Peppermint Phil
(Christmas)
Lily woke up with two things in mind; one today is Christmas and two her flat was a mess and Phil would be coming at any time of the day.
The first thing she did was started cleaning her flat, despite being in her pajamas.
The doorbell ringed the second she got to cleaning anything in her flat.
"Please not Phil." She mumbled quietly under her breath as she answered the door.
"Hey Lily!"
"Oh it's just you." Lily said going back to cleaning.
A man nearly the same age as Phil but with brown hair and wearing festive holiday attire was at the door.
"James, I have no time for you. I have guests coming over at any minute!" Lily said as she picked up some of Charlie's toys that were left in the living room.
"Lily, please can I just explain myself?" He pleaded, trying to block her from her duties.
"What's there to explain? You're with my mate and there's nothing else to say about it." Lily said as she worked around James' presence.
"That's just it." He said dramatically.
"I don't want your mate, I want you. It's always been you, Lily." Lily stopped in her tracks and stared at him like he was crazy.
"Okay let's get this straight. You're just mad because I broke up with you and you somehow got in with my best friend and I allowed that because you were just trying to get me jealous. But the thing is; I don't care about you anymore that was two years ago and you, unfortunately, make her happy and because of that reason alone; is why I tolerate you. You just can't stand the idea that I could be with someone that's better than you!"
Lily spat at the man.
"Now get out of my flat before I call A & E."
James left without a word, passing Phil in the doorway.
Lily sat on the arm of the couch and sighed.
"Is this a bad time?" Phil said stepping in with a gift in hand.
Lily looked up at him and at the room, "no, just give me a minute."
Lily said as she went back to cleaning the living room.
x x x
Phil felt like he had came at a terrible time but Lily was insisting that it was fine.
"If you like you can stay the night, we're planning on a lot of Christmas movies."
"If I don't impose."
"Of course not, Phil!" Lily smiled.
Phil set the gift down by the colourfully decorated Christmas tree in the corner by the television. There were a lot of boxy shaped gifts but those were the toys that Phil and Lily had bought yesterday for Charlie. Only a few of the gifts were for Lily, and a gift for Phil.
"You got me a gift?"
Phil said noticing the gift, since it was the only one wrapped with blue snowflakes and a drawing of a small lion in the corner as if speaking the word "Phil" was drawn on it.
"Of course! Friends get friends gifts!' Lily said.
Phil couldn't help but to smile as she said that.
"I got you a gift too, but I want you to open it at night!"
"Alright, you can open yours if you want. I just hope you like it!" Lily said.
"Alright." As Phil opened the gift he tried his best to keep the lion in tact.
"I like the lion!" Phil commented.
"I knew you would."
Phil opened his gift to find a lion stuff animal and colourful socks.
"I know it's not much, but you said you love lions and mismatching socks! So I did my best!" Lily said, smiling.
"I love it! Thanks so much Lily!" Phil said smiling and hugging the stuff animal, socks, and Lily all at once.
"Well I'm glad that you love it! I was kind of nervous that you wouldn't like it." Lily said as Phil was done giving her a bear hug.
"Aww, why?" Phil said playing with the lion.
"Just because." Lily said smiling.
"Tea?"
"Sure!" Phil said sitting on the black leather couch.
As Lily got to the kitchen, Charlie ran in.
"Auntie Lily!"
"Charlie bear, auntie's making tea!"
Charlie stopped at a good distance from Lily and smiled.
"Happy Christmas!"
Charlie's parents shortly followed into the flat, sitting at the table next to the kitchen.
"Happy Christmas!"Lily said to the two, as she made two more cups of tea.
Charlie was sitting at the foot of the tree grabbing presents marked for him, his mom, and his dad and brought them over to his parents.
"It's Christmas, you look glum." Lily said as she handed her sister and her husband tea.
She shrugged and sipped her tea.
Phil couldn't help but feel awkward. Even though it was Christmas and he was surrounded by the warmth of Lily's flat, in the air there was a gloom and whatever was bothering Lily's sister was affecting the whole room, at least to the adults in the room.
"Charlie, what do you say?" Lily said sitting next to Phil, watching Charlie open up his presents.
"Thank you, Uncle Phil, Aunt Lily. I love you." Charlie said giving them both a hug and smiling at the gift.
It was a stuff animal dinosaur.
As Charlie opened the rest of his gifts he got; a stuff animal dinosaur, a lego block set, a big wheels (for his age), a basketball, and a new jacket.
Lily's sister hadn't touched the gifts until later when Charlie fell asleep holding his new toys in his arms.
"We have to go back to California." Mandy suddenly announced
"What?" Lily said she was drinking her tea still sitting next to Phil.
"We have to go back to California." Mandy repeated in a unsure tone.
"Something's happened." She added, it didn't bother Lily.
"It doesn't bother me." Lily blankly said.
