My other stories are saved on my computer. This one I am writing on my phone, in my breaks at work, so that's why I put this one up and not some of my others. It will be a short Christmas Story, I think about 2 or 3 chapters, 4 tops. But I have some other ideas in my mind. So there will be plenty of short stories or one shots from my breaks at work. Tomorrow I will update "Dead Minds". Yay!
Enjoy this little one, I hope you all like the beginning.

Wouldn't life be worth the living, Wouldn't dreams be coming true, If we kept the Christmas spirit, All the whole year through?~Author Unknown

Luke had a crush on Penelope since the first day he met her in the elevator. That memory brought a smile on his face.

"Why are you smiling so soon in the morning?" JJ asked him, standing now in front of his desk with a fresh coup of coffee in her hand.

"Oh, nothing. Just thought about a memory." Luke answered her, feeling a little bit caught. If he was honest with himself, that crush for Penelope turned into something much deeper in the last month.

"Care to share the memory, so I have something to smile too?" JJ asked him, only being a little bit nosy. Luke was not the kind of man who easily smiled. And almost every time he did, somehow Penelope, their wonderful technical analyst, was involved one way or the other. Every other member of their team saw that too, it was not only JJ. Only Penelope was oblivious to that. And well, Luke had also no idea that his colleagues had figured him out, at least on that matter.

"Ugh, I'd rather not. It's kinda personally." Luke answered her with a little smile.

JJ was now in the mood to tease him a bit.

"Mhm, I guess you were just thinking about our special, blonde and beautiful technical analyst. Right?"

"Uhm, what? What are you suggesting?" Luke asked, trying to sound like he had no idea what JJ was talking about. Cursing silently at himself that she obviously must have figured him out, despite his normally, good working no showing any feelings to someone.

"Nothing, never mind." JJ said with a big smile on her face. "Who would you rather draw in our secret Santa game?"

"Our what?" Luke asked confused, glad that JJ changed the subject.

"You never heard of the secret Santa game?" JJ asked totally confused.

"Uhh, no I don't think so. Time to explain? Since it seems like I am forced to participate?" Luke was not a big fan of Christmas and he never was. He certainly was sure about that nothing could ever change that.

"You really seem to be a Christmas grunge if you never have heard of it. When Penelope hears that, she will try to change that, that I can promise you. Even she doesn't celebrate Christmas herself." JJ paused for a moment.

When Luke heard that, he would have never guessed that out of all people that it could be Penelope who didn't celebrate Christmas. The woman who was all inside and outside about love, friendship, presents and making other people happy. She was not liking Christmas? Luke made a note to himself, to find out the reason why Penelope didn't celebrate the most loved and important festival in the year.

"Nevertheless, let me explain the secret Santa game to you. All of our names will be written down on small paper pieces. They will be thrown into a bowl and everyone of us will pull out one name, not telling anyone else what name he has drawn. The name of the person you pulled out, that person you will have to buy a gift or give something handmade. Nothing fancy, just something you'd think the person would be joyful about." JJ explained, watching Luke's face turning from annoyance to thoughtful.

When he didn't comment on her explanation, she wondered where his mind had wandered off.

"So, what do you think about it?" JJ asked him after she waited a little while longer for an response.

"Mhm? Oh, it sounds... nice?! Sweet?! Everyone of us will participate?" Luke's mind was spinning around with plans, if he just could draw Penelope's name.

"Yes, everyone of the team. Emily has already set up the bowl with the names, as soon as she is finished with her phone call I am on my way to draw a name. For whom would you like to be a secret Santa for?" JJ asked, being nosy again, wondering why Luke seemed so absent all of a sudden.

"Sorry JJ. I just remembered that I need to discuss a report with Prentiss. Excuse me." Luke said, while walking away, towards Emily's office, leaving a wondering JJ behind.

Luke was in front of Emily's office, surprised at himself for what he was about to do. As he was standing in front of the door, he could hear Prentiss saying goodbye on the phone. So he knocked and waited for her permission to enter.

