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Author's Note: Hello everyone! How are you? Hope you're doing well. Today I have for you a brand new chapter of "Christmas with The Formans" to kick off the holiday season that is now upon us. A bit early I know but I didn't want to start to late either, plus the holidays tend to get busy want to post while I still have the time. For this coming month this story will be my main focus, the shorter chapter and lighter subject will hopefully make the writing process go faster and will hopefully result in more chapters, if of course you all are still interested in reading it! Which I really hope you are! I love writing this fic and can only hope that you all enjoy reading it too. If you're a returning reader thank you so very much for coming back! If you're a new reader thank you soo much for stopping by and giving this fic a chance! Either way thank you for reading, I hope you enjoy it, please review if you can even if it's just to let me know you're still reading and ready for more. Thank you again for everything, hope you like, and as always please, Enjoy!


December 14, 1983

6:25 P.M.

Red and Kitty were seated at their kitchen table enjoying the dinner Kitty had prepared; however, unlike with most of the meals they had shared the past few days, they were joined by some company. The company of their adopted son, Steven Hyde, to be exact.

Hyde was the only one of the basement gang who wasn't intentionally avoiding the Formans and their non-Christmas home. It was something that was pretty hard to do considering the fact that he was the only one in the group who still lived with the parental pair. Sure, he hadn't been home much but that was mostly due to the busy and longer shopping hours over at Grooves and anytime he spent away from the Forman home when he wasn't working was usually at his girlfriend's insistence as well as part of her plan to get The Formans to celebrate Christmas this year.

Truth was his surrogate parents skipping Christmas didn't bother Hyde too much, he thought it was a bold move. And if anyone deserved a vacation get away he figured it should be the Formans. Still, he knew the whole Christmas boycott had to be tough on Mrs. Forman, which is why he tried to stay clear from holiday chatter when speaking to her.

And that was why Red did not mind having Steven there to share his dinner with.

Kitty, meanwhile, was just thrilled to have another mouth to feed. It was a Chris…holiday miracle!

"Well, if it isn't one of Santa's little helpers," Red commented after hearing the glass door slide open and spotting Jackie Burkhart at the entrance.

She really could have passed for one of Santa Claus's elves with her festive, but tastefully put together, outfit of red and green. And Kitty wasn't sure but she was almost certain that Jackie's bell shaped gold earrings had a ringing sound effect and all! But while his wife was admiring the young woman's elf-like getup the part of the girl's appearance that stuck out to Red was the multiple shopping bags she held in each hand.

He eyed the bags, not at all subtly. "What'd you bring this time? A partridge in a pear tree or three French hens?"

"Neither," Jackie's response was quick and sharp. "Because not only is that a terrible Christmas song but it's a terrible love song. What kind of person buys their true love a bunch of birds? Birds make bird poop and it's not like any of the eight maids he got her will clean it up, they're too busy milking cows!" she ranted on like she had given some good thought on this Christmas carol, she then turned to her eating boyfriend. "Steven, don't ever get me anything from that song."

With his mouth still full of fluffy mashed potatoes, Hyde merely nodded his head wordless.

Suddenly her dainty hand shot out for his shoulder. "Except maybe the five golden rings. If those golden rings also have diamonds on them."

"Noted," replied Hyde before he shoveled in another forkful of potatoes.

It was a short, quick response but was enough to make Jackie smile's grow and her shoulders raise up high they nearly touched her ears.

"Jackie, sweetie, why don't you sit down and I'll fix you a plate?" Kitty offered, already standing up from her seat. It didn't matter if her own plate got cold while she served up Jackie's dish, she'd take having another guest at her dinner table over a hot meal for herself any day.

"Thank you, Mrs. Forman but right now I have something that's even more important than food," explained Jackie, taking a dramatic pause before a grand smile beamed brightly from its spot on her lips. "Presents!"

