So in my family we do a christmas eve exchange with some of our family and I decided to add that into this chapter.

Please read and review.


The house was decked out with every Christmas decoration that Walter could find in the basement along with numerous ones that he had insisted he and Peter buy every time they left the house. They had to have spent well over a hundred dollars just in the past few days filling his father's holiday wants and needs. Walter had also gone and called Astrid and Olivia inviting them along with Rachel and Ella, to spend the day with them. Astrid had agreed readily and had pretty much bullied Olivia into agreeing since she knew how her niece and Walter could be when together for long periods of time. Olivia had eventually agreed but only when Peter gave her a pleading look that screamed 'save my sanity'. So instead of spending the day doing a whole lot of nothing like he had originally planned, Peter had been roped into helping with the decorating, cooking and cleaning so that everything was ready or close to ready by the time that everyone started arriving.

"Peter, are the gifts under the tree?" Walter asked for what must have been the tenth time in the past hour.

"Yes Walter."Peter rolled his eyes. "Unless they all grew legs and ran away, then they are under the tree."

"Oh well that is a possibility with Astrid's gift." Walter mumbled.

"What?" Peter asked putting the spoon he had been holding down."Please tell me it's not dangerous."

"Oh well it's not normally." Walter huffed.

"As long as it doesn't jump out and eat someone's face." Peter stated.

"Oh that would be wondrous!" Walter exclaimed, walking away and leaving Peter alone to finish everything, a task that he had been prepared to be left alone with. He made sure that everything was off and covered before heading up to his room and pulling the gift he had gotten Olivia out and looking at it, hoping that she would like it. He gazed at the gift for a few more seconds before placing it carefully in the box he had gotten for it and pulling out the wrapping paper to wrap the gift. He had originally thought of placing it under the tree with the others but had decided that this was too personal and instead had gotten her another gift while putting this one away for a more private time.

"Peter they're here!" Walter called up the stairs as the doorbell rang. He placed Olivia's gift in his night stand and made his way down stairs where he could see everyone shedding their coats, their faces red from the cold wind.

"Where can I put these?" Astrid asked, holding up a few pies, Olivia holding the rest of them.

"You can put them in the kitchen."Peter said, drawing their attention to him. He smiled at them all and took some of the bags that Rachel was carrying and helping everyone to put things where they needed to go before he hoisted Ella up in the air and tickled her.

"Peter stop." Ella giggled, squirming in his arms.

"No, you are now my prisoner." He joked, placing her back on the floor where she tagged him and ran off, Peter quickly following her.

"They're cute together." Rachel commented to Olivia who was standing beside her. "He'll make a great father some day."

"Maybe." Olivia shrugged, not wanting to have yet another 'Peter's in love with you' talk.

"You can't avoid the truth forever you know." Rachel said. "Everyone sees it but you."

"See's what?" Astrid asked walking into the room.

"That Peter is in love with Olivia."

"Oh well even Walter knows that and that's saying something since he's barely aware of anything going on around him." Astrid shrugged and smirked when she saw the look on Olivia's face. "All you have to do is let him know that you are interested too and you could have him."

"Can we just drop this?" Olivia asked seeing Peter and Ella coming through the living room, both smiling and laughing. Hope had started bubbling up in her chest, though she tried to push it back down.

"Okay but only because he's close by." Rachel stated, smiling and walking away.

"He does love you." Astrid whispered to her and followed Rachel as Peter walked up to Olivia.

"Did I miss something?" Peter asked with a confused look on his face.

"No." She smiled and shook her head."Um, is there anything else to do?"

"No everything is done." He said giving her a warm smile that reached his eyes and made her body warm. "I figured that we would eat and then do the present exchange."

"Okay." She nodded giving him a bright and slightly flirtatious smile and getting one in return.

They both headed into the kitchen where Peter helped Walter serve everyone before they all sat down and quickly ate, everyone wanting to get to the gift exchange except for Peter whose stomach had started feeling knotted and uneasy with the thought of the gift sitting up stairs.

"Can we open presents now?" Ella asked bouncing in her seat after everyone had finished eating.