"Luke, what can I do for you?" Emily asked him, sitting on her chair behind her desk.

Luke could see two bowls on the right side of Emily's desk. Both had paper pieces in it, one of them, he guesses, must be the one for the secret Santa game. There was no way he could figure out on which paper Penelope's name would be written, when he had no idea why there were standing two bowls.

He realized that he was starring at them and that Emily was waiting for his response. He looked at her and he could see that she already had raised her eyebrows up at him, wondering why he just stood there.

"Uh, Emily... I have a... uhm... a favor to ask." Luke stumbled in an uneasy voice.

" Sure, what is it?" Emily asked him with concern, not having seen him that nervous ever before.

"Uh, it's something unusual... and it must stay between the two of us." Luke was now really feeling uncomfortable.

"Of course Luke." Emily was now anxious to know what that was all about.

"JJ, uh, just told me about the secret Santa game." Luke stopped talking, trying to figure out how he should tell her, so that it would not sound too suspicious.

He didn't find a solution, and after Emily said, that he should continue, already smiling up at him a bit, he decided just to spit the words out.

"I wondered if I could choose... the name of the person to whom I will need to give a gift?" Luke could feel his face getting warm.

"You know, it is called secret Santa for a reason, yes?" Emily now really enjoyed this conversation, but hiding her grin.

"Uh, yes, I figured as much. That's why I asked you for a favor." Luke was feeling more uncomfortable then ever before in his life.

"So if I do you this favor, I want to know which name, so I can remove it out of the bowl and second, I want to know why." Emily had her suspicion which name he wanted to have, but didn't want him off the hook to easy.

Luke was now rubbing his neck, like he always did when he was nervous or uncomfortable. He had no idea that his team had figured, this tick from him, out too.

"I want to gift something special to Penelope. And the reason for it, I just have an idea, I suppose she would like." Luke knew that his reasons were not very solid, but at that moment, he could not think of anything better.

"You could give her that present anyway Luke." Emily was now very close to burst out in laughter.

"Ugh, you know... she's kinda... not that big fan of me, right? So if I would be her secret Santa, she would need to accept my gift, am I right?" Luke really wished this conversation would be over soon. He could see some muscles moving in Emily's face, but he was not sure if she was about to laugh at him or if she was being annoyed with this conversation.

"You are right with accepting the gifts. But you are wrong about thinking that she's not a big fan of you." Emily wanted as much as the rest of the team, that both of them would finally see what everyone else were seeing for months.

"Huh? What do you mean?" Now Luke was confused.

"Nothing. I ask the questions, since you are asking me for a big favor." Now Emily couldn't hold back her grin as she reached for one of the bowls.

Luke sighted deeply as Emily told him to pick one paper, saying if it would be another name, he could pick only one more time.

Luke unfolded the tiny paper and looked down to read the name. He couldn't believe it, but he really picked the one with Penelope's name on it.

"You need to pick another?" Emily asked with a big grin.

"No, I picked the right one." He answered her, his mind wandering again.

"That must be fate, I suppose. Hopefully you are now making a good move on her." Emily said with tears in her eyes.

Luke was so deep in his thoughts that he didn't quite hear what she just said. "Mhm, yes, thanks Emily. I owe you." And with that he left her office, only noticing slightly that JJ went into the office as soon as he left it.

As JJ walked in, she saw that Emily was laughing so much that she already had tears in her eyes. She was holding her stomach, pointing with one hand for JJ to close the door behind her.

"Em, why are you laughing?" JJ asked Emily, already grinning herself. To hear someone laughing like that, it always was contagious. And Emily just wouldn't stop laughing and giggling like she was a teenage girl again.

"Laugh and the world laughs with you, snore and you sleep alone."~ Anthony Burgess

Thanks for reading. Have a great day, a good night and a wonderful advent season. :)