Then like a magician pulling a rabbit from his hat, Jackie magically produced two gift boxes that appeared much larger than the shopping bags that they had come from. Both boxes were wrapped in a way that was not only beautiful but looked like it had been done with a lot of effort and love. Each gift had its own individual look with the help of some pretty paper and pretty ribbons of blue.

Ignoring the shocked expression that The Formans wore, Jackie handed them each a present. Red got the giftbox wrapped with the winter wonderland scheme of blue and white while Kitty received a box adorned with the traditional but classy, silver and gold.

"They're for you from us," informed the still smiling Jackie.

Hyde did not like Jackie's use of the word 'us,' especially since he knew who 'us' was referring to. "Yeah, and by "us" she means 'Jackie,'" he said to his adopted parents, not wanting to be part of this ploy or get mistaken for having any kind of involvement in it.

"No," the brunette shook her head, glaring warningly at her boyfriend. "By 'us' it means Jackie and Steven."

"No, it doesn't," he stated more like he was stating a fact and not making an argument.

"Steven, I already signed your name on the card."

His head titled just slightly. "Think again, doll."

Jackie's brows scrunched together and feeling her own bout of curiosity, Kitty picked up the gold ornament shaped gift tag attached to the present, turned it over and began to read its inscription out loud.

"Merry Christmas, from Jackie and…" she squinted her eyes and lifted the tag closer to her face. "A dark scribble."

Sharply swinging her head to the side so she could send a wide-eyed glare towards Steven, Jackie was instantly met with a smug looking smirk Steven wore on his face.

"Jackie, honey, it's a very sweet thought but Red and I already said we weren't accepting any Christmas gifts this year," Kitty reminded, not only Jackie but herself as well.

"You did?" the younger woman acted shocked with the added touch of a slacked jaw and fingertips at her right temple. "Oh that's right! It totally slipped my mind!"

Red wasn't at all fooled by Jackie's performance and instead sat there looking as skeptic as a child who was starting to question the reality of Old Saint Nick. It of course, didn't help Jackie's act when she swiftly brushed off her 'shock' by waving her hand in front of her face and shrugging her shoulders.

"Oh, well. What are you gonna do?" she said with a smile, as if there was nothing that could be done except take the gifts and forget the whole idea of skipping Christmas.

"We could return this stuff and keep the cash," Red threw out with his own shoulder shrug.

The smile on Jackie's lips stayed intact and her head tilted slightly. "But in order to find out where you'd have to go to return the gifts you'd have to open them first, which technically would mean you'd be accepting the gifts."

Jackie looked as pleased as a full bowl of Christmas punch. She seemed so proud of herself, looking ready to celebrate a victory with jingle bells and tinsel, it filled Red with new wave of annoyance.

"Alright, fine," he said shifting himself in his seat. "We accept these gifts…"

"Yay!" exclaimed Jackie and clapped her hands together.

Meanwhile Hyde and Kitty looked on with surprise and confusion. Had Jackie's gifts been magical enough to help Red realize the forgotten joys of Christmas? They hadn't even been unwrapped yet!

"And so you won't feel bad about not getting me anything yet," Jackie ignored the shocked expressions on her audience and reached into one shopping bag, retrieving two sheets of paper. "Here's my Christmas list. I made a copy for each of you."

She then proceeded to hand Red and Kitty each one of the sheets of paper that had writing on both the front and the back.

Red held the paper in his finger tips but didn't bother to even glance at its text; in fact, he was doing all he could not to crumble the thing up into a paper snowball.

He cleared his throat before making an attempt to finish his previous statement, "We'll accept these gifts as early birthday gifts."

That had wiped the grin clear off her face. "What?"

"Sure," Red leaned back in chair with ease. "This way we get to keep the gifts and you don't have to go out and buy us another gift a few months from now."

Jackie shook her head. this wasn't part of the plan! "But these aren't birthday gifts, they're Christmas gifts. Look at the pretty Christmas wrapping paper I used!"

