Hi everyone!

Here comes another apology. Sorry for the delay! But your patience and support means the world to me and without it I would have given up many chapters ago. This will get finished, I promise! I'm now off school for Christmas - yay! Can't believe it is so soon. Also, Tony Grounds favourited my tweet about a series 2! Yay! Anyways, here is the next chapter. What're you all asking for for Christmas? :)

Love,

Sarah x

Chapter 14 - December 14th

Seeing isn't believing. Believing is seeing.

- 'The Santa Claus (film)' - Little Elf Judy

Prompt 14: Santa

"You got everythin'?" Molly Dawes asked Sam as she glanced at him in the car mirror.

"Yip, think so!" Sam replied, looking intently out of the car window. Charles had decided to drive him to school as the snow was still deep on the ground. Where there wasn't snow, it was ice, and he didn't want his son or girlfriend to get injured.

"What you doing today then, scamp?" Charles was focusing on the road but stole a glance at his son through the driver's mirror.

"I already told you daddy!" Sam stuck his tongue out and rolled his eyes. 'He obviously spends too much time with Molly.' Charles thought.

"I'm getting old, son."

"Too right." Molly smirked.

"Shut up, I'm joking. Anyway. Remind me again."

"Santa and his elves are coming, daddy! Don't you remember? It's a treat for everyone in the nativity!"

"Ah yes." Charles smiled at the memory of his son basically crying with excitement at the thought of meeting Santa Claus. Sometimes he envied his childhood innocence. After everything he had seen in the army, it was easy to forget what it was like to have such faith in the world. That was what he struggled with most. Humanity.

Ten minutes later, Charles parked the car in front of the school. Getting out, he opened Sam's door and lifted his bag out of the boot.

"Have a good day, Sam. Be nice to Santa." He smiled and winked before Sam ran off to the gate to play football with his friends.

"Bye dad! Bye Molls!" He called and waved over his shoulder then began to run again. Charles shook his head and chuckled.

"Were you that keen to get into school, Dawes?" He smirked.

"Always, sir." She smiled sweetly and discreetly gave him the fingers by running them through her hair. When he noticed, he chuckled loudly and grabbed her hand lightly, kissing her knuckles.

"I'm joking."

"You better be, you posh school twat." She giggled and kissed his mock pout at the insult before he started up the car again to drive them home.

"You okay, Sam?" Charles' voice was concerned as he studied his son. He'd noticed that he'd been awfully quiet since he'd got got home from school, which was unusual, especially when he had been so excited that morning to go.

Sam was looking at the tv but had a blank expression on his face, as though he was watching but not really seeing. He didn't hear his father's voice.

"Sam?" Charles said louder as he sat beside him on the sofa.

"Sam!" He poked his son lightly. Sam turned his head immediately and looked at his father. His eyes were so sad, so confused. He looked like he wanted to cry.

"Hey, scamp, it's okay. It's only me." He wrapped his arm around him and pulled him onto his lap gently. "What's wrong?"

Sam looked like he was contemplating how to answer. He opened his mouth then quickly shut it, as though he didn't want to speak because that would mean what he was going to say was true.

"G'on, mate. Spit it out." Charles put on a cockney accent, mimicking Molly. Sam laughed for a few seconds but then his brow fell in recognition, as though he was remembering the pain that had dominated him moments before.

"Sam, I can't help you if you don't tell me."

Sam stayed quiet for a few seconds then mumbled. "Is it true?"

"Is what true?"

"A boy said today that Santa isn't real. Is it true?" His eyes were so full of hurt and betrayal that Charles could feel his heart breaking.

Molly was standing in the doorway quietly. She giggled to herself, the look on Charles' face was priceless. The usually calm, collected and composed Captain James had nothing less than panic written all over his face. She decided to put him out of his misery.

"Charles! Can you help me with dinner?" Molly had never seen someone look so relieved. Muttering his apologies and promising to return, Charles ruffled Sam's hair and moved him off his lap, jumping off the sofa and shutting the living room door.

Walking into the kitchen, he leaned against the breakfast bar and ran his hands through his hair.

"Thanks." He mumbled, deep in thought.

"You're welcome. Being the good girlfriend that I am, I thought I'd help ya out a bit." She giggled and walked over to him, wrapping her arms around his waist. Charles smiled weakly before returning to his train of thought.