"Don't you want to know what happened?" Mandy said feeling a bit annoyed at her sister.
"No. I'll see you guys out to the airport but I'm not going back." Lily said putting her tea cup on the coffee table in front of her.
"What if it's mom?"
Lily felt a pang of anger as Mandy brought that up.
"Leave. I'm not having this discussion."
Lily said coldly to her sister.
Mandy didn't say a word but pick up her child and turned to her husband and left the flat.
Lily let out a heavy sigh.
"I'm sorry you have to see all of this Phil." Lily said slouching on her couch.
"It's alright. I mean I'm not intruding if I ask?" Phil said curious.
"No."
"What's wrong?"
"My sister's going back to California to go see the rest of the family and I moved out first so my mom thinks I'll come crawling back one day and no matter how she'll see it that I'm living on my own and doing better than she is. She'll think I'm crawling back to her, which is why I refuse going back."
"Oh, that's terrible."
"Yeah, but what's even more terrible is that I'm the youngest yet I get treated like crap all the time from her."
"Doesn't your dad say anything?"
"My dad's working to pay for everything that they own. He doesn't have time unfortunately despite being at an old age now."
"That's terrible."
"I know, which is why I'm working hard to get him a gift for supporting all of us so much." Lily said with a small smile on her face.
"One day, he'll get to retire in a nice country where all he has to worry is the people!"
"Aw, that's a nice gift."
Lily nodded and smiled once again filled with joy.
"Right! It's Christmas! It's time to watch Christmas movies and have a Christmas dinner!" Lily said jumping on her feet and headed to the kitchen.
Phil turned his head to see her already getting ready to cook.
"You won't mind right?" Lily said knowing that Phil was going to ask.
"Of course not!" Phil said hoping not to offend her.
"Coolios!" Lily smiled.
"Want to help?" She added.
"Sure." Phil said jumping to his feet.
x x x
Thirty minutes later and a destroy kitchen, dinner was made!
Phil and Lily both covered in baking powder and looking like a mess.
"Dinner is a Christmas cake and some pasta." They looked over at the plate of pasta to see it cold and disgusting looking, while the Christmas cake they had made and decorated looking yummy.
"Or just the Christmas cake." Lily finished.
"Yay, Christmas cake!" Phil cheered.
As Lily brought over the cake to the coffee table and a plate for two, Phil was cleaning himself up in the bathroom.
Lily washed most of the powder off her face and hands, but her most of her sweater had powder on it. She changed into a black skirt with black tights and an oversize sweater with the word "London" written across it.
Phil came in to the room just as the door bell was ringed and Lily answered it.
"Hello, Happy Christmas!" Lily greeted happily until she saw who it was.
It was James but tonight as he was at Lily's door he seemed tipsy.
"Lily! Just the girl I wanted to see!" He said, he was drunk.
"James, I told you I don't want to see you ever again."
"And I said you're the one for me but you can see how well you listen!"
James stumbled into Lily's flat as well as he could, but Lily blocked him any farther than the door.
"James, leave. Call your girlfriend and crash there!"
"I don't have a girlfriend anymore!"
"Oh jeeze..." Lily wasn't sure what to do now that James had done that.
"Is everything alright here?" Phil said stepping in, wondering where he gotten the courage to speak like that.
"Yeah, everything-" Lily was cut off by James.
"No! You're not going steal her away! You're not!" James said pointing at Phil.
"James, shut up. I'm not yours." Lily sighed, annoyed with the situation.
She wanted to get her phone but she didn't want to take the chance of letting James in.
"Lily, you know you're lying when you're saying you don't want me." James said cocky.
"Lily do you want me to call someone to take him away?" Phil asked.
"Yes, please." Lily said tiredly.
James broke out into a sob and tried to hit Lily across the face, but Phil stepped in her place and felt the slap against his cheek.
"James, leave." Lily said in anger.
"Lily..." James was now desperate but he knew he had lost.
"If you ever come back here I will call the police."
James stumbled out knowing that Lily is true to her words.
Once the door was close Lily looked at Phil's cheek, it was a bright red.
"Are you alright? I know he looks shrimpy but he's all bulk for some reason." Lily said putting her hand on it.
"I'm alright, as long as you're alright." Phil said putting on a small smile.
"Aww, Phil." Lily hug him, though feeling awkward.
"Our first hug!" Lily thought out loud.
"Strange. I didn't think it'd be awkward."
"Maybe it's just the situation." Phil suggested.
Lily smiled and led Phil to the kitchen to put ice on his cheek.
"Ouch!"
"Sorry!" Lily smiled as Phil jumped at the contact of the ice on his cheek.
"I think I prefer your hands there instead of ice!" Phil joked.
Lily chuckled and put her hand there instead.
"Better?" She smiled.
Phil put his hand to her on his cheek,
"Better." Phil smiled.