"It is pretty," agreed Kitty while she gingerly touched the golden curls that had been made on the ribbon wrapped around the box she'd been given,

"The wrapping doesn't matter," Red argued and because he could see the wistful gaze in his wife's eyes he added, "Hell, it'll just be ripped off in a matter of seconds. It takes longer to wrap the damn thing."

"But…" Jackie stammered.

With a halting hand held before him, Red continued. "Now, I'll wait to unwrap mine on my birthday and Kitty'll wait to unwrap her gift that you got her, till her birthday."

"But I can't wait till my birthday to unwrap my gift!" The anxious way that Jackie spoke the words told how impatient the mere idea made her.

Red scowled. "We didn't get you a gift."

"Do you see how wrong that sounds?" Jackie asked, hoping the question would finally get Red to open his eyes; instead he rolled them, so Jackie went on. "Mr. Forman, Christmas is about giving gifts. I gave you a gift, now you give me a gift."

It sounded like Jackie was explaining the holiday tradition to a sweet little tot and Red Forman did not enjoy being talked down to. Steven Hyde on the other hand found the ordeal quite amusing.

"It is the rule of Christmas," he said with a smirk.

Hyde had meant his words as a joke, but Jackie had nodded her head in agreement and patted his shoulder, sort of thanking him for backing her up.

Kitty had noticed the exchange and it made her a bit nervous. "Jackie, honey, haven't you ever heard that it's better to give than to receive?"

"Exactly!" Jackie wanted to throw her hands up in the air. "And I'm trying to make it better for you by having you give to me, but your husband doesn't understand that! He's ruining Christmas!"

Frustrated and most of all fed up, Jackie took the gifts back, with no protest from either of The Formans—though Kitty's expression did look more on the worried side while Red sat there looking quite joyful and triumphant. Jackie shoved the boxes back into their bags, turned on the heel of her boot, and marched out of not only the kitchen but the Christmas-less house.

The bells of her earring jingled all the way as she left, making her exit a little less dramatic but when the sliding door shut forcefully behind her it caused Kitty to jump a bit in her chair.

Clasping her hands together, Kitty turned to her husband. "Well Red, what do you have to say about that?"

"Look Kitty, you know my plan wasn't to ruin anyone's Christmas," he firmly reminded her. "I just wanted you and I to skip it and get a little break from it all. The fact that it's making the dumbasses so miserable…well," Red paused like he was trying to find the right choice of words; he must have soon found them because a grin broke out onto his face. "That's just a nice bonus!"

When Kitty didn't laugh along and instead gave him a side eyed glare, Red could tell she wasn't in the mood to joke. The only thing it looked like she wanted to do was argue, which made Red's smile shrink in size. He didn't want to have this argument again, he didn't want to repeat himself nor did he want to see Kitty get even more upset.

So Red opted for a new option, rising to his feet and leaving the room before Kitty could say another word.

Kitty watched him leave, shaking her head back and forth while Hyde smirked from his seat beside her.

Once Red was gone, Kitty sighed deeply. "Oh, I hate seeing her so upset," she said, referring to Jackie. "But you know, I wish she wouldn't put so much importance on gifts. Gift giving isn't the only part of Christmas, you know."

Hyde nodded, he understood Mrs. Forman's concerns, but he also knew his girlfriend well enough to know things that seemed superficial on the surface often ran pretty deep. "Yeah, pretty sure this whole thing goes beyond the gift stuff."

"Oh?"

"Yeah, I mean it's mostly the gift thing," he couldn't deny Jackie's love of getting gifts. "But there's other stuff too. It's the not gettin' to see you and Red for Christmas. For as long as I can remember we've spent Christmas Eve and Christmas with you and Red, and now this year we won't even get to see you. It's gonna make this Christmas so…different."