"What the hell do I tell him, Molls? Am I honest? Do I lie?" He looked torn. Molly reached up and placed her hand on his cheek, smiling when he leant into her touch. He lifted his hand up to cover hers.

At that moment, he looked into her eyes. He remembered when he had found out the truth from his parents. He too had found out through gossip at school after one of his friends had caught his parents wrapping his presents. He was heartbroken and automatically questioned his parents when the school bell rang at three o'clock.

He wondered about the time Molly had found out. He vaguely remembered her saying that she found out rather young, about six, when her dad had told her to 'grow the hell up' after she had asked they leave the front door open incase Santa couldn't get in. She had looked so sad when she talked about it. He wondered if that had been the source of her beginning to stop believing in everything around her. In her parents, her environment, her education... herself. It had taken her years to even begin to restore her faith in her life and he didn't want that for Sam. She hadn't deserved that.

She kissed his lips gently then lowered her hand. "You'll do the right thing, Charles. You always do. I promise." She smiled and unwrapped herself from his arms, walking out of the room and upstairs.

"Please tell me, daddy." Sam's eyes were pleading as he sat again on Charles' lap.

Charles took a deep breath then looked his son in the eyes. "Do you believe in Santa, Sam?"

Sam nodded automatically. "Yes."

"Then he is real. Santa is real because he is in your heart. Santa isn't about the presents you get on Christmas Day, as nice as he is for giving them, but it's about what he teaches you, son. Santa teaches you to love. He teaches you to give to others, to be a good person... he teaches you to believe. And that is so, so important, Sam. You have to believe."

"What do you believe in then, daddy? If I believe in Santa?"

"I believe that when I wake up everyday I will do the right thing. I have faith that I am being guided to do that. When I was in the army, I had to believe that everything would be okay. If I was constantly worried that something bad was going to happen, I couldn't have got through it. I had to believe that splitting up with your mum was the right thing and it was, because now I am in love and it is beautiful."

"But what if I stop believing?"

"You can't. At some point, you won't want Santa to bring you presents. Then he'll hand it over to me, your mum and Molls. But it doesn't matter if that day is tomorrow or if it's in twenty years from now. Santa will be in your heart for as long as you let him, and you should keep him there for as long as you can, Sam. The world's a tough place, but Santa is everything good. Never stop believing in him."

Sam smiled and kissed his dad's cheek. "I won't, daddy. So is Santa still coming this year?"

"You'll have to write to him again and ask him." He grinned.

Molly smiled at the sight in front of her. She was hiding the doorway silently, feeling her heart warming as Charles and Sam hugged each other. 'This is what Christmas is about.' She thought.

"I'm so bloody happy that's over." Charles announced as he came into their bedroom, unbuttoning his shirt.

Molly giggled. "Is he asleep?"

"Yup. Only after I read him 'Twas The Night Before Christmas' again, though." He smiled.

Molly got off the bed and wrapped her arms around his neck. "You did really well. What you told him was beautiful."

"You heard it?" She nodded and he chuckled, wrapping his arms around his waist after giving up unbuttoning his shirt. "Minx." She winked.

"I'm dreading having that conversation again at some point." He sighed as Molly carried on unbuttoning his shirt where he left off.

"Again?" Molly raised her eyebrow.

"When we have children." He smiled gently at her, resting his forehead against hers.

She removed her hands from his shirt and rested them on his chest. "Children?" She laughed nervously. They'd never talked about it before, but she wanted to have children with him badly. As did he. She smiled at the thought.

"One day, Dawesy. Only if you want to, though."

"I do, bossman. One day. I promise." He leant down and lightly brushed his lips against hers.

He grinned at her reply. "I love you."

"Ditto." She beamed at him before reaching up to kiss his lips again, missing the contact she had felt seconds earlier. "One day." She murmured her repeat and smiled to herself. She couldn't wait to spend her future with him, including this Christmas and the many Christmases still to come.

There you go! Sorry for the delay but this one is rather long so I hope that makes up for it! Thank you so much for all of your lovely reviews. They make me smile so much. I genuinely love you all! And thank you for all the birthday wishes. I hope you're all having a great December and have a lovely Christmas week :) Thank you for everything! Xo