Just a little One-shot...

Adam peered inside the envelope and groaned. "Just my fucking luck." He shoved it in his back pocket just as Atwater appeared in the doorway.

"Molly's Bro?"

"Sure, why not." He grabbed his bag and slammed the locker door shut with just a little too much force. Atwater gave him this funny little scowl.

"Hey Kev.." He pulled the envelope out of his pocket and held it up. 'You wanna swap? I will make it worth your while. Beers are on me." Now that wasn't the best idea because offering Kevin free beers often meant that he was broke until next payday. The man could drink and when they were free he someone managed to double his intake.

"Nah, man you know the rules. Lindsay made them quite clear, no swapping."

"She'll never know."

"She will know, the big fella will know."

He rolled his head back and looked at the ceiling before taking a deep breath and returning his focus to Kevin. "Fine, let's go." Secret Santa would have to be the biggest bullshit he'd ever heard off. Why the hell was Lindsay suddenly all family, blah blah? Why did they all have to go for dinner at her place? How could he get out of it?

Quite frankly he couldn't. He'd tried; subtly of course but Lindsay was having none of it. Al told him to stop whining and Kevin just ignored him. He would rather someone squeezed his nuts in a vice than sit through this.

He had convinced himself that this was rigged. There was no way this didn't happen on purpose but then again he'd run fresh out of luck months ago so it was no surprise.

"I swear to god Ruzek if you kill my buzz I will make you pay." Lindsay opened the door to him and took one look at his depressing face and warned him.

"Relax Erin, you are wound far too tight. I will not kill your buzz." He pushed a smile onto his face. "Merry Christmas." It sounded forced but he handed her a potted poinsettia and stepped around her into the apartment.

His eyes scanned the place quickly and he breathed a sigh of relief. He had time to slam down a couple of drinks to help him relax. Slipping his present under the tree he had a quick peek at the rest of them. "Don't you touch anything Ruzek." Lindsay barked at him.

He was hopeless at Christmas, even as a child the waiting killed him. He would spend countless hours trying to figure out what was in the boxes under the tree. His Mom and Day may have been barely functioning as parents, but his Christmas's always were magical. Lately that magic had worn off. To be precise this was the second Christmas in a row that sucked.

Making his way over the makeshift bar Halstead poured him a shot. "Merry Christmas Buddy." They touched glasses. "I'm not sure where all this nonsense came from. It's like Santa and his Elves vomited all over the place." That was a pretty apt description of the place. Christmas spewed from every surface.

Gradually the place filled up. Kevin rocked up dressed as Santa, no one needed to drag him kicking and screaming into the festive season. Kevin was made for Christmas. Voight and Al looked at interested as Ruzek did; Antonio seemed to have a new lease on life as sickening as that was. A new job and Sylvie Brett had made him giddy with excitement and he was rivalling Kevin for the most excited person in the room.

Adam felt the breath catch in his throat and turned away when Kim arrived. No wonder Kim and Kevin got on so well, she loved Christmas and came looking like Mrs Claus. Knowing those two they co-ordinated this down to the T. Halstead handed her a glass of champagne as Lindsay took her coat.

"Merry Christmas Adam." She turned to him last. He was the last person she spoke to and it would have been weird not to greet him. Everyone else had welcomed her to her first Intelligence Christmas Dinner. Funnily enough, it was the First Intelligence Christmas dinner ever.

"Merry Christmas Burgess." As soon as he said it he cringed a little. That was probably a little harsh and the look on her face was upsetting. He'd upset her and that was never his intention, he was just finding being in close proximity to her hard. Why did no one get that? "It's cold out huh?" He added quickly.

"Too cold for this." She flicked the corner of her skirt.

"It's cute."

Thankfully Erin did not sit them next to each other at dinner, he was up one end of the table and Kim was a few seats further up on the other side. Not that it made much difference. It wasn't like it was a huge banquet table; they were still close enough.

Kevin was more than happy to embrace his role of Santa and hand out the gifts. One by one everyone opened the presents. Lindsay managed to get to lovely book on how to clean almost any stain. "You know now that you are all domesticated and all. Surely Halstead expects you to keep his house clean." Al added helpfully.

Voight poured his drink into his new mug declaring his status as the 'Boss' and spent the rest of the night drinking out of it.

Most presents made sense. Adam received a box of a hundred pens because he was always stealing pens off desks. What he actually did with them no one had ever figured out. One day they had to turn up surely.

He wasn't sure if he wanted to watch Kim open her present or not. Was he game enough?

Not one other person at that table got it, but she did. Inside a box were packets of popping candy and a bunch of green and red Lindt balls tied together. Kim's eyes grew wide, she knew precisely who it was from and what it meant.

"I love Popping Candy" Halstead leaned over and picked up a packet and Kim snatched it back playfully.

"I am not sharing." Kim laughed and smiled at Adam but he had turned away. Atwater saw it; he knew whom the present was from. All the carry on about swapping names made that obvious and while he had no idea what the gifts meant, they meant something to those two. Two bloody stubborn stupid people who he loved dearly.

Now she had to find the time to get him alone something that had been nigh on impossible for weeks. He was obviously doing it deliberately, avoiding her and she couldn't blame him. Suddenly she lobbed into his space, upstairs was his world and while he had politely welcomed her into Intelligence, knowing full well from the very start that was her goal he chose to keep his distance.

While she was trying to get him alone Lindsay's place offered very little opportunity. Unless you went into the bathroom you were never far enough away from people. Atwater also knew that he had to do some work. The mistletoe that Lindsay had hanging over the entrance hall had been expertly spotted and avoided like the plague by Ruzek. He wasn't falling for that.

The only chance Kevin had was when they were leaving; all a little worse for wear. "Let's grab an Uber?" But he wasn't quick enough. Adam jumped in the front seat leaving Kevin and Kim in the back. While they chatted away in the back seat Adam was silent.

Adam jumped out first and Kevin literally pushed Kim out of the car. "What are you doing?" She protested.

"You two need to talk. Santa's orders. Don't disappoint him, he's watching."

Kim hopped from one foot to the other nervously as the car pulled away. She wasn't dressed for this. "I will order you another Uber." Adam reached into his pocket and pulled out his phone.

"I can walk, it's only a couple of blocks."

"You are not walking, it's dangerous and it's freezing."

"Thank you for my gift." She blurted out as she put her hand on his phone to stop him ordering her Uber.

"It was from Santa. It was a secret."

"Popping Candy and Lindt balls were no secret." With only the faint streetlight illuminating them it was hard to see his face. Kim walked over towards the steps that lead to his building and Adam followed her. He was stupid for doing that, but he couldn't stop himself. Out of her bag she pulled out the Lindt balls and held them above their heads. "Our Mistletoe."

He tilted his head to the side and bit his bottom lip for a second before grabbing the sides of her face and pulling her in for a long slow kiss. When they pulled apart she whispered in his ear. "I feel like I just swallowed a whole bag of popping candy."

"I don't want to call you an Uber." He reached into his pocket, grabbed out his keys and buzzed the door. Holding out his hand he waited until she stepped into him, laced her fingers through his and followed him upstairs.