"Listen everyone! I want to tell you about Christmas Town!" Jack shouted to the audience. All at once everyone had settled down. Eve stood very still as most of the audiences eyes focused on her. She looked around as if looking for a place to hide from the hoards cold stare. Jack turned to her and gave her a reassuring smile. She returned it half heartedly. "Now to tell you about Christmas Town…" Jack continued. Eve found a spot behind a curtain and sat down on the stage floor as Jack lectured the crowd on Christmas. Only now did she see, while Jack was bouncing back and forth on the stage, how truly involved he could get about something he was passionate for. Pretty lively for a dead guy…Eve thought to herself and giggled. At the moment, Eve didn't realize how truly right she was…The minutes passed and turned into an hour. Eve, tired of sitting, stood up and walked to a table back stage. On it was a pad of paper and a pen. She looked back at Jack, whom seemed to be finishing his lecture. She peered from behind the curtain and caught sight of Dr. Finklestein steering his wheelchair out of the crowded room. Suddenly she realized that she would be alone with Jack in a few minutes. With his lecture coming to its end, Jack repeatedly threw glances in Eve's direction. She looked around frantically, wondering how to give Jack the slip. While she searched for a solution, it saddened her that she even had to avoid her friend. Eve loved being in the presence of the Pumpkin King, but after what had almost happened, she was certain Jack would try it again, would try to release emotions that Eve desperately tried to keep dormant inside of herself. Her sight quickly took in the pen and paper once again and she grabbed it. She scrawled a sad excuse to leave for the moment and then coming to the closing of her letter, she signed Your friend, Eve. She ripped the paper from the pad, grabbed her cloak and fled before Jack caught sight of her. Eve ran quickly, as one being chased, to Dr. Finklestein's. She slipped silently in his door, but kept vigil for a moment to make sure Jack had not followed her and also that no one had seen her. After a moment she closed the door and sighed.

"So what brings you here young fairy?" she heard a voice asked politely. She turned suddenly to see the doctor looking quite confused. She smiled and yanked at her cloak.

"Um, I just came over to check on the potion, you know? The one to get me back hom- er I mean back to the human world?" she replied as politely as possible. Her voice was shaky and as well as her hands. She prayed the doctor didn't realize this. He didn't react for quite sometime, but then finally to Eve's relief he smiled.

"Ah, yes, yes, come with me my dear. I was actually just going to send for Jack to bring you. Seems I need some of your DNA to get you back there." He said as he led her into his lab. She looked around his laboratory with awe. This looks like something from a horror movie, she thought. But she figured that this lab wasn't used for such dastardly deeds as the ones she had witnessed in those horrible films. The doctor led her over to a bubbling beaker. She stared at it curiously as it spat out amber colored liquid from the top of glass.

"Is this it?" she asked still staring at it. The doctor nodded.

"Yes, it would seem that all I need is a lock of your hair to help it along. Although I regret to say, even after that, it still will not be ready for a number of days." He replied. Eve lowered her head and sighed. Maybe I should stop being a baby and just face Jack, he'll understand, he is my friend after all…she thought. She looked at the doctor and smiled.

"Okay then…" she said as she yanked at a strand of her raven hair. She held it up to the doctor, who nodded. She then let it fall into the bubbling liquid. Suddenly a blast of colors emitted from the beaker. It boiled orange, then purple, then black, until it finally regained its amber tone. Both where taken aback by this phenomenon and the doctor gave Eve a glare.

"What could that have been about?" he questioned her as if she obviously knew. She shrugged, still glaring at the beaker. They stood silent for a while, when finally Eve sighed.

"Well, I had better be getting back to Jack. Thank you once again for doing this for me." She said courteously.

"Certainly, but if I may put in my input…to me this doesn't seem like such a good idea." He replied. Eve stopped at the door.

"Why?" she asked hesitantly.

"Because, I know Jack and let me tell you, the moment you leave this place, it will leave an everlasting wound on him. I've never seen anyone as close to him as you are…" he finished and went back to his experiments. Eve turned and opened her mouth to say something, but decided not too. She left and crossed the town to get back to Jack's house. The doctor's words stuck in her mind the entire walk home. If he could see it, then what excuse could she possibly have for Jack to not see it? She opened Jack's front door slowly.

"Jack?" she called. She waited, but there was no response. She sighed and fell onto his couch. Dusk was falling and Eve yawned. She glanced toward Jack's open bedroom door. Suddenly she realized she couldn't take his bed from him anymore. She got up and went in his room, searching his desk for something to write on. She spotted some parchment and a pen and quickly began to write to him again. And once again she signed it and then set it on the coffee table near the couch. She grabbed a spare blanket from his bed and settled down into the couch. She instantly fell into a troubled sleep.

***

Jack returned to the house just under midnight. His arms were bulging with Christmas ornament and decorations that had just been made only hours ago. He had wasted no time in getting on with his Christmas. He set the décor on his coffee table and sighed. Suddenly something caught his attention. A small piece of parchment was sticking out from underneath the bags and boxes. He pulled it out and read it.

Jack-

I decided to sleep on the couch tonight. It really makes me feel bad that I'm taking your bed from you, so it's all yours! Don't worry about me, I'm really use to sleeping on anything other than a bed! So with that, I hope you sleep well. Good night and I hope you have good dreams.

Love,

Eve

Jack suddenly realized the sleeping Eve on his couch. He stared at her for a while and then finally smiled. His eyes strayed back to the closing of Eve's letter. It caught him as odd, since her earlier note read something completely different. He set the note down and kneeled by Eve. He then scooped her up into his arms and carried her into his room. He set her down gently onto his bed and pulled the covers over her. Then he took a place sitting next to her sleeping form. He smiled. He bent over and stroked her cheek. The warmth was unimaginable to him. At that moment he would have given anything for her to hold his hand. He moved his hand to hers and intertwined his boney fingers in hers. He let the warmth of them fill him. Suddenly he felt Eve gasp his hand back; however she had not woken up. There was no denying it for Jack anymore…he had fallen in love with Eve. He wanted to lay just a tiny kiss on her lips, but he had to restrain himself. After all he wanted her to feel the same. Regretfully he took his hand from hers and made his way back to his living room, but as he left he heard a soft whimper come from Eve.

"Jack…Jack…"she whispered in her sleep. Jack grinned. She was dreaming of him. He made his way out of his room, silently cheering on the inside. There was hope for him yet. He returned to his boxes and bags of Christmas ornaments and began to decorate his home. This will be a pleasant surprise for her when she wakes up…