Alone on Christmas Eve

Edd sighed as he watched his friends walk to their houses. It was the time of the year and Christmas Eve had come a long. Edd hated Christmas. Edd didn't hate the celebration itself, but it was just something everyone else had and he hadn't.

Something he never had. On Christmas Eve, all the kids of Peach Creek would sit around the fire place, drink some good warm coco and spend some time with their family.

But not for Edd. Ever since he was old enough to take care for himself, his parents stopped hiring a babysitter and worked more than ever. Edd almost never saw his parents. With any lucky, Edd saw them in the morning or on a very late hour. When he saw his parents, there wasn't a long conversation between them. Well, the conversations with his mom were a bit longer than the ones with his dad.

The conversation usually went from greeting each other to how they are to goodbyes and nothing else. Not about how Edd's day was or what shenanigans he did this time with his friends.

Edd has been invited once again to spend Christmas Eve over at Eddy's house. Every year, one of his friends parents would invite him to spend Christmas Eve and Christmas at their places. Last year Ed's mom invited him. It was like Eddy's and Ed's parents did a turn to invite him over at their places. But like every year, Edd kindly rejected the offer. Edd always thought Christmas Eve and Christmas has to be spend with family and family alone. Not with some outsider, because his family is living far away and his parents were workaholics.

As Edd opened the door of his house, a cold and dark breeze invited him into his house instead of the warm welcome's like in his friends' houses.

Edd switched the lights on and walked into the kitchen. 'Better start making dinner.' Edd thought. Edd always made dinner for three persons. Edd knew he made too much him as he knew, like other years, his parents won't come home. Even when they said they would.

Edd would be lucky if his mom would call him quickly to apologize for not being home on Christmas Eve.

When Edd was done making dinner, he made the table in the living room ready. He put a nice green tablecloth on the table. Put some of their finest plates on the table, with beautiful fork and knives along with three crystal glasses. Edd put two long red candles with some decoration on the table.

'Prefect!' thought Edd. 'Mother and Father would be pleased to see this!'

Happily, Edd went back into the kitchen to do the dishes. When everything was done, Edd sat down and grabbed one of his Harry Potter books and started to read in it.

As hours went by, Edd started to get hungry. Edd looked up to the clock. 7pm. Edd sighed and stood up. He couldn't wait any much longer. He had to eat something. 'I really wanted to wait until mother and Father where home.' Thought Edd as he sat down on the table with the meal he cooked for him and his parents.

Edd sighed and started to eat quietly. When he was done eating and cleaned everything up, Edd sat down in the sofa again.

As hours started to crawl by, Edd did something what he did every year. Thinking. Thinking how it would be at his friends' houses. Surrounded by love, by warm, by family….Drinking some warm coco and eating mars mellows. Talking about what happened in the past few years or watching TV with each other. Making each other curios what Santa have brought them this year.

Edd looked at the packages under his Christmas three. Edd couldn't wonder what he was getting for Christmas because he knew what he was getting. He was the one who bought the presents for himself. The only presents he didn't know was from his friends. It was ritual the Eds made. They would buy each other some nice presents and place them under each other's Christmas tree.

Edd can guess what Ed has bought him. It would be something like he every year get from his friend. Gravy or cornflakes. Guessing Eddy's gift was a bit harder as Eddy always friend a way to make his gift look differently, even when it's something what Edd always would get from his friend. A gift check to buy some books at a store. But then again, Edd himself always tried to seal his gift for Eddy so good, so the smaller Ed couldn't open the gift before Christmas.

Edd sighed as he went deeper into his thoughts. 'Why can't my parents be here with me?'

'Because they don't love you.' Said a voice in the back of Edd's head. 'They love their work more than their own son.'

'No.' thought Edd. 'You lie!'

"Lie? Why am I lying? While you're the one who's lying!"

Edd looked up and saw himself smirking towards him. "You know better than that, Eddward. They don't love you!"

"Stop saying that!"

"Stop lying to yourself! Look at you! You're the one who is sitting here every year, waiting nicely for your parents who don't showing up!"

"Go away!"

"Why? I'm the only thing you got."

"You're not real! You're just my imagination!"

"Then why are you talking to me? Why are you talking to me almost every year around this time?"

Edd looked at the other Edd, before he stared at the ground. "That's right. You are talking to me because you feel alone. You always feel alone!"

"Not true. I'm not alone."

"Not true? Then who is with you then, ha? Your friends? You're not alone when your outside, but once you enter this house, darkness and loneliness greets you, I greet you! But I only come out on days like this one. Days like this one when you are trapped into this place, surrounded by loneliness and me as your only company!"

"Stop it! I'd thought we talked about this last year!"

"Oh we did. But Last year isn't this year! Besides, you will be all alone if I wasn't around."

Edd looked hurtful away as the other Edd laughed evil. "Stop saying that! My parents will be here soon!"

"Oh please, when are you getting it through your tick skull? They have abandon you. You. Their only son. Why parents who love their son so much, leave him alone on Christmas Eve? And then they say you're the smartest kid in the Cult-a-Sac! Ha! What a laugh!"

'No….' thought Edd as he looked back up.

"That's right. No. They won't."

Edd swallowed as he felt tears well up in his eyes. "Come on, Eddward. Just for once. Admit it. Admit they don't love you. It will make you feel better."

"No!"

"You can't deny it forever…."

"Never! My parents do love me! They will be home! They said so!"

"They said so? Did they actually said it to you or was it written it once again on one of those sticky notes of them?"

Edd bit on his bottom lip. He had him there. The other Edd smirked. "I guess that's a yes."

"I don't know why I even bother having this conversation with you every year. In the end, you always deny."

"Stop it!" said Edd as he closed his eyes and grabbed his hat. Tears started to run down Edd's cheeks.

"But you've got to know one thing, Eddward."

"STOP IT!"

"I always win!"

"I said STOP IT!" yelled Edd, charging himself. As Edd hit with his fist into his imagination self, he vanished, laughing evilly.

Edd started to cry as he dropped down on the floor, crying his feelings out.

oOoOoOo

A few hours have passed and Edd was still up. Edd laid on the couch, holding a pillow as protection. Edd had red eyes from the crying he had done in the past few hours. All thanks to his imagination. "They'll be home soon, because they love me…" muttered Edd as he stared into the dark and coldness of the house.

Suddenly two light beams shine into the living room and a car stopping in the front of the house. Edd didn't bother to stand up as he was sure it was someone just turning, until the front door opened.

Edd stood up and walked to the hallway, with the pillow still in his hands, to see who it was.

"Eddward? We're home."

"Mother….Father…."said Edd with tears in his eyes again and ran into the hallway, as he dropped the pillow on the ground and ran up to his parents, grabbing them both into a hug. "You're home!"

Edd's parents looked confused at each other. "Of course we're home." Said Edd's mother. "We've told you on the sticky note."

"I know, Mother. I know." Smiled Edd happy.

oOoOoOo

Never thought I would write this immediately. This idea popped into my head as I know most of the fanfics around this time are all about how Edd feels lonely at Christmas and they just don't have a happy ending. So here's mine with a happy ending! Hey it's Christmas for nothing! No one should be alone! Not even Edd!

Wish you all a merry Christmas and a Happy new year!