this is a guy I could really like. So how about that drink?" I asked.
"Absolutely, come on." I said as we finally got out of the car and went inside.