It felt like a big lump of coal was stuck in Kitty's throat. She could remember using that very word to describe how this year's Christmas would be, even before the cruise idea had come about, and hearing Steven use it to describe his own Christmas just about shattered her heart.

Misty eyed, Kitty nodded in agreement. "It will."

So very different that Kitty was beginning to wonder if this different, hassle free, luxurious, cruise ship Christmas that Red promised her would really be all that it was cracked up to be. After all, how was she going to enjoy herself out in the warm Hawaiian sun when she knew that she'd left her poor babies deserted here in Snowy Wisconsin like the forgotten toys on the Island of Misfit Toys.

"Growing up Christmases weren't always the greatest. It's always been the holidays spent here that've felt warm and welcoming…you know, like Hallmark says holidays are supposed to feel," Hyde went on surprising himself that he'd said all this. Then again, Mrs. Forman was one of the very few people Hyde could never hide something from, even when he tried. Still feeling a bit embarrassed he tacked on, "You know, for Jackie. Jackie's the one we were talking about."

"Of course, Jackie," nodded Kitty while she contained her knowing smile. "And what about you honey?"

His brow furrowed. "What about me?'

"Well, you haven't said much about mine and Red's plans to skip Christmas this year."

"Not much to say," Hyde replied while shrugging his shoulders. "You and Red are adults; not like I can stop you from doing something."

Kitty knew Hyde meant the words that he told her but she also knew there was something he wasn't telling her.

"But?" she gently pressed.

"But," Hyde repeated in a form of a sigh, it was faster to give in than try to deny it. "I guess I kinda wish you were skipping Christmas next year."

When he saw the curiosity wrinkling itself onto Kitty's face he continued to explain. "You know, give us more time to get used to the idea and then you'd be here for…you know, this Christmas."

Pushing the cruise ship Christmas to next year sounded like it would have been a much better idea, but Kitty knew it was too late to change things now. Red had already bought the cruise tickets and after all they'd gone through the past few weeks to avoid Christmas, he wouldn't be willing to postpone their trip until next year.

She gave her second son a smile that she hoped didn't look too sad. "Well, there's always next Christmas."

"Yeah, next Christmas," Hyde agreed, briefly getting lost in his thoughts. "Maybe we can save up enough and go with you and Red on the cruise ship," his words tugged the corners of Kitty's lips higher and he smirked back. "I'm gonna go check on Jackie."

"Okay dear," Kitty said watching him grab his jacket before heading out onto the driveway.

Hyde leaving the room meant that Kitty was left by herself at the kitchen table. She sat there, not too sure of what to do now; she hadn't felt this sad and lonely since the start of all this on December first when her plans of decking the halls with the kids had fallen through.

As an attempt to busy herself and keep her mind of her sadness and growing guilt, Kitty carried the dirty dishes from the table to the sink, but she instantly froze was when she realized she wasn't so alone.

The little pepper shaker snowman was there. Sitting on the kitchen counter, smiling joyfully in Kitty's direction.

What was the little snowman doing on the counter? She had put it up on the kitchen shelf the other morning. Jackie hadn't been there long enough to have moved the knickknack without being noticed. It was doubtful that Steven moved it and even laughable to think it had been Red.

So then how had the little snowman gotten to where he was now? Why did it feel like he was watching her? And why was he smiling so much?

Had he always smiled in such an overly happy, annoying way, Kitty wondered.

Kitty couldn't take it any longer. She grabbed the mini decoration, pulled open the car key drawer, and practically threw the snowman inside before slamming it shut.


Author's Note: So what did you think? Yay? Nay? A little bit of both? Be sure to let me know in a review!

How many Christmas movie/specials/songs did you catch? Always like throwing those in.

Next chapter, while Red and Kitty are still trying to skip Christmas it looks like someone is trying to steal it and it's not the season's usual Grinch this year!

Until next time, thanks for reading, hope you liked, please review and lemme know what you think, stay tuned, take care, have a nice day and remember only 27 days till Christmas 2018!