Tommy lay uncomfortably on the leather couch in his office, staring at the ceiling. Glancing at the glowing numbers on the clock on his desk, he groaned.

Midnight, and he was stuck on the couch. Merry Christmas, he thought. As he tossed and turned, he stopped suddenly, straining to hear.

Getting up, he moved through the doorway, toward the living room, following the soft music until he stopped short, his breath catching at the sight that lay before him.

Jude sat at the piano, in one of his long sleeve white dress shirts, her hair wild about her face, delicately striking the keys, as the beautiful words escaped her lips.

Hark how the bells,
sweet silver bells,
all seem to say,
throw cares away

Christmas is here,
bringing good cheer,
to young and old,
meek and the bold,

Tommy watched the angel before him, her eyes closed, her body swaying with the music.

He loved her. He realized that, and he realized what an idiot he'd been earlier—all she'd wanted was one day. She always did things for him—always worked her hardest for him, helped him whenever he needed it, and he hadn't even been able to repay her.

He stood silently, berating himself for his foolishness as she sang on, completely unaware of his presence.

Oh how they pound,
raising the sound,
o'er hill and dale,
telling their tale,

Gaily they ring
while people sing
songs of good cheer,
Christmas is here,

Jude poured her heart into the song, her favorite of them all.

Something about it just made her realize how inconsequential everything was. The message of the song—that Christmas wasn't about traditions, or movies, it was about who you were with, rang especially true with her.

Tommy had been right, he'd done everything for her. That day, and all he wanted was one thing for himself—and she didn't give him that.

She'd heard him downstairs with her sister and Kwest, telling them about his father leaving. She couldn't bring herself to face him after that—she felt horrible.

As her fingers gracefully danced across the ivory keys, she tried to forget her worries, letting them float away in the air with the notes from the piano.

Merry, merry, merry, merry Christmas,
Merry, merry, merry, merry Christmas,
On on they send,
on without end,
their joyful tone to every home
Dong Ding dong ding, dong Bong

As the last notes resonated through the living room, the light from the flames shining in Jude's golden hair, Tommy stepped into the room, clearing his throat, causing Jude to look up in shock.

"Tommy!" she began, only to be cut off.

"I'm sorry," He said earnestly, "I just…Christmas has never been good for me, but that doesn't excuse what I said to you, or how I acted. I was a real jackass, and I'm sorry."

"I heard what you told Kwest and Sadie," Jude said, continuing before he could continue, "And I'm the one who should be apologizing. I was just so excited."

Sighing, she leaned over, resting her head on his shoulder as his arm wrapped around her, "Ever since I won the contest, and Mom and Dad split up, Christmas hasn't been that great. Harrison family Christmases aren't really as crazy as I made them—I just went a little wild when I realized that we could have some fun, and that I was with people I cared about again, and there wasn't any fighting."

"I'm sorry I ruined that." Tommy said apologetically, placing a kiss on her forehead.

Laughing, Jude got up from the piano bench, holding out a hand and leading Tommy to the blankets in front of the fireplace. "I was the one who started yelling first—I screwed up my own Christmas Eve."

Smiling down at her as she lay across his chest staring at the fire, Tommy smiled, "Let's just not make that a Harrison family Christmas tradition, okay? Everything else I can deal with, just not the arguing."

"Even the marathon of A Christmas Story?" Jude asked impishly, turning to grin cheekily at him.

"We might have to talk about that one," Tommy said, rolling his eyes, "Now let's get some sleep."

Leaning down, he kissed her quickly, before settling down for the night, the snow still falling outside their window as they lay in front of the warm fire.