Merry *early* Christmas! This year I decided to write a Japril Christmas series called Under the Mistletoe. There are 25 chronological short stories, one for each day leading up to Christmas. Each one takes place in a different year of Jackson and April's marriage. I'll begin each story with whatever Christmas song the story is *loosely* based off of and the year of the marriage it takes place in. There will also be flashbacks in some stories which you'll notice in italics. Also, if a story does happen to have an M-rating, I'll note that at the beginning too so you can choose to skip that one if it's not your cup of tea.

The stories are already completed, so I will post once a day until December 25th with an update. Please leave a review, I'd love to hear what you think!

—

All My Bells Are Ringing - Lenka

Prequel.

She stared into the mirror with an overwhelming sense of defeat. The longer she studied herself, the worse she looked. This wasn't actually the truth, but it was the way she thought and the way she felt. She always had.

Fortunately she was pulled out of her daze. "April, we should have left five minutes ago. About ready?" She jumps, wanting him to see anything other than her insecurities.

Instead she nods and pushes her face into as much of a faux-smile as she can muster. "Sorry Matthew, I'm ready. Let's go."

He nods and holds a hand out for her, leading her toward his truck. First he helps her put her jacket on which was a perfectly nice fiancée-ly duty of him. And then in a 'did you really think it would end there?' kind of way he opens the door for her and helps her up into his beast of a truck. They talk about the cold weather, their day at work and how they're both feeling blessed to have two days off in a row. The conversation is anything but personal. It's generic and cold.

Matthew cleared his throat, most likely trying to soothe some of the awkwardness between them. It wasn't always awkward, it was usually just a comfortable silence. They didn't ever end up having much to talk about. "You look… beautiful April." He beamed, looking over toward her seat on the passenger's side. She was wearing a dark red dress, covered in lace. She knew it hugged her body in all the right places and she felt confident in it. It played to her strengths. It was just overall that she felt inadequate for whatever reason.

She forced a smile. "Thank you."

—-

"Wait…. So…" Jo paused, mostly for dramatic effect. "Are you going with Dr. Avery to the Christmas party or are you just going home with him from the Christmas party?"

Stephanie sighed almost as dramatically as Jo paused. "It's Jackson. Can we please just call him Jackson since we've been…together… for months now?" She shook her head and groaned.

Jo laughed, "Jackson. Whatever." But Steph was still quiet and obviously avoiding her questions.

"Well?

She finally spoke up. "We're going together. Of course we're going together."

There was another awkward pause. "Does he know that?" Jo laughed, resulting in a sudden SMACK on her shoulder. Clearly he didn't. And clearly Stephanie was in denial.

—

The ballroom of the Four Seasons – Seattle was decorated to the nines for Christmas. White lights were intricately woven around the walls and ceiling and it illuminated the otherwise dark room. There were large green pine trees decorated with ribbons and tinsel, each in more luxurious color and shades than the last. The room smelled of sugar cookies and pine, a weird mixture that mysteriously worked and radiated Christmas.

By the time April and Matthew arrived, they were nearly the last ones. The room was in full swing and she was able to easily spot nearly all of her favorite co-workers. The only one she couldn't spot was Jackson, not that they were really speaking currently anyway. But it's not like they weren't either. Their relationship was just sort of there these days. Existent, but not.

"Here, you get settled and I'll check our coats." Matthew ushered, pulling a chair out for her at one of the round tables reserved for physicians and their families.

She nodded, scooting in. She was facing the dance floor which was already heavily occupied for it being so early in the night. She noticed the last person she ever thought she'd see on the dance floor immediately. Jackson Avery. For whatever reason he looked surprised to see her too. She'd seen him with Stephanie before, their relationship wasn't new. But then again neither was her relationship with Matthew.

Maybe it was the holidays and the fact that they could've been at this party together, or maybe it was the fact that Matthew was too perfect and she couldn't handle it. Or maybe it was Stephanie. Either way, it became too much too fast and she had to get out. The scented air was suffocating. The dark lights were dizzying. And Jackson Avery was infuriating.

The table she was sitting at shook as she pushed away from it, making a quick break for the some air. She needed to find some place in the hotel that wasn't the washroom and full of people and somewhere where she could be by herself for a minute and clear her head. She needed to remind herself of how things were supposed to be, how they are and how she knows she needs to feel.

The run toward the other end of the hotel was quick and actually kind of surprising. The further she got from the banquet room they were in, the quieter her surroundings were. She ran into the ladies' room on the other side of the hotel, in the empty wing. The tears came gushing out before she could convince them not to. In a struggle to compose herself she was losing it completely. She stilled when the bathroom door was being pushed on. It was single occupancy why was someone out there?

"Just a minute!" She mumbled, taking a deep breath and still struggling for air. The walls were closing in on her.

"April, it's me. Open the door." Jackson begged from the outside, tapping slightly on the exterior while trying not to make a scene.

"Jackson?" She asked, confused. He was just with Stephanie. "What are you doing here?"

He mumbled something and ended with "Just let me in."

She did. But she wasn't happy about it. "I thought you were dancing with Stephanie."

Her eyes were red and puffy, he could barely stomach it. Instead of answering, he moved in her, just wanting to be near her. He wanted to wrap his arms around her waist, wipe a few tears from her eyes, and maybe even push the piece of hair out of her face that always seemed to escape its hold. He knew he shouldn't, it wasn't his place, it might even be considered cheating depending on who you asked. But he didn't care.

When he slowly snaked his hands around her slim waist, she jerked initially but then sighed in contentment. And he felt the same thing. Instant relief. He had her in his arms and it was home.

"Just one dance?" He asked her, pulling her closer and letting her settle her wet face against his chest. She hated him in this moment. She wanted this with him, she always had. And now that her wedding was just a couple of days away it was hopeless.