"That's a great idea!" Walter beamed as he and Ella ran off to the tree which was standing in the living room. Everyone else followed them and sat down; Peter went to the tree and started pulling the gifts out, having been roped into playing Santa for the night.

~CE~CE~CE~CE~CE~CE~CE~CE~CE~CE~CE~CE~CE~CE~CE~CE~CE~CE~CE~CE~CE~CE~

Peter watched Olivia stand up and go into the kitchen after everyone had opened their gifts. He looked around to make sure that everyone else was preoccupied before standing and following her in hopes of getting her alone long enough to give her the gift in his room.

"Olivia." He said walking up behind her.

"Hi." She smiled, turning to face him.

"Hi." He mirrored. "Ah, could you come with me for a minute?"

"Okay." She nodded. "Is everything alright?"

"Yes." He smiled as much as his butterfly filled stomach would let him. He then led her through the living room going unnoticed by everyone, and up the stairs to his room where he let her in, closing the door behind them.

"What is it?" She asked becoming a little concerned.

"Ah, I got you something." He said nervously, opening his drawer and pulling the box out. "I wasn't sure what to get you and then this idea popped up."

"You didn't have to get me anything Peter." She said.

"I wanted to." He shrugged and sat down, gesturing for her to do the same before handing her the box. "Anyway, you finally got it so that I can carry a gun legally."

"I figured that you might like that." She beamed and took the wrapping paper off to reveal a jewelry box. She then slowly opened it and let out a small gasp when she saw the silver pendant necklace, the picture on the front making her tear up.

"When Walter knocked over your picture and broke the frame a few weeks ago, I noticed that the glass had ripped the picture a bit. I got the idea then." Peter explained and looked down at the image of Olivia's mother that he had gotten put on the necklace.

"Thank you." She said, looking at him, a tear rolling down her cheek. She had been devastated when the picture of her mother had gotten ripped and didn't know what to say to Peter for going out of his way to do something like this for her. She locked her gaze with his and saw in his eyes everything that Rachel had been trying to convince her was there. Putting all rational thought from her mind, she put the box down and cupped his cheek, seeing his eyes widen slightly when she leaned in, and close when their lips met.

It only took a few seconds for him to respond and thread his fingers in her hair, pulling her closer to him deepening the kiss that he had longed for, for so long but letting her take control which she readily did, pushing him backwards and pinning him to the bed. She straddled his hips and heard him let out an appreciative sigh before she pulled her lips from his and looked at him.

"I love you." She said softly and saw his eyes widen.

"What?" He asked surprised to finally hear those words from her lips.

"I…" She stammered, going to climb off of him only for him to flip them over so that he was now pinning her to the bed to keep her there. He lowered his face so that his lips brushed her ear.

"Say it again…Please." He whispered, sending goose bumps across her skin.

"I love you." She repeated.

"I love you too." He whispered on her lips, capturing them with his own in an instantly deep kiss, his tongue pushing into her mouth where it twined with her own. They both knew that it was too soon to go further but neither cared as they let their fingers undo buttons and zippers, pulling shirts off and pushing pants down leaving them in their underclothing which was quickly shed in favor of feeling bare flesh against bare flesh.

Peter let his lips travel over her body, down to her navel and then back up to her lips tasting them while she reached between their bodies and grasped his large erection, placing it at her entrance and locking eyes with him encouraging him to enter her which he slowly did, drawing gasps of pleasure from both of them. They picked a speed the suited them both perfectly and had them both moaning in pleasure and speeding towards the proverbial edge, Olivia falling off it first, her climax crashing over her drawing out Peter's until they were both lying on the bed panting and sweaty.

"So Rachel was right." Olivia stated after she had calmed her breathing.

"What do you mean?" He asked with a confused look.

"She kept telling me that you love me but I didn't believe her."

"Why didn't you believe her?" He asked looking down at her.

"Because why would you love me? I'm pretty screwed up, damaged goods." She shrugged.

"You're not. And anyway, it's not exactly like I'm perfect and unscathed by my life. My father is clinically insane and my mother is dead." He reasoned. "I guess in a way we're kind of made for each other, just as damaged."

"I guess we are." She smiled and closed her eyes, both of them falling asleep to later by found by Rachel who beamed at them before closing the door and leaving